Historic Plaza Lights

Historic Plaza Lights
Oil on panel, 12x9

The Kansas City Country Club Plaza Lights are something everyone should come see for the holidays!  A holiday tradition since 1930, these beautiful buildings are illuminated from Thanksgiving through January.  This is my first street scene - with cars and shoppers - and at night!  This is the view from outside Forever 21 - from a night of shopping with my youngest daughter and my parents. The dark, wet paint is hard to photograph at night without a glare - so I will retake it tomorrow in the daylight.  This is day 30 of 30 on the painting challenge - I can't believe I actually painted every day!

Lunch at Rozelle Court

Lunch at Rozelle Court
Oil on panel, 16x12

I must be crazy.  I chose this complicated interior for my daily painting.  I have never painted an interior so complex, or added gestural figures to a scene, and I also threw in difficult iron chairs and tables to the mix.  Oh, and I worked in a larger than normal size for a daily painting!  Well, the figures got easier with each one, the interior was actually fun - but the chairs were not!  I already see things I want to edit a bit - but the day is almost gone - and I have to get this posted for the 30 day challenge.  What a challenge this certainly was!

Sweet Poetry

Sweet Poetry
Oil on panel, 9x12

My youngest daughter has a special gift for playing her guitar.  All of us play one instrument or another, and I plan to use this as the subject matter for future figure work.  Working on this today has been sheer joy. With each brushstroke, the image emerges.  I find I am seeing more colors in the subject, with each painting I do.  So much of creating the painting is actually seeing what is before me.  These last two pieces have been so rewarding!  I find myself setting up poses in the middle of the night, painting while I sleep, sometimes thinking so hard of what I want to paint - that I can not sleep at all.  It is such a creative adventure - and I do not know what is around the bend.  This path is so exciting - why didn't I start painting every day years ago?  This is day 28 of the 30 day painting challenge and I am SO glad I committed to this event!  It is taking me places I had only thought about :)

First Guitar Lesson

First Guitar Lesson
Oil on panel, 12x9

Today, I get serious about figure work.  I have always drawn figures and portraits in graphite, but I have never really tried painting them in oils.  It is something I really want to be good at, and that only happens with a lot of hard work with the paints.  A few days ago my youngest daughter was teaching little Alan a few chords on the Baby Taylor, and here I have captured that moment in oils.  I can't wait to see where this path leads me.......This is day 27 of the 30 day painting challenge, and there are only a few days left :)

Farm House in the Flint Hills

Farmhouse in the Flint Hills
14x11, oil on panel

We drove through the Flint Hills yesterday on our way to K-State for a competition.  These hills are so beautiful - and full of paintable landscapes.  Anyone driving from Topeka to Manhattan will recognize this farmhouse sitting back in the hills just north of I-70.  It was fun capturing the light on the golden winter grasses, and the purplish tree branches.  I need to go  back when I can the whole day to painting!  This is day 26 of the 30 day painting challenge - and I have learned so much this month!  I heard from a friend on Friday that life begins outside of your comfort zone - can this be true?

Watching Bugs

Watching Bugs
Oil on panel, 14x11

I have never tried any figure work in oil, so I decided to paint these two little darlings down by the river behind my parent's house.  I used a photo I took last summer for reference - and started laying in my colors.  The push and pull between the figures and the landscape had me cooling off the background to bring the children to the foreground.  This painting took so much longer than usual - on a day I really needed a quick subject!  Out of town all day, I just returned to finish this one up.  The drawing is easy for me, but selecting the right colors takes so much time.  I think this is only the first of many figure explorations on my horizon.  This is day 25 of the 30 day challenge, and I think I'll paint the Flint Hills tomorrow :)

Triple Chocolate Dream

Triple Chocolate Dream
Oil on panel, 6x6

In keeping with my theme of painting new subjects on the second half of this challenge - today I paint a cupcake!  I picked this little gem up at our local bakery on Main Street - Butterfly Kisses Bakery.  I bought three cupcakes, wrapped up in their fancy bags, I hid them in the laundry room so no one would eat them before I could paint them.  What do I find when I go to get started?  My husband had finished off the peanut butter cup one - not a crumb left!  So, instead of a delicious trio of cupcakes on a fancy cake plate, we have only one on a china plate from a dear friend.  Dessert, anyone?  This is day 24 of the 30 day painting challenge - what shall I paint next?

