Tigery

acrylic on canvas paper, 18" x 12"

I've been contemplating lately painting a tiger but haven't yet settled on how I want to treat the subject.  In the meantime, I had the urge to do an abstract painting using only Indian yellow, burnt sienna and ivory black, plus white.  The result looks a bit tigery to me.

Becoming

oil on canvas paper, 12" x 12"

Just experimenting here with the abstract shapes of a rose unfolding.

Purple Pansy Study

acrylic on canvas paper, 12" x 12"

Another flower study done with the idea in mind of going big on the next version.  

Moon Over Rivertown

acrylic on canvas paper, 12" x 9"

This is a study done from a photo taken at dusk of the Rivertown section of Petaluma along the river. 

Taos Mountain with Cows and Clouds

oil on canvas, 12" x 36"

This was a scene that I passed by daily in Taos, NM.  Every time I drove past it, I had to stare at that magnificent mountainous landscape.  The photo I worked from was taken in July, so this is a summer scene.  The mountain has many moods within each season, however, and I am not done with it, not by a long shot.  

Holy Cow

oil on panel, 24" x 24"

I started this painting in New Mexico and finished it here in California.  This is one of those iconic Southwestern sights, and a reminder of our temporary status here on earth, that we, too, are just passing through.  I find the bones themselves to be luminous and wanted to accentuate that quality. I also love the curvilinear shapes of those horns!

Blue Raven

oil on canvas paper, 12" x 12"

Here's another bird painting, one of my favourite subjects.  Experimenting, teasing abstracted elements, finding a balance between realism and abstraction:  these are the things I'm working on in this piece.  Also, taking some care with the focus.

Fall Colors at SSU

oil on panel, 10" x 8"

This piece was started en plein air and finished in the studio.  I get more satisfaction when painting on a hard, smooth surface such as this one, giving the paint itself a more prominent role in the picture.  The sheer variety of trees at Sonoma State University makes for a challenging and exciting painting experience.  I try.

Pedernal with Cottonwoods

iPad painting, 10" x 10"

Here's a plein air digital sketch I did last fall, facing that famous Cerro Pedernal from Ghost Ranch, just west of Abiquiu in New Mexico.  My perspective was not far from the cottage that Georgia O'Keeffe rented with a direct view of Pedernal, so this would have been her view as well.

The Sun Feels So Good

iPad painting, 10" x 14"

I'm going to be posting some digital paintings from my year in New Mexico on this blog until I've finished creating a separate blog to house them.  This is a digital painting I did of a sculpture by the same name on the compound where I was living just north of Taos.  

Indian Summer Dusk, West of Petaluma

oil on panel, 8" x 16"

This painting of the hills of West Sonoma County near Petaluma was done from a photo I took in the early evening on my drive home from work recently.  I love the pink and orange hues in it, as I was trying to conveying the warm glow emanating from those velvety hills.  I never get tired of this view.

Ridgecrest View on a Sunny Afternoon

oil on cradled panel, 9" x 12"

This plein air piece was painted the other day along Ridgecrest Road in Marin County.  It is a spectacular road that wends its way along a ridge of undulating hills, with incredible views in all directions.  This is quintessential California to me.  It was a warm, sunny, windless day, perfect for painting at this spot, made even more perfect by the companionship of my dear friend and fellow artist Joyce Creswell, who painted alongside me.  There is truly something special about the practice of outdoor painting with friends.  The act of being fully present in the moment while painting with friends infuses the moment with deep meaning.  A memorable day.

Dairy Queen

oil on panel, 24" x 24"

Lordy, it took some labor to birth this baby!  She made it clear to me early on:  don't mess with my face.  So, I messed with just about every other part.  And I may not be done messing with her, poor thing.  Oh well, at least she's got a comfy chair to sit in.

Denman Roses

oil on canvasboard, 8" x 8"

Here's a little afternoon plein air sketch I did the other day of one of the rose bushes here at Denman Ranch.  I love the eastern view, with the light violet hills as a backdrop to the knoll on which this ranch sits.  The baby grape vines are just starting to show in the mid ground.

The Marsh at Doran Park

oil on cradled panel, 9" x 12"

This is a scene I've been wanting to paint for quite a while.  It lies just south of Bodega Bay, on a bluff overlooking the bay, and is home to lots of birdlife, especially egrets and herons.  The marsh itself is a riot of color and has a walkway that circles it.  I take my dog here often to walk the loop and contemplate nature.  I painted this scene alla prima (in one session) from a photo I had taken and decided to leave it in its sketchiness.  My favorite pieces are often the ones I've done alla prima, those that convey a visible sense of spontaneity.  A singer doesn't sing half a song one day, then finish it the next; a poet doesn't recite half a poem one day, then finish it the next.  A painting like this is of a moment as well, so why not paint it in one go?  

