January 20 - Fairmont Park, Riverside, On Location Today

"Fairmont Park Afternoon" What a great time today! I received an email inviting me to join about 15 other plein air (on location) artists for a pot luck lunch and an afternoon of painting at a local park, complete with lake. This 9 x 12 oil is my first canvas, and it was fun to keep "cleaning out the boxes" and using a lot of paint to get the feeling I was after. The fishing folk on the pier were compliant enough to stay put and the palm trees on the right were fun to do with palette knife and lots of paint! Oil, 9 x 12 for $250 after I sign it!

January 19 - View from Our Front Porch, Evening

My camera doesn't capture the true color intensity that is in this piece. I had such an amazing time painting this view that is from our front yard, looking west. The sunsets that have been delighting my eyes for the past few weeks finally manifested themselves in this
painting. The Italian cypress of the neighbor's house always frame the last intense glow as I head out to feed the horse and goats. This is again thickly applied paint, and my paint boxes are still being
emptied. These thick paintings are coming from such a deep place inside me. Oil, 8 x 10 for $250

January 18 - Black Cat Study, Oil, 7 x 5

More thick paint! Applying the paint this way is as if I'm frosting a gooey chocolate cake! I love the tactile feeling of the marks of paint as they come off the brush and palette knife. Since this is a quick study, the parts that I really like are the eyes and the texture of the canvas showing through on parts of the cat's head, even though there are some really thick passages of paint in the area. Like van Gogh's work, the actual texture of the paint is part of the story within the painting. I get the feeling of looking at a mosaic when I see these, and that brings to mind the rich history of the Byzantine churches. $100

January 17 - Onions with a Palette Knife!

Time to clean out the pill boxes! This action generated a painting today that is more what I'd like to do with the texture of the paint adding a distinct lusciousness I crave to see. There's a lot of palette knife instead of brushwork in this one. Hmmm, may have to get into the mindset of cleaning out pill boxes more often! This 5 x 7 inch oil is called "Close Friends" and joins the ranks of breakout paintings. I love it when creativity burps and these little gems appear. $100 from the Daily Paintings web site.

I also have placed the finished boat commission and the Allie and Spunky commission on the January page. There were some final changes made to both of these, and the clients have been notified!

I think I'll experiment more with the palette knife and cleaning out the pill boxes to see where that takes me, unless and until another commission comes in.
Tomorrow I hand the master Plein Air with an ATTITUDE DVD over to the duplication service! I'll be ready to ship next week!!!
Now on to editing the last of the Acrylic Painting with an ATTITUDE into DVD format.

January 16 - Onion in Acrylic, 5 x 5 inches

Taking a break from the commission (need to clear the cobwebs!), I rummaged around and found this red onion, and one of the specialty canvas sizees for smaller paintings. The canvas is 5 x 5 inches, and this is an acrylic, applied thickly. Nice to take a break from the oils for a day or so. $100

In other news, I finished the Plein Air DVD, and will be sending it off for duplication this week. Next is to see the acrylic one on a DVD master as well!

Congratualtions to a new collector in the form of a well-known physician at the Mayo Clinic on his purchase of "A Bit Mulish" for a gift.

January 15 - Commissioned Portrait, 95% finished

Looking at the painting now is a lot easier on the eyes than a couple days ago. I spent a lot of knuckle-busting hours getting the likeness of the young lady today, and putting the finishing touches on Spunky D. There are still some details that need work, and I will spend tomorrow doing that before calling it a finished work. I need to get away from it for a while, to come back to see it with clarity.
I call that "putting it under the bed for the night". Many artists get to this point in a work, and put it away for a while. Out of sight, the painting sits, allowing the synapses in the artist's mind to connect to the subconscious, creating a fertile arena for those "AHA!" moments upon seeing it again. For an artist to push to work on a painting when the muse has left the building almost certainly sets up a scenario for questioning and groping for the answers to visual problems. Leaving it alone for a while will magically solve most of them!

January 14 - 75% done on the Commissioned Portrait

Whew. The painting has left the "uglies" now and is heading toward completion. I've made changes to start achieving likenesses in both faces, and still building interest in those areas not the focal point. Note that I have not yet painted eyes, nor done details on the dog's paw (lower right). I will be flicking my brushes over the entire surface, continuing to make corrections from this point forward, and bringing to a finish the painting of Allie and Spunky.

Today with two hours of team water volleyball and filling a three- yard dumpster with cactus and brush, I'm kinda tired out tonight. However I still have computer work to do, sitting here by the wood fire, listening to Prairie Home Companion ( http:// www.prairiehome.org ) with Garrison Keillor. Hmmm, I see I need another walk to the woodpile.

