The Steward

Too bad that all the people who know how to run the country are busy driving taxicabs and cutting hair.

George Burns

Although I've posted this one before and kind of even sort of put in in a frame I knew it wasn't really done. I put in maybe four or five more hours just tightening up some edges and loosening up others. My quote really doesn't have much to do with the work that I did only that maybe what one thinks is finished in Washington really isn't. ANYWAY, this is an art blog and I'll stick to the subject. I really enjoyed working on this one getting the different shades of gray to reflect where the light was coming from and also to give a three dimensional effect. My favorite critic told me I "nailed it" so this time I am done.

Evening Sunset 2

Music is a strange thing. I would almost say it is a miracle. For it stands halfway between thought and phenomenon, between spirit and matter.

Heinrich Heine

Mark O'Connor is the best fiddle player I've ever had the pleasure to hear. He started playing at the age of 11 and in less than a year was winning competitions at a national level. My absolute favorite number he does is Jerusalem Ridge. It is bluegrass fiddling at its finest. It's also the song I play when I want to really get moving on a painting. I haven't touched this Evening Sunset in quite a while but I knew that I needed to get more of an underpainting job done on the tree and other greenery. This is the point where its really important to work the whole canvas at once. Although it still doesn't look like much the bones are there. Mark had me flying all over this! Next session will be much slower ~ probably some yoga music ~ time to work on details.

The Window 2

The sky is the daily bread of the eyes.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

I almost titled this painting "Imagination" ~ what is outside of the window? Is that brilliant sunshine streaming in or a raging blizzard? Maybe my mind is focused on weather because my husband is traveling in a snowstorm on business and I am sitting on my porch in bright sunshine surrounded by palm trees. Emerson definitely had it right, though. No matter what the weather, the sky is always magnificent to behold.

As far as the painting goes, it was fun trying to create the look of an old structure. The inexact lines of the window frames coupled with the uneven paint on the wall definitely give the room an aged look. Also keeping the furniture to the bare minimum adds to the simplicity of the composition and helps to lead the eye to the focal point ~ the light from the window. No matter what the temperature is I hope the sun is shining on you.

The Window

Everything comes to him who hustles while he waits.

Thomas A. Edison


Last weekend we took a trip to Winter Park, Florida. It is one of the most charming towns I have ever been in. One long street divides the town in two ~ a beautiful park on one side and a residential neighborhood on the other with beautiful homes overlooking tranquil lakes. The street is one long avenue of restaurants and shops. Although I still intend to finish off a lot of unfinished projects I was so taken with a small photograph in one of the shops I had to stop on the way home and pick up a small canvas and get to work on this little painting. I love the simplicity of the composition as well as the color scheme. Don't let the bed ruffle fool you ~ the black is just an underpainting for something softer.

Red Morning Bouquet 2

It is better to wear out than to rust out.

George Whitefield

I hope the above quote is true because I am on a tear to get so many projects done and yet I keep getting more ideas for new ones ~ not the least of which is working on my photography skills. At any rate, this one is going into the finished pile as well. Since I overworked that drawing last month I'm very hesitant to keep working on things too long. This will take months to dry before it can be varnished so it may go back into the "just a few more touches" pile before all is said and done.

Red Morning Bouquet

This is a prime example of why I need to take a course on how to photograph oil paintings to be posted on the computer. This painting looks much better in person (even if I do say so myself). Anyway, I have finally decided to make the flowers red. There is an underpainting of shades of blue and then another of shades of white which are working to give them some depth. Next step will be to get to work on the greenery and add more dimension to the pot. So far I'm pleased with how the light is cascading across the tips of the flowers ~ by darkening the greenery they should pop out even more. That's my leap!

Living is a form of not being sure, not knowing what next or how. The moment you know how, you begin to die a little. The artist never entirely knows. We guess. We may be wrong, but we take leap after leap in the dark.

Agnes de Mille

New Year's Pear

We act as though comfort and luxury were the chief requirements of life, when all that we need to make us really happy is something to be enthusiastic about.

Charles Kingsley

I love New Year's Day! I love the idea of fresh beginnings ~ a chance to start anew, get organized, and make plans. That's where this pear came from ~ I plan to finish up many of my projects that have been sitting on the back burner. This one required about an hour of finishing touches. Of course, no painting is ever truly done in the eyes of an artist but I'm walking away from this one (for now). There's a lot I'm not happy with (the ribbon for one) but a lot I am happy with (the texture of the pear). Anyway, happy new year ~ may it be a healthy and peaceful one.