Blushing Beauties

Blushing Beauties
Oil on wood panel, 10x8
Overland Park Arboretum - Stems

I can remember loving roses as child walking among my mother's and grandmother's gardens.  The fragrance alluring, and the blooms bountiful - they reign supreme above the other flowers.  For this painting, I had to set up further away from my subject than I like to.  The walkway was narrow, and my easel would totally block traffic, so I had to push back into the grass behind another bed.  The cool pink shades of this rose, and the many petalled blooms were worth the extra effort in attaining them!  New on the palette for these - Gamblin's Radiant Magenta!  Painting number 883 in 883 days.

on location

Waterfall from Margaret's Pond

Waterfalls from Margaret's Pond
Oil on wood panel, 14x11
Overland Park Arboretum - Stems
purchase here

The light rain had eased up enough that I could head out to the arboretum to paint.  Knowing that I wanted to paint the falls, I pulled out the Deep Woods Off - to repel those pesky mosquitoes! With the music of songbirds and the babbling of the water, this peaceful spot was a joy to capture. Nothing makes me feel so alive as painting in the landscape. Nothing.
Painting number 882 in 882 days.

Splash of Yellow

Splash of Yellow
Oil on wood panel, 14x11
Overland Park Arboretum, Kansas - Stems
purchase here

With the heavy rains, this beautiful yellow peony was really drooping at the arboretum!  I gently picked up the heads from the ground, and propped them up over other stems and foliage.  My second painting of the day, these blooms were sheer joy to paint!  I used my brush for most of the work, and using my knife for just a bit of pop at the end.  Painting number 881 in 881 days.

Morning in the Wedding Garden

Morning in the Wedding Garden
Mixed media on wood panel, 11x14
Overland Park Arboretum - Stems
purchase here

This early morning painting is an experiment in mixed media.  I first washed on a dark underpainting with acrylics - in red, blue and green.  This dries quickly, so I then sketched out my garden with a white pastel stick.  Next, using a plastic palette knife, I lay down the foliage and blooms with molding paste.  As this is drying, I start with the background and my oils.  Once the paste is hard enough, I can start over it with my oils, as well.  I am certainly stepping outside of my comfort zone here, and I can't quite decide if it is too dark.  It is not my normal, but it definitely has a mood all it's own. We'll see how I feel in a few days with this one! Painting number 880 in 880 days.

on location

Pink Peony Passion

Pink Peony Passion
Oil on wood panel, 14x11
Stems - Overland Park Arboretum
purchase here

Wowza!  These fabulous beauties were bursting with blooms at the Overland Park Arboretum in Kansas.  Always drawn to peonies, I set up on the sloshy grass in front of them.  We've had so much rain, and with this peony bed right by the lake - it was very wet indeed. I love painting these regal flowers - especially in such a vivid color as these magenta ones!  Painting number 879 in 879 days.

Prairie Path

Prairie Path
Oil on wood panel, 18x14
Overland Park Arboretum, Kansas
purchase here

The wind just about blew me away today!  With high winds, I anchor my easel down with a bungee cord stuck to my handle bag, which always keeps my easel secure. With winds whipping my hair into my face so badly, I could hardly see through it - I earned this painting!  The gorgeous sky pulled me in - and kept me there, even though it was a fight with the wind today!  Painting number 878 in 878 days.

on location

Wild Roses and Iris

Wild Roses and Iris
Mixed media on unstretched canvas, 4x6
purchase here

on location

Today was a baseball tournament day, leaving little time for painting. So, here I have painted a little floral scene from the edge of the old cellar.  Wild roses have snuck into this bed - and I will soon remove them, but for now, they are a nice compliment to the old white and yellow irises.  This is a very small mixed media piece - only 4x6 inches.  I started this one on a white surface, only because I didn't think of toning it until I had already done my pastel sketch!  Building the petals and foliage up with molding paste, I then started the background with oils, as I left the paste drying.  The flowers were the last to be painted, finishing with a little knife work.  I am planning a full day painting at the arboretum tomorrow - I sure hope the weather cooperates!  Painting number 877 in 877 days :)

Dimensional Peonies

Dimensional Peonies
Mixed Media on unstretched canvas, 4x6
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on location

