The sheer joy that these bring to their owners is something to behold. I just love watching people light up when they see them! Each one (except for the collie) is 2×2 inches. The collie is 2.5×3.5 inch.
Each of these little sweethearts measures 2×2 inches. I especially enjoy painting them on the black background. They just have more pizazz some how. Most of these were done as little Christmas ornaments but I guarantee that the owners don’t put them away after the holidays.
These are a few miniature pet portraits that I did by commission. For some reason I really enjoy doing pets in this very tiny format. the Shepherd is 4×4 inch, the puppy is 2.5×3.5 and the cat (belongs to my daughter) is only 2×2 inch. It is possible to learn an awful lot when doing a tiny subject.
This time I worked on more challenging mountain views from the back yard. I tried these views many times with a variety of success and failure. The pic on the left, I feel is more of a success, and the one on the right sort of ok. It is very tricky to learn to paint lots of tree branches, especially when they are covering distant objects that are peaking through them. The process of learning can sometimes seem insurmountable. There are times when one wants to just totally give up. It is very important to realize that the learning process is a long journey. Personally, when I started painting many years ago, I determined that I was going to do my very best to enjoy all the steps along the way. For the most part, I can say that I do enjoy it. But every once in a while there has been times of absolute discouragement and frustration. It’s imperative to push on through these time and not to give up. Sometimes I go back to a so called failed attempt and re work it. Overall I have learned a lot from this process. But once in a while I just have to toss the picture because it is too frustrating to look at any more (= That’s just the way it goes. And everyone goes through these times.
These are two more attempts at painting the mountains in my front yard en plein air. I really like the lighting that I was able to capture in the first one. It looks really warm and filled with light bouncing off other areas. The paintings are oil on board and measure 6×6 and 6×8 which are good sizes to use when beginning to learn to paint outside.
It would be possible to paint these mountains many, many times without ever repeating the look. They look a bit different every single day. So I actually took advantage of this fact to get in some practice using my outdoor painting set up. I definitely was learning a lot.
My studio window looks out over our vegetable garden and on this particular, and rare sunny morning, I just had to capture the intense warm light shed upon it. I love the changing light on it whether it is cloudy or sunny, but this was irresistible! It is 6×6 oil on gesso board
And they all get a beautiful wooden frame handmade by my wonderful husband
This is from a photo I took of a spot near my best friend. It is pretty farm country in central Maine. Again, I just love this snowy atmosphere where all the lines get blurred. It is challenging and thrilling to paint. I think I like to try to make it feel like I am enveloped in the painting sensing the snow all around me. This is an 8×10
This type of atmosphere in a picture really interests me. It is challenging because of the lack contrasting lights and darks, but I really find it interesting. I love to be outside on a snowy day like this or a really foggy day. There is just something about it that appeals to me. It seems like I have a lot of photos of fog or really atmospheric scenes. And they always call my name to be painted.
In this one I felt it was very helpful, interest wise, to have that bit of thicker paint to describe the snow in the foreground. It was something I added in later.
It has been way too long since I posted…sorry everyone, sometimes life gets in the way. But I wanted to post this first and show you the finished product. I think she came out really cute. The reaction of the owner when she saw it was priceless. It makes it all worth while when someone is so happy with their painting =D
The only thing I would like to change about this would be that it has no texture. But in all reality, a Dachshund has such a smooth coat that I am ok with it. I was definitely a bit anxious doing a backlit picture. The dog is so dark and there was very little real definition in the photo I had to work from. I was unsure if I would be able to pull it off. But i have to say that I was pretty happy with it, and considering the response of the owner, I am pleased.
Art with my Coffee 