'A Gift From the Sea'

I'd like to share an exerpt from Anne Morrow Lindburgh's book 'A Gift from the Sea'.

"..........And then, some morning in the second week, the mind wakes, comes to life again. Not in a city sense -no- but beach-wise. It begins to drift, to play, to turn over in the gentle careless rolls like those lazy waves on the beach. One never knows what chance treasures these easy unconscious rollers may toss up, on the smooth white sand of the conscious mind; what perfectly rounded stone, what rare shell from the ocean floor. Perhaps a channeled whelk, a moon shell, or even an argonaut.

But it must not be sought for or - heaven forbid! - dug for. No, no dredging of the sea bottom here. That would defeat one's purpose. The sea does not reward those who are too anxious, too greedy, or too impatient. To dig for treasure shows not only impatience and greed, but lack of faith. Patience, patience, patience, is what the sea teaches. Patience and faith. One should lie empty, open, choiceless as a beach- waiting for a gift from the sea.

Time for Fall!

'Yosemite Reflections'

I was looking through my photo album from a fall trip to California that we took several years ago. It was an awesome trip to San Francisco, Yosemite and Monterey, Big Sur. I was in my 'photography' mode back then and it was all about waiting for the right light. This painting I did last night is based on one of those photos. In the early morning the Merced River which runs through Yosemite Valley is quiet and still which allows for wonderful reflections. This painting sums up my feelings about Yosemite....dark, mysterious and filled with a magical, mystical beauty.

A Path to the Beach

'A Path to the Beach'

What a surprise...my two favorite subjects! I did this one today but I will be bringing it to class to see how I can do better. It's from a photo I took of the path we had to take to get to the boardwalk to the beach on St. George Island. I tried a different technique on this one. Last night I watched the Albert Handell dvd that I won on ebay. (I will be taking his workshop in the spring and I wanted a preview) With out a doubt it will be a true expreience!!! He has such a delicate touch with the pastels...it was very interesting to watch him develop a painting. So I tried it myself. This one is done on white wallis paper. I first sketched the major elements with a pencil right on the paper. Then I did a watercolor wash. I just blocked in major areas of color...some blues and greens, purples and reds. I intended to wait and bring it to class to finish ....but I couldn't wait! I went in with some hard pastels and did as I usually do...blocked in the darks and lights....but I made sure to leave some of the watercolor showing through. Then I finished with my soft pastels. Now Iam sure I have more to do to finish it....but I think I'll go ahead and sign it......as Handell says....to sign it is pyschological...hmmm not sure what he means by that...but it sounds good!

Beach Treasure Fish

I'm trying to come up with a clever name for my fish. I made them from treasures I found on the beaches of St. George Island. The pieces of driftwood already looked like fish when I found them...they just needed some bits of shells for fins and eyes. I was tempted to leave them natural but I was in a colorful mood so Purple they are! I have more driftwood waiting to be transformed as soon as they dry out from the rain!

Finally a new Post!

I have been trying to post to the blog all day! They must have had some problems. I wanted to share my latest painting of an orange poppy. I seem to be drawn to painting close ups of flowers...and the more colorful, the better! It was a fun painting to do on a dreary day.

'Our Egret'

Something strange happens when I start to paint a shore bird...they just seem to paint themselves. I'm not saying that the finished product is any better or worse than my usual painting...but the actual painting process just flows. This painting is the result of a wonderful egret carving that was given to me by a friend (thank you!) I knew I had some reference photos of some egrets from my photographer friend (thank you!!jte) So I started this one the other night and just got around to finishing. Now I have to decide which bird will be next!

The Osprey Nest

Here is my finished oil painting. It's 8 x 10. It's the same salt marsh that I've done in pastels....Stone Harbor Wetlands Institute in Stone Harbor, New Jersey. How did I like oil painting? It was different. I will need to try some more but my first impression is that I am too impatient of a painter to mix the colors....maybe that is why I took to pastels....I know what color I want and all I have to do is pick up the right pastel...no time wasted mixing the right color! And....I get ahead of myself and forget to clean my brush between colors. I won't give up though...so look for more oil paintings here and there.

Long Ago...I painted this lighthouse...

OK Here it is....this is the attempt I made at an oil painting several years ago. (read yesterday's post) It's all black, brown and white!!! What was I thinking! I really should redo this little scene in pastels! Here's the update. I tried the oil paints again last night and boy was it hard! I didn't finish because I was hot and the light was bad...so maybe it will be savagable! I was a good student and made my color charts first which took awhile. What I discovered.....I am being stingy with the paints. I envision it to be thick and colorful...but I only have out tiny blobs of paint (my tubes were expensive!) So later I will go in there and add some more paint and see what happens....

