Connotations

16 x 20" This koi rendition will serve as a demo for the Lakes Region Watercolor Guild next week! It should be fun!

Freeloaders

Magnolia Squirrel

Here I Am!

How about a little splash of color for winter-weary eyes? Flowers are always fun to paint!

Fairy Cove

I've been craving greens this long winter so I painted this fairy cove this weekend. My goal was to create a private, secret place...a place where one might sit on a mossy rock to pray or meditate. I used some pouring technique in the foliage and will continue to develop that method. I like the layering affects one can achieve!

Sun Kisser

It's always good to get the brushes warmed up before committing to a larger painting. This one was a weekend project and will serve as a demo piece for my students at class tomorrow. I think everyone is eager to paint with brighter colors these days. This has been one brutal winter and beckoning spring to come via painting is healthy for the soul!

Transparent Waterfowl Society of America

Well here we go! Welcome 2014! I have so much planned for the months ahead! Here's the first painting of the year. In a way it represents all that goes on inside my head. I have paintings backed up in my memory...some overlapping others, some on the bottom of the pile, some on top...all screaming to get out. It's going to be a good year. I can feel it in my bones.

Koi Ahoy!

I love painting the abstract shapes in water! There is something magical in how the eye can piece these shapes together and make it into a comprehensive, understandable painting. I will have to do more of these for I am seduced by the process!

Beside Still Waters

16 x 10" This little lady was preening herself outside my window. I love how her feathers splayed out in all directions! She was completely at home and safe. I was touched that she decided to do her grooming here!

Midas Touch

Here is the first painting of the year. And, believe it or not...it's not a miniature! This year my goal is to explore compositions on a larger scale. (Miniatures too, of course!)This is not a full sheet for I'm still not brave enough to commit to that! Perhaps the next one thoguh...It sure was fun to paint pelican again. They are such regal birds!

Humdinger Christmas!

Here it is! Congratulations to Jane Freeman for quickly guessing the mystery element before everyone else! She wins the pack of cards!

Mystery Card

Well the holidays are right around the corner. And, though I am always the first to be disgusted by the Christmas decor around Halloween, as an artist I only have a small window of time to prepare my holiday cards and get them ready for printing. This year I thought I'd involve you to participate. I have this lovely banner but the card is deinitely lacking. Be the first to guess the proper prop that's missing and I will send you a free packet of printed cards! Good luck!

Birch Haven

I was hungry to do some simple drawing so I worked this piece up yesterday. I just love birch trees and felt I needed to honor them in a drawing. I had so much fun I think I may have to do more!

Canyon Spring

Well...here is the last painting of the fall miniature season. After this I'm going to rest my eyes on larger canvasses! (I've already ordered 300lb paper for winter). This spring canyon is 2.5 x 2.5" and was a BEAR to paint! I had no idea landscapes could be so complex! But painting it was fun for it reminded me of the lovely trip we took out the to the Grand Canyon years ago. This was a photo not of the G.C. itself but of some lovely foothills beside it. The spring rains had prompted the grass to grow and accent that lovely orangey stone. I'm ready for another trip out west!

Say Cheese

What can I say. Did this character not BEG to be painted? I was snapping reference photos of him at the Shedd Aquarium when all of a sudden he stuck his tongue out at me! I suppose I would do the same. How would you like it if your personal space was violated by snap-happy tourists every single day?! This guy measures 1.875 x 1.875"

Who Goes There?!

Who Goes There?! 2.5 x 2.5" When I photographed this owl he looked so perturbed! What an invasion of privacy! How could I not paint him? I can relate to his grumpyness. After all, winter is a bear to get through!

Weathering the Storms

Here is a tribute to our country. It's sad that we have become so stubbornly bipartisan in our ways but I can't imagine that it was any easier for our forefathers. This is a watercolor miniature on illustration board. It measures 2.25 x 3.75"

Maggie's Nirvana

This is my darling little girl whom I lost one year ago this July. She was old but she never ignored a band of sunshine coming through the window. This is a watercolor miniature on watercolor board. It measures 2.375 x 4.25".

Guarded Submission

Guarded Submission 4.25 x 2.5" This is the last of my spring collection. Now I must frame and send all miniatures off to shows. It's a little sad for I won't have time to let this one sit in my home for a bit. I feel like I've just said hello and now I'm casting it off. Oh well. There will be more! Guarded Submission was inspired by the wolves I watched in Yellowstone. It was particularly interesting to see how the members of the pack interacted with one another. There was definitely a hierarchy!

Serenity

Serenity 4 x 2.75" When I shot this reference photo of this sweet tiger I thought, "Wow. If this isn't the very picture of a zen moment!" He seemed so content. Naturally, I couldn't place him in the zoo setting but built a peaceful glen for him to rest in. I think this is what he was dreaming of...at least, it's calming for me! I have one more miniature to complete for this spring and then it's off to the shows!