"Pike Hike"

10 x 11"
oil on masonite
sold

Also included in the upcoming May show - a cityscape of Seattle at the corner of Pike Street and First Avenue, right at the opening of the Pike Place Market. I had taken a cab to the market early in the evening and started my hike back to the hotel - delighted with the break in the clouds and this gorgeous, dusky, peachy light - dispelling the myth that Seattle is always rainy and gray.

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"Summer Time"

9 x 12"
oil on masonite

I'm not one for Victorian or Romantic era paintings - perhaps I'm jaded from framing so many through the years. Then I see one in the flesh, like this painting by Frank Benson titled 'Summer'. It hangs in the Smithsonian American Art Museum - a must-see collection that's often overlooked because it's not on the Mall with the other museums. This new painting is included in my upcoming dual show opening May 9th.

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"Puttin"

7 x 5"
oil on masonite
sold

I like to watch golf tournaments on TV - not for the sport - but for the landscapes, the crowds, the shadows, the color. It's also a great way to study the human figure. I painted this while watching the Masters - simplifying the surroundings. It's a fun subject - I'd like to do more.

"Eavesdropping"

8 x 8"
oil on masonite
sold

A nice place to hang out, if you find yourself in San Francisco, is the Ferry Market - weekends include a green market, lots to eat, lots of people watching. The backside of the market has a nice view of the bay, fresh air and fresh coffee. If I lived in the city, it would be a weekly habit.

As you may have read, I've been painting for a dual show also featuring Fred Calleri, opening on Saturday, May 9th, at the Howard/Mandville Gallery in Kirkland - just outside of Seattle. You will see 11 new paintings of mine - the entire collection will be posted on my website on May 4th. The gallery did give the OK to reveal three of the paintings which you can view here, including the one you see above.

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"Page Turner"

8 x 10"
oil on masonite
sold

A couple of years back, during an opening at Twinhouse Gallery, I spotted Jeff & Leslie Cohen's daughter sitting quietly in a chair, ignoring the conversations and mingling of patrons - totally absorbed in Catch-22. It was one of those moments when I saw a finished painting in my head, I could hardly wait to get home and start it. I have painted her several times, from different angles - I'm just in love with the subject, the light, the personality ... everything.

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"Innocent Bystander"

12 x 12"
oil on masonite
sold

A sure bet - women and girls are mostly drawn to artworks depicting women and girls. It's what we know. Men on the other hand are drawn to structural objects, sculptures and dramatic scenes. These two are standing before Morisot's 'Woman at Her Toilette', while on the right is Renoir's 'Woman at the Piano'. Both paintings hang in the Art Institute of Chicago.

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"Holy Corner"

8 x 8"
oil on masonite
sold

A brand new painting of a sunlit church - a quintessential, coastal South Carolina scene from Lady's Island, outside of Beaufort.

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"Little Easter"

4 x 4"
oil on masonite
sold

This little painting was a result of my stubborn nature of having to keep at something until I get it. I painted the first one, the whole head-to-toe, fairly fast - walked away - came back and wiped out the head and did it again. Wiped that - walked away - came back and did it again. Kids are hard when you've spent a lifetime studying and drawing adults. Still not happy, I picked up this little 4" square panel and worked at it - then went back to the larger piece and finished it up, finally satisfied with both.

"Easter"

4 x 8"
oil on masonite
sold

Sometimes I have a quiet evening when I know I'm only in the mood to paint something quick and loose - a study of sorts. I spotted this little girl on Easter morning, outside of a nearby church - a perfect little subject to practice painting children. I also did a little head study you'll see tomorrow.

"Tied Up at the Moment"

6 x 6"
oil on masonite
sold

A nice companion piece for yesterday's painting 'Front Row Seat'. Although I do enjoy painting very quick, impressionistic pieces - I also take pleasure in doing more realized, more time-involved work on this subject. You'll be able to see them framed and on the walls of the Morris & Whiteside Galleries in the beginning of May, along with others.

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"Front Row Seat"

6 x 6"
oil on masonite
sold

Certainly a favorite subject to paint - one that includes those wonderful, squiggly shadows.

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"Woodland Nymph & Hound"

You may notice a couple of changes to this post - one - I was wrong, this figure is not the goddess of Diana, it is one of her companions, which explains why I changed the title of my painting. I also removed my little movie, showing the progression of the painting and replaced that with still images that seem easier to view. I thought you'd like to see how I approached this subject.

and the finished painting......

6 x 12"
oil on masonite
sold

The marble sculpture was done by Jean-Louis Lemoyne, titled 'A Companion of Diana', commissioned by Louis XIV in 1724. Diana was goddess of the moon and of the hunt, this nymph is one of Diana's companions, with her hound. This sculpture belongs to the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC.