Something New and Different

Today I woke up with the itch to try oil painting. I've done it before back in high school. But I never had any instruction so I didn't really know what I was doing. I tried again several years ago and bought some new paints. I had great intentions of painting in the afternoons while the kids were napping.....but it didn't happen. I painted ONE painting. Then the paints got put away in a box like most of my other art supplies I played with over the years. (I tried to post that one painting but the picture uploader isn't cooperating today.) So today I got out my old supplies and discovered I had water soluble oil paints...I don't know how they will work. I got a few new colors and a new palette and I will make an attempt tonight after dinner. I promise to post the results no matter how scary they may be!

Bald Head State Park

Bald Head Discovery

What did we discover at Bald Head Point State Park? Well the heat for one thing! I was so hot I needed to change into my bathing suit. We didn't really know what kind of scenery to expect but when we got out of the car and walked onto the beach we were pleasantly surprised. There was a small pond surrounded by marsh grasses and blindingly white sand dunes. It was wonderful to get up so close to the marshy area and take photos. I walked down to the water not expecting too much since we were on the bay......but I was wrong! I found my first intact Angel Wing shell and some wonderful purple sea whips. Hmmmm I think maybe I should set up a still life with some of my beach treasures!

Quote of the Day

'Secret Path'

"To get the full value of joy you must have someone to divide it with" -Mark Twain

Purple Marsh

Here's a little Marsh painting I did this morning. I think I will do a series on this marsh using different color combinations. This is the purple version....naturally I'll start with purple!

Sunrise Serenity

'Sunrise Serenity'

At the beach we started getting into a certain routine. Get up early, have a cup of coffee and head out to the beach as the sun was rising over the water. It was so peaceful. Everything had a soft hazy glow and the Gulf was as calm and flat as a sheet of glass. We strolled for what seemed like miles intent on finding treasure. We filled our bags with broken bits of shells, feathers and the odd piece of sea glass...our heads filled with the creative ways we would turn our treasure into art.

Lighthouse Update

As promised, here is the update on the lighthouse painting. As I expected my teacher saw a few things that would make the painting better. (she is great!) I added some twiggy things, fixed the light on the trees and darkened the outer posts on the keeper's house. I am happy with this one and I think I'll keep it.

Sanibel Island Lighthouse

Here's my latest. I started this painting at my pastel class last week and finished it yesterday. I couldn't decide if I wanted to do an alcohol wash on this one. I finally decided to to the wash on the background only. I'll bring it in to class tonight to see what more needs to be done...I'll post any updates, but now I'm off to class.

Plein Air Palms

Here's another one from my St. George Island trip. I have to mention that it was HOT!!! The heat index was 105 degrees. But we were determined to paint and as luck would have it , we found a picnic shelter to set up under. This was my view. It's funny...the sand is so white that it almost looks like snow. This is in St. Joseph's State Park. We found the most amazing white sand dunes there and took many photos so more will follow.

Trip Report

Painting the Dunes

I'm back from a wonderful weekend on St. George's Island...an island located on Florida's 'Forgotten Coast'...and what an appropriate name for this part of Florida. We had the beach all to ourselves! We spend the days exploring some of the area's State Parks, searching for shells and other treasures and taking lots of photos! I took around 500 photos for future painting. My artist friend Jayne came with us and we had great intentions to do a lot of plein air painting.....but our days just seem to go by so quickly with all of our exploring and we didn't do as many as we had hoped. I did manage to do five and the one I have posted here was done on the beach in front of the house where we stayed. I was determined to paint something but it was a hike from the house through the woods and over the dunes to get to the beach. On Saturday afternoon, I gathered all of my gear and headed out . I found a shady place under the boardwalk to set up....but as luck would have it, I was missing one of my pastel boxes....so up and over the dunes back to the house...whew, this plein air painting is a lot of work!!! But I did manage to get into it and painted three. I will always remember the experience of being totally alone on the vast and very beautiful beach listening to the breeze and the waves lap the shore...painting in my bathing suit and having a swim in between paintings! Now that's the life! More tales of the trip to come..........

On the Road Again

'A Gathering of Palms'

'Seeing new places always brings up the possibility of other new places.'

