Song of the Sea

Song of the sea  18 x 24" 

Here is the progression this seascape, from the initial color block wash, to the final thick, impasto paint. I enjoying seeing and revisiting my process. I visualize and 'paint' a painting in my head well before I ever get out my paints, but the final painting itself surprises me every time.

The fox + the bumblebee

I made this little fox paintings today. She's quite obviously a drifter and a dreamer, just like me. I always take a big gulp before making a dark background on a painting, as I did for my pig portrait (see at end of this post), but I wanted the little bumblebee to show up well. I will tweak the background more in a day or so when he oils dry a bit. Here is the progression of the painting, from a rough sketch to a framed piece. 

detail

the painting in progress

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Hide and Seek

Hide and Seek: 10 x 20 

Marsh in Ipswich, MA 

This is a new work painted for the upcoming Crane Estate / Castle Hill show, whose theme this year is called "Hide & Seek." (Click on paintings to see them larger.) In that spirit, if you look very closely in this painting, you may find a certain something. It's difficult to see in this small photo, so hope you can make it to the show to see in person!  More details on the Castle Hill show to come soon.

Here is the painting in progress.

and finally, framed

Gloucester marsh

Gloucester marsh 4 x 6 

Sometimes it's fun to see a painting in progress. 

The photos aren't that great here, but you get the 

idea of the development of this small painting.

Scroll down...

A crush of orange

Orange Marsh  8 x 10  

When my mom first saw this new work—a body of water slicing through a brilliant orange salt marsh—she had no idea what it was, but she loved the colors anyway. I'm ok with that. I actually like when impressionist paintings border on abstraction, or at least mystery. I told her to squint and pretend there was a horizon line and a sky above, and she got it. Below is a peek at the painting in progress, from the initial rough sketch, to the finished canvas. As always, the painting is available for sale. Write to me about pricing if you are interested in purchasing.

Bird's nest

Bird's Nest  8 x 10  

A beautiful bird's nest that I found in our yard after a windy day was the inspiration for this painting. To most people the twig colors that make the nest are in earth tones, but this is just how I see colors. I love the shades of lavender in the nest and the shadows and twigs in the background. Scroll down to see the painting in progress, from rough sketch to final painting. Although the paint is still wet, it's available for sale. Contact me for pricing if you are interested.

Here's how the painting looks framed.

Into the woods

click to enlarge

I painted this (from a photo we took on Halibut Point State Park in Rockport, MA) in fun, spring colors. Picture walking down a shady, tree covered path, dappled with sunlight peeking through the leaves onto the ground below. A few steps beyond is a huge granite quarry, long filled with water, and beyond that are the crashing waves of the Atlantic on a rocky shoreline. Scroll down below to see the painting in progress...

...from the first sketch...

... to the final painting.