What I Really Mean

Red Deer Caught in a Frame

2011-11-03T09:03:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since I posted, but that doesn't mean I haven't been busy painting. I made this painting especially for an auction benefit raising money to help my nephew pay huge medical bills. My husband got involved with his unique creative genius by making the frame.

Lemoille River at Hogback Road

2011-08-25T05:55:00.000-07:00

This is an experiment that I did yesterday, the last painting day here in Vermont. I did not draw the scene first, but started at the lower right hand corner and worked my way up and to the left. My paper buckled because I didn't tape it down so there were added surprises to the finished painting. This is what I mean: this whole month has been one intense experiment with my art and I'm a little sad to see it end (you can see the tears dripping down in the water).

Doghead Pond, Vermont

2011-08-24T05:16:00.000-07:00

Believe it or not I drew this exactly as I saw it in the afternoon. This rock is about 12 or 15 feet high and I was perched on a rock opposite. The river flows past and fills a lovely pond that must look like Walden Pond. A very playful otter lives here and he comes out in the evening as the sun is setting and swims around. Honestly, with no hyperbole, as my poet friends would say.

Splash!

2011-08-23T07:02:00.000-07:00

This is the larger painting I've been working on when it's raining. It's not finished but I wanted to post it since this morning I packed up my oil paints in preparation for shipping supplies back to Dallas. All four critiques from visiting artists gave a thumbs up for this painting. Splash!

Woods off Plot Rd.

2011-08-16T19:02:00.000-07:00

Just a short drive from the Studio Center on a country road. No matter where I go here, there is a beautiful scene.

By the light of the silvery moon

2011-08-15T16:40:00.000-07:00

We found an open spot near the river here in Johnson to paint the magnificent full moon. The idea is that we paint in the dark so we can only see values, not color. The results are always a surprise and very free and gestural. The gesture was made even more vigorous by the Texas size mosquitos that were not deterred by Off!

Deer siting at the covered bridge

2011-08-13T16:53:00.000-07:00

I turned around while painting this scene and saw a herd of red deer grazing on the slopes of the hills. There were about fifty of them.

Gihon River in Johnson, Vermont

2011-08-10T18:11:00.000-07:00

I am captivated by the patterns of the waves and ripples as the water skirts around the rocks. I sat on some rocks in the shade of a tree while painting. Very relaxing.

Gihon River in Johnson, Vermont

2011-08-09T16:41:00.000-07:00

I've been painting a lot of running water because there are so many beautiful places along this river: waterfalls, swimming holes, and old fashioned covered bridges. I feel like I'm on a large movie set. Paint, eat, sleep.

Intimidated by Space

2011-08-02T17:57:00.000-07:00

This is my studio at the Wolf Kahn Studio Building at the Vermont Studio Center where I will attempt to fill the walls with brilliant paintings in the ensuing month (August). Stay tuned for further developments!

Abundant Thistles

2011-07-25T07:36:00.000-07:00

Last year I was enthralled by the abundant and large thistles that grew along country lanes near my mother's home and I gathered (with gloves) a large bouquet. I put them in a vase and set it on the floor in my studio and drew the bouquet. Such a prickly and wild flower -- but so beautiful.

Ghost Ranch Still Life

2011-06-21T18:32:00.000-07:00

These rocks made me think of a Morandi still life and so I had that in mind when when a painted a water color of them on a very windy day at Ghost Ranch near Abiquiu. This is an oil painting I made in my studio from that water color. Sometimes something in the landscape really resonates, but so far, I don't know why (or what I really mean).

Reflections on a Pond

2011-06-16T15:27:00.000-07:00

Yes, it's been a long time since I posted a painting, but that doesn't mean I haven't been busy. This is an experiment with acrylics that turned out to be a lot of fun and very freeing to paint layers of colors without waiting a long time for the previous layer to dry.

Wall of Nudes

2011-04-30T10:42:00.001-07:00

This is my wall of nudes that I hung for the North Dallas Studio Tour going on this weekend. So far, no comments. I think Dallasites are afraid of nudes!

It's that time of year again

2011-01-20T08:48:00.000-08:00

What I really mean is my aura is throbbing! So many ideas to realize and so many beautiful concepts to paint, where does a girl begin?

