"Sugar-Coated"

6 x 6"

oil on masonite
sold

I am sure there's many of you out there that aren't embracing the snow right now. But remember, I live in the deep south, and this is not only a rare occurrence, it's an unusual opportunity for me to paint something different, and I love that. It is staggering to see my world blanketed in white - almost no hint of color anywhere - the muted, silver sky - the amazing quiet. If it wasn't for my slipping on the ice and dropping my camera right smack in the snow, I would say that day was a perfect day.

I also get to play with thick, blended, warm and cool white paints - laid on thick and as heavy as the snow itself. So much fun. And I promise - the 18 new paintings you'll see in a few weeks will warm you up and remind you that brighter days are ahead.

"Birthday Girl"

6 x 6"
oil on masonite
sold

You know I need a spiritual lift when I paint a dog. My moment of Zen. This cutey is my good friend's frisbee-loving, pillow-chewing, one-year-old Abbey - who is a white, yellow labrador retriever. Her fur is compelling in that it brings out blues, tans, purples, greens, pinks - well let's just say all colors in the shadows and light. Love it. I'm sure I'll do more of this sweetie pie.


and an update....... I've got 18 new paintings to show you in a couple of weeks - I'm very anxious to post them but they are in the early stages of drying, then varnishing, then framing and finally delivered to several galleries around the second week of March. Once they've arrived, I will show all of them on my blog and my website. I can't wait. Meanwhile, I have some catching up to do with real life and I surely will keep warmed up with some small, loose paintings that I will offer on auction. These small studies, as I am reminded today, are so much fun.

"Naturally"

5 x 7"
oil on masonite
sold

I've been holed up - a painting machine. Good thing it's winter. Today, I just ended up playing with a different approach, something I'd like to develop more and more. The control factor is the key - using a palette knife in parts, a brush in parts - really struggling with that fine line of loose and tight and knowing when to stop.

"Close Encounter"

3 x 11"
oil on masonite
sold

After a nine hour stretch of painting today, I caught a second wind and jumped right into this. Here's the thing - I ended the last piece with a palette that looked like it had its run - a thousand blended color combinations with no spare room - and I just can't pass it up because every color I would want was right there. I love that. And it's liberating to work fast and furious with a fat, spent brush - especially after a marathon of paintings that took days. I imagine a chef, who creates entrees all day, loves to come home to whipping up scrambled eggs and toast. Same thing.


Quick mention ...... I am holding a workshop in May, in New York City and there is one opening left - a student switched over to next May, when I'll be doing the same thing. I think it'll be a great experience, so if you are interested in signing up, click here for the details.

"Raring To Go"

6 x 6"
oil on masonite
sold

Once I knew the date for my show in March, it's been full steam ahead - although you won't be seeing those pieces I've been working on for about a month. I hate that. I'm always anxious to get feedback. Hopefully ..... you won't be disappointed, come March.

I've had this little guy half finished for a couple of weeks, he sat close by and wondered why I abandoned him. It was the hands I gave up on, the hardest part of anatomy in my opinion. After working all morning and afternoon on another, I put him back on my easel. And it just worked. I love the whole thing. So he was not only patiently waiting on his wife, he was patiently waiting on me.

"Wine Cooler"

5 x 7"
oil on masonite
sold

I was in need of some warming up this morning - there's been a stretch of days without being able to paint. Part of that is I live in the Deep South and constantly brag that I don't need a winter coat. Well..... not this winter. My little studio isn't built for such temperatures. I've had to find other things to get done. I gave that up today after surrounding myself with space heaters. A girl's gotta work.

This is loose, fluid and rich in oils. Just how I love to paint. From the Art Institute of Chicago, during an evening event, a young lady cooling her heels with a glass of wine.

While I've got you here....... I've got an official date for the opening of a dual show with Ken Auster, who's work has been a huge influence for me and a painter whom I've admired for years. And let me entice you a little more - it's at the beach. Maybe you can pitch your winter coat and join us March 26th, at the Morris & Whiteside Gallery on Hilton Head Island.

