Ranunculus in a Mexican Vase, oil 12x16

This vase is so great.  Another Mexican souvenir (apparently I only managed to buy stuff for myself this time :0).  These cheerful orange, yellow & white ranunculus flowers are perfect colors for it.  Flowers are so hard.  I think you have to ignore what their shapes really are and just paint what they FEEL like.  Well, to me, today, this is what they felt like.

Crazy Harry, 6x12 oil

I did some sketching of my orange boy, Harry, the other day in the garden.  At the studio on Sunday, this showed up on a canvas - how'd that happen?  I like the playfulness of this, and it's definitely not 'serious', but I love the bull's-eye on Harry's side - it's really there!

Tiverton Getty, 14x18 acrylic

SOLD
This started as a plein air piece from last Summer. It's been kicking around, and I liked it and I didn't, you know? So today when I got in from my outdoor session at Grinell's Beach I 'warmed up' inside by playing what I call 'Doll Hospital' - I grab a painting that just isn't 'right', and perform surgery on it - working the color, correcting the drawing - whatever it needs. This one needed lighter lights and a kick in the color dept. Now I like it. Too bad the people who owned the gas station last summer are gone - these were their trucks in the painting!

For The Birds...

I've been sketching birds, from life and from photos (mine and 'found' photos).  I like to study them as they're sitting, eating or just hanging out.  It seems to me they have a very complicated system of communication.  I have great empathy for them, and contrary to many people, find them 'lucky' and 'good omens' rather than the reverse. 

The top image is from a sketch I call "Visiting Hours".  The pigeon on the right is injured in it's leg, and is unable to walk around and peck for food.  This was in San Miguel, and the children were relentless in making it fly instead of leaving it alone.  I had to leave myself, or get in an argument with the parents.  These other two pigeons stuck with this injured one, where ever it landed, and kept it company.  You can't tell me they don't understand what's going on.  

The bottom image is the one I dreamt about.  The Friday version I did at the studio was very stilted and the birds were all dead-on frontal.  The wings were very stiff.  In my sleep I painted them like this.  Thankfully Tim felt like walking the Bristol Bike Path today and we went over to my studio and I just dived in and re-worked it.  Maybe still not 'final' but definitely getting there.

Plein Air Falmouth, Marshfield and Norwell, MA

Yesterday (I have no idea why this is all underlines, and I can't undo it!) I was on Boston's South Shore for a 'blonde-ening' and I went early and painting this acrylic  painting of the marsh off rte 3A between Marshfield and Scituate.  Then after the hair appt I met up with my friend Nancy Colella and we painted the North River in Norwell, this time, I used oils.

Tuesday I went to the Veterans Cemetery in Bourne, MA and while I was there I stopped at Old Silver Beach in Falmouth.  It was unbelievable.  The water was aqua!  I don't like the composition, but you know what they say about a bad day of painting....

This Week's Figures, oil

I did go to a figure class this week - it's one of those drop-in... no instructors classes, and the model was good, so here's trying to keep the lessons at learned at Peggi Kroll Roberts workshop in mind...

Self Portraits

I'll give you a laugh today.  I've been doing self portraits for the past week - they're really difficult.  Honestly, I'm much better looking than this ;)

The last one is a work in progress, not done, but I thought I'd include it so you could see how I destroy these paintings slowly...

Featured Artist - Phyllis Adams (Block Dog Art)

Let's see how this photo looks, as I 'cut & pasted' it.  I'd like to introduce Phyllis Adams, a Tiverton artist and blogger, whose blog, Block Dog Art is a fun and adorable land of dogs of all kinds.  Phyllis is active as well on Etsy and Ebay, and to say she just started this a few months ago, has been very successful!  Check out her blog for some canine fun!