"Stacked"

"Stacked"

oil on canvas, 45" x 15"

Favorite 15% in Boldbrush Painting Competition

October 2010

SOLD

I am getting down to the wire on what I can paint and have dry for my May show. This was fun at first and then proceeded to wear me down towards cookie number eleven. I think I 'm done but might tweak a few spots for hightlights etc in a day or so. I have 2 empty canvases left and that's it. Then I can work on all the finishing details of everything. I'm trying to give myself space to not have to get crazy right up until hanging day.

"Chocolate Swirl"

"Chocolate Swirl"

oil on canvas, 18"x 18"

I had another canvas the same size as the last one so I painted a companion strawberry with the swirl. Mmm, chocolate. Thankfully I have kids to eat some of these things or I might be gaining quite a bit of weight...

"Chocolate Dipped"

"Chocolate Dipped"

oil on canvas, 18"x 18"

SOLD

I had to paint something smaller today, something I could finish in a day. Lucky I had a yummy inspiration for this one. Mmm. It was good too.

"One With Everything"

"One With Everything"

oil on canvas, 54" x 54"

Ok, this hotdog almost killed me.

But here it is nonetheless. I could work on this forever, altering shading and highlights but for the moment, I'm done. I may add more texture to the napkin but it will have wait and see.Here is another shot to put it in perspective...

"Brave Cone"

"Brave Cone"

homage to Brandon Bird

oil on board, 11" x 14"

Hat Rack

acrylic on wood

Ahhh. I've been working soooo hard lately with much to show eventually. It is auction season here and I have many projects in the works and I'm still working on my May show. This hat rack was a commission from a friend of mine and is finally finished. There are tons of details in this but only show close up.

The oil above called "Brave Cone" in an homage to Brandon Bird's work called "Brave Cone Dog". He is the brother of a friend of mine and she turned me on to his cool work!! Check it out here. I was influenced by his piece and wanted to paint something like it in my current theme- food. It lent itself well...

I am in the final stages of a giant painting (54" x 54")and some mosaic work I will post soon.

"Bacon Stands Alone"

"Bacon Stands Alone"

oil on canvas, 15" x 60" WIP?

Who could paint food without painting giant slices of bacon? Not me, that's for sure... This one is very impressionistic up close and I might still be working on it. I keep touching up but the paint is super thick on top so days go by while I let bits of it dry. So many reflections on bacon when you look close. This one needs some serious distance. I know small paintings are so in right now, but I just can't help myself. I'm aching for a 5' x 6' canvas... Just think of the possibilities.

"The Five Little Bears"

"The Five Little Bears"

oil on board, 12" x 16"

SOLD

I still had a few gummi bears left so I thought I'd try a smaller version of just a few. I only had board left today to paint on and I have to say that now that I have been painting on canvas for months, I like it much better. And big is better for me too. This was much less fun to work on in some way although I like the outcome. I think that I have found myself in the larger format and taking a step back to paint small definitely made me realize how much I like my new direction. So get ready for some more large works...

"Pineapple Bear on Top"

"Pineapple Bear on Top"

oil on canvas, 12"x 36"

"No Escaping the Bag"

oil on canvas, 12"x 36"

The Gummi Bear painting is a companion piece to the Swedish Fish. Again, these are in my series of large format food paintings for my upcoming show at The Silverwood Gallery in May and June. Maybe you too have some of these hiding out in a drawer somewhere for that desperate moment late at night when you need just a little something sweet...

"Pink Buttercream Goes Naked" and Awards

"Pink Buttercream Goes Naked"

oil on canvas, 36" x 36"

Yes, 3 feet wide cupcakes. I couldn't help myself. I have a thing for cupcakes anyway... but painting them this big was a real blast. I'm really enjoying myself. And it cracks me up.

And now to my list of favorites for the Sunshine Award. This list should be so much larger but I know many people I would put here have received this many times over already. Some of these people only have websites too and won't be able to pass this on, but they inspire me so they are on this list... enjoy-

Pam Ingalls (Russian Impressionist Master, friend, my mentor and if you don't know her work, you should!!!)

Liz Wiltzen

Dana Cooper

Angela Elledge

Michael Naples

Gwen Bell

Carol Horzempa

Paintblog (Not Just a person but a Whole World... I love this!)

Lisa Walsh

Olga Wagner at Cat Claw's Studio

Barb Hillier

Carolee Clarke

"Peppered Turkey on Rye" and Sunshine Award!

