Still Life in Oil - WIP

Working larger than usual...24" x 30".  Can't believe the amount of paint already used and I am still in the beginning stages...at least it's sort of roughed in for now.  This may take awhile, in the meantime, I am going to try to balance my time with smaller ones. 

The plant on the right is a really neat spiky cactus...it will go in last.  BTW, Zinnias stink after a few days in water, even if you change the water each day.  Had to finally take a photo for my reference as the flowers had to go out the door.

Where I Stand Sunday - RV trip

Hubster and I were at Prairie Dog State Park in Kansas this week, I thought it would be a more exciting photo than where I am Sunday.  Here we are - all 5 of us.  It was a hot one! 

Even the AC didn't cool us down that well. 

We are having difficulty with our big diesel RV...troubleshooting it and repairing it all we can, it is next to be in the hands of (hopefully competent) mechanics at Cummins diesel in Nebraska.  Lightning, is the culprit perhaps they tell us.  It at least runs now, but idles very roughly and knowing that, we don't want to go great distances - as planned - until we know it is up to those distances - operating it that way could be doing more harm than good.  So many sensors and serious electronic components - makes for the DIY'ers lack of ability to just "FIX IT!!" 

I hope we can simply say to the Cummins guys just "FIX IT!" and it will be so. 

Did I tell you my daughter and her family are moving back to Colorado from Brooklyn, N.Y.?  YEAH!!!! 

Where I Stand Sunday

Again, actually it was Saturday - we seem to be so involved in fixing this RV problem...it has kept me away from the studio, what got me here on Saturday was the HEAT index, which was around 106...too hot to even be outside.  So here I stood at my new David Sorg easel with the AC blasting, seems like I have hardly been able to use it...but the feeling comes right back, as soon as I get my toons going.  What's a studio without toons?  It wouldn't be a studio for me!!  I like an eclectic selection of music.  Saturday leaned towards 'Namaste' (I honor the light in you) a meditative new agey kind of CD.  It opened the portals of my 'artist spirit'.  And oh yes, I listen to hard rock, pop, DJ spun dance beat, classical and oldies as well, just not yesterday. 

What do you listen to in your studio,

or the space where you create?

New Pastel for Today

"Rocky Mountain Goat"

9" x 12"

pastel on sandpaper

This Oreamnos americanus - climbs around on the most precarious cliffs.  You can see them in the highest mountains in the Rocky Mountain states.  This one is molting (aren't we all right now☺?).  Creating the wool texture and coloration was a challenge. 

See it at my Etsy shop.

An Aside....

Visit my ETSY shop!

New items and relist of some that now have frames included!

Acrylic Painting for Today

"Mustang Redux"

SOLD

6" x 8"

acrylic paint on canvasboard

One of my favorite subjects is horses.  I have drawn them since I was a little girl.  The inspiration from this one came from a photo off of Morguefile which I made a copy of in color and black and white for values.  Recently I purchased a lot of colors in acrylic paint at Utrecht in KC.  I used a lot of those new colors in this painting which is always fun.  The underpainting is Red Oxide - and it was not transparent but rather opaque when I started adding the subjects.  It works for me that you can see some of that color underneath and I like the effect.  When I have been away from my easel, I come back with a tight and detailed focus - so I needed to get away from that...the brushstrokes were fast and loose, the brush size was larger than I normally use and I took my eyeglasses off.

Where I Stand Sunday (actually Saturday)

It's hot...OK?  I have the AC going in two rooms of this house, doors closing off other hot areas - fans blazing.  It never fails, whenever I do the laundry and take the clothes fresh out of the dryer to the bedroom to dump on the bed to fold them - along come the dachshunds...they burrow under the hot towels or shirts - even in the heat and look at you as though to say - "Just go away and let us stay here until these clothes are cooled off!"  Here they are keeping me from folding a towel.  I usually give up and come back later...but today, I didn't have the time to wrestle the issue.   I can see it when the weather is cold, but it's sooo hot right now.  Habit or need?? 

Even after the towel was folded, there still seemed to be something appealingly

warm and comfortable about it. 

Think nothing of it next time you see me with dog hair all over my t-shirt. I am already itching...☺

P.S. Today is also 'actually' my parents 65th wedding anniversary - Happy Anniversary to Ed and Glo - I LOVE YOU GUYS!! 

P.S.S.  If you saw this blog in the dark colors, I changed it, as the text was popping off the page - too much contrast.  This is a little easier to read...