black wire

on the easel with Looking Up (5'x4' oil on canvas 2009) in the background

You can see in this photo the relative sizes of my pieces today and nine years ago.  I think I'm shrinking.

new year

SOLD; Morning Moon; oil on linen; 9.75" x 6"; 2003

Happy New Year - wishing you all peace and prosperity in 2018!

The studio is still quiet here.  The palette needs to be cleaned (from busy grandsons making pictures) and the furniture needs to be rearranged (with the inflatable bed soon to be deflated.)  But most of all, I need to get some rest.  Today I mostly slept - putting my PJs back on at 5am (after returning from the airport.)  My voice is gone and my cold is doing quite well but I'm determined to paint tomorrow.  I'm also determined to get out to take some winter reference photos.  The high is supposed to be 3 degrees F tomorrow but the next day it will be 15 degrees F.  So tomorrow: paint inside - and Tuesday: tromp through the snow bundled as well as I can.  If you're on Facebook you can see what that looks like.  My avatar there shows me clad in a parka, mittens and boots in a snowy scene. 

P.S. The painting above was done outside - with my easel set up in a church parking lot - with snow plows working all around me.  The plows came after I had set up and had gotten a good start.  Otherwise, I don't think the scene would have looked so tranquil.

from 2006

Poinsettia; oil on panel; 6" x 9.5" 2006

During this busy holiday time, I thought I'd post another past oil painting for you all.  I remember loving how these gorgeous leaves stretched out and filled the entire picture frame.  There's a slight asymmetry to the composition - which pleases me still.  And that iridescent film they use to wrap the pots - and the gradient in the background - well - I could go on and on.

As I'm sure you all are - I've been juggling many tasks here this week.  Among them is a bunch of peonies that I bought at Whole Foods.  $12 for five tight little buds - but I'm very hopeful that they'll open up properly and delight us all.  They've definitely swelled in the last couple of days and are currently set up with a conch shell on a round teal mat.  I've got two pieces of tape on the floor where the tips of my toes will go (a ritual of mine) and a spot light poised just so.  I'm excited to get started on this - hopefully tomorrow evening.

Tonight there's still studio tidying to be done, preparation for a lesson and some writing I need to catch up on. 

On the easel - but not yet started: painting number 100 - the last of the Reboot - and the beginning of the next chapter here.  I'm pretty sure it will have peonies and a conch shell in it - we'll soon see.

from 2005

s a l e . p e n d i n g - January at the Marsh; oil on panel; 10" x 16"; 2005

This is an older piece of mine - a plein air done in oils.  I've done a lot of painting outside in the winter and have gone through a lot of those little packets that warm up when you unwrap them and that fit in your boots and/or mittens.  It's cold business winter-plein-air painting - but oh so rewarding.  Unfortunately, with casein paint, you can't paint out when it's below freezing.  Casein is a water medium and will freeze - unlike oil paint which may get a little more viscous but will still be pliable enough to paint with in extreme conditions. 

Now that there's snow outside, I'm hoping to get out and take some photo references to make winter-casein paintings back in the warmth of the studio.  In the meantime, I thought I'd put this one up for you all to see - and to remind myself of how amazing and varied are the colors of snow.

from 2005

Unmade Bed, oil on canvas mounted on board, 14 x 19 inches, 2005

There's a blank canvas on the easel - and the paper-doll chain has assumed a different pose.

While moving forward with a new painting, I've been looking back in time for inspiration to make another print.

I keep coming back to this Unmade Bed. The colors in the white mussed-up sheets fascinated me at the time I painted it. How do I convey that feeling in black and white? I'd also like to dig deeper into the idea of awareness by absence of the human form. I like how narrative that feels.

There's a lot of visual information here to fit into a 4 x 6 inch piece of linoleum. This print may turn out to be a study for yet a larger print - we'll see.

from 1999

plan for a mobile; ink on paper; 11 x 8.5 inches

Leaves; oak leaves, spray paint, fish line pivots, thread, glue, birch dowels and dust; about 30 x 30 x 30 inches

I decided not to put an acorn at the top of the mobile - but I still like it in the drawing.

from 2004

study for a vanitas still life, oil on canvas mounted on board, 7.25 x 9.25 inches

This is another piece from four years ago that's been calling to me lately. I find myself drawn to the shape of the coins as they rotate in space along with the depth perspective created by size, contrast and edges.

I'd thought about using this idea in a painting as a computer's screen saver. Vanitas often use money as a symbol of greed and this seemed like a contemporary way to work that in.

from 2004

oil on canvas, 24 x 36 inches


detail

This is a painting from 2004. I've been looking a lot lately at the broken ground - it's texture, color and movement. At the time, I was struggling to describe the shadows where they met the light. The sunlight was very bright on a white table cloth. I still remember how dazzling the effect was.

from 2005

Game Suspended, oil on wood panel, 11.5 x 7 inches

Bio

Askance (self-portrait, detail), oil on linen, 14 x 11, 2003

In addition to the work that will be on exhibit at the upcoming Blogger Show in New York, there are plans to put together an exhibition book for the public to view. Inside will be copies of the participating artists' bios, resumes and thumbnail images. These last couple of days I've been looking through my saved documents and putting together current ones for this show's exhibition book.

From 1981

In preparation for my rings series, I've been reminiscing and looking at old photos. This one is of my oldest son and me. We were tent camping at Rice Lake, MN - a place I revisited this spring:

Rice Lake Morning, 6 x 10 inches, oil on unstretched linen, 2007

from 2003

from 2005

from 2005

16 x 10 inches, oil on wood panel

from 2005

16 x 10 inches, oil on wood panel

from 2005

16 x 10 inches, oil on wood panel

from 2005

16 x 10 inches, oil on wood panel

from 2005

16 x 10 inches, oil on wood panel