One of the Last Paintings of the Year

A Marilyn Monroe painting from an old black and white photograph taken in her early years.
16" x 20" oil on panel

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all

The Woody prints have all sold. Bo Schembechler is catching up slowly but surely. I sold three of these 11" x 14" matted prints in one week! Because these coach prints are selling so well I have decided to do an entire series of coaches. Tom Landry from the Dallas Cowboys and Vince Lombardi from when he was with the Green Bay Packers are the next two in the series. Then I'll go back to college football: probably Joe Paterno from Penn State is next. These are fun paintings to do- the backgrounds are totally open and even the guys expressions are open to interpretation. I always have to do a bit of research on the coach first because I need to know how he should be portrayed. People always have lots of suggestions about who I should paint next; it seems America is passionate about sports.
Here is Vince- 12" x 16" oil on panel

Woody Hayes is going, going almost gone

The Buckeyes are having a winning season and my Woody prints are almost gone. I think I have two of the 11" x 14" limited edition ones left. Bo is not selling as well. --sigh-- Go Bucks!

Mariah in oil

A 16" x 20" oil of Mariah from the first day she posed. I sold it almost immediately to a private collector. I really like the background in this one and another member of the group gave me a CD with some great photos of our beautiful model, Mariah, so I am going to attempt a large 24" x 36" canvas of her and use a similar background.

My portrait Exchange with "Smithy" from Australia

I signed up for the 4th annual portrait exchange in the portraiture forum at WC! My exchange partner, Graham, lives in Australia, so I had to mail his package overseas. It didn't take long to get there- six days is pretty good I think. I now have a total of three paintings hanging on the Australian continent. Graham's name at WC is Bluewindfisher, but for some reason I got mixed up and thought it was Bluefishwinder. I assumed the man liked to fish, especially for Bluefish, so I did a little research and actually placed a Bluefish into the painting with him. I found out later thatI got th name wrong, but he likes the painting anyway and posted a picture of himself along side it. He really looks like a guy who live sin the outback. I am posting the one he did of me here as well.
That's my dog, Jake, sneaking his nose into the picture. It's hard to go anywhere in my house without an animal following me.
Internet art groups allow artists from everywhere to communicate ideas and exchange information. The internet has totally changed the way art is presented to the consumer and has allowed anyone who can use a mouse to visit virtual galleries and become an art collector. I have thought a lot about this lately as several people have told me my prices are too low and I need to raise them to make them more in line with what galleries charge. I tend to disagree. In the old days a client might have to visit 5 or 6 galleries to find just the piece they were looking for. The internet allows buyers to connect directly with the artists and acquire their works at a substantial savings. Collectors can view hundreds of on-line galleries in the space of time it might take to visit just one or two in the past. Sure, the images aren't always representative of the actual piece, but you do get an idea of what the artist can do and can easily keep yourself updated on their work.

Margo and Gaby Finished

Love the way this piece turned out. Margo wanted Gaby to be smiling so I changed her entire face but she does look happier so it was worth the time. Dad looks like a movie star and daughter looks like an angel; more importantly they both look happy.
Commissioned by Rachel, who loves her son-in-law very much.

Mariah in Pastel

Mariah posed for our painting group in November. She is a beautiful girl. I started this from life and finished it at home using a photograph. I like the background.

Tom Kelly

A commission: the guy has passed on and I created the painting form a series of photographs.

TOM LANDRY ORIGINAL ART DALLAS COWBOYS OIL PAINTING NR

How is that for a key word headline? I listed this one on eBay as a BUY IT NOW and hopefully a die hard Dallas Cowboys fan will see some value in it and make the purchase. Investment grade art at bargain basement prices. My husband thought Tom, with his trademark fedora, would be a good subject. If there is interest I will do a few prints.

