Back to Winter

This is East Rd Alford   Ma....almost every day Mike and I walk down or up this road ....this particular afternoon  I was struck by the color of the snow with the late afternoon light on it...and the funny  cast shadows on the road from the snow bank....I did this painting from memory in the studio the next morning...hard for me to do considering my ability to remember things....but it does remind me of what I saw and why I liked it..oil on canvas   18x18"

Summer on the Block Island Beach

These are all sketches done while I relax on the warm sand .....watching the day go by... you have to work very fast as people do not stand still for long....an impression can't wait ...11x14" china marker,pen paper

Girl on the Beach

Now here are some quick sketches from the summer months on the beach on Block Island....an old friend.....how far off is the summer? we are on the way to the West Indies next week...ink pen on paper 8x10"

Iris and French Cloth

Todays efforts ...as I started painting I said to myself...why am I painting this flower? and I answered ,because it is so beautiful....and I love the colors....this was one Iris stem left over  from a bouquet I brought to a friend at the hospital.... which he loved....the other flowers were orange African Daisys so that is why I picked the orange fabric....oil on canvas  12x12"

The Snow Storm

I went out crosscountry skiing the other day in the middle of a snow storm....when I got to this spot in our neighbors field I stopped and marveled at the silence of the falling snow....it was so beautiful,peaceful, inspiring....I made mental notes and then skied the next day to check my notes...this is what I saw...trying to paint the snow falling really challenged me, but after all I think this works in a way....oil on canvas 30x30"

Bird Feeder in Snow

It was a snow day.... which meant I was not jumping in the car to go anywhere...so I set up my easel by the back door ( looking out at the pool) and painted what I saw...the snow had stopped....but it was all still there as well as the hungry birds....there is nothing like the brilliant red of a Cardinal in winter   oil on canvas  24x24"

Barrett's Present

It was so beautifully wrapped that I just had to paint it....someone said the shadow seemed ominous ...It is what it is....It is real life....still haven't opened it...oil on canvas  11x14"

And in this ring...The flying Bambinos

How could I resist the girls in the skin tight suits about to fly up into the Big Top?   Amazing bodies and skills to match....watercolor 22x30"

The Trapeze

As you can see there is alot going on at the circus...which is what interests me... it is like a giant puzzel...see the shadow on the side of the tent? watercolor 22x30"

Portrait of Rosie

Rosie posed today...last time I painted her was a couple of summers ago and she was nude....it was warm....great to have her back...she is writing a book now ....about how she almost drowned when  she was young....which she talked about as she posed...very interesting....a very beautiful girl...oil on canvas 20x20"

Ode to my Goldfish

To my sweet goldfish who has been with us for years, you will no longer be swimming, this brings me to tears, what happened to you we will never know, but after today you will swim in the snow..... oil on canvas  16x16"

Up on a High Wire

More of the circus....the high wire act...I love the up and down of this composition....two different focuses...connected by the ropes and ladders and surrounded by the dark...watercolor  22x30 " Arches Hot Pressed paper

Circus Entrance Summer Evening

I really like this view with the long shadows and the feeling of just entering the Big Top.....watercolor 22x30" on paper

Tropical Still Life

One of my students brought these clementines into the studio  ...... found this wonderful fabric.....and voila' another amazing still life subject.... it was fun to be painting all these hot colors when it was so unbelievably cold outside.... 24x24" oil on canvas

Cole Bros Circus ...Elephant Ride

I've been taking photos of the circus for many years....I would like to spend the winter working on the paintings from these photos, a project I began earlier this year.... watercolor 22x30" Arches Hot pressed paper

Self Portrait December

First I did the drawing and then I tried the portrait in oils.....more colorful for sure...sort of the same feeling..still look awfully grim...however when one is painting a self portrait it is difficult work and one has to concentrate..so that is the expression of concentration....oil on canvas 20x16"

Self Portrait Drawing

I had not done a self portrait since last year and I had not drawn one in many more ...so this attempt was made...I never know what I look like....but always an interesting way to spend the morning....16x20 " China Marker on Bristol Paper

Snow in Central Park ( from a photo on a card)

I sent out some Christmas cards with this beautiful image on them....The buildings in the distance have such a haunting feeling up againt the snowy ground...also the stormy sky always gets me.... I liked it so much I thought I would try to draw it...so this is what came from that experiment...I enjoyed my time drawing...and that's the reason I do this work...c'est tout... Black China Marker on Bristol paper  @16x20"

The Stag on a Starry Night

Here is the first drawing from my mind I have really ever done ...or at least for a long time...like since I was six? Anyway I did bring this stag sculpture to the studio and that is how I got the inspiration... not to mention it was the Christmas season and this is what came to mind....Merry Christmas !!! 24x36" china  marker(wax pencil) on paper

Wilcox Farm Woods

And so after I painted the three heifers in the AM... I wandered into the beautiful woods in the PM and could not leave before I had spent some hours with this incredible woodland stream and autumn trees.... I was about to start painting a huge tractor in the shed but realized that I would love it if the farmer backed it out of the shed before I painted it...better composition....but he was nowhere to be found and so the woods called...glad I listened...will have to catch the tractor another fall day....maybe spring  watercolor 22x30"

Three Little Heiffers

OK so I did paint this a couple of weeks ago before it started to snow....back at the Wilcox's farm, my favorite farm of all.... these girls just look so cute to me and I sort if let myself have fun painting them....of course they stood still for about three seconds....so I really made most of it up!Even the tractor didn't have tires on it...  watercolor on 22x30" paper

