Night Falls on Court Street

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Just an hour before, this lovely home was the spot for the Artists Dinner, where good food and good friends gathered. Door prizes and gifts abounded - and I won the first one, true to form!  Dena, Melinda, Cindy, and the other committee members hosted us with flair, making sure that everyone had a gift before leaving. I have a history of winning door prizes often, and I even won a painting raffle, too!  As the artists drifted into the streets for nocturne painting, I kept coming back to this side view of Dena's house.  I asked them to turn on the lights, and then I knew I had to paint it.  As I painted, Kathy Morrison set up to paint the alley, after hanging multi colored string lights on her car!  That girl knows how to nocturne!  It was a fun evening of comraderie as we all painted and laughed.  I finished pretty early, and left the others to finish together, since I had a couple of commissions to work on.  We never leave an artist alone to finish. I'm so happy this painting found a home within those walls, too.  Painting number 5018 in 5018 days. 

Nocturne at the Nelson

 

What fun it was to paint the illuminated Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art from across the reflecting pool - at NIGHT!  LOVE the painting opportunities that arise for the Brush Creek Art Walk!  It was my first time to paint this beauty at night - and also the first time for me to paint the back of this iconic building.  The evening weather had cooled back from nearly 100 degrees, and it was fun to share this space with other artists, and visit along the way.  Painting number 4991 in 4991 days. 

Garden Nocturne

What a lovely night for a nocturne in the garden, at one of my favorite places - the Main Street Inn in Sainte Genevieve!  After dinner at the Brick House and walking through the town listening to the live music, Mom and I returned to the inn to find live music playing nearby, clearly heard from the garden!  So I grabbed my gear - and Mom - are started sketching.  The band stopped before I hardly got started, and my nocturne light went out.  So, I sketched with the ambient light, only turning this light back on for the photo.  I'll need to put that charging cord in my sketch bag from now on! Painting number 4967 in 4967 days. 

Night at Cobblestone Lodge

During the High School Plein Air event where I mentored for the weekend, I led a group of students each night in a nocturne painting.  The first night painting for many of them, it was a fun adventure!  We painted under some street lamps while looking out at illuminated buildings.  I painted the lodge at the Cobblestone River Resort, who hosted is all for the weekend.  What a fun evening spent sharing my love of art with another generation!  Painting number 4920 in 4920 days. Now Showing at Gallery Zeke in Steelville, Missouri. 
 

Night Falls at the Courthouse

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I love painting nocturnes so much - and love it even more when my paintings find a home!  Balmy, autumn nights are the absolute best for painting, so I set up on Main Street, even though my friends were too tired to join me.  Thankfully, the rain held off until I was finished with capturing the magic! Thanks to Farley Lewis, for the honorable mention and kind words!  Painting number 4671 in 4671 days. 

Night at Kactus Creek

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 It's always fun to explore a new place - especially with paint!  This Croquet Club is super cool! The bright greens illuminated at night, with a vintage home as a backdrop was all I needed to set up on the spot and start painting!  When painting a nocturne, I like to wait for the darkness before really laying paint.  So, I sketched out my scene with my brush, marking lights and darks as they developed. I wanted some of that last blue light in the sky before full darkness, and the water tower in shadow in the background, too.  A real sense of place can be established with just a few small details.  I'm so happy this painting was selected for the Purchase Award, too.  What an honor!  Painting number 4666 in 4666 days. 

Twilight Ice Cream Run

Each night as we returned from a show at the Hoover Auditorium, this scene would jump out at me - begging me to paint it!  After Mom and I enjoyed a cup and walked back to our hotel, it seemed too late to return.  I knew last night would be my final chance - so I ran back up there and painted it.  What I started in the twilight was full night when I finished.  Some paintings just need to be painted.  Painting number 4583 in 4583 days. I'm thankful this one went to a new home at today's Wet Paint Sale!  

Evening on Walnut

I didn't remember to take a photo of this until I got it framed in my trunk!  It was a lovely evening for Movie Night in Augusta, complete with wine and food trucks, as well as other vendors. Standing on the corner of Walnut and Ferry streets.  I wonder how the river front looked when the ferry arrived, before the wide Missouri shifted away from the town.  This historic street is magical at night, full of small town charm as many visit as I paint. Nocturnes are always fun - and a surprise when you see them in daylight!  Painting number in days and this one is now showing at Gallery Augusta. 

Parkville Aglow

 

Enamored with the night lights on Main Street the night before, I arrived early to try to capture the magic.  Lights adorn buildings, street lamps abs doorways, spilling or onto the street.  So, I painted all that light first, and then started in on the buildings and the dark passages.  I saved the night sky for last, when light was coming up at the horizon.  That transitional light is my very favorite in the field, and a joy to capture with paint.  I love painting on Main Street in Parkville, and I'm honored this painting won the Paint the Town Purchase Award tonight!  Painting number 5158 in 5158 days. 

Night Impressions in Fairfield

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I think this was the first building in town that I painted when I arrived in Fairfield years ago.  I stood in the shade of the giant maples on the courthouse lawn, and painted in this direction. The architecture is so unique, I've not seen anything like it in other Midwest towns.  So, after dinner at a friend's home, a few of us artists hit the streets to paint a nocturne in this lovely night. Rain is coming, so we all must paint while the weather is great!  I'm so happy this painting won the Purchase Award from Diane Robinson.  Painting number 5180 in 5180 days. 

