Strike

"Strike"
(5" x 7")

I am still doing studies for a underwater painting. This is a stripper bass. Common fish here on Cape Cod. My husband loves to catch them. They are huge.  A keeper is 27". We seldom keep them, but when we do they are wonderful on the grill fresh out of the ocean.

The Chase

"The Chase"
5" x 7"

This is a study for a larger painting. I am working on capturing underwater life. And since I don't scuba or have an underwater camera...I'm just going to try imagining it.

Gold in the Wind
5" x 7"

I am enjoying painting the trees this Fall. I have done this image before, but smaller. I really like the viewpoint and you just can't go wrong with yellow and blue.

Tree Music
5" x 7"

Trees have a rhythm and a pattern to their leaves and branches. I took the photo for this painting a few years ago walking in woods and randomly taking shots up into the trees from the path. This tree seems to have a whirling song in branches and so I listened and tried to capture what I heard.

"Autumn Light"
5" x 7"

This painting has all my favorite things: water, boats and lots of golden light. This painting was created for our weekly DPW painting challenge to depict what Fall is to you. For me, it's all about the light. Enough said.

Maxwell
5" x 7"

I went to visit my brother in New York last month and got some cute photos of his baby, Maxwell. Max was a rescue from the streets of the city and my brother and his partner adore him. He is sweet and playful and quite the uptown dog now living in a penthouse apartment with his cat sister Bean. Here we see him relaxing after a hard morning of ball chasing.

The Crevice
6" x 6"

This piece was created for a DPW painting challenge. I chose to zoom in on the area I was most interested in which was where the water and crevice met. I like the air of mystery....what's could be in there....a seamonster? a pirate ship? or maybe a quick trip to the land of Narnia? Anyway it was fun.

A Good Place to Cast - Oil on Canvas

"A Good Place To Cast"
Oil on Canvas
12" x 12"

So I haven't posted in quite a while. I had a couple of pastel commissions to do and then I decided this summer would be a good time to revisit working with oil paint. It is certainly a change from pastels and working in two different mediums seems to make my pastel painting go much faster and smoother. I think maybe it's because I have to work and think so differently in oil. Whatever the reason this is an oil of a place my husband likes to fish. He's so good at casting near the marsh without loosing his lures in the tall grass. I just know there's a big striper in there.

A Secret Way

"A Secret Way"
(6" x 6")

It was a gray rainy day today and I wanted to be somewhere else. So this painting is where my mind took me. I started in a garden and decided to open a way through to a sunny new country. I thought the peacocks made it seem more other worldly.

Princess and the Pea

"Princess and the Pea"
(5"x 7")

All my friends, family and husband say I will be one of those crazy cat ladies one day. I always tell them that I already am a crazy cat lady. I have 3 cats and a dog at the moment. There was a time I had 5 cats and a dog. I paint all my friends cats and its always a joy. This one was inspired by the little one's name and she totally is a princess.

Captured Sky

"Captured Sky"
(5" x 7")

I liked the idea of a piece of the sky being "captured" in a bit of water. This reflecting marsh pool view is from Chase Garden Creek in Yarmouth.

Twilight Cast

"Twilight Cast"
(5" x 7")

I almost titled this "My Husband's Idea of Heaven" because it truly is. I was really more interested in the sunset.  Oh well.

Morning Dew

"Morning Dew"
(5" x 7")

This little guy is waiting for the sun to warm him up. So I took advantage of the cool, wet morning to capture him before he dried off. I liked how the dew drops seem to give movement to the stillness.

Sunset Over Pochet Island

"Sunset Over Pochet Island"
(5" x 7")

I totally painted this for the colors. Yummy.

Toby

Toby
11" x 14"

This is Toby. He was a rescue cat who is currently being cared for by my good friend Carol at the Cape Cod Cat Hospital. Toby was horribly injured and abused. Both his ears are gone. He has a pin in one of his legs that had been broken and never set so it healed crooked. He has numerous physical problems, but the best personality in the world. Carol will be adopting him as soon as he has been healed of the worst of his injuries.  When I got to meet him several months ago I knew I was going to have to paint him. He has a cat angel looking out for him ....and her name is Carol. This is my gift to her.

