New Nest Painting...Hummingbird's Nest

'Tiny Jewels' 5x7 pastel

It was time for another nest painting and I decided to paint a Ruby-Throated Hummingbird's nest. No, unfortunately I didn't find a real nest though I do have some excellent reference photos of the hummers we saw out in Colorado! This painting is based on several photos and information I've read about how these birds build their nest. I found it facsinating to read about their nests. They use spider webs to attach the moss and lichens to their tiny nests. It's also amazing to think that the eggs are only the size of TicTacs!

Website Update: I have been working at adding to my new website so if you haven't stopped by please have a look. I'd love to hear what you think so I can improve it!

Sea Grape Study

'Sea Grapes Up Close' 5x7 pastel

Today I just felt like painting something close up. I should have painted one of the 100 mushrooms I photographed this weekend but these sea grapes just spoke to me! It was fun to play with all my green pastels today.

ACEO Pastel Painting Low Country Beach Path

If you read my previous post you know that I didn't get to paint this weekend so I am sharing a miniature painting I did on Friday. This is just 2.5 x 3.5 on Wallis paper and is from a photo I took on my trip to the South Carolina Coast...Huntington Beach State Park. There was a wonderful nature trail and the trees were so paintable. There was one section that had great twisted trees and the light was perfect...I have that on my list to paint! This little painting will be on auction in my ebay store this week.

Weekend Trip Report

When it rains.....at least you get mushrooms!! That's the story of our weekend trip to the North Carolina mountains. Jayne and I set out Friday with the hopes of getting lots of plein air painting practice in preparation for the fall trip to Creighton Island. We woke up Saturday to rain!!!! It was a gray drizzly day and it didn't look promising for painting....but we went for a walk and discovered MUSHROOM HEAVEN!!! I never knew there were so many kinds of mushrooms and they were all right on my parents wooded lot. Jayne and I took hundreds of photos. We went for a ride and saw lots of wonderful mountain scenery...old barns, cattle, wildflowers..and somehow we ended up at the John C. Campbell Folk School...we hope to take a class there someday! By the end of ythe weekend we had my parents and my Aunt Carol looking at mushrooms in a different light...I don't think they will be knocking them over anymore! Oh...I planned to visit the gallery that shows my work and guess what...it was closed....'Gone camping' the sign on the door said! Oh well...we still had a wonderful trip! Here is a photo I took of a very cool red mushroom. Look for some mushrom paintings in the future!

Santa Fe Landscape Painting

'Dusk Over Santa Fe' 11x14 pastel

I finally painted a scene from my June trip to the Southwest! I took so many photos its a bit overwhelming to choose what to paint! This is a scene from Santa Fe just before sunset. I had researched the best Santa Fe sunset spot and discovered this place Cross of the Martyrs located on a hill near the Plaza. It was a cloudy day so sunset was pretty much a bust but the view over Santa Fe was very cool. This painting is actually the top of the hill looking back behind the overlook. There are some gorgeous homes up here!

Caribbean Island Sunset

'Island Sunset' 8x14 pastel

My friend Carol and I decided that we'd practice painting clouds this week. I went through my stack of photos and chose this one. I took the reference photo while on a cruise. We were sailing from the island of St. Kitts at sundown and the sky was just magnificent! The island you see is the island of Nevis. I thought this scene lent itself to a tall narrow format. Now I will look for some storm clouds to paint!

Seagulls in Flight Pastel Painting

'Seagulls Overhead' 16x20 pastel

Seagulls are not everyone's favorite bird but I happen to LOVE them. I love watching them interact with each other and the sound of a gull call means 'seashore' to me. I remember sitting on the beach the day I took the photo this painting is based on....I was eating so of course I had lots of nosy visitors! (and noisy!) I took out my little camera and took pictures of the gulls flying overhead. This may be one of those paintings that needs to be seen in real life....since the larger gull is about life-size.

Tortoiseshell Cat Pastel Painting

'The Window Seat' 5x7 pastel

Here is a small one of our cat Angel. I found her the other day in one of her favorite spots...looking out my studio window at the birds and squirrels. The light was so nice on her that I grabbed the camera for some shots of her....I have been using my son's camera...it has an image stabilization lens so it is fantastic in low light!
In case you are interested, I posted some progress shots of the painting on my pet portrait blog.