January 13 - Portrait Commission Continues

Now I have to say, this is tough to show to so many discriminating eyes, but you need to see every stage that paintings go through to better understand each of those stages. There are places in one painting's development that cannot be described any other way than "the uglies". This one is knee-deep in it right now! That's because the human eye and mind wants to see things a certain way, and when denied that by the level of completion of the work, the reaction is not one of acceptance, but more of surprise, and dismay. I call this stage the ugly stage for each painting I do. I know the folks commissioning a painting ought not see this stage, but they're subscribed to the list, so alas!

Fortunately for all, this painting will escape from that region and move toward a finished state tomorrow.  Today's focus was to set some edges and to start on the likeness of both the dog and young lady.

January 12 - On the River in Norco

Another commission, this time from a great collector in Florida, for whom I've painted her other lovely granddaughter Molly with Daisy, done last year. Now I'm returning with Allie and Spunky. Spunky has been painted before, and I do so love his soulful eyes. Allie is a beauty as well, with incredible skin that will tax my abilities to capture the translucent beauty there. I do so love a challenge! Here is the first lay in, placing the figures on the canvas without any intent to capture likeness. That will come perhaps tomorrow. I was sent some really good images from which to work, so this ought to go smoothly (famous last words!) It is a 20 x 16 oil. For you, Kim!.

January 11 - The Dog Painting Changes, Making it Better

I knew I'd have to make changes to the dog to get the right "look", and boy! There were some major ones.  I ended up scraping out the entire nose and eye area, and repainting much of the structure of the head. I'm just happier with it. Below are both paintings, before and after, so you can see the changes wrought. They look like two different dogs! But that's the way of a commission for me. I tend to paint the majority of it in the first pass--OH OH!!! Major teaching moment ahead!

Hesitancy in painting limits your choices. I am reminded of cleaning a closet--the first thing that has to be done is to get everything OUT of the closet. So when I paint like this, I'm putting a lot of paint out there, and doing a lot of things on the canvas so I have something to work with later. Imagine if you will a restaurant with only two items on the menu. You'd stop going there, wouldn't you, after tasting just those two items every time? Your canvas can be a menu. The more you have OUT on it, the more choices you are likely to make. For example, say I put some blue in the lower left corner. That blue is out there where I can see it, and I can make additional choices in my work based upon seeing it. Had I not put the blue there, options and choices related to that blue wouldn't be possible! 

So the dog commission was done in the first pass to give me something to work with later. I had the head painted, it just wasn't RIGHT. I had the dog painted, and a lot of it IS right. A headless dog is a dog with nothing to work with. So my advice to you all is, "Do something, ANYthing, so you have something to work with."

January 10 - The Three Boat Commission Finished.

Three days of work on this one (mostly) and I can comfortably say it is 99 percent finished. I really am pleased with the way this slight fantasy/mostly real painting came out. The work has an interesting balance of values and division of space. Squint your eyes and look at the interesting light/dark that shows up!

Putting visuals to the words of people who so much want to have a memory made into something tangible is truly rewarding. I do hope the individual who has commissioned this painting will be pleased with the way it has turned out.

I also worked on yesterday's commission of the dog, completely wiping out and scraping much of his face off, repainting it in with an accuracy that was missing on the first go. AS artists, we cannot have fear about correcting our images, because if it has been painted once, it can be done again. Our brushes continue to move over new canvases, and each mark making is building on those that went before. Retracing our steps to correct is similar to practicing what we are learning--it can only contribute to growth. So I have a great deal of certainty that any corrections I make will only make me a better artist in my journey.

January 9 - Donated Dog Commission for a Rescue Group

I needed to set aside the boat painting for the pigments to set up for a day, so this dog commission came off the brushes for a family in Fallon, Nevada. Last October I donated a commissioned portrait to the CAPS Art Auction for the Dogs and Cats in their shelter, and was sent some "really bad" photographs of this heeler mix. He was the constant companion of the buyer's grandchild, and the dog passed away at age 13. I'm doing my best to capture the pose and head expression in the three photographs they provided, to create a complete image of the lost pet. I'll end up doing more work on it when the light of the morrow comes, especially around the face.

January 8 - Still the Three Boats, more work on this 24 36 inch commission

Now I'm purely having FUN! It is so enjoyable to go in familiar territory, bringing this commission up to this stage. I'm connecting the dots so to speak, making changes to the shapes of the obats, integrating the whole composition before I start with the details, the calligraphy and areas of high contrast that will hold the viewer's eye. I'm quite pleased with it at this stage. I think a day to let these layers set up, so I can do the details without picking up the underlayment.

You can see that I've cleaned up a lot of the edges, losing some, and I added the palm trees and beach (oh to be there now) behind the Soulmate. The Absolute is definitely closer to the viewer, and turned slightly this way. I still have much more to do on the Southern Cross in the night sky, and to add the stellar constellation of that same name. Such fun!

Next will be the details!!

