Heading out...Oil Painting Shrimp Boat

Heading Out....30x30.....Oil on canvas.......$950



This is my other shrimp boat painting that I did recently (a couple of months ago).  The family is divided on which one they like better.  I like them both, a lot, but my favorite is yesterday's I think.

***I have a question for other bloggers...Things have changed in Blogville since I was here last and I think I like most of it.  But one thing I don't like (and maybe I am doing something wrong). When I go to upload photos the upload screen stays displayed and I can't minimize it so that I can start my text.  I used to could make it go away and I would work on my text while the photo loaded and then the picture would pop up when it had loaded.  Is there no way to do this now?  Any help would be appreciated.

I'm back!

Piazza San Marco, Venice, Italy

Well, it has been almost 6 months since my last post I believe!  That's pretty sad.  But since the life circumstances that have kept me from blogging have all been happy things I cannot complain. 

My lovely daughter got married to a guy we would have picked out of the "Perfect Son-In-Law" catalog.  We had our beautiful twin grandbabies with us for 6 weeks, and we took a two week dream trip to Italy.  So, as I said, I cannot complain.  But I couldn't find the time to post on my blog either.

So, now it is time to really get back to work!  I have painted in this absence, so over the next couple of days I will post some of the things that I have done in the last few months to get everyone caught up.  How about that?

"At Rest"...30x30.....oil on canvas....$950

 

Thanks to those who have enquired about my absence from the blogging world!

Fruits of the Sea...(or ditch)...oil paintngs

These are three of the paintings I did for my show this past weekend in Oxford, MS. ( all of them sold, by the way.)

Doubledecker is always a whirlwind...we set up, have the show and take it all down in one day.  But this year was made doubly crazy by the weather.  It was so bad that they had to postpone the show until Sunday which meant that not only was everything crammed into one day, but we also had to drive 3 hours back to Jackson when it was all over...after having gotten up at 4:30 AM! 

Plus the wind was UNBELIEVEABLE on my corner where I was.  Got to give props to my husband who created the weights that kept my whole set-up from "relocating".  And more props to my incredible support staff...Dacia and Shaun.  They were there with us in the early morning hours helping set up and cheering every step of the way.

Tools of the Trade....oil painting.....

"Tools of the Trade"......12x24....oil......SOLD

This is a variation of my Tabasco trend...I like it and plan to do more similar pairings....with other condiments, on tablescapes, and with spices and foods that you would commonly see with Tabasco.

This is one of the paintings that I have done for my upcoming outdoor festival...Doubledecker in Oxford.  I am done painting now and need to do prints and put wires on the backs and make title cards.  All aspects of the "other side" of the glamorous life of an artist.  The part that people don't think about when they ask how long it takes to do a "painting".  Sometimes the painting is the quick part...it's the "work" that takes all the time.

Tailgating at MSU....Oil Painting...

Tailgating at MSU.....30 x30.....Oil....$990

I have done several paintings of tailgating in the grove at Ole Miss, but Rebels are not the only football fans that enjoy a good party under the trees!  To my good friends and family that are MSU fans this one is for you!

Baker's Half Dozen....Oysters....oil painting

Baker's Half Dozen.....16x20....Oil.....$350

This is a fun painting that I did for my upcoming outdoor shows.  I think oysters are cool to paint, but very hard to capture.  They are such a funky, interesting food that I couldn't resist.  I have been on a seafood kick lately.  More to come soon.

Cup Stack....Oil painting

Cup Stack......10x20.....Oil.......$225

This one draws from the imagination....a bit....I just couldn't get a set of cups and saucers to stay like that for long!

"Imported" Wine Bottles...Oil Painting...Commission

"Imported Wine Bottles".....36x48........Oil......Commission(sold)

This is a commissioned painting for a nice gentleman in Missouri. He found me via my blog (Yay blog!) by googling wine bottle artist (yay Google!). This is the second largest piece I have done.


I loved working on this painting! The wine bottles were "imported" to me, here in Mississippi, from Missouri. Each one is from a local Missouri winery that Jim and his wife have visited and each one has an interesting story to go with it.


It was a long back and forth process but this past week the painting finally went to its new home and Jim is very happy with it which makes me VERY happy!


Commissions are a diferent breed of painting....I explained it to Jim this way:


For a commissioned painting to be successful...

