The Parisienne

multi-media on paper

work in progress

This girl is destined to become part of a collage but I like how she looks now. She's larger than the ladies in the Little Women series - they've all been 6x6 and this girl is about 6x8 on a 12x14ish piece of canvas paper. I've had so much fun lately treating paper before I paint on it - snips of this and splashes of that - layers that create remarkable depth. I love these artistic detours. Hmmmm... she looks French to me.... cue Maurice Chevalier.

Ducky

oil sketch on paper, 5x7

Maybe I should have said, "Some quirky paraphernalia has been swimming onto the blue post-it note stuck to the taboret." Sketched while watching CSI [original version, of course] - the coroner/character Dr. "Ducky" Mallard makes me laugh. Not to mention the {Very}Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs...

Pincushions and Pantone Colors

Pantone No. 18-2120: Honeysuckle

oil sketch on paper, 5x7

Color is a faithful muse. I love doing paintings inspired by Pantone's choice for Color of the Year - click here to see No. 15-5519 {Turquoise} in 2010 and here to see No. 14-0848 {Mimosa} in 2009. Yum-my. I've been playing in the studio lately - exploring some new ideas and techniques. Having a great time. Hard to say what will become of them yet but you'll know when I know. In the meantime, some quirky paraphernalia has been jumping onto that post-it note referenced above... I'm just saying.

Ten-Minute Cheese Spreader Sketches

Timer Set!

These sketches were done in response to a challenge one of my favorite teachers, Carol Marine, issued recently on the Daily Paintworks blog - paint the same thing over and over for no more than 10 minutes. The cheese spreader, the blue post-it note, and the paper primed turquoise for collage-making were handy. I've done this with Carol before - it's a great exercise. Really helps you think about values and colors and quick decision-making. Inspirational - and surprisingly tiring. Whew! Be sure to visit Carol's blog to see her great work and the DPW blog to see lots and lots of 10-minute sketches.

Painting Summer on a Snow Day

Salty Dog

8x10, oil on panel

sold

A recent commission, this grand fella owns a family who takes him to the beach quite often. It feels good to be beach painting - familiar and comfortable.

Back to Painting Port Aransas

Sand Castle

8x8, oil on panel

sold

Painting this Port Aransas beach house had me dreaming of warmer weather. As I post, our thermometer reads a balmy 19 degrees - and for Central Texas, that's saying something. Glad we don't have the ice and snow our northern neighbors are grappling with... but don't tell my kids I said that. Their fingers are crossed for a snow day. This painting is going to Shark Boy's school auction later in the month.