Holiday Show

Last Saturday evening the Holiday Small Works show opened at Segil Fine Art Source gallery in Old Town Monrovia. It was a festive and very well attended show, with gallery owner Laura Segil presiding as gracious hostess. The art displayed was truly dazzling, with many of Southern California's best artists represented. I was honored to have three of my pieces included in the show, which will run through the end of the month.
Be sure to catch it if you are in the area, you'll be glad you did. Visit Segil's website here.

See's

Here's a small watercolor that packs a lot of calorie-free chocolate joy. You can bet the still life prop used here is long gone. This piece is 4 1/2"x 4 1/2".

Asparagus Bouquet

Here's a new watercolor of a bunch of asparagus bound with a length of twine and standing up on an old wooden cutting board. This piece is 7"x5". Sold

Cherries on Linen

Here's a new still life just completed. This beautiful old linen piece has seen a lot of wear over its lifetime but still works wonderfully in still life settings. This piece is acrylic on canvas and is 8"x8". Sold.

Landscape Continues

I'm glad to be able to get a few hours in on this landscape today. I've been doing a lot of varnishing of other pieces which is essential work but seems to eat up a lot of painting time. I enjoy doing a landscape in the midst of a lot of still life work, too. It sort of clears my head and makes the ensuing still life work flow more easily.

Landscape Progress

This doesn't look much different than the last image because.......right! It hasn't had much work the past few days. Still, it's coming along.

Still Waters

Here's the beginning of a new landscape. Posting a painting in progress at such an early stage is a little intimidating as it may tank still but I think it will work out. This is a scene from the trip my daughter and I took to Ireland a few years ago. It is the Ballynahinch River in county Galway.
I'm painting this one in acrylic on a 20"x16" Ampersand panel.

Long Shadows

Here's a watercolor sketch of the hillside where I walk the dogs in the late afternoons. The shadows lengthen, creating ribbons of light and shadow. This watercolor is 5"x7".

Apple Study

Here's another small watercolor as I ease back into my studio routine. I got busy doing other stuff last week but will have to get back to work this week. This apple is just beautiful to look at, but it being August I really doubt it will be much good to eat, beauty being skin deep applies especially to storage apples in late summer. Still I couldn't resist it in the market and at least it's good to paint. This watercolor is 6"x6".
SOLD

Cherries in Blue Willow

This one is completed and a rough ride it was. Anyway I'm pleased with how it came out and relieved we both survived. I don't know what it is about cherries and blue willow dishes but they always seem to go so well together.

More Progress

This one is coming right along and has really hit the fun stage. I did get pretty bogged down with it but another good session should have it completed.

Red Bartletts

Here's a somewhat larger watercolor study. These beautiful red bartletts are available later in the year for a fairly short time and I took the reference photos for this piece in the fall. This composition will probably evolve into a larger acrylic piece. This study is 10"x8".
Sold.

Summer Grazing

This handsome bay is completely at peace grazing in his mountain pasture, his coat glossy in the sunshine. This watercolor painting is 5"x7".

Pansies

The pansy has to be one of the most cheerful of flowers. This watercolor is 7"x5". Sold.

Bartletts Completed

It's done and was really a pleasure to work on. This one is slated for the Fenton/Stahl Gallery in WA.

New Pear Still Life Progressing

Here is the first photo of my new bartlett still life, which is sharing my attention with the cherry painting in the previous post. It is actually farther along than it looks and hopefully the next image of it will be its completion.

Progress

Well, progress is a relative term but here is evidence that I have revisited the stalled cherry painting. I am working on it along with another acrylic still life which is in a much too early stage to photograph. Between the two of them I have something to work on when I despair over one. They are both in that difficult stage but this one is beginning to emerge.

Bartlett Study

This small watercolor is a study of the year's first bartletts for a larger acrylic gallery piece. This watercolor is 6"x6". Sold

Blue Willow and Cherries

Here's a little watercolor with a lot of detail. The small blue willow plate provides an interesting background for the cherries. This watercolor is 4 1/2"x 4 1/2".
SOLD

Pear Trio

After quite a few days working on local wildflowers and scenery I thought I would revisit the still life. So here we have a trio of green D'Anjou pears arranged in strong light on my favorite side table. This watercolor is 5"x7".

Another Mountaintop View

Here's another scene from the mountaintop, just a little to the left of the previous post. From here you can see far below the fields in the valley below, and far beyond the faint outline of the sierras. This watercolor is 7"x5"

Mountaintop View

These twisted and weather-beaten pines are on a rocky ledge overlooking the valley below. The elevation is about 9000' and the view below the ledge looks down to nearly sea level. One feels on top of the world. This watercolor is 7"x5"

More Wildflower Studies

Three more wildflower studies. Red penstemon, lupine, and wild iris are done in watercolor, 7"x5".

Wildflower Studies

Here are three new watercolor studies of the wildflowers blooming now. The first is Indian Paintbrush, next is a wild rose and last is the Sego lily. They are all 7"x5".

