Back to Life

Parkway Series #135   12 x 16   oil   $95.

I was determined to paint winter as monochrome and blue in order to achieve the coldness, the essence of winter.  But now that warmth is bringing the earth back to life, I am excited to jump back into the sun with red backgrounds and chartreuse light.  Light and color continue to be the elements that pull my heart into a composition.

Frozen Lake

Parkway Series #133   12 x 16  oil   SOLD

The diagonals in this composition attracted my eye as I composed with my camera.  The repetitive colors and shapes in the background and foreground water were also a strong compositional factor in making this a successful painting.  I am finding that I am able to find the right photograph for a painting  much quicker; the whole process is becoming much more natural and instinctive.  As a "marathon" painter, I feel that I am hitting my stride.  It is exciting to feel that it is all downhill from here!!

Sharp Top in the Snow

Parkway Series #132   12 x 16   oil   $95.

As I captured Sharp Top last weekend, in all of it's snowy beauty, my friend seemed to really want to be in the photo too.  She pretended to ignore me all the while keeping an eye on my travels and posing delightfully for the camera.   The warmth of the sun was as much a delight to her as it was to me and we enjoyed a morning of peace and quiet and beauty.

Morning beauty

Parkway Series #131   12 x 16    $sold

I drove up to the Peaks of Otter last Saturday morning.  Arriving at the lodge around 9 A.M. , I was amazed at the solitude.  There were very few cars parked in the lot and no one was outside.  The lake was frozen and although the snow was melting a bit there was still plenty of it on the ground.  A deer was grazing on the lawn totally unconcerned with me or my camera.  I walked all the way around her and she posed for me on several occasions.  The sun was bright and warm but the wind was very chilly.  I was having a great time shooting photo after photo (over 100!!) when I noticed my fingers were so cold they were getting numb.  After deciding that frostbite may not help my artistic endeavors, I packed up to leave, but the beauty of the morning will be remembered for a long time.

The Yellow-Greens of Spring

Parkway Series #130   12 x 16    oil   $85.

Have you noticed the yellow green of Spring?  Even though snow is on the mountains, the valley is beginning to come back to life after all of the rain and snow soaking into the ground.  The short interlude of sun this morning has inspired the birds to sing and the warm humid air is helping me to recover from the frigidly cold winter.

Quest for Spring

Parkway Series #129   12 x 16   oil   $95.

The snow along the valley Parkway is gone but even with warmer temps, the snow along the ridges is still pretty deep; in fact, it actually covers the guard rails.  Even so, I was able to drive all the way to the Peaks this week and I got some fabulous photos of the snow.  Abbott Lake was frozen with a few inches of snow on the lake and I found a deer who was very cooperative in posing for me in the open spaces in front of the lodge.  Even in my quest for Spring, I guess I will be painting more snow next week!

Study of Rocks

Parkway Series #128   12 x 16   oil   sold
The discipline of a painting a day is wonderful.  Just as a musician practices playing an instrument each day so the artist must practice painting skills in order to improve.  The problem is lack of time for critique.  Sometimes I do tweek paintings before photographing them but mostly what I post is the first run!  These paintings will be great studies for larger paintings when my daily marathon is finished.