Girls Just Wanna Paint Monthly Challenge

"Anxiety" 

6x6 Watercolor

This month the Girls Just Wanna Paint topic was "Anxiety" which made me sort of anxious. 

I came through, though, with this watercolor. The blue green background is the calm and the "static" in the lower part of the painting is the anxiety.

Actually, anxiety is static.

Provincetown Art Association Silent Auction Online

The Red Dory

12"x12"

SOLD

This is my entry for the Provincetown Art Association's annual 12x12 silent auction Fundraiser.

This year, the bidding is online!

Click on This Link to see the Auction Home Page and follow the directions to view the paintings and bid.

Tools - Girls Just Wanna Paint Challenge

"Painter's Tools"

6x6 oil on canvas panel
SOLD

The Girls Just Wanna Paint subject was tools.

I've arranged my "tools", including a tube of paint, several brushes, palette knife and my turps cups, on a backdrop and played with the color. I almost did not include the lettering on the tube but felt it was necessary.

It's been quite a while since I set up a still life of this nature and I really enjoyed it.

Look for other paintings in this series and check out the GJWP here.

My block in

Fog

Cape Blomidon 

8x8 WC on Arches Cold Press

A little peek of a fair weather sky over Blomidon which is shrouded in fog. The mist actually rolls down the sides of its cliffs like whipped cream on an ice cream sundae.

This is our July Girls Just Wanna Paint challenge. Our 6th year anniversary!

Cheers to all of our GJWP artists past and present! 

Gallery Opening!

6x6 oil on board

I've been most fortunate to have been invited to join Homegrown Arts and Crafts a new gallery opening in Duxbury on St. George Street right across from Far Far's ice cream shop.

Lisa Mackin is the owner and an artist in her own right doing fabulous "baked" bead jewelry and intricate scratch board drawings. She has an eclectic mix of arts and crafts including jewelry, paintings, prints, photos, fabric, sculpture and glass. Lisa has the 'touch' as I call it for display and presentation. I think her fabulously decorated little shop will be a one stop gift destination when people begin to hear about it. May I say that the pricing is extremely affordable? I have some prints there as well as a selection of my small paintings such as this little 6x6 of 'The Gem' (again, a commission). Check out the opening this Sunday all day.

In Transition

Abba and Wolfie looking skeptical

Just so you all know, I didn't just hang it up after getting a record amount of comments on this last painting. I spent last week getting ready for the trip North which takes a lot out of me. I'm not a good transition-er.  Each year I swear I'm not going to take too much stuff to Naples...yeah....right. We left Friday morning, spent two days on the road and arrived home Sunday afternoon. Initially the girls were a bit anxious. I never saw cats pant before so I released them from their cages and that calmed them some. All those big trucks going by was a new experience for them. It was a good trip and we're home and it's Spring!!

Duxbury Gallery at Nine Standish

Bennett's General Store 8x8 oil

I made a cold call on Duxbury Gallery to see if they might want to show some paintings I've done of the local scenes and was pleasantly surprised when they accepted. Check out their website at to see some work from some of my painter friends who are also represented there. 
This painting is of Bennett's General Store with their iconic Jeep which serves as the advertising for the store. In the summer the Jeep's convertible roof is off and in the winter the cap is on. More local scenes to come.

Miss Cape Neddick

Thank You, Jamey!!!

I had so many visitors who came from distances to see me including Miss Cape Neddick who didn't sign my book. You know who you are so email me please. We didn't get to chat long enough. Also, dear Katie McElwain and two of her three beautiful daughters including the newest addition, five month old Deidre came down from Ipswich. 

My special 'collectors' showed up early and I had great sales through out. The highlight of this was that my brother Jamey, who makes fabulous pochade boxes pictured below, installed a rail system to hold my small paintings so they could be viewed all together. Slam bangin' fabulous!!!! 
Thank you everyone who attended and thanks to my fellow artists for their superb presentation in cleaning, decorating and creating signage in our building. A big thanks to all the volunteers who acted as 'tour guides'. You were a big help.

9x12 Pochade boxes. Lightweight. $150 email me at WENDL15@verizon.net

Katie May holding Deidre and Claire (future author)

Back on the Horse

I needed this week to catch up with myself after an intense Labor Day weekend that segued right into my Carol Marine workshop. Here are some photos of one of the first exercises Carol gave us which was to map out the values to include a dominant value, a secondary value and a 'smidge'.  Carol has an uncanny eye for the subtle grayed color/temperature changes that move into the shadows. Her workshop is just packed with information and I've never met anyone who gives more of herself to her students. This girl is a powerhouse!! I didn't get this kind of instruction in Art School. Really.
Forgive my indulgence in posting this photo of my sweet little boys who are growing up too fast. I enjoy them SO much!!!

