Impressionistic???

                                     11"x14"  Oil on linen
                                        Gift to friend

This was painted many years ago in California, When I was just starting.   A friend and I were trying to paint like the impressionists.  This was my effort.   Looking at it today, my first thought was that I produced a painting that could only have been done by an impressionist who had had a little too much wine before starting.  I, on the other hand, had only coffee that day.   Doesn't figure!    My friend scraped his off later.   I should have, but kept mine, thinking I might work on it a little later.  The Mother of one my best friends saw it, liked it, and offered to adopt it, so I gave it to her. Today, the barn is gone, but the old house has been refurbished and looks better than ever.   Maybe I should get refurbished!                      Mike

Talk

Read Carol Marine's blog yesterday announcing her decision to take a break from her studio for a while.  I totally understand.  She has so many balls in the air I wondered how long she would keep juggling!  Her schedule would kill me.  I am much older and have worked hard in my day, but now I goof off a lot.  And I like it!  It.s a beautiful cloudless day today.  I think I'll go flying.     Mike

Cambria Fishermen

                                                    16"x20" Oil on linen
                                                          Sold

Way back when I first got my blog going, I posted a painting of Leffingwell Landing, a beautiful promontory  jutting out into the Pacific ocean in Cambria, California.  I also noted that the local Chumash indians used to drag whales up onto the little cove beach there.  This is that cove beach.  Those are not indians, however.The fisherman are all members of the Cambria fishing club, and they were not intending to pursue whales that day.  They were actually practicing means of finding the beach in the event of a sudden onset of the dense fog that occasionally appears in that area, using police whistles and auditory signals.  The gentleman at the bow was my neighbor when I lived there.  Sigh!  I did a little 4"x5" sketch and took photos, then scaled it up in my  studio later.                            Mike

Remembering spring

                                                         8"x10" Oil on linen panel
                                                              Sold

I selected this this little painting of a fully leaved (Is that a word?) tree to renew my hope that winter is indeed over.  This past has been an unusually benign season.   I attribute this, as mentioned in a previous blog, to the purchase of a powerful snow blower my me and a couple of my neighbors.   As I have grown older, I am more and more inclined to paint in my comfortable studio than to saddle up and drag my gear outdoors.  Not this spring, I vow!   Today, I am heading out to catch some of the trees bursting with color in my  home town.                                                      Wish me luck!                                                                                Mike

Just talk

Well, I've recovered from yesterday's debacle.   I'm going to do this one blog, and then tomorrow I am going to paint.  Ever since I returned from my California sojourn, I have been buried in various chores that keep me away from my easel.  Many of them are the result of  my believing I am starting something that I can do in a half hour, only to find that I was much too optimistic.   As those of you who actually read my misadventures have learned, I  usually run into those problems when I'm on this wonderful machine that is supposed to ease my burdens.  Two more short sentences and I may make it this time.    Made it!!!                    Mike

Oreo

                                                   16"by20"   Oil on linen
                                  Swapped with fellow artist
A larger version of a subject I posted a few months ago ("Just a memory" Mar 3).   The title refers to the herd of Banded Galloway cattle in front of the barn, whose unique coloring is hard to believe..   As I noted in the earlier post, the buildings have since been demolished and the cattle removed.  This painting was done in my studio from earlier sketches.  Today has not been a good day.  Both of my computers have conspired to drive me crazy!  One has unwanted security windows popping up constantly, slowing me  and frustrating me.   The other changes fonts for no apparent reason, and all different from the one on the blog itself.  (Note the 16"x20" Oil on linen painting size above).  It's the same font and size on my worksheet, but different here.   Why?   I am a rotten typist on top of everything else.  AARRGGHH!!!

Old house in Marshall NC

                                                  9"x12"  Oil on linen panel 
                                                Click here to bid on this painting

This is the second painting I did last Saturday on my outing with two friends.  Hope someone likes it!   Next weekend I hope to drive up to that area and do a few more.   Weather here has been wonderful.   From now until the end of  May is when I should do many of my outdoor works because when hot, humid days arrive I revert to being a studio painter.  Eventually, September comes around again, I get my french easel out and Voila! I'm a Plein air artist again.        Mike

Just talk

Today, I'm going to be working on my new computer, trying to persuade it to play along with some of my older applications.   Those of you knowledgeable ones out there understand and I hope, sympathize.  Tomorrow I'll post another of my few remaining photos of my art.  Oh! How I wish I had taken shots of more of my paintings.   I am shortly going to resort to once a week postings or start doing more reflections, anecdotes, and humor.   Very very shortly!     " To be- or not to be----".                                          Mike

Farm sheds and junk

                                                     9"x12" Oil on linen panel
                                                 Click here to bid on this painting

Had a great Saturday painting outing with a couple of  fellow WNCPAP  members.  It was about 55-60 degrees, sunny, no wind, and not a cloud in the sky.   Perfect.   I did a couple of small paintings, the one above and another I'll post at a later date.  We painted in a beautiful little town called Marshall.  It is having economic problems, like the rest of the country, indeed the world, but I have hopes for it.  It looks exactly the way a small town should look, and I intend to visit again before the end of this month.  Below is a photo of me  sitting with three members of the group.   Linda and Peggy who were my companions Saturday, and Kelly, who did not make it that day.                                          Mike

Old Barn on Santa Rosa Creek road

                                                     16"x20" Oil on Linen
                                                             Sold

Another barn from a California paintout.   The farmer was trimming scrub oak with a chain saw ( I feel guilty sometimes when I'm out happily painting and some farmer is working hard right around me! ).  He enjoyed seeing the painting, especially when I included him in it.  The thing I remember most about that day, though was the sight of a huge eucalyptus tree lying flat about 50 yards behind my setup spot.   It had obviously fallen a long time ago, because three other fairly large trees were growing vertically out of it's trunk!   I've never seen that before or since.  Strange!                                                      Mike

Just talk, March 5

I am writing this on a computer at my local library.   My 12 year old desktop (that's about 90 in human years) finally decided to cash in it's chips.  I have everything backed up, sort of, ---my backup drive somehow saved every thing in a file format the computer that did the backup refuses to recognize.  I'll be shopping for a new machine and then setting it up for about a week, I guess.  Expect me back then.   Wish me luck!       Mike  

Just talk

Lately I've been neglecting getting available paintings up for auction.   Today, I'm going to dig through my smaller stuff and see what I can find.  I want to thank all you nice people who have corresponded with me about my art and blog.   I think I have responded to those who enabled a response, but if I have missed someone, it's only because half the time I'm not sure what I'm doing on "comments", so forgive me.   Mike

Just a memory

                                                  12"x16" Oil on linen panel
                                                        Sold

I set up to paint this scene a while back with one of my NC friends.   There were actually quite a few cows wandering around at the time.   A few minutes after we started, however, cattle trucks pulled up and started in loading the cattle.  I talked to the gentleman in charge and he told me the property had been sold, the cattle were being removed and the structures demolished.   He spoke truthfully.   I returned a month or so later and all that was left was a pile of debris.   Life goes on.      Mike

Pastel experiment

9"x12" Water and pastel

Sold

Earlier in my blog I posted a modernistic peach tree executed in pastel and watercolor.    This is a second effort in the same manner.   I was simply playing around with pastel and water and did this out of my head.   Good heavens!  Imagine what it looks like in there!  Anyway, for those of you who haven't seen a jacaranda tree, they actually are as perple (perple?) purple as the one in my art.   This work is owned by my math genius friend, Stanley.  Everyone should have a friend like him, keeps you desperately teetering on your toes.    Mike