Maxcy Pond

"Maxcy Pond"
(5" x 7")

Maxcy Pond is a lake on Nantucket Island. I wanted to emphasize the green of the wild beach roses against the purple tinted marsh grasses. There are also lily pads and flowers all along the edges. A lovely place.

Clouds Over Cisco

"Clouds Over Cisco"
(5" x 7")

Clouds always seem surreal to me hanging out over the ocean like they've been painted there. These lovely ones where out over Cisco Beach on Nantucket last summer.

Low Tide Reflections

"Low Tide Reflections"
(5" x 7")

This is a view of Paine's Creek in Brewster. I was challenged to capture the reflection of clouds in the tidal pool, but still be able to see the bottom where the sand was sculptured by the wind and water.

Lilies & Wildflowers

"Lilies and Wildflowers"
(5" x 7")

I love to find pastures with ponds. There is always such a variety of flowering water plants and field flowers. Lots of frogs and wildlife too.

Bowed Down With Blossom

Bowed Down With Blossom
(6" x 6')

This painting was created for the DPW weekly painting challenge: What is Spring to you. Nothing says spring to me more than a blooming cherry tree.

Sunset Over Bass Hole

"Sunset Over Bass Hole"
(6" x 6")

Another gray and wintery day here even Spring begins this week. Everyone is mad at the poor groundhog who predicted an end to winter.  So I went a bit mad with color. It was so much fun.

The Sea Finds A Way

"The Sea Finds A Way"
(5" x 7")

This painting is of a portion of Rock Harbor in Orleans about midsummer. I am always struck by how the sea makes these lovely inroads through the beaches to fill the salt marshes with life.

October Sky

October Sky
(5" x 7")

This painting is referenced from a photo of the Great Marsh in Barnstable. It was a beautiful October day and the color was clear and bright. I loved the little splash of red at the bottom. A nice surprise.

Emerald Moss

Emerald Moss
(5" x 7")

Here on Cape Cod there are many cottages that have moss for a yard instead of grass. The color ranges from unbelievable shades of emerald and lime to purple and yellow. Right now with the snow not long gone it's already a pretty yellow green in many of the yards around our neighborhood.

November on the Great Island Trail

"November on the Great Island Trail"
(5" x 7")

The Great Island Trail is about 5 miles of great hiking in Wellfleet. You will see lots of wildlife on the stoney beaches and forests. You can also find people shell fishing. It's quiet and very unpopulated. I loved the beautiful red that the marsh grass turns in the Fall. The photo reference for this painting and the previous entry were both taken by my good friend William DeSousa-Mauk. He is an awesome photographer.

Scudders Lane Landing

"Scudders Lane Landing"
(5" x 7")

This pretty spot is part of a large recreational fishing area in Barnstable. The clouds along the Cape are often just spectacular and I love to paint them when they are tall and fluffy.

Into the Woods

Into the Woods
(5" x 7")

This piece was created for our Dailypaintworks weekly challenge. This week our challenge was to paint a path into the light. I chose this particular woody path because I like the contrast of the blue green darkness into the yellow sunlight. I also loved the shadow play on the path. Don't you want to go into that lighted space and see what's there?

The Kousa Dogwood

"The Kousa Dogwood"
(5" x 7")

The kousa dogwood flowers like other dogwoods in the Spring, but in the Fall they are covered with fat little raspberry drops of fruit that the animals love. I liked the bright red berries against all the blue green leaves.

Memory in Bloom

Memory in Bloom
(6" x 6")

Okay so we've had snowstorms 3 weekends in a row. Thank goodness not for this coming weekend. The snow has had a chance to really melt and it's in the 40's which feels like spring compared to the weather we've had lately.  I'm ready for color and flowers and butterflies. Unfortunately, we've a few months more of winter so I'll have to settle for a memory of spring past.

Bound Brook Island

Bound Brook Island
(5" x 7")

I love the ocean when it's this deep green. This is one of the many lovely views in Wellfleet.

Coast Guard Beach

Coast Guard Beach
(6" x 6")

Another pretty view in Eastham.

Pan in the Winter Garden

"Pan in the Winter Garden"
(5" x 7")

This painting was created for this week's DPW challenge: to paint statuary.  I chose to do a garden statue of Pan. He is one of my favorite mythological creatures who looks quite at home in a wild, winter garden setting.

