Nantucket Painting Getaway

Monomoy Harbor
8" by 8"
Oil with a palette knife on cradled panel
SOLD

Our painting group, The Neponset Valley Artists, went on a 3 day excursion to Nantucket this past weekend. As part of our new membership to The Arts Foundation of Cape Cod, we each received a round trip ticket on Cape Air so of course we had to take advantage of that wonderful opportunity. It turned out that we picked the perfect 3 days to be away from the crazy hot heat wave going on back home~"off island" as the natives say on Nantucket.

The painting above was done at a friend of a friend's place that had incredible views of Monomoy Harbor. Our generous hosts allowed us to invade their property and paint whatever and wherever we wanted. What a treat. And everyone painted something a little bit different. Here are the fruits of our labor on painting day 1:

We then took a ride out to Sconset. While we didn't do any plein air painting there, every where we turned there was inspiration and our cameras were busy capturing as much as possible.

Our next painting location was the front porch of this incredible family home on the channel. There was so much to watch, observe, and paint.
I forgot to take a photo of my painting before I left ( I had to leave it behind to dry for awhile), but this was my view. The frames of the porch helped me with my composition.

Haydi and Nancy in action.

Kim hard at work on some more lovely pastels.

Some were just content to observe through the binoculars.

Isn't this a wonderful spot? And a fun trivia fact: This house was Helen Chapel's home on the TV show Wings.

Below is the group photo and some departing shots. On the way home, we filled up the whole plane. It was like we chartered the flight!

Thanks Arts Foundation of Cape Cod and our hostess for the weekend, Haydi for such a wonderful three days. It could not have been any better.

Blue Hydrangea Heaven

Blue Hydrangea Heaven
8" by 8"
Oil with a palette knife on cradled board
SOLD

We were staying at a great house on Cape Cod last week that had the most beautiful hydrangea garden in the front yard. All the shades of blues and purples were just calling to be captured with my palette knife.
There was a very daring chipmunk that kept checking us out. I think he was living somewhere in the hydrangea bush. He wouldn't sit still for me, but I decided to add him into the bottom right of the painting anyway.

Here are a few more chunky delicious close ups.

After I completed the painting above, I did these three quick little paintings that I figure I can turn into greeting cards once they dry. These are each about 3" square more or less.

SOLD

SOLD

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Tumbles

Tumbles

6" by 6"

Oil with a palette knife on cradled board
SOLD

Cindy asked me to paint this kitty portrait in memory of her family's dearly departed friend, Tumbles. He was a member of their family for many years and had a long and happy life. This was really fun to paint and Cindy said that I captured his personality. That is the greatest compliment of all-Tumbles approval!

Beacon Hill

60 Beacon Hill
Oil with a palette knife on cradled board
36" by 12"
SOLD

I painted this large painting while working at The Art Studio and Gallery at Patriot Place this past weekend. It was nice to have the space and the time to do a large piece. The canvas was so big it wouldn't fit on my plein air easel so I had to create a makeshift easel using a chair for stability.

Below are a few photos of the painting in progress.

I sketched the composition in pencil first, which is unusual for me but I wanted to make sure to get the whole brownstone in the paintings.
I planned out the red brick area first, then I pretty much just worked from top to bottom, adding layers of colors and window detailing.
My vision for this series is to paint several of these brownstones, so typical of Beacon Hill, and line them all up next to one another, like the view you see looking at The Hill from Boston Common.

We are heading into Boston today to see the Red Sox play and enjoy the excitement of downtown. Happy Fourth of July everyone!

My sketchbook is available for online viewing

I received an email from The Sketchbook Project that my sketchbook has been digitized and is now available for viewing online in their Digital Library. How fun is that? There are thousands of amazing sketchbooks available for viewing now. Get inspired to sign up for the next Sketchbook Project!

The farmer's market is open for business

Flowers from the Farmer's Market

7" by 5"

Oil with a palette knife on canvas

There is a wonderful farmer's market in downtown Boston that is open every Tuesday and Friday during the summer and fall. I love to stroll down there at lunch time and see all of the beautiful vegetables, fruits, herbs, and especially the colorful flowers.

This painting above was done several years ago, but I'm recycling it here because it reminds me of summer and the farmer's market. Here are a few shots I took last summer that may inspire future paintings:

Catalog fun

This was just a fun Photoshop experiment. I took images of two of my paintings with their frames and wanted to see how they would look in different rooms and settings. So I found some interior shots from online catalogs and practiced my Photoshop skills by placing my images within them. Magic!

Majestic Pine

12" x 12"

Oil with a palette knife on canvas
$300 framed

Shady Maple

12" x 12"

Oil with a palette knife on canvas
$300 framed

Trees in the family room.