And There is the Daily Life

2010-12-06T09:41:00.001-08:00

Some time ago I mentioned that I was experimenting with silver leaf. This is the resultant painting. Some of the fish have silver leaf on them. When hanging on the wall with a light on the painting (as it did magnificently in the recent University of Dallas show) the silvery fish really shine and add depth to the scene. I think I will expand on this notion.

Clothesline Installation

2010-10-10T06:02:00.000-07:00

This painting and a life drawing are in the Zipp Gallery show this month entitled "Clothesline Installation". Zipp Gallery is outside Santa Fe in a 200 year old adobe house. The concept of this show is that each piece of art had to fit in one of three sizes of zip lock bag and then all are hung on a clothesline running throughout the gallery.

The Lake at Abiquiu

2010-09-30T08:13:00.000-07:00

This is a plein air painting I did in Abiquiu last May, but just recently added a few touches that time, wind, heat, bugs, etc. prevented me from doing "in situ". The beautiful thing about this lake is that if you only look at the lake and the surrounding rocks without the vistas, it looks very Mediterranean. Another one of God's little jokes.

Just Floating

2010-09-25T10:50:00.000-07:00

This is another version of a smaller painting that I did a few years ago. I wanted to make it slightly larger and change the water colors a little. This little painting makes me feel relaxed and cool.

Yerba Mansa

2010-09-02T09:00:00.000-07:00

This is a botanical study of a plant that grows here in Santa Fe. I found it at the Santa Fe Botanical Garden growing wild in the shade of some trees.

I Found the Living Water

2010-08-13T08:00:00.000-07:00

I have realized recently that I have an obsession with waterfalls. What would a Jungian make of that? I'm reading at the moment a novel entitled "The Day the Falls Stood Still". It's a love story about two young people at the turn of the century who live near the Niagra Falls. I can't imagine a more magical place to live.

Falling to Earth

2010-08-08T08:06:00.000-07:00

This is attempt no. 2 in which I collaged a stamp print I had made previously entitled "Falling to Earth" to the encaustic, which reminds me of how I felt last night when I participated in my first ever bachelorette party. The bachelorette party is a whole culture unto itself.

Encaustic Painting

2010-08-07T08:01:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I took an encaustic workshop to learn how to use this medium. It was challenging to manipulate the hot wax quickly to get the form I had in mind, but I really like the end results. It was especially challenging to do this in Dallas heat which defies air conditioning! This is my first ever encaustic painting.

Another Sunset Experience

2010-07-23T11:12:00.000-07:00

After finishing the sunset painting, I took the resulting piles of paint and made this little abstract. A trick I learned from Suzanne Kelley Clark

Sunset as Metaphor

2010-07-18T08:14:00.000-07:00

I understand why sunsets are metaphors for "the end". But, in the words of that famous thinker Elle (Legally Blond), "I object!". Sunsets for me are a metaphor for exuberance, the outrageous joy of watching God paint a masterpiece every evening.

You Can't Make It Up

2010-07-16T08:41:00.000-07:00

What I mean by that is that the sunsets out here in New Mexico are so beautiful that no human could make them up. I'm only painting what I see.

New Mexico Sunset

2010-07-13T17:58:00.000-07:00

I've decided to paint a bunch of sunsets. This first one I painted at sunset at the lake in Abiquiu. Since this one was done en plein air, I had to work really fast to get the colors before the whole thing changed.

Reedy Falls, Greenville, South Carolina II

2010-06-20T13:05:00.000-07:00

This is another interpretation of the falls done on Yuppo, a kind of plastic paper that is as smooth as a china plate. The challenge is sliding the pigment around into pleasing forms. The colors appear more vivid because they don't sink into the paper. The final effect is more abstract.

Reedy Falls, Greenville, South Carolina

2010-06-19T12:41:00.000-07:00

I painted this waterfall while in Greenville, South Carolina. The river runs through the middle of town and these falls are in the downtown (such as it is)area. Such a beautiful place to contemplate nature in the middle of the city!

On the Road to Monastery

2010-06-07T08:24:00.000-07:00

This is one of the paintings I did while in Abiquiu. We went down a dirt and gravel road where we saw at every turn some of the most spectacular landscapes in New Mexico. At the end of the road, (which takes about 30 minutes) is the Benedictine Monastery nestled down by the Chama River. This particular scene is a couple of miles before the Monastery. It's perhaps impossible to communicate the emotions that the sweeping lanscapes provoke. I decided to focus on a small part of the whole. The colors of the rocks are luminous and the patterns evoke the art of the Indians who lived in this area.

