light through the pail - 12" square

I loved the way the light showed the shadows of the poles through the pail.

volunteers at Blythwold - 14x11"

Not the greatest photo ever but it is quite dark today and so windy outside I didn't chance a photo out there. Blythwold (I'm not sure I spelled it correctly) is an estate in Bristol RI that has wonderful gardens and grounds - the building is cool as well and rents out for weddings and the like. They also have a bamboo forest that is about 80 years old - bamboo takes 100 years to flower.

friends - 12" square

The challenge of inserting two solid bodies into water believeably while retaining the sense of light was my goal in this painting.

renovation update

I wasn't going to post another photo of this until it was done but I had received a couple of comments so I decided to do an update. First, my son asked me why the figure was "floating" and then my landlord told me that he "felt like climbing the walls too." It's funny but the lack of the ladder had not bothered me a bit because I could sort of see it in my vision of where I was going with this.......mistakes or problems scream out to me but unfinished areas are mentally corrected.

horseneck bright - 12x9"

I was pretty much the only one at the Monday plein air group this morning at Horseneck Beach........must be a sign of the approaching season. I had really wanted to get the brightness of the morning sun on the water and I was pretty successful this time. I was freezing by the time I left (noon-ish) despite the bright sun. Another painter showed up late and we pretty much huddled behind one of the buildings to block the wind.

very complicated 20x16"

There are about a zillion things going on with this beginning - the warm/cool transitions and the various levels of depth are quite challenging and may take a bit of time. It is always hard to paint architecture and remain loose. The scene is a spot on a bright sunny day in Newport, RI - the streets are really narrow and the buildings on the opposite side of the street cast this neat shadow. I wiped down the plein air I did that day!

figure study

This is obviously unfinished (and won't be) but I liked elements of it so I thought I would post it. I spend Wednesday mornings at the Westport Art Group life session and, most of the time, wipe off what I have done. I have had a similar approach to plein air work this summer..............the sense that I am figuring something specific out rather than attempting to complete a finished/stand-alone painting. Sometimes a finished, frameable painting results but that hasn't been my goal. Monday I spent several hours painting at Fogland Beach and then wiped it all down - what I was attempting to do was not compatible with a compositional goal so I collected the knowledge and called it quits so I could return to the studio.

golden light - 12" square

I have been trying to achieve the warm shimmer that is so evident on warm, hazy, sparkly days at the shore. I tend to study (and wipe down) a lot when I am at the beach. Some of the lessons seem to be taking and I can translate the learning when I get back to the studio.

seagull day - 12x9"

I went to Horseneck Beach early yesterday and saw an amazing sight - baby seagulls. Funny, since I was just finishing the "seagull stealing a bag" painting. I don't believe I have ever seen a baby seagull before. I am showing a photo of the flock of babies being guarded by two older seagulls because I thought the sight was incredibly neat.

flowered suit - 12" square

Boy, did I have fun with this one. I am truly enjoying creating grays and this painting is almost completely gray. I keep trying to paint outside but everytime I go out it is either way  too windy (I hate it when the canvas vibrates) or it starts pouring. I am shooting for a full outdoor day tomorrow.

surfers part 2 - 18x24"

I am done with this for the most part - I will have to sharpen up in some places since it is so wet the details kind of soaked in. I am enjoying working larger again and plan on focusing more on larger pictures.