I wish it wasn't raining - and I could stay out all day painting!  I have started this painting in a different manner. First priming the unstretched canvas with a knife stroke of molding paste and a dark acrylic wash, I then sketched with a pastel stick. With a palette knife, I carefully stroked on the petals, building the peonies.  Allowing this to dry, I then started in with the oils.  I'm not sure if I am finished!  I want to leave the darks sprinkled around throughout, I like the dramatic mood this technique creates.  But another part of me loves the light I spread about yesterday's painting......I actually dreamed about this style last night!  Often, I dream I am painting only to wake up and find I have yet to paint my "painting du jour"!  Painting number 876 in 876 days :)

Grandmother's Peonies

Grandmother's Peonies
Oil on wood panel, 10x8
purchase here

With a baseball tournament, teaching a painting class, and heavy rains on the way - I barely finished this one up before the first crack of thunder!  I am REALLY loving painting these flowers up close and personal en plein air!  It is SO much easier to get accurate colors and fluid strokes while surrounded with natural beauty!  I sure hope my schedule allows plenty of time for painting at the Overland Park Arboretum during the Stems event!  I'm hoping for every day - but who knows with my schedule.  This painting of my grandmother's peonies outside the kitchen window is number 875 in 875 days.

Profusion of Iris

On location - Overland Park Arboretum
Stems - Quick Paint
purchase here

Profusion of Iris
Oil on wood, 11x14
purchase here

Tonight was the kick-off for the Stems Plein Air Event at the Overland Park Arboretum.  I chose these fabulous irises for the two hour quick paint.  I will have to get a better image tomorrow, because the one I tried to take in the trunk of my car STILL has quite a glare on it!  Painting number 874 in 874 days :)

Salmon Geraniums

Salmon Geraniums
Oil on wood panel, 7x5
sold

On this very, very busy day, I have squeezed in enough painting time to complete this little gem.  Using reference from Tuesday's plein air for the Tri County Art League, I have loosely painted this small panel with my oils.  Donna's salmon geraniums are a perfect subject for a quick paint - composition is easily done with a little zooming into the subject.  It is more pleasing with flowers running off three sides, more dramatic.  Painting number 873 in 873 days.  Stems starts tomorrow - the plein air event at the overland Park Arboretum :)

Painting the Chickens

Painting the Chickens
Oil on wood panel, 9x12
Boone Farm Paint-Out, Augusta Plein Air Art Festival
purchase here

This day's paint out was at the Daniel Boone Farm in Defiance, Missouri. When I walked upon this scene - I KNEW I had to paint it!  After spending over an hour scouting all over the property, with a good idea of what I wanted to paint, I stumbled onto this scene  - and it totally grabbed me!  Lon Brauer had dressed in period attire to paint - so he was the perfect model in the perfect setting! Never before had I even attempted painting a figure for a timed plein air paint, but I LOVED it!  I should have been doing this years ago!  I had so much fun getting this scene down in oils - it was like a concentrated workshop on life drawing - of both Lon and the moving chickens!  With a scene like this, with constant movement - the most important thing to capture is what is most likely to change. The light, shadows, and especially Lon!  He is a fast painter, moving quickly from one painting to the next, so I painted his figure within the first few minutes.  Working next in finer detail, I blocked in the light and shadow.  As one of the chickens would get into a position I liked, I would switch to them, getting them painted in before they moved again.  I had so much fun painting this!  I can't wait until the opportunity presents itself again!  Painting number 872 in 872 days :)

Donna's Geraniums

Donna's Geraniums
Oil on wood panel, 10x8
Tri County Art League paint-out at Donna's
purchase here

Today, we had a special treat for the Tri County Art League! Instead of our regular scheduled meeting at the bank, Donna and Yvonne graciously offered their homes for a little plein air and lunch.  With so many beautiful views to choose from, including lakes behind both homes, these geraniums ultimately called my name the loudest! Painting number 871 in 871 days.

Party Peonies

Party Peonies
Oil on wood panel, 7x5
bid here

With Michaela's graduation and Open House, we have had non-stop parties around here! Awarded Salutatorian of her class, we could not be more proud!  One by one, my pink peonies have started to bloom, just in time for the celebrations!  Tonight, as I come to my easel VERY late, I am painting just a few on a small scale - to match my tiny painting window.  With family in town, and my countless other responsibilities, it has been nothing short of impossible to find time to paint!  I am looking forward to a little plein air time in the morning - just to get my fix!  Painting number 870 in 870 days.

