Jonquil Bouquet on Blue and Blue SOLD

This spring I painted many gray backgrounds; but this one is a little more lively.  I put this bouquet of white jonquils on blue and blue and blue.  These are early jonquils, some of the many bulbs that my daughter planted last fall.  The orange centered ones are small and have multiple flowers on each stem.  I really like the large area of blue and the strong contrasting whites and oranges.
On my ETSY Store

White Jonquils, Square Glass Jar on Gold

More spring flowers.   These jonquils have small clusters of flowers on single stems.  Picked from my garden.  I like the brushwork in the vase. On my ETSY store.

Red Camellia, Round Jar SOLD

This camellia is just fabulous and flamboyant.  The leaves are stiff and shiny and the flowers have such strong contrast between the red petals and the yellow stamens.  Red is a difficult color to paint because it is so intense; to paint a dark red in shadow, the shadow has to be almost black and the light struck areas aren't really pink, they're still red.  It's as though the colors are vibrating in a spectrum that can't be captured by mere paint. 

Yellow Daffodil, Square Glass Jar, on Blue

These were tiny yellow daffodils, multiple flowers on a single stem.  I'm really enjoying seeing all the varieties bloom; we planted so many last fall that we lost track of what was what, and now we've got surprises in white and yellow and orange.  I like the spring colors. 

Six White Jonquil on Blue

The bulbs that were planted last fall have started to bloom and I have to paint them while the opportunity is here.  This jonquil has a small flower with multiple flowers on a single stem.  I like the blue against the white. 

Sunset Creek

I enjoy painting late afternoon and twilight.  The colors are harmonious and the whole scene is shifted to warm oranges and reds.  This is a view of a creek near the Nisqually Wildlife refuge. Painted from photos I took on location. 

Pink Camellia on Gray

Another pink camellia painting.  The flowers are so dense and soft and the leaves are so stiff; there's a lot of textural contrast.   I like the lights in the glass jar.  These flowers last only a day or two in a bouquet, but will stay on the bush for a week.  They are among the first flowers of spring.

Pink Camellia on the Table

Spring has come early to Puget Sound.  The camellias are putting on a show.   The flowers remind me of roses (but no scent) and the leaves are waxy and stiff.  When the weather gets wet, as it often does in spring, the petals turn brown almost instantly.  12" x 12" On my ETSY store

Misty Day and Pushki

Another small  painting of pushki.  These large plants have white umbrella shaped clusters of flowers and are common in Alaska.  This painting will be in a show at Artique Ltd gallery in Anchorage in September.

Kodiak Tidal Creek

A view of a low lying creek near chiniak on Kodiak Island, Alaska. At this point, the creek is tidal and bordered by black sand.  A spruce forest covers the distant hills.  I like the gray colors and misty sky. 

Pt Robinson Lighthouse in Gray

A view of the Pt Robinson lighthouse from the shore.  This is a rework of a painting I painted last year. Below is the previous incarnation.

In the newer (top) version, I like the color of the sky better and the foreground doesn't seem so overwhelmingly brown.  But there was a lot of dashing brushwork and drama in the earlier version.  To me, the older version seems like a sketch and the newer version seems like a painting. 

Two Carnations in a Glass Jar

The carnations lasted beautifully and I managed to get several paintings.  This is the last for a while; now I have flowers in the yard clamoring for my brush.   The painting is a closeup of a simple bouquet with only part of the glass jar visible. I like the bright stiff red flowers against the gray background. I like the dark gray and how it contrasts dramatically with the light green of the flowers and stems. Painted from a still life I set up in my studio.
On my Etsy store

Red Carnations with Green Wall

A painting of red carnations with a bit of green in the against the wall.  I've kept the colors minimal; red and green are complements and when you mix them together you get gray.  I like the light striking the flowers.