"Peppered Turkey on Rye"

oil on canvas, 24" x 48"
SOLD

Here is another of my big pieces. I liked the peanut butter and jelly so much I did a companion piece for those of us who like more of a Daggwood Sandwich. The lettuce was so fun to paint. I have to say I am really enjoying painting this big pieces more than anything I've painted so far. I've definitely found a thread...

And I was given a lovely Sunshine Award by Kelley MacDonald and I am so thrilled to be recognized by other painters online! I am supposed to pass it on to 12 others that bring Sunshine into my day but alas I am SOOO busy this morning that I will post again later this afternoon and fulfill my obligation....I am in the middle of 3 projects today so check back to see the list later... and a big Thank You to Kelley!

"Never Ending Glass"

"Never Ending Glass"

oil on canvas, 36" x 24"

SOLD

Yet another craving of many I know... How that first sip is so bubbly and cold, especially after being poured over a huge amount of ice. Mmmm. Hot summer day, ice cold coke. I don't have one very often but then sometimes you just can't help yourself.

Ice was quite something to paint, especially really large. And then I couldn't leave off the sweat on the glass. It had so much texture when I looked closely. Lots of layers and tons of small shapes here to get the look I wanted.

"Cascading Chips"

"Cascading Chips"

oil on canvas, 36"x 24"

I'm adding another to my current collection of Food pieces that I'm working on. I'm not sure if it's because food in universal, we all think about it everyday, or because we all have secret cravings, maybe even things hidden deep in a drawer somewhere... I'm still painting very large and loving it. This is only the second (third in you count my new Swedish Fish up above) of 7 that I have finished. They are still taking about a week each, wish it could be faster.

Anybody out there willing to share their secret craving ideas???... I'm looking for more to paint.

" 1/118 Karin Jurick"

"1/118 Karin Jurick"

oil on board, 9" x 12"

This is part of a Huge Thank you to the Artist Karin Jurick for hosting an incredible challenge site at Different Strokes For Different Folks. . Check out all the other great portraits of Karin.

She has inspired us all to challenge ourselves and to try things we normally wouldn't...

A huge THANK YOU to Karin!

New Paintings

"Jelly Runneth Over"

oil on canvas, 24" x 48"

Fav 15% of Fine Art Studio Online Competition

SOLD

Thank you to those of you who follow and are still out there now when I am coming back to blogging my new work... I have been painting everyday but have endeavored to do large works that take me about a week each. They are more detailed and up close have lots and lots of paint. I feel like I found a real piece of myself in the idea of painting small things large. I have always wanted look at things close in a macro sense. So here is the first of the bunch from this months work.

AND I 'm very excited to say that it was chosen in the Fav 15% of the Fine Art Studio Online competition for January. Click here to check out all the fine works. It's a real honor as there were something like 750 entries.

So, I will be continuing to post works on this blog but it will be more slowly than before as I am loving to paint large.

This piece will also be for sale in my upcoming show at The Silverwood Gallery in May and June of this year along with a host of many other big paintings.

Soul searching...

Well, I have been doing a whole lot of soul searching for a few weeks and that is the reason for my lack of posting. I have actually been painting hours and hours each day in trying a new approach and I'm not quite ready to put my recent work out there. I think I have finally found a piece of myself in my new works that was missing before and I'll explain more later when I have a few of them  finished and feel ready to post. Daily painting in the small form has been so great for me in gaining skills and learning to work fast but I need time to experiment and try some new ideas. Check back in a week or so and see what I'm up to...

"My Jelly Runneth Over"

"My Jelly Runneth Over"

oil on board, 8x8"

$150 plus $10 shipping

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Thought I'd paint some more PB and J's. I'm going to paint some very large but first I am in need of some big canvas... I'll be searching for those soon but in the meantime, I'll paint a few little ones. 

"After"

"After"

oil on board, 11 x 14"

SOLD

After what? you ask... exactly. After the last glass was gone, after the last notes echoed, after the last dance, use your imagination. In my world, it's after the ferry has made it's way across and he's put down his trumpets for the night. What is it in your world?

"Sacred Space"

"Sacred Space"

oil on board, 9 x 12"

Having a special place to calm my mind and think clearly has been a real blessing. This is my sacred space with it's heated floor and perimeter lighting. I tried to do it justice but I'm not sure I can...

