Work in Progress

Work in Progress

24x24

I don't like to post WIPs but I will take a chance here and give you a sneak peek of my large paintings.
I've mentioned that I will be showing my work at Bella's Italian Restaurant beginning in November and through the first of the year. Because the space needs larger paintings, I committed to working much larger than I'm used to and let me just say that from 6"x6" to 24"x24" is a jump.

Here are a sequence of photos of my process in enlarging a small painting. My process is to grid a printout of the original painting and draw it onto newsprint. I then chalk the back, along the lines of the drawing and transfer it to the toned board. I'm using Ampersand unprimed hardboard which has a 2" cradle to eliminate the need for framing, although the buyer can always add a frame. I give it three coats of gesso, sanding lightly between coats and tone it with an underpainting that will enhance the color harmony of the final painting. There is a lot of blue in this painting so I chose an orange ground. 
For those of you who've emailed me about taking my Painting from Photos workshop, I will be scheduling it for after Open Studios which is November 22 & 23 from noon to 5 PM,the weekend before Thanksgiving. 

Also, this weekend is The Hingham Arts Walk featuring my GJWP homies. Please stop by and visit Kelley MacDonald, Paula Villanova and of course Page at the studio of Page Pearson Railsback, at 35 North Street from 12-4 on Sunday, October 19th.

drawing

traced onto board

You Gotta Have Friends

"You Gotta Have Friend's"

6x6 oil on panel
Click to Buy

What's not to love about bright orange Gerbera's,  which were a little token of my affection for my partner in crime, Kelley MacDonald. We spent a wonderful day together, having lunch at the very cool Providence Art Club and then we painted the daisies, and then we had a pizza party on Kelley's riverside porch with a view to rival any! It was awesome and I'm thrilled to be home in New England!

Dunkin' Munchkins

Dunkin' Munchkins 

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This painting is a commission done from a similar painting, for a pair of sisters. I don't know who's going to end up with it but they are both DD fans. I admit I was hindered some (mentally) by having already done this same painting, but I set up my still life anyway and did it again. Hope I captured the same feeling that drew them to it. 
Speaking of donuts, my dear girl Kelley has been down for the count with the flu and has not been able to lift her head to paint anything. But, check out her donut wars with the West Coast jelly slinger Susan Roden. 

Stacked Jelly

6x6 oil on RayMar panel  $100 plus $10 S&H (click to buy)

Kelly and Susan are usually slamming each other with jelly on Donut Mondays but today Kelley did a beautiful rainbow sprinkle number while Susan painted a fabulous chocolate frosted on a nifty patterned plate. I just ripped a jelly in half and stacked one piece on top of the other and then stuck a munchkin in there just for fun. I have a plethora of reds and was able to get these glorious glowing tones in my jelly using Thalo Red Rose, Quinacridone Red and Quinacridone Magenta mixed with Cad Yellow Med for that hot orange. I like to sneak up on the donut girls, unexpectedly. Guerrilla Donut Wars, you might say.

Honey 'Dew' List

$125 plus $10 S&H click to buy

 So, Susan Roden and Kelley MacDonald are locked into their donut wars but I have snuck up on them showcasing yet another local donut franchise. The little donut holes are called Dew Drops at this place ;)

That's why I called it the "honey dew list". Clever eh?

Also, as soon as blogger works out the bugs in their new template, I'm going to switch from my favorite black background so that I won't have to use pastel colors for readability. It looks good on the blog but when it goes out in email it's on a white background and difficult if not impossible to read. Click on the buy link to purchase.

Munchkins

 "Munchkin Trio" 6x6 

A friend of mine asked me if I painted donuts and of 
course I do. I've been dying to jump into the donut wars between Kelley MacDonald and Susan Roden so I ran out and bought these Munchkins to go with my hoarded DD coffee cup. The lettering gave me fits but the whole thing was great fun to paint!  When I came home last night one munchkin was missing from the setup.  Did one of the girls eat it? I couldn't find any evidence :? Click on the buy link below the painting to purchase.

