Saturday, September 24, 2016

48 - Zuber

6x6 acrylic $50
Second or third - or something - in a series of as many as I paint until I get tired of painting them.  Loving these!  The colors in this one were inspired by a gorgeous Bahamian bougainvillea.

Thursday, September 22, 2016

47 - Mambo No. 5

6x6 acrylic on canvas $50
I'm just having the best time slinging paint on these little canvases with expressive colorful palette knife strokes.

Wednesday, September 21, 2016

46 - Iris

8x10 acrylic on canvas sold
This little permit never stays in my inventory long, and this one was no exception.  St Simons is a favorite place of mine.  It's beautiful, the folks are so friendly and kind there, and the festivals are laid back, and enjoyable - still a lot of work - but they all are.  Can't wait to go back in a few weeks. 

Monday, September 19, 2016

45 - Believe

8x8 acrylic on canvas $75

Always trying different approaches to painting.  This is done with a palette knife (my weapon of choice), and toned the canvas with dark brown first.  Enjoying this process.

Saturday, September 17, 2016

44 - Yard work

5x7 acrylic on canvas
It's always gratifying to get something accomplished, but I often question why it has to be so difficult at times.  It's not like mowing is the most exciting thing to do, and I have a big ole yard.  But coming home to a raggedy yard makes me depressed, so mow I must. . . and then she won't run.  Off to the lawn mower shop, proudly displaying a picture of the model number, etc. that I took before leaving.  Well - that doesn't tell them what kind of engine it has.  Poop.   And the sweet man at the counter apologizes to me!  What?  It's not his fault I'm bumbling around, not knowing what I'm doing.   Luckily, my sweet dad was nearby and went to look and called me back.  This same sweet dad then helped me change the spark plug, change the oil, drain the fuel, and clean the filter.  Okay - in all honesty, he did all of that while I watched.  But now I know how to do it.  The mower cranked up, but then ran really bad, and I had to keep stopping to get it going again.  The whole thing was because of bad fuel, so it took a while for the carburetor to get back to doing it's normal job (whatever that is).

Wednesday, September 14, 2016

42 - Craziness

5x7 acrylic sold
I swear - I'm going to start posting more available art soon.  I guess it's a good thing, but I sold almost all the small paintings I had recently finished at the art festival this past weekend.  I'll be hard at work the next few weeks!

Tuesday, September 13, 2016

41 - True Colors

5x7 acrylic sold
I began painting these little shrimp for a specific festival - a shrimp festival of course.  They really caught on though, and seem to almost be my signature painting.  I honestly have no idea how many of these little guys I've painted at this point.  Each one is one-of-a-kind, and even if I tried (which I don't) I couldn't replicate them 100%.  I love painting these little guys!

Wednesday, September 7, 2016

40 - Right here

 10x8 acrylic $75

This is the third or fourth palm tree painting I've done on recycled canvas.  I don't even remember what the first painting was on this canvas, but it didn't suit me, so off with her head. . . well. . not exactly.  The first painting was done with a palette knife, so even though I painted over it, the texture still shows through - which to me is a good thing.  These are a lot of fun, and a great way to re-use canvas.  It's more about the color. . . which is my objective most of the time. 

Monday, September 5, 2016

38 - Labor Day

7x5 acrylic $50
Today is Labor Day 2016.  I don't plan on laboring a whole lot, unless you call painting laboring.  I love summer, but am looking forward to a little less humidity.  95 degree days started early this year here in Central Fla. 
I've been working on commissions that have taken my concentration.  I would say I didn't have time to do the daily paintings I had promised myself to do, but in reality, it is the fact that my mind was elsewhere at that point.  So now, with a fresh set of creative thoughts, I think as of right now, my daily paintings are going to consist of palms and various seascapes.  As another daily painter suggests, if you are going to commit to daily painting, you must think of ways to do it with an eye toward economy of size, and economy of brushstrokes.  So these little paintings are what I will concentrate on - for now, but of course there will be other paintings going on too. 

Sunday, September 4, 2016

37 - King of the Hill

20x16 acrylic - commission
This rounds out the 3 commissions (plus the one she already bought) for my sweet customer in Georgia.  I wanted to get these done in plenty of time for her daughter's wedding.  I had an absolutely wonderful time working on all of these, but now it's time to get back to (or get started with) my daily paintings.  It's not like I haven't painted daily; it's just that I haven't had the chance to really concentrate on getting those little guys done when I've had these other things that were a little more pressing.

Saturday, September 3, 2016

36 - Marge

20x16 acrylic commission 2 of 3
This is Marge.  I do have a Plymouth Rock, but her name is not Marge.  For some reason that name just keeps coming up when I think about this painting.  She is 2 of the 3 commissions for the sweet gal in Georgia.  I have like four zillion pictures of chickens - my chickens mostly.  I just sit there with them, clicking away (right - not clucking).  What did artists do before digital photography??   I don't know.  And although I really admire plein air painters, and will someday join them hopefully, it is pretty difficult to get a chicken to sit still in a cute pose for very long - usually not even long enough to snap a picture.  Anyway, this painting comes from a combination of pictures.  I got a head tilt from Barbara or Bobby McGee - can't remember who exactly; then I used the head tilt pose with a picture of Dot (my Plymouth Rock).  So there you have it.  The evolution of Marge.