"Red Alert"

6 x 8"

oil on panel
sold

I took a break from painting larger pieces and loosened up with this flirty moment - a woman seemingly being eyed by the Portrait of a Member of the Haarlem Civic Guard by Frans Hals.

Frans Hals (the Elder) was a Dutch Golden Age painter during the time of Rembrandt, a portrait artist much like his contemporaries.  I found it amusing that Hals insisted he stay in Haarlem and his clients needed to come to him to sit for a portrait, and it apparently worked for years because he did achieve success until he went out of style.  He was also an art restorer, dealer and art tax expert for the city.  Turned out the city and creditors sued him numerous times for debt and seized several pieces of furniture and paintings to settle. Left destitute, he was afforded a city pension but left nothing of note for his family when he died.

His portraits are hung in museums around the world.  There is a Frans Hals Museum in Haarlem, Amsterdam, Antwerp, the Louvre in Paris, the Frick and Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City to name a few.

The Portrait of a Member of the Haarlem Civic Guard hangs in the National Gallery of Art DC.

"200 Faces, No. 134"

6 x 6"

oil on panel
sold

I'm back to painting today, happily.   You may have heard it started snowing in Atlanta on Tuesday around noon.  Within an hour, the city and suburbs was in gridlock.

I liken it to every Halloween - when at 2 or 3, the whistle blows and kids load into buses and parents get on the roads and every street, highway, road is a traffic jam for hours.  That's life in Atlanta.  Add snow and ice to the situation and it's a disaster.

Us?   We were home by the time it started.  And we didn't leave until yesterday afternoon.  Zac and Joey had their first intro to snow and loved it, like most dogs.  I love snow days.

Frankly, it was too frigid in my studio to even entertain the thought of painting.  Now it's more than comfy out here.

A new addition to my ongoing series BUST-ED  -  a young woman that I ended up with a more classic portrait, chosen for her hair.  I always need practice with painting hair.

"Notes From the Edge"

6 x 6"
oil on masonite
sold

You may know this about me - I struggle to keep it loose. Know when to quit. I do spend hours on more realized pieces - paying attention to accuracy and details - but my moments of Zen come when I use less, very deliberate brush strokes to achieve a finished painting. It is the challenge to make that quick decision, swipe the color and leave it alone.

From the side garden of the Art Institute of Chicago.

"Garden Variety"

9 x 12"

oil on masonite

sold

Very much a 'zen' painting for me. Quiet and still. I spend a lot of time avoiding greens, mostly the grassy greens - once in a while I get brave and try it. I don't like to paint pretty garden pieces - don't much care to paint florals either - but this setting, the young woman, the ease, is what I found pleasing.

Please click here for a larger view.