Midnight Magnolia

Midnight Magnolia
Oil on unstretched canvas, 4x4
bid here

The blooms on my magnolia tree are larger and more beautiful than they have ever been!  It took years for this tree to grow large enough to really start producing, but wow - what a show!  Still a small tree, I look forward to all the years ahead and the glory it will bring to the yard!  I simply love all of the spring blooming trees - they are such a welcome sight after the cold days of winter.  I started this painting in the usual way - pastel sketch first, followed by blocking in color.  I blocked in the background last, which is just the opposite of the first magnolia I painted, where I did the background first.  Thereby, I negatively painted the blooms.  Sometimes, I just want to change things up, especially when I paint every day.  It allows me the freedom to follow my whims, because if it doesn't work out, its okay, there is always tomorrow! Painting number 869 in 869 days :)

in progress

Jackie's Pond

Jackie's Pond
Oil on wood panel, 8x10
Chandler Hill, Augusta Plein Air Art Festival
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Our schedule is so busy for the Augusta Plein Air Art Festival, that I can't remember if this was the second or third painting on this day! Chandler Hill Winery was the location, and rather than paint the commercial areas,  I migrated to the road less traveled.  Following the winding gravel drive past the lake and vineyards, two ponds open up on each side of the drive.  This one located to the right, was surrounded with lush foliage.  If you continue on this path, it leads to a wonderful log cabin surrounded by meadows.  Before I had gotten much of the light marked in my composition, the late afternoon light dipped below the trees, leaving much of the scene in shadow.  The foreground grasses and tree foliage were still illuminated, so I quickly brushed in the highlights before they, too, were gone.  There is something so peaceful and serene in the landscape of a pond.  I will never tire of painting them.  Painting number 868 in 868 days.

on location

Notice the other artist tucked into the woods!  That is Jane Flanders of KC!

Resting by the Water

Resting by the Water
Oil on wood panel, 14x11
New Melle, Missouri - Augusta Plein Air Art Event
purchase here

This charming barn landscape is downhill from a white farmhouse just west of F Hwy in New Melle. My first time to this little town, it was a joy to explore the streets and countryside!  After scouting almost everything on the map we were given, we decided to return to this old barn - which had captured my attention earlier. The weather could not have been nicer - and the lights and shadows were fabulous!  With hardly a wind to stir the pond, the music of frogs and birdsong serenaded me as I worked.  I can fully submerge myself in a painting when surrounded by such beauty!  This is painting number 867 in 867 days.

Yellow and White Iris

Yellow and White Iris
Oil on wood panel, 5x7
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This iris brings back sweet memories from my childhood.  It is one of my grandma's varieties that has always grown by the cellar.  I can remember playing out there with my brother, running around with "dawn" bottles full of water - squirting each other until they were empty!  The large, beautiful iris heads would blow back and forth in the wind, almost as tall as I was!  I have always had a love of flowers.  My first art memory is of drawing a vase of flowers on a colonial table, with a picture window behind them - for my mother.  I was four years old at the time.  I still remember the smell of the wooden window sill of that window.  I also remember the feel of sinking my little teeth into that same window sill, and the dusty taste of it.  Isn't that funny?  Mom would often put fresh flowers in a clear glass vase in front of that window.  She always had flowers in the garden, as did my grandma, and I remember every one.  I also have varieties from my Grandma Lynn, Grandma Bessie, my Grandma Frank's neighbor - the Ruhls, and a few from my Aunt Diana.  Flowers are little gifts that keep giving every year as they spread and bloom anew.  I am so fortunate to have the room to allow them grow and spread at will.  If they ever start to crowd, I can simply move them out to the pasture and hedgerows!  Painting number 866 in 866 days :)

Purple Iris

Purple Iris
Oil on wood panel, 5x7
purchase here

Every day, there are new irises blooming in the garden!  Today, three varieties popped open - these, a yellow and white, and a russet one.  I got out early - before my classes at the gym, and painted these purple beauties.  With my parents in town, my painting time is limited, so I am getting to the easel very early to get my painting in.  With a day full of shopping with Michaela and mom, we are now ready to go to another awards ceremony - this time just for the seniors.  Making this a quick post - painting number 865 in 865 days :)

