"200 Faces, No. 137"

4 x 4"

oil on panel
sold

It's unusual that I paint with only black and white - I guess I needed a simplified warm-up this morning after finishing two very colorful, detailed paintings.

It was harder than I thought.

Somehow the changes in values of color, in the slightest increments, comes easier, probably from lots of practice.  The multitudes of greys were tougher.  I need to do this more.

 detail

I decided to leave the red ground color - it looks cool with the black and greys.

Going Nuts with Progress

Imagine - you decide to paint your large bedroom, move the furniture, cover the furniture, go get the gallons of paint and brushes.  You wake up the next morning knowing full well it'll take several days of your life and you just go for it.

That's what it was like on Monday morning when I started this painting.  I should say when I started Seurat's painting 'A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte'.  Yikes.

The detail matters.  So I took my time, used every color in the rainbow and while painting, I imagined Seurat working on a canvas 10 feet by 7 feet and layering millions of dots.  How did he not go nuts?

And here I'm whining about 8 inches by 5ish inches.

My very-used pizza pan of colors....

"The Golden Hour"

10 x 7"

oil on panel
sold

Happy Monday.  Just had to mention that if you haven't watched Neil deGrasse Tyson on the new show 'Cosmos', don't miss it - it should be required watching for everyone.   It's not about art, but it inspires the imagination and the visuals are outstanding.

On to the new painting - a golden retriever taking in the shade as her mom takes in a good book.  From the beach on Hilton Head Island.

Please click here for a larger view.

"Joe"

5 x 5"

oil on panel
sold

A mugshot of sorts - a friendly camel I named Joe, who peacefully resides in the country outside of Natchez, Mississippi.  An absolutely amazing animal to see in person.

~ Happy Spring

"200 Faces, No. 136"

4 x 4"

oil on panel
sold

A new addition to my ongoing series BUST-ED.

"Rainy Day People"

12 x 12"

oil on panel
sold

Finished.  Yay.   The day before yesterday I made great progress - I was down to the floor area about 7:30 pm and I had to stop to watch Jeopardy (I always watch Jeopardy) because Arthur Chu was still on a run and I wasn't going to miss it.  So I finished up yesterday.

This painting will arrive at the Anne Irwin Fine Art Gallery around the 25th of April for a special Paris-Themed Group Show.

Please click here for a larger view.

Now I'm on to a few small, quick paintings - stay tuned.

~ Happy Friday

In Progress

I think when I started painting with my reading glasses, the whole progress slowed down because this portion of my painting in progress has taken several days.

Then again, it is 'Paris Street, Rainy Day' by Gustave Caillebotte - a magnificent, enormous, complex oil that is 83-1/2 inches tall by 108-3/4 inches wide in real life.  I've painted it several times as the feature in my painting and I see something new every time.

Just checking in and assuring you I'm hard at work.

This painting will hopefully be included in a group show coming up in Atlanta.  More info later.

"Sit A Bit"

6 x 6"

oil on panel
sold

From the Sculpture Gallery in the Art Institute of Chicago.

"200 Faces, No. 135"

4 x 4"

oil on panel
sold

A new addition to my ongoing series BUST-ED.

"Troubadour"

8 x 8"

oil on panel
sold

I aimed for a very loose painting today - taking a figure from a photo and transporting him into another setting.  I thoroughly enjoyed it.

"Spring Break"

6 x 6"

oil on panel
sold

Sometimes I have to really wonder what's wrong with me when I have no desire to paint, I whine that I need inspiration - yadayada.   The news is dismal, violent protests, absurd decisions by juries, weather catastrophes.  It gets to me.  

What worked today was a removal from the distractions - Pandora instead of news.  Iced coffee, painting in a t-shirt and shorts for a change.  A nice afternoon.

From Washington Square Park in New York City, a couple of women spending the afternoon removed from distractions.  The original photo is from my friend, Karen Hollingsworth.

"How Bourgeois"

9 x 10"

oil on panel
sold

I painted this new piece during our snowstorm this past week - what a treat it was.  I know some of you are moaning and can't imagine snow being a treat at this point, but it's so rare here in the south.

I love this painting because of my favorite combo of colors - golds, blacks, greys and browns.  And I love the shadows.

From the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NYC, William Merritt Chase's portrait of the artists 'James Abbott McNeill Whistler' (left) and John Singer Sargent's portrait of the artist 'William M. Chase' (right) are seemingly looking down at the couple before them.