Stormy Sunset

'Stormy Sunset' 8x10 pastel

This could be considered part of my wildflower series although what I remember most about this evening is the stormy weather and the amazing sunset. A terrible storm had just blown through town and we were headed out to the car when we saw the sun peek through the clouds. For a brief moment everything just glowed and then the clouds moved back over the sun. It was one of those magical moments and I caught it on film....and wanted to paint it as well.

South Carolina Low Country Marsh

'Quiet Marsh' 18 x 24 pastel

It's been awhile since I've has a chance to paint something large. This may look familiar if you read my blog and that's because it is based on a plein air painting I did on my trip to the South Carolina coast this past spring. It was interesting to have all this paper to paint on! I did an alcohol wash which I also haven't done in awhile. It's hard to get an idea of how this painting really appears on a little computer screen!

Painting Georgia Peaches

'Just Peachy' 5x7 pastel

How could I let the summer get away from me without painting my favorite fruit! I set these peaches up on my desk to paint them. It is really enjoyable to paint form life and I am going to try to do so at least once a week. This painting is done on black Lacarte paper which made it more challenging. They aren't as bright as I usually paint but for some reason I don't mind. I would like to paint them again on different paper to see the difference!

I had a lovely visit to my studio today by an artist who follows my blog. She was in town visiting family and stopped by with her cousin. It was so nice to meet them and talk art.

Sapphire Beach, St. Thomas USVI

'Sapphire Surf' 8x10 pastel

Sapphire beach is another very beautiful beach on the island of St. Thomas. I painted this last weekend while my friend Carol was visiting. We both worked from the same photo. Carol decided that she need to get some more turquoise pastels. Wouldn't a caribbean set of pastels be great!!!! I wasn't feeling well when I painted this one so it is quite loose....but I actually like it this way so I left it.
On another note....I have been very busy getting my new website off the ground. I now have the domain for my name so I started a new website. It is still under construction and I have more paintings to load...but please visit and see what you think so far.

www.karenmargulis.com

Poppies in the Garden

'Poppies in the Garden' 5x7 pastel

Here is today's Daily Painting. These poppies were found on a walk in Ouray Colorado. We walked up a side street and saw some wonderful Victorian homes with beautiful gardens. These happy poppies called out to be painted!

Osprey on the Nest

'The Fish Hawk' 12x16 pastel

I had my first pastel class about 2 years ago and I painted an osprey. I have that painting hanging up in my studio to remind me how far I have come in the past two years. I thought it would be fun to paint another osprey to see how my style and skills have evolved. This osprey is from the same batch of reference photos I used for my original painting. I took them myself. It was an amazing site to watch this osprey and her mate and 3 babies. The male had caught a fish and flew around the nest several times before delivering the fish to his family. I have several more great shots that would make good osprey paintings.

Sea Gull Feather on the Beach

'Light as a Feather' 5x7 pastel

When I walk the beach I love to look for treasure. I have found beautiful perfect shells but I am just as happy to find broken bits of colorful shells and especially feathers! I love feathrs and I have quite a collection of them. I have an osprey feather I found on Sanibel Island and my newest treasure, a beautiful raven feather I found out in Utah! This is a sea gull feather I found on the beach on Hunting Island in South Carolina.

More Roadside Flowers

'She Loves Me' 5x7 pastel

Here is number three in my series of roadside weed or wildflowers I have come across on my travels. I found these on the side of the road to my parent's cabin in the North Carolina Mountains. I did some research and found they are some variety of Daisy Fleabane. Here is a fun site with more than you'll ever need to know about these flowers! http://www.hiltonpond.org/ThisWeek020522.html

The title of the painting refers of course to the picking of daisy petals while reciting 'she loves me, she loves me not!' I am feeling silly today!