Nantasket Beach Sunset

8x8 oil on Gator Board with Black Wood Frame 

 Last week I was invited to paint and dine with a gracious friend who has a seaside condo with a sunset view. SO BEAUTIFUL. Pam is an interior designer so you know her home is 'done up'. We arrived in time to have some wine and munchies and chat but soon set up to catch (and I do mean catch) the sun setting. I was only able to get in a few color notes before the show was over but I had photos and have finished it from those. I will take another crack at this in a larger format now that I've gotten the composition and some color harmony worked out because I think I could loosen it up just a bit. To the left is the main boulevard with the lights of passing cars and street lights. Pam served us some fabulous food and we had a great night laughing and talking all things art.

Provincetown Hydrangeas

 I've been AWOL from my blog due to the move back from Provincetown and the re-entry if you will. I had a fabulous week at my shed on the Pier, though I was somewhat chagrined to find out that people would rather buy (imported) shell Christmas ornaments than real art. 

My Shed mate Eileen Counihan and I got along famously because we have the same (snarky) sense of humor about cheap goods from China among other things. She is doing something special with her wonderful night sky photos of "Starry, Starry Nights" so check them out at A Gallery in Provincetown if you're there.

Paula (click to see her paintings)

Wednesday, I went on the annual 'Jeep' trip with my fellow painter girlfriends to.....drum roll..... Provincetown. Yep, I can't get enough of this unique and beautiful place and the weather was perfect. We set up on the street and at one point Paula had to move the leg of her easel to let a car out of a driveway. Tight quarters there. I set up in front of a garden that I admire and photograph every summer but have never painted. This is the result. It was a perfect summer day! 

Cathedral Rock Study

What? I haven't posted this study yet? Where the heck have I been? Never mind. 

This study of Cathedral Rock was also done at sunset from our balcony at the Hyatt. 

I promise to replace this glare-y photo with a better one tomorrow. 

At Gisele's French Bakery in Jerome with a friend ;)

Sedona Studies

Sedona was such an adventure. We ate out and painted and laughed so much! Especially when Kelley's brand new easel box and tripod almost blew over a ledge into Oak Creek in a gale force wind gust. Not funny but funny if you know what I mean, and it did have a happy ending.  On Wednesday we drove up to Jerome to check out the incredible old car/truck graveyard at the Gold King Mine. Carol soldiered on despite the overcast light and painted trucks while Kelley and I poked around the galleries and the shops in Jerome. There was so much to see and too much to paint but I did some studies of the fantastic rocks 
from the balcony of our fabulous condo at the Hyatt Pinion Point. We had a 180* view of the rocks. Wow! I'm posting them one at a time along with some photos from the trip.

Old Trucks in Jerome

Purple Door

 SOLD

This painting was done for a buyer who saw the original posted on September 30, 2010. The door belongs to my good friend and fellow painter, the doyenne of the art scene and founder of Girls Just Wanna Paint.....Kelley MacDonald!

Zippo

 

I'm catching up with myself. Yesterday was a painting marathon and I have a few finished pieces and one that needs a tweak. This one is the current 'challenge' on Daily Paintworks.  All of the paintings are for sale there as well as here ;)

Duxbury Dunes

 

I love the Winter landscape and like to drive over the beach road through the dunes which connect Duxbury and Marshfield. In the late afternoon the sun is just right for painting. The beach road is also an adventurous shortcut to the Village where I dropped some paintings over at the Duxbury Gallery today. There are works by all my famous artist friends there like Roz Farbush, Nancy Colella, Margaret McWethy, Jeannie MacFarland and Christine Bodnar to name but a few. I also noticed some fabulous Christmas ornaments with a local flair while I was browsing today. They also feature beautiful stationary, cards, photographs and gifts. Be sure to check it out.

Carol Marine Workshop

Next week I'm attending my second Carol Marine workshop hosted by Kelley MacDonald in her Warren, Rhode Island Studio. The dates are September 8-10. Carol has blogged her way to success with over one thousand and counting, daily paintings most of which are snatched up on eBay. It seems that there is one slot left if anyone would like to come. I highly recommend it.
You may have noticed that I'm slacking a bit on the paintings and it's true. I've been busy with summer fun but I have been doing a couple of 16x20 studio paintings of Cape scenes which I'll reveal soon. Don't forget to check out Fresh Paint Daily Painters where I am one of the featured artists. They've added some new artists and they rock!