Frances Mayes

Under the Tuscan Sun (1997)

We are on the road again. Off tomorrow on a painting trip to St. George Island, Florida. My art friend Jayne is traveling with us. We have the use of a beachside house on the island thanks to one of Michael's customers. This is another part of Florida that I have never visited. I think it will be my goal to see all the areas of Florida that I missed while growing up in South Florida! I am excited to be able to do some plein air painting of the dunes and the Gulf and the boats....I can hardly wait! The painting in today's post is from my last trip to Cedar Key. You can find it for sale in my ebay store.

Sean's Boat

I did this one last night. It's for the boat owner's birthday. I sure hope he is pleased. I must say it was a bit of a challenge for me. The reference photo was only 3 x 5 and there were several other boats behind the main boat which made it hard to see which rigging belonged to which sailboat!

Thought of the Day

It's true. I did not paint a thing this weekend! I spent the weekend shopping and getting packed for my painting trip to St. George Island later this week. I was repacking my pastels and I had only the tiniest sliver of a pale purple hard pastel. It must be my favorite color! Well, I went to Dick Blicks with no luck. I am not even sure if it's a nupastel or a polychromos....I'm going to have to order all the purples I guess! I do plan on working on a painting later today....it's a commission of a man on his sailboat....I'll post my progress later. But for now, here is the thought of the day from Robert Henri.....

"A worker or painter should enjoy his work, else the observer will not enjoy it. It is not good to wear lace that was a drudgery to someone to make. The lace, as well as the picture, should be made in joy."

I felt like painting a lighthouse today. This is the Cape May Lighthouse in Cape May, New Jersey.

'Cape May Lighthouse: Located in Cape May Point State Park, Lower Township 1859.
More than 100 thousand visitors a year now experience a visit to the top of the lighthouse, participating in a century old rite of a visit to the Jersey Shore.'

I haven't had a chance to go up inside this lighthouse yet but it is on my list of things to do!

A Gull with Attitude

'Jersey Gull'

"A strong positive mental attitude will create more miracles than any wonder drug"

-Patricia Neal

I love seagulls and I like to photograph them whenever I see them. I saw this gull on the beach on the New Jersey shore. He had attitude! Bold and confident, he seemed to strut his way through the surf on a warm spring day. This little painting will be available in my ebay store. Look for more seagull paintings...

Painting #39

'Out on the Rocks'

Here's another one from my old photo album. This is Sanibel Island at Blind Pass. It was interesting to look at these older photos of Sanibel...I have some that shows water in Blind Pass. Currently it is filled in with sand! But Sanibel is still as beautiful as ever.

Break in the Clouds

I was going through some of my old beach trip photos and found some that I would like to paint. This is the one I did last night. It's from a trip we took to Ft. Myers Beach Florida. This beach reminded me so much of a beach we visited in Barbados....the color of the water, the tall tropical palm trees....how nice to not have to travel very far from home to feel like you are a million miles away! In this painting, a storm has just passed and the sun is trying to break through the clouds.

A very nice thing happened to me yesterday.....I had an offer for my painting of the Wildwood Boardwalk (see below) The buyer grew up in Wildwood and misses it...she said the painting 'made her heart sing' Reading that from her made my heart sing...

Cruise Memories

'Touring Barbados'

This is from a photo taken on my last cruise. Barbados is one of my favorite islands. We took a tour around the island and I wish I had taken more photos. Each area of the island has it's own unique beauty....cliffs, rocks. tall palm trees....a tropical paradise!

How I got started.....

'Jazzpurr and his Portrait'

It was a year ago that I decided I wanted to get back into art. I came across a book on doing realistic colored pencil pet portraits and I thought they looked like fun. Well it was fun...but a little too tedious for me. That's my first effort...my cat Jazzpurr. After that I decided to take a watercolor class. It was fun to go to class with others interested in art but watercolors weren't for me. Then I took a one day pastel workshop. I dragged out an old set of Grumbacher pastels which I had in highschool and went to the class. Well that's all it took! I fell in love with pastels. I got online and was lucky enough to find my wonderful teacher, Marsha Savage. I started to accumulate pastels (an addiction) and began class last January. So Thank you Jazz for getting me started!

