6" x 6" Toll House Cookies

These chocolate chip cookies are painted life-size. That's a teapot in the corner, put there for the express purpose of bouncing the eye back into the center of the painting.

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

My Fastest Sale Ever

TITLE: Heads or Tails?

Posted it on eBay for BIN of $229 and it sold within three hours. This beats my old record of 5 hours- also on eBay- which was for the second in the series of Indian children.

This painting is larger and according the the buyer- has great "universal appeal".

I like it. The hair is why I painted it. Very cool looking and fun to paint.

Finished this piece that I began a few weeks ago

A friend and I painted on her porch Sunday.

Works from class

This is Mark (with a K.) Garrow's little snowscape that he painted Tuesday night - in less than two hours. Way to go, Mark. I wasn't watching really closely and Mark painted in an opaque cadmium orange underpainting instead of an orangish colored wash, as I suggested. But it really turned out well in the end, adding spontaneous color to what might have been a pretty blah-looking painting. The blue and orange complimentary color scheme really works in this painting, and the little fence posts lead our eye right into the focal point-- the cabins and trees. Mark could add some smoke coming from one of the cabins to add that "human" touch but it's a great painting as is. Mark-- I know you're reading this so take note of the great brushwork in the sky - click on the painting to see better- and notice how the underpainting shows through and really adds life and warmth, but also the brush strokes are going in ALL directions- the way they should. :)
Kathy started a flowery landscape that is half-way finished. The shed was the most difficult part-it had sunlight shining on it and lots of details that it really wasn't necessary to paint. There is a fountain behind some flowers that she might want to make the focal point.
Next week we are painting flowers! Whatever I can find on sale.

I am a little bit behind on posting my work. The fourth was a big family time and we were gone for awhile but I did a few paintings this week and last week. Blogger was down and I couldn't post the last time I tried.

Turn Back Time...

The premise behind this little painting is simple if you've ever heard the song made famous by Cher: "If I Could Turn Back Time" The lyrics of the chorus go like this:

If I could turn back time
If I could find a way
I'd take back those words that have hurt you
And you'd stay
If I could reach the stars
I'd give them all to you
Then you'd love me, love me
Like you used to do
If I could turn back


The jar of "face cream" and the lipstick represent our efforts to turn back time. On the surface, the cow is a clock, but she is also the ultimate symbol for fertility and reproduction, especially when she has a calf by her side. I found the clock when I was going through some boxes designated for our church rummage sale and the idea for this painting was born as soon as I set eyes on her. The Minnie Mouse cup represents our eternal youth. Quite a bit of thought went into choosing the objects for this still-life. First of all, I needed them to be small- I like to paint my stills life-size or very close to it and this is an 8x10 canvas. I also wanted to stay with the three color theme of red, black and white because it was just so retro and fit the cow and Minnie so well. The jar of face cream was truly an inspiration when I thought of Cher, who has really tried to keep her youth as long as possible. I don't know how old she is exactly but I know she must be getting up there. And you never see her any more. She used to do those Bally fitness commercials. Anyway- the lipstick was the perfect color and so was the face cream jar. The circular composition draws the eye into the painting and around it with the red and the placement of Minnie's eyes because she is gazing up at the cow.

Chocolate Chip Cookies 8 x 10

I was planning to visit my niece, who is in the hospital for an extended period of time undergoing chemotherapy treatments, so I baked a batch of chocolate cookies to take with me Saturday morning. Katie and Sammy enjoy playing video games together. It was a rainy day so Katie and I didn't mind spending it locked up in the isolation of "immune-suppression" with Sammy. Sammy's white blood cells are non-existent, thanks to the chemo treatments and she can't leave her 10' x 14' room in the Children's Treatment Center at St. Vincent's Medical Center until they rise to an acceptable level. This could take weeks. Thankfully, this is her last treatment if the leukemia goes into remission and she will be thrilled to have her life back after six months of extended hospital stays. A bright and engaging five-year old who has honed her coloring skills to an amazing degree, thanks to her enforced captivity, Sammy is very excited to be starting kindergarten in the fall. I took a plate full of cookies with me and left some at home. They were almost gone Monday so I painted this quickly and then gave the remaining cookies to my daughter when she promised to drink the milk. It was a bit warm after sitting on the porch for an hour while I turned them into an oil painting.