Veiled Beauty

I got inspired to paint this from a photograph I saw of a little girl in a costume with a veil over her head. So headed to the store, bought a piece of "toile", and snapped some quick photos of my daughter and the toile. Got some pretty interesting shots. I recently entered this one into the OPA National. Fingers crossed!

2015 MGAL National Award

I was so fortunate to receive the Suntrust Bank Award for the above painting titled "Vintage" in the 2015 MGAL National Juried Exhibition! The reception Saturday night was well-attended and an enjoyable evening at the WKNO Studios' gallery where I got to visit with so many local artists & friends!

Bright

I know this seems like a strange title for a painting with so much dark in it, but I named it for the brightness of her white shirt. (The photo didn't capture the brightness of it unfortunately.) This was very fun to paint! I tried to make the white shirt interesting since it is the painting's focus. I wanted the face, hair, and background to become one large dark mass. I think it came out pretty good.

Laid Back

I recently joined a group of artists who hire a model weekly to pose while we paint. It's been a while since I painted the model from life and it is such a great experience! I did this one a few weeks ago and I have another one from last week that is currently drying.

Jen in Strong Light

I photographed my niece, Jennifer, last summer as the sun was shining directly on her. I thought it would make a nice painting. I painted it on a gessoed panel instead of my usual canvas panel and it was a challenge to get the paint to do what I wanted it to! I also tried a new technique of messing it up a bit with a tissue before I finished it -- fun exercise!

High Noon

Still fascinated with shadow, strong light and the shadows they produce! The shadows from the sunglasses were fun to paint.

Sweet Sound

Wanted to get the sense of the light shapes emerging out of the shadows again. Still working it out in my mind! I also liked the triangular composition of this pose. Thanks for viewing!

Oil Painters of America!

Got word yesterday that "Looking Back" was juried into the Oil Painters of America's 24th Annual National Juried Exhibition! I am very fortunate to be included in this show! It will take place at Cutter & Cutter's Brilliance in Color Gallery in St. Augustine, FL from May 1 - 25, 2015.

Looking Back

Wow -- it's 2015 already. I have been a little lazy with my postings. I completed a portrait commission and began a couple others so I am posting this painting which I finished a month or so ago. It was so fun to paint the different colors in her face, especially in the shadow of her bangs. The detail in the blouse was tough, but I think it will get overworked if I keep messing with it. I entered this one, along with "Vintage", into the OPA's National Show. I'll find out in a couple of weeks if it was accepted.

Morning Tea

Here's a small portrait I just finished from our photo shoot at the Banks House. It's another smallish portrait at 11x14. I like working small -- each stroke counts more!

Comfortable

I finished this painting last week. It was very fun to paint the subtle color changes in her white skirt. I have entered this in the Oil Painters of America's National Show along with "Straw Hat". Hopefully one will gain entry! Thanks for viewing!

Late Afternoon

Here's a painting I did last summer. Just loved the way the light comes in our kitchen window later in the day so I wanted to capture the way it looked hitting Kayla's hair, blouse, and skin. I also wanted the upper-right side to kind of disappear into the shadows to make the light areas look even more dramatic.

Soft Light

Here is something I painted a couple years ago. I really liked the composition--especially the model's arms and hands. Also, the combination of warm reflected light hitting her from the left and cool daylight falling on her from a window on the right was so appealing. It was fun to paint the white part of her dress by adding lots of other colors to the white. I am going to enter this painting in the Oil Painters of Amerca's National Exhibition--hope it gets in!

Stairway

This was a tough painting! The view from below made the drawing difficult--especially the facial features. It was also a challenge to paint the effect of the light hitting the black painted railing. But all in all, I am pretty satisfied with the outcome.

Flower Girl

I finished this painting a few days ago--the latest in my quest of trying to capture the effects of bright sunlight that creates interesting patterns. The possibilities are endless if you have a nice, bright window. Unfortunately, the lightest areas on her skin were washed out to pure white in the photo. To see what was really happening in those areas that the photo couldn't record, I had my daughter sit in front of a sunny window a few times and took some notes. Wouldn't it be nice to have a model sit perfectly still with the light never changing for hours at a time?

Sun Block

I painted Sun Block from a photo I took of my daughter on a sunny day. I really like the way sunlight causes interesting shadow shapes. This painting is currently available through the Lotton Gallery in Chicago. It is also included in the current issue of American Art Collector with a quote from me about my inspiration for this piece.

Leanora

This is a portrait commission I finished a few weeks ago. Leanora is such a sweet little 6-year-old and loved posing for me during our photo shoot.

Gardenia

This is my first posting on my new art blog! I painted this painting of Kayla from a photo I took of her in my garden this past summer. It was fun painting the cool shadows on her skin and the spots of sun hitting her face.