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!

Jelly Stack

Click to Bid

These were so much fun to paint that I had another go at them. When I set up a still life I think about the colors I'll use and then choose a background of complimentary colors to create color vibration. This time I put the donuts on an orange plate I got at Job Lot and used the green tissue paper to set off the orange. That way I can use lots of funky colors like lavenders and violets in the donuts and they still look real. At least they do, to me ;)

Kelley's Jellies

Click to Bid

 Yesterday I called Kelley, the Queen of jellies and asked her if I could paint jelly donuts and she said, "of course you can, I don't own jellies." But she is kind of famous for her paintings of donuts. Anyway, these are GLAZED jellies from a local shop called The Coffee Shack and believe me when I tell you they put the Giant Donut chain's mass produced product (which used to be great) to shame. When Kelley came to stay in my neighborhood a few weeks back I steered her towards this place and she hasn't looked back. These are to die for. Seriously.

The Perils of WIP

I'm going out on a limb here by posting the finish to this painting. I got wonderful comments on it but didn't feel that it was complete. I also had my hubby check it out because he is really the typical viewer, not an artist. What I ask him is, "does anything bother your eye?" If I disagree, I don't change it, but often he is able to point out something that doesn't read clearly. So, love it or hate it, this is it. I will add that this is one of the few times I've taken a painting further and did not feel that I wrecked it.

Palmettos

SOLD

 The plan today was to go out to the Everglades and paint with another artist/blogger but, it's raining so we bagged it and will try for another day. Last night, in anticipation, I decided to paint some palm trees just for practice.  I kept my  brushwork really loose combining lessons I've learned from Carol Marine and Colin Page. Two of the BEST whose edges and brushwork make their paintings exciting no matter what the subject.

Virtual Martini

In my usual fashion, I was late for the "virtual" cocktail party that my friend Kelley held over at her blog. No matter, I'm publishing my drink here. Last night I cooked a corned beef dinner for my hubby's cousin and her artist husband. Despite my misgivings about my circa 1987 electric stove, I managed to regulate the burner so as not to boil the thing to death. It was excellent and we had a great time. He is a watercolor artist so he and I just yammer on about art while his wife and my husband yammer on about their family history. It works quite well.

Cozy Up

The hardest part of this painting was the rim of the clear glass plate. In reality it is a bright and very distinct hard line. I had to balance it with value and break it up so it didn't dominate the painting.  Today was a beautiful rainy day. Monsoon like. I spent the day in the studio and later this evening I picked up my Sister and my Mama on the way to a family party at my niece's house, where we turned on the festival lighting aka Christmas Lights :D and had a great time!

The Escape

Click to bid

Often, when I create the setup I look at it and imagine a scenario and a 'tongue in cheek' title to go with it. Thus, in this one all the onions are those little flat cippolini ones except that white one in front which feels like he should get the heck out of there before they all figure out that he doesn't belong to the tribe. This and painting keeps me out of trouble;)

Blast Off

We're off very early this morning for our annual trek to Naples, Florida where today it will be 41 degrees. You heard me correctly. The deep South is gripped in an Arctic blast that has resulted in SNOW in Orlando. Again, you heard me correctly. SO, it will take us a couple of days with one stop in Virginia and another in Georgia. Should be pulling into Naples sometime Monday and I won't be able to paint for a bit so I am putting up a few links I've collected in my travels through the Blogosphere for your enjoyment.

http://moniquestraub.blogspot.com/  beautiful pastels that look like batiks

Kohlene Hendrickson  beautiful abstracts in ochres  

http://wishartglass.blogspot.com fused glass

http://www.centredeverre.com/ Fused Glass Supplies

I would fix all this font craziness but I have to go. 

Imposter

Click to bid

Don't think I'm above using the same painting on two blogs, 'cause I'm not ;)  This was painted for the Girls Just Wanna Paint monthly challenge and will also be posted there along with paintings with a 'telephone' theme done by some of my other 'gal pals'.  We have a lot of fun at the monthly challenge 'meetings'. I had another painting in mind but because I needed good weather to paint it, it didn't happen. Spent the day in my studio and got two today!