Little Rooster

Title: Little Rooster
Size: 9" x 12"
Medium: Oil on gallery wrapped canvas

See eBay auction for purchase or contact me for comission

PAINTING:
I have a black and red underpainting on this little gem. The ochers and umbers laid in oil with knife make a nice backdrop to the white and red rooster. He is highlighted with pops of red and blue and bright green grasses. I spent some time on his detailed little face!

INSPIRATION:
I have several art shows this month and there is quite a demant for roosters around here. I like to paint several at a time, so here is my favorite for eBay. They are spectacular to paint because of the showy colors and I love to paint a rooster rich and thick and put it in a wide black frame for a show....it's an eye catcher. Maybe that's why he gets all the chicks!

Blue Hydrangeas

Title: Blue Hydrangeas

Size: 12 x16"

Medium: Oil on gallery wrapped canvas

See eBay auction tonight for purchase.

PAINTING:

A brightly colored abstract acrylic underpainting was applied and when dry I began many layers of oils with palette knife. Going dark to light and lean to fat, the images begin to come to life. Pops of bright yellow and complementary blues make this painting sing.

INSPIRATION:

This morning I cut big fluffy hydrangeas from my old bush on the side of the house. It is always amazing to me how these flowers change color and can vary so greatly in hue. They are starting to turn a bit silvery blue because Fall's chillier air is on its way, so this might be one of my last arrangements of the season.

The Art of Fishing

Title: The Art of Fishing
Size: 20" x 24"
Medium: Oil on gallery wrapped canvas

See tonights eBay auction for purchase.

PAINTING:
I began this composition slowly from some old photos I took of my Uncle Fishing along the Truckee River near our house in Floriston, a small town in California where I grew up. I drew with a brush and cobalt blue, then adding dark purples and winsor greens for shadowed areas. When the paint is thinned it dries quickly and then I have my underpainting complete. The fun part is laying it thick with the knife, in bright blues and greens and rich frosting-like white highlights.

INSPIRATION:
I always loved watching fly fishing. I'm not so good at it myself, but I used to sit and sketch while my uncle fished in the the summers of my youth. Seems like a really long time ago.

Rainy Melody

Title: Rainy Melody
Size: 12" x 16"
Medium: Oil on gallery wrapped canvas

Check out auction tonight on eBay for purchase.

PAINTING:
This modern and textured painting uses pure oils and palette knife, rich and thick, and was a joy to paint. It was raining when I painted this peice and so I decided, no underpainting and just to put on thick drags of fluid, buttery oils, layer upon layer.

INSPIRATION:
Of course all the wonderful rain and colorful umbrella people in Arlington!

California Napa Views

Title: Napa California Views
Size: 20 x 24
Medium: Oil on gallery wrapped canvas

PAINTING:
I layed on a colored and thinner layer of acrylic in dark colors as an underpainting and when dry came back with thick oils in palette knife, working bottom to top. I used soft brush work in the sky and bold bright thicker golds in the vineyard.

INSPIRATION:
Growing up in California and going to college at UC Davis I spent a lot of time in Napa and it is as beautiful as Italy. Similiar climate and foliage...no wonder they both make fantastic wines! Landscapes with this type of perspective are so much fun to paint...hope you enjoy.

Venice Reflection

Here I am on a great day from our recent trip to Italy. This is one of the hundreds of snapshopts I took here. The small canals are beautiful and in afternoon light the reflections from the old buildings and gondolas are amazing. I drove my daughters crazy contantly saying, "Look at the colors in the water...there and there!"

Title: Venice Reflection

Size: 12" x 16"

Medium: Oil on gallery wrapped canvas

PAINTING:

I have many layers of paint on this sweet little painting. I focused on the water and the texture of the buildings, using some foundation white and some gold. I used some brush but mostly knife dragged horizontally in water and used like a mason on the buildings!

INSPIRATION:

Venice just seems to glow and glitter all the time but especially in afternoon and early evening. It is a most unusual and beautiful city. Hope you enjoy!

Wild Red Poppies

Title: Wild Red Poppies

Size: 30" x 24"

Medium: Oil on gallery wrapped canvas

check out tonight's auction on eBay for purchase

PAINTING:

Rough scrapes of acrylic color prepare the base of this painting. Overlays of smooth, rich oils then create the vision poppies and the illusion of sunny fields and the outdoors. This painting is very large and using complementary colors of red and green which always appear brighter when placed next to eachother, so I do it often in paintings.

INSPIRATION:

I have a friend that is an interior designer and often commissions me to paint red poppies for her clients. She says a room can always use a punch of red. I would frame this one in a wide black frame but it is so large that it looks great without a frame as well.

Hope you enjoy!