Watercolor with a Quick Turnaround

A realtor in Dallas who has ordered paintings from me before called to see if she could get a quick turnaround on an oil painting--one day! Unfortunately, I can't guarantee an oil painting will dry in one day; usually it takes several days. So I offered to paint a watercolor for her instead, and matted and framed it for the same price an oil would cost.

8" x 10" matted to 11" x 14"

Last painting for the Spring Session

11" x 14" oil on canvas-- from a photo I took when I was in Phoenix and the students did a pretty nice job with it too!

Remodeled Farmhouse in New York

18 x 24 Oil on Canvas

This was another Christmas commission and the client specifically asked for the chicken coop to remain in the front. Maybe there's some sentimental attachment to it. I also changed the season on this piece. The leaves were already gone and they were doing some construction on the house so I added fall color and imaginary landscaping.

OPAS Competition

This is the painting I chose to enter in the competition. I just loved the the composition and the complimentary color scheme. Unfortunately, there were a lot of good paintings and mine didn't win anything. The owner of the gallery did choose it to be left there for the show through November so maybe someone will buy it.

I didn't have a chance to photograph it before I put it in the frame.

I painted it at Pigeon Roost, a pumpkin farm south of Newark, Ohio.

11"x 14"oil on canvas

Old Barn, Plein Air

I prefer to paint outdoors when I have the opportunity in the summer. I painted this plein air piece on a warm morning in July last week. The farm has been in the Fry family for generations. When I paint I aim for a "mood" more than a photographic image. The painting should tell the viewer a little bit about how I felt when I viewed the subject.

I was feeling really relaxed and on my game that day, so maybe some of that comes through. It was a perfect morning for plein air and that always cheers me too.

11" x 14"

Turn of the Century Barn

Irish Hills Vista 10" x 20" oil painting

10" x 20" oil on canvas

Irish Hills Vista

The second day we drove east on Route 12 and ended up stopping at a fruit and vegetable stand. Strawberries were in season so we bought some and I was eyeing the hilly farm to the north, while my friend was enchanted by the produce stand. I painted this bucolic vista of rolling hills and baled straw, while she concentrated on the truck and stand. A glorious day in the low seventies, sunshine after the fog lifted and NO MOSQUITOES! A great day to paint outdoors.

South Vienna Prairie

A friend and I traveled south on Saturday to South Vienna for a paintout sponsored by the OPAS (Ohio Plein Air Society) It was a chilly day for April with temps in the mid forties and some wind but I put on my gloves, scarf and hoodie and manged to come up with a painting. The muted colors of early spring are hard to work with in my opinion.

9" x 12" oil on linen

Kunkle Horse Barn

 9" x 12" oil on linen

It was a perfect afternoon to paint and my friend and I had permission to paint on a farm in Kunkle, Ohio. We wanted to take pictures of goats and Brenda Baker has 8 or 9 of them in her pasture. Unfortunately, one of the "kids" took a liking to me and my painting gear. Here he is investigating my suitcase. Later he jumped up to have a look at my palette and got cadmium yellow light all over his foot. Then he walked around, ate some grass and ended up with paint all over his mouth! I tried to clean him up with a baby wipe but it didn't do much good. He had the paint all over my pant legs by then and I decided to make the best of it and try to ignore him. However, I seemed to be dealing with a drunken 50 lb. puppy who had no concept of what the word "no" means. "Billy" would forget about me for awhile and munch his grass, then suddenly he would look up and spot me again. "Maaa?" He would cry as he galloped toward me and I braced myself and my easel for his enthusiastic greeting. It was quite an experience. I was surprised that my painting turned out as well as it did with all the external elements I dealt with that day.

We Now Visit the HORSE in the Landscape

Last week I talked about putting people into your landscape, and painting from life, which was a new experience for me. This week I worked on a very different kind of painting. I live in a rural area and although I'm a city girl I have grown to love it over time. Family farms are still a way of life around here. Farmers raise cows, chickens, pigs, and yes-- horses! I'm a portrait and wildlife painter for the most part, so I have a certain affinity for animals. They are beautiful and whenever possible I will include them in my pastoral landscapes. This painting is a hybrid. I used a picture that I took of a farm I drive by often for the background and the horse lives at an historic village near my home where he pulls carriages. I took his picture the last time I visited and I knew he would look awesome with this backdrop.

I have wanted to paint this barn for a long time and I have lots of pictures of it. What I didn't know when I started the painting was how much it needed to be placed in a 'context'. So what initially in my mind was to be a painting of a beautiful farm became a painting all about a horse. That's OK, because I've learned to live with this inner voice that pops up at some really opportune moments to tell me what I need to paint.

20" x 24" Spring on the Farm