January 7 - The Three Boat Commission ongoing

The day's work on this commission has ended up with me covering about 75% of the canvas, with the general colors that will be in each location. this part of the painting process is cerebral and intuitive, as I make decisions as the brush goes to the surface. Where to end a cloud, sight lines of shapes and edges, and keeping the viewer's eye going where I need it to go. As I may have mentioned, this pass is just getting the larger shapes in place, and doing those areas about which I have a good deal of certainty.
The decision to make the "Southern Cross" into an ephemeral shape will make its position in the sky more believable. People want to see things where they would normally be, and to put a boat in the sky is good in concept, yet to convey it in a rather traditional painting would be a challenge. I think I can do it, keeping that boat "there, but not". I have left the dark upper left for the constellation of the Southern Cross. The change in sky from one side to the other is handled by the clouds in both locations, Seattle and the Caribbean.
I can hardly wait to do the water and reflections! I love painting water.

Still more changes to come!!

January 6 - The Boat Commission Canvas Beginning

Here's the 24 x 36 inch canvas, prepped with white gesso tinted with cadmium orange and burnt umber gesso thrown in. I made some changes to the original sketch as I thought about the relationship of the boats. The larger one in the foreground is the current boat for this recipient. The second boat is further away, in Florida I believe, and sailed into the Caribbean, I don't know if the recipient still owns this one. Now that shape in the upper left is going to become a "ghost ship" in the night sky (a vignette) because it was lost in one of the Florida hurricanes. There will be stars there, and the Southern Cross in the night sky (and the name of the boat).
Mount Ranier will be behind the largest boat as its location is within view of it. I've seen the Southern Cross in my travels, I've been to tropical locations, and also to Seattle. Actually being in a place you're asked to paint certainly helps!
Challenges for me right now are in designing the clouds over Mt. Ranier and transitioning that to the night sky and ghost ship. Ought to be a fun day tomorrow!

January 5 - Three Boat Commission Painting

OK, you overwhelmed me with the comments about donuts and New Year's resolutions! I get it, and won't paint the cruller...well, I'll wait a while. There are three donuts left (the rest, all 20 or so, went to the coyotes tonight). Our power keeps going out with the high winds, so I may not be able to get this to you before midnight. I'll try, though. The winds are incredibly strong, with gusts up to 80 miles per hour. We're sheltered here in the new place a bit, but our neighbors out on the slope below us are really getting hit. And the power lines come up from there.

The commission for the boats came through with the details I needed, and here is the quote from the originator: "My vision of the scene is the Soulmate in a tropical setting (light blue/turquoise water and palm trees) then the scene morphing to the Absolute with a Northwestern type landscape (dark blue water and possibly Mt. Rainier). The Southern Cross I envision in the starry sky - as a 'ghost' ship - sailing away so you see the back of the boat with the outriggers extended. And sailing toward the constellation of the Southern Cross. The Soulmate and Absolute can be facing whatever direction makes sense to you."

I suggested a slight horizontal format (ocean water tending to seek a certain level!) and will have no problem depicting the night view of the lost Southern Cross (she was taken in a hurricane). The images of the boats are adequate, although I'm going to have to really do some drawing to get the Southern Cross in position going away from the viewer, because that source material shows a view looking down toward the stern (back) instead of equal or above the horizon. Just another knot in the anchor rope!

January 4 - Chocolate Donut and the Last One, I Promise!

I sure wish these donuts would get out of my studio, but I've had such fun without even delayed gratification after the painting session. Oh, you see that there's a bite out of this one? No, I didn't do that. It happened before it was placed on the taboret. And you see the model, a chocolate cake donut with peanut sprinkles! This 4 x 6 oil is propped up behind that tasty little model, so you can see the source material, and the finished painting. It is fun to paint from life, even if the wafting odor of warm chocolate permeates the air as I paint, caused by the heat of the lamp. Oh, such will power!! Available for $100 on the Daily Paintings web site

I'm still waiting for input for the next commission--until I hear, I cannot begin that one. It will be a lesson painting, if it comes to fruition. If not, perhaps I'll do a horse painting to fill the time and give more pointers about painting.javascript:void(0)

January 3 - Donuts, or Another Fat Pill

"Another Fat Pill" Oh Dear! This is just awful! That box of donuts is still in the studio, and another one slipped out to show up near my easel. I just had to paint it, because I CANNOT eat it! Goal setting for 2007 includes making better food choices, and you and I both know donuts are nowhere near the list! Yet I have to tell you about glazed donuts. When I was a kid back in Falls Church, Virginia, and went to church, and sang in the junior choir, after the service there was always a time for conversation and socializing. Always there were these oh-so-fresh glazed donuts in boxes for the parish to eat, coffee for the grownups and punch for the children. And they always had a lot of sugary glaze, and droplets on the wax paper. I remember those still-warm donuts to this day, and when I eat one (not this one!), I try to recapture that sense of community and those memories. Original acrylic on gallery wrap canvas, 5 x 7 inches. Available for $105 from my dailypaintings.com web page for January 2007.

January 2 - Jelly Donut, OH MY!!

