Slowing Life Down

 Going Home Series #31   Slowing Life Down  12 x 16  oil      $500.  

Slowing Life down is important and I am speaking to myself now.  I wish I had time to sit on one of these rocks and just think and sing and praise the Lord for what He has created!.  I am teaching three days a week and painting full time!  I love every minute of my life, but I will take a break from painting for the next two months to enjoy the holidays and start my Christmas shopping.   It is good to refocus and prioritize life.  However, my series is not finished !!!!....I still have 19 more painting in this series before I start thinking about another!

Capturing the Essence

                                   Going Home series # 30  Capturing the Essence    22 x 28  oil   $1,200

The Peaks of Otter is aways a delight to visit.  This is a scene I did not paint from a photograph but from memories of the light and shadow and smell and warmth of sunlight.  I am really enjoying taking the artistic license to recreate and compose with my paintings to capture the essense and not always the exact image.
 

A Reminder of His Warmth

Going Home Series # 27   A Reminder of His Warmth     oil     $900.   

 Last night was the first frost of 2025.  It came later than usual but was a reminder that winter is coming.  I guess I'm trying to mentally prepare for the cold!! The icy creek leads into the warm sunset.  Of course I had to warm up something!  And what better warmth than the reminder of The Son who shines His warmth and light and love on us every day.
 

Follow the Light

                            Going Home Series # 29   Follow the Light  12 x 16   oil   $500.

Trying to create "glow", transparency and sunlight in a painting is sooooooo fun!.  But without the darkness it is hard to see the light.  So I always start with a black value pattern on a solid color background.  Do you see the dark underpainting of the trees on the left and the foreground on the right?   Without contrast paintings are not as effective.  In the world today everything is beginning to be black or white.  Everyone is being guided to make a decision whether to follow the Light or hide in the darkness.
 

The Bridge to Life

                  Going Home Series #28 The Bridge to Life  11 x 14    oil    $450

The bridge is always a symbol of connections from here to there.  We are made for connection.  As Gods people we connect to Him, to nature, and to others in powerful ways that sustain our lives.  As I chose this image to paint,  I saw connections of pathways horizontally and vertically.  Our horizontal paths are impoortant but our vertical path is life sustaining, the sun and the Son provide and protect and show the way to abundant life. 

Capturing Beauty

                                 Going Home Series#26  Capturing Beauty  0il   11 x 14    $450

The reflections on water are fascinating.  The movement of water is a challenging to capture and the colors of fall captivate the heart.  Why try try to incorporate it all into one small snapshot of true Beauty?  Follow the reflection of the Son and look for the hidden golden treasure of God.

 
 

Peace and Quiet

                                                    Going Home Series #25   12 x 24   oil   $595.

Isaiah said "God's people will abide in a peaceful habitation, in secure dwellings and in quiet resting places."  I have heard it said that peace and quiet are rare commodities these days.  They are rare but they are not commodities because they cannot be bought or sold.  They are gifts from the Lord and He is the only one who can bestow peace and quiet to our souls.  How do I capture that in a painting?  A path guiding me to the Son with golden light that reflects the Fathers throne?  

 

Harvest

                                                  Going Home Series #24   12 x 24  oil    $595.
 

John 4:35  "Lift up your eyes and see that the fields are ready for harvest".  Have you  noticed lately that more and more people are speaking the name of Jesus.  We are living in exciting times!!!  Follow the path to the Son and look for the "gold" along the way.

The Maker of Heaven and Earth

                                                Going Home Series #23   30 x 40    oil     $1995.

Psalm 121  reminds us to lift up our eyes to the hills from whence cometh our help.  But it is not the earthly hills that David is taking about;  it is the Maker of the hills, the Maker of Heaven and Earth about whom he is speaking.  Every time I go up on the mountains, I am reminded of of this wisdom.
 

The Secret of the Sea

                                            Going Home Series #22   24 x 24   0il     $1,200

"My soul is full of longing for the secret of the sea, and the heart of the great ocean sends a thrilling pulse through me."  Henry Wadsorth Longfellow.  Secrets, mystery, longing, sunshine, salty smells, the sound of wind and waves,... only the Master Creator can capture.  Oh, but what fun to try to imitate Him!

 

The Light of Higher Laws

  Going Home Series #21   12 x 16  oil   $500.

Ralph Waldo Emerson in talking about nature said, "the universe becomes transparent and the light of higher laws shines through it."  I love this thought.  This is what I want to show in my series "Going Home"

Rising Up

                                                Going Home Series #20   12 x 16  oil    SOLD

Going uphill requires more work than going down.  Work, perserverance, committment, self doiscipline are required of anyone who wants to excell. However, no one can arrive at his goals without help from the Lord.  "  I will look to the hills, from whence comes my help".  As the Son rises, he will help us to rise.

 

Clear Focus

 

Going Home Series #19   12 x 16    0il   $500.

The path we walk daily is of utmost importance.  A clear conscience, a holy life set apart for God and a clear focus on the "Son" will bring us to our destination.

A Walk Around the Lake

I have 12 paintings showing at the Peaks of Otter Lodge until November.  Check out the Lodge Gallery downstairs to see my new show. 

                                        A Walk  Around the Lake       Parkway Series #512   12 x 16   oil    $325
 

                                    Come and Sit   12 x 16  Parkway  Series #511

Road Blocks

Going Home Series#18    12 x 16   oil    SOLD

The road traveled can sometimes be in the shadow of not understanding with road blocks of pain and hurt.  However, as long as we keep our eyes focused on the light  and pray for Holy Spirit guidance, we will arrive at the destination God has planned for us.  
 

