Some of you commented that the previous flower painting was a nice change from the landscape. Here's another mini. We attended a lovely wedding on Long Island, and these flowers were on each table. I love flowers, and was fortunate enough to be given a bouquet to take home. When I frame it this little painting will be a little gift for the bride.

Thanks to all of you who were patient with my while I learned how to manage this site and put my work up on a regular basis. I've been sending you morning paintings since mid-June. Time for me to take a little break and reconnect with family. I'll start again, though sometime in August. I can't be away from the easel for long.

Edge of a Pond

It took quite a few layers of glazing to give this image the depth and definition I wanted. The composition is a delicate balance of the verticals and horizontals and the mood of the day very quiet. The blue of the pond was exaggerated a little to give it more of a presence. Each part of the landscape should come alive to you in its own way as you view this painting.

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It's so nice to receive an unexpected gift of flowers. This little arrangement came to my husband from a cataract surgeon following surgery. What a nice touch! I loved the simple arrangement and liked how they looked sitting on the counter in a mixed light pattern. Small, inexpensive paintings are perfect for beginning collectors at the art shows since I don't do reproductions, so I try to have a few "minis" on hand throughout the year. Sold

Here's another pass at the larger picture I'm working on. The light is not totally consistent and the foliage on the large bush needs better definition. I've been doing smaller pieces between working this painting, and working on my schedule for the fall and winter shows. The schedule will be on my website later this week at http://www.sunshinestudios.net, so take a look. I've shown shows as "tentative" if I haven't decided yet or haven't been given notification of acceptance.

The Everglades are full of areas where you see the palms agains a background of brush. Sometimes they're separated from the background, like here, and you can see light behind them. Other times they are up against a wall of growth. Investigating the growing pattern of the palms against their backgroud shows that each group has it's own personality. It's one of my favorite subjects and I return to it again and again. This group can be found in the Fakahatchee.

Beach Day

This great little beach is perfect to swim and shell. Between a sandbar and the beach we've seen manatee and dolphin, and small baitfish are plentiful. Our grandchildren love to play that they've been left on a deserted island and must fend for themselves and find coconuts to eat. Next time maybe I'll put them in the painting!

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Field Passage

Yesterday was busy and I never got back to the large painting I'm working on. I love color so much that it's a real problem to do a neutral painting. Neutrals are good for practicing values, so I thought to work neutrally on a small painting. This one started out all whites and beiges. As I painted, the color just crept in! It's soft, but still more color than I intended. I like it, though. I'll try neutral another day.

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This little painting is, for me, a "mini" painting. A painting like this sometimes takes only a couple of hours to do. It's a great way to warm up, take a break from a larger painting, learn a new technique or try out a composition. Sometimes it may take all day in an effort to get the mood just right! Some enterprising artists are making their living by selling miniatures and postcard sized paintings on Ebay. Mine are only occasional, come from me directly, and are framed and ready to hang in a simple gold frame.

By the way, feel free to forward this posting to any of your friends who might be interested in subscribing to my "almost daily" emails! Thanks!

Autumn Sundance

This painting started life on a completely different path and has undergone a metamorphasis as complete as a butterfly! I overpainted a disappointing base, and let my brushes dance their way to a painting with new life. The underlying painting gives depth and character to the forms.

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My dear husband brought home a DVD about Cezanne yesterday, so I spent some time watching that instead of painting. The brush strokes were clearly visible and it was helpful to see their cleanness and their direction, rich, rich surface texture and wonderful composition.

I still had some time to complete this little 11x14 of Dan House Prairie. Do you think watching Cezanne had an effect?

You can see more color and brightness than at the "block out," but the painting still has a long way to go. While there is more color, it's still not making sense and doesn't have balance yet. The light's not consistent either. For me it's a build up and tear down process until I'm satisfied with the whole. Sometimes a painting will change completely before I'm done!

I started this new painting yesterday morning. It's what I call the "block-out" stage. The canvas was first covered with a warm dark. I usually start dark and work back and forth between the lights and darks, building structure and light as I go. It's fuzzy at this early stage but you can still see the basic design. At this point I take a break and look to see if the painting works for me. This one does, so I'll work more on it today.

What does a new day mean for you? Do you greet the sunrise with joy? Do you appreciate that each and every morning is unique, with a special arrangement of clouds and colors and changing light? Do you take a moment to breath deeply and be thankful for the day whatever it may bring?

Anticipating Spring

Our boat is perfect for kids, older folks, a little fishing and comfortable enough for some painting or sketching. We went quietly floating along close by the bank of the Marco River one day in early spring. This painting is the result. The brush is still green but just a little bit moody and dry with a hint of the new growth to come. This was done back in the studio, with the memory of it fresh in my mind.

I posted this painting just about a month ago, but after looking at it for a while I wasn't satisfied and made some dramatic color changes. It's a better painting now, with more depth and movement.

A while ago my work was featured on the WGCU-TV show about the arts called "Expressions". I've added a link to that video. Take a look!
http://www.wgcu.com/expressions/expressions-of-arts.aspx?PageIndex=11

Golden Autumn Evening

The colors are much more golden in the coolness of fall. Yesterday I did some fine-tuning of this painting from last fall and am pleased with it at last. I'm doing studio clean up, ordering supplies and re-working unfinished pieces while it's too hot to paint "en plein air." I've been out to the Everglades this week, but the heat sent me home much too quickly. I did take some photos, and may work from them later in the week.
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Dancing in Sunlight

It's too hot for us to dance in sunlight, but these palms know that an afternoon shower may cool them off. We have had some rain, but like much of the country are far below what we need. Fresh water from heavy rain is necessary to the good health of the Everglades. Our climate may be changing quicker than we would like. It's done that before, but not dramatically in human memory. Are we, as a dominant species, overwhelming earth's vital organs?

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As far as I am concerned, dusk is the magical hour anywhere, but in the quiet of the glades, nature often puts on a show to mark the closing of another day. Last night the very air was infused with soft color, with luscious soft reflections, as the river of grass and the swaying palms paid homage to the setting sun. Hope you like it!

Marco Island's fireworks didn't last long due to some technical and safety issues, but still seemed to have made an impression on these nighttime, backlit palms.

I'm involved with the Marco Island Foundation for the Arts, and will be holding a public exhibtion of outdoor sculpture called ArtQuest 2008. If you know a sculptor who does outdoor work, have them visit http://www.marcoarts.org/ for more information. Holiday 16x20 Sold

Hot Spot was sent off this week to be part of the National Associaton of Women Artists annual show. Founded in 1889, N.A.W.A. is the oldest professional women's fine arts organization in the United States, continually providing a forum for women artists to share ideas and exhibit their work.

The show is at NAWA headquarters, 80 Fifth Avenue in New York City. If you are in the neighborhood, stop in and take a look! You'll see a great selection of paintings from American women artists from all over the country.

Red, white and blue for the Fourth of July! This older painting came back to me when a client redecorated and wanted something larger. I love the cheery summer colors and easy-on-the-eye composition. Have a wonderful Fourth--and be grateful to be free!

There was another article about the delay of Everglades restoration on the front page of this morning's paper. We need the gently moving water and cleansing large prairies for the health of the Gulf of Mexico. The mangrove fringes act as a nursery for the Gulf, where the smaller fish find food and shelter. It's a beauiful place of mystery and magic and deserves to be valued.

This time of year in south Florida you don't stand out in the sun talking, you move under the shade of the nearest trees. It feels at least ten degrees cooler! This one's closer to home than some of my Everglades work. Just finished after making some last minute changes.