"New Year's Resolution...Not" This impudent jelly donut sticks its tongue of jelly out at you and me, almost teasing us to break those News Year's resolutions. Jelly donuts with their gooey raspberry centers cannot hold a candle to the holiday goodies just past, but it still makes a wonderful model to the second painting of 2007. I don't buy these things, but bring them home to feed the coyotes instead of having them go to waste (waist!?) in the trash bin. Original acrylic, 4 x 6 inches. $100 from my dailypaintings.com web site for this date.

January 1 - Begining the New Year with a New Dawn Painting

"Beginning with a Dawn" What better way to greet the new year than to paint the rising of the sun as it comes up behind the bluffs in wha is called "the Badlands" of Riverside County? I just love theses really steep hills, with the fields off in the distance. It felt so right to imagine the sujnrise playing on the counds off in the distance, and to think what the new year holds. Optomistically, I think the new year will bring exciting new challenges, a ton of fun, and many new friends. First painting of 2007 - Original oi, 12 x 12 inches. $200 from the January month from my dailypaintings.com web site.

December 31 - Last Glimpse of the Year

"Last Glimpse" The end of the year...here is the last glimpse of 2006, and a last glimpse of a small rabbit in a snowstorm. Also the last painting of 2006 for the Daily Paintings! Snow flies and the colors are greyed, yet there are flashes of blue, light and snow-covered trees. I tucked a small rabbit under the branches, hunkered down thinking perhaps of warmer weather? 12 x 9 inch acrylic

SOLD to the collection of Elizabeth Tierney of Holyoak, Massachusetts.

December 30 - Vertical Pear Study

"Vertical Pear" Working on still life subjects always presents problems of seeing and accurately depicting what's there, while still enhancing what you see to make a creditable two-dimensional image. You see, painting from life is all about processing three dimensions down to two, and if you depict it exactly the way you see it, you'll just have a flat painting. Painting from life is the ONLY way to train your eyes to see nuance of color, reflections and translate the reality of depth of field to the illusion of it on a flat surface. So keep painting, but remember that from life is the best way to sharpen your knives! This 7 x 5 inch oil is available for $100.

December 29 - Color Study from 1996, wow!

"Color Study, 1996" I was riffling through a box of photographs and show catalogues this afternoon and came across this piece of canvas, which has an interesting history. The notes on the margin say it was painted in 1996. It was done as a quick color rough prior to a demonstration at the San Pedro Art Association (near Long Beach, California). Turns out I didn't do the demonstration because os a conflict with two people being scheduled, so this one became a larger painting down the road, which has now sold. If you look at this critically, you will see I didn't know enough about color to make good choices that are effective in conveying the time of day. For example, notice the use of blue and the oranges. A nice decade's space between this one and the ones in this month.I know a lot more now, yet this small work has a charm of its own. This 5,75 x 7 inch acrylic is available for $95 from the dailypaintings.com web site for this date.

December 28 - Lattice Top Apple Pie Painting

"Lattice Top Apple Pie" I brought home an apple pie today, because when I'm tired, I make shopping decisions with my sweet tooth instead of common sense. After a discussion with my beloved husband, this dietary madness is now just a model for the daily painting for today. So instead of wasting it or giving it away, here is the pie in a calorie-free format, and the expense of buying it is no longer a burden. It will be recycled. This 8 x 10 acrylic is available for $175 from the dailypaintings.com web site for this date.

December 27 - Idyllwild Evening

"Idyllwild Evening" I decided to take a detour from the commissions list and paint something just for my own pleasure--without any outside direction. (I need to do that...You know, the "artistic free spirit" thing.) I have been to Idyllwild many times, first back in 1977 when I'd returned to California from Europe. It was as if I had returned to Germany, to go up to the alpine latitudes and spend time in the pines and snow. It was solace for my soul, as I missed Europe, having lived there for seven continuous years. So Idyllwild served a wonderful purpose to transit me to California, and I love it still. The town is surrounded by national forest, and the desert of Palm Springs on the north, and semi-desert on the other three sides. Truly an oasis. This is Lily Rock, a favorite climbing destination, and the local landmark, and as a vertical format painting, would find many places to be hung in a home. This 12 x 9 oil is available for $175 from the dailypaintings.com web site for this date.

December 26 - Border Collie Commission Finished

A full day, painting this commission to its completion. I placed Jake on the edge of a pasture, near the line of trees that borders many green areas in Kentucky. I put the opening in front of him, showing a lighter pasture on the other side of the trees, symbolic of the hope of so many of us that our pets will have a place in Heaven where we'll meet them later on. And now you can see him looking back withe the sunlight on the forest floor ready for his footfalls.

This is an an analogous painting in color, with the dominant hue being green. You'll find the blues and violets scattered amongst the fur of the dog, and the shadowed whites. The discords are in the trees as well, can you name them? If you have Hal Reed's color wheel, you can spin it and see exactly why this painting is so easy on the eyes. I learned a lot from that wheel, which is not your usual color mixing red-is-opposite-green wheel. You can order one by googling it, although Hal is gone now. I'm quite pleased with this commission, and I hope that the folks who've watched it unfold will be as well.