Roses from a Secret Admirer

2010-06-04T08:00:00.000-07:00

I have a long standing tradition of painting the flowers in my hotel room, wherever I am. They always arrive from a secret admirer, usually with the room service.

Echo Amphitheatre, Abiquiu

2010-05-24T06:52:00.000-07:00

This is a rock formation near Abiquiu that never ceases to interest me. The colors and shapes are beautiful and sensual. We started painting on Saturday and this is my first painting of the week. Last year some may remember that my rant was the flies in the mountains. I guess this year my theme will be the wind; it has been a bother so far

Matisse and Rekerdres Again

2010-05-11T21:16:00.000-07:00

Seriously, aren't these little watercolors fun? And, as most people know, I'm all about fun.

Matisse and Rekerdres

2010-05-10T16:34:00.000-07:00

Using a background from a master with my nude is a lot of fun! Especially with Matisse who shares my passion for pattern.

Fun in the Sun

2010-05-08T16:41:00.000-07:00

Can you tell which one is by Gauguin and which one is by Me?

Liquid Graphite

2010-04-20T19:28:00.000-07:00

I found a new art product recently called "Liquid Graphite". It comes in a bottle and has the consistency of acrylic paint. I used it with a watercolor brush and water to do this study of a male model. It looks like a very old drawing, like a Michaelangelo. Definitely a fun new tool!

Being in the River

2010-04-13T08:44:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to let everyone know that this painting has been accepted into the 25th Texas and Neighbors Regional Art Exhibit 2010! The exhibit runs from May 24 through June at the Irving Art Center in Irving.

Orange You Glad I Like Nudes?

2010-03-29T19:38:00.000-07:00

I crack myself up! This little nude took all of two minutes to paint. Usually I paint the model with just water on my brush. It's a little hard to see what I'm doing, but the idea is to get the silhouette. Then, I drop in color where the shadows are. Sometimes they look really great, like this one!

In the Garden with Egon Schiele

2010-03-25T16:19:00.001-07:00

I was looking at a photo of a watercolor by Egon Schiele entitled "Sunflowers" while painting this nude. I used his color palette and some of his forms while painting the nude model. This was an exercise we did in the life drawing class that I attend each week. I want to do this one again but on a larger scale.

Frottage and Nude Together

2010-03-21T10:04:00.000-07:00

Frottage is a rubbing over something with texture to make a print. In this case, the something was a paper lace doily that I put under a piece of watercolor paper and rubbed with a gold metallic wax crayon. Then I painted the blue nude.

It Might Have Choked Arty...

2010-03-02T12:56:00.000-08:00

But it didn't choke me! This is a lithograph (series of 6) that I did some years ago. I'm thinking of adding watercolor to each one, or maybe just five of them.

A Silver Fish

2010-02-20T07:57:00.000-08:00

This fish is painted using actual silver leaf in the body. It reflects the light beautifully and I'm planning to use it judiciously amongst the fish that will be painted with the silver metallic oil paint in the grand oeuvre in process.

Experimenting with Silver

2010-02-18T13:29:00.000-08:00

I'm working on a large painting which will involve many little silver fish so I'm trying to decide which metallic silver I want to use. This little guy was painted with silver oil paint.

Floating in Tropical Waters

2010-02-12T16:03:00.000-08:00

There is something about a cold snowy day to make one nostalgic about tropical locales. My feet were cold the entire time I spent painting this, but it gave me a warm feeling!

The sun was shining

2010-02-05T15:36:00.000-08:00

The sun finally showed itself today and I guess that became the impetus for this painting which is nearly complete. I worked very fast because I wanted my brush strokes to show movement and I was afraid the sun would hide again.

Really Wet

2010-01-21T18:08:00.000-08:00

This little watercolor really gives the feeling of wetness. I really like the abstractness of it. I was in Florida this past weekend so naturally water was on my mind.

Synchronized Swimmers

2010-01-19T16:28:00.000-08:00

This series of watercolors (there are five all together, but I've only shown three) has great potential for some kind of kinetic display which I'm still pondering.