"Scarfed Down"

4 x 4"
oil on masonite
sold

Recently, I've used my iPhone for inspiration - very much a tool for exercise or what I would call warm-ups. I observe from webcams all over the world, and when my brain sees interesting patterns or colors, I freeze frame the moment and paint. Most are landscapes, a lot turn out to be very abstract in a sense - much like this one. Once I've passed the point of not needing a reference, I play with the color until I'm happy.

This painting pleased me - very much a glimpse, a split second somewhere else far away - on a busy street corner in downtown Manhattan a few days before Christmas day.

Different Folks

First, a Happy New Year to you ~

My day went a lot different then I expected. Frankly I was hoping to watch some holiday epic movie in my pj's but the TV programmers have all lost their minds or their jobs because nothing was on but the usual football and lousy movies. Alas.... but I did enjoy the day, ended up painting four of the artists who participated in my year-end portrait swap on my Different Strokes From Different Folks blog. Truly, I need the practice and it was my pleasure.

The first four were done today, happy to say in my pj's - filling in for four artists who did not carry through with the commitment. It should be said, there were a couple of painters who offered to back these up too, only it is a holiday today and I wanted those folks to enjoy some leisure. The fifth portrait, the one on the bottom, was my assigned swap, done a few weeks back.

I think you'd really enjoy scrolling through the whole 180 finished portraits - I'm so very proud of everyone who participated.











I think I'll take the weekend off ~ hope to see you back here next week.

"Hawkeye"

6 x 6"
oil on masonite
sold

Our hawk is very fond of our back yard, evidently he likes the menu items. We also have a resident Great Horned Owl, who we named Hooty months ago - so it's only fit we name this guy Hawkeye. Something told me he was prodding me to paint him and out of great respect, I have.

A Thing of Beauty

Okay ..... before I sign off one more time .... I was cleaning up my studio this afternoon and stepped outside and saw this fabulous Red-Tailed Hawk perched on my lilac tree. What a thing of beauty.

And since my studio was straightened up, I'd show you all where I work and paint all day. The bed in the far right is for my dog, of course.

Something you might enjoy - I'm running a year-end challenge on my Different Strokes From Different Folks blog - 180 artists from all over the world have swapped portraits, each unknown to the other. They're not all in yet, but I have a couple of YouTube videos of the first that have come in. Click here for Part 1 and click here for Part 2 - and don't forget to turn up the volume.

Happy Holidays to All

"Minimum Security"

8 x 8"
oil on masonite
sold

The way to achieve great joy in life is to paint dogs. You can quote me on that.

Please click here for a larger view.

It's time to sign off for a few days. Happy Festivus, Christmas or whatever holiday you celebrate. Make it a happy one. ~ Karin

"Pugsly"

8 x 8"
oil on masonite
sold

Thought I'd spread some red & green cheer on this busy week before Christmas, with a happy Boston terrier I spotted sniffing in the grass. (And thank you to those who corrected me on the breed.)

Please click here for a larger view.

"Max"

5 x 7"
oil on masonite
nfs

A gift for my friend and his buddy Max.

"Palm Sunday"

7 x 14"
oil on masonite
sold

This you've seen earlier - a bit different for me in that it involves just a few colors - white, black, red and payne's grey. It's thick with texture, using both a palette knife and a brush. I love this painting.

"Divine"

6 x 6"
oil on masonite
sold

A man of the cloth viewing Healy's portrait of President James Buchanan, in the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, DC.

"Where Max & Will Walk"

6 x 6"
oil on masonite
sold

A good friend of mine walks his dog Max on this beautiful path every day - one of the pleasures of living in North Georgia.

Have a lovely Thanksgiving, my friends.