• first you have to realize what it is, exactly, that you want
• then you have to communicate that to me
• then I have to understand what you are saying that you want
• then I have to get my eyes, brain and brushes to execute what I heard that you want
• then when you see it you interpret, in your own way, to decide if it is what you wanted

There are many points along the way where a disconect can occur. I think my years of painting murals in people's homes have helped me to be a good listener when it comes to what people want. I recognize some of the pitfalls and ask a LOT of questions. When a client says "I want it to be sort of like this picture" I ask what it is they like about it. Sometimes the end result bears little resemblance to the orginal inspiration. But that's the fun of it!

Picnic Pairing...oil painting...

Picnic Pairing....12x24.....oil.......SOLD
This is one of those paintings that has a mood to it. It is based on a photo I took of wine that my mom and I enjoyed at lunch one day on a shopping trip in Ocean Springs. (hey, we had to refuel for a long afternoon!)

I tweaked it here and there to make it look like it was outside at a picnic...I just want to lay down on the blanket in the grass and grab a book and sip away.

Heading up Bourbon Street.....oil painting.....

Heading up Bourbon Street....8x10....oil on board.....SOLD

This is still a "little landscape" like the postS of the last couple of days....but you will agree it is very different.

I think it is amazing if you stop to think about it....the different kinds of worlds people live in. One person steps out their front door and they are surrounded by nature...another by concrete and cars. The point was driven home to me when Michael, my oldest, almost ended up with a job in NYC.

We went up there to find an apartment for them when he and Heather were virtual newlyweds. It was so funny to see what their daily life would have been like. Small apartment, subway to work, stop at the market on the way home...just so different from the life we are used to down here in the South.

Thankfully, they ended up in Kentucky, where they still are, and thankfully that is where the twins were born. I cannot imagine if they had actually gone to New York. God was watching out for them. Not that New York is a bad place, but I think what happened was best for them and the rest of the family.

On another subject, I just found out today, thanks to my great husband, that I got in the Gumtree Festival in Tupelo in May. Someone once told me that doing the outdoor art festivals was like having to apply for your job 5 or 6 times a year. And it is true...you don't know whether you will get in or not...it is a juried process. And some don't make it.

I got in Gumtree the first year I applied and then the next year I didn't get in. I was SO disappointed. Then as it turned out the weekend of the festival was the weekend my daughter graduated from college....I wouldn't have been able to go anyway and I would have had to forfeit my substantial booth fee. God looks out for us, but sometimes we don't see his hand on our shoulder immediately.

Have a great day everybody.

"Pond"ering....oil painting landscape....

"Pond"ering.....8x10......oil on board......SOLD

Continuing in the landscape genre....these little gems look so great right now lined up in my living room. I love that I get to keep my paintings around the house and live with them while they dry. I feel like a foster parent.

Something different is on tap for tomorrow, though. No need to get stuck on one thing for too long. That's the beauty of this job.

On another note, let's just say we've been knocking it out of the park with wedding planning lately. My little chick is going to have a wedding that is as cool and unique as she is.

Where No One Goes....Oil painting Landscape...

Where No One Goes....8x10....oil on board......SOLD
This is another one of those little landscapes....8x10 is counted as little when you're normally doing 30x40 or 20x24. This is one of those that benefited from my friend Julie's "smear tactics". I put the paint on the board and it was just terrible....so then I started in with the pallette knife, adding paint and loosening it up....and ended up with a painting that I just love! You know what they say...sometimes it's better to be lucky than good.

From Now On.....Oil painting landscape

From Now On....8x10....Oil on Board.....SOLD

Not sure where this one came from...meaning, it is a departure from my normal style and subject matter. But I really like it. The title refers to the song lyric, "Blue skies, nothing but blue skies from now on..." It looks so much better in person. I have to get the hang of this photographing part!

Fine Line......Oil Painting

Fine Line.....24x24.....oil.......$600

This is one of the paintings I did for my show. I do love to paint wine bottles. The subtle variations of the green from one bottle to the other, the reflections. I get so caught up in paintings the little "pieces" of color that, sometimes, I have to walk away and let my brain "reset" before I can come back and see it as a cohesive painting.

Sometimes I really stuggle and think that things are not going well because a bottle doesn't look round or see-through or something...and then the next morning when I come in and look...BAM! It was there all along and I just was too focussed on the trees to see the forest as a whole.

Morning Snack....oil painting...

