Red and Yellow for the Blues

Since this last week provided more damp winter weather, I spent my time inside painting colorful little fruits and vegetables. Red and yellow paint helped to elevate my winter spirit and manifested itself in these little small format paintings. They are all either 4x5 or 4x6 inches and were created on canvas panels with professional grade oil paints. I have began stocking my Etsy Shop with these babies and will continue to do so over the weekend. Hope you will stop by and take a look at these little miniature paintings.

Northwest Fall Colors

Fall Reflections

16x20

Oil on Canvas

The Pacific Northwest has provided some beautiful fall colors recently and inspired a series of landscape paintings that showcase the autumn season. This oil painting is now dry and on display at Ugallery and a study I created of the same scene on a 5x7 inch stretched canvas is for sale in my Etsy shop.  Check out the landscape section of my Etsy Shop for more original small format oil paintings. 

The paint is still wet on a second in the series, and several more compositions are percolating in my head. Can't wait to share them. Check back soon for more autumn inspiration.

Mushroom Picking

Island Trees

16x16

Oil on Canvas

This painting resulted from a trip I took with friends a few weeks ago, just after the rains began to fall for the first time in the Puget Sound Region of the Northwest. The goal was to find wild mushrooms. It was a new experience for me and I depended on my knowledgeable friends to teach me what to look for. We tramped around the forest near Lake Cushman in Washington State, looked under trees, shady damp areas, and under large shrubs. It was fun even though the air was damp and the ground soggy. The vision that excited the painter in me the most was when we emerged from the forest to the shoreline of the lake. There was a tiny island not too far from shore. The sun had just peaked out from the clouds and made the leaves on the deciduous trees of that little island sparkle with the first color of autumn. I snapped a lot of photos and couldn't wait to get home and attempt to recreate the beauty of that afternoon. The result of my efforts is this oil painting. I am happy to say that it has been accepted into Ugallery and is now on display. Reproduction prints are also available as well as a little mini-version in my Etsy Shop.  I also painted the image using acrylic paints. A 11x14 inch version in acrylic paint is available here. The mushroom picking adventure was a success in so many ways. I was declared the best mushroom hunter of the day and was pleased to share my finds with my knowledgeable guides.

Curator's Pick

Winter Road

16x16

Oil on Canvas

The exciting news this week is that my painting, Winter Road, has been selected as a Curator's Pick at Ugallery.  This is a very special honor and I was thrilled to learn of the selection. The square format oil painting was inspired by the colors of winter and the contrast of light and dark on a snowy road. Blue and brown provide a delightful combination of warm and cool colors and remind me of many winter trips down remote forest service roads of the Pacific Northwest in pursuit of winter adventures. The original painting has been sold, but reproduction fine art prints are available from my print shop in the Landscape Gallery.

On the Easel This Week

This is a collection of little landscape from this week: two sizes 5x7 and 8x8. All are on stretched canvas and were completed with oil paints. I like to do these little studies before creating larger works. Sometimes they don't translate well into a larger painting and sometimes they are great. The small original paintings are offered for sale in my Etsy Shop and, if they make it to a larger format, they are offered for sale at Ugallery. A couple of these are already in my Etsy Shop. I'm still processing thoughts on larger possibilities. What do you think?

Fall is Coming

Autumn Trio

16x12

Acrylic on Stretched Canvas

The colors of fall are starting to show and are inspiring my landscape work. Red, orange, and gold are dominating the scenery all over the Northwest and demanding that my paintbrush replicate their beauty. I enjoy the cooler weather and the lack of crowds in all my favorite places. Although this painting was completed with acrylic paints, my oils are also getting a workout, too. After the paint dries on my latest series, the originals will be displayed here, at Ugallery. Prints are available from my print shop, here. I'm looking forward to sharing my recent autumn landscape painting adventures. More to come!

