alley light - 20x16"

I am quite close to finishing this one.......Just a note here, I have cataract surgery in 6 days. I am unsure what to expect for the next week or so following the surgery so I am don't know if I will be able to paint. I'm pretty excited about getting it done because my vision has been worsening steadily since last fall. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it goes well.

last day of the month (and a new patio)

Wow.......January went super fast! My son was here again for over a week to build me a large (20'x16') herringbone brick patio. He did the real work but I helped him for a week so I didn't really paint that much while we were doing that. I'll probably post a photo of it at some point - once I have decided on what I'm putting on it. I am close to finishing this painting and have been out plein air painting a few times with mediocre results.

This is an example of one of the outdoor paintings I started..............the chain link fence and the changing light conspired to ensure that it wouldn't be finished. Trust me, don't try to paint through a fence like this if you are having cataract surgery in a month or so........it will give you a major headache!

little shack in the moss - plein air study - 14x11"

 

 I am determined to learn how to paint the complexity of the Lowcountry woods.........they are completely different than New England's. The foliage seems to twine together more complexly and there are many spots where light shines through in very diffuse ways.........to top it all off, spanish moss hangs from most limbs and creates its own pattern over everything else. Today, the woods (right at the edge of a tidal stream) were everything all at once - warm and cool, dim and bright. For some reason I decided to save and post this one.

New Orleans Doorway - 12" square

I really loved New Orleans...............this bar was open early Sunday morning in the French Quarter and the streets were sort of crowded for mid November. I am definitely going back for a few days just to paint.

a couple of things

 

 

I had to put the house painting aside for a little bit since I got a little stuck. Since I didn't want to get going on something big I started the little girl in the yellow life vest. I was hoping to finish the little girl today but I am running out of light and might not accomplish that. I have a very long dental appointment tomorrow (the entire day!) and even though the dentist told me I wouldn't be in much pain afterwards I am not quite trusting that will be the case.

southern green - 16x12"

For some reason I was really in the mood to paint greens - this one certainly has just about every variety!

House on Carteret - 14x11"

I spent two mornings on site with this one and still have a couple of things to do. I am thrilled because I figured out what was wrong with the computer (at least I figured out how to ask the right questions when I called the geek squad). There was something wrong with the keyboard so I replaced that and the mouse and now everything is working just fine! Beaufort has a number of these huge homes along the intra-coastal waterway and in the old section of town.........the homes are quite amazing.

fish camp and pyramid

I had to stop doing the final touches on the "fish camp" picture because the darker colors were bleeding through.........so, I began roughing out the figure painting of the three kids at the beach. After days of the local weather reports plugging tropical storm Beryl, we are at last getting an abundant amount of rain. I should have gone painting outside yesterday but stayed in due to the forecast and wished I hadn't paid attention. Today, I marinated steak for the grill because I doubted that the storm would materialize and now I must cook in a downpour. So be it.

the fish camp - step 1 - 14x11"

I just started this picture but haven't posted for a bit so I thought I should get something up soon since I get to go back to the dentist on Wednesday again......joy. We are going to get a tropical storm for the next couple of days so there won't be any painting outside. I went to Hunting Island this morning to check it out and it was so windy I couldn't even sketch. It was amazing and I always feel so good being out there.

spring light completed - 12x9"

Finished - the perspective of this house is quite challenging from this view........I drive by the house all the time since I live at the bottom of a steep hill.

sunset on the beach house - 10" square

I almost lost this one to the wind while trying to take a photo.........it seems like nearly gale force winds out there.

bristol porch - 12" square

This was quite difficult and I am glad it is done! Our next show at Gallery Eleven Fine Art is: "This is Bristol," so I figured I had better do some actual paintings of Bristol. I have been hoping it would be warm enough to paint outside during my shifts at the gallery but we are certainly not there yet.

just a start - 12" square

I have wiped this down a couple of times but am determined to get it right.....with architecture, it can be difficult to strike a balance between the linear and the shapes. Lots of starightening and merging left to do. The color palette is  nearly completely dependent on warm/cool transitions so it is a bit difficult.

the last snow pile - 20x16"

I finished this one for the most part......I am shocked that I did since I had to go to the dentist and that usually disables me with stress. It is beautiful outside and I think I might go out to paint tomorrow!