The Knob

The Knob
(6" x 6")

The Knob, located at the end of Quissett Harbor Road in Falmouth, is an area of several acres dedicated to bird sanctuaries. It's a great place to swim, walk your dog or just enjoy nature. This path leads up to a pretty view of the harbor.

A Pretty Corner of Nantucket

A Pretty Corner of Nantucket
(6" x 6")

Spring is coming and I'm getting my pastels ready.

Lupins Lead to the Sea

"Lupins Lead to the Sea"
(6" x 6")

Lupins

Upon the hill the lupins grow, 
They sway in the breeze like dancing gnomes 
Which take delight in all they see, 
As they sing their praise of the rolling sea... 

And as they sleep the sea rolls on though never far it roams from them,
Through storms, through gales, or what may come,
Their pink and purple will endure as they dance in the wind,
And share deep their fun.

Excerpt from "Lupins" 
by Rusty Blackwood.
Copyright 2005-09. 

Eastham Yellow

"Eastham Yellow"
(5" x 7")

Eastham is the first Cape Cod National Seashore stop. It's quiet and colorful and a great place to paint.

Colors of Truro

Colors of Truro
(5" x 7"

This is a landscape of a portion of the National Seashore that runs along the easternmost edge of Cape Cod. I love the layers of beach plants and the how the colors change all throughout the year.

One Perfect Cape Day

"One Perfect Cape Day"
6" x 6"

Enough Said!

Herring River

Herring River
(5" x 7")

More boats and marshes.

Autumn Red

"Autumn Red"
(12" x 16")

 So we've just been through the Blizzard of 2013. We had no power for 24 hours and so no heat, hot water or anyway to cook except to shovel out the grill on the porch which we did. It was so cold in the house that we took stuff out of the refrigerator because it was colder in the kitchen than inside the frig. I should not complain there are still many people with no heat and it's been cold since Saturday. Anyway, I started this painting before the storm and finished it today. It was so nice to see color other than white and gray that I may have gotten a bit carried away. Water and boats...my favorites.

The Gull's Nest

"The Gull's Nest"
(6" x 6")

I love to paint nests, especially when they are made of interesting foliage and have pretty eggs in them.

Falls of Nimrodel

"Falls of Nimrodel"
(5" x 7")

This painting was inspired by one of my favorite tales, "The Lord of the Rings". I used to read these books long before there was a movie to illustrate the story. I used to imagine everything from the ents to  sauron. So the Nimrodel was the name of the stream the company crossed on their way into the golden wood, Lothlorien. As they cross the water, the elves ask the hobbits if they can hear the song of Nimrodel in the falls and trickles of the stream. I imagined it something like this. (The story of Nimrodel is sad, but worth a read.)

Grace in the Tall Grass

Grace in the Tall Grass
12" x 16"

This painting was created for the February exhibition at the Cape Cod Art Association entitled "The Beauty of Red." I thought about it for several months and came up with every red subject from Fall foliage to apples and decided I wanted to use a more subtle shade of red. My uncle Jim had hunting dogs and some of them were a pretty shade of rust. We had an irish setter for many years and he was absolutely beautiful. So I determined I was going to paint a hunter. I still have the water included. I almost can't paint a picture without it. It's a nice contrast to all the red undertones.

Time Flies

Time Flies
(20" x 20")

This pen & ink was created for the weekly Daily Paintworks Challenge. This week Carol Marine challenged us to either work in an unfamiliar medium or with a subject matter that is different from our usual style. I went back to a medium I worked in when I was first beginning to do art. This is such a good exercise to go back to working tightly and neatly and slowly rather than the splashy colorful way I work with pastel. This piece is about time passing which is kind of ironic since it took me three times as long to produce as a pastel. The flowers represent different seasons of the year and the birds are the clock hands.

Trimmings & Trappings

Trimmings & Trappings
(6" x 6")

This painting was in response to the DPW weekly challenge to depict fabric. I grabbed everything out of my sewing scrap box put it on a cool pillow and there it is.

On the Bottom

"On the Bottom"
(5" x 7")

All of our ponds are covered in a thin layer of ice and that got me thinking about the fish that live in the ponds and what it must be like in the cold on the bottom. So I painted a bass amongst some small new lily pads in a pond not so dark and unwelcoming with hope for the coming spring.