Shakespeare by Lamplight

Shakespeare by Lamplight
Oil on panel, 11x14

I started late in the day on this one, first with a detailed sketch.  I used photo reference for the lamp (thanks, Chris!), using my own Tiffany lamp for the lighting in the interior set up.  I have always been drawn to this kind of art - but I have only just started to try my hand at it.  After the sketch, I had to stop, to later start for 30 minutes - to stop again for a meeting at the high school.  I hated to put down the brush - I was so in the zone!  By the time I returned, there were chores to finish - and I didn't go back to it.  I tried to sleep - but could not.  For three hours I tried - and I kept thinking out my next strokes, the colors, the mood.  It was hopeless, so I got up and finished this painting!  Sometimes, there is just a painting inside me that wants out so badly - I am simply forced to submit to it's will.  It is so exciting to go down this road - just as if the paintings are painting themselves and I am just along for the ride.  This is day 23 of the 30 day painting challenge - and dare I say this challenge may have changed my life?

A Little Gossip

A Little Gossip
Oil on panel, 14x11

I wanted to study the light on these birds in depth - so I worked from photo reference and my sketches from the plein air day at the KC Zoo.  The last two days have been my first experiences in painting these beauties - and I wanted to do them justice.  They are just so sassy with each other - it was a joy to watch them so closely - and capture them with paint!  I underplayed their real colors in this one - truly the red on these birds is cad red light straight from the tube!  I am finding that I LOVE painting animals!  This is day 22 of the 30 day painting challenge - and this daily painting has now become a habit :)

High in the Tree

High in the Tree
Oil on panel, 12x6

This was the first painting of the cold day at KC Zoo.  I painted from the second level of this 2 story setting.  The Macaws were SO brilliant in color - and so beautiful!  The last time I was at the zoo - I really wanted to paint them, but I didn't have my paints.  This was a very cushy location for such a cold day - nice and warm inside - and very little zoo traffic since it was so cold out.  When I paint animals in plein air, I first sketch out the composition directly on my panel.  Next, I lay in the main colors quickly - while they are in the same positions.  If one moves, I find another in a similar position - or move to a different one completely.  There were four parrots in this exhibit, so it really was pretty easy to capture their poses and colors.  If none were cooperating, then I would work on the background.  You just have to be flexible and fast - and know if you don't capture it quickly - you may not another chance!  This is the 21st day of the 30 day painting challenge - and I am just loving the opportunity to branch out and paint new subject matter!  Super fun!

Nushi's Favorite Spot

Nushi's Favorite Spot
Oil on panel, 10x8

MVIS Zoo Paint-Out

 This painting day was spent at the Kansas City Zoo - on a Missouri Valley Impressionist's Society Plein Air Paint-Out.  This Red Crowned Crane spent at least an hour in front of this little waterfall with a jet shooting right into her face!  Mind you, it is in the 20's and ice has formed on the sides of the fall - and she loves the this spot!  Only leaving it for a few minutes, she made a great animal subject - keeping this position as long as I needed her to.  I have never painted zoo animals in plein air - and this was a wonderful experience!  I hope to return often!  This is day 20 of the 30 day painting challenge - and I am so glad I am a part of it!

Lamplight on the Table

Lamplight on the Table
Oil on panel, 10x8

I was painting this one in my head all day - while at my son's  basketball game, lunch, shopping with my daughter, and countless other household things on my plate.  I didn't start laying paint until 9:30 at night!  I was so tired, but with the first strokes - the excitement started.  I went into it thinking, I'll just give this painting an hour tonight.........but I just couldn't stop until it was finished!  I am having SO much fun exploring this whole new painting world!  I have already chosen a couple of new subjects to try in the coming days!  This is day 19 out of 30 of the painting challenge - now I'm off to plein air paint at the zoo!