Sunflowers from Life

'Sunshine on a Gloomy Day' 8x10 pastel

Today Carol & I decided we'd set up a still life and paint from life. I never get to do that and I know how helpful it is....and hard to do! I bought some sunflowers and this is my version. I have them at my desk now so my goal is to paint them everyday until they are through. I love sunflowers though so this will be a fun project!

Pastel Disaster!

What else can happen in one weekend?? Got sick, studio flooded, son's car got stuck in a puddle now won't run, satellite dish went out, internet went out for a bit, neighbor called to complain that we are sending the rainwater into her yard (nuts)....then just when things were looking up, my sweet adorable cat Tobi jumped up onto my big pastel box and knocked the whole entire thing over. I needed to reorganize them better but not this way! Now my carpet is a lovely rainbow of color. Oh well! On the bright side, I had a wonderful time painting with my friend Carol and I will post my paintings next. And I'm sure the worst of it is over!

North Carolina Country

'Fields of Gold' 12x16 pastel

I am sharing a painting I did last summer since I didn't have a new one finished Saturday. It was a crazy day! I woke up feeling under the weather which wasn't a good thing because my friend Carol was in town and we were planning to get together to paint. But by afternoon I was feeling better and we had a wonderful time...to be continued today. Then in the evening we had a wicked thunder storm and I had major leaks in my studio....luckily not where I had anything valuable but still it was a mess trying to catch the rain in buckets! Today will be clean-up and we have to get that roof fixed!!

Tabby Cat Pastel Painting

'The Morning Bath' 8x10 pastel

"I put down my book, The Meaning of Zen, and see the cat smiling into her fur as she delicately combs it with her rough pink tongue. Cat, I would lend you this book to study but it appears you have already read it. She looks up and gives me her full gaze. Don't be ridiculous, she purrs, I wrote it. - from "Miao" by Dilys Laing

Here is the finished painting of Jennie. She is sitting here next to me in the midst of another morning bath. She approves of her painting! To see the work in progress photo of this painting visit my other blog http://karenspetportraits.blogspot.com

Siamese Cat at Rest Pastel Painting

'Siamese at Rest' 5x7 pastel

"Like a graceful vase, a cat, even when motionless, seems to flow."George F. Will

I love all cats but I admit I have a fondness for Siamese cats...I always did...since I first saw them in 'Lady in the Tramp'. All cats are beautiful and graceful, but I just love the colors in a siamese ...that rich velvety brown against the soft cream and those amazing blue eyes! They just fascinate me!

In case you are interested, I posted 'Rocky' as a work in progress over on my pet painting blog http://karenspetportraits.blogspot.com/

Magen's Bay Commission

'Morning at Magen's Bay' 16x20 pastel

I love to paint Caribbean scenes, especially of Magen's Bay so I was thrilled to be able to paint this scene. This is actually the largest Caribbean painting I have done. I forget how much I enjoy painting bigger!

You may have noticed some changes to the blog. I just realized that this month marks the two year anniversary of my blog! That's a lot of painting and blogging! So I thought it was time to update the site. Let me know what you think or what you'd like to see. Thank you to all my faithful readers...you've kept me going and I appreciate it! If you are new to my blog, why not sign up for an email subscription so you can be notified of new posts.

Rocky the Welsh Terrier

'Rocky' 8x10 pastel

This is Rocky, my daughter's friend's dog. This painting is a long time coming since I took his photo a couple of years ago when I first got my pastels. I have had requests for pet portraits so I thought I'd start with Rocky. This painting is 8x10 on LaCarte paper. I have started a new blog devoted to my cat & dog paintings and I am posting 'Rocky' as a work in progress. I am still working on the new site but please go take a look http://karenspetportraits.blogspot.com

Seaside Goldenrod Weed Series #2

'Seaside Goldenrod' 5x7 pastel

Here is the second painting in my 'weed' series. Some people hate weeds but they do have a beauty of their own. (as long as they aren't in the garden!) These Goldenrods aren't really weeds though they do grow wild along the dunes on the Atlantic Coast. I think they add nice sunny color to the dunes!

