Evening Tree Shadows--Original Landscape Oil Painting

Still working on the large painting, but did this one as a quick warm up. A while ago I did a series of color studies with tree trunks as the subject. It was a simple subject, but worked well to display the effects of color choice. This 5x7 inch oil painting was created using Ultramarine Blue, Cadmium Orange, and Cadmium Lemon Yellow. In this particular study I used a different brand of Cad Orange. My last set of studies I used Windsor & Newton Cad Orange. In this study I used Gamblin. Although I usually prefer Gamblin oil color to Windsor & Newton, I have to say I prefer the W&N Cad Orange to the Gamblin. The W&N is just a little deeper leaning toward red. The Gamblin leans toward yellow. Little studies like this one work well to keep my color choices calibrated when changing brands of paint. The decision is back to W&N for my next Cadmium Orange purchase.

---

Technorati tags:
5x7, American, Art, Cadmium Lemon Yellow, Cadmium Orange, Cedar Tree, color, Color Studies, Color Study, Color Wheel, Colorist, Complimentary Colors, Daily, Daily Painting, Gamblin, Landscape, Landscape Painting, Limited Palette, Oil, oil painting, Orange, Original, Painting, Painting Practice, Shadows, Sunlight, Sunset, tree, Trees, Ultramarine Blue, Yellow

Beagle--Original Dog Portrait Painting

I worked all morning on a large painting. When I finaly took a break, this little 4x6 inch beagle found his way into my heart and onto my canvas. He is actually the third in a series of dog faces I've been working on. I'm not sure how many will eventually be completed, but for now it is just fun to watch their faces emerge. He was created with oil paint on a canvas panel.

---

Technorati tags:
4x6, American, Art, Beagle, Daily, Daily Painting, Dog, Dog Portrait, Oil, oil painting, Original, Painting, Portrait

Lemon Time -- Original Still Life Oil Painting

Today I worked on painting fruit. Lemons and lots of oranges. It has been quite a while since I've spent a day doing still life painting. It is nice to be able to paint from life. Most of my landscapes come either from reference photos or my imagination. When painting from life, it is a pleasure to note how the light strikes an object and creates shadows. This oil painting is only 4x5 inches. As soon as it dries, I will sell it in my Etsy Gallery.

---

Technorati tags:
4x5, American, Art, Cadmium Lemon Yellow, Canvas, Citrus, Citrus Fruit, Daily, Daily Painting, Food, Food Art, Fresh Fruit, Fruit, Lemon, Lemons, Miniature, Oil, oil painting, Original, Painting, Still Life, Yellow

End of the Season--Original American Landscape Oil Painting

Snow in the mountains and golden leaves on the trees create a delightful contrast. Crisp air and sunshine--before the rains started and the cold drizzle of winter grabbed us all--that's the sense I felt when creating this 5x7 inch oil painting. It can be purchased for $50.00 plus $6.50 for shipping to US addresses by visiting my Etsy Gallery. Or, you can view other small tree paintings here.

---

Technorati tags:
5x7, American, Art, Aspen Trees, Autumn, Blue, Cadmium Orange, Colorful, Colorist, Complimentary Colors, Daily, Daily Painting, Fall, Golden, Landscape, Landscape Painting, Maple Trees, Miniature, Mountains, Oil, oil painting, Orange, Original, painterly, Painting, Painting Practice, Trees, Ultramarine Blue

Dog Nose--Original Oil Painting Dog Portrait

This guy was so fun to paint--makes me think I'll do a few more dogs. This one is just 4x5 inches, but I think it would be fun to create him again in a large size. I have some 24x30 inch canvases in my basement that need some paint. I'll sleep on it. Hope you enjoy viewing this little Dog Nose portrait as much as I did painting it.

---

Technorati tags:
4x5, American, Animal, Art, Canvas, Contemporary, Daily, Daily Painting, Dog, Dog Nose, Dog Portrait, Miniature, Oil, oil painting, Original, Painting, Portrait

Into the Wild--Snow Fields--Original Landscape Oil Painting

This week I started re-reading one of my favorite books, Jon Krakauer's Into the Wild. It is a tragic, yet compelling story that takes place in part in the wilds of Alaska in the Denali National Park and Preserve. When reading Krakauer's descriptions, I am inspired to create a depiction of a cold Alaskan landscape. I lived in Alaska as a very young child and have vivid memories of the cold, damp atmosphere.

