Water and Clouds--A Nice Little Discovery

Ocean Sky
6x6

Oil on Canvas

The past few months I've spent a lot of time focusing on how to paint clouds, the shapes, the colors, the way they travel across the landscape. I painted quite a few little paintings and felt happy about the outcomes. You can see some of them in my Etsy Shop.  When I finally tired of painting clouds, I decided to focus on seascapes, a subject I had not spent a lot of time with in spite of the fact that I live near the coast. My mother was a seascape painter and I always felt she did a wonderful job, but I was a bit intimidated with the idea of following in her footsteps. Then I tried a few little ones.

Big Splash

6x6 inches

Oil on Canvas

What I learned was that painting splashes is not unlike painting clouds. Logically I should know this, after all, clouds are made of water. So recently I've been experimenting with some little seascape paintings. So much fun. A couple of them have found their way to my Etsy Shop, others are still sitting on my drying rack and will eventually join the one above. Lesson learned:  look for similarities, not just differences. 

Interview with The Earning Artist

Montana Prairie

6x6 Oil on Canvas

So excited about an interview I had recently with Monica from The Earning Artist. We talked about my experiences selling art and my Etsy shop Small Impressions. You can read the article here. 

I'm also excited about a series of paintings I created after a recent trip to Montana. I definitely recommend visiting Montana in September. It is gorgeous with beautiful weather and amazing scenery. Most of the trip was spent in the Bitterroot Valley just south of Missoula. If you go, take a bicycle, ride the Bitterroot trail, take your sketchbook and a camera. The experience has provided me with subjects that will last for months.

Travelling Artist

On the road almost all summer visiting wonderful places around the Northwest, I kept painting even though I neglected posting. Now that September is here, I will share some of my adventures and plan to be more consistent with my blog posts.

First of all, I've quit trying to travel with oil paints. At least for now. I decided I needed something with a quick setup and clean up.  Oil paints can be messy and challenging to transport. Instead, I take lots of photos for when I return home and can take my time and paint in my studio.  

In spite of the trouble with oils, I haven't quit painting on the road. Instead I've shifted to using gouache paints. They are a water media that dries quickly like watercolor paints. The setup and cleanup feels more efficient than oils. Unlike traditional watercolors, however, gouache is opaque. I can layer and apply in a manner more like oil paints and I like that they dry to a nice matte finish.

Sparks Lake, Central Oregon

8x8 Oil on Canvas

Manzanita Beach, Oregon

5x7 Gouache on Paper

Now that fall has returned, I plan to be more consistent with my blog posts. I'm pretty good with my instagram posts and I list items almost daily in my Etsy Shop.  You can see more of my gouache work and my oil paintings there.

Spring Update--It's About the Palette Knife

Since my last posting, I've continued to play with abstractions in a square format. Using palette knives and oil paints on canvas, I've found the delight of experimentation with color and texture. Nature has continued to inspire me. The color of the land, the sky, and the horizon line have been pulled and pushed as their reality moves into a place in my imagination and appears in a new form on the canvas.

6x6 Oil on Canvas

Sold

6x6 Oil on Canvas

Sold

More in the series can be found here as reproductions. My originals in the series are here.

I still work on landscapes, still life paintings, and a few little birds and animals, but right now these little squares are personally the most rewarding.

Rain, Rain, Go Away!

Those of us who live in the Pacific Northwest are used to a good amount of rain. We buy raincoats, boots, and waterproof pants. We are used to gray skies and soggy ground. As a lifetime Northwesterner, I've also developed some mental coping mechanisms to get me through the season of water. First I think of all things warm and sunny; I recall places I've been that were warm, pleasant, and peaceful.  I pull out old photos and reminisce about sunshine and dry ground. Finally, I paint. This tactic has motivated me this past week to paint a series of little paintings, none of which involve rain. All are 6x6 inches square and completed with oil paints on stretched canvas. When the paint is dry, I will probably list them for sale along with some of my other small landscape paintings. You can check them out here. Stay dry! 

Playing in the New Year

Green Abstract, 6x6 Inches, Oil on Canvas
SOLD

The new year has begun and so has a spark of abstract inspiration. I've recently been working on a series of little oil paintings that help me understand color and design a little bit better. The series involves working on some little 6x6 inch square canvases, using a palette knife, and experimenting. Some of these little compositions turn out well, and some do not, but I've enjoyed the effort of playing with paint.

Textured Square No. 1, 6x6 Inches, Oil on Canvas
SOLD

As the paint dries, I will be listing the original paintings for sale in the Abstract Art section of my Etsy Shop. I hope you will stop by. There are more to come, but the paint isn't dry yet.