Cypress Sentinals Watch Over The Vines

More from the cold wax experimentation. Very fun to work with this medium!

Pink Hollyhocks

More Hollyhocks – I just love these Victorian flowers with their columns of happy little blooms.

Salmon Peonies

Another painting of plump peonies using a roughed in background with the cold wax and oil.

Three Windows In My Father's House

Reference to the holy trinity of course.

Confident, They Were Always With Her

Not everyone can see them.
She was always so confident.
Well. . . they were always with her so it was always different for her.
The Hubbard Park was always very magical for everyone, especially on the old, red merry-go-round near the baseball diamond. They loved to play with her in that park.

(16x20, oil & cold wax on canvas board)

Lucy & Toby, 22x28, oil on canvas

Toby thoughtfully reflects, looking into the fire about what a long and happy friendship the two of them have had. Lucy rests in her bed– she’s older – knowing Toby is watching over her and the home. These are my cousin’s babies - I painted this for her. I will be sending it out to her in California as soon as the oil dries.

Hollyhocks, 16 x 20, oil on canvas board

I just finished another flower painting – hollyhocks. I enjoyed everything about painting this composition – I used yellows for the rock wall instead of gray/green which made the whole scene happier for me. It was a quick work with chunky brush strokes. I added cold wax to the paint in the red flowers themselves for dimension.

Brothers Barrel Tasting, oil on canvas, 24X28

I painted this painting in a very short time – I really controlled myself to use fewer brushstrokes and it worked well. The shadows behind the barrels are dark but this photo just shows glare from the varnish – I used a huge brush for the walls and barrels in order to force myself to rough out the image because that is what I love in other artist work - I am not advanced enough in anatomy to be able to do the same with the people in this painting. I had to use a smaller brush but did not let myself rework any of this. I also tried to create a very warm tone to the whole composition. This was a very fun project for me.

Hydrangeas, oil on canvas board, 11X14

Here is a funny little interpretation of hydrangeas in the garden on a sunny day.

my Studio

Here is my studio - it's the happiest little room in my house - I actually share it with my son and daughter who are also artists.

Study of Peonies, oil on canvas, 12X10

I just completed this work – it is a study of a work by an artist I saw on Ebay – honestly I could not read the name on the work and it was auctioning from a site selling art from a number of artist – and they were not highlighting or naming the artisist??? However, I loved the work and wanted to learn to paint peonies like that so I did a study and will call it a study to be safe. I love it so much that I just had to post it, even though it was not my original idea, but a study of another artist. This painting now belongs to my mother.

Threshold, acrylic on canvas, 24X36

Enter at your own risk – that’s the meaning I wanted to portray – its life – you enter, even while you have no idea what is on the other side. This was going to be a very elaborate architectural painting but it became so frustrating that I ended up using a sort of impressionism instead.

Venice, acrylic on canvas, 18X24

This was painted a few years ago and was really my first painting. I had so much fun painting it that I was hooked and have been painting ever since.

Study of Sunset Over Wheat Field, acylic on cardboard, 18X24

This is a study I did on another artist who used different techniques to create this look. I first painted an under painting of dark thick brown, chunky brush strokes. I then painted my sunset and used sand paper to sand off the surface to reveal some of the under painted brown.

Stone Villa in Tuscany, oil on canvas board, 11X14

This would be my dream home – stone villa (with updated and posh plumbing of course) sharing a hillside with a private vineyard and quaint winery!

Road Side Shop, oil on canvas board, 8X10

I am so drawn to yellow buildings – it seems now when I see them, I simply must do a painting – especially yellow stucco buildings with red tile roofs such as this one – it was a road side café in France.

Opposites Attract, acrylic on Canvas, 18X24

I love buildings with red tile roofs and had such fun painting these.

Sunflowers, oil on canvas, 24X24

My dear friend Gina grows sunflowers all around her back yard. She gave me a vase full last summer and they were so rich, weighty and droopy so I painted a rich red background to try to portray this feeling.

Sunflower, acrylic on canvas, 10X10

Probably my favorite color combination, blue and yellow.

Blue Heaven

I loved this pool. The back tiles are actually a beautiful periwinkle blue - Periwinkle Blue is my favorite shade of all of the blues. Of course I love any shade of blue - since I was very young, blue was my favorite color. I'm always amazed when I meet someone who does not have a favorite color. I tried to change my favorite color in my 30s because I thought it was not fashionable. You know, it is known to be a cool color so I worried perhaps that I might be a cool personality. I tried to make reds and oranges my favorite so I would be considered a hot personality, but try as I might I could not draw myself away from blues. Don’t misunderstand me, I love all colors – absolutely love them all and am happy when I am surrounded by a multitude of color, even to the point that some would consider color chaos. But blue is my heaven. Also, now I am older, now I know, I am not a cool personality but an artist with great passion in my soul. Perhaps I also love blue because I am an Aquarian (a water child). And the draw to periwinkle - February’s birthstone is the purple amethyst. But I also suspect it is linked to peace, tranquility, composure and poise (the qualities I most respect in humans) – a stillness of one’s core, self disciple in one's soul to stay still long enough to see the heavens and all of the beauty of God’s treasures, the characteristic that sets an artist apart from other people.