---

Technorati tags:
5x7, Adventure, Alaska, American, cold, Cool, Country, Daily, Daily Painting, Field, Forest, Glacier, Ice, Ice Fields, Landscape, Landscape Painting, Oil, oil painting, Painting, Painting Practice, Snow, Snow Fields, Wilderness Hiking, Winter

Buddha Backlight--Still Life Oil Painting

It has been quite a while since I have worked on a still life. This 8x10 inch oil painting was created as part of this week's Different Strokes Challenge. Creating the intensity of sunlight as it filters from behind this collection of dried hydrangeas and a table-top Buddha was an interesting challenge. I'm not completely satisfied with the results as they appear here. There are several things I'd like to correct. When the paint dries, I'll go back and make some changes.

---

Technorati tags:
8x10, Art, backlight, Buddha, Challenge, Daily, Daily Painting, Different Strokes, Figurative, Hydrangea, Limited Palette, Oil, oil painting, Orange, painterly, Painting, Painting Practice, palette, silhouette, Still Life, Sunlight, Sunny

Autumn Trees--Original American Landscape Oil Paintng

This morning I created this little 5x7 inch oil painting with my "frozen paint." Actually, it was not really frozen, but I kept my palette in the freezer for the past few days. Orange and yellow cadmium paints are very expensive, so I always hate to just let them dry up. Instead, I tried the trick of keeping my palette in the freezer. The cold slows the drying. The paint for this little painting was squeezed from the tube a week ago. After six days in the freezer, it was as fresh as ever. A great little trick! This painting is for sale in my Etsy Gallery along with my other miniature landscape paintings. If you click here, you can purchase it for $50.00 plus $6.50 for shipping to US addresses. A 24x30 inch version of the painting can be viewed here.

---

Technorati tags:
5x7, American, Art, Aspen Trees, Autumn, Cadmium Orange, Daily, Daily Painting, Fall, fozen paint, Impressionist, Landscape, Landscape Painting, Maple Trees, Miniature, Mountains, Oil, oil painting, Orange, Original, painterly, Painting, Painting Practice, palette, tree, Trees, Ultramarine Blue, Yellow

Spring Field--Green Day--Original Miniature Landscape Oil Painting

It isn't raining today, but it is cold and early spring leaves are in the distant future. It is still over a month until the days start getting longer again. This 5x7 inch oil painting was inspired by the first green leaves of spring. I'm looking forward to spring again. Winter months are long, cold, and dark. This painting can be purchased for $50.00 plus $6.50 for shipping to US addresses by clicking here. It was created on a gessoed hardboard surface with professional quality oil paints and will last a life time. A gift of springtime would be a delight for most during these cold days of winter.

---

Technorati tags:
5x7, American, Archival, Art, Contemporary, Daily, Daily Painting, Field, Gessoed Hardboard, Grass, Grassy, Green, Green Day, Landscape, Landscape Painting, Meadow, Miniature, Oil, oil painting, painterly, Painting, Painting Practice, Spring, Spring Fields, spring time, Springfield, tree, Trees

Yellow Tree Grove--Original American Landscape Miniature Oil Painting

This little 5x7 inch oil painting is characterized by thick paint and complimentary colors. Based on a beautiful autumn grove of yellow aspen, it will take several weeks for this one to dry. When it finally does, I will list it for sale in my Etsy Gallery.

---

Technorati tags:
5x7, Abstract, American, Art, Aspen Trees, Autumn, Blue, Brush Strokes, Cadmium Lemon Yellow, Colorful, Colorist, Complimentary Colors, Contemporary, Country, Daily, Daily Painting, Etsy, Forest, Gessoed Hardboard, Gold, Golden, Impasto, Impressionist, Landscape, Landscape Painting, Miniature, Oil, oil painting, Original, painterly, Painting, Painting Practice, Shadows, Sunlight, Sunny, Texture, tree, Trees, Ultramarine Blue, warm, Yellow

Reading and Relaxing--Upside Down Oil Painting

This painting is the last of my recent upside down paintings. I am pleased with the way the contrast between light and dark creates a strong sense of sunlight. The advantage to painting upside down is that I don't stop to ask myself what color the jacket might be in the sunlight versus in the shade, I just paint shapes and colors and let it go at that.