White Rock Lake

2010-01-11T16:00:00.000-08:00

This little painting is a view of the lake through the trees. The sun was shining on the water and made it quite brilliant which couldn't really be duplicated with oil paints. I had the idea of the space between the trees being a kind of portal.

Tarzan and Jane

2009-12-29T14:27:00.000-08:00

This is a plein air painting of the Trinity River at the Audebon Center south of Dallas. I was really enchanted with the vines and small trunks of trees that framed my view of the river. The painting reminded me of something Fragonard might have painted so I kind of pushed that idea. I will probably work on this a little bit more but now I'm in Santa Fe and there is snow out here so I'm thinking of doing a full moon snow at night painting. We'll see.

Trinity River Audubon Center

2009-12-14T20:27:00.000-08:00

This is the finished painting which I originally posted on October 16. I decided that it's not easy to finish a plein air painting in the studio. The feeling is just not the same. It's hard to summon up the origianl excitement. However, I like how this painting looks.

Being in the River

2009-12-09T09:24:00.000-08:00

It's been a while since I posted but I have been working very hard on completing several paintings. This is one that I believe is near completion. I'm still considering putting a blue glaze over the water, but haven't decided yet.

Napa Valley, California

2009-11-13T16:06:00.000-08:00

Today I went out to a park with trails and did a few watercolors. The views are absolutely beautiful. The vineyards are autumn colors and everything looks so lush. It is a veritable feast for the eyes.

Trinity River Audubon Center

2009-10-16T17:27:00.000-07:00

This is the beginning of a plein air painting I started today at the Trinity River Audubon Center south of Dallas. What a beautiful place! And the weather was absolutely perfect today. I had some trouble getting all my gear to the site but the effort was worth it, although I'm going out right now to get a box on wheels to haul stuff tomorrow. This is the first day of a workshop that is being taught by Henry Finkelstein. I'll post this painting again when it's finished.

A New Kind of Canoe

2009-10-06T10:45:00.000-07:00

Last Thursday I gave a demonstration painting to the Klepper Art Club here in Dallas. They were particularly interested in seeing me paint water. I limited myself to six tubes of paint: three warm primaries and three cool primaries. I did this painting in about an hour and a half, working from a photo. The canoe is a proto-type of a new design with aluminum frame and plexiglass panels. Pretty cool.

A Shell

2009-10-05T09:44:00.000-07:00

I was trying to use the principles learned in the Jan Hart workshop about color relationships. I like how the shadow looks like it is wet. That was pretty much one of those happy accidents that watercolor is famous for.

Three Little Pears

2009-09-27T20:21:00.000-07:00

Just got home from the watercolor workshop that I took with Jan Hart in Santa Fe. It was all about knowing your pigments and color relationships. This is one of my little efforts during the workshop. It was great to have three days of concentrated work and the added bonus is that it was at Edwardine's studio, which is always a feast for the eyes.

Peas in the Pod

2009-09-10T13:46:00.000-07:00

These peas were purchased at the farmer's market in Santa Fe and they were delicious! But before I ate them, I painted a few.

Floating is Good

2009-09-08T11:42:00.000-07:00

Today I'm going back to Dallas and so I decided to paint a quick watercolor before closing up the studio here in Santa Fe. For the most part, being here in SF is like floating. It's very peaceful and I have more time for contemplation; this is good.

Synchronized Swimming

2009-09-04T11:17:00.000-07:00

I'm in Santa Fe right now, so naturally, my thoughts turn to water. I'm getting ready for a watercolor workshop out here in a few weeks so I'm sorting my colors and making sure that I have everything I need for the workshop. But I got distracted and this is the result.

Another Reflection by a Stream

2009-08-30T12:03:00.000-07:00

This is my final reflection by a stream, for now. This is what I really mean.

Cicada or Locust?

2009-08-27T07:07:00.000-07:00

I found this little bug outside (he was dead) and thought he would be a good subject for a small daily painting. He has been waiting in my studio for several weeks. Finally this morning I wanted to try a panel that I had prepared with oil primer instead of the usual gesso. The idea of the oil primer is that the surface is a lot smoother to paint. I love to paint on smooth surfaces and this did not disappoint. The paint was like warm butter.

