"The Thief"

I laid the candy bar on the coffee table in the family room and went into the bedroom to get changed into lounging pj's and came out about 10 minutes later. As I walked into the family room I noticed him in my seat and there he was propped up in the corner of the couch looking very proud of himself with the empty wrapper in his mouth almost teasing me about the fact that he had eaten all of the Butterfinger candy bar.  Chocolate bits in his beard and a smear of the remnants of chocolate smeared on the light wood floor beside the coffee table .
I always kept my camera on the kitchen island close by because the two furry kids that lived in my house were always up antics that were cute photo opps so I grabbed the camera and got this shot.  I always wanted to paint it and finally 12 years later I painted it. His name is Bo Bo aka Zuki but he was also known as "The Thief" because any unattended food was fair game for him... Don't even ask about the one Christmas I put dinner on the formal dining table and went into the family room and out to the patio call everyone to the table...
So I finished the painting on April 30th of this year putting it in a show where the original sold immediately but prints are available. 

Bo Bo died this past Friday of a huge malignant tumor in his stomach.  (I swear the ex-ray resembled a candy bar!)  He is terribly missed because he was so well loved but his pain was too much for him too bear and he has gone to the rainbow bridge to wait for me,  Thank God I still have his younger furry brother "Marley" aka Budgie to lavish love on. With Marley fruit is not safe to leave lying around.

On the Rocks

 

A 15" x 22" Watercolor painting of a Great Blue Heron walks along the breakwater pilings along side the Dunedin Causeway searching for bait fish close to the bridge. This particular bird was slow to fly away when approached by a human, as I got closer to him I realized that the birds feet were entangled with a careless fisherman's discarded fishing line and couldn't fly away. So I called the Bird Sanctuary to come rescue him from his plight. The painting will be matted and on the mat I will paint his entangled legs onto the mat to emphasize his plight.
prints available but the mat will not be included with prints only with the original.

Starry Night

Star Gazer Lillies  once again this painting didn't sell after a few years I decided the background was the problem and decided to paint the background Black. now these flowers are the Star of the show. Drama, Drama, Drama, love it. The previous light background version is in my blog  a few pages backif you would like to compare... let me know what you think light or dark background.

Remnants of the Dance

Here's another instance of the background competing with the center of interest. So once again I painted the background black so your eye stays on the remnants of the dance. The previous light background version is in my blog a few pages back if you would like to compare... let me know what you think light or dark background.

Callas

This painting was painted a while back I liked it but nobody bought it so I kept questioning whether it could be better. I decided to paint the background black to make the blooms more striking as the center of interest the background was competing with the blooms for attention. I think it works very nicely to create more drama and impact. The previous light background version is in my blog a few pages backif you would like to compare... let me know what you think light or dark background.

Looking for Lunch

On a photo shoot recently I saw this beautiful Little Blue Heron fishing as he was walking in the shallow water along the shoreline. There was very slim pickins for lunch for him so he climbed up on the rocks along the shoreline to get abird's eye view of the water, he must have seen movement because then he hopped down off the rock and went straight to a school of minnows just off shore and had his way with them... I think I heard him burp after he had his fill. This was a demo for my painting class to demonstrate bird feathers and movement on the waters surface.

Who's Got Your Back?

I painted this Eagle as a demo at a local Gallery I exhibit at. The Eagle couple were near the ground perched on a fallen log. They were both intently watching something that was to their left, when a rustle in the bush from behind them made him turn to look over his back momentarily. She turned and squarely faced the impending danger. It seemed that he was assured she could handle what ever the rustle presented and after a few moments he once again continued watching the left as he knew that was where the real threat was .

White Bird of Paradise Palm

Watercolor 15 1/2" x 22"

I loved my photo reference of this palm because of the abstract design of this composition. This painting is right out of the camera onto the paper. Sometimes perfection can not be improved apon. This is my new favorite masterpiece.

Enjoy.

Green Key Sunset

Acrylic on board 12"x 24"

Gardenia in the Garden

Oil 11" x 14"

Juicy

JUICY

Watercolor 22" x 11"

" Dreams of a Soldier"

18" x 24" Oil

This is a painting of my first husband and I and how I felt vulnerable and pensive and scared during the time he was in Viet Nam. (I felt like when your a little kid and they did the air-raid drills and you would get under the desk with your arms over your head to protect yourself) He would write me letters and I would read them over and over till the next one came. My only thought was him and would he come home. I felt like a ballerina turning pirouettes round and round dizzy in a vortex of worry and fears clinging to these letters as our only communication                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    during this year. When Johnny was in the most serious situation of his life, he constantly strategizing .

