Three Trees in the Lifting Fog

Three Trees in Lifting Haze
5 x 7", Gouache on Fabriano Artistico 100% rag paper


I met with my friend Sue to paint at the lakeshore this morning. The lake was covered with a thick morning fog, so I went inside for more coffee and returned as the remaining haze started to burn off. The trees were crisp and brilliant, with strong contrasts, and the remaining fog blanketed the background over the lake, partially obscuring the far shore. What a sight. Then I realized that I'd forgotten to bring my oil painting pochade box. I didn't feel like setting up a big french easel for a small painting, so I pulled out my gouache box which I happened to have with me, and painted in gouache instead.

Every time I paint in gouache I wonder why I don't do it more often. I adore this medium. It has the blendability/opacity benefits of oils, with the water solubility of watercolor, the crispness of acrylic, and the archival characteristics of the very best art mediums (if one chooses their pigments carefully, which I always do). It dries quickly to a nice, matt finish so it's easy to photograph, can be sent out immediately, and is simple to frame. (This painting fits a standard 8x10 mat with the usual 5x7 opening, so it can be easily matted and popped into any 8x10 frame.)

Goldenrod Sunset

Goldenrod Sunset
5 x 7", Oils on canvas covered hardboard
SOLD


I'm fortunate enough to live on a lake, and ran out to paint a quick sunset with a painting friend from out of town. There was goldenrod blooming all over the shoreline (which, by the way, I seem to be allergic to)! Tomorrow morning I'm supposed to paint the sunrise with another friend. We'll see if I can haul myself out of bed early enough on a weekend!

Clouds Over Ward Pound Ridge

Clouds Over Ward Pound Ridge
5 x 7", Oils on canvas covered hardboard
Not for Sale at this time.

I spent a gorgeous fall morning at Ward Pound Ridge Reservation in Pound Ridge, NY. This county park is over 4,700 acres of rolling fields, beautiful trees, and hillsides with dramatic vistas. This is a 5x7" plein air painting---done on location. The sun was in and out of the clouds all morning and it was a real challenge to catch the light!

Raspberries in a Glass

Raspberries in a Glass
7 x 5", Oils on Canvas covered hardboard
This painting is at The Paint Box gallery in Bedford Hills, NY. You can contact the gallery at 914-666-8692.

It's raspberry season in the garden! I picked this sprig with a single ripe berry and set it in a glass to paint in my studio.

Cobalt Blue Vase miniature painting

Cobalt Blue Vase
3 x 2", Casein on illustration board
$60 framed as shown via PayPal, free shipping within US (email me for international rates)

This darling cobalt blue vase has appeared in many of my paintings. This is a teeny tiny mini, painted from life. It's just 3" x 2", perfect for a tabletop, and comes with the frame shown, which has an easel back to stand it up on your favorite side table, coffee table or dresser.

His Favorite Chair, and 7 other works at the Nostalgia Show!

I've had eight paintings accepted into the juried Nostalgia show at The Brass Anchor in Poughkeepsie, New York! You're all invited to the opening this Friday night, September 29, from 6-8pm. These are the paintings of mine that are in the show. All but one are painted from life. Can you guess which one was done from a photo?

His Favorite Chair, 10x8", Oils:


Morning at the Vanderbilts, 12x16", Oils:


A Trip to the Garden Center, 12x16", Oils:


Sleepy Hollow Evening, 12x16", Oils:


The Red Tree, 11x15, Pastel:


Late Day on the Hudson, 8x10", Oils:


Square Sunflowers, 12x12", Oils


Little Red Boat House, 14x11, Oils:


If you're interested in purchasing any of these works, please email me for the telephone number of the show curator. Thanks for viewing my digital version of the exhibit!

A Walk in New Paltz

A Walk in New Paltz
5 x 7", Oils on canvas covered hardboard
Currently available custom framed at the River Winds Gallery in Beacon, NY

I'm still having a wonderful time working in oils from the photos I took in New Paltz last fall!