Little Houses

This was little house week. Here is a sampling of some of the little landscape studies I've been working on. Usually my landscapes are void of buildings, but not this week. I've been auditioning some little cottages for possible larger work. The largest in this collection are 6x8 inches and the smallest was 4x5 all completed in oils on stretched canvas or canvas panel. I've listed one for sale in my Etsy Shop. The others will follow as soon as the paint is dry. I'll be contemplating whether to take them large or just leave them as small studies. What do you think?

Art is Good For You

It is a pleasure to know that some of my recent landscapes have been featured in the Art is Good for You Group on Fine Art America. This one was inspired by the beautiful lavender fields near Sequim, Washington in the Northwestern region of the United States where I live. The painting was created with professional grade acrylic paints on a 12x12 inch stretched canvas. Prints are available from the Fine Art America website, here.

Landscape Week

It has been a week of little landscapes. These are a few of my most recent studies. The paint is dry and they are all for sale in my Etsy Shop. There are a few more on the rack that will be listed as soon as the paint dries. I use little canvas panels in sizes 4x5, 4x6, and 5x7 to audition my ideas for larger paintings. Though not all of these little fellows translate well into larger works, eventually some of them make their way to Ugallery in a larger format.

Traveling Artist

With the beautiful weather of summer and the great opportunities to travel, it is sometimes a challenge to figure out how to keep on creating. Years ago I mastered traveling with my painting supplies, but it becomes a lot more challenging when working with mixed media materials. There are so many more supplies. Not only do I want to take paint, paper, and brushes, but t my stash of found papers, handmade papers, magazines, newspapers, and all the other sources of texture and design. Stencils, stamps, brayers. The list goes on. For a few years I just accepted that my creative opportunities were more limited when I was on the road or when flying somewhere. This conundrum is what prompted me to begin exploring digital art. I'm a traditionalist, so it wasn't a direction I pursued eagerly. At first I began by learning how to use some easy digital tools. Then some more complicated techniques. I'm still learning and always pocketing new ideas, but I think I'll always be a traditionalist at heart. Now, when I'm on the road, creating with digital tools satisfies my need to keep on making art.

Below are a couple of my most recent endeavors. They were both created entirely with digital tools. I've been intrigued with the idea of using vintage papers for collage work, but it was hard to find suitaby aged papers. I've stained papers with paint, tea, and coffee to provide an aged look, but didn't really like the results. Actual vintage papers are very limited and hard to find; I fear a sign of our digital times. But, recently,with a stint of time away from my studio, I  decided to create some collages entirely with vintage papers found online in the public domain. I like the fact that the colors are very limited and it requires me to focus on composition.  I learned how to create a digital tear on papers that weren't actually torn. Note the ticket on my piece, Random Thoughts.  It was actually a complete ticket. The tear is digital.

What I like about digital art is that I can still satisfy my need to create, but not lug along a couple of suitcases full of supplies when I'm traveling. I just need a laptop, which I always take with me any way. Some of digital works I've created in the past when forced to travel light are here.

Below are two collages I created this past week.

Random Thoughts, Digital Art, August 2016

Marpole, Digital Art, August 2016

It is nice to be back at home and have full access to my studio and supplies. My goal is to continue painting at least one larger format landscape per week with traditional painting techniques. They are available at Ugallery . I also continue to put my small format oil paintings in my Etsy Shop. Creating daily is my objective. I hope you like what I do. Prints of many of my works are available here.

Summer Playtime

So it is true, I've done a lot of playing this summer and haven't kept up on my blog posts, but it doesn't mean I haven't been busy creating new work. The collection of my large landscapes at Ugallery has grown considerably and I have been adding a new painting almost every week. I hope you will stop by and see my newest landscape paintings.

In my Etsy Shop I have also been able to continue adding more small format oil paintings. I paint daily and the inventory moves quickly, so I'm at the post office several times a week.

