LOOKING FORWARD TO SUMMER

It does my heart good to paint these little bursts of sunshine on such a cold, dreary day. But these really cold temps are absolutely necessary. Everything is dormant now, resting. This is another 8X10 Oil on Board

A WALK IN THE GARDEN

I love these tiny garden pictures. This one is 5x7. I keep them scattered around my house and they give me a bird's eye view of the outdoors.

THE GIRL WITH THE BIG EARRING

I had more fun doing this painting. The model is the antithesis of "The Girl With the Pearl Earring". In more ways than one! I was so inspired by the drama of her fabulous earring and gorgeous hair. This wonderful girl recently gave her sister the gift of life with a bone marrow transplant. No one could ask for a more wonderful sister. We love you, Lysh!

PITCHER WITH AN ATTITUDE

Tulsa is very privileged to have two of the finest museums in the nation. Gilcrease is an amazing place full of beautiful work. I felt extremely priviledged to be chosen to participate in the 2009 American Art in Miniature Show that opened this month. To add to the wonderful experience, my painting was also chosen to be used on the invitation. You can imagine how pleased I was. They had a wonderful reception. There was live music, great food, and exciting auction. You can view the collection at gilcrease.utulsa.edu/aaim2009. Two of the Water Street Art Gallery members, Ruth Harris and Celest Vaught also had paintings in the show.

DAISYS IN FULL BLOOM

This is the first of a series of miniature garden paintings that I began this month. I love the way color can lift your spirit.

THE SAVOY

This is a painting of an adorable little hotel in Tulsa. It's called The Savoy and is a wonderful place to stay.

Demo #2

On November 29, I did a demo at Water Street Gallery. I painted a 24x36 because it's so hard for people to get a real glimpse of what you are doing if you do a smaller painting. I wanted to emphasize developing your own style and painting BIG! Something interesting happened. The painting was almost finished when the demo was over. I put the a few finishing touches on it at home. When I took it back to the gallery the color was extremly cool and raw. I hadn't realized the light in my studio (which in real life is my kitchen) had gradually been switched to warm light. It made a huge difference. I added warm touches and now I'm pleased with the finished product. The lesson is to be sure what kind of light your painting under. I had a cool light directed at my painting but it wasn't enough. We can be easily tricked.

I've painted this scene before but it was in the spring. This is a pond at the Botanical Garden in San Antonio. It's a beautiful garden worth the visit and they have fabulous lunches!

IN THE SWIM

Jack Daniels and Bucky 8xl0




Bubble Boy 16x20




Skye 16x20


One of the reasons I wanted to set up a blog is to be able to show things that will never be in a gallery. These paintings fall in that category. I have been swimming for exercise for several years. I began to be fascinated by the colors of the water and the way the light effected it. It ran from dark, deep blues to warm greens and yellows and bright whites. I decided to do a series on the pool. I didn't stop to think about the figures I would be adding or I might have turned back. It was a huge strectch. I had to work from photos of course and just catching a figure swimming is complicated. The affects of the distortion of the water on the figures were really amazing. But I also wanted to have some views from under the water. I finally had my best success when I turned my grandkids loose with underwater cameras. Painting my grandchildren was simple of course, because they are so gorgeous. The last one is of my grandaughter, Skye. This second is Nolan and the first is definitely people not related to me. Seriously, this man's name is Jack Daniels. The painting is called Jack Daniels and Bucky. I bet you can guess which one is Jack!

Tulsa Lacrosse

I painted these paintings this winter. It was a really fun experience. They were like putting little puzzles together. I loved pushing the color and catching the movement. My son was instrumental in promoting Lacrosse in Oklahoma so I have a special interest in the game. However, observing and painting it is as close as I want to get. Last year I got a little bit too close and caught a ball on the chin.

Brian Lipperd Demo

I just finished attending the Brian Lipperd demo in our new gallery. It was really worth while. He is a wealth of information about art. After the demo he took us on a tour of his studio. All in all, the whole day was very inspiring. He will do two more demos and then a workshop.