Orange Tree at Boscobel

Orange Tree at Boscobel
2.5 x 3.5", oils on unstretched canvas

In the art world, ACEO stands for Artist Cards Editions and Originals. They are collectible paintings in a standard, miniature format. The size is 2.5x3.5", like baseball cards and playing cards. They are so much fun to paint and collect that every so often I do a few of them. Some artists sell prints of paintings in that size as ACEOs, but mine are always one-of-a-kind originals. ACEOs are truly fun to collect for those who love art. Everybody can find a place for these little gems, and they are reasonably priced. It's an easy way to collect work from some favorite artists.

This tiny painting is of one of my favorite views overlooking Constitution Marsh from Boscobel Restoration in Garrison, NY. The marsh along the Hudson River is ablaze with color in fall, and this tree at the edge of the overview site is always stunning this time of year. I've painted the fall marsh there in just about every size over the years, up to 24x36".

Sunset Over the Fields

Sunset Over the Fields
5x7, Oils

This is another scene from beautiful New Paltz, New York, painted today from a photo I took there last fall.

Red Barn on Butlerville Road

Red Barn on Butlerville Road
10x8", Oils
$245 unframed via Paypal. Email me if interested.

I've been pretty housebound lately, so I've been looking through photos I took while painting in New Paltz last fall and found a bunch of stunning scenes to paint. I picked this one out to paint today. More to come!

Peach Lake Sunset

Peach Lake Sunset
7x5", gouache
SOLD

I feel so fortunate as an artist to live on a lake where I can just walk outside to paint or take photos. This was painted this morning from a photo I took while out for an evening stroll with my husband.

Fall at St. Basil Academy

Fall at St. Basil Academy
5x7, gouache
SOLD

Saint Basil Academy is a home to children in need, where they are nurtured to adulthood on the gorgeous property overlooking the Hudson River opposite West Point. They kindly allow me to paint there on location, but this painting was done from a photograph that I took there last fall. The property has an amazing history; a former owner had a zoo there! Some of the old buildings are absolutely gorgeous. I've started painting those too.

Gerberas on the Porch

Gerberas on the Porch
7 x 5", Oils on canvas covered hardboard
This painting is at The Paint Box gallery in Bedford Hills, NY. You can contact the gallery at 914-666-8692.

I had to make the most of both the beautiful day and the gerbera daisies I bought the other day, so I brought these out on the porch and set them along the sill to paint. I've had to photograph my paintings lately just as I've finished them, so they're wet wet wet, and there's some glare on the images that is not part of the painting.

Packing

Packing
7 x 5", Oils on canvas covered hardboard
$100 unframed via PayPal, free shipping within US (email me for international rates)

I love painting white objects on a colored surface, catching the reflected color and playing lost and found with edges. I had a lot of trouble getting a decent photo of this painting. There's some glare in the background, and the background is reading as black rather than the deep purple present in the painting.

Island in the Lake

Island in the Lake
5 x 7", Oils on canvas covered hardboard

This small oil painting was begun on location at a nature preserve adjacent to Playland Amusement Park in Rye, NY, and finished up in the studio today. This was a day to do some quick sketches and reorganize the studio a bit. Once winter hits, I'll be working in here most of the time. I'll take some photos soon and post a studio tour here, so you can all come visit!

Tonight is the opening of my show at Putnam Arts Council's Belle Levine Gallery. 'Hope to see some of you there!

Admiring the Gerberas
7x5", Oil on canvas covered hardboard
This painting is at The Paint Box gallery in Bedford Hills, NY. You can contact the gallery at 914-666-8692.

In anticipation of today's rain, I went out to buy flowers last night. All the flowers in the store looked wilted, but I rounded a corner and saw this single gorgeous bouquet of gerbera daisies. I paired them with a little bird sculpture that hangs around my studio and enjoys making an appearance in still life paintings from time to time.

Cold Spring on a Hot Day

Cold Spring on a Hot Day
12x24, Oils

I just found out that my painting, Cold Spring on a Hot Day, has been accepted into the Putnam Art's Council juried Environmental show! You're all invited to the opening reception this Friday night, September 15, from 6-8pm at the Belle Levine Gallery, 521 Kennicut Hill Rd., Mahopac, NY. The painting will be on exhibit there until October 6.