Seaside Siren

24" x 36" Oil Painting

Summer Rainier Cherries

12" x 12" Oil Painting I changed the background and wanted to show both. I like the dark background much better it lets the cherries be the star of the show.

Have a Bing Cherry , Go Ahead Try 'em

From the Root Cellar

"Crimson Beauty"

Wednesday brought torrential rains and there was only one die hard student there for about the first hour so I painted on this beauty that was started as a demo over a year ago and never got finished. I only had started the bottom center petal of the largest bloom and of course all the yellow and green. I always start with yellow.

One hour into it two more students came into class and I had three more petals almost complete. Demonstrating to the three students that showed up. Today I finished it up after a few hours of work.

I'm pretty satisfied with it so I'm posting it. I may decide to put some loose golden background swoosh's because there are a few small blotches here and there if you look real closeyou can see them. I love it as a botanical but... out those d___ spots and their still there. Grrr!

"QT Pie"

"Sweetie Pie"

Me and My Hi-C

In 1972 I lived and worked in Clearwater tere was this fabulous friut and vegatable market called "Little Big Market" on South Fort Harrison. I used to shop there often. One day in the late '70's I was shooting for my photography class
and got this shot of one of the street people that lived behind the market. I could hear him smack his lips and aaah at the refreshing flavor of his Orange drink that was given to him by the owner of the market. I won awards with the photograph and finally thirty some years later decide to paint it as its one of my favorite photos.

"Cold Shoulder"

I'm sorry I haven't been blogging lately. A Death in the family has stopped the flow... I'll be back soon as I can handle it.

"Neckline in Light"

Now for some abstracts

" My Poor Little Match Girl"

Chapter 10. Women Who Run
With the Wolves My response to the chapter Clear Water : Nourishing the Creative Life.

To paint in a style unlike our normal style. I usually paint large and realistic so I painted small,loose and stylized.
This woman appears to have everything necessary to have a good life, Beauty, intelligence, a good and loving heart, even wealth (notice the fur coat was real). But she was wasting away, starving herself from real warmth and nourishment in the pursuit of the "Other" world.
She is exhausted and selling herself short of her true worth.

"Candies"

"Allie"

"Shoreline"

"Oriental Dish"

"Lone Palm"

"Lil Red Wagon"

"Morning Kiss"

This once again is my niece and grandnephew from a photgraph I took in my studio about 20 years ago. I just painted this while I watched the Republican convention. I was struck by the love of family while watching them, and feeling the loss of my Dad and came across the photograph and wanted to paint it.

"Italian Tonight"

"Triple Play"

Luscious Orchids fascinating Flowers. Prints of these make fabulous placemats.

"Pelican Fly By"

This is a real stop action painting The Birds are awesome to watch here in Florida and I just love painting them too. He was circling around and diving and eating his prey always looking for the next victim.

"Washed-up"

Sometimes after a storm Old beat-up shells find thier way to the shoreline this was one of those.

" Peace on the River"

This is the view from a condo that My ex husband and I owned in North Ft. Meyers

"Under the Kaypock Tree"

The Kapock Tree was the name of a famous Clearwater restaurant in Clearwater, known mostly for the beautiful gardend that surrounded the dining halls. there are many beautiful statues among the flowers and this is one of them.

"Captain's Riverboat House"

This house is in Brooksville and the story is that a riverboat captain built it to resemble his riverboat so he would be at home when he wasn't on the riverboat. Men... They'd always rather be fishing.

"Madona of the Kiss"

Sold

This is actually a black and white photo of my neice and grand nephew that I posed them for back in the 80's he now is 20 years old.

I used this painting for a Christmas card one year I got so many complements on it and people framed the card.

"Bahama Mama"

This was a photo with flora and fauna but no human or bird so I put a bird in for interest

"The Eyes Have It "

This beautiful cat was a gallery cat he didnt get along with his housemates so the gallery owner moved him to the gallery. there he was the King of his castle.

Sold

"Enchanting"

This swan was so fabulous and the sparkle on the water was really flotsum and jetsom of a dirty pond but I turned it into sparkles of glistening water, which so much rather suits the majesty of the swan.

"Sunflower" Handpainted Ceramic Tile

Sunflowers make me happy

"At Rest"

Sold

"Kingfisher"

"Prima Balla-Fushia"

"Blonde and Beautiful"

"Blue Heron on Rooftop"

Sold

This heron was on a rooftop next door my house was elevated so he was right off my lanai.

"Red Dance"

"Calla's"

These calla lillies were so well arranged I just had to capture them. I know I know "So Okeef"