Mt. Rainier in Blue and Pink

An 8 x 0 original oil painting of Mt. Rainier in late afternoon.   The mountain is viewed across the water as the sunlight turns pink and lavender.  The painting is characterized by saturated color and loose bold brushwork.  On my ETSY store

Blue Teapot and Eggshells SOLD

A month ago I painted the teapot, last week I painted the eggshells, in this post I put them together.  I combined warm browns in the eggshells and cool grays and blues in the background and teapot.  The colors are subdued and desaturated so they complement each other nicely.  I like the pale warm color inside the shadow of the eggshells.

Nympheas

This was painted for a challenge on Daily Paintworks.  It's a subject I've painted before and always enjoy.  The challenge is trying to make all the lilypads recede in perspective and to lay flat on the water.  The trick is to remember that no matter the shape of the lilypad, it is an oval on a plane and the oval doesn't really tilt to the right or the left unless the plane also tilts. Its the same problem as drawing a bowl or cup on a tabletop- ovals that are closer to the horizon become thinner and flatter, and ovals that are at the bottom of the page in bird's eye view are closer to a circle.  A bit larger 24" x 30".  On my ETSY store

Sun and Smoke Ferry Vashon

The Ferry Tillikum leaves the north end Vashon ferry dock.  Sunlight streams through smoke as the boat slowly pulls away from the dock.  Painted from photos I took from another ferry on the same run.  I just put this painting in the Heron's Nest Gallery on Vashon. 

Blue Green Smoke Ferry SOLD

Another Vashon ferry painting.  The ferry is such an iconic image of Puget Sound.  I spend a lot of time muddling through what would be both a good painting and a clear representation.  I enjoyed the lost and found edges, the softness of the smoke and the way the ferry is sharply contrasted on one side and softly disappearing on the other. 

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.

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. 

Yellow Sunflowers on Blue

This painting was originally Yellow Sunflowers on Gold, but I was looking at it last week and decided the Gold had to go.  Now I have a turquoise background and blue/lavender shadows which I like better.  I think the colors express the idea of "sunniness" that sunflowers imply. Here's a link to the previous version.

Smokey Ferry with Pale Blue Hills SOLD

Another painting of the Vashon-Fauntleroy-Southworth Ferry.  Afternoon sun makes the hills dissolve, and turns the white ferry to blue.  Painted from photographs I took while on the sister ferry that runs the same route. 

Westport Marsh View South

A scene near Westport, WA - one of many inlets and sloughs on the south side of Gray's Harbor.  I like the many different shades of greens.  The colors are cool and soft, and show it was a hazy day near the ocean.  This will be in a show at Bainbridge Arts and Crafts Gallery in September. 

Blue Harbor and Sailboats

A view of sailboats at anchor on a sunny day in Quartermaster Harbor on Vashon Island.  The dark green hills are reflected in the water and sunlight bounces off the white decks.  I like the overall light and the saturated colors.  (Every now and then it's fund to use the colors undiluted.)  Painted from photos I took on location.   This painting will be in a show at Bainbridge Arts and Crafts in Winslow Washington in September 2014.  Click here to send me your post office mailing address if you'd like me to add you to my postcard mailing list for the show.  (The mailing list will be used for show postcards only)

Grayland Shore View North

On my ETSY store.

At the ocean beach in Grayland Washington--sunny and hazy and windy.  This was painted as the tide was still coming in but almost turning.  The water almost touched my feet but didn't get that far.  Everything was very high key, almost no shadows and pale colors.    I enjoyed trying to figure out how to suggest the shallow waves.
On my ETSY store

Burton from Portage SOLD

A larger painting - 18" x 36".  A view of the Burton Peninsula from Portage looking across inner Quartermaster Harbor.  This painting will be in a show I'm having in Winslow WA at the Bainbridge Arts and Crafts gallery in September.   

Silver Bowl Lemons and Blue Wall

A bowl of small lemons in the bright light of my spotlight.  I really like the reddish brown of the shadow as it crosses the tabletop.  On my ETSY store

Dockton Marina and Reflections SOLD

A view of the marina at Dockton on Vashon Island in Puget Sound.  Sometimes the light bouncing off the water makes the sky, sea and sand one color and one value.  Very sunny but difficult to capture. The strong dark shadows under the dock keep the painting anchored. 

Green Onions on Gray

Scallions on a light gray tabletop with a darker gray shadow across.  Even though the tabletop is gray, I see green and purple and gold in the neutral grays.  When arranging the scallions I try to come up with a good division of space and some interesting shapes.  
On my ETSY store.

Yakima View II

A scene painted from photos I took near Yakima Washington.  The flat valleys are irrigated and intensely farmed and the surrounding hills are dry and bare.  The hillsides turn blue and purple in the bright sunshine. 
On my ETSY store

Stiped Towel and Orange Slices

This is a slightly larger piece, so I thought I'd try some pattern.   I found a piece of blue and white striped towel and kept the colors simple, everything blue or white except for the orange slices.  I  subdued the reflections in the dark blue vase and the coffee cup because the striped pattern was taking over. I also lightened the fabric to reduce the contrast and simplify the painting.  A fun exercise.