A Portal to the Soul

acrylic on canvas paper, 12" x 12"

This is what I'd call an intuitive painting.  It started as an abstract done with a 3-inch brush, which is big for a 12" x 12" surface.  Using only ivory black, alizarin crimson and white, somehow it turned into this rose.  I'll admit, I've been looking at lots of flowers lately, but because I used no reference for this, it feels closer to a form of personal expression.

In the Pink

oil on panel, 18" x 24"

Another experimental excursion introducing abstraction to representation, in baby steps.  I am just not very interested in photorealism as a painter.  I like to capture the essence of a thing, in this case tiny pansies, but once it's there, my attention turns to how far I can go in the direction of abstraction, without losing the essential "pansyness" that I find so alluring.  What if I did this to it?  What if I did that?  This painting was full of those moments, although truth be told, I could take that impulse much further than I did here.  But the time has come to step away from this one, call it done, and move on to the next challenge.  

Sacred Path

oil on canvas, 30" x 24"

This is another attempt at a narrative painting, something I was introduced to in Taos.  The cow, the Indian girl and the bird all symbolize sacred things to me.  The colors white, red and black also signify birth, life and death in the life cycle.

I Aspire

oil on panel, 20" x 16"

A closeup painting of a canna flower unfolding.  There is a profusion of canna plants here at Denman Ranch, and these flowers are fascinating to me in their folds and all the various shades of yellows, oranges, and reds against their big, flat leaves in warm greens.  

Sonoma Hills in Summer

oil on canvas board, 6" x 8"

This little palette knife sketch was done from my deck, which faces the western hills of Sonoma, as the sun was going down and lit up the hills in pink and orange tones.  The colors were changing lickety-split, so this scene reflects my impression of it at the onset of dusk.  

A Friend or Anemone?

acrylic on canvas paper, 12" x 12"

Got side-tracked with another flower portrait, a white anemone growing in a garden.  I'm having fun with this, so there may be more to come.  Now, where was I?

Petunia Study

acrylic on canvas paper, 12" x 12"

This was intended as a study for a larger painting of a tiny petunia.  Whether I get around to it remains to be seen, as I have quite a backlog of paintings in mind to do.  I just loved the golden glow coming out of the centre of this tiny flower and had to try to capture it.

The Blessed at Rest

oil on canvas, 24" x 24"

This painting has gone through some changes, all in the service of experimentation.  I used pretty much all the tools at my disposal, including brushes, palette knives, carving blocks, brayers, paper towels, and my gloved fingers.  I learned a lot from this one.  Next one, though, will be on panel -- much easier to get the desired effects!

Denman Cottage View

oil on panel, 11" x 14"

This palette knife painting is a somewhat idealized interpretation of the view from my cottage on the Denman property.  I painted it from a photo and not from life because, while my camera was off with the colors of the background hills, I quite liked its skewed version, and yet the values were not far off the real thing.  

Denman Street Lamp

oil on panel, 11" x 14"

Just one of the many interesting features of the property where I now live, this street lamp sits outside the milking barn-cum-art studio-cum-brewery.  

Lynch Creek Mustard

oil on panel, 9" x 12"

Painted from a photo taken when the mustard was at its height in April, this scene looks east toward the hills of Sonoma from Lynch Creek Trail in east Petaluma.  It's a scene that I never seem to tire of, always changing yet very peaceful.

Blue Bird

oil on panel, 12" x 16"

After what feels like a long hiatus from painting as I relocated back to California from New Mexico in March, I'm picking up where I left off in my painting explorations before I moved out of state a little over a year ago.  At that time, I had just begun a process with a new set of tools and a new approach to painting that somehow got sidelined in New Mexico, where I digressed starting with a class I had taken at UNM, which may be the subject of a future post.  For now, I am happy to be in an experimental mode weaving abstract shapes in and around my subjects.  