Trees in the living room.

Trees in the bedroom.

And if you haven't yet seen this blog called Catalog Living, you have to check out the adventures of Gary and Elaine as they tell their story through catalog photos. It's hysterical.

Catman has found a home

One of my collectors just purchased "Catman" and sent me this photo of him in his new home. Isn't it fun to see paintings in their environment? He looks pretty happy to be there overseeing all the goings on in the living room.

Sheep's clothing

Here's 2 Ewe

8" by 8"

Oil with a palette knife on cradled panel
NFS

I needed a lighthearted subject to paint during class last night and the cute face of the sheep in this photo was just inviting me to paint it. The textures of the hay, barn, and the sheep's fleece were great fun to paint with the palette knife and this worked up rather quickly for me. You can't really see it in this image, but I used a combination of many colors on my palette to create the deep dark interior of the barn to give it interest and depth.

Don't they look like fun company for lunch?

A few chunky delicious close ups....

A smart place to eat lunch

Maproom Cafe, BPL

20" by 20"

Oil with a palette knife on panel
$500 framed

I love to go to the Boston Public Library at lunch time, especially when the weather is nice and you can enjoy a sandwich out in the beautiful courtyard. This lunchspot indoors, The Maproom, is a wonderful alternative should the weather outside not be so nice. I love the feel of this room with it's beautiful tile ceiling and large windows. This painting is large for me and I painted it while we were working at the Art Gallery at Patriot Place last weekend. You can see an update on our weekend by checking out that blog.

Looking out on Lafayette

Concrete Jungle

8" x 8"

Oil with a palette knife on panel
SOLD

Another painting from my visit to NYC. This is a view out onto Lafayette Street from my friend's place on Great Jones in the lower east side. I just love painting these windows, the color of the window reflections changed from orange to blue as you moved up the building. I can't help but sing that Alicia Keys song when I think of New York. "...concrete jungle where dreams are made of, there's nothing you can't do... when you're in New York..."

New Exhibit Space

You just never know when show opportunities arise. Our painting group, The Neponset Valley Artists, just organized and hung a show at the South Shore Dermatology Practice office in North Easton, MA. Isn't it great to see an appreciation for hanging original art in such a venue? And isn't looking at art better than reading the latest about William and Kate in People Magazine? This show will be up for 4 months before they switch it out for a new exhibit.

That reminds me... I probably need to make an appointment.

Judging an art show

This past weekend I was asked if I would be a judge for the 2011 Taunton Art Association's Spring Art Show. Of course I said yes and what a great experience it was. There was a wide selection of art in each category: oil, acrylic, watercolor, pastel, drawing, photography, and mixed media.
They have a wonderful building to exhibit their work and the committee was so organized and supportive while me and the other two judges, Christina Beecher, and Jack Gannon discussed, debated, and deliberated. Picking only a few winners proved extremely challenging, but we worked well together to come to an agreement on the final prize winners.

Congratulations to all the artists on a wonderful show.

A masterpiece in frosting

Last Friday night was the reception for the Just Desserts show at Gallery 9 in Norwood. In addition to submitting a painting, artists were encouraged to bring a dessert that was inspired by their submission. I had always wanted to try my hand at "painting" a masterpiece on a cake with frosting. A logical transition for a palette knife painter, don't you think? Well, here it is...

My first Ann Gogh:

Here is a close up after the first few bites were enjoyed:
Which masterpiece do you think would look good frosted on a cake?

Happy Mother's Day

Mother and Child, after Cassatt

7" x 5"

Oil with a palette knife on canvas
SOLD

Who is that masked kitty?

Catman

6" x 6"

Oil with a palette knife on cradled board
SOLD

I think that black and white cats often look like they are wearing a mask. Their bright eyes pearing out of the darkness. Just like Batman.

Opening weekend at our new gallery!

Within just two weeks, a group of 6 artists have met, organized, and set up a brand new art gallery at Patriot Place and we opened our doors this weekend! The Artist's Studio and Gallery at Patriot Place will have live painting, local art on display, and activities that partner with the area restaurants such as art openings. This is an amazing opportunity for us as well as the Foxboro Art Association. We will be featuring 3 new local artists each weekend to keep things fresh and interesting. I've included some photos below of our fast paced set up.

The gallery front.

Gillette Stadium, where the New England Patriots play, is our backdrop!

Polo and I contemplating our arrangement of paintings.

Our final display is shown below with our names showcased on the wall above our art!

Live painting with Polo.

At Friday night's reception.

What an exciting new venture. I will keep you posted as things develop.