Hot Tea and a Good Book

Hot Tea and a Good Book
Oil on panel, 8x10

Surprise!  This is my first interior painting ever!  Inspired by the artists on the 30 day painting challenge - I chose this setting in my living room for my subject matter.  I had SO much fun painting this!  I simply did not want to stop painting!  This is a table full of memories, my dad made the table out of his father's walnut, the lamp was a Christmas gift from my children years ago, the tea pot - a favorite find at a local antique shop, curtains from my parent's victorian home, and the teacup and saucer a gift from my sister-in-law's mother-in-law!  The book is on the beauty of impressionism, and the hot tea is my absolute favorite Teavana flavor - samurai chai mate!  This painting is total exploration - I have zero experience in this genre!  It was very satisfying to use the bold colors I rarely find in the landscape.  Could I have uncovered a new favorite painting style?  This is day 18 of the 30 day challenge......what will I paint next?

Cedar Waxwings

Cedar Waxwings
Oil on panel, 12x9

Once a year, normally the first or second week in January, these birds flock the the giant Bradford pear tree outside my bedroom window.  These beauties jump from branch to branch eating the little berries until they are almost gone.  They are only here a couple days - not to return until next January.  I was lucky enough to be home to paint them from my window!  I'm still playing with the brushstrokes - and really enjoying the heavy paint.  This is day 17 of the 30 day painting challenge - and I am actually getting comfortable in this routine :)

Glistening Snow

Glistening Snow
Oil on panel, 16x12

Knowing this would be a busy day, I worked from photo reference taken last week of a stream close to home.  This painting day was one full of starts and stops.  About half way through this process, my focus changed.  I suddenly wanted this painting to be about the brushwork.  The snow was fresh and sparkly on that morning - and I wanted that to come through with the oils.  The paint is heavy - and the strokes vary - switching from left to right.  This causes the light to reflect and glisten - lie the snow.  This is day 16 of Leslie Saeta's 30 day painting challenge - and I've not missed one yet!

The Pond in Winter

The Pond in Winter
Oil on panel, 16x12

The very best part of painting at home is that I can run up to the house at any time.  I need some more hot tea or a warm up break - the house is just a short walk away.  I almost missed a meeting completely yesterday - because I was on my way to this pond to paint.  If I hadn't gotten a phone call - I never would have remembered it!  There is just something about being so absorbed in my work - it is as if the world disappears and all that exists is this moment in time.  I simply must remember to put all appointments into my phone - with the alarm set!
(Day 15 of the 30 day challenge....)

Snow on the Hay Bales

Snow on the Hay Bales
Oil on panel, 14x11

The heavily overcast day set the mood for this painting.  These hay bales are lined up like soldiers  down by the pond - and were begging me to paint them.  I only used three colors for this one - my ultramarine blue, cad red light, and just a touch of my new italian yellow earth......and of course my titanium white.  Another thick and juicy oil painting - I find I am using one large filbert brush for the bulk of the painting, pulling out a small sable flat only at the end.  This is day 14 of the 30 day painting challenge - and I am now thinking about continuing this daily painting past the 30 days.........

Fallen Snow

Fallen Snow
Oil on panel, 11x14

So happy to have a beautiful snow on the ground!  I am going to have a multitude of winter scenes to choose my Christmas cards from next December! It is wonderful to be ahead of the game - instead of playing catch up.  This is day 13 of the 30 day painting challenge - and I feel like I am developing a routine for consistent painting.  I knew I would be very busy today - so I stayed up late painting most of this one last night.  I put the finishing touches on this morning - and already have my next scene picked out.  One of my goals for this 30 day challenge was to improve the way I approach tree painting - adding more character and texture to the bark.  I am really loading up the paint these days - which makes this goal much more achievable.  With these last three paintings, I have returned to using no medium at all.  This allows the full thickness of the paint to build up easily on the panel.  I am still loving the Windsor Newton white - why did I ever switch?