Tomorrow I'm shipping paintings and DVDs, and will begin yet one more commission--this time boats! I do so love the dog, cat, people and horse paintings, tho'.

December 25 - "Border Collie Commission, First Pass"

"Border Collie Commission, First Pass" Doing a commissioned painting turns into a very emotional event for me, expecially when the animal or person I'm painting has met a tragic end. I know that pain of losing something you love so much, having been through a similar situation so awful that it's still seared on my soul. This Border Collie is being painted as a gift to help ease the pain of his owner. The dog was killed suddenly, and having a painting will hopefully ease some of that grief. I know painting them is like running my fingers over the scar tissue of my own memories. Sometimes I cry when I paint these subjects, in kinship with knowing that pain.

I have a handful of photos to work from, none of which said what I think I needed to say in designing this memorial. I wanted his distinctive markings to show up, and his funny left-sided tilt to his tail, but I also want him to be looking in your direction. So in putting him in this position, I imply that he is leaving/has left, and yet would be here still if he could. The background will happen tomorrow, and the details on the dog will occur then, too, on this 12 x 16 oil.

December 24 - Persimmon Painting and Cats

Almost midnight, and time to send out the daily painting for Christmas. Well, not really, as persimmons aren't what the season is all about, however, it was "on the plate" so to speak.
This is a quickly done second pass on these fellows, and I learned something really important. If you use fresh fruit, did you know you have a limited amount of time to capture their essence before dehydration or a curious cat comes in to change things? I do, however, have more persimmons, so after the holiday tomorrow, I'll cut and set out another set and see if I can't find my way again. Cat decided they were more interesting if put on the floor. That's Pesto, one of two studio cats. I've painted her a couple of times

December 23 - Persimmons

"Cut Persimmons" Lesson time, while the chaos of the holiday comes thru, and takes a lot of valuable time from the studio. I'm waiting for more information on one commission I need to do tomorrow, and so I'll hold off and do this still life in two steps while I wait. This one's an acrylic 4 x 6 from a live setup of some cut persimmons on a cutting board. I love the temperature changes from the lit sides to the shadow sides. You can see I paint in the larger shapes, similar to a Matisse later style. The lights are opaque and the shadows are transparent (not on the fruit, but definitely on the cutting board and background. You can see the canvas texture easily through those areas. The background and shadows are done with burnt umber and ultramarine blue. I work up to the cadmiums in the lights on these beauties. Here's a digital of the fruit, which you can see I've changed a bit.

December 22 - Holiday Lights

"Holiday Lights" On our way home from dinner with aikido and horsey friends, my husband and I saw this lighted tree on the lawn of a house in our neighborhood. I commented that I wish I had my camera, as the lights were so interesting with their illumination of the wall of the house and the lawn. I don't think I've seen one of these stick trees lit up this way. So I looked long and hard at it as we drove by, and then carried the memory of it to this 6 x 4 canvas. What I think I was trying to capture was the light of the season, the light of human activity, against the solstice of winter, knowing that the days become longer, and the lights will be put away for another year. Acrylic, $80

December 21 - Madonna and Child Commission Finished

I spent a goodly number of hours working on this 24 x 18 oil commission, bringing it up to a state where I'd not be shy about showing it to the general public. I really enjoy looking at this painting now. It has a feeling of reverence with the suggestion of gold in the upper right (but no halos!), and the sweet cleanliness of the small, helpless baby caressed in its mother's arm. Her peaceful smile completes the image. There may be a little more work on it, but I would call it 90 percent finished at this after-midnight hour!

May all your times spent with loved ones be as peaceful as this scene. I LOVE doing commissions! I have to tell you, that if he doesn't want it, I'm keeping it for myself, to enjoy and have on the web site. In searching for similar portraits, I've not found one that is in any way similar. So I kinda like it. A lot. Do you?

JUST SOLD to the collection of Kimo Kockelman of Honolulu, Hawaii.

December 20 - The Commission of the Mother and Child Continues

My goodness, I'm having a profoundly enjoyable time with the progress of this commission! It must be the proximity of the season's day approaching, as this one is just flowing off my brushes. The source material is clipped on the right, so you can get a peek at the (ack!) flash photograph from which I'm working. I went on line and started looking at all the art from the middle ages dealing with the Madonna and Child, and found that they, too, must have used flash photography, because all of the features are flattened, just like a flash photo! Ya think? What fun to paint as if I were in the Middle Ages. But women (except for Artemisia Gentileschi) weren't much for painting back then. (Now there's one to google!)
Following the suggested color scheme, keeping the feel of the painting less of a portrait and more of an experience, I'm bringing this along with oils. Yes, oils, because I love the ease of correction, and the ... wait. Acrylics do that, too! Hmmm, maybe it is just the Middle Ages thing. They didn't have acrylics. Or flash photography.

