A moment in the sun is a special thing on a winter's day in Portland, Oregon! This is at Moonstruck Chocolates on a day in February. . . yum. Excellent candies!
The moms were trying to get their kids (my great-nephews and niece) all lined up for photographs before Easter Sunday dinner and I took some shots myself. I love getting those unposed moments!
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I found this butterfly at the end of the summer on the ground in a parking lot. At first I thought it was still living, but as I approached it there was no movement, so now it sits with the other "found treasures" in our house.
I took a little watercolor "boot-camp" a couple of Saturdays ago put on by Sondra Holtzman and loved it! Watercolor, for me. has mainly been the medium I use for making quick sketches out of doors or roughs for more finished oil paintings, rarely as an end in themselves. I've always been a bit intimidated by them! Painting something like this, though, to me is like a meditation. I love the simplicity of the subject, the playing with muted tones and using natural light.
I've been painting, just not posting! I'm getting the last of the paintings done for a show a Columbia Center for the Arts in Hood River, OR. Here we have a grey day, verging on rain, but the lavender was cut before the downpour. I love this place--there's nothing like being surrounded by the scent of it! By the way, the name of it is Hood River Lavender Farms. Check it out!!!
Here's the latest painting for the project:: "An Uncommon Beauty--Paintings of Life and Land East of the Cascades". Visit this link to read more about it http://anuncommonbeautyproject.blogspot.com
This is Mary, a woman from the Willamette Valley (Oregon) who, over 60 years ago, fell in love with a cowboy from eastern Oregon, left her more urban lifestyle and spent the rest of her life farming, ranching and raising her children in a place that could accurately be called "out in the middle of nowhere"! Here, she is sharing stories of her life with us. She is still more active on her ranch than most nearly-90 year olds are at anything!
Here's one more painting for our Uncommon Beauty project. The subject here is a fellow working at Columbia Gorge Organics which raises organic fruit and makes organic juices and bars--very delicious!! Here, he is bottling the day's juice. Visit http://anuncommonbeautyproject.blogspot.com to see all the work for this project and to read about it.
Please visit my new blog "An Uncommon Beauty--Painting Life and Land East of the Cascades" that details the on-going progress of our documenting the people and the land that shapes their lives through our artwork. It has a complete description of what we're doing, how we're doing it, photos of all the paintings to date by both myself and Janice Druian, collaborator in this effort. You can see the blog by visiting
This painting is of one of the owners, Thomas, at Cascade Alpacas and Foothills Yarn in the gorgeous Hood River Valley. They raise the alpacas, shear their yarn, spin it, sell it, etc. along with other types of yarn in their shop. Their meticulous care of their award-winning animals keeps it all going strong.
Donna, one of the owners of Cody Orchards in the Hood River Valley is depicted here as she slices off a bit of apple for us to taste. Their fruitstand is an old packing shed and full of pumpkins, squash, and all sorts of good things that they harvest in the fall--particularly apples and pears. This is another painting for the rural life project I'm working on--which has undergone a change of title! It is now "An Uncommon Beauty--Paintings of Life and Land East of the Cascades".
Another painting in our "An Uncommon Beauty" series. It depicts a group of women as they inspect the pears coming in for packing. I was struck by the brilliant green of the pears and the intensely bright light shining over them contrasted with the browns and greys of the surroundings. You can see more of my paintings for this series by clicking on