The Fortune Teller

oil on canvas, 24" x 24"

Not sure what prompted me to paint this, except that I've been wanting to tackle it for quite some time.  It was painted with both brush and palette knife, and I am especially pleased with how her bodice turned out.  I wanted to keep it somewhat abstract in design, and yet the pattern does have, for me, a certain logic that I find oddly pleasing.  I also like the black "halo" around her head formed by the chair back; it seems to give her a regal quality which I'm happy with.  I was hoping to give her some gravitas.  This is the third in a series of "Bird Girl" paintings that I'm amassing (actually, the fourth -- the second one I've never posted).  Birds are a symbol of freedom to me, and I like to associate females with freedom.  It is my wish that one day all females of the human species will unclip their wings, fling open their cages, and fly free.

A Rose in Snow

oil on panel, 6" x 6"

This little abstract palette knife painting is from a few months back; I just never got around to posting it.  There are more than a few others in my inventory that have met that fate.  This painting was inspired by the colors of New Mexico in October, like the rich red of chili peppers you see hanging everywhere in clusters, along with the warm yellow of drying chamisa amongst the cool green sage out on the mesa.  And then there's the snow.  It snowed here in Arroyo Seco on Halloween night, and my backyard has been carpeted in snow ever since.  It snowed again last night.  Everything's white.

Come On Baby Light My Fire

oil on MDF panel, 24" x 24"

Here's another one for the time-out room.  As my reference, I used a black and white publicity still of Tippi Hedren with a trained raven from Hitchcock's "The Birds," and had intended to mess with it after the initial block-in, but life demands pulled me away from the painting and my process for so long that I lost my momentum on it.  Oh well.  Life happens.  

To Grow Where We Are Planted

oil on canvas, 30" x 30"

This is an as yet unfinished painting that's been put in the time-out room for now.  My second attempt at a constructed painting, the idea for it was one of hope.  A downcast little girl brushing past a depiction of a life of ease sees a flower breaking through the pavement in its lust for life.  That was the message I was trying to convey, anyway.  This type of painting is entirely new to me.

Rosie

oil on cradled panel, 20" x 16"

It's back to the birds with this painting of a roseate spoonbill wading in shallow waters.  I've been wanting to paint this bird for quite a while, a member of the ibis family commonly found along coastal regions of North and South America.  I just love that long spatulate bill!  And of course, the gorgeous colors of her (his?) feathers.

Kevin's Pond, Late September

oil on canvasboard, 6" x 8"

This is a quick palette knife sketch I did from a photo I took of a pond in Valle Escondido in late September.  The well-known plein air painter Kevin Macpherson painted this scene, which is on view from his living room window, hundreds of times.  It became the inspiration for his book, "Reflections on a Pond."  There is a lot to learn from a scene like this for painting purposes.  It is an ever-changing subject, full of challenges.  I find it particularly challenging to paint water with a palette knife.  Much easier with a brush, but my overriding focus for this study was in getting the value of the distant mountain range right.

San Luis Storefront with Salvia

oil on panel, 9" x 12"

This (mostly) palette knife painting is of a crumbling facade of an old storefront in San Luis, Colorado.  I loved the profusion of salvia, or Russian sage, obscuring all but one window of the storefront, and the cool shape of the facade made me want to paint this perspective.

Seen Better Days

oil on panel, 8" x 10"

I'd been wanting to paint this crumbling adobe home in Taos for a while, but there is no pullout along the road I could use to capture it live.  Couldn't resist the urge any longer, so I took a drive-by photo and painted from that.  I kinda like it.

Taos Mountain from Wisdom Way

oil on panel, 8" x 10"

Another plein air study of Taos Mountain with a modern adobe home in the foreground, amid a field of sage brush.

Truchas

oil on panel, 8" x 8"

Had another plein air adventure yesterday with the Taos group of painters in the picturesque village of Truchas, about an hour's drive south of Taos.  Truchas is an artists' enclave set on a ridge with breathtaking views in every direction.  It was the setting for parts of the Robert Redford film "The Milagro Beanfield War." I love Truchas!

Pearly

oil on cradled panel, 16" x 8"

I started this painting with the idea in mind of messing it up a little at some point, but, as sometimes happens, I grew attached to this little magpie and so decided in the end not to mess with her.  I quite like how her tail feathers blend in with the wood post.  Magpies are beautiful birds, especially when in flight.  

