Wintery Road

Winter is changing our landscape, just in time for the season's holidays. I wish you all a joyful holiday season with family and friends! 

Night Lights

Night Lights - Pastel 12 x 16

We had a great time painting the "dark" with Christine Danylik Ivers this last weekend. I highly recommend Chris' fun and informative workshops. I completed this night scene from the French town of Puy L'Evêque (image courtesy of Chris).

Lavender and Broom

Lavender and Broom - Pastel 5 x 7
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Can't seem to be able to stop painting scenes from Provence, but fall is upon us in New England and the autumn colors beckon. Time to switch to another color palette....

Provençal Dining

Provençal Dining

Pastel 11 x 14

Outdoor dining in Provence is a favorite summer pastime. This small restaurant in the village square was just perfect after a day of painting and touring: magical setting, great food and wine, light breeze and no bugs!

Romantic Moment in St Rémy

Pastel 11 x 14

Very happy that my painting "Romantic Moment in St Rémy" was accepted into the Pastel Society of NH's National Juried Exhibit. Thank you to the Juror of Selection Kim Lordier. 

The opening reception is on Oct. 23rd and the show runs from Oct. 21 - Nov. 25th at the Discover Portsmouth Center, Portsmouth, NH. Mark your calendars to see a great show!

Lonely Stroll in St Rémy

Lonely Stroll in St Rémy

Pastel 11 x 14

There is something magical about the evening lights and old buildings in the medieval towns of Provence. This alleyway in St Rémy was empty on a quiet summer night. I thought that adding a lone figure in the painting would help the scene.

In the Garden

In the Garden - Pastel 8 x 10
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A plein air piece done in a friend's beautiful garden.

Lavender Miniatures

Lavender miniatures - pastels 
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Started with the idea of a bigger lavender painting but ended up with miniatures, a format I particularly enjoy: small space, little time, less fuss!

Poppies and Wheat

Poppies and Wheat. Pastel 11 x 14 - 
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A favorite French subject to paint.

The Last Poppies

The Last Poppies - Pastel 8 x 10
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Same spot in the lavender fields of Grignan, different view. Very few poppies were left due to the early heat wave.

Lavender Fields

Lavender Fields - Pastel 8 x 10
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For the last few years, I have had the pleasure of organizing painting trips to Provence with artist friends and students. I look forward to these trips every summer and this year was no exception as a small group of us headed to the beautiful Drôme Provençale.  

The lavender was in full bloom a couple of weeks early, a sure sign of climate warming, but always a real treat for visitors and painters. This scene is from the lavender fields of Grignan. 

Clamming Party

Clamming Party - Pastel 8 x 10 - Sold

More fun as a group....

Thinking of a Few More...

Thinking of a Few More...Pastel 8 x 10
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There are rules about clam digging. Clams can be dug by hand or hand-operated fork, pick, rake or shovel. Each digger must use a separate container. Clam holes must be refilled and undersized clams pushed back into the refilled hole. When do clammers decide that their baskets are full enough? When they have reached the legal weight limit or when they can't carry anymore?  The temptation is always to get a few more...

Thank you to the Yarmouth Gallery for selling this painting.

Teaming up...

"Teaming up..." - Pastel 8 x 10
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Father and son, maybe?

Clam Basket Full!

Clam Basket Full! - Pastel 8 x 10

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From Maine to Cape Cod, clam diggers are hard at work harvesting the flats to satisfy the appetite of shellfish lovers. Clams are celebrated in summer festivals, among them the Yarmouth Clam Festival, a 3-day summertime tradition which takes place every July in Yarmouth, ME and the Cape Cod Chowder festival in Hyannis, MA.

Shows

I am participating in 3 shows in May and June, and I hope you will be able to join me at one or all of the following to share a fun social time while viewing great art from wonderful New England artists.