Labor Day Plein Air

Today Jayne, Sherry and I got together to paint plein air. It's good to do that every once in awhile..it's so challenging. Our goal was to be loose and colorful. We all did an alcohol underpainting.. a technique we are really enjoying. I did this pot of flowers...don't know what kind they are...with the 2 blue gazing balls. Sherry did a big green pot of succulents which looked very challenging Unfortunately I did't get a photo of hers...it came out blurry. Jayne's painting is on the bottom and mine is on the top.
"I must say....I really like these! "

More Abstractions.....

'Late Afternoon at the Virgin River'

I just spent a nice relaxing day watching the Ann Templeton dvd with Jayne and then trying another painting. I know I am still not as abstract as Ann....but Jayne and I really like her technique. It's fun to adapt it to our own styles. Jayne's was wonderful...so colorful and bold, painterly strokes. I loved it! Mine is from a photo I took this past winter at Zion National Park. It is late afternoon on the bridge at the Virgin River. The sun made those red cliffs just glow! It may seem pretty bright...but if you've ever been to Zion and seen the rocks just glow with the sunlight....then you know I really haven't exaggerated! This is fun and I'm off to do another one!

Last Night's Flower

Where flowers bloom so does hope.- Lady Bird Johnson, Public Roads: Where Flowers Bloom

I love Hibiscus flowers. I grew up in South Florida surrounded by them. I never even gave them a second look. Dare I say they were as common as weeds! But now they appeal to me. Their simple beauty and their beautiful colors are just waiting to be painted. I took a photo of this hibiscus flower outside our hotel in Cedar Key last month. It was one of those last minute photos...hurry up and point and shoot...but it turned out to be one of my favorites. So last night I painted it just to give me a change from the landscapes. Perhaps I'll do a series of hibiscus flowers.

Pink Chairs

'Pink Chairs' Ft. Myers Beach, Florida

I have a thing about chairs. I am drawn to photographing empty chairs. Usually I come across them in my travels and usually they are in the middle of fantastic scenery. I have chair photos from Maine, Washington State, Utah...no matter where I go I usually manage to find an interesting chair. It seems to be a recurring theme for me. I came across these chairs on a trip to Ft. Myers beach several years ago. We rented a beach house which made early morning walks so easy. I loved this little group of pink chairs. It almost looked as though they were enjoying the morning sun and having conversation. This painting will be listed on ebay later with proceeds going to the Red Cross to for hurricane relief. I will post a link when the listing begins.

The Abstract Version

Ok......Here's my abstracted version of Lighthouse Beach. I did an alcohol underpainting first on white wallis paper (i'm getting to like that!) Then I used the same pastels as the first painting to do this version. I chose not to put in the fence posts. This is fun! I think I'll do another one!

Lighthouse Beach

Here is painting #33 "Early Morning at Lighthouse Beach". It's 9 x 12 on Art Spectrum paper..no underpainting. I think I'd like to try the same scene using the Ann Templeton method using an underpainting and making the landscape more abstract. Let me go try that now....I'll be sure to post the results.

NEW PASTELS ARRIVED.......yes I got my Girault southwest set today. Jayne...I am thinking we need a SW night when yours arrive!!!!

The Painter's Keys

I'd like to share with you a wonderful resource for artists and art lovers alike.....Robert Genn's twice weekly email letters. He always offers something useful or inspirational and it is well worth subscribing...it's free! Go to www.painterskeys.com

I tried something totally different for me this morning and as soon as I can I'll show you!

Season's End

'Season's End'

Labor Day Weekend is the official end of the season weekend at the New Jersey Shore. So I thought it was a good day to paint this scene. It's the Boardwalk at Wildwood New Jersey. It's an early morning in October. The summer crowds are gone. There are a few people enjoying a morning walk. A few shops are open with end of season sales. The mood is quiet and relaxed. I painted this scene in soft, subtle colors to reflect the quiet mood. I have been on the boardwalk in winter, spring and summer...each season has it's own special qualities. I think I'd like to do a series on the different moods of the boardwalk. Stay tuned!

Fishing for Flowers

'Early Morning on the River'

Fishing for flowers? What on earth is she talking about! Well, last month at the flea market in Murphy, North Carolina, I met the nicest couple. He had taken beautiful photographs of his gardens and orchids. I told him I would love to be able to paint from his photos....so we made a trade. I would paint a trout or a fisherman on a river and he would give me some flower photos. We exchanged addresses but I didn't think anymore of it. The other day I got a package in the mail filled with flower photos! So for today's painting I painted a fly fisherman for my flea market friend! This painting is done from a photo I took at Marsha Savage's plein air workshop in Blue Ridge Georgia...see the archives for more on that!