"Terminal Pace"

6 x 6"
oil on masonite
sold

This painting will be back on auction this evening - for those who would like another crack at the bidding. This past Saturday, eBay had a major outage for almost 18 hours, affecting every single item and all categories and also happened on the final hours of my painting's auction. The winner bidder was kind enough to agree to allowing me to relist it for another 10 days.

"Palm Sunday"

7 x 14"
oil on masonite
sold

And now for something completely different. I essentially 'spackled' on a thick, toned-down white and worked within that, with a combination of scraping, painting with a brush and adding more texture. It was totally gratifying to maintain some control over the paint - often times I feel the paint has more control over me.

This painting will be auctioned, probably starting next week sometime - just want to let that thick paint dry a bit longer than usual. I'll be sure to post it again when the auction kicks in.

A note about the landscapes you've seen in the past week..... they will all be framed and arranged in a holiday window display at my frame shop. A very understated version of what I normally have done in the past years - something mellow and a bit more down to earth.

"Lancaster County"

5 x 7"
oil on masonite
sold

One of my favorite paintings of the week - done fast and with a flat, honker brush and a wide range of color - letting the orange ground peek through a bit more. When I need some inspiration, I look at other painters' works - with landscapes, I pour over Doug Braithwaite's to remind myself that you don't have to nitpick to get the point across.

"Picnic"

6 x 6"
oil on masonite
sold

The one yesterday was an accidental result by the way - I was pleased with the top portion, the sky and treeline, and had done something totally different below that and hated it. I wiped that off and just wanted more simplicity - picked up the palette knife that I usually ignore and played.

Same with this painting - feeling out how to balance some tighter brushwork with some loose texture. Just exercising the brain - working through a block - enjoying the freedom.

"Low Country"

4 x 14"
oil on masonite
sold

I'm in the mood to experiment with palette knives, color and subjects. I'll show more as I go.

"Belle"

5 x 7"
oil on masonite
sold

You would know I don't normally paint figures like this young woman - frankly, it isn't something you would usually see while walking through a city. I happened to be in Washington Park, in Charleston, watching some plein-air painters - and a local artist, Rhett Thurman, had arranged for a model to pose for her. Wishing I had my paints with me, I could only wonder how I would approach this. As goofy as it sounds, with a photo as my guide, I pretended I was in the park and just went for it - staying as loose as possible.

"The Hunt for Red October"

8 x 8"

oil on masonite
sold

I've been getting used to painting on this orange-red ground. Just like with the black ground, I play with the edges showing slivers of what's beneath, and the red is powerful in that respect. Especially with skin. At the same time, I'm working on a spring show - most of the prep requires thinking too hard and not enought painting. But..... I did my first piece which is a bit larger than my usual - quite frankly, just to see if I could - and I love it. Can't wait for you to see it.

This new piece The Hunt for Red October is a scene from the beaches of Hilton Head Island - a man with a good book and his best friend patiently waiting for some playtime.

Please click here for a larger view.

"Terminal Pace"

6 x 6"
oil on masonite
sold

I really love this painting. For starters, I painted on a burnt-orange, just for something different, and small glimpses of that show through. Much like you see in Carol Marine's paintings. I love that. Also the current challenge on my Different Strokes blog - take a look at many interpretations.

Travelers and their shadows in the Reagan National Airport in Washington DC.

The Auction

Back from Charleston, trying to catch up....

It felt like the best time of the year to be in that city. It's a place you should walk about and it's simply easier when it's cooler. You spot little gems like this along the way.



Saturday morning, I headed to Washington Park where I met up with a Charleston artist, Tate Nation - a delightful person to know. He introduced me to lots of his friends and fellow painters who were participating in 'Painting In The Park', doing Plein Air demonstrations and open to the public to enjoy. Those paintings were also part of the Charleston Art Auction that evening - with proceeds going to local high school art programs.



The auction was so cool - frantic pace once the man with the microphone gets started. Happy to report both of my paintings sold. It is a trip when I see my pieces up there - it's a very exciting event for me.




Just wanted to check in - I'll be back to the paints tomorrow.