Home Through the Corn Field

Home Through the Corn Field
Oil on panel, 16x12

This was a remarkable painting day! I finished with the day's tasks by 2:00, and could start my painting at a leisurely pace.  I wanted time to accurately capture this place - as it is home - and dear to my heart.  I picked up a tube of Windsor Newton white (since I have not had a chance to get over to Utrecht).  I had forgotten how much I love the character of the pigment!  It has been a joy to lay in these last two paintings with it - I may not go back to my other favorite brand......This is day 12 of the 30 day painting challenge - and I feel like I am turning over a new leaf with these recent oils :)

Snow in the Woods

Snow in the Woods
Oil on panel, 14x11

Today the snow rolled in heavy and thick, laying down a fresh blanket on the landscape.  I couldn't start this one until after 7:00 tonight, so I am in the studio.  Hot cocoa praline tart tea and relaxing music in the background set the scene for this project.  I start differently, blocking the whole scene in with my Gamblin grays - before adding any colors. As a result, my layers of paint are so thick and juicy!  I love the moodiness of this - it is just the way it looked today as front moved in.  This is day 11 of the 30 day painting challenge - and this is the latest I have posted yet!

Peaceful Pond

Peaceful Pond
Oil on panel, 6x8

This quiet little spot is a wonderful escape from the daily grind.  Peaceful and still, the water is hardly moving.  The dead grasses of winter have turned gold and reddish - the perfect compliment to a clear blue sky.  I have been playing with different blue paints this last week, and today I find myself reaching for my trusted ultramarine blue.  The pigment strength is so much better than the others I have been playing with.  I simply can't mix the darks I want with these other colors.  This is day 10 of the 30 day painting challenge - 1/3 of the way through!  I am finding that my life is just too full to easily finish a painting every day.  Yesterday, I did not even find time to eat until 7:30 at night - but I got my painting posted!  By sheer will alone I will see this through - trying new techniques and learning from each panel painted.  I am also working on a large piece - which is still not ready.  Each night, I think it is finished, and in the cold light of day - I see that it is not.  I will let it rest for a day or two - and look again with fresh eyes.

Morning Light on the Hay Field

Morning Light on the Hay Field
Oil on panel, 14x11

It is a misty, rainy day out - one of my favorite days for painting in the studio!  I had big plans.....hours of uninterrupted painting, glorious experimenting with my new oils.....and then life started in with it's little tricks.  A husband home sick with the flu, a grandbaby who wanted my undivided attention, and so many interruptions I can not even think straight!  I only have 15 minutes before I must get my youngest to her guitar lesson - so here goes.  Day 9 of the painting challenge - and by some miracle I have finished this painting - I think!  I had started this in plein air and completed it in little spurts of time today.  I hope tomorrow is a better painting day.......

Morning Mockingbird

Morning Mockingbird
Oil on panel, 10x8

This is the first mockingbird to come to the feeders in all these years!  He showed up on the first day of snowfall, and perches on the same branches of the rose of sharon  each morning.  A bit fluffed up from the cold, he keeps looking over his shoulder at me, to see just what I am up to!  I was half way through this painting before I remembered I prefer painting wildlife in acrylic!  Too late for that - so it is oils all the way!  I did use a bit of the walnut oil alkyd to sharpen some of my lines here - and it worked just great.  This is day 8 of the painting challenge - and I am off to get a jump start on the next one :)

January Morning

January Morning
Oil on panel, 10x8

I started this one when the snow was still on, finishing it just today.  I used a heavily textured surface before laying paint, and the paint was rather thick in the cold as well.  The early morning light throwing shadows on the snow drew me to this scene.  This is day 7 of the painting challenge - and it is getting harder and harder to meet this challenge as school activities and sports resume for the kids.........but I am determined to give it my best and just let the chips fall where they may!

Path Through the Snow

Path Through the Snow
Oil on panel, 8x6

Day 6 of the painting challenge - and boy am I glad I had time to paint 2 one day last week!  With a tightly packed schedule today - there has been no time for my oils!  Not far from home, this little path is really a dried up creek bed - now filled in with snow.   The day was overcast, a little moody, and the wind was kicking up.  Painting from my car, I quickly blocked this one in.  I am using another new color - venetian red in the Maimeri oils.  I think this image shows the red as being stronger than it truly is - and I will try to get a new image when I have the time.  The paint was smooth and ultra creamy.  This was a fast paint, so I may go back and make a few adjustments.......A tip I picked up from another plein air "car" painter in Maine - gorilla tape is great for attaching your panel to the steering wheel.  She says it is good from 0 - 90 degrees, but under 10 below - it doesn't stick to anything!

