Daniel Wright Pond

"Daniel Wright Pond"
10" x 10"
Oil on hardboard
I painted today in the Daniel Wright Woods with friends. The week had been cold and grey, but this morning for our first excursion into painting en plein air, the universe saw fit to grant us a day worthy of our efforts.  Sun shone on the trees, the algae rimming the pond and our skin when we got to take off our jackets.

I hadn't painted outdoors in a year and a half. I felt clumsy and untrained. What was I thinking?  But that's the point. I need to get comfortable painting outdoors for the workshops I'll be taking in Iowa and Indiana this season.  I'll find my way back to my roots... painting the many shades of green indicative of summer in Illinois.

Carol

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Some Kind of Posy

"Some Kind of Posy"
12" x 12"
Oil on wrapped canvas
I walked my usual path around the Botanic Gardens and shot this flower mid-way through my three-hour session. I did not, however, manage to get the tag that identified this flower into the photo.  I do that with new-to-me flowers, so I can learn more about them. Not this time, though.  It was more pure white, as I recall.  I embellished the colour painted here with a wee bit of creative license.  The green center was true to the pretty posy — a cross between a poppy and a peony and a sweet pea.

If you know what kind of flower this is, please be so kind as to let me know.  Pretty-posy-please :-)

Carol

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Dots, a Lot of Dots!

"Dots, a Lot of Dots!"
24" x 30"
Acrylic on watercolor board.
Here's another piece from a collector. I made a device that resembled a Q-Tip out of fabric and dabbed one dot at a time to create this geometric image. The dots are layered one on top of another to create each colour. It would have taken many boxes of Q-tips and a lot of fuzz removal to do it with the commercial device, but this took only one, carefully made tool and no residual lint. 

Thank you for your patience while I paint house portraits.

Carol

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Cloudy and Cool



"Cloudy and Cool"
6" x 6"
Oil on hardboard
The field of soybeans had been plowed under by the time the first nip of autumn stung my skin.  The weeds in the field next to the black dirt were sporting golds and bronzes to carry them through to spring.  The scrub trees were holding onto their leaves for as long as they could. It would be a long, cold winter. 

 Thankfully, winter no longer resides in my zip code. The magnolias are nearly finished blooming, rosebushes have leaves the size of teaspoon bowls and the lilacs are about to atomize their fragrance at the pulse points of my neighborhood.

Carol

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Crescent Rollers

"Crescent Rollers"
22" x 30"
Watercolor on paper 
I traveled to the home of one of my collectors over the weekend and saw several pieces of my art that I hadn't documented. I thought you might enjoy seeing them while I continue to paint house portraits. 

There was a time when either marbles, checks or crescents were in every painting. This one had some of each.

Carol

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Four Hands

"Four Hands"
23" x14"
Oil on hardboard






























My friends have been encouraging me to paint the figure. "How different can it be from a closeup of a flower?" they've asked.  When one of them provided me with this photo that he took, I recognized the perfect opportunity to give it a whirl.  This was an exercise in observing the relationship between colors, values and edges.  I'm amazed at how similar it was to painting, for instance, a rose.  I hope to do more. 

Except for a few pregnancy portraits I've not painted a figure or anything like this before. I'll improve ... if I continue.

Carol

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Cherry Blossoms in D.C.

"Cherry Blossoms in D.C."
6" x 14"
Oil on hardboard 
My sister visited Washington, D.C. a couple of weeks ago and sent photos of her trip to me. This was one that appealed to my sense of warmth and springtime.  Thank you for sending warmth my way, Dee. 

Dailypaintworks.com has featured four of my paintings this month as their Facebook pick of the day. I'm delighted to receive that honour, even though I'm not on Facebook, myself.

And, the Blick Spring Sale Catalog came out today.  Once again I'm one of their featured artists.  I have two pieces on page 60, yes, the same page as the regular Spring Catalog. This catalog is not online.

Carol

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Potted Purple Pansy

"Potted Purple Pansy"
24" x 24"
Oil on hardboard 
On my way into the grocery store yesterday I passed racks of potted pansies. On my way out I pulled out the camera that I always carry with me and photographed a few of them.  When I got home and imported them into iPhoto I realized that a few to me meant 62 images of pansies.  A few are good enough to use as subject matter.  My brain knows how many shots it takes to get a "few."  

Carol

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Day's End

"Day's End"
10" x 13"
Oil on hardboard 
It had been beautiful and fun; the kind of day you hoped would last forever, but, alas, it came to an end, anyway. I wondered why I couldn't just stay in it, locked forever in the joy of that day that seemed to be crafted just for me. There will be more like it, I'm sure.  

This sky is obviously larger than my collection of six-inch skies, and just as lovely as any of the little guys. Size doesn't matter when it comes to quality.  

Carol

Big, Fat Peony

"Big, Fat Peony"
14" x 14"
Oil on hardboard 

 
She was a beauty, this big, fat peony. I found her hiding her girth in the shadows of one of my favourite gardens that spring afternoon.  She was no spring chicken, but heading into her golden years, edges fraying, and about as full-blown as she would get. I loved every bit of her roundness, her vitality and her personality! She had all the young buds bobbing in the sunshine.   

Thanks to those of you who wrote to me when you noticed I had not posted in a few days.  I've been painting house portraits, but I took a break from them to delight my spirit by doing this painting.

Love to you,
Carol

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Promised Serenity

"Promised Serenity"
24" x 20"
Oil on hardboard



















I gazed toward the distant shore and knew that my kayak would glide effortlessly through the reflections and ripples dancing on the surface. I'd soon reach the haven where my spirit could rejuvenate and refresh. That small island held the promise of serenity.  

This is a commission piece that I painted today.  I hope it brings its new owners as much peace and serenity as I experienced while painting it.

Carol

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Verve

"Verve"
24" x 24"
Oil on wrapped canvas 
When I talked with my friend about painting this hibiscus from a photo I took at the Lincoln Park Conservatory on Monday of this week, my concern was entirely about maintaining the verve I had captured in the photograph. I do believe I did it! 

Today was a rainy day in Chicagoland. Okay, we had 4" of rain today, so it was a perfect day to paint ALL day. I began this at eight o'clock this morning and finished it at eleven o'clock tonight.  "Alla prima." In one sitting, wet on wet.  I ate, meditated, napped and ate again, but that is all I did once I began. I love rainy days.  

Carol

Waiting For A Storm

"Waiting For A Storm"
6" x 6"
Oil on hardboard
My friend spent his vacation time one year chasing tornadoes.  He focused his passion and attention on Texas, where there are big skies with big storms. This was not one of the sought-after skies he was there to photograph, but a colorful one that he shared with me.

 I have a couple of other larger pieces in the works, so here's another sky for the meantime.

Carol

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