December 19 - Painting Another with Similar Subject

I'm not sure if it was a senior moment, a mischievous cat, a moving box problem, or just general disorganization, but I lost a painting. I lost one that had sold, and I distinctly remember removing it from the shelves, and saying to myself, "This needs a varnish before I ship it out." Then it somehow ran away--went missing--for lack of a better explanation. I have turned the studio inside out, and it isn't here. Perhaps it went a-missing in a shipping box to some lucky person who received an extra. Maybe it slipped down behind the bookcases. Or perhaps I toted it outside to get a shovel and set it up on a shelf in the tool shed. Yeah, that's possible around here, too. Who knows, but it is gone. So what to do? Well, ethically I need to provide the buyer a painting, but cannot duplicate the same thing in the same size, because that compromises the originality for the second or subsequent one. Many artists have done paintings of similar imagery, and have called them a series, or painted them different sizes. Since the buyer loved the scene, it was the choice to make a larger painting and hope for a gracious positive reply to my email revealing the foibles of having so much going on, and having drunk a large glass of senior stupid.
So out came the brushes, and I painted the second image, which I attach for your perusal. This is an 8 x 10 acrylic, and is called "Pasture Light #2". Back to the portrait tomorrow.

December 18 - Commission, and a Lesson Painting Begins

This commission (one of three on my plate this month) is of a lovely woman and child who live in Hawaii. It is a larger painting, measuring 24 x 18 inches, and is to be stylized to be a strong suggestion of the two, but not an exact likeness. I like this idea! Here is the earliest phase of the painting, with the underpainting of the warm burnt orange and the drawing placement of the heads done loosely the way I normally do. I haven't decided if this will be finished in oil or acrylics, but at this stage, I'm working in acrylic. I spritzed the wet orange paint with alcohol to create additional texture. Although most of this will be gone in the final layers, it is always intriguing to having this on the "ground floor", so to speak.

Isn't it appropriate to be doing a portrait of a mother and baby just before Christmas? Life moves in funny and profound ways....

December 17 - From the Back of a Horse

From the back of a horse, I tend to find perspective in a lot of things. Today I was on the back of a horse for about four hours (on Raindance), singing Christmas carols on the streets of Norco with a bunch of friends from my riding club. The horses were decked out in garlands, bells and tree skirts made into rump blankets, and we were all dressed in red and green. My camera's still out in the trailer, so I don't know if there are any good pictures for you. But riding the horse seems to keep me sane. There's always a lot on one's plate during the holidays, and so I find it quite easy to combine the horse experience with escaping, and that's the reason for this painting. A rider with a pack horse, heading off through the high aspen country, in the middle of summer, sounds like a good escape to me. I'm waiting for a few decisions on commission work, so that's why painting something as nice as this little 5 x 7 acrylic is a true escape! $100 from the dailypaintings.com web site for this date

I've been formulating a design for a designer creating images for a hotel in Costa Rica. Different from my thick, painterly style, these "sketches" are done in acrylics, and are more linear in design and execution. They wanted a lighter touch for the hotel on the ocean. I show you only one tonight because the triptych is 27" wide--hard to put in an email! This is the leftmost of a trio of three. Makes me want to go there---the rain is coming down tonight! It measures 5" tall by 9.25" wide. We'll have to see what the designer says tomorrow...

The paper is Stonehenge, and works really well for smooth paint application. And the stuff wears like iron!

December 15 - Revisiting an older landscape with new knowledge

How I love revisiting some quickly-done painting from "long ago and far away" (heh heh...) This one never made it in its original form to my Santa Rosa Plateau paintings page . Now this 8 x 10 oil is much better in design and value, and pleases me because of the fresh brushwork and interesting feel of evening distance. Something good is happening as I continue to paint every darned day--figuring out what's important is getting a bit easier, and I have no hesitation in revisiting older work with a certainty that hasn't been part of me prior to this regime of every-day working.
Holiday plans are crimping my planning time for some commission work coming my way, but I'll get to them by Sunday and all next week. My beloved siblings and a few friends are coming over tomorrow for dinner, so I'm chasing dust bunnies as I wish you a good day! $125 from my Daily Paintings web site via PayPal.

December 14 - Painting on Location, Riverside Mission Inn

Anyone who has been to Riverside has probably passed by the Mission Inn, famous for a thousand different things, not the least of which are the holiday light displays. I met up with another painting friend (Hi, Joan!) this afternoon for a quick session before the light disappeared. However I didn't capture the holiday lights on the building, as they clicked on two minutes after I left (and it was too dark to see my palette!) The palm tree on the right is actually much darker--the lights tonight washed out that upper right corner.
So this 10 x 8 acrylic came to a quick stage of almost finished while the sun set and the lights of the town blinked on. I like it because of the warm sunshine colors and the more somber colors found in the shadows. Fun to paint on location with the pill box setup, and using acrylics. They are still in the car, and I rest assured that they won't dry overnight, unlike the painting, which is completely dry! $200

December 13 - The Cat in the Snow, Acrylic, 8 x 10

Hmmm, texture again, and Bats the Studio Cat! Of course, Bats has never seen snow, but he will always model for me, and I can then have a wonderfully fun time making the snow and shadows behind him in this fanciful landscape, comvered in rime and icicles. Entitled, "Will You Feed Me?" Bats might play the role of a feral cat looking for a handout. I've entered this one in a national show on animals in art. Original acrylic, 8 x 10 inches $175 from the Daily Paintings web site for December 13.

