Poinsettia

Poinsettia

6"x 6" oil on Raymar panel SOLD.

Artist Note

This was a demo done during the workshop

last week. 

My last workshop from my own studio. 

I had a great group of talented artists

who did some wonderful

fracturing work.

It is not easy to break up 

a perfectly nice piece of work and 

I know that, but, with some 

encouragement, it was very rewarding to see

them beam with pleasure when they finally

got it!

They all traveled many miles to attend

and I am grateful and honored

they chose to learn from me.

A personal chat.

I have mixed feelings about not hosting

any more workshops because

I really enjoy teaching and have met some 

amazing artists from Hawaii, Canada, 

South America, Mexico and all areas of the US,

but I selfishly want to have more time for 

my own development. 

When I started fracturing 9 years ago,

very few oil painters were into 

any form of the 

"create, destroy, rebuild"

school and it took time for me to find 

my own way of doing it.

 It took me even longer to 

show the public, and that was 8 years ago,

but, it became noticed

and I was asked to make a video 

for Daily Paintworks!!

I still am gobsmacked at how successful

it has been.

Fast forward to the present time.

I see many, many more 

"messy" paintings 

- as my husband calls them - 

and I am excited to be mainstream

where people are not asking me 

why my lines are not smooth!!

I want to push myself further

and see what develops.

Meet Miss Nova Rae

Meet Miss Nova Rae
8"x8" oil on canvas - gifted

Artist Note

Yes, I know,
this is a bit of a surprise
as I do not do portraits...

BUT

this is the
precious granddaughter
of a dear friend

who has done me a
special and generous favor.

I knew I wanted to
show my appreciation
BUT,
what can you give someone
who has everything?
A painting?

Taste is so subjective
so the choice
had to be right.
What better than to capture
a moment in time
of her Special Treasure.

I loved painting Nova Rae.
It was a challenge for sure
but every time
 I would see this child
I’d catch my breath.
Her eyes were large and thoughtful.
Her skin - perfect
and
she had the neatest outfits!!!
 I knew I wanted to paint her.

My friend got teary-eyed when
I gave it to her.
It meant she liked it💕

When a Friend Combines Art Forms

I love it when a friend pushes

the limits and comes up with

something new.

In this case, my friend 

Lisa Graham has achieved just that.

Do yourself a favor and click

on this link.

      

Video and Painting Steps here

Lisa generously shares her journey

from inspiration to completion.

I find it interesting that Lisa 

places the video first

on her post

and the finished painting last.

Does that mean video 

will become more important

than the painting?

Only time will tell.

We are fortunate to be watching 

the creative

journey of this artist.

Lisa is a retired RN (young)

and a full time professional artist.

She is a story teller with 

her art and I have followed her blog

for a few years. Always sensing

something very deep and real

about her work, and this latest

venture proves what a true

artist she is... to her very toes!

Blue Jay Nest...and more

Blue Jay Nest

6x8in egg tempera on gesso board SOLD

Artist Note.

Roses to nests -
what a juxtaposition!

This is an egg tempera which is 

one of my all time favorite medias. 

It lends itself to very detailed imagery

which you can see here.

I rarely do any egg tempera paintings

any more, 

but treasure it when I do.
This was painted for a couple who
appreciate my egg tempera paintings.

Why Nests?

I cannot explain it, but

I paint nests out of a deep

personal need to explore these

fascinating pieces of 

avian architecture
and it has been an
enduring passion for many years.

I want to share 

some of the collection that I have in my 

own little gallery here on 

Main Street in Las Cruces.

(click to enlarge.)

Below are feathers, eggs and small nests

I have tall branches to display some nests 

in a natural looking way.

I mix some of my sketches and watercolors

in the display. A friend brings in small 

beautifully carved birds to stay for a while

...like this Baltimore oriole, below, next to 

his hanging pouch nest

None of these nest paintings are for sale 

because I found I missed them too much

when they all sold in my last exhibit.

Notice the little humming bird nest

still attached to the branch on lower left.

They take a spider web thread and use it to 

attach the nest firmly to the branch.

Brilliant!

The large egg below is a goose egg, and

twice the size of a chicken egg.

it gives you some idea of the scale of these nests.