Loading Pumpkins

11"x11" oil

Wrong time of year, but I have been wanting to do this painting for a while.  The beauty of painting from photos is that you can capture the image any time you want.  Also, there is the advantage of not having to haul an easel, paints, etc., etc., around with you.  The disadvantage is in not being there in the changing light with the sounds of nature and wind and breathing in the beauty of the experience.  When I paint from photos, I use them as inspiration and almost always change them by adding things or subtracting or rearranging.  I am grateful to feel confident to do this now.  When I first started oil painting I was a bit nervous about adding or subtracting.  Now it part of what I look forward to.  It is the exciting part. The setting of this painting is a local sugarhouse.  I will let you use your imagination to guess what I changed about it.

Gourd Painting acrylic

I also painted this gourd, which I will now varnish.  It is about 15"  tall.  I did one last year and I really like painting these, so I might make an effort to get more.  They are gooseneck gourds which is why I painted it like a weird bird.  The design was inspired by my love for my family with symbols which give a nod towards some of the things we love doing together.

30-30 #1 Day 8

9"x9" oil

I have been traveling a lot.  I just got back from 2 weeks of sand, sun, surf and family and it was wonderful, but I did not look at art, paint or draw.  I thought about it, but that is all.  I am suppose to be doing Leslie Saeta's 30 paintings in 30 days challenge and it is a great way to get myself motivated, but I am already 8 days and 7 paintings short!  So, now that our official family vacation is over, I am moving into fall mode.  I have a couple of commissions to finish, and really wanted to choose a theme to do for the month, but I think it will be a hodge-podge (hotchpotch) of subject matter.  I also was going to do images for a children's book I am thinking of illustrating, but I think I need more focus to attempt that.  I have called myself a daily painter for a few years, but I really need to get back to that to claim it.  Life is just so full of fun and sweet things to do!  This painting is for sale so contact me if you are interested.

Why We Live Here

8"x10" oil

I am selling this painting with all proceeds going to help a young man (former elementary student of mine) finance a trip to Haiti to help build an orphanage.  It is $225 plus $10 shipping and I am selling it framed.  The painting was inspired by a painting I saw of Italy, but I decided to do my home state of Vermont with Camel's Hump in the background, a colonial style house, Rosa Rugosa in the foreground and field of rape seed which is the source of canola oil and is being pressed in New Hampshire and sold in Farmer's Markets.  Trials on growing rapeseed in Vermont have been studied by the University of Vermont, but sunflower growing seems to have taken hold throughout the state.  Both sunflowers and rapeseed make for a very picturesque landscape! Email me if you are interested in purchasing this painting which will aid Josh on his humanitarian adventure.

True Pleasure

8"x10" oil

I understand our arctic temperatures are going to reach seasonal norms tomorrow.  Yeah!  That means 20-30 degrees which sounds down right balmy to me right now!  And...we are going to have sunshine to-boot!  In celebration I decided to paint this picture which was inspired by a photo I saw a long time ago in a newspaper.  There were several kids in the photo, but I thought this expression told the whole story.  We should all find this much pleasure in the simple things!

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Boy Toys

8"x10" oil

Back to still life painting.  I set this one up with my husband's favorite growler, a toy wooden ladder, and some wooden blocks...so, I call it "Boy Toys."  I am learning a lot from doing these still life paintings.  I plan to do more, until I am really comfortable with setting them up and getting the lighting right.  I am looking forward to the growing season so I paint still life paintings with fresh flowers!

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Blessings

8"x10" oil

Frequently people (especially beginning artists) ask the question, "When do you know when the painting is finished."  I don't really have a good answer for this, but I am sure someone does.  For me, the answer is frequently, "stop before you mess it up!"  This painting was like that.  It just came very easy and quickly and I felt really happy painting it.  How could I not?  She was smiling her contagious smile at me the whole time!  There are things I could refine about this, but I just wanted to keep the spontaneity of  it and the fresh strokes.
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A Face to Love

8'x10" oil

Happy Valentine's Day!  We are so fortunate to be surrounded by family and friends that we can share our celebration of love.  My husband and I met on Valentine's Day 28 years ago, so this holiday is always special for us.  However, I can't help but think about all the children in the world that need to be taken care of and loved who aren't because they are in sad circumstances.  So I am dedicating this painting to all of you little ones who deserve better.

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Abstract Flower

8"x10" oil

I had a need to do something really loose and leaning towards the abstract,  I decided to do flowers using the dark background I have been using in the still life paintings I have been doing.  Then using both a brush and a palette knife, with thick and thin paint, I just let myself go with it.  I really like the suggestion of the flowers without defining them.  It was a good exercise.

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Hope for the Future9"x9"

9"x9" acrylic

The last few paintings I have done have been from other people's photos.  I like painting from photos because you can do things that make it a better image, more fun, more imaginative.  I have great respect for really artistic photographers.  They can capture things in a professional and artistic way which most of us can't.  The truth is that many of the photos we take that have meaning or tell a story are pretty crumby images, but they still are important and special.  Each painting I do from a photo teaches me something more about how to do it better.  Painting from life is always good, but painting from photos is also inspiring to me, and I am able to do more and practice my craft because of the availability of photos.  I agree that it is good to take your own photos to paint from, but I have found that many of the commissions I have done needed a reference photo I could not take. This has pushed me to actually embrace photos for the tools they can be.

SOLD

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Weston

9"x9" Oil

I did this a while back for the DPW challenge to paint water.  It was also something fun to paint on a day when I was really stressed.  It is right next to the Weston Playhouse in Weston, VT.  I am noticing that my image is not quite straight.  The waterfall has a horizontal top...believe me.  It is the photo that is off.  I love the colors of this. The blue seems almost too blue but when the sky is really clear that is what you get here.  This is a lovely spot, and the Weston Playhouse is really a wonderful theater.  Weston is a destination spot and has lots of fun places to visit.
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The Wall

9"x9" oil

This is another painting I completed at Dreama's Workshop.  I came away from that workshop with a couple of reminders and realizations.  I try not to remember everything because I find I just feel confused and constrained when I do, so I choose to focus on just a few things.  One thing that really left its mark was that each participant's paintings retained their unique signature style even though we were painting the same image with the same palette and technique.  This kept coming back to me.  Another thing which I really wanted to latch on to, was how to get the brilliant color and little pops of color which is so evident in Dreama's work.  I feel like I achieved that in this painting.  I need to really think about what color combinations excite me and make that a priority in my work, if that is what excites me. 

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Alone Together

8"x10" oil

What kind of paintings do you like? I have been thinking about all the different things I do, and my favorites run the gamut of subject matter. "Alone Together" This was a oil practice demo I did for a recent painting class of beginners painting in acrylic. I also did one in class in acrylic on a larger canvas. 

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Ready, Set, Go!

8"x10" acrylic

This is the determined "Tom Boy" Princess (is Tom Boy PC???)!   Look good and ride fast!  She reminds me of Pippi Longstockings a bit!  To purchase this painting go here. I painted this while visiting my mom who is also a painter.  She paints in acrylics so I did too. Here is an example of her work:

Finally, I am giving away 3 paintings so enter to win one of them by:

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These are the three paintings:

Each painting is 5"x7" oil on panel (unframed)

The Circus

8"x10" oil

Something I have learned about myself, when I am overly stimulated visually, it is hard for me to paint.  I found this to be true after visiting Las Vegas for 2 weeks for the purpose of painting, and also after attending the circus last week.  This painting is a result of that visit, and although I am happy with the final result, the process was a bit painful.  I have also come to the conclusion that I can't paint when my grand children are visiting.  I am way too distracted!

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