During preparation for the holiday exhibits at the Workhouse and ArtBeat galleries, I was busy painting several pieces with, what else, SNOW! This one came from a black and white photo. I had to figure out a pattern of light, as the photo was quite different. The path of the stream carries the viewer from the bottom of the scene to the strong light across the top. (watercolor 11 x 14 image).

Every year artists will create new small art works for holiday shows. I am no exception! Here’s a sample of several small watercolor pieces done for this year. These will be on display November and December at the Workhouse Arts Center, Bldg. 16, Lorton, VA. Each piece is 5″ x 5″ watercolor, matted and framed (brushed gold) to 8.75″ x 8.75″. The price at the Workhouse will be $80. each, or three for $200. I have sold small works each holiday season and anticipate this year will be just as successful.

I am offering to reduce the price for sale through my website to $50. each, three for $135.

I used a theme like last month’s larger pieces,  birch trees in winter with colorful backdrops of my own choosing! I hope you enjoy them. Please, send me an email if you are interested in purchasing, while they last.

This one of a several paintings done in a similar theme. This is the largest  (22 x 28 outside frame). Used a lot of washes and masking to achieve the background color effect and it was fun.

(Watercolor 11.5 x 15.5 image) The seasons are changing and I dug through photos we took last year in Tennessee while visiting the Great Smokie Mountains National Park. Colors, shapes and light passages abound and make for exciting paintings.

Some folks don’t like sunflower paintings. Too bad! I enjoy the irregular shapes, value changes and a chance to mix hard and soft edges. Fact is, I’ll probably do a series on them. (watercolor 11 x 15 image)

An artist friend has a lot of photographs from her visits to the State of Maine, where she travels. She offered them to artists to work from and I couldn’t resist this one. The dynamic cloud colors, with purples and oranges - opposites on the color wheel, made it an easy choice and exciting to paint. (watercolor 22 x 28) It will be on display the month of August at the Lorton Workhouse Arts Center, Bldg. W-16.

We traveled to Carolina Beach, NC to visit old friends. In the morning, I noticed the light across the marsh, shining down through these crooked old trees. The strong color value and light differences made me want to capture this in a painting (watercolor 15 x 21).

Watercolor - 11 x 15 image. More colors were added into this piece because the photograph I used did not excite very much. Also people were added to make it more alive; otherwise it was too quiet. Sometime a piece is a value painting and other times a color painting. Maybe this is both!

The year could be 1960 - as a kid, there were years when you “road the pine” and waited patiently to get in the game. Glove in hand, tossing a ball into it, trying to get the coaches attention that you were ready! And if you were called, you hoped to not embarrass yourself. (watercolor, 11 x 15).

I enjoy painting pieces that depict our national sport and my enjoyment of the game. I’ve done a few baseball theme pieces and this is one where the “national” is depicted by the red, white and blue. The “pastime” is old, like this glove and reflects the game with us for so many years. (14 x 18 image - watercolor).