This week I've also been playing with paper, paint, and glue creating a series of mixed media collages that have been great fun. The studio floor is filled with my endeavors and my big box of found papers has been pilfered for colors and textures.  Since these works are on paper, I only sell reproductions, but the nice thing about that is that they can be reproduced on paper, canvas, acrylic, and even metal in a wide variety of sizes. This is a link to some of my most recent mixed media collages.  Here's one of my favorites:

Some Old Favorites

I am pleased to announce that some of my work has been featured this week as a Collector's Choice at Kirstein Fine Art! A few of my abstract paintings, collages, and small works have made the cut. I hope you will stop by. All abstract work in the feature is available as a reproduction from my print shop. Click here to order prints on canvas, paper, metal, or acrylic. Matting and framing options are also available for fine art paper prints. Original small paintings featured in the article are available for purchase from my Etsy shop in the Birds and Animals section.

Working on a Series

I've been working on a series of square landscapes size 24x24. I have finished the two below and am excited to continue the series. Both are available as fine art prints on stretched canvas from the landscape section of my print shop. When I can get some better photos, the originals will be submitted to Ugallery and, with some luck and the approval of the curator, appear in my personal gallery. In the meantime, I still have two more canvases waiting for paint.

Little Birds

Spring has definitely arrived this week. Record breaking warm weather in the Northwest brought out a lot of little birds that inspired me. This week I have started listing this little collection in my Etsy Shop. The Robins are already listed and the rest will follow shortly as the paint dries. Hope you will stop by and check out my little paintings of Birds and Animals.

Last Snow

Just when it seemed like spring was coming, the weather has changed and provided a last dump of snow in Central Oregon where I have been hiding out for the past few weeks with a broken ankle and an ugly boot. It was going to be a short trip, so my paints didn't go with me. After sitting with my foot elevated for way too many days, it was a pleasure to finally be home and have a chance to get back to my art. This little 8x10 inch oil painting with its combination of warm and cool colors was created with oil paints on a stretched canvas. The original is available in my Etsy shop. If you dream of having it available in a larger size, wonderful giclee prints in sizes up to 38.5x48 are also available on paper or canvas. Click here to see the reproduction possibilities in my print shop. I've also been working on some miniature paintings of fruit and birds that I will post as soon as the paint dries, so check back again soon.

First Week of February

This week has been a week of working small. Little still life paintings and small landscapes occupied my easel. My attention was captured by bright apples, pears, and a pomegranate along with imaginary summer scenes. This is a collection of some of this week's creations. As the paint dries, these small impressions will move to my Etsy Shop along with many of my other small format art. Hope you will stop by for a visit.

Working on the Square

This week I discovered a box of 12x12x1.5 inch canvases in my closet. I usually order in bulk to save a few dollars, but storage can sometimes be a problem, so the extras end up in the closet or under the bed. Sometimes I forget where they are, so it was exciting to discover a set of four wonderful little square format canvases. The discovery set in motion a series of sketches and a nice collection of square format landscape paintings.  Here's where I began:

I like to make little value studies that help me formulate a good composition. I did several pages of sketches before deciding on a design for the first square in the series. Here is the result of my first square of the week:

The original painting is for sale at Ugallery. Prints are available from my print shop. The rest will be sent to Ugallery as soon as the rain quits falling and I can get some better photos. Below is a quick shot of the four completed paintings. It was so much fun creating these guys that I just ordered some more square canvases. Can't wait for them to arrive.

Fruits and Vegetables

Lots of little fruits and vegetables are entering my Etsy shop this week. I'm loving painting bright colors on these rainy winter days. Hope you will stop by for a visit.

January is Home Decor Month

It appears that January is home decor month. Last year at this time, one of my little landscape paintings appeared on the cover of This Old House Magazine. It was exciting to see my work displayed in a national magazine. As it turns out, this year another little painting was included in the January/February print issue of Country Living Magazine with a link to my Etsy Shop. Check out page 69 of the print edition to see the painting. It is tiny painting of a cantaloupe slice I created on a blue background that appears at the top center of the page. The little painting sold immediately, however, it wasn't the only small format oil painting listed in my Etsy Shop. Stop by my Etsy Shop to see more original small format oil paintings.