December 12 - Deer in the Forest, Acrylic, 16 x 20

More snow! One of the bigger canvases! Egad... (I hear the rest of the big canvases shuffling in the racks like the owls asleep at Hogwarts--I wonder whether they are shuffling away from me, or making movement to be chosen next?) This is a 16 x 20 inch canvas, with handmade papers under the paint, completely sealed for archival quality. The acrylics make a ton of texture, and the details are always easy to pick out--a branch here, a pile of snow there, a deer... wait?!! Look what walked into an otherwise interesting textured woodland! Yes, the eye goes directly to whatever has a heartbeat. Note that the deer is in the "Golden Mean" and not poking around in a corner somewhere. Good design can be simple or complex, but it ought to follow the rules of good design! And the common blue/orange complementary color scheme is pleasant, too.
Now in the collection of Fay Bohlayer of Dawsonville, Georgia.

December 11 - Snow Country, 12 x 24 Oil

"Snow Country" Today's painting is a major change for an earlier daily painting. You can see the earlier version of this 10 x 20 inch oil on the dailypaintings.com web site, under the date of June 30 of this year. When I first painted it, the temperature outside was 90 degrees! Tonight I bring it to a different finished state, and change it tremendously--from summer to winter! Why do artists go after work they've done and change it so drastically? One reason is growth of the artist's knowledge. We learn something new, and we want to practice the new knowledge because we see what we didn't know manifest in our earlier work. Another reason is a deep dissatisfaction with the work as it stood before, and a great desire to take on the challenge to see if it is possible to produce an evolution of sorts. And then there's just my reason--having run out of small canvases, I'm painting over bigger ones! (The order is in, they'll be here any day now.)

It is fun to change the colors so drastically, and enjoy the finished result. Oh, I could work more on it if I was of a mind to, but for now, this one still remains in a new finished state! $375

December 10 - Commission Finished!

"Sara Finished" Sometimes a painting just won't rest until it pesters you to work on it. I knew even though I had signed the painting yesterday, it wasn't going to rest until I'd come in and fixed all those "little things" that kept coming into my head since leaving the studio. So if you'll take the time to look at yesterday's work, you'll see what just wouldn't sit down and keep quiet.

I like it now, and feel far better about the light and the lift in the horse. So let's put a fork in it, because it's done!

The rainy weather kept me indoors for most of the day, and I worked on the cat tower exit to the "safe zone" for the kitties outside. I'll take a picture of it tomorrow when it's light. This is in the student area/gallery, where I'll finally be able to re-open my studio for artists one day a week, planned for January. I can hardly wait, because when artists come up to the studio, I also learn a great deal. I paint with them, we share stories and hints, and it is one of the rewarding moments in my week. I hope to see returning students/artists, and add new ones in this locale.

Now in the collection of Paula Worstell of Carlsbad, California.

December 9 - Not quite finished, but getting there, Commissioned Portrait

"Sara on Her Way" I've started to put in the details, but have decided that I'm going to go back in and fix some things that don't sit right with me, so please hang on to your comments until after tomorrow. This has gone on for more days than I wanted, just because I'm sorting out a lot of "stuff" outside the studio. Tomorrow promises some much needed rain (it is beginning right now as I type this, close to midnight) and I will be able to get studio time dedicated in a large swath during the day tomorrow.

I've heard from the originator who has kindly provided me with a head study without helmet so I can bring a more relaxed pose on the rider.

Although not finished yet, I have made some good progress on it, with the embelliishment of the larger areas of color to make them more interesting.

December 8 - The Horse and Rider Commission (and Art Lesson) Continues...

"Lesson on Sara" Wow, what a change! I've spent the time painting the background and wokring more on the anatomy of the mare at this point, bringing and reinforcing where I want your eye to go (the head of the horse). The rider is secondary to the message of this work, so I will downplay all but her jacket/covering.

Again, at this point I am not overly concerned with the exact outline of the horse, but rather am taking care of the "rest of the story"--the background, the values and the forward motion. Most of you know I don't do those special details until the entire canvas is covered--well, here it is almost 97% covered. Now I can "kick back" and start picking out the details, making corrections, embellishing the larger shapes. Will you be patient until tomorrow? And yes, this painting is still in the "uglies".

