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.