Wyoming Countryside (2011), 6 x 8"

I think this is the last Wyoming painting for now. Up next are another Bee Rock painting, two of the arboretum, and a really unusually shaped one of the Sea of Galilee. Stay tuned!

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Sequatchie Valley, TN II (2011), 6 x 12"

Check out this wikipedia article about the Sequatchie Valley in Tennessee. It is quite a pronounced geological feature and looks awesome from space!

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Sequatchie Valley, TN (2011), 9 x 12"

I love this painting so much, I think I am going to keep this one too. I am planning, though, to paint this subject again on a 6 x 12 canvas. I already have it sketched--it will be more of a panoramic view of this beautiful valley.

Red-Winged Blackbird (2011), 12 x 12"

I can't decide if this painting is too "folksy." Is it possible to paint a bird and have it not be folksy? I'm not sure. But, I like the texture of the tree and the varied tones I added to the sky. Those features give this painting more interest than it might have otherwise.

For sale at my Ugallery page.

Field of Poppies III (2011), 8 x 10 in.

Back by popular demand... Everybody loves my poppy fields. Unfortunately, there are no fields of poppies in Illinois (that I know of), so I have to acquire photos from internet sources. I found the reference photo for this painting on flickr.com. It was taken by Jon Connell--here is a link to his flickr page. Used under a creative commons license.

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Two new paintings!

Yesterday was a very productive day and I was able to complete two small paintings, both 6 x 9 in. The first is based on a photo taken at Shaker Village in Canterbury, NH, when I was there for a friend's wedding last July. The second painting is yet another Wyoming-inspired work. This particular painting turned out a bit more abstract than I had planned. Though, the original photo did look like it was taken on Mars (except for the foliage)!
"Wyoming" is for sale at my etsy page.

Butte with Sagegrass (2011), 8 x 16"

Here is another Wyoming painting. Maybe I should call these paintings the "honeymoon series." :-) I'm pretty sure this is my favorite painting of all I have done to date. I feel like this painting actually emits light! This is something I have been striving to achieve for a while, and here it works perfectly! I can feel the bright sunny day on which the original photo was taken when I look at this painting.

I haven't decided yet if I am going to sell this one. I am preparing to have a booth at the Taste of Champaign in June and am trying to complete at least another ten paintings before then. Generally, if I know I am going to sell a painting, I try not to get too attached to it. But this painting is different--how do you price a painting that evokes a priceless memory?

Ugallery Ships Internationally!

For all my international blog readers, I thought you should be aware that Ugallery ships artwork internationally! So, if you are interested in any of my paintings listed on Ugallery, they can be shipped anywhere in the world! Visit my Ugallery site here.

Ocean Waves (2011), 6 x 9"

This painting gave me some trouble.  I painted the sky three separate times--the first time it was definitely dull, and the second time it still didn't have enough interesting details. Finally, I added some big, fluffy clouds. Below are pictures of the sky in its three versions. I think it was a definite improvement!

Shoshone River, Cody, Wyoming (2011), 9 x 12"

Based on another photo from my Wyoming honeymoon trip. I have at least two other paintings planned based on these photos. I am loving painting the unique rock formations and colors of the West!

Red Poppies (2011), 8 x 10"

Some close-ups:
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"Scenic Area" (Wyoming), 2011, 9 x 12"

This painting is based on a photo I took in Wyoming on my honeymoon in 2006. :-) I've been looking over those photos recently and have found several more that would work perfectly as paintings.

For sale on Ugallery.com.

The Watchman, Zion National Park (2011), 30 x 40"

This painting was a challenge! Not only is it my largest painting to date, but I significantly altered the color scheme of the original photo. I generally do not attempt to change anything in my source photos--especially not the light source--because I have found that the result is a painting that does not make visual sense. But in this case, the original photo appeared to have been taken on a dark, overcast day and there was no obvious direction to the light. I had already sketched and painted part of the painting when I decided that the original photo was not ideal--thus, I attempted to make some alterations. Here is the original photo (found on flickr.com and used under a creative commons license--original photo by Stuart Seeger):First, I determined that I wanted the light to be coming from the right side of the painting. So, I had to decide which faces of the mountains would be reflecting the light and which would be in shadow; also if there would be any cast shadows. I sketched the shadow pattern onto a sheet of paper and used it as a reference as I painted. I basically painted the canvas from the top down, starting with the sky, then the mountains, then then the trees, etc. I had to scrape the mountains off several times before I got the color scheme right. You can see evidence of this here (diagonal ridges) where I (unintentionally) let a layer of paint dry that wasn't completely flat:
I kind of like the effect, though, because it fits the rough texture of the rocky cliff face.

I think the end result is pretty successful. I really like the colors, especially on the mountains (see above photo). Looking back , I would have picked a different photo that had a good, interesting light source to begin with. It is hard to appreciate the details of the painting in such small photos, so here are some more close-ups:For sale at my Ugallery page.