Laurel

I accepted a few suggestions for dragons as I was working on this series.  This suggestion came from the organizer of the charity horror convention I attend every year.  Scares That Care is run solely by volunteers so that all the money collected can go to help recipients.  The charity is run by the most caring and giving person I have ever met.  Joe Ripple asked me to paint a dragon in the Scares That Care colors: purple, green, and yellow.  I was more than happy to oblige.

The Laurel plant gives us our beloved Bay leaf, the basis for "Old Bay" spice.


See the rest of the 30 in 30 participants here.

Ruby

"Ruby" has a tail that is a little bit out of control (and those toes!). 

I enjoyed this big swirl and working on getting the light just right on all the curves of the lizard.

Happy Valentine's Day!
Today is my husband's birthday and he is definitely the Chocolate King.  Happy Birthday, Melenman.


See the rest of the 30 in 30 participants here.

Indigo

"Indigo" has some glorious scales to protect him during battles.  Dragons are always fighting battles with knights and other dragons, right?  Indigo is definitely a champion fighter.


See the rest of the 30 in 30 participants here.

Masquerade

Before I began this painting, I was thinking, "The colors in these paintings are getting a little crazy, maybe I should tone it down a little" and this was the result.  I do love color but tone it down apparently doesn't work very well in my sub-conscious.  I am pleased with this painting even if I didn't tone it down.

See the rest of the 30 in 30 participants here.

Day 29 - Several Beginnings

Ending the 30-in-30 with more beginnings gives me a lot of inspiration and it reminds me that my painting is NOT done for the year.  I don't know where to store all of these giants but I had a blast painting them and I'm so so glad that I resisted the urge to paint small and try to just finish each day.  I have enjoyed sharing my process with you and I hope that you enjoyed the journey.  I have a few new friends to follow from this challenge and I'm excited to see where they go from here.

One
This is going to be another dark serpent painting.

Light grey is added to the top one third, then deep and light sap green are added to the lower two thirds.


Two
This is the yellow-only painting I was stuck on for some days.  I was inspired by a lot of other paintings I've seen recently that featured circles.

Medium grey and light blue-grey are splattered, sprayed with water, and then circles are drawn to give the feeling of movement.


Three
Going back to the neutrals and violet scales with this one.  I'm going to keep it very light and airy, to contrast with the one with dramatic maroon.

Burnt Umber is washed on in a wave shape.  Violet scales are added with the stencils I created, then medium grey and light blue-grey are added to the upper kidney shape.  I also added some light spritzes of water here and there.


30 in 30 Blog.

Beginning Eleven

Part One

I wanted something a little different with this painting so I began by drawing some large shapes on the canvas with a colored pencil.  Charcoal smears, but colored pencil disappears quite easily under the acrylic.

I like the colors of it already so think I will keep this painting rather light and use a lot of blending techniques for a soft, flowy feel.


30 in 30 Blog.

Painting Seven Continues

Part Two

Trying to keep this one from getting too busy but looking at it here I see I definitely need to edit this one.

Orange was added around the scales to suggest movement and the scales were painted with light and dark blue for contrast with the orange.

See the beginning of this painting here.


30 in 30 Blog.

Beginning Seven

Part One

This painting will be the second for the series using scales stencils.  The first of that series is becoming a bit more complicated than I wanted so this painting will be very simple -- just shapes and patterns.

Going back to using some stencils I made.  I started with very thin Burnt Umber as the first layer then violet scales pattern and a splash of green/turquoise.  I used canned air to spray the green after it was applied and I like the effect however, the canned air scared me a little bit.  As I sprayed, the can got freezing cold and actually froze the paint in a couple of areas.  It didn't seem to damage the paint or the canvas at all but I certainly didn't expect that to happen!  So in the future I'll know... short bursts of canned air ONLY!

30 in 30 Blog.

First Blush

30 Paintings of Comfort and Joy, Number Eleven

The first pink trees of Spring are Cherry, Flowering Crab, and then Redbud.  And they are glorious.  Gorgeous pin petals floating on the wind like confetti.  This tree is still in all its glory, not yet ravaged by Spring rains and wind.

"First Blush"
6" x 6" oil on Gessobord
This painting is available through Daily Paintworks Auction.

Bright Lime

30 Paintings of Comfort and Joy, Number Ten

Winter time is great for loading up on citrus.  It's usually the least expensive fruit in the grocery and there are a large number of choices at this time.  Limes are among my favorites.  They pair so well with so many foods (especially Margaritas!).  As long as you keep them from drying out they keep well for a long time.  A little extra Vitamin C during cold and flu season doesn't hurt either.

"Bright Lime"
6" x 6" oil on Gessobord.
This paintings is available through Daily Paintworks Auction.

Holiday Dream

30 Paintings in 30 Days -- January 2015

I decided during this third 30-in-30 Challenge I would have a theme from which to draw ideas.  My theme here is "Comfort and Joy".  Thirty paintings about things that bring me comfort and/or joy.

This basket of vintage Christmas ornaments brings the joy of many holidays past.  Lovingly placed upon the tree each year and carefully and safely packed away after the holiday season is ended.  These ornaments have their own history and evoke many memories.  Some shiny, some a bit dull, these ornaments have a bit of an abstract look that is so appealing to me.

The "in 30 days" portion of the subtitle here may be a bit of a stretch.  There will be 30 paintings and I will do my best to keep up but there are never any guarantees, right?  I was sick between Christmas and the New Year and I'm still recovering so sleep is more important than ever.

