Twilight Transit

Twilight Transit__16x20__available at Act I Gallery, Taos, NM

Boy do I have a lot of art to share!  ...and other stuff of life! 

Where to begin??

For now, I will share some art, and hope you enjoy!

A few weeks ago I did this painting as a demo for some great artists of the

Hill Country PACT.  

Below is the start of the demo...above is the finish. If you were there, tell  me what you think!

Since it a twilight scene, I am sending it to Act I Gallery inTaos, for the winter exhibit called "Twilight". 

Since this photo, I have added the "morning star", Venus, as it looked a few months ago during the rare Venus Transit. So that explains the title!

Tomorrow's post begins a little series I have begun. It is special to my heart, and will benefit some lovely elderly people I know! Please check in tomorrow!

Merry CHRISTmas, Joey!! 

Winter Rest

Winter Rest__6x8 oil on linen__for Passing America: The Great Plains _$490 framed
On a plains "drive-by" last winter, I painted this as we drove on a ridge in Oklahoma. As you read this, I am probably in the same area of the country, driving home from delivering about 130 other paintings for the exhibit in Nebraska's Great Plains Art Museum.
I really enjoyed my trip this weekend. First, my daughter drove from Texas to Nebraska with me. She got to meet my museum friends in Lincoln and David City, and we enjoyed the usual mother-daughter chit chat for hundreds of miles along the way! A few people commented, recently that they never knew I have a daughter, because I seldom have mentioned her. SHAME ON ME! But, I figured it's because she has been out on her own since I started blogging, and I have not been "responsible" for her athletics, activities and schooling for a few years, now!...Her name is Davie, and I had to fly her home so she could get back to work in Austin...

The Last to Leaf

The Last to Leaf__6x8 oil on linen panel_for Passing America: The Great Plains

My title makes reference to the fact that pecan trees are always LAST to bud in the Texas Springtime. My FAVORITE trees, pecans provide SO MUCH for us! Of course the great nut for food, but also the wood of the tree is some of the best hardwood, the shells are used for mulch.

I PARTICULARLY love the way they look at ALL times of the year, but especially in spring. While all the other trees can't wait to put out leaves, the patient pecan remains barren to the END, avoiding any possibility of ice or cold surprising them. For the artist's eye, they provide punctuations of browns and purples to contrast the cool greens of the season....then, when they DO bud with leaves, they are the bright cool-green spots amid DEEP rich greens of trees that budded six weeks before....I LOVE pecan trees so much, that it is a DREAM of mine, if we are ever able to own a farm again, I want a PECAN FARM!....hoping!

on Yesterday's Post I mentioned a mini workshop in Austin on April 14. I just found out you can register for it online. Click here and look for info about the Art Night Event

Snow Melt to Fog

Snow Melt to Fog___6x8 oil on linen for Passing America: The Great Plains___exhibit opens Oct. 11, NE

A long span of highway was shrouded in thick fog on my recent trek through the Plains. It was a sure sign that the seasons are changing from winter to summer! I am an Impressionist, so sunlight is like "candy"!....Without it, I pouted for a few miles, but then the irresistible muted tones of the day called out to me and I just had to paint them! Passing by the fields and farms, the snow was melting and nearly gone in Kansas. We were told that this was a very snowy winter, and colder than usual!...

As I think back on the quick trip, I cannot recall seeing ANY LIFE on the farms we passed! Except for livestock, the people seemed to be indoors. It was a Sunday...maybe they were at church? It was damp and cool....that never stops a farmer...Perhaps it's that time of winter when there is really nothing to do, but REST...

Trees by the Tracks

Trees by the Tracks___8x6 oil on linen___for Passing America....exhibit Oct-Dec 2011,

Great Plains Art Museum, Lincoln, NE

The Amtrak Empire Builder stopped in Minot, ND. It was just long enough that I was able to do a little more detail on this small canvas. The sun was up, but still low in the sky, and shadows played across the lower part of the branches. I never looked to see what was making the shadows, but spent the time trying to catch the impression of sunlight on the tops of the trees.

I will be teaching this kind of "painting fast impressions" in an upcoming one-day workshop in Rockport, TX. Join us on Friday, Feb 4, and we also will paint on Saturday morning. Details below! If it is cold we will work in the Art center, right on the waterfront. I am also looking into the option of another indoor venue with a view

***WORKSHOP in Rockport! ***
Here are the basics, but email me if you want more info...this is an intensive one-day study workshop to equip you to move forward...(plus optional Saturday am paintout)
Sketching and Pushing Color from Dawn til Dark
FRIDAY, Feb 4 (with an optional Saturday morning paint-out)
7am at Cove Harbour til about noon, and 4:30 – 7 pm
also, Sat 7am at Charlotte Plummers
Seeing and sketching fast…with pencils, sketchbooks, brush on panels,
$100 for members, $125 for non