Fox in the Snow

I painted this study several years ago and then decided it needed something....It was just the road and the snowstorm....so I added the fox....it was pretty tricky to figure out but I like it more now.... The new show at 510 Warren St Gallery opened up last night....seemed to be a hit... oil on canvas 20x24"

Ruby Chard

Every year I grow ruby chard in my garden to paint and eat...here is a bunch I picked just for the painting...gorgeous greens and reds.....24x36" oil on canvas

Milkweed and Landscape in the Studio

Drawing is very difficult when you are really used to painting...I think in terms of masses of color , but then again there is line to consider...so I just keep working at it and I swear I will do it differently the next time...22x30" China Marker on paper

Still life with Pomegranite and Osage Oranges

These drawings were done in the past few days....I was reading Van Goghs letters where he speaks about drawing all the time and I wanted to do some myself....these were done with China Marker on paper @ 22x30" It is tricky when you get used to painting to switch back to drawing...a challenge, but a good one....

October Sunset Block Island

This is the other half of the previous sunset...hot and cold....sun and water...an inspiring place to spend some time...watercolor 22x30" on paper

Sunset at Cooneymus Cove

Our last weekend there to close the house...an incredible stormy sunset...I painted this when I got home from a photo I had taken..the wind would not allow for painting outdoors...watercolor 22x30"paper

The Gasner Estate on Island

Every one else was at the beach across the street...but the light was just beautiful this afternoon ...clouds and pond and the feeling of September in the air....I always wanted to paint this building and this was the day....   watercolor on paper 22x30"

Alford Cemetary All Hallows Eve

A welcoming sight on a late Autumn afternoon...the local resting place...Is it haunted?I love the "monuments" as they are called....look like sculpture to me....this is a watercolor on 22x30" paper

The Alford Church and Schoolhouse

Here is what our little town looks like to me on a late fall afternoon...the storms of winter are on their way...oil on canvas 24x36"

Watermellon and WinterSquash

This is what's going on in the studio lately...the harvest of the local painters....interesting combination....couldn't resist painting it though...winter is on it's way....24x30" oil on canvas

Coast Guard Station and the Tide is Going Out

I spent an afternoon working on this study watching the tide go out and the boats coming in....by the time I left here it was getting dark...sun setting...but then I saw the barn reflection....watercolor 22x30"

Champlin's Farm Sunset

On the evening that I painted this watercolor I was coming around the bend heading home from the coast guard station where I had just worked on a study of the tide going out and I saw this reflection of the old barn in the ponds which I could not resist....(that was a mouthful) anyway I got set up to paint and realized I did not have any water to paint with ( I was just using the salt water always handy near the cut) just then one of my students drove up ( she hads also been painting down near the coast guard station) and she had a bottle of Poland Spring water which she donated to the cause....so I had a great time trying to capture this wonderful scene....later I learned that old Mrs Champlin had recently died and the farm had been sold off to some new folks...probably not wanting to farm unfortunately...watercolor 22x30"

Bass on the Block

This fish was caught on Block Island and painted out there too....I couldn't resist a beautifuhl fresh fish.....added the knife and lemon for balance....watercolor 22x30"

Full Moon over Autumn Trees

This is what I saw one night as I came home from a meeting....The clouds looked like they were swirling around the moon....In this painting I have attempted to capture that night....watercolor 22x30"

Moon over the Apple Tree

This was painted earlier in the month....stone wall at bottom built by youngest son....I woke up in the middle of the night and saw this view out of the back window...for some reason I thought it was inspiring....have another moon scape in mind...will try it soon.....watercolor 22x30"

Moon setting over Montauk

I woke up in the middle of the night and looked out and this is what I saw....the moon was not full yet but as it was setting it was an orange color.... a wonderful sight....watercolor 22x30"

The House on the Road to the Sea

I have always loved this old house...it's right down the road from the Andrews and on the way to Claudias....The fence is particularly wonderful in the afternoon light....watercolor 22x30"

A Big Bunch of Sunflowers

Here are two of many studies done of these sunflowers....these are watercolor on 22x30" paper...I will show you some more  sometime....lots of fun to paint as you can see?

More Circus

Cole Brother's finest...White horse and a blond ....always something exciting to fill the ring...Ladies and Gentlemen....Children of all ages..this needs a little more work...

The Circus is in town

One of many studies done and to be done of the circus...endless inspiration there    watercolor 22x30"

A Quaint Farm in the Berkshires or The Yellow Chair

I spent last Thursday AM working on this and a few more days too....such a beautiful place I have never seen...everywhere you look something  interesting and growing.... 36x48" oil on canvas

Berkshire Summer View

This bouquet had been tempting me for a while at the studio and then the day came that we went over to Alford valley to paint...so I brought the flowers and..voila! the hay field in the background was about to be mowed and loaded into the wagon there on the right....watercolor 22x30"

42nd St and Park Ave NYC

So this was the  picture on the invitation to the "Manhattan Watercolors" show that opened this past weekend at the Front St Gallery....23 framed watercolors and a bunch of others in the "bin" alot of good work of which I am glad of....I will try and include the rest of the show soon.... 22x30" watercolor on paper

Sunset at Payne's Dock

 

When I did this study there were not so many boats in the harbor...I mean not as many as there are now...this is the image on the invite to the opening this weekend...at Jessie Edwards Gallery Block Island ...One good thing about painting is that I get to edit what I am looking at and transpose all of it...the Coast Guard Station is in the distance....24x30" oil on canvas