Please click here for a larger view.

"Dog Show No. 8"

6 x 6"

oil on panel
sold

Carrying on with my ode to dogs,  inspired by the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show starting tonight.  

My aim is to take my reference photos and invent an unexpected surrounding, playing with color as I like to do with my mugshot portraits in BUST-ED.  

These are two graceful Whippets - wonderful curves and lumps and form.

Some have asked where the previous 'Dog Show' paintings were - here's the first six and here's more creatures I've painted in the past.

"Dog Show No. 7"

4 x 4"

oil on panel
sold

I went to a Dog Show in South Georgia a while back - nothing compared to the upcoming Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show but surely an event that just makes me so happy.  I've painted a few in the past and this is a new addition to what could be a series.  

And don't miss the Westminster on TV - it starts Monday night.   Love the dogs.  Love painting the dogs.

"Warm Spot"

7 x 5"

oil on panel
sold

Another reminder of a simple pleasure in the warmth of the sun.

.... and to one of my favorite actors of all times - Philip Seymour Hoffman

Rest in Peace

"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.

"Foam Bath"

6 x 6"

oil on panel
sold

A reminder of warmth, sun, sand and fun at the beach in the summertime.

"Object of My Affection"

9 x 12"

oil on panel
sold

I've been working on this for several days.  I think this COLD weather has slowed me down.  I have many friends and fans who endure brutal winters in the north - I don't know how you do it.  I always say 'that's why I live in the South' but we've got temps we rarely see.  I think I'll work on a beach painting next just to channel in the sun and warmth.

As I was painting this new piece, I came up with several titles - a young couple admiring Mary Cassatt's painting 'A Child's Bath', which could mean they're contemplating having a baby, missing their baby or just enjoying the painting.  It's rather sweet whatever the story is.

Please click here for a larger view.

Stay warm, my friends ~

"Iron Side"

6 x 6"

oil on panel
sold

A woman resting on a carved, wrought-iron bench in the Sculpture Gallery in the Art Institute of Chicago.

"Get With The Program"

6 x 6"

oil on panel
sold

From the Art Institute of Chicago, a woman reading the museum's program with a couple of Georgia O'Keeffes beside her.

"200 Faces, No. 133"

 5 x 5"

oil on panel
sold

I'm back to painting.  Thank you for coming back to visit.

This guy was fun to paint - he has a rather biblical look.  The detail below shows how I approached the beard - a combination of wet paint underneath, then scrubbing on strokes with a dry brush, then scratching into the paint with a small palette knife.

detail

A new addition to my ongoing series BUST-ED.

"Celebrity Sighting"

6 x 6"

oil on panel
sold

I love this story - record crowds have been 'flocking to the Frick Collection' to see the Dutch painter, Carel Fabritius's oil titled 'Goldfinch' - which is the inspiration for the novel by Donna Tartt.  It is a wonderful thing when masses of people are interested in art and get to the museums.

"200 Faces, No. 132"

5 x 7"

oil on panel
sold

Adding to my ongoing series BUST-ED, a Latino man painted on a vibrant orange ground - which I decided to keep as the background.

"Haylight"

7 x 5"

oil on panel
sold

It's New Year's Eve and I'm gonna get a little personal for a change.

My year started with an evil gall bladder that eventually was removed.  I lost my brother who died too young.

A couple of months went by and after bracing for the third bad event to strike - I realized time was passing me by and I needed to dust myself off and get back to being positive again.

From that point, everything got better.  It always does.

This new painting is from one of the best moments of my year - as simple as it was.  I returned to my mom's family, after years had gone by of neglect.  My aunt and uncle still live on a peaceful, beautiful farm in Roxie, Mississippi - a place I visited all through my childhood.  My uncle took me for a spin on his ATV, out in the fields, through the woods, down to the creek and just as the sun was sinking, he stopped.  I didn't have to tell him how beautiful it was - the shadows, the oranges and golds, the peace.  He relishes this every day.  It was just a wonderful moment in my year.

~ Happy New Year to you and may you always relish the beauty in life's simple moments.

"Leftist"

6 x 6"

oil on panel
sold
 

The trick to actually getting a painting finished - a crock-pot.

Homemade split-pea and ham soup.  Yum.

From the landing in the Art Institute of Chicago, a woman takes a break on a bench.