My theme of "Comfort and Joy" is even more fitting when recovering from being sick.



"Holiday Dream"
9" x 12" oil on Gessobord
This painting will be available for sale (as soon as I get all my ducks in a row).
If you have to have it immediately, let me know.  I can make that happen.

30-in-30 Day Seventeen. Cage Free Series 024

Power Disguised
Cage Free Series 024

Barn owl watches her prey intensely.
The power of the claws disguised by a beautiful face.

Boy Howdy I am extra tired this morning.  I even hit the snooze alarm, which is not a good thing.  I keep a tight schedule and now it's tighter.  Tonight is definitely an early-to-bed night.


"Power Disguised"
6" x 6" oil on gessobord, unframed.
This painting is available through Daily Paintworks Auction.
See the other participating artists on Leslie Saeta's blog.

30-in-30 Day Five, Cage Free 012

"Evening Lady"
Cage Free Series 012

This painting is meant as a companion to the one here.  The Evening Grosbeak spends its time in forests and I do not (sadly!) so we have probably never met but I think they are quite a lovely couple.  I love when I see birds in my yard but I'm not great at knowing what they are.  Maybe after researching so many birds for paintings, I'll actually be able to identify them when I see them.

I'm glad it's finally Friday.  Even with Labor Day this short week has felt very very long.  I had made plans to meet friends for an outing on Saturday but have decided I better stay home and paint instead.  It's going to be too hot anyway so I'll be thankful for my basement studio.


"Evening Lady"
6" x 6" oil on gessobord, unframed.
This painting is available through Daily Paintworks Auction.
See the rest of the day's paintings on Leslie Saeta's blog.




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Cage Free -- 30 in 30, Day Two

"Evening Male"
Cage Free 009

Photographing my art so that the photo looks like the painting has proved to be quite an adventure.  Every time I think I have it looking really good, I see some thing I want to change or tweak just a bit so it looks even better.  I don't have a ton of money for photography equipment and I think I have figured out my new camera enough to make it work really well (for now).


"Evening Male"
6" x 6" oil on gessobord, unframed.
This painting is available through Daily Paintworks Auction.
See the rest of the 30-in-30 paintings for the day on Leslie Saeta's blog.

Edging in For August -- SOLD

"I am the Leader.  I Have the Bell."

One of my goals for the year was to post at least once per month.  August allllmost slipped by.  September will bring you 30 paintings in 30 days so that balances out, right?

Today's painting doesn't count for the 30, it's just to whet your appetite.  It's a painting I did from a photo by my dear cousin.  He lives in Norway and his neighbors have sheep that roam free in the area.

The 30-in-30 painting challenge is the baby of Leslie Saeta.  Check out all the participating artists, here.  The map shown on the link can be expanded to search any area and if you click the green icons, you can see the artist's name.  Last I heard, there were over 700 artists participating from 22 countries.  Pretty amazing.  Look for my first entry tomorrow.


"I am the Leader.  I Have the Bell."
6" x 6" oil on gessobord
This painting is SOLD.

Destin Sunset -- SOLD

Florida's Emerald Coast

The name does have a lovely ring, doesn't it?

I guess I am dreaming of the beach.  I haven't made it there yet this year.  Too many busy projects to take time to relax.  Soon, I hope.

"Destin Sunset"
16" x 20" oil on canvas board, unframed.

Daddy's Girl -- SOLD

"Daddy's Girl"

Captured at a 4th of July parade.  These two were having a grand time.  Kids are this small for such a short time.  It was wonderful to see them sharing this day.

"Daddy's Girl"
9" x 12" oil on linen covered board, unframed.
This painting is SOLD

The Way to Mytilene

The Way to Mytilene, Greece

I have been thinking for some time that I should try a Virtual Paint-Out.  Somewhere between a studio painting and Plein air painting lies the Virtual Paint-out.  Like going on vacation, but free.  Google Maps Street-view is such a fun app.  I use it all the time to check out places I'm thinking of going on vacation (or just dreaming about going on vacation).  Bill Guffey started doing the Virtual Paint-out a few years ago already and I think it's a wonderful idea.  Plein air without bugs or heat or rain.  What a great idea!

This month's location is Greece.  Here is the Google location I chose:
https://www.google.com/maps/@39.111752,26.566105,3a,75y,308.4h,89.91t/data=!3m4!1e1!3m2!1sFVUZ2lcjQMGYjlRmt2Zdhw!2e0

"The Way to Mytilene"
9" x 12" oil on gessobord, unframed.
This painting is available through Daily Paintworks Auction.

Cage Free Series 006, 007

"Winter Couple" female and male Cardinal

This couple is in my yard all winter.  My lovely neighbors feed them.  I tried a feeder but the squirrels tore it up almost immediately and that was the end of that.

Male Cardinals have quite a sharp call and I can always tell when they are in the hedge directly below my window.  I often try to sneak a peek but if they see any movement, they are gone.


"Winter Couple"
Each is 6" x 6" oil on gessobord, unframed.
This set is available through Daily Paintworks Auction.

Cage Free Series 005

Afternoon Light

I have been in my studio every day (per my mid-year resolution).  Not every day produces a finished painting worth posting but I'm getting in the habit and that feels really good.

I got a new phone with a greater megapixel camera but I haven't quite figured it all out yet.  It didn't take a terrible photo of the painting but it's not perfect.  Maybe next time.

"Afternoon Light"
6" x 6" oil on gessobord, unframed.
This painting is available through Daily Paintworks Auction.