Reflection by a Stream

2009-08-23T13:52:00.001-07:00

This is the painting that I've obsessed over for the last couple of weeks. I would love to have some comments and don't sugar coat it.

More Synchronized Swimmers

2009-08-22T20:00:00.000-07:00

Yes, this is an abstract of the swimmers series that I've been working on. The interesting thing is that this actually came first and it was only after I had done four or five of the swimmers that I noticed a sort of Jungian connection to this piece. Think of it as an archetype of the swimmers. The rhythm, pattern, and colors are all there. This is what I really mean.

Go with the flow

2009-08-19T13:50:00.000-07:00

Someone said to me yesterday that she thought that watercolor was so difficult to work with because it's so hard to control. But that's the thing, it's not meant to be controlled. You have to go with the flow and have fun. Lots of fun.

It's still wet

2009-08-14T09:49:00.000-07:00

I was so excited by this watercolor that I did this morning, that it's still wet! I love the spontaneity of watercolor and the way it moves around. You always get surprises. Swimming in a circle with a bunch of friends, what a contemplative and peaceful thing to do.

All Together Now

2009-08-13T09:28:00.000-07:00

I hope I can keep up all the funness here. If anyone knows of an amateur synchronized swim group, let me know. I might have to start my own. Doing things together is always more powerful than alone. With that in mind, I'd like to ask everyone who reads this to pray for my niece who has just learned that cancer has returned for the third time. She is such a beautiful young woman, so all together now.....!

Could it BE anymore fun?

2009-08-12T06:29:00.000-07:00

This, in my opinion, has to be the most fun ever. The only thing that could come close is tap dancing in a chorus line or playing in a blues band. The next thing after that is painting a watercolor of synchronized swimming. Today is going to be dedicated to fun.

Synchronized Swimming

2009-08-11T16:27:00.000-07:00

I had an idea some time ago to do a series of paintings based on synchronized swimming. I started collecting photo references for this purpose and did some quick watercolor sketches, exploring the shapes and colors. Somehow the timing wasn't right, but now, I'm feeling that the time has arrived to restart work on this idea. Call it synchronicity, it's definitely what I really mean.

Comale River

2009-08-07T10:24:00.001-07:00

This is the last painting I'll post from my plein air week in Taos. This is my personal favorite work that I did that week. Water fascinates me and the movement also speaks to me. I was standing right on the edge of what is really a mountain stream. The colors changed as the sun moved across the sky so I had to work fast. One of the things that I like about plein air painting is that sometimes you are painting the memory of the colors which can turn out to be more interesting that the actual colors. I also want to mention that I just read the blog of someone whose husband gave to her one of my paintings for their wedding anniversary. The story is beautiful: www.dreamsofsimplelife.blogspot.com

Echo Amphitheatre

2009-07-23T09:05:00.000-07:00

To understand the size of this formation, the tall pine tree on the left is a huge fully grown tree. This place is, for lack of a better word, awesome. Again, working quickly to capture the light and cast shadows. Another fun thing about this location, is that people come along all day and many go up into the amphitheatre and test the echo effect. I'm set up about four blocks away and still get the full show. Like America doesn't have talent.

Rock Formation Near Abiqui

2009-07-22T12:24:00.000-07:00

This is a view of a rock formation outside of Abiqui not far from Ghost Ranch. The colors of the rocks are amazing so that is what I concentrated on. The sun moved quickly so the colors and shadows changed. I had to paint fast to capture a moment. I did two paintings that day.

Beaver Sighting at Fort Burgwin

2009-07-16T19:04:00.000-07:00

Today I spent the entire day sitting here by the side of this babbling little brook and here is the result. I was industriously painting and looked up to see an actual beaver crossing the brook on the log in the distance (in my painting). This was exciting as I had never seen a real beaver before! I painted another smaller painting and now I'm very tired. Tomorrow we go to Abiqui.

Taos Sunset

2009-07-15T16:18:00.000-07:00

One thing you can pretty much count on in Taos is a beautiful sunset. We go south of town about ten miles on the highway to Santa Fe where there is a scenic view pull over and set up our easels and paint, mix some anticipated colors and be well prepared for the magic moment. This particular evening I jumped the gun a little and didn't get to paint the spectacular finale, so I just sat down and enjoyed the show!

