New Work: Brilliant Forest, oil on canvas, 40 x 40 inches

Brilliant Forest,  oil on canvas, 40 x 40 inches    $6650 framed
Gallery 89, Steamboat Springs, CO

Working on this canvas was like being in a candy store. There is a lot of color and form packed into this scene, like a big bowl of bright candy wrappers bursting with color and concealing the bright flavors hidden inside.

The bright trees in the back intensify the composition and care was taken to make the darks interesting as well. The shadows are also an important design element and their presence became a happy excuse for the application of even more color at the bottom of the canvas.

It was very satisfying to finish this oil since it was started about 4 years earlier. There were numerous changes and improvements along the way, and each alteration moved the work closer to the goal of creating this expressive forest.

Grateful Notices: Winter's Morning II, oil on canvas, 40 x 40 inches

Winter's Morning II, oil on canvas, 48 x 48 inches
Exhibited, Renjeau Gallery Natick, MA Private collection

This was a very enjoyable endeavor. The oil is very freshly done, starting with two sessions of turp-thinnned paint. 4 feet square is a lot of area to cover, so using the thinned oils in the first two painting sessions allowed me to completely fill in the canvas and put the composition in a good place for a finish. 

In this version I've added more light, greener foliage and detail.

Being an artist is a real privilege and the joy flowed into this work.

New Work: Summer by the Shore, oil on canvas, 40 x 40 inches

Summer by the Shore, oil on canvas, 40 x 40 inches
Sorelle Gallery, New Canaan, CT

Patterns are intriguing and helpful when painting flat landscapes. I was first attracted to the shape of the summer clouds but once that red-purple band was painted in, the rest of the oil became a playground of pooling water, strips on land and vegetation.

Everything merged together, unifying the painting and creating interesting things to see in every part. 

New Work: Light Beyond, pastel 18 1/2 x 22 3/8 inches

Light Beyond
Pastel on sanded paper,  18 1/2 x 22 3/8 inches

This started as a pastel demonstration a number of years ago. I came across it when I was clearing things out of my studio and pulled it out to work on.

I still remember being a bit stumped at the time of the workshop, working carefully while talking to the class. Once I saw it again, the solutions poured out in rapid order.

For the most part, the moves were about boldness, adding complexity and insuring that every part of the pastel has its own interest while adding to the whole. The piece surprises me with the iridescent blues and how they move. As I added blues, it was if they were in a conversation with each other, instructing me to push more and bring more blue to the party.

Care was taken to preserve the dark masses at the top to better frame the light play in the back of the scene. I love pastels...

New Work: In the Colorful Forest, oil on canvas, 36 x 72 inches

In the Colorful Forest
Oil on canvas, 36 x 72 inches   $9950 framed
Dominique Boisjoli Fine Art, Santa Fe, NM

Creating this oil was pure joy. It is all about patterns and color and the combinations are endless. A lot of moves were made here. The forest was much less populated in the earlier versions and the colors more subdued.

As I added more trees to improve the composition, the painting called out for more color. Additional density was added to the background leaves along with a bit of aqua to the upper right.

Once the aqua was in place, it made the rest of the oil seem a bit duller, a happy problem that was solved with brighter color and more of them. Every color was taken higher and as they were added,  the forest came alive.

Who would think that a bit of aqua would require changes across the entire 6 foot expanse? That is how I see things and it is a delight to be an artist.

Grateful Notices: Summer Haze, oil on canvas, 36 x 36 inches

Summer Haze oil on canvas 36 x 36 inches
Private collection, MAExhibited: Saks Galleries, Denver

My grateful thanks to the Massachusetts collector and everyone at Saks Galleries, Denver for making this acquisition possible!