• Pastel Society of NH Annual Members Exhibit, May 20-June 11, at the Sunapee Landing Trading Co. in Sunapee, NH. Reception: Saturday, May 20th, 2017 from 5:00PM-7:00PM.
• Nature's Delights at the Wild Salamander Creative Arts Center in Hollis, NH, June 2-24, 2017. Reception, Friday 2 June, 6:00-8:00PM
• Rise and Fall of Light at the Yarmouth Gallery, Yarmouth, ME. Reception June 3, 4:00-7:00PM. More details to come.

Tulips Demo

Mini Workshop at PSNH - Tulips Demo

Both Lisa Regopoulos and I were invited to do a hands-on mini workshop at last Saturday's PSNH Members Meeting. Participants spent approximately a 1/2 hour with each of us. They watched us prep our painting surface for about 15 minutes and then created their own small paintings in the remaining 15 minutes. While Lisa was showing the process of creating a painting substrate with acrylic and pumice, I had great fun pushing watercolor around with piping insulation on UArt paper before applying the pastel. We all had a great time and had no choice but paint fast and loose....

River of Blue Tulips

River of Blue Tulips

Pastel 8 x 10 - Sold

Blue tulips are fairly rare and the best place to see them is at the Keukenhof Gardens in the Netherlands when they are in full bloom in April. This display, which looked like a meandering river, was only a sample of the 7 million bulbs that are planted by hand every year in this most spectacular place!

Today's Gift

Today's Gift - Pastel 10 x 10

The gift that keeps on giving! These did not come from the Easter Bunny but from a friend who raises chickens. So lucky to have my own providers of fresh eggs.  This batch was delivered in this produce basket and was actually wrapped in a yellow bow! 

Happy Easter and Spring!

Blue Bungalow

Blue Bungalow

Pastel 8 x 10

A much needed post after all the snow that hit New England this week!

Painting the local color while in Grand Bahama a couple of weeks ago. It was fun to watch the morning shadows move across the walls of this blue bungalow next door to our rented yellow one. A great week of sunshine and painting with friends Bobbi Heath and Carol Douglas!

Cottonwoods in Zion

Cottonwoods in Zion

Pastel 4.5" x 5.5"

Very excited that my miniature painting "Cottonwoods in Zion" received an "Honorable Mention" award from the Connecticut Pastel Society this week end. Thank you to juror David Kaphammer for the honor!

Art and Flowers

Art and Flowers

It was a fun week-end at the Tower Hill Winter in Bloom event, where floral designers were tasked to interpret selected paintings from local artists. It was great to be in the good company of artists Maryann Mullett, Pam Short and Barry Van Dusen, just to name a few.

Thank you to floral designer Anne Berndtson for her lovely arrangement of my Alliums painting. Her interpretation title is "Transitions".

Here is her Statement of Intent: This arrangement focuses on a few elements to capture the painting's atmospheric yellow and the almost imperceptible shift into a shadier green side of the garden. The yellow vase filled with yellow Mimosa and Eucalyptus seeds echoes the canvas background. Purple flowers stand tall with green fronds and pink Genista trailing over the vase like the shadow on the flowers. Dark purple and green Trachelium hint of the background. 

Road Master - Pastel 8 x 10
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Another bird with attitude from Key West!

Treading Lightly

Treading Lightly - Pastel 8 x 8
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Still on a roll to paint birds with attitude. Maine seagulls are scavenger birds that will eat your lunch at the beach if you are not careful...

View from the Pier

View from the Pier

Pastel 8 x 10

A Great White Heron enjoying the aqua waters from the pier in Key West. The great white herons are considered a color variation or “morph” of a subspecies of great blue herons found in southern Florida and the Florida Keys.

Watch your Back!

Watch your Back!

Pastel 8 x 10
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Couldn't wait to play with my newly acquired Terry Ludwig "Best Blues" and "Stunning Yellows" and chose to try them on the most ubiquitous and most photographed inhabitants of Key West: roosters. These multicolored, strutting wild creatures are seen all over town and always provide free entertainment during my visits there! 

Happy New Year!

A magical New Year's Eve evening at the Boothbay Botanical Gardens in Maine. 

Wishing all my wonderful friends, students and supporters of my art, a very happy new year filled with joy, good health, art and peace! Looking forward to spending more time with you all in 2017.