"Illumination"

"Illumination"

oil on board, 8x8"

$150 plus $10 shipping

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In the darkness of night on the last day of this year, I thought it appropriate to paint light. My representation is a nightlight. It may be small and  yet it can be so comforting to get through to the next day, a flicker that makes us feel safe in the darkness, hope that the morning will soon be upon us. Here's to an incredible New Year and all the hope it holds.

"Showing His Colors"

"Showing His Colors"

oil on board, 11x14"

$275 plus $10 shipping

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I was given some iridescent oil colors for Christmas by my husband and I thought that a peacock was the perfect place to try them out. I'm not sure the sparkles make their way into the photo here but it was a lot of fun to have some new paint. I generally only paint with 7 standard colors.

La Pavoni

"La Pavoni"

oil on board, 8x10"

commissioned work

I have been working on this for a friend of mine. It's one of those beautiful Italian hand pump espresso makers that I wish I owned... Maybe if I paint a few more of these, I'd have enough money to buy one... I love a latte. Perfect for an after Christmas coffee.

Louis Lane

"Watching from Above"

Louis Lane

for the VIPP shelter and all her fine friends

RIP

"Little Wooden Santa"

"Little Wooden Santa"

oil on board, 5x5"

SOLD

I have been really busy lately with Christmas presents and packages and finishing up a few commissions I was working on. Finally today I took some time to paint. It was really nice. I bought this little figurine at a thrift store and thought it would make for a sweet little painting.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to All

(And happy painting my dear painter friends...)

Fairy Tale Chairs

Fairy Tale Chairs

commissioned NFS

mostly finished...

Original Set

I've been working hard on these chairs for a few days. They are being added to a set I did a few years ago that had a table and 2 Fairy Tale chairs with it as well as hidden pictures all throughout the set for kids to search out. It's been fun to work on Humpty Dumpty and the Tortoise and the Hare to finish it up. These pieces are in acrylics and take quite a bit of time. They will be a special gift for Christmas.

"Gertrude"

"Gertrude"

oil on board, 5x5"

NFS

The smallest of all my chickens is Gertrude. She is super friendly and comfortable being held. I loved painting her backlit. It made for beautiful shadow colors...

Blue Eyes (again...)

Blue Eyes

oil on board, 8x8"

NFS

Still trying to capture Blue Eyes just right. Here is yet another attempt...

DSFDF Portrait-Bill Brauker

"The Artist"

Bill Brauker

DSFDF Portrait Study

oil on board, 5x5"

original photo

I just got my photo for the current challenge from Different Strokes From Different Folks.

I decided to try a small study before painting larger but I kind of like how this came out. Maybe this one will stick, but I will probably try a few more times...

Update- I added a few details on this and decided that I liked it as is. I wanted to try again but sometimes it just comes out the first time how you see it. I included the original because I think it's interesting to see the reference. This was a really fun challenge. Thank you to Karin Jurick for her wonderful blog and the chance to paint things I normally wouldn't. Check out Bill Brauker's Blog to see his lovely portrait of me and his other fine work. Also Karin put a video of the portrait swap on youtube with the original photos and the paintings that resulted. It's fun to watch photos morph into paintings...here is the link-

photo swap.

"Old Turquoise Beauty"

"Old Turquoise Beauty"

oil on board, 8x8"

$150 plus $10 shipping

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This old car lived just down the street from when we lived in Seattle. I'm not sure how much it ever moved but the color drew me in again and again. Thought it was time for a little car portrait.

Thanks to all of you who came to my show last weekend and made it so successful! I'll have my studio open this weekend again and there are lots of other talented artists taking part in our annual Vashon Island Art Studio Tour. Come check it out from 10-4 Saturday and Sunday and see our beautiful island.

"Checkered Lily"

"Checkered Lily"

oil on canvas, 8"x 16" x 1"

$200 plus $15 shipping

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This little checkered lily is from Jacksonville, Oregon and is a member of an endangered species of Fritillaria known as Gentner's Fritillary. It only exists in 3 small pockets in Oregon and California. I happened to be there a few years ago during spring and found a few blooming in the wild. I thought it would be fun to put in paint with it's dusty outside and flaming interior...

"Eyes of Blue"

"Eyes of Blue"

oil on board, 8x8"

NFS

I like how this portrait came out, still not sure if I'm capturing my subject effectively, but I'm working hard at this... could be more to come.