Iris Meadow

Today I took the dogs up the mountain to photograph some wildflowers for an upcoming project. Once again the meadow is filled with the delicate wild iris. Hiking up higher we found larkspur, lupine, wallflower, sego lily, paintbrush, red penstemon and a great many I didn't know. My field guide is heavy enough I decided to leave it behind and rely on sketches and photos as I was lugging water for the dogs and myself as well as sketching materials and camera. Now I wish I had brought it. Oh well, I'll get back up there in a week or so when the next wave blooms. I am so blessed to live here.

Two Pears

I resisted calling this one Pear Pair. I enjoyed the variety of color in these two, layers of yellows, reds, blues and greens. This watercolor is 6"x6"
SOLD

Summer Pasture

Today is the one year anniversary of this blog. It has been an incredibly difficult year and painting was simply impossible for a good deal of it but now, by the grace of God, I am back in the studio, and staring at the blank paper and/or canvas is no longer a show-stopper.
The pastures in the valley are still green from the earlier rains and this mare and foal, glossy and relaxed are mildly interested in the viewer, too mellow to come over to visit but not about to miss a possible treat if offered. This watercolor is 4 3/4"x 6 3/4".

Getting Oriented

As I continue to make changes in my new work space I brought in a table I have used for still life set- ups many times in the past and put it near the north window. With a few D'Anjou pears and a hard-working linen table scarf I began the process of getting comfortable with the work area. It will take some settling in but this is a good beginning. This watercolor still life is 6"x8".
SOLD

Rose Study

Here's a study of a pink rose from a photo I took last summer. I had no idea how fun this was going to be playing with all those layers of soft reds. This watercolor piece measures 6"x6".
Sold.

Mountain Meadow

This watercolor is a sketch of a meadow up on the mountain. Richly shadowed clouds pass over the pale blue sky and the air is rich with the scent of pine and sage.

Ducks

Three mallards at the town park posed with the sun shining on the pond behind them. This watercolor is 5"x7".

Two New Watercolors

SOLD


Two new watercolors today. I started the tomatoes over the weekend and finished it today along with the pear study. Tomato study is 6"x6", pears are 5"x7". SOLD

Cherry Bowl

Here's the first image of a still life I just started. The bowl is my favorite blue willow one and this is going to take some time but I'll chip away at it and post progress from time to time.

Backlit Iris

I took a photo of this iris about a month ago. It was an overcast day and this was the only blooming iris in the garden. Photos were coming out decidedly dull when the sun broke out momentarily, making the bloom glow with a brilliant late afternoon light. I plan on doing a larger painting of this study before long. This study is 5"x7". Sold.

June Iris

This year has not been a big year for iris, at least not yet but this one blooms bravely. Daffodils and iris seem to be among the few bulbs the ground squirrels leave alone so they are a standard in mountain flower beds. This one is a pale velvety violet.
This study is watercolor on paper and measures 8 3/4"x 6 1/2".

Cherry Study

This study is the first, I hope, of many cherry pieces this summer. They're great summer eating but painting them is even better. The rich colors of this batch are just over the top.
This watercolor on paper is 5"x7". SOLD.

First Columbine

In the rain-soaked garden I spotted this the first of the columbine blooms of the year. They are such beautiful and delicate flowers, yet so undemanding and reliable. I've never seen them in the woods or open areas around here but these came from the eastern sierras years ago, and planted in the flower garden they have done well year after year. The rain has been one of those gentle all-night and off and on all day deals, soaking the drought-plagued forest and filling the air with the incredible fragrance of pine and sage and all rain-soaked things. Um....wet dogs too but I hardly add that one to the fragrance list.
This study is a watercolor on paper and is 7"x5".

Still Life with Glass Pitcher

Yesterday I got started on doing a little work on this still life I did a few years ago. I had stripped the varnish and just needed to work on one small area but one thing led to another and before I knew it hours had slipped by and I had reworked several areas I had thought were fine. Fiddling with a finished painting can be disastrous but in this case it seems to have been just what it needed. Just what I needed too!

Wild Larkspur Study

The past several days I have been moving things around and getting my studio set up after the very long and sad season of seeing Mom home. Yesterday I actually dusted off my watercolors and took a hike in the woods. Everywhere are the red paintbrush, the blue larkspur and lupine and yellow sulphur flowers. Starting up painting again is pretty overwhelming but doing nature studies of these little beauties is pleasant and is getting the art engine revved up again.

Black Crowned Night Heron Completed

This painting is done and I am pleased with it. The photo would be better taken outside in more even lighting but alas there is way too much snow out there so that project will have to wait.

Heron Update

I've had a little time today to work on the heron painting. One thing I really like about it is the soft mist in the background and how the fog extends to create a border. It's been snowing all day and staying home and painting seems the thing to do.

Black Crowned Night Heron

My last blog entry was Oct.30? This blog is covered with dust and cobwebs. I have been out of my studio since then dealing with some major family health issues. My mom has been ill but she is stabilized now and slowly improving and I find that I have time to spend a few days a week in my studio. I don't think I have ever gone this long without painting since I began years ago and it is really strange getting started up again. I wandered around in circles, dithering over what to begin then finally settled on this one which I had blocked out last spring and abandoned for no good reason. I've put enough time into it to feel reasonably sure it will survive and I'll add updates as it progresses.
These herons live over on the coast and spend the days roosting in trees like this monterey cypress looking sleepy or cranky, depending on the mood.