Way Behind on Posting

This is Reggie. He posed for our painting group this morning. Nice guy, very smiley. Oil on wooden panel coated with gesso. I bought some boards from Robert Buza, of Fabius, NY (giving Robert a plug here) and they are just awesome boards. Smooth, wonderful and a joy to work on. His company is Slivers and Sawdust- I think he is on the web. Robert makes wooden palettes too and sells them for less than you will pay for a disposable one so why go cheap? Wood is better, especially when you use oils. Christmas is almost here so I am way behind on posting my paintings here and at the website. Too busy baking and hauling the decorations up form the basement. But this is a great way to keep track of what I have painted because I tend to forget. So I need to be more diligent with it. It is easier than looking them up on my computer because my computer files need organized badly.

Final Native American Indian child in the series of ten

11"x14" oil on canvas- this is the final Native American Indian child: Clear Eyes. He is a Wampanoag India, one of the first tribes to encounter the Europeans when they settles in the North America. The Wampanoag still reside in Massachusetts on tribal lands where they have lived for more than 10,000 years.

Norman Mailer Painting

One of the great writers of our time who lived life to the fullest, Norman Mailer was at different periods in his life an anti-war protester, a womanizer, an editor, and producer who really believed in marriage because he tried it six times!

Paiute Indian Woman

A gentleman form Idaho sent me an email asking if I had ever painted an older gray haired Indian woman. He was interested because his grandmother was a Paiute Indian and he recalled her sitting under a tree when he was a child. I hadn't painted any older Indian women so I decided to correct that. I have painted men, old men, lots of children, and middle-aged American Indians, but no old woman. This is my version of an elderly Paiute woman painted life size, and I even included the tree.

American Pie

This is a 16" x 20" oil painting I painted form life. The inspiration was the apples of of course. Northwest Ohio has tons of apples available in the fall. I actually do make excellent apple pies but in this case I just made applesauce after i finished the painting.

Painting Old Toys

This is the second in a series of four paintings I plan to do which incorporate old fashioned toys. I think it's especially important to be aware of what our children play with today, considering all the recent toys that have been recalled because they contain lead. Sometimes the safest toys are the oldest and the most basic; they require a child to use her imagination and provide security in a world that is increasingly reliant on technology. I don't know about you, but my children quickly tire of toys that require batteries but certain stuffed animals and some building blocks are used over and over again.

Maria- Pima Indian Girl, 9 in the series of 10

This is my personal favorite in my Native-American Indian children series. She is adorable. I don't know if I can top this one but I'll certainly try as I plan to begin the tenth and final painting today. If I paint a male I will have five boys and five girls, all representing different Indian tribes. Maria has been sold but I should have prints available in my eBay store by early December, so it will be possible to own the entire series.

Close to finishing

I am pretty happy with this- I may need to make the child's cheeks a bit chubbier. I am working from a photo that has some strange shadows in it so it is hard to see the actual form.

16x20 Oil on canvas Commission

This is a portrait commission I am doing of Gaby and her father, Margo. I am about 3/4 of the way done. I have to smooth out Margo's face- he appears too old-- and put some more paint layers on the canvas, plus work on the clothing a lot. Gaby will be wearing a beautiful pink dress.

Zippy Helen

This is Helen, who modeled for our open portrait group last week. She was a wonderful model. Not a bit shy about telling me what was wrong with my painting. Couldn't I just paint the glasses off? She didn't really care for the glare and the thick paint I used for the reflection. Helen and her white boa were a lot of fun!

Dorian- before

This was Dorian before his makeover.

The Imagine Center in Jacksonville, Illinois

I have been invited to exhibit paintings as their Artist of the Month in mid-November. They are having an opening reception for me at a local restaurant- don't know the name- don't have the menu-- but it does sound like fun. I will be taking 14 of my paintings and prints for the show. I painted these tow specifically for the show. They are actually models form my Saturday mornign group whom I "recycled". One was Bob the Golfer and the other was Dorian the magician. They are now Captains in their respective armies. This was fun. Bob now has a comb-over and sideburns.