Into the Woods

2009-07-14T20:28:00.000-07:00

This is the painting that I did yesterday. Sitting there gazing at the trees was so peaceful. I was also trying to be in a meditative state as I painted. The flies did intrude, but as I said yesterday, I won.

A Very Good Day

2009-07-13T16:19:00.000-07:00

The picture that I took of my painting didn't turn out and I left it in the Art Barn so I decided to post a picture of the my setup on location. Today we went up the mountain to a very pretty meadow but I decided that I wanted to paint the trees near my car so I wouldn't have to lug all my stuff so far (save energy for the important stuff). I spent about an hour and a half doing preliminary drawings and then mixing paint before I actually started painting. Today the big battle was with flies. Many flies. But I persisted and at the end of the day, I'm pleased with my painting. We are going to paint the sunset tonight, so I'm going to take a rest now.

Water over a Log

2009-07-11T10:04:00.000-07:00

This is the large watercolor I'm working on in my studio in Santa Fe. I'm not finished with it, but this morning when I walked into my studio, I really liked how it looks right now, so I thought I would post it. I'm getting together all my things for a week of plein air painting in Taos with the group from SMU and Suzanne Clarke which starts tomorrow.

The Hand of God

2009-07-03T12:56:00.000-07:00

I was visiting sister, Helen, today and she owns this painting that I did some time ago. I love it because it has all my favorite elements (things tropical and water) and the colors are nice. Even though the hand looks crazy, the inspiration was a sculpted hand I saw in Xilitla, Mexico in the Shangri-la (Las Posas) that was created by the eccentric Englishman, Edward James.

In The Woods

2009-06-07T06:26:00.000-07:00

This is the first painting of my day in East Texas. I forgot to mention yesterday that I spent one hour on that painting. I spent two hours on this one. I think that the rule, faster is better, worked out here. However, this was a confusing view and I spent some time keeping my branches sorted out. I'm considering making larger paintints of one if not all of these views.

Where Bambi Comes to Drink Water

2009-06-06T14:39:00.000-07:00

This is the second painting I did in East Texas. The water was brackish (sorry Bambi) and the most lovely brown color I've ever seen. But I added the blue so it would be understood to be water in the painting.

By a Quiet Pond

2009-05-31T10:41:00.000-07:00

Last Thursday I went out to Lake Bob Sandlin with Suzanne Clarke to do some plein air painting. This lake is in East Texas about a 100 miles from Dallas. We went into a wooded area where I painted two views. I'm going to show the last of three paintings that I did in the course of four hours. The interesting thing is that the old rule of painting fast is best held true pretty much this day. I spent 30 minutes on this painting. The colors turned out very vivid because I was sitting in the shade and looking at a scene in the sun. When I make corrections on this painting, I'll make the grass in the foreground more green and adjust my darks and lights. Over all it was a great day.

Water over a Log

2009-05-25T18:04:00.000-07:00

This is a small watercolor I did yesterday. I love the colors of the water and the way objects under the water appear. Today I decided to see if it would look good in a larger format. So I started working on a large piece of paper, 38" x 50". We'll see.

Triangular Composition

2009-05-24T11:03:00.000-07:00

This is a quick oil study that I did in preparation for abstracting it further. I liked the muted colors and decided that it didn't need to be more abstract.

Floating

2009-05-12T07:21:00.000-07:00

This is a watercolor study I did in preparation for a large oil painting that I started yesterday.

The Peas Aren't Ready

2009-05-11T13:11:00.000-07:00

Saturday I went to visit my Mom to wish her a happy Mother's Day and went to see my sister's garden. She had sweet peas growing and so I picked a few. Unfortunately, as you can see, they haven't reached maturity. But they are lovely nonetheless.

Spilling the Beans

2009-05-06T07:13:00.000-07:00

This is a collage using an old wallpaper, the little ellipses made me think of seeds, one of my favorite things.

More Beans to Come

2009-05-05T15:06:00.000-07:00

About five years ago I did a series of mixed media beans that were alot of fun. Recently I've decided to experiment with acrylics and so I'm doing these little bean studies. So far, it's bean fun.

Geometric Man

2009-03-29T07:58:00.000-07:00

When I doodle, it's almost always triangles in patterns. Wondering why I love this little watercolor so much, I realized that he is composed of triangles! I actually painted this as a reclining nude, but when I finished I thought it looked better as a vertical.

