Hey Friends, The weather was fantastic here in SW Va. today. So I went outside to paint. Plein-Aire its called. Haven't done that for the longest time. And it is TUFF. It's really hard for someone so easily distracted as myself to concentrate outside. The first one above is 10x8.
The second above is 9x12. The spring isn't really those colors but I've not learned how to make brown water look like water yet. I need to do some tiny studies of just the water.
The third is 10x8 also and not nearly as red as this photo. Getting decent photos for the web is way to hard with a camera. I'm used to my scanner but these are oils so I can't scan them yet.
Hey Friends, I finally got this photo from my daughter (the one in the middle). I've been nagging her since Christmas. She had it put on a mug for me. I love it! Look at how much my granbabes have grown!!! Just wanted to share a little of my personal life.
Above is the new gallery I am in now ! It is a co-op gallery and I'm like 1/7th of a member or something like that. I'm really HAPPY about this. Always wanted a gallery in downtown Roanoke. It is right across the street from the new Taubman Museum, so stop in soon!
And the image above is one of about four I painted at the same time. The others are real dogs, this one is the least ugly. I think I'm falling out of love with acrylics. Blending, soft edges are not easy to start with and then add the dry air of 12 degrees and it's frustrating. I also don't like the canvas panels I have right now - too grainy! I prefer to work on gessoed masonite but I can't afford to buy them and it's a Major deal to get the table saw out of the shed to cut my own. Poor Sue, I could whine for hours but it's not really my best talent. 
Hey Friends, A couple weeks ago I posted some photos I took on a short walk down our little country road along Gum Springs. I did finally get around to painting from them. At the time I was painting, the Red Bud trees were in full bloom. That's where the title came from. The little buds have fallen now and the little green leaves are emerging. In the photo below it is hard to visulize all the shades of green and the glow from a Bazillion Red Buds when the sun is setting. Just trust me - That's what it looks like
I painted another from the same area that I will post later. I only have 2 shows scheduled for this year, thus far. And it's a darn good thing 'cuz I'm not sure I'll be ready for these. The first is in a couple weeks and the second is the end of May. Boy, I better get with it.
Hey Friends, Today I took a short walk or a stroll just to be outside. I live in Salem, Va. next to a tiny stream of water called Gum Springs. This little spring is dry most of the year. When we are lucky enough to get rain, usually the spring, I love to walk around the area just to look at the water. The photo above is directly at the bottom of our gravel, muddy driveway. Pretty small at this point. In a couple of months the area to the left will be covered in day lillys. In another 2 weeks or so, there will be a bunch of May Apples, Dog Tooth Violets, Jack in the Pulpits and several other wildflowers along with daffodils and perennial geraniums springing up everywhere. This is the best time of the year.
In the photo above, I'm further down the stream and its getting a bit bigger. Can you see the moss growing on the big rock? This is a very rocky area and most of them have moss growing on them. Again the Dog Tooth Violets are sprouting already. I have painted these wildflowers many times and this little spring also.