Southwestern Cliffs

'Red Cliffs and Clouds' 8x10 pastel

I am working on a larger painting today and it isn't finished yet so I'd like to share another plein air painting I did out at the Red Cliffs Lodge in Moab, Utah. I could have spent a week there painting...and I think someday I will do that!

Miniature Bahamas Painting

'Bahamas Beach Break' 2.5 x 3.5 pastel

I didn't have time to paint today so I am sharing a tiny painting I did earlier this week. This is the beach at Half Moon Cay in the Bahamas. It is a gorgeous beach surrounded by lush tropical vegetation...paradise! Hopefully I will be able to take a break tomorrow from our bathroom remodeling project to paint....I have some great ideas lined up!

Time for Sunflowers

'Time for Sunflowers' 5x7 pastel

It's so much fun to play with pastels and colors and the sunflower is the perfect subject to play with! I missed the Sunflower Festival this year so I think I will just have to treat myself to my own bouquet from the farmer's market. This weekend I will be working on a commission of Magen's Bay which will be fun.

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Price: $75 USD
Or, send me an email

Magen's Bay Morning

'Magen's Bay Morning' 8x10 pastel

Here is the finished painting of Magen's Bay. This is my favorite Caribbean beach and it is found on the island of St. Thomas in the US Virgin Islands. I love getting there in the early morning before the crowds to capture the dappled light and shadows. I especially love walking over to the rocks on the right side of the beach. It is just so beautiful there!

Magen's Bay Work in Progress

It's been awhile since I've shared a work in progress. I started this painting of Magen's Bay this afternoon. This is a small piece at 8x10. I first did a small value sketch about the size of a business card to work out the composition then I drew my main shapes on my paper. I am using white Wallis paper. I decided to do an alcohol wash this time so I lightly used nupastels to block in my major shapes and then painted over them with alcohol...this is the result. Stay tuned for the finished painting!

Crows at the Beach

'Crows at the Beach' 8x10 pastel

I painted this scene using only my new Stan Sperlak pastel set of Terry Ludwig pastels. I really like this set. It is perfect for the beach and marsh scenes I love to paint. Now I need another pastel box to keep them in!

New Pastels!

I got a new set of Terry Ludwig pastels this week and couldn't wait to try them out! They are the Northeast/MidAtlantic Collection chosen by pastel artist Stan Sperlak. He paints a lot of beach and marsh scenes so I knew I would have to have this set! He also put together a set of 14 Terry Ludwig purples which is perfect for me!! Yesterday I painted two paintings using only this set to see how the colors worked for me. I will post the results next.

Red, White and Blueberry...Ice Cream Cone

'Red, White and Blueberry' 5x7 Pastel

Here is my painting for the 4th of July! I love ice cream and it's been wonderful to have a daughter working at the ice cream shop this summer. I have enjoyed some great ice cream like banana chocolate chip and s'mores! Yummmmm! But my all time favorite is still mint chocolate chip follwed closely by chocolate rasberry truffle.....I think I'll paint that next.

Morning in the Bahamas

'Morning in the Bahamas' 8x10 pastel

I know I have thousands of reference photos from my Southwest trip to paint from and I chose to paint a Bahamas scene!! It all depends on what strikes me at the moment and I was thinking 'Caribbean' since we just booked a cruise for our annual January get-away! I'm excited about this cruise since it will have 4 days at sea....we booked a balcony and I hope to have plenty of time to relax and paint. I have sold all the paintings I did on my last cruise as well as sold a painting of Magen's Bay for a new hotel to use in it's guest rooms....so I will be looking forward to painting in that great Caribbean light!

Buy this painting on PayPal
Price: $125 USD
Or, send me an email

On John Wayne's Trail

'On John Wayne's Trail' 12x16 pastel

Here is a painting I did from my SW trip photos. This is in Moab, Utah on a horse trail across from the Red Cliffs Lodge. We went on a half day horseback ride and the wrangler told us that we were riding on the same trail that John Wayne used for one of his Westerns...can't remember which one! I enjoyed using my Great American Southwest pastels for this painting. I just got back from the North Carolina mountains and I think I have some good photos to paint from...hopefully I'll have some time this week. We decided to remodel the bathroom so I have started a big project!