Beaver Dam Outside Taos

2009-03-28T14:40:00.000-07:00

This is a large painting that I recently finished. It's part of my "generosity of water" series. I think I did a good job in capturing the rushing water and the sticks in the damn remind me of a Kandinski painting.

Carlos Carolyn and Black Magic Woman

2009-03-27T08:54:00.000-07:00

Last night the piano teacher called me Carlos Carolyn because I did a passable solo on the piano while we were playing "Black Magic Woman", so I determined to post a nude that had some magic today. Here she is.

Don't turn your face

2009-03-26T10:02:00.000-07:00

This is a very quick watercolor sketch done in the life drawing studio. I've been restricting myself to watercolor in these weekly sessions and am getting good results lately. I love the way watercolor is unpredictable. The title is taken from a poem I really like by Miguel Unamuno called "Throw Yourself Like Seed".

Back to the Rheinfahrt

2009-03-20T09:39:00.000-07:00

Sensing that my fans are tired of the relentless renditions of the "Wave's Embrace" I have chosen to post this small daily painting even though its tone is in direct contrast to my present mood. This is from our trip down the Rhine in February. This castle is one among many that are perched high above the river. I tried to make it moody by adding the fog and then I added a yellow glaze that immediately made me think of Thornfield Hall in Jane Eyre.

Yet Another Embrace

2009-03-19T14:15:00.000-07:00

And then I wondered, what would happen if I painted this image on Yuppo? I like painting on smooth surfaces, as it forces me to be more painterly. The first painting of this triptych was painted on a rough porous canvas, the second on a good smooth grade canvas and now this. Yuppo is a kind of plastic paper that is smoother than a china plate.

Another Embrace

2009-03-17T10:10:00.000-07:00

This is another try at this image, which I must say, has captured me for unfathomable reasons. I can't say what I really mean because I don't know. My Friend, Julie Lazarus, has suggested that I dispay the two together. I think I'm going to paint yet another, for a trio.

In the Wave's Embrace

2009-03-13T14:00:00.000-07:00

You probably thought that I was lost, but no, I've been working very hard lately. Also, this particular painting seems very timely since it has been raining for the last several days; I am, indeed, in the wave's embrace. The water is flowing down my street.

Tagesgrauen und Siegried's Rheinfahrt

2009-02-20T09:33:00.000-08:00

This is really Ted's Rheinfahrt that we made while in Germany. We stayed in an old castle on the Rhine that had been renovated to a hotel, and we took a little afternoon boat up the river to a town where we took a train back to our little town, St. Goar. You can imagine that especially in the winter when the fogs roll in, the dramatic feeling that must have inspired Wagner. I've been listening to him and painting a few small canvases, using the watercolors as a reference that I made while we were there.

A Habanero Nude

2009-02-17T12:52:00.000-08:00

The Pines of Rome

2009-02-16T18:23:00.000-08:00

Oops, this is pretty small. I don't know why. This is a watercolor that I did in my moleskin sketchbook while in Rome. We stayed at the University of Dallas Rome Campus which is up in the hills near Castelgandolfo (the Pope's summer residence). It was dusk and the trees were silhouettes against the sunset. You could see the lights of Rome in the distance.

Jude's Flowers

2009-02-15T12:42:00.000-08:00

This is a tiny little bouquet of a common weed here in Texas, I think it's called pennyroyal. My exquisite grandson, Jude, brought these to me yesterday after I had been gone for two weeks. So this morning, I had to paint these flowers. Both the flowers and the painting are full of love.

The blue nude

2009-01-28T20:30:00.000-08:00

I'm trying to show the process here. I started out making four different compositions and chose the bottom one (charcoal) I actually made four different watercolors of the composition. I wanted it to be more abstract than the drawing, so I laid in the form with clear water and then dropped in the color.

Roses

2009-01-23T09:41:00.000-08:00

I put these roses with magnolia leaves and set it in a south window. I wanted to capture the glowing yellows and soft oranges of the flowers. This was sort of a time out painting from my larger painting that I've been working on for the past week. So even though it is fairly large, I didn't spend much time on it. The flowers are so gorgeous that I think I'll have another go at it later today.