On a Mission

oil on cradled panel, 9" x 12"

This is an attempt to meld architectural elements with abstraction, a painting of one corner of the historic, much photographed and painted church in Ranchos de Taos known as San Francisco de Asis Mission Church.  The simple, clean lines appealed to me, and allowed for the inclusion of my favorite subject this past year:  the bird!  In this one, I've placed the national bird of New Mexico -- the magpie -- on the ledge to the right, and two pigeons (or doves, as the case may be) to the left.  This church has a certain atmosphere conducive to spiritual healing, as I experienced firsthand a few months ago when I was lucky enough to have the place all to myself for some deep reflection . . . well, me and Lola, that is.  St. Francis would have loved her!  

Summer House by Aspen Lake

oil on canvas panel, 12" x 9"

This is a palette knife plein air sketch I did the other day in my first outing with a Taos-based plein air group of painters.  They know all the cool places to paint!  Aspen Lake is a little hidden gem in the Taos Canyon area between Taos and Angel Fire, a popular local ski resort.   

Midday on the Mesa

oil on panel, 6" x 8"

This little study was started on site, at a pullout looking west on Blueberry Hill Road on the outskirts of Taos, and finished in the studio.  It was a hot day and I had started just as the sun was getting intense.  It seems my fascination with cows has followed me to New Mexico.  

Latilla Ladder

oil on cradled panel, 9" x 12"

This painting was done from a photo I took outside the Harwood Museum in Taos.  There was a lavender metal ladder against the wall, which I replaced with a latilla ladder because I find latillas so charming in their irregularities, and they are an identifying feature of this unique region.  

Seco Colors

oil on canvas, 10" x 10"

This palette knife painting was done back in March, my first plein air effort in New Mexico.  A scene along Hondo Seco Road on the way to Arroyo Seco, the colors were shockingly vivid that day, set against the dark background of Taos Mountain.

Taos Mountain from Millicent Rogers Road

oil on panel, 9" x 12"

This is a plein air study from the day before yesterday, in the afternoon at a location just north of Taos.  No refinements, just a quick impression.  I bashed in the cows later, from a photo I had taken at the scene.  I had the pleasure of Diza's company for the session, who was working in watercolor -- not an easy medium in the best of conditions, but in hot and dry weather, super challenging!

Blumenschein Studio in Spring

oil on panel, 8" x 10"

This was a quick plein air study from last week outside the Blumenschein studio in Taos, done with a palette knife.  I tend to reach for the palette knife when I feel I have to work in a hurry.  I had intended to work inside the studio with a few other artists, but the host's dog and my dog did not seem to get along.  Hence, I set my easel up in the garden outside the studio and went to work while keeping one eye on my dog -- not the ideal circumstance!  Ernest Blumenschein, a New York artist, first arrived in Taos in 1898, fell in love with it, and ended up living there for 40 years.  He was a co-founder of the Taos Society of Artists and a founder of the Taos Art Colony.

Le Champs-Élysées Réinventé

acrylic on canvas, 24" x 12" x 3

This was an attempt at an abstract iteration of a landscape which I did for my UNM class.  I couldn't help but be influenced by the hot colors I see in Taos, not only in the vivid sunsets but also in much of the art I see in galleries around town.  I had intended to warm up my palette after leaving the cool blues and greens of California behind, but I think I can dial it back a bit now, as this is a bit over-the-top, even by my standards.  Still, I do find the two abstract compositions rather compelling and might make an effective diptych.  I include the original to show the springboard I started with in this experiment.

Chic Sheikh

acrylic on canvas, 16" x 12"

This is the "resolved" result of a semester-long scraper painting assignment from my class at UNM.  I had chosen acrylic as the medium for this project, which was perhaps a mistake, since it is next to impossible to scrape an acrylic painting off, unless you scrape as you go.  This canvas went through 11 iterations before finally resolving it, most of them abstracts.  The biggest benefit that I could see from this exercise was perhaps the buildup of texture on the surface.  

In the Dark

oil on canvas, 30" x 30"

This was the final painting for my class at UNM, the assignment being a constructed image made from a collage.  I had mixed feelings about using my partner's image for this narrative, and have since promised myself to do a proper portrait of him.  He was kind, hilarious, gifted, and oh so easy to be with.  Here, he looks imposing and kind of scary, not qualities he actually exuded, although he had a kind of personal power that made people respect him.  The narrative I was going for in this painting tells of oppression and unconsciousness, not only for the oppressed but for the oppressor as well -- hence, the sunglasses.  I painted billowing curtains behind the women to indicate the winds of change blowing toward the future.  This is the first painting of its kind that I've attempted, and may be the last!  I'm not too comfortable with political themes.  This painting will be on display at the Taos TCA Stables Gallery May 8-13.