Checking In

I know. I haven't shown you anything new in days - but I have been painting nonstop - all for a show opening on May 9th. It's a dual show with the talented and charming Fred Calleri held at the Howard/Mandville Gallery, in Kirkland, right outside of Seattle. I won't be able to travel the distance this time around, but 11 new paintings will - and you'll be able to see them on my website and the gallery's website in a couple of weeks. Here's a little teaser of one of the new paintings.

Meanwhile..... I'll be getting caught up on fresh work for the other patient galleries and certainly a few small pieces that will go on auction. Happy Easter, have a Good Friday and I'll see you back here in a few days.

"Summer VI"

4 x 4"
oil on masonite
sold

This is probably the end of my little beach paintings - at least for a while. I'm deep in the progress of painting for a dual show coming up in May and there comes a point where any distraction cuts into my time. Yikes. Meanwhile I'll stare at these little gems and dream of being barefoot and tan.


ps - Thank you all for the comments on the little movie I posted this morning. It's just something I wanted to do - keeping myself familiar with movie editing and putting images in a different context. Hope you enjoyed it.

Life Should Be a Beach

"Summer V"

4 x 4"
oil on masonite
sold

These little pieces are good for my lifelong quest to understand the color blue.

"Summer IV"

4 x 4"
oil on masonite
sold

Again with the beach. I'm trying to wish away winter.

"Summer III"

4 x 4"
oil on masonite
sold

Another small study I enjoyed painting in between the more detailed work.

"Summer II"

4 x 4"
oil on masonite
sold

A second in the series of small, summertime glimpses at the beach.

"Summer I"

4 x 4"
oil on masonite
sold

Working on larger paintings can be daunting sometimes - and frankly, I occasionally need to paint something less detailed, less challenging - something that will take an hour or so. It tends to rev me back up and I can resume what I'm doing with the larger pieces. I like to call them my 'in betweens'. So having summer and the beach on the brain, I started this summer series - small 4-inchers that transport me to another place, if only for a little while. Look for more to come.

"Aqua Broads"

12 x 9"
oil on masonite
sold

A few summers back, I stepped into the shaded Telfair Square, one of the small city parks in Savannah. It was around 90 degrees at lunchtime, actually the more comfortable time of the day - and people were spilling out of their offices while a rather large group of senior ladies, all dressed in aquas, had set up their lawn chairs to listen to a little jazz ensemble. When I came on the scene, the sidewalk was lined with them and passerbys, enjoy the 'In Crowd', one of my favorite tunes.

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"Casts of Characters"

17 x 7"
3 panels
oil on masonite
sold

This new painting - which is three separate panels - is one of my personal favorites. You may notice I'm enamored with shadows and how they follow us in the sunshine. This piece is included in my solo show now on exhibit at the Morris & Whiteside Galleries.

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"Soy Soak"

6 x 6"
oil on masonite
sold

Back to painting and feeling a bit rusty after a week away from the brushes - I warmed up with this little still-life of California sushi rolls, soaking in soy sauce. Also the current challenge for other artists on my Different Strokes From Different Folks blog.

"Level With Me"

12 x 12"
oil on masonite
sold

Several of my new paintings were inspired not only by the art in the National Gallery, but the space surrounding us as we walk the galleries. There's great attention to tones marrying well with the paintings - including the ceilings, walls and floors - which creates a natural flow and comfort to the visitor. Personally, I like that, opposed to extremely high ceilings and white walls. It's pleasing to my senses.

This new piece is a more open viewpoint - showing how we can feel so small among the large paintings - and how we naturally gravitate closer to the work that is more eye-level.

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"Slouchers"

8 x 12"
oil on masonite
sold

That girl's posture pretty much defines how I feel - generally pooped. The past week has been go - go - go, including a trip to Hilton Head Island, spending time with family and meeting a lot of very nice people who took the time to come to the opening of my show Friday night. Attendance was around 100 - including artists and longtime patrons of the Morris & Whiteside Galleries - coming to see my new work and the new location of the gallery, which is just fabulous. I think one of the nicest comments I got was from a gentleman involved in the catering - who remarked that my work was 'very natural'.

What really makes me proud is the presentation of all the paintings together - after all, I paint each one, let it dry, varnish it, frame it and send it off. It's incredibly gratifying to see the finished work all together and lit up so beautifully. That's when I really feel like I've done what I set out to do. Please stop in the gallery during the month of March, if you're in the area.

This new painting is included in the collection - a couple of spent visitors beside Mary Cassatt's 'Little Girl in a Blue Armchair', in the National Gallery of Art.

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