Stream in Winter

The Stream in Winter
oil on panel, 6x12
sold

Sticking close to home, this stream leads to an old railroad bridge.  I drive by it almost every day - and have always wanted to paint this location.  I chose this tall panel size to emphasize the turns of the water, and because I am almost out of surfaces to paint on!  I used my new Capri Blue by Maimeri - the colori grezzi del Mediterraneo -for this landscape.  I love the super creamy consistency, but found it hard to get the darker shades I can get with ultramarine.  The pigment is not as strong, and the color fades quickly when adding white or any color.  I did like the way I could pull the paint through the water, for reflections.  I suspect it would be very good for portrait work - as the paint is not even tacky on the second day, allowing a larger window of workable time.  I also tried the santorini white, but I could not build up texture at all with it and it seemed transparent upon application.  So, I had to go back to the fastmatte white for the snow, finishing with a palette knife.  I was hoping this white would tide me over for a while, but it looks like I will be heading to Utrecht's this week!  This is Day 5 of the painting challenge - and now I must get to taking down the Christmas decorations :)

Snow on the Hedgeapple Tree

Snow on the Hedgeapple Tree
Oil on Panel, 8x6

I love the twisted forms of old hedgeapple trees - and we have lots of them on the property!  This is Day 4 of the painting challenge - and I actually painted two today.  I used two new italian classico oils by Maimeri.  They are VERY creamy.  They are so creamy, that it was difficult for me to lay other colors into it - for building up the tree bark and the snow layers.  No medium used at all - it would have made these paints too thin.  It is so fun to experiment - and I have 3 colors yet untouched!

Frosty Morning - Day 3 of the 30 day challenge....

Frosty Morning
Oil on panel, 11x14

So, this is day 3 of the 30 day painting challenge - and so far, so good.  I find this commitment pushes me to make sure I have time for painting!  I already have the next week's worth of places picked out to paint.  The snow is melting, but there is a chance of some more in the next week.  I have again used the fastmatte white for painting.  I like the way I can build up the texture easily, but I do like a shine to my oils - so I am missing that.  I must get more supports and another white tube of paint today.  This scene is also close to home, and is really little more than a ravine.  The clearing skies were fun to capture.  I am thinking of trying a new color of blue.  I use a limited palette, and I have used ultramarine forever.......I am just wondering what else is out there.  Maybe something wonderful just begging to squeeze out on my palette.  I am definitely going to the art store today.....

Snow in the Creek Bed

Snow in the Creek Bed
Oil on panel - 8x6

Had it not been for the 30 paintings in 30 days challenge, I would not have painted today.  I am almost out of panels - and could only find 8x6's on hand.  I watched the grandbabies for most of the day, one of whom is coming down sick.  I am officially out of all white tubes of paint - except for one, Gamblin's Fastmatte white - which I used here (only because I had to).  It has a thicker texture, which I like for the snow.  I am also trying a new medium - walnut oil alkyd.  I don't use mediums most of the time, so the jury is still out on this one.  I painted this from photos I just took close to home.  No painting out with a 3 and 5 year old in the snow!

Winter Woodpeckers

Winter Woodpeckers
Acrylic on Panel - 8x10
sold

The last of my family (in for the holidays) just left - and now it is time to turn my attentions back to painting - well, after the sledding.....  So many birds are coming to the feeders with the snow on - it is the perfect opportunity for painting them!  I used my acrylics and gel mediums to build this one up.  I love the detail I can get with my acrylics - and Golden is my favorite brand.  The pigment is truly artist grade - and I can achieve sharp detail that just isn't possible with my oils.  Starting today, I am going to enter a thirty day painting challenge for the month of January on Leslie Saeta's Slices of Life blog.  My paintings will be posted on this site, as well as the work of all other artists participating.  As of Day one - I am the 63rd artist to accept the challenge.   It will be so fun and inspirational to see what others are completing.  What a great way to start the new year :)