I'll Always be by your side

This 16x20 oil painting is dedicated to my brother, Ken, who was always there for me. We grew up with a beach house in Marshfield MA that our grandfather built. Growing up, we spent every summer and most weekends there. When we arrived on the weekends we woud walk to the beach to see what changes happened since our last visit. Walking through the dunes to get to the beach always brought anticipation of what lay just ahead. We never know what lies ahead. We had a shared childhood and he was the only one who knew me since birth after our parents died. I hoped he would get to see this painting, but unfortunately we lost him before that happened. The painting was to be a beacon of optimism. In a way it still is. We had so many great years together and this is a tribute to that now. The path being traveled is symbolic in this painting. We never know what lies ahead.

Boys and their trucks-Pure Joy!

< These best buddies romping through the field are cousins. They love their trucks and their time at Lake Dillon with Grandparents and family. This 16x20 oil painting tries to capture the joy of youth. I eliminated the boats that were up close and emphasized the setting that brings so much joy. The vast space, with both the lake and mountains, brings a feeling of limitless freedom. The midday sun enhances the bright colors and highlights the boys as the main subject-the vehicle of this JOY. The color harmony of the landscape is incorporated in the boys clothing. The trucks, although small, stand out as their colors contrast with the blues, greens and violets. The boys connection is both physical and spiritual. These cousins were born only 2 months apart and have been inseperable. Hopefully that connection will continue throughout their lives.

A Ripple in TIme

At the Hill Lifesaving Museum Juried Show

"A Ripple in Time" 11x14 Oil

 Each year I paint my granddaughter. I love watching her grow and try to preserve a special moment as well as create an interesting painting. We spend a week together on the Cape each summer. She spends most of her days alternating between the ocean and the pool and playing in the sand. The water can sometimes be full of seaweed and she's not a big fan; But on this day the water was crystal clear.

I was drawn to the transparency that exposed the ripples in the sand created by the movement of the water. This was complemented by ripples created by Elouise as she moved through the water. The sunlight was strong and provided perfect lighting. I used many layers and transparent glazes to create the effect that I wanted. 

It will be a gift to her.  Before gifting it, I submitted it to the juried "Sea and Sky" show at  the Hull Lifesaving  Museum. It is one of my favorite venues as it is all about the ocean. The title was suggested by my husband. I loved his title idea because it really expresses the ephemeral quality of such a moment.

The Long Goodbye

"Outbound" 11x14 Oil

Walpole, MA has a beautiful old train station. I have been meaning to paint it for years. That plan somehow kept getting pushed back on my to do list. One day while standing on the platform and watching the train approach, it was the ah-hah moment. I decided I would paint it including the train instead of focusing on just the station This meant viewing it from the platform instead of approaching it as I came up the hill. I may still do that view at some point, but I wanted to include my daughter hugging her friend one last time.  We never know when we may never see someone again and we should always savor any time we have with our friends and family. This hug was one of those moments. I think it is important to keep precious memories alive.
I combined several photographic images to create the composition I wanted. I had to take a picture as the train was moving as it never actually stops with this view. I liked the strong verticals and diagonals that seem to complement the station's angular appearance. The viewer's eye is led to the strong vertical of the figures that is slightly off center. The lines seem to encompass them like an additional hug. 

 

Seacliff Beach Birds Gather together

"The Gathering"
24 X 30 oil painting
Seacliff Beach, Aptos, CA

The brilliant colors that dance across the water and beach  at sunset are tantalizing. The hues vary as the sun gets lower in the sky and finally disappears below the horizon. Once it disappears the afterglow continues to paint a beautiful scene for anyone who lingers. One thing I love is the gathering of seabirds that seem to come out for sunset each evening. In the painting above using a blue orange harmony, I wanted to create a warm and inviting aura with the birds bathed in the warmth of the setting sun. Their casual meandering is calm and unhurried representing a  sense of another day's satisfactory completion.  

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" Seabirds at Sunset"
24x36 oil painting
Aptos, CA

In this version of birds gathering on the beach at dusk, I was drawn to the color harmonies and repetition of the skies  colors in the wet sand. The zig zag diagonals in the wet sand leading to the pounding surf  echo the sounds and energy that I felt in this scene. A large gathering of birds scurried about in the last lit section of the beach taking in the final rays of the January sun. I used a limited palette on a very large canvas. My goal is to achieve a painting that reflects the  multiple senses that are being bombarded at the time; The harmonious colors, the salty spray, the tumultuous surf, the fading sunlight and the wet sand.
 

Walpole's Iconic Dog Rock

                                                                                                                  

DOG ROCK   8X8".   oil painting

For many years a resident has been painting the rock at the bend in the road by the Neponset river. As you come across the bridge, the smiling face greets you. Whenever the paint starts to fade, the resident returns to repaint the rock. During covid, he painted a mask on the dog and this resulted in great controversy as someone took it upon themselves to paint over the mask. This played out over and over during the pandemic as people followed the painting skirmish on social media. One of our gallery artists painted mini masked dog rocks to raise money for the original artist to buy paint to repaint the mask each time.  I brought my grand daughter down to visit the rock as I explained to her the controversy and the rocks historic roots.

The dog now has it's original smile as life returns to pre pandemic levels. I will be taking part in the town's annual Uncommon Art on the Common and  in selecting Walpole scenes to paint, I thought Dog Rock deserved a place on the Common this year.

 

JB's Bench/Bird Park

 Plein Air painting at Bird Park usually means being watched while I work. Passerby often stop to chat,  comment or just watch.  Today was one of those days

“JB’s bench”is a  5x7 oil done Plein air painting at Bird Park this morning. I went with Lisa to grab a bit of the first sort of cool morning in a while after weeks of oppressive heat. As we were painting, a gentleman stopped by, excited to see us painting. It turns out he grew up in Walpole and that the bench I was about to paint is his father’s bench. I went over after finishing and took a photo of the plaque. It felt like serendipity that we picked that spot today. Love to make people smile.

Having spent years visiting the park when I was a child in the1950's & 60's, it is like a magnet for me when it comes to subject matter. I have painted the bridges, gates, pathways and music court. I have painted the old cement benches that were there when I was a child. The trustees have been replacing them with these more modern benches and this is my first  attempt at the new benches. The landscape design with it's meandering paths,  sloping  hills and contrasting mowed and wild areas creates many compositional possibilities. Mature trees, ponds and wild life offer a plethora of choices. Scenes that are primarily greens I find challenging to paint. The red tree on the upper left and the reddish sidewalks helped create a nice color harmony and influenced me when choosing this spot. The water level in the pond was quite low as it  had dried up from the drought. I chose to paint it as I remembered it with the water level up and duckweed floating on the surface picking up the light values in the birch branches further down the path.

I hope you like it!