Sponge Work

Hey Friends, I was wondering - Does painting with a sponge count as REAL art? Some people use their fingers, some use a stick, some even use drips or a spoon. So I think it's OK to use anything you want, not just a brush.
I have such a hard time getting a soft edge with acrylics. So I thought of giving a sponge a try. I like it. These clouds look softer than anything I've produced so far.
This is my favorite hill. It's behind our house and I usually have some animals out there. But I was more interested in the clouds this time. The forest is casting a nice shadow there on the right.
We are supposed to have more storms this evening. That would be a good time to catch some drama in the sky. I will probably be at work by then and miss the whole show. And I'm pretty certain Mom wouldn't like to be out there taking photos for me.

Got another great idea for another series from a sweet woman that works at the Little Gallery at Smith Mountain Lake ! Love series !! Last week I delivered new work to the gallery, so if you're in that area of Virginia, stop at the Little Gallery-it's a lovely place with a boat load of great art and jewelry and sculpture. And then go fishing.

Happy Trails

New Ideas !!

Hey Friends, I know it's a bit odd - me posting twice in one week but........I had a couple of ideas (yeah-that's odd too!) and was wondering what others thought.

Yeah, I'll probably do this anyway 'cuz I'm a bit hardheaded. I thought of 2 new series for paintings. First is the "Good Dog" series. My daughter had to put her dog "Ebony" asleep last week and then I saw a collar with GOOD DOG cross stitched on it and Boing a tiny lightbulb came on. So the Dalmation mix above is the first, testing the waters, so to speak.

I like it a lot and I've already painted my daughters dog too. It's not dry or I would have scanned it, to show you. I can see the fun coming up !

The second idea I thought I might call "BEACH BUTTS" or is that too crude? A friend gave me a couple photos of her boys from their last beach trip. I like the way it turned out. I have a hard time painting loose so it really stokes the old fire when I accomplish loose brush work. I ran out of the studio so I wouldn't keep fiddling with it. I drive myself crazy being such a noodler.

I can already picture a couple of paintings with babies I know.

So tell me what you think and have a wonderful weekend.

Happy Trails.

Farm Visit Today

Hey Friends, Hope you are well today. I have emailed a lady in Alabama, twice today. Messages did not get through. I'll try again tomorrow but I doubt if there will be any change in the power situation. Hoping she is alright.

Meanwhile, my GranPrincess and I have had another wonderful day here in the Mountains of SW Virginia. Tornados don't happen here very often. A bad one 2 weeks ago in Pulaski.

My Princess and I have been outside most of the day. We visited our neighbor with the crazy farm, I mean Exotic ! Got a lot of good photo's to paint from. Above is a bunny the Princess chased around for 30 minutes. Kids are persistent. I haven't painted him yet.

Here is a shot of the Peacocks, male & female. Very quiet today. Beautiful. I'll give 'em another go at some point.

AND they have Pigeons ! Didn't know they were around until today. There is a lovely pale with some lavendar touches that would be fun to paint.


And here are some ducks the farmer called "Indian Running Ducks" ?!? I think he said that. They are really prettier than my photo.

Of course you know he has chickens. A neighbor dog killed 6 of his hens. BAD DOG. He bought more and keeps his gate closed now. Always something.
And last but the Best - Look at this beauty. Can't remember what it's called. Can't wait to paint this guy. Look at the red feathers in the tail. Gorgeous bird. His mate is brown. Wouldn't it be nice if they had babies.

Also found out today he's got a Koi pond ! All the rain has made it murky so will have to wait to take photo's.

I'm so sorry for all the folks in the south . Praying for you.

Happy Trails.

New Work at Gallery 108

Hey Friends, It has been a busy spring for me, how about you? Did you get that lawn mower started? I did (after my sweet little brother worked on it). What would we do without him?

A couple weeks ago I changed out the art work I had hanging at Gallery 108 in downtown Roanoke, which is in SW Va. in a valley that seems to hold all the pollen in place. As windy as it has been for weeks, you would think some would blow away. We've even had several tornados in the area. Pulaski was hit pretty hard. Sometimes I ramble, sorry.

Anyway the photo above is what I hung at Gallery 108. Lots of color - my fav. Color then light is what inspires me to paint. I love to start a painting on a base color. My choice is usually what ever color would be the compliment of the subject I'm going to paint or RED, which ever opens first. I have found burnt orange by Liquitex to be rich and bold.

