update on studio

I am excited to post that our new home with new studio is finally underway. The studio won't face the lake but will open onto a courtyard/flower garden.

a most unusual day

When All is Said and Done, oil, 16x20 inches •

Farewell to Summer, oil, 16 x 20 inches

Yesterdays, oil, 16 x 20 inches

Today was framing day for the three oil paintings for my upcoming show at The State of the Arts Gallery. When I got all three framed, I realized I had failed to photograph them first.

And, when photographing them and naming the files, I realized I had failed to ponder their titles - something that usually happens during the painting process.  So, one by one I named them.

And, now as I post them here, I am surprised that all together, they tell today's story: When all is said and done, farewell to summer yesterdays. I am amused and awed by this message that has come to me in this surprising way. I'm thinking about that message and will write about it on my life blog.

Note: several hours after I posted the images and text above, we learned that the building permit we have waited for all summer is ready to issue. Yay!

september song progression

September Song plein air study and beginning of studio piece

September Song, pastel, 16 x 20 inches

I have a prospectus for an interesting exhibition. Each artist may submit a plein study and its corresponding studio painting. The theme is water so the obvious choice for me is our garden pond. It was recently restocked with gold fish after the Great Blue Heron ate all the previous ones. On a sunny day the orange/red fish are a spectacular color combination against the sun-drenched green/gold pond water. Our pond is rimmed on the shady backside with bamboo, bending and swaying in September breezes.

etsy store update

I'm catching up on a few things. Today's project was updating my etsy shop. Right now it is small original art and fine art prints.

still life oil paintings

I'm finishing up the last painting for my upcoming show at The State of the Arts Gallery, Olympia, WA. All oil paintings, still life scenes, 6 x 6 inches to 16 x 20 inches. Opening reception is Friday, Oct 3. If you are in the area, please stop by.

This blog focuses on my art but lately most of my time has been spent on other things. Not everyone wants to read about that but if you do, here is a link to my Artist's Life Journal blog.

good news for fond memories

"Fond Memories," pastel, 7.5 x 7.5 inches

Today I received the good news that my painting, "Fond Memories" received the HK Holbein Award from juror Diana Sanford in the Northwest Pastel Society 2014 NPS Members' Exhibition at the Allied Arts Association, Richland, WA.

Last February, this painting was offered on Daily Paintworks but it didn't sell. Now, of course I'm very glad it didn't.

a turning point?

"Turning Point: Color Study for Pond Painting"
painted August 29, 2014

Each painting we create is a separate experience but together all our paintings make us the painters we are at the moment.

I wondered what would happen when I went back to pastel after the series of small still life oil paintings I began last spring. I painted orange cups, red cherries, and most of the small paintings had a lot of saturated color.  This is a pastel plein air study of our garden pond, a subject I have painted many times before but never quite as brightly as this one.

A long title for a small painting (6 x 7.25 inches), "Turning Point: Color Study for Pond Painting," is available for purchase on Daily Paintworks.