2021 Work
I'm consolidating this past year's work, making a portfolio of sorts, here on my blog before we slip into 2022. Time has never really felt the same since our world had it's first lockdown and the subsequent viral load that continues to thrum around the world. The work continued though, and it's been gratifying and humbling to have sold and shipped art to California, New York, Massachusetts, Florida, North Carolina, Maine, Louisiana and South Carolina this year! Having an Etsy shop where purchasing is made super simple has enabled me to continue my painting, and I couldn't be more grateful. So here's the work of 2021:
Unfinished is exactly that! You can see my original underpainting on the bottom left, which came about when my thoughts went to the fact that we all are hopelessly unfinished -- a fact that becomes astonishingly clear as we advance in age!
I needed more roses in my life after painting some at the end of 2020! So this happened -- composed on the fly on a large canvas, it filled my romantic heart to the brim.
How delighted I was to be commissioned to paint this bundle of joy, a Havanese by breed and a lover by nature. Having had two Havanese in my past, I have a special affection for this breed. Louis has done training with his "mama" to be a service dog and recently he's been back on the job!
I simply wanted to paint this one as it glowed! How fortunate I've been since moving to North Carolina that my neighbors have shared their gorgeous flowers with me. The inspiration is electric in the spring.
My mood was dictating landscape and a switch to more palette knife work! I visited Horsetail while in Oregon in 2019, and I took an artist's liberty with my reference photo, changing the cool tones of the Pacific NW with a sunrise feeling. A must see if in Oregon!
This is the first of a series to be worked upon involving women and narrative, storytelling if you will. I was challenged to successfully paint every aspect of this and, in truth, it's one of my very favorite paintings ever. I'll leave it up to the viewer to wonder what she's longing for.
This painting was a mid-summer project that checked all the boxes! Challenging, interesting to me, a painting reminiscent of the fabulous Dutch floral painters. A statement piece. I just kept creating it from the bottom up until there was no more room, then added the whimsical touches of butterfly, mouse, inch worm, ladybug to finish it. As they say, a labor of love.
The second of the narrative series, once again suggesting an air of mystery. Someone sent flowers, but who? How I loved painting her transparent blousy blouse adding a polka dot hair tie, creating the set design with touches of gold. There's really something wonderful about not knowing where you are going or how you'll end up!
Inspiration from a friend's bouquet, sent to her door while she was out of town! She told me to go over and rescue them, which I did, and what a lovely bouquet it was. I was the winner in this all around, as I promptly started to paint and create. Yellow has never been in my wheelhouse -- my comfort level with the hue is always tenuous. But this may have cured me.
When fall approaches, I start to think of forests, mountains, morning mist, etc. Surely I'm not the only one! This came out of my imagination, the cliffs on the top left added at the end as I wasn't happy with the rolling mountain in the background. Naturally, creating the glow was a big part of this painting.
I painted red Amaryllis during my watercolor days in Florida -- I wanted to try my hand in oil paint to see if I could translate their unique beauty. They were stunning growing near my home in Orlando, and happily they have found a new home in Florida.
Inspired by an actual leaf I found on a walk, only it was a whopping 12" long! I carried it all the way home and immortalized it giving it a boost of fall color -- it had not obtained this brilliant color but I'm sure it would have if it had not fallen so soon!
My birdbath out the studio windows provides endless shenanigans -- I have a Cardinal couple who actually bathe together! I've painted a male Cardinal in the past, and wanted to paint the female, so here's a puffed up from the cold, sitting on the branch one during the first little dusting of snow. Yes, I'm anticipating winter!
As we get closer to Christmas I find myself thinking of how much there is to be thankful for, always keeping in mind the losses and hurts of so many. Abundance in my mind is not about money or wealth; it's found in the simpler things, in friendship, in caring and loving one another. May you all be blessed with abundance.
I usually paint a moose around Christmas, but this year I did something a little different. Somehow this just seemed very fitting and the title came as I was painting.
To round out the year, this is what's on my easel right now, expected to be completed in the next week or so. It's in progress, with only a first pass on everything and an incomplete area at the bottom left. Stay tuned, as they say!
Wishing you peace that stays in your heart all year long with
warm wishes for good health, good cheer and sweet luck for the new year!
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