Moonlighting

I love moonlight. No matter what time of year, if there's a full moon, you can usually find me staring up at it.  I even braved near-zero temps and a couple of feet of snow once in upstate New York, just to photograph a winter moon.  Yeah, that was back when I was young and didn't worry about things like catching a cold, stray dogs, coyotes...or neighbors calling the cops about the crazy lady outside in the middle of the night, in her jammies, dragging a tripod and a camera all over the place. Tonight I was lazy--skipped the tripod, so this photo is not very sharp, but it does capture the general mood.  Too bad I had to work this morning because the moon was right over our pond and I would have loved to spend some quality time photographing it. Ah well.

Here's the poem for today: 

The moon casts her pale light
across the pond, spotlights
the heron and the wood duck
who exit
stage left.

Here's another work in progress:  a commissioned portrait.  Very early stages--I've just blocked in basic colors and am working on composition.  Will post more photos soon. 
 

A Mouse in the House

Today's photo is of another 4-legged member of our family:  Charlie.  Yep, I'm a sucker for those big brown eyes!  (Bet you thought I was gonna say a mouse--I'll get to that later....)

I spent the weekend painting, working on a portrait commission. It's not finished yet, but here's a pic of the work in progress.  Still need to make adjustments to the eyes, etc. But it's coming along....



And here's the min-poem for today:

There's a mouse on the porch.
He drops clues on the bar--
a trail that leads to his favorite spots.
I should set a trap.
Catch the little thief--
make him pay for his crime.
The death penalty:
harsh sentence for petty theft.

I'm Ba-ack!

     Wow, where does the time go?  This summer has flown past, and I'm struggling to catch up. I've been painting, but it seems like there's always something else going on that pulls me away from the studio, so what should only take a couple of weeks to complete, ends up taking months. I love summer, but I'm looking forward to cooler weather, and a chance to hunker down and PAINT, without feeling guilty about the grass growing and weeds taking over the gardens. 

     Lots of local arts related events coming up. The gallery where I hang my work, Shelby Artists on Main, is gearing up for the big 2010 World Equestrian Games in Lexington, September 25-October 10. I'm also one of three artists who will be doing a one-day show on Thursday evening, October 7, sponsored by Failte Irish Imports in Lexington, featuring artwork created after our trip last year to Ireland and Scotland.  For a sneak preview, Shelbyvillians will be able to see the work at the Shelby County Community Theatre on Friday, September 24.  The two artists joining me are Sharla McClain and Mary Yaeger.

Ajax
8 x 10 Oil on Canvas

     Just completed two pet portraits commissioned by Krysta Manning of Louisville, KY.  Beautiful dogs--Luna and Ajax. Luna is the first blue-eyed dog I've painted, but I think I pulled it off.

Luna

8 x 10 Oil on Canvas

And here is what's on the easel now: 

Sacred Stones, Isle of Mull, Scotland
16 x 20, Acrylics

 

This piece isn't finished yet. I am struggling with the greens. Whenever I am working on a piece that involves the color green, it seems I run into trouble. Green is NOT my friend--yet.  But I'm not giving up. Till next time...scatter joy!

"King" Charlie

I've been wanting to do a portrait of Charlie, my little Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. He's just the cutest little guy--and definitely has the "royal" attitude. I started this painting last night, hoping to finish it by Monday, but that's not going to happen, mostly because, once I started it, I decided to make it Charlie's "official" portrait. So, I'm taking my time with it. At this point, I've got about two layers of oil paint on it--still blocking in colors, not focusing too much on detail. I did spend a little more time on the eyes. I think if the eyes are correct, the rest of the image falls into place more easily.  When this piece is done, it's back to painting shelter animals. I also finished a still life in acrylics, inspired by my trip to Ireland. I'll post that as soon as I photograph it. Meanwhile--here's Charlie!