Alley Magic

What an amazing evening it was to paint such a beautiful alley!  This magical little place is just outside of Jovalou on Main Street in Fairfield, Illinois.  I started this before the twilight sky turned black, and the play between the colors was magical!  Getting lost the moment, I got a little crazy with my color  - as is often the case with nocturne painting.  It seems I stray farther from reality and more toward painting what I feel.  It's all about expression - and SO MUCH FUN! Painting number 5174 in 5174 days.  

Night on 3rd and Main

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Another night, another nocturne! I was undecided about painting a fourth painting today, but with several of my friends going out after dinner, I just had to join in on the fun!  I love this corner of 3rd and Main, and have painted it several times through the years. This time, there was a brightly lit message board behind me, which cast it's various colors on my work. There's no telling what it looks like until i open my trunk in the morning! Not quite sure I'm finished, but the lightening and thunder told me I was! Painting number 5173 in 5173 days. 

Looking Down Main Street

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Sometimes, I've just got to paint a nocturne! I love painting my favorite inn at Sainte Genevieve.  Mom and I are enjoying an early Mother's Day weekend at the Main Street Inn, where the proprietor and conversation are always entertaining! Great breakfasts, shopping, dining, Chaumette Winery and a tour of the Jean Baptiste Valle House where the art of local colony artists of the 30s and 40s was displayed, suns up our brief and fun filled days.  Oh - and of course squeezed in those daily paintings!  Painting number 5038 in 5038 days. 

Night at Gallery Augusta

It was lovely to spend such a beautiful evening painting with artist friends in historic downtown Augusta, and this golden gallery was irresistible!  Using the light from a street lamp, I quickly marked out my masses with their local color.  I like to start nocturnes while there is still some blue in the sky, before it turns very dark.  This allows me to paint those hints of color that show in the shadows - while I can still see them.  As my friends painted, I finished this and another painting of the cottage across from this building, too.  It's rare to have such perfect weather, so I just had to take full advantage of it all.  Painting number 5037 in 5037 days. 

Gallery Augusta Lit

As the lights came up in Augusta, I was drawn to this scene. As I sketched it in paint, the lights popped on across the street.  After talking to the owners, I decided to lay this one aside to work on their sweet cottage. I finished before the other artists on the street, so I came back to this one.  That gorgeous gold is a super color on the gallery, and so very paintable at night!  Painting number 5028 in 5028 days.

Art and Eats on 1st St

 

Coming soon to the Artwork on Main Gallery in Owensville is this nocturne painted of the gallery and it's neighbor, 1st Street Eats. I stayed in those beautiful rooms above the shop a couple of times during the plein air event, and it was so convenient for a quick little nocturne.  This place is full of small town charm, and I'm looking forward to painting here again in October. Painting number 5020 in 5020 days. 

#artistlife #artworksonmain #galleryart #historicdistrict #sketchlife

Evening Daffodils

 

Some days I don't get a chance to paint until nightfall.  I love to have these beauties waiting for me just outside the door, when I do finally come to my easel.  This day has been full of activities, with kids and grandkids.  From tractor rides to cellar duties, too reorganizing a couple of rooms, I hardly know which way is up.  So a little art therapy is in order, and a fragrant foot and hand soak awaits as I finally close down this day. Painting number 4975 in 4975 days. 

Evening at Jovalou

 

What a great alley to paint for a nocturne, and the night was balmy and so very comfortable! Many is the time I shiver when painting at night, so I appreciate the gorgeous weather!  I only just saw these lights for the first time the day before, and popped in to see if they'd turn them on when i arrived.  It didn't take long to get the masses marked, and I started filling in the color.  As I worked I could see lightening rolling in from the west, so I worked quickly.  Painting outside nearly every day, I can tell when I need to kick it up a notch - or get wet! I finished and was back at my host home when the first raindrops began to fall.  It was pouring in no time, and I'm thankful I dodged the rain! Now that I've found this place, I can hardly wait to paint it again next year.  I'm happy this painting has a new home, and it is painting number 3917 in 3917 days.  ♥️🎨

Nighttime Hydrangea

 

I'm coming to my easel late tonight after a fun evening with friends - and I'm happy to paint these beauties from the front porch!  These Little Lime hydrangea have really grown into big, gorgeous bushes in the last few years and oh how I appreciate them!  All my life I wanted glorious hydrangea, and I finally have them. And, they are perfect for my pre-1845 farmhouse!  For those late nights when I need close subject matter - they can't be beat!  They are right off the front porch and illuminated by the Edison lights - couldn't be more convenient!  Painting number 3877 in 3877 days. 

Night at Crestview Dairy

What a gorgeous night for a nocturne paint!  After finishing a sunset painting on the street side of this property, the gentle glow from the barn light led me here.  It gets dark so late this time of year, that it seemed the light would never fade!  I tried a new nocturne light tonight, a Braun slim rechargeable, magnetic one, but I found it to be too bright.  It sheds a bluish light, so I'm guessing this painting has warmer tones that will be revealed in daylight.  I tried painting with very little light on my panel, so tomorrow morning will truly be a surprise when I open my trunk!  I was nearly the last artist on site, and I'm so glad I stayed to capture the night magic! This painting will be hanging at the Crestview Dairy in the wet paint sale until Saturday evening - of it doesn't sell before that! Painting number 3808 in 3808 days