April brings the early shades of green!

The spring brings us from the grays of winter, to the mauves and red and bright greens of spring. When you ask someone what color are the trees, they automatically say "green"...But looking again, green is only a part of it. Learning to vary the greens is most important when painting nature. Other wise you will have a flat, obnoxious painting. So often people use Viridian, and leave it at that. Viridian is a color to be used very carefully. It can over whelm your work and make it muddy with out being mud. You also have to commit to it, because i find it to be a "staining" color. Not one to lift well. Though, add a little red to the color, and it tones down nicely, sometimes it will work as a good color of shadow.
In class i used some photos of cactus's in various shades of ...green.

sso here is a little rendition of my shades of greens.A little yellow, blue and reds will always dominate the true colors. being the primary, so to alter the secondary colors, it only takes sense to give them a "push!"

I will be open mostly through-out 

The Stratham Fair!

The Fair grounds surround my home and my studio, so i will have at it!

A few to View.

We will see you at "Art at the Bartlett Mall"

Old Home Days in Newburyport Mass.

July 26 & 27 , 2014

SPRING!

water colors in bloom

The Pond Watcher

Portsmouth Waterfront

Peoni

Start Island

My Studio

warm autumn

Family reunion

where did the time go?

The Market at Rolling Green Nursery was a great time!

There are a few more before the season dwindles down...so pay attention!~!

ALSO, looking for a few new students to complete the "circle" in the studio. 

CLASSES are geared to all levels. Everybody has there strength and these strengths enable us to learn from each other.  

EVEN IF YOU CAN NOT DRAW A STRAIGHT LINE!!!!

Here are a pile of rocks, the piece above, you wet the paper randomly,

drop in colors loosely, and as it dries, you can define some of the more interesting rocks.

I will post the completed piece soon!

We had a great ARTISANS MARKET last weekend, at the Rolling Green Nursery in Greenland NH

www.rollinggreennursery.com

And, I behaved so well, I was invited back for the FARMERS MARKET

So, on that note, after shoveling and scraping, and scurrying like mice...we get it all done and continue on with the original plan!~

Portsmouth waterfront, is finished and framed!

Inside Barkers Farm, completed

language of the sea,

finished, not framed yet

My mermaid in the pond,,,,

where is this one any way?

Rye Harbour,

is this one done?  Not sure!

My pond lilies, close to being completed

Plus many more paintings, and note cards, and I cant wait to see what the Farners Bring!

Walking through the winter chill!

So many things to paint,

so many paintings started

and so many reasons to paint,

where to start~what to do!?

Getting ready for the farmers market at

Rolling Green Nursery

Feb 8 & 9

Saturday and Sunday

10:00 ~ 3:00

1~ my waterlily

2 ~ Still in process,

"Portsmouth Waterfront"

3 ~ My studio

Victoria Inn, Hampton NH

Ill be adding more as I go along.

Any requests?

How to find some inspiration!

Early winter, i sometimes struggle, trying to find some inspiration...Not wanting to go outside and tackle the elements, at this time...I start to paw through the thousands of pictures I take for a day such as this!   Below, BUTTONS, from an antique store, on the back roads of MAINE.

I could paint buttons, antique buttons, textures, colors, groupings, singles...what a story these buttons could tell!  But, being as they are...buttons can not speak...so its my job to speak for them!  Be listening....i hear them calling me...

Then, whats this....well, long after the summer flowers had gone to rest, i had some crazy california poppies, begging to be picked, and have there pictures taken...

I didn't want to disappoint. 

They were kind enough to allow the light to dance among their feathery petals,

so kind, that i may capture them...for eternity!

 The poppies also found a rewarding place on a window sill in my living room. My favorite time of the day is when the light comes streaming in through the panes of leaded glass.  Its almost as if they are say hello to the few remaining poppies, scattered through out the fallen leaves....

 This Caladium has captured an entire universe, right in the palm of this beautiful leave,
A universe of light and reflections, so minute, that only Dr Seuss would appreciate the goings on!
How i wish i could be absorbed by that little drop of water! BE FREE!

Morning light

a harbor waits

 tales of open sea

 gulls begin 

a day ahead

salt water sloshing

 docks, creaking

a distant bell, rythum waves

surrounding

  the pulsing 

 foghorn

breathing deep

 ocean air

fill the soul 

 deep 

ingrained

closed eyes

morning light

this was mine 

this is mine

and maybe

tomorrow

Salty lips

as rest

The Most beautiful park in my world

CENTRAL PARK NYNY

Somewhere, over the rainbow, this you will find

a friend, a song, a summer breeze

and the lust of a fading time

Who can't be inspired by this cotton ball cloud,,,Would you rather paint it,

or JUMP in it?

 The last piece of inspiration?   My Antique peonies, in yes. a blurry picture!  But enough to capture
my heart and the desire to paint these luscious beauties!  These have it all, style, fragrance and command!

Thank you for joining me in an inspiration activity.  Because i always have at least one camera with me, i will never be without the beautiful things i see, each and every day...

LIFE, no matter how hard, how tired, how sad how sick...there is never enough time, to drink it all in!

HAPPY NEW YEAR! 

2014

Waking up under a crisp clean coat of snow...

Who's to enjoy it any more? You have to shovel your way to your car, then spend 10 minutes trying to get into your car, (where you last saw your scraper, and gloves?)....You finally get in the car and you go to start it, let it warm up a bit while your cleaning it off. but when you opened the door, you neglected to wipe the seat where the loose powder falls. So you sit in the seat as it slowly sinks in, Start the car, and carefully open the door, to avoid that same powder dancing down the back of your neck...the one place i feel most vulnerable on this type of day.

You scrape diligently, only to have a wiper free up and get you yet again, but this time you've been sprayed in the face with a snowballs worth of powder!

Back in the car to shut off the wipers, by now, who cares whats on the seat, down your neck or in your face!  You just want to BE DONE WITH IT!!

Just a sample, this morning...had to be to work for 5 am, so eventually, that was the easy part of the day...Tried to get out for 10, to get home to my "open studio" Only to have the same fun, in the parking lot, trying to escape!

I sit now in my cozy studio, with my elder dog, and at last i can "enjoy" the "clean and serene" that surrounds me.

(And its not even winter yet)!

  

AN hour late, but I am here...

And its all good!  I finished this painting up now on to the next!

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