I'm hoping blogspot has magically fixed the problem with the paragraphs I had last post.

Happy Trails.

First BlueBird of 2011

Hey Friends, It has been cold and drizzly here in SW Virginia for days. No, for months ! I am way past ready for some spring like weather. So one way to keep your sanity is to pretend. Learned about this pretend stuff from my GrandDaughter while we play with Barbie Dolls. Adults have a tendency to forget about pretend and play. Barbie has a dozen friends to pretend with so it is good practice. Anyway, I was pretending like I saw this first BlueBird of 2011. It flew straight into my studio and sat on this silk tree limb for a couple of hours. Long enough for me to get a pretty good likeness and a couple of photos. Then she pulled out her hankie and said excuse me, I must be home before midnight ! I certainly enjoyed her visit and can't wait to tell Lillie. Happy Trails. ps-I have tried 3 times to make this post in paragraphs as I usually do. But it won't happen so I'm sorry it is so difficult to read . No relief for the eyes.

the Raven and Japan

Hey Friends, OK, here is my beautiful Raven and one messy small greenish blob. I'm always surprised how quick and easy these guys are to paint. Kinda like cows. I like the yellow background. I was shootin' for happy. Makes me happy!

Now this one is a happy painting too. I'm going to list it in the Daily Paintworks challenge. ALL the funds raised will go to help out in Japan. Isn't it wonderful they figured out how to set this up so quickly? David Marine is his name so go check out the site and buy something !!

Now what do ya think of this painting? You supposed to paint something that reminds you of home. These are the mountains here in SW Virginia and the Roanoke River. I painted it as if I were in the top of a very tall tree, looking over Greenhill Park, because that park is close to home. Obviously the rest is a good dream.

Happy Trails.

the Raven and the Frogs

Hey Friends, A change in scedules at work gives me this oppurtunity to post here on my blog.

Coming home two nights ago there were lots of frogs on the road. They do this every year, I just don't remember it being so early-March! It had been an usually warm day so the road was still warm at 10 pm. I always drive real slow so I don't smash them but SOME people don't care. So the next morning I'm able to see the dead frogs and a couple of Ravens cleaning up the mess. I got a few photos.

So I scratched one of the beauties out on this 11x14. I just scanned the bird not the entire canvas. I'm thinking I want the background to be mostly yellow. Yellow is a happy color and you know these guys were really happy to find an easy, free breakfast. Yuck !

What would we do without the scavengers though. Have a beautiful Sunday.

Happy Trails.

Peacock Insecurity

Hey Friends, Well, I've looked at this Peacock for a couple of weeks and STILL can't decide if I like it. Hate it when I'm so wishy-washy. I like it when you can say YES or UGH.

The birds body looks a bit like "milt".? I think that's the way to spell it. Milt is the chunk of stuff in a newborn foals mouth to prevent fluids from reaching the lungs.

Otherwise It is a bright,colorful statement. And yeah, I went ahead and listed it on Etsy.

Happy Trails.

UPS

Hey Friends, I've been really busy with the paints this week ! I don't know how many I've done or started. The busy bee's above and the fancy Dragon Fly below. I enjoyed painting the beads.

A lovely lady in Australia bought a painting from my Etsy store. So I pack it up the usual way and take it to the P.O. and the way I had it packed would have cost $35.00. So I brought it home and repacked. On my way back to the P.O. I decided to stop at the UPS store and see what their fee might be. After measuring and weighing, he said $169.64 !! $169.64.

I started laughing and he did too. This pkg. was ><>

I went on to the P.O. and mailed it for $15.00. Just thought you might enjoy that scenario.

Now I'm off to Etsy to list a painting or two.

Happy Trails.

Art by Night @ Gallery 108, Roanoke, Va.

Hey Friends, Thinking you may like a glimpse of what has happened today on the Roanoke City Market. Not a whole lot until Art by Night started.

The featured artist is Martha Rhoades ! She has a beautiful show hung until the end of March.

I have shots of the work as a whole but you can't see much. So I'm showing the details of two pieces. Lots of texture with mixed media playing a big part.

There are two spot lights showing up here that I can't get rid of. I think it's titled "Gold Rush". Lots of texture with gold leaf. They are all gorgeous.

And some humor in the windows. See the construction cone? That's all you can really notice in downtown Roanoke right now.

I love this window. I think the celebration is starting early. How about that Queen?

Happy Trails.