The Wonder of It All

My friends Steve and Lynn have this little Jack Russell terrier. She’s old and deaf, but that doesn’t stop her from showing all the spirit of her breed when people arrive at their home. She’s one intense little dog! And friendly as can be…

Original painting. Oils on canvas board, 4 x 5 inches. Completed 7-1-2009.

Schreiber Collection.

Posters, prints and greeting cards with this image can be ordered online.

In my flowerbox in front of my house a couple of years ago I had an abundance of wonderful blue petunias. I’ve tried to paint them before, and found them to be a challenging subject. This time I tried using oil paints and a lot more patience. This painting took several days to complete.  I hope you enjoy the results!

This was the first oil painting I’ve done since I was a teenager. It was fun to rediscover the creamy texture–and the new water-soluble oil paints now available! No smell of turpentine in the studio!

Note: I’m not used to photographing oil paintings. The photo above shows some light reflecting off the canvas texture that is not visible on the painting itself in normal indoor lighting.

Original painting. Oils on canvas board, 4 x 6 inches. Completed 5-21-2009.

SOLD–Smith Collection.

My daughter and I were driving on some Tuscan backroads looking for an obscure historical site during our first visit to Italy. In other words, we were lost. We were in rocky, dry hill country where not much was growing except scrub ground cover. Solitary on a hilltop far from the nearest neighbors was this ruin of an old farmhouse or small villa. The storm building up in the sky behind it exaggerated the abandoned and lonely feeling of the place.

Original painting. Acrylics on canvas board, 5 x 7 inches. Completed 5-21-2009.

Available $75 (framed).

Monteriggioni is a classic hill village in Tuscany, Italy, near Siena. It is surrounded by beautiful agricultural land. In past centuries farmers would hurry inside the walls of the fortified “castello”, or castle, for protection when the area was threatened with attack. This old arch hangs over the “back door” through the village walls, and frames a spectacular view of the hillside and the valley below. While I was photographing the scenery, an older Italian woman stepped through the doorway for a spring “passeggiata”, or stroll.

Original painting. Acrylics on canvas board, 6 x 4 inches. Completed 5-8-2009.

Available $75 (framed).

I used to live in the Palouse–wheat-growing country spanning northern Idaho and eastern Washington. The Palouse was all rolling hills and curving feminine shapes. In the spring at dawn, you could hear the earth beginning to thaw and the soil opening up to breathe. To me it sounded like Mother Earth waking up after a long winter sleep. Do you see her in this picture?

Original painting. Acrylics on canvas board, 4 x 6 inches. Completed 5-6-2009.

Cloonan Collection.

Posters, prints and greeting cards with this image can be ordered online.

I’m starting to experiment with small paintings as a way to loosen up my work a bit. Some of these paintings will be in acrylics and some in soft pastels. All will be 5 x 7 inches or less. You’ll find these paintings  in a category called “Small Wonders”. See the Category select box in the right sidebar.

It is so silent. I can hear the occasional crackle of a crystalline snow flake falling on the shoulder of my coat. There is a low unseen washing sound of the ocean on the beach a quarter mile down the hill. A bird comes to look at me, his mate joining us soon after. They make low gentle beeping sounds to each other as they watch me, and shake the snow off their feathers.

When I enter the trail, the snow makes crunching sounds beneath my feet, as if I walked on a hollow drumskin.

I’ve found the scene I want to paint. I’ll take some photos and return to my warm home to work.

Original painting. Soft pastels on Mi Tientes paper, 5.5 x 5.5 inches. Completed 1-17-2009.

SOLD–Thesen collection.

Posters, prints and greeting cards with this image can be ordered online.

Just after a misting rain on a chilly spring day, these delicate plum blossoms were too beautiful to pass by. I just had to spend some time appreciating their subtle colors. The tree is mostly an ornamental, though the small plums it will bear are edible.

I returned to acrylic paints instead of pastels for this postcard-size piece because I wanted crisp edges on the center flowers. Though the painting is small, I’ve found it takes nearly as much work to get it right as for a larger painting. I just use smaller brushes.

Original painting. Acrylics on canvasboard, 5 x 7 inches. Completed 6-29-2008.

Private collection.

Posters, prints and greeting cards with this image can be ordered online.