Morning Sky Over the Hudson

Morning Sky Over the Hudson
9x12, Pastel

The purple and pink clouds over the Hudson River were stunning this morning. I knew they would dissipate fast, so I put those in first, then did the rest of the painting. This painting was done on the property of The Brass Anchor in Poughkeepsie, NY.

Morning Moon Over St. Basil

Morning Moon Over St. Basil
12x18, pastel

St. Basil's Academy is a residential facility for children that overlooks the Hudson River. They are having a fundraiser at the end of September, so I've been doing some paintings here to make some sets of note cards for them to sell at the fundraiser and hopefully after as well. This morning the light was spectacular, with the fall color just emerging and the moon still visible in the western sky.

Upside Down Boats

Upside Down Boats
Pastel, 9x12

I loved the look of the sun hitting the boats turned upside down along the shoreline. I moved my easel close to them and painted in the midday sun. Oops---I forgot the sunscreen. Fortunately I had a hat on, but the rest of me caught some pretty strong rays. Hopefully the painting was worth it!

Sunny Morning at the Lakeshore

Sunny Morning at the Lakeshore
12x9, pastel

Good day, sunshine! What a beautiful morning out by the lake. I needed to capture the 'big sky' view of the surroundings.

Boat in Early Morning Haze

Boat in Early Morning Haze
10x8, pastel

It was my daughter's first day of school! That meant that I was free to paint by around 7am! I was test driving a new pastel setup, so stayed home by the lake. It was a heavily overcast, dark morning, but I was so excited about finally having a chance to get outside with pastels that nothing was going to deter me; I'd just paint the fog. Once I got set up, I realized I forgot the pastel paper. It's a good thing I'd stayed close to home!

Sunflowers and Cobalt

Sunflowers and Cobalt
16x20, oils

I planted sunflowers in my fenced garden this year because they are such fabulous painting subjects, but the deer always ate them when I didn't have them fenced. I didn't stake them, however, and they got knocked over in a storm. I did the next best thing and bought a bouquet of them over the weekend. I finally got around to arranging them in a cobalt vase and painting them.

This oil painting on canvas is available for $650, unframed

The Towers at Bannerman's Island

Approaching Bannerman's Island
5x7", Gouache
Sold

Bannerman's Island is supposedly haunted, treacherous to reach by boat due to strong currents, and covered with poison ivy. Although it is off limits to the general public, that description makes you wonder why anybody would want to go there anyway! The island has a fascinating history, and the last owner built a huge armory castle along the shoreline, with a residence castle at the peak of the island. He began constructing towers in the water to form a grand entrace, and sunk all kinds of debris around the perimeter to deter trespassers. A huge fire gutted the structures. Some of them are held up only by the poison ivy vines growing up the sides.

You can imagine the thrill I got when I was asked to go by boat out to the island to do a painting for an auction to benefit Bannerman Castle Trust, the organization charged with renovating the exquisite structures. I jumped at the chance. I took some pictures along the way, knowing that painting there on location was not something I'd be able to do again very soon!

I had hoped to return to paint there again this year, but wasn't able to arrange the date. This is a small gouache painting on Arches hot press watercolor paper, done from one of those photos I took on my expedition.

Mary's Boat at Sunset

Mary's Boat at Sunset
2.5x3.5", oil on canvas

In the art world, ACEO stands for Artist Cards Editions and Originals. They are collectible paintings in a standard, miniature format. The size is 2.5x3.5", like baseball cards and playing cards. They are so much fun to paint and collect that every so often I do a few of them. Some artists sell prints of paintings in that size as ACEOs, but mine are always one-of-a-kind originals. ACEOs are truly fun to collect for those who love art. Everybody can find a place for these little gems, and they are reasonably priced. It's an easy way to collect work from some favorite artists.

This is a painting of my friend Mary's boat, out on the lake beside our house at sunset. The clouds were especially spectacular that evening. It is painted on unstretched canvas, with artist grade oil paints. The image is probably showing larger on your screen than the size of the actual painting!