Lucy

"Lucy"
(21" x 27")

This portrait of Lucy was a commission Christmas gift. I had a blast with it. The light, the color and Lucy herself added all kinds of visual interest. I changed what was out the window (a parking lot) and zoomed in on Lucy. The picture included more bedroom furniture and a lot more bed. I wanted her to be the focal point so I simplified what I included. I think she's ready for spring.

To A High Place

"To A High Place"
13" x 19"

Okay Christmas is over...time for spring right?  I think not, but I took this image in the woods this past Fall and love the idea of home in a high place. I never got to see who lived here, but it was really big and really high!!

Really?

"I am too a Reindeer!"
10" x 10"

Cows are such good sports. They end up in a lot of paintings mostly, I think, because they're just too cute! So here's my Christmas effort for this year. I think the title and expression pretty much say it all. Merry Moomus everyone!!

Linda's Bike

"Linda's Bike"
8" x 10"

Linda is my neighbor and she made me feel extremely welcome when I first moved to Cape Cod this summer. She brought me some homemade cranberry bread and even made us a small Christmas tree decorated with seashells. So this painting of her bike that she rides all summer to the beach and around town is her Christmas present. I hope everyone has a special holiday!!

Clouds Over Long Beach

"Clouds Over Long Beach"
5" x 7"

It was one of those days that was actually sunny, but suddenly there would be these large dark clouds that slowly rolled over the dunes. This one made me think of a giant manta ray slowly cruising the depths.

Landfall

"Landfall"
16" x 20"

I really like painting stormy scenes, but it's hard to catch them. You have a small window of time when the storm is close, but not yet so windy or rainy you have to worry about your camera or getting electrocuted by a bolt of lightening. I told my husband if I hadn't been a painter I'd have been a storm chaser. I have not changed anything about the actual photo and I don't know about you, but I see a baleful eye making landfall.

Come Further In II

"Come Further In II"
5" x 7"

I have painted this scene several times from memory and everytime I paint it, it comes out differently. This time I used a warmer pallet and made the waterway a bit longer. I hope it still pulls you in and makes you want to follow it all the way to the ocean.

Blue Crabs

Blue Crabs
5' x 7"

I actually saw my first blue crabs in a picture that my brother took in a restaurant in Florida. I painted my first blue crabs from that picture. Now I paint them frequently because they're so much fun and I can actually find them on the beach here on Cape Cod. They have interesting patterning on their olive shells and beautiful claws. I also really like their blue green legs. When they die and wash up on the beach, they turn orange.

Aqua Line

"Aqua Line"
9" x 12"

I chose this boat because it was tied with this great aqua colored line, but after I started working on the painting, I decided to emphasize the purple/maroon tints I kept seeing and now I think I really chose this piece for the underlying colors, but I still like the title.  Can't beat a wooden boat for texture and this one was a great shade of orange on top of that. I kept the background kind of loose and all the stones are just dabs of color that I hope are representational enough. Cheers!

Pancake

"Pancake"
12" x 12"
Commission

This cutie was a rescue who now belongs to a veterinary technician friend of mine who worked at Lilburn Animal Hospital with me when I was living in Atlanta. He had a rough start, but she adopted him and he is now a happy boy. Before I left, she also adopted a sister for Pancake, that's right....named her Waffle.  I love this guy.

Wood & Water, New Work, November 13, 2011

Wood & Water
9" x 12"
$300

I love wooden boats and when I saw this one while my husband and I were out fishing I snapped it up to paint it. I especially liked all the dock in the background and the purple hue that the shadows gave it.

New Work, December 11, 2011

"Playing Koi"
9" x 12"
$300

Some good friends had recently built a beautiful Koi pond in their backyard and invited my husband and I over for dinner and to see their recent renovations. When it was "dinner time" for the fish, I went along to watch them be fed. They would literally lift their heads out of the water in anticipation of a meal. When they saw me and my camera, they suddenly turned very shy and hid under the water plants...hence, the title.

"Eagle Pond"
9" x 12"
$300

This is one of several views I have done of this pond. There are paths all the way around and each side has something interesting to see. In this painting I was trying to capture the difference in the transparency of the water where the shadows fall and the bottom shows up a bit darker and where the sky reflection fades and the bottom shows up, but much lighter. It was very challenging, but I enjoyed it immensely.

New Paintings, November 14, 2011

"A Private Piece of Ocean" (9 x 12in)

"Chatham Boats" (9 x 12in)

"Marsh Colors"  (5 x 7in)

"Pathway to Water" (9 x 12in)

"Salt Marsh Curves" (5 x 7in)

Each of these images, with the exception of the Chatham Boats, was taken from the same area of Cape Cod. Long Beach, as its name implies, is a long stretch of beach surrounding Centerville Harbor. On the inland side of the beach is a salt marsh. It's the best of both worlds.  The Chatham Boats was a piece I did at the request of my husband. He spent a lot of time there on vacations with his family. The boats were being taken out of the water getting ready for the end of the summer season. I loved the colors.

New Work, November 4, 2011

Clouds Over Craigville Beach (5 x7in) 

I saw this huge cloud kind of looming over the dune and it was just quietly rolling and turning. Like a giant manta ray. It was a sunny, but this cloud was very dark. The contrast was striking.

New Work, November 2, 2011

Horseshoe Crabs (5  x 7in)

Horseshoe crabs have a ton of color that is rich and add to that the great patterns of waves on the bottom and you just can't go wrong.

New Work, October 27, 2011

Beach Along Cotuit Bay (5 x 7 in)

I walk my dog along this beach a few times a week. I was struck by the curving waves and sand designs.  Seafoam is fun to paint too. There is always a beautiful color just under the surface that comes through in places and in the waves as they turn over.

New Work

Salt Pond near Craigsville Beach
(5 x 7in)

Cape Cod abounds in salt ponds and marshes. We were at Craigsville Beach last weekend. This painting is from some photos I took that day. Beautiful clouds in the sky and I was pleased to capture them in this pond so I could also paint the marsh up close and still include the great sky.

New Work

Tree Light (12 x 16 in)

Trees are especially fun to paint. They each have their own rhythms and patterns that seem to carry a lyrical message. I love their grace and fine lines. This pine is growing along the Santuit River on Cape Cod. I caught it just as the sun was coming up and catching the very top.

New Work

Along Putnam Ave., Cotuit (10 x 10 in)

Red Snapper (10 x 10 in)

Just finished these yesterday evening. The woods run along a local road where the light in the morning is warm and dappled. I took several shots of this stand of trees and plan to do several views. The red snapper came from the camera of a good friend who went fishing down in Florida on vacation. When I saw the wonderful color of the fish I just had to paint them. They are very textural and angled and even their little teeth added a nice pattern.

Blue Crabs (5 x 7 in)

Come Further In (5 x 7 in)

Marsh Light (5 x 7 in)

Horseshoe Crabs (5 x 7 in)

I have just relocated to Cape Cod from Georgia. I am taking my camera everywhere on the cape. These last few weeks I have been taking photos of creatures and objects I find on the beach when I walk the dog in the morning. Some of these new pastels reflect what I discovered there. The orange marsh is a throwback to a trip to Savannah, Ga while the second marsh is from Prince Cove on the cape.