"Up, Up & Away!"

"Up, Up & Away!"

8x8 in Oil on Museum Quality Panel

The vibrant landscape in this painting reminds me of an old patchwork quilt. I can just imagine gently floating along taking it all in. : )

Actually, who am I kidding. I would probably be gripping the basket tightly... my knuckles would be white, my knees would be shaking from fear of heights and my face would be green from motion sickness! : o

Have a super GREAT weekend everyone!

"Sitting Pretty"

"Sitting Pretty"

8x8 in Oil on Museum Quality Panel

I love how windows just come to life in the summer. Gracefully wrapped in climbing vines,  with ledges of colorful pots in all different shapes and sizes, overflowing with sweet scented flowers. All we need now is a bistro table and a cool glass of lemonade! : )

"Wild Bouquet"

             

"Wild Bouquet"

8x8 in Oil on Museum Quality Panel

Evie and I took a little road trip to Seattle recently.. we were visiting family and celebrating my grandson Brayden's 2nd birthday. : ) 

I must admit it is hard to stay focused during these beautiful warm days, but I am now back at the easel, coffee mug in hand and the paint is flying!

Hope everyone is having a great summer!

Starry Night

                        "Starry Night"

Well here it is.. our 4 part series of paintings have resulted in a completed masterpiece! 

This was such a fun project and Ms. Evelyn Jayne Brewer is an amazing student! We had a really great time working together and we both learned a lot. I absolutely love children's art and the way they express themselves so freely. Painting with a child is actually a really great way to loosen up your brush strokes and let your imagination go. If you have never tried it I would highly recommend you give it a try! 

This piece with it's rhythmically swirling forms and bold patterns reminds me not only of how a child might view the world, but also how creative our God was when He masterfully placed each star in the sky!

Wishing you all a wonderful week!

If video does not work click here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-iJcn37L6U

P.S. Thank You Evie...I Love You!

Lessons from the Studio Part 3

Lessons in the Studio

So Wednesday was Part 3 of our 4 part Van Gogh painting. Although Evie was painting in her ballerina princess pajamas, she was actually much more awake for this session. 

We turned on some fun music and lit our summer boardwalk candle and painted our little hearts out. Of course Truffles was once again on the scene... Ev made sure she was in style by dressing her up like one of the ballerinas on her pjs.  : )

Today we will finish up the last part of the series and in the next post we will put all the pieces together and share the final masterpiece!

Until next time...Have a GREAT Day!

Lessons in the Studio

Hi Everyone,

So we are on Part 2. of our 4 part series with Evelyn. Today was another successful day at the easel but I would say there were a few more breaks this time. When you are painting with a 10 year old ya gotta mix things up a bit. She showed up ready to paint in her blue hat and feather boa...as you can see the hat stayed but the boa had to go. Feathers and oil paint just don't mix. : )

She also wanted our dog Truffles to enjoy the experience so she brought (er drug) her along.

As you can see, Truffles was super excited to partake of the lesson! She pretty much stayed in this position the entire time. At one point Evie decided to join her under the desk to "take a rest" for a minute. Towards the end of the lesson she disappeared into the bathroom and returned with red make-up around her eyes and green on her face stating she didn't feel good. Hmmm...I wonder how the next session will go!

Will our painting ever be completed? 

We shall see...

Lessons in the Studio...

Yep, it's officially Summer Break! My daughter Evelyn and I decided that this summer would be a fun filled ART ADVENTURE...

We are kicking things of with a 4 part series of paintings which I will be posting on the blog as we go until we complete the final masterpiece. As you may have already guessed from the photo this will be a reproduction of Evelyn's all time favorite painting from the Van Gogh book she has carried around with her since she was a toddler!

This was her first time using oil paints and she really had a good time. We even broke out the pallet knife!!

Aside from our time in the studio, we will be packing our cameras and hitting the road to take lots of photos for upcoming paintings throughout the summer. The plan will be to create a collection which will be displayed at the end of the summer.

We will keep you posted as our adventure unfolds! : )