December 7 - Commission and Lesson Continues

"Lesson on Sara" Now this is going about as expected, but I haven't had a lot of time to put in on it. So what you see today is not as major a change as might be, however there are important things going on that need to be explored/explained. Yesterday I focused on the position of the horse, and today, I filled in the horse and rider with the major color notes and major value to set them apart (on the darker side) from the middle ground of the background. Here's where the head takes over what is visually there: choosing to keep the horse and rider backlit, and then make the rest of the painting in the middle value range, I can assure that the subject will "pop" when I add the highlights and backlit warms on the final pass. Horse = dark, background area = middle values, leg wraps and shirt and shine on the horse = highest value notes. Ka-POW.
As I work through this stage, I am correcting the horse and rider as I fill in these areas. Rest assured that they will undergo even more "tweaking" as I search for the correct pose and action.

I am planning the background with a few light brush marks as well, note that none of the to-be-dark trees will be directly behind the horse's head. We want that to be the major area of focus, so having similar values in that area would negate that goal.

December 6 - Lesson Painting, Commission of Horse and Rider

"Lesson on Sara" Time to do another lesson painting! This time a commission, and I'll share with you the photographs that were provided by the individual. This one will really be pulling out all my reserves as I work from material that isn't exactly what the client wants. I have to "cut and paste" and rely on core knowledge to depict the horse effectively. "Sara" is now an aged mare, and the owner is wanting me to paint her in her prime. She's also jet black, always a challenge, since you don't have a wide range of values between shadow and reflected light to play with. But like Jack Nicklaus, I envision the successful painting before I begin, so have in place the necessary confidence to begin. Attached is the position wanted for this painting. Hold on to it to see how it changes!
As you may know, I first prime the canvas with a color to get rid of the white. This comes from the "old days" of drawing when we were told to work on value 5 gray paper, and use black and white Conte crayons to discover your values above and below this midpoint. It is always a good exercise! Having a mid-value ground on which to start keeps me sane when I am also considering color, shape, line, mass, and texture. Wouldn't you at least want one thing easier?
The initial drawing is not detailed at all, but merely finding edges, placement of the form, and leaving enough room for the horse to move into. Her forward direction makes it essential to have "space" for her to move. The reference photo doesn't have this, and although a nice square composition, it becomes quite static. My drawing is just suggestions at this point. To do details here would be paying too much attention too soon while ignoring the entire painting, edge-to-edge. Corrections to the anatomy and thrust will be made later. Oh, this is a 9 x 12 oil.

December 5 - Persimmons, 6 x 12 Oil

"Persimmons" From life, a gift from the student living in our guest house, these delicious persimmons first found their way to this still life, before being sliced and consumed! Original oil, 6 x 12 inches $250

December 4 - California Landscape, 12 x 12 Oil

"California Ridge" Today I took a break from working in the studio to make a new hiking trail on the mountain behind our place. It was about 3 p.m. and entailed the following steps: I took the machete out and sharpened it on the grinder. I led Vincent van Goat out of the pen and put his pack saddle and red pack bags on, loaded with water and my sweatshirt, and off we went. The mare (who thinks Vincent is her foal) went crazy neighing and running back and forth most of the time we were up on the mountain, creating quite a dust storm as she galloped back and forth in the corral. Using the machete, I cut about three-tenths of a mile of new trail through the brush until the sun was gone and it started to turn cold. Trail cutting is both hard work and euphoric, and I do enjoy it. A new hiking area is opened up, I can let the terrain guide the location and direction of the trail, and working in the company of a friendly white goat is very much in touch with nature.

Of course, since I was looking at those rocks up behind the studio, I needed to switch gears when I returned and paint some! So here's today's painting, a 12 x 12 oil, of rocks and possible trail locations, so very characteristic of California hillsides. One ought to paint the things that are close to your heart, and I was very close to the brush and rocks as the trail opened up due to my effort. $250 from the Daily Paintings site for December 4.

December 3 - Vintage Ornament, Flocked Glass, 5 x 7 Oil

"Vintage Ornament #3, Flocked" The weather has been dry, cold and windy, the only warm spots in sheltered corners of sunshine and the house cats are seeking indoor quadrants of warmth in the morning. The dry air is hard on my sinuses, but I was out with the machete cutting more cactus as I continue to clear out an area for a rock garden with succulents.

And as I think about these ornaments coming to light, I am finally ready to paint this one--It has a special meaning. This one's a tree-shaped flocked glass with those colored bands again, this time they are red and blue. My earliest memory of this one was back in the late 50's when we lived near Washington, D.C. My dad worked in the Pentagon, and I was about six years old. I can remember lying under the natural spruce tree looking up at the lights and this ornament, and pretending I was out west somewhere. Although none of these ornaments are expensive, they are fun to paint and are precious to me. I heard from another list member who suggested that they be put on display on a spring rod in a window, high enough to be out of the range of the cats. It's a good idea! 5 x 7 Oil for $100