Wine Country Lake

Wine Country Lake
Oil on wood panel, 10x8
Wine Country Gardens, Augusta Plein Air Art Event
purchase here

Wine Country Gardens is an amazing place to stop by for lunch.  Sitting high on a hill, overlooking the vineyard and the bottom land of the Missouri River, there are many paintings in this place.  Today, I chose the lake as my subject.  With little wind, the water was like glass, only the occasional ripple to brush the surface.  It was fun to visit with the many patrons as they walked by to see what we were painting.  I meet so many amazing people while painting in the field.  Painting number 864 in 864 days.

Glory at Balducci

Glory at Balducci
Oil on wood panel, 16x12
Balducci Sunset Paint - Augusta Plein Air Art Festival
now showing - Gallery at Defiance
purchase here

This year's sunset paint at Balducci's Winery was certainly one to remember!  For the first time in years - the weather was warm and wonderful, and a few clouds in the sky promised a fabulous sunset!  The third painting of the day, I started slowly after a thorough scouting of the area.  The barns ALWAYS lure me in!  With red wine in one hand and my brush in the other, I started laying paint.  The oils just flowed onto the surface, and the image emerged.  I left the sky completely blank until the actual sunset colors started - and I was rewarded with a show in the sky to capture on my panel!  Sunsets are SO much easier to paint from life! I should be doing these every day from my balcony at home! Painting number 863 in as many days.

on location

Snowball Bush in May

Snowball Bush in May
Oil on wood panel, 7x5
purchase here

Happy Mother's Day!!  The kids got me a new pink azalea and a beautiful red japanese maple - and planted them, too!  This was a day full of family, good food and fun at Mike's parent's house. After arriving home, I spent some more time working in the flower beds. And then it rained again, which sent me indoors.  This snowball bush was planted many years ago - and is much taller than I am!  The blooms are very full - and look so much like hydrangeas, they are fabulous to paint!  Working here with brush and knife, I have blocked in the masses and added the detail.  A last touch of petal work - and I'm calling it done. Painting number 862 in 862 days.

Ruffled White and Lavender Iris

Ruffled White and Lavender Iris
Oil on wood panel, 5x7
purchase here

What a busy day this has been!  After the gym and teaching an oil painting class, I headed out for some yard work.  My - how the weeds have popped up while I was away!  My parents arrive Tuesday for Michaela's high school graduation, so I have been busy trying to get everything in order.  This beautiful iris has just bloomed - and many more are ready to open.  This is one of the starts I was given from an artist friend, Myrtie Gourley, years ago.  I love how so many of my flowers remind me of the friends who shared them with me.  Quite a few have been given to me by those who are no longer with us, and what a joy it is to see them open and bloom each season!  I have completely painted this with my new brushes, not even taking out my palette knife.  I may use my knife in a few days, when the many others bloom.  Perhaps I will go for a looser interpretation then.  I am having fun in the exploration of the iris petals, with their many ruffles and papery texture.  Each day, there  is something new to inspire me.  I simply love this time of year!  Painting number 861 in 861 days.

Old Barn on St. Charles Street

Old Barn on St. Charles Street
Oil on wood panel, 9x12
New Melle, Augusta Plein Air Art Event
purchase here

My second painting of the Day at New Melle, this wonderful old barn was right across the street from our morning paint.  Teddy, Paige and I had already painted the barns at the pond, and this barn now had fabulous afternoon light shining on it!  With only about an hour to spare, I sketched this out quickly and started slapping that paint on just as fast!  I really painted this one without thinking, just letting the brush and colors find their own way on the wood surface.  I'm SO thankful to have my own primed birch panels to paint on for this event!  Every artist has their favorite substrates - and this is definitely mine!  I can and do paint on other surfaces, but the paint just seems to glide over wood in a way it never could over a woven surface.  The strokes are rather loose - largely because this was such a fast piece, and it also has the fresh look of a specific moment in time.  No time for the light to change and the shadows to shift here!  Painting number 860 in as many days.

