Saturday Garden Tour and Show

This past Saturday was the Lakewood Arts Council sponsored garden tour...magnificent places to see and inspire! plus I learned a lot from several gardeners, and of course, I took photos of interesting plants for reference...great fun! Lunch was provided at the gallery, together with a chance to visit the Garden Show on the upstairs gallery...there was a great turnout and much exposure for the artists...if you have not yet visited, take a look soon!

Peonies in Bloom

The rain has produced a bountiful year for peonies...and this newest 24 x 18 acrlylic painting is from a neighbor's yard...I particularly liked the yellow sun coming thru the plant and the pink edges of an otherwise white flower...

Check out the Picasa link to all my work...

Just a note to let you know that I have just about completed uploading photos of all my work to date on the Picasa link at the end of this blog...they show my paintings, mosaic banner paintings, as well as the pet portraits...enjoy!

Rainy Inspiration

Back from Yellowstone now...lots of photos of grand scenery and impressive animals and tiny wildflowers...cool, rainy weather, but still most enjoyable...can't wait to line up several paintings at least...my garden continues to overflow with all the recent rain..a most unusual spring here.
Sunday went to the Art Student League Annual Show and Sale..over 250 artists' booths with some great work...also very inspirational...makes me want to really get to work..so much to learn, too! I set a goal to be in a booth with my work in 2010...
The Lakewood Art Council's Garden Show begins today!

Trip to Wyoming

I'm getting excited now, as tomorrow morning I'll be starting a road trip to the Tetons and Yellowstone National Parks with my sister from South Carolina...looking forward to many inspirational ideas...and lots of goof-off time...

Burro's Tails

Colorado looks like Ireland now...I've never seen it so green...there are lots of potential painting ideas in my yard alone! However, these Burro Tail plants seem to grow whether rain or not..and, I'm learning, they create new plants everywhere in my garden! I love them for their hardiness and their texture and green-gray color...lots of fun to paint. This 16 x 20 canvas is my latest!

HOT DOG!...or New Dog, that is...My wonderful animal-loving in-laws have been searching for just the right dog to add to their mountain home...and today they finally found him...as cute and mellow as anyone could ask...with four white paws, his name of Boots really fits! I am sure he will be a willing subject for a few dog portraits in the future!

Getting the hang of this...

OK - this is all much easier than I thought...many thanks to my husband Scott and son Davis for helping me with the "techie" side of things...
the black painted canvas banners are some of my favorites...while I have to sew the hangings themselves, it's rather like taking the time to stretch a number of canvases...not fun, but necessary...I can make a variety of sizes easily. I usually lay in the basics of the overall design element, and let the colors and linework of the background 'mosaics' develop as I paint..these mosaic panels are part of a horizontal series that I completed as a valence across my dining room window...

Getting Started...

A blank window on my computer is as intimidating as a new canvas...yikes! My latest acrylic painting is of the rhubarb in my backyard...I loved the curly leaves and bright red stalks (and the pie I make!) so much that I have completed two paintings of the subject...each 16x20.