---

Technorati tags:
5x7, American, Art, Book, Daily, Daily Painting, Figurative, Figure, Grassy, Oil, oil painting, Orange, painterly, Painting, Painting Practice, Portrait, Reading, Shady, Sunlight, Sunny, Sunshine

Walking in the Rain--Figurative Oil Painting

I had so much fun with my last upside down painting, that another one found its way onto my easel. Looking at my reference upside down seems to ease my anxiety and actually results in a reasonable outcome. Forgetting that something is a leg, an arm, or a head and not worrying about getting it just right releases the anxiety I feel when trying to paint figures. This painting is 6x10 inches which was an ideal shape for this little composition.

---

Technorati tags:
American, Art, Brush Strokes, Cadmium Orange, Cool, Daily, Daily Painting, Figurative, Oil, oil painting, Orange, painterly, Painting, Painting Practice, Rain, Ultramarine Blue, Umbrella, upside down painting, walk, walking, Walking in the Rain, Weather, woman walking

Woman Walking--Small Format Oil Painting

Today's effort is outside my usual realm of subjects and executed in a very unusual manner. This walking woman comes from Karin Jurick's Different Strokes weekly challenge. Although I've been painting some figures recently, painting them upside down is way beyond my usual working method. Yes, that's right. The challenge this week was to paint upside down. Only when it was almost complete did I turn it right side up and add a couple of last minute touches. It goes to show what I've always known, but seldom practice. Painting shapes works well. If a shape is painted, it doesn't matter whether you paint it one direction or the other, it is still the same shape. When painting, intellect some times gets in the way. Instead of painting what is seen, we sometimes paint what we think the subject should look like and quit actually looking at the actual shapes. This was fun. Upside down painting is probably a practice I should take up more often. The painting is 8x10 inches.

---

Technorati tags:
5x7, American, Art, Daily, Daily Painting, Different Strokes, Figurative, Figure, Oil, oil painting, Original, painterly, Painting, Painting Practice, Stroll, upside down painting, walk, walking, woman walking

Flooding and Hiking--A year at the Nisqually River--Original Oil Painting

The Nisqually River tumbles off the Nisqually Glacier which resides on the side of Mount Rainier, a dormant volcano in Washington State. In the spring and summer this area provides wonderful opportunities for hiking, camping, and whitewater rafting. The course of the river often changes in the winter months as the run off from snow and rain increases. In 2006 during a winter storm, the river chopped off a chunk of the road that takes visitors up the mountain. With the time and effort of many people, the road was finally reconstructed delighting outdoorsmen and lovers of the mountain. This week, to the dismay of many, another recent storm has inflated the river. Visitors higher on the mountain had to be evacuated as the river once again roiled across the road. This little 5x7 inch oil painting was inspired by the Nisqually River and the beauty that surrounds it. The paint is thick and heavily textured. Brushwork and paint strokes can be viewed closely here. Click here to purchase. $50.00 plus $6.50 shipping to US addresses.

---

Technorati tags:
5x7, Adventure, American, Art, Blue, Brush Strokes, Camping, Cascade Mountains, Cascades, Daily, Daily Painting, Evergreen, Evergreens, Fir Tree, Flood, Forest, Glacier, Green, Hiking, Impasto, Landscape, Landscape Painting, Miniature, Mount Rainier, Mount Rainier National Park, mountain climbing, Mountains, Nisqually, Nisqually Glacier, Nisqually River, Nisqually Watershed, Oil, oil painting, Original, Pacific Northwest, Painting, Park, Rain, Rainier, Rapids, Recreation, river, River Bank, Road, Shoreline, Storm, Texture, Travel, Trees, Ultramarine Blue, Volcano, Weather, Whitewater Rafting, Wilderness Hiking, Winter, Woods

Abstract Sunshine--Original Landscape Oil Painting

I'm looking out at the rain, listening to a nasty weather report, and wishing I could be in this little 5x7 inch oil painting. Warm sunshine on the leaves of summer trees that reflect in still pond waters looks so comfortable. This painting is characterized by thick paint (impasto) which you can see in closeups at my Etsy Gallery. If you would like to place it in your home, it can be purchased for $50.00 plus $6.50 for shipping to US addresses. Click here to purchase and to read more about materials and purchase policies.

---

Technorati tags:
5x7, Abstract, American, Art, Daily, Daily Painting, Evening, Evergreen, Evergreens, Forest, Gessoed Hardboard, Green, Impasto, Impressionist, Lake, Landscape, Landscape Painting, Miniature, Oil, oil painting, Original, painterly, Painting, Pond, Reflection, river, Shoreline, Summer, Sunlight, Sunny, Sunset, Sunshine, Texture, tree, Trees, Yellow