on location

Pink and Violet Iris

Pink and Violet Iris
Oil on canvas panel, 6x8
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These are my first iris to bloom - and they are beauties!  I have always thought them challenging to paint.  With their papery stands and falls, translating that texture in oils can be tricky.  I sketched out the whole composition, trying to be more accurate than normal on the shapes of these petals.  Next, I cut in with the background - all of it - before adding any color to the blooms.  I mixed quin. magenta with alizarin crimson for both the stands and the falls, adding much more white to the stands.  Then, I pushed them towards the warm and cool as it appeared on the actual petals, illuminating them with the diffused light of the rainy day.  The light had changed drastically by the time I took the easel shot - and the sun popped out for 5 minutes!  I think I may try to do another in the late afternoon tomorrow - to capture how different the colors are in the sunshine!  That is, if we have sunshine tomorrow!  Painting number 859 in 859 days.

on location

Firecracker Columbine

Firecracker Columbine
Oil on unstretched canvas, 6x4 inches
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The columbine outside of my kitchen and pantry windows has simply exploded in my absence! My grandmother planted them decades ago, and still they flourish.  She called them firecracker columbines, and the fairy like heads sit atop very tall, wispy stems.  Today, I paint from my garden, but everywhere I went while running errands - I longed to set up my easel and paint!  I think I need a small guerrilla thumb box to just pop in the car for those quick little trips out.  Any one of them could turn into a painting adventure!  Painting number 858 in 858 days.

Fields of Plenty

Fields of Plenty
Oil on wood panel, 14x11
Kessler Farm, Augusta, Missouri
Augusta Plein Air Art Festival - sold

The special theme paint for the week was "Cream of the Crop".  I wanted to paint cows - and had been looking for them as we drove back and forth to other events.  A conversation on the night of the Balducci paint led us to the Kessler farm just hours before the turn in deadline.  A bit of scouting uncovered this amazing scene - off of the beaten path.  Tucked in beside the fence, I started this complicated composition with only and hour and 15 minutes to complete.  One by one, these beautiful cows came up and greeted me.  I kept stopping my brushwork to take their photos!  I will be able to turn SO many of them into fabulous paintings!  I did not make the deadline with this one, but was worth taking the extra time to finish.  Landscapes like this are priceless.  Painting number 857 in 857 days.

Into the Secret Garden Again

Into the Secret Garden Again
Mixed media, 11x14 - sold

This was my final painting of the Augusta Plein Air Festival.  In the afternoon light, the foliage and blooms of this wisteria glowed against the shade of the garden beyond.  This historic house of H.S. Clay is now a beautiful bed and breakfast, full of charm and an amazing breakfast that simply must be experienced!  This scene was the first to grab my attention when first arriving into town, and it took me the entire event before I could find the time to paint it!  I first sketched this out on an acrylic underpainting - which was a loosely stroked montage of blue, alizarin crimson and green, so I started with a dark surface and worked to the light.  I then used a palette knife to add the texture of the foliage and blooms - where the light was catching the most.  After this step was dry - not long on a warm day, I started in with the oils.  The whole process created a rich depth to the landscape.  This is painting number 856 in 856 days.

Pretty in Pink

Pretty in Pink
Oil on unstretched canvas, 4x4
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My pink tulips are now blooming - and although they are on the small side, they add a wonderful cool hue to the garden.  I have used both brush and knife to paint this small 4x4 inch painting.  First, I sketch out the composition as I want it, and then start laying in those colors until the canvas if full.  Then, I work with the knife, skimming over the first layer with new color - either darker or lighter then the first layer.  I pulled an ultramarine blue over the deep green, and white over the pinks to define the edges of the petals.  To add interest, I have popped in a few little touches of color - radiant turquoise, naples yellow pale and radiant magenta.  The key is to only lightly drop these in, too much negates the energy of having just a little.  Painting number 855 in 855 days.

Passionate Peonies

Passionate Peonies
Oil on wood, 12x9
Frisella's Nursery Paint Out
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Our morning paint out was scheduled for Frisella's Nursery - and wow - the place was brimming with flowers!  These peonies instantly grabbed my attention - and I headed right out to capture them in oils.  These always remind me of my grandmother, and we have these growing in the garden, too.  Another busy plein air day, this was only the first of three! Painting number 854 in 854 days.