Sensory Overload

                                                 Going Home Series #17  oil   22 x 33   $1400

Mystery draws you into a painting.  The atmospheric perspective, color and value, textures and contrast all work to capture your attention, but the story, the emotion and the wonder of  a sensory experience leaves the viewer with a memory of mystery that creates a desire to return to the image over and over. That feeling convinces me to paint the image for others to enjoy.

Golden Glow

                                                Going Home Series #16   0il   24x36    SOLD

Thank you Lise Brinkley for this commission.  The Family is God's gift to His Children.  We live in communion with God, nature and our families.  This painting expresses this and reminds us of the Holy Spirit journey we walk, as we follow the Sonlight and see the reflections of God in the Golden  glow of His Presence in us and in His Creation.
 

New Life

Going Home Series #15   oil    12 x 16    SOLD

We all need to be renewed.  Each Spring God renews the world with new life.  We are rewired, remade, reborn each time we acknowledge the New Life in us that comes from God.  The "Son". the path, and the Golden hue of the Holy Spirit are found in each painting of this Series.  Each painting is a renewal for me and a reminder of New Life.

 

Tree of Life

                                            Going Home Series #14    20 x 20  0il        $750.

Beauty is not in the eye of the beholder.  It is in the eye of God.  Even the trees testify to it!  Life giving Beauty is the essense of God.  It is  how I worship.  
 

Wonder

                                Going Home #13  24 x 30  oil   SOLD

Walking daily by streams of Living Water causes our roots to go deep.  Roots keep us grounded and limbs are lifted high in praise seeking the Sonlight for nourishment every day.  The wonder of it all makes my soul overflow.  What a joy to live in the wonder of Creation!

 

The Morning Sun

    

                                            Going Home Series #12    24 x 30    oil    $1,500

Proverbs 4:18  "The path of the righteous is like the morning sun, shining ever brighter until the full light of day.".... a great promise of the Lord that our path will be confirmed by more and more light as we walk under His direction.

 

God Bless the Broken Road

                                            Going Home Series # 11   14 x 18   oil    $750.

"I set out on a narrow way, many years ago, Hoping I would find true love along the broken road...". Rascal Flatts  

Walking this path on broken rocks could be a bit dangerous, however, God's golden "Son" light protects and if we pray, His Holy Spirit directs our path even along the broken road.  

 

The Journey

                                                    Going Home Series #10   16 x 20  oil   $750..    

 The path symbolizes the journey we are on.  The Holy Spirit leads us toward the "Son"/sun;  and the golden  field reminds us of our destination in Heaven.  This metaphor, used in much of great literature, is also a visual language I am using for this series and every painting will contain the symbolism of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

The Way Home

                                            Going Home Series #9   16 x 20 oil      SOLD

The path always leads home.  Follow the Son and He will show you the Way.  

 

Floating down the James

                                    

                                  Going Home Series #8   24 x 35   oil   SOLD

One of my most favorite memories is floating down the James River in Buchanan, Va. with my husband and friends.  The lazy, hazy, crazy days of Summer  needed to be memorialized in paint.  

Desire

 Going Home Series #7  20 x 24   oil   $ 960.

"Your Kingdom come on earth as it is in Heaven." Matthew 6:10  Sometimes I feel we are given little glimpses of Heaven on this earth just to create in us the awe and desire of the Beauty we will one day behold in Heaven.  Follow the stream toward the "Son" and look for the gold reflections in the water.

Unspoken Love

Going Home Series #6   16 x 20  oil   $650. unframed

"If you could say it in words, there would be no reason to paint." Edward Hopper.  I love this quote.  Home is where you dont have to talk; you just enjoy the unspoken love and peace and rest of knowing you are accepted.  Sometimes going out is actually coming into this realization. Can you find the path home?  Follow the Son and look for the gold tree limb pointing the way.
 

A New Perspective

                                 A New Perspective    Going Home Series # 5    18 x 36    oil    SOLD

Isaiah 42:10  Sing to the Lord a new song, his praise from ( the top of the mountains), the end of the earth, as you go down to the sea, the coastlands and their inhabitants.

Have you ever sat on top of the world, looking down in the valleys, thinking about all of the people, their lives, their busyness, their joys and their troubles?  Stepping out of my reality and looking at the big pictures gives me perspective on life.

On My Way Home

Going Home Series #4    20 x 24    0il    $1200. 

Smith Mountain Lake is a natural resource in Western Virginia.  The dam was created in a gap of Smith Mountain, in the 60s, to impound  the Roanoke River.   It now covers over 20,000 acres and extends 40 miles from this point.  I cannot imagine a more beautiful home than one in the mountains and on the lake. Can you imagine this view on your way Home?

 

Country Roads Take Me Home

                                 Going Home Series #3   oil   16 x 20     $650.

Country roads are so beautiful when the red clay turns into shadows  of blue and purple.  Most of my new paintings are redefining the use of gold for me. Color and light is what it is all about!

Streets of Gold

                                                Going Home Series #2   18 x 24  oil  $1200.

 Insead of following the yellow brick road, how about following the "streets of gold" sky?  Could the contrast between cold blue shadows on earthly snow and the warm golden rays of Heaven  visually speak of the longing I feel for Home?

Going Home

                                 

                                       Going Home Series #1    15 x 30     oil     SOLD

This sunset is the end of the day and the beginning of a new series of "Going Home" paintings.  My desire is to paint, in visual images, the longing for home.  As I follow the "Son", He keeps reminding me of the fact that we were made for another world, another home where there is peace, and an eternity of joy... and that we see shadows of this reality everyday!  I am so looking forward to seeing His shadow as I walk the path of following His Light.