I just realized I had 200 posts!

Wow, that means I have painted at least 200 paintings since I began this blog. Probably more because I don't always post every painting. Some posts contain two paintings. I started the blog about two years ago so that is an average of about two paintings per week. Amazing.... even more amazing is that I have sold most of them. I really appreciate my clients. I would not be able to store 200 paintings- I need to sell them and I do appreciate you wanting them enough to buy them. Especially the people who have purchased multiple paintings... there are two I can think of who have purchased more than 20 original works. BIG thank you!
This is a painting did in the painting class I have each week. Thanks to Mark who brought in the darling metal rocking horse. It really "makes" the painting. I am calling it Childhood Memories. It's up on eBay as of last night.

Boys Will Be Boys 16"x12" oil on linen

An unbearably cute painting of two boys form the 1930s sitting in their homemade race car. The car appears to be a working model- it has a radiator vent and a piece of sheet metal on the side that opens up to the engine. There is even a small hood ornament mounted on the hood. The older boy barely fits inside the car and he is leaning over to pet his dog. In the meantime his brother decides it's hunting season and he levels his gun at an imaginary deer. This painting is so American it's almost patriotic! The boys are adorable and the dog really almost steals the show. The setting sun to our left and tall oak trees behind the boys provide an idyllic setting. The dog turned out looking just like my golden, Chloe, who passed on a few years back.

Just Passing Through

A nostalgic painting of a boy from the 1930's in his toy fire truck. A friend was kind enough to let me use a family photo of her uncle in a toy fire truck made for him by the boy's father. Because the photo was in black and white it allowed me the make up color, which is always fun to do.

American Indian Children Series

This is number 8 in the series of 10 different American Indian children I am painting in 2007. Quiet Sister is an Apache girl. I am listing this on eBay, as I have the entire series and prints will be available in November.

Cooper - "Waiting for Daddy" 16 x 20 oil on linen

Self Portrait in oil

This was a re-do of an older painting that I never really cared for. I put on a white shirt one day and decided I was going to fix it or throw it away! Now it looks exactly like me and I am very happy with it. Since sold to a collector and friend, Freda K.

Close to Mom 12" x 16" oil on linen

Close to Mom was painted from a photo provided by Sue, a friend of mine who owns a couple horses and boards one too. I was struck by the foal's lovely long eyelashes and straightforward stare.
This painting sold almost immediately out of my eBay store.

Recreating Memories form Old Photos

An adorable painting of Billy with his Fire Truck, circa 1930. This one titled "Just Passing Through" was purchased by the woman who let me use the photo to create it. I love th eold-fashioned look and feel of this painting.

Third and Final Painting of Liz the Ballerina...

Oil on canvas 16" x 20"

Skiska, a Russian Cat

16" x 12" oil on linen- I ma getting some use from the gourds- they are adding that authentic "fall" look. They match her eyes too!

Ebony's Perfect Day

Finished - it is 16" x 20" oil on canvas, available in my eBay store very soon.

Limited Palette Painting of Gourds and My Lab as a Puppy

I need to finish the puppy but the background is done- painted plein air outside on this unusually hot and humid October day-- 87 degrees!

Saturday's Model

This guy is a really good model- he holds the pose and returns to position exactly as he was. The colorful shirt is apparently some rare Planet Hollywood uniform that the servers wore in the beginning- and is unavailable now. It is going to be very hard to paint if I want it right- but maybe I'll just throw some color on there where I see it. The portrait is heavily based on red as it stands now. I have three hours in it and shoudl be finished at the next session.

Popcorn and Woodchuck Hard Apple Cider

My favorite bottle of beer to paint because of the little woodchuck on the front label and also one that will be around for awhile simply because it tastes so bad. Who knew? I bought it for the cute little critter on the front. The popcorn popper is an antique and literally falling apart but it does the job and it makes awesome tasting popcorn-- nothing at all like the microwave kind.
11" x 14" oil on canvas