Morning Snack....8x10.....Oil.....$125

This is another painting from my workshop this past weekend. I like the looseness of it. I told Carole, the teacher, that I was way out of my comfort zone...working with a different pallette of colors, a different brush (I've been using pallette knives lately), and working small again for the first time in a long time. The last painting I did before this workshop was 3 feet by 4 feet...this one was 8 x 10 inches! But it is good to do things that stretch you.

Oysters on the Halfshell...Oil painting...

Oysters on the Halfshell....12x12....oil....SOLD

This is a painting that I did at my workshop in Alabama this past weekend. Carole Foretwas the teacher. We had a great weekend, ate great food (thanks to Todd), met her beautiful daughters, and got to paint!!! Great people in the class. All around just what I needed in a lot of ways. I love my oysters....plan to paint more.

And to those in my family (or your family for that matter, if they are not the same folks I am already talking about) that are experiencing serious troubles right now, please know that I am praying for you "without ceasing". You know who you are.

Extra Olives, Please....Oil Painting

Extra Olives, Please.....10x20.....oil.....SOLD

This was my first time to paint olives by themselves. I got a lot of good comments on them. They were my mom's favorite. And then, at my show, while I was standing talking to a lady that had just told me that she was going to buy this painting...the gallery owner came and removed it from the wall....someone else had already purchased it. But I plan to do more. I love the greens that I got to use for this subject...a real challenge to mix it just right.

2010 has got to improve soon....

This year has gotten off to a rocky start in many ways. Sure, there have been some bright spots....the Saints DID win the Superbowl, I HAVE had my first solo art show in a major local gallery, and my art IS selling very well right now. But the bad things that have happened are too major.

First my daughter and Son in law to be got in a bad car wreck. Luckily they were both ok, but my daughter missed over 2 weeks of work and is still in physical therapy. She was hurt as bad as you can be and still not have broken bones or an "identifiable" injury. Just deep, deep bruising and soft tissue trauma, and strained cartilage(which we are learning is very slow to heal!) Thanks goodness it was not worse, which it so easily could have been.

And then yesterday we had to make the hard decision to have one of our little shih-tzus put to sleep. Bailey(far right) had been slowing down over the last few months and a few weeks ago he got a cough. After 2 rounds of anti-biotics he was better, but just not quite as perky. Yesterday we had to take him to the vet because the cough had recurred all of a sudden. Xrays revealed that he most likely had lymphoma. The next steps to find out for sure were so invasive and possibly inconclusive on top of the fact that he was having to struggle so hard to breath....the vet said we were essentially left with no choice. Man, oh man, do we miss him.

Art tomorrow I promise, but today I had to get the bad stuff out of the way.

Back to Business...

Holidays are over.....decorations are packed.....to-do list is longer than my leg!

For those of you who are just tuning in and for those who have not been paying attention here's what we are up against. I have a list of events and projects that would choke a water-buffalo. My mission is to get each item checked off the list in a timely manner, done to the best of my ability at the moment, and to enjoy the process. Some (but not all) of the items on this list include:

• a large commission piece featuring three wine bottles from a client in Missouri. Ready to start on this TODAY. (as soon as I finish this blog entry)
• Wedding for Dacia(my daughter) and Shaun (in June) This week's focus...send out save the date cards. This means finding addresses for the 100 people that I have not got addresses for. I just finished printing them and they are top-notch!
• Planning and hosting a shower for my little niece who is expecting her much anticipated first baby. : )
• My first solo art show will be February 18...did I mention that I will have to have 20 NEW paintings by then.
• Grandtwin's first birthday party is at our house on Feb. 6. I simply cannot believe that these little beauties are already going to be 1!!!!!!!!
• Engagement party for Dacia and Shaun is January 23, so in addition to the above I also have to lose 30 pounds by Jan 23.
• As an enhancement to the wedding weight loss we decided to sign up for the Rock-n-roll marathon in New Orleans in Feb. We had so much fun doing the 1/2 marathon(walking it, of course) for my 50th a couple of years ago, that we are doing it again. This means training for it....which we should have been doing for the last 2 months at least, but you know, the holidays and all. Plus it's been COLD!

I am sure there are more things that rightly should go on this list...but right now I am glad that I can't think of them. This is enough!

It's good to get this down in writing though. Not only does it motivate me to get going, but also if anyone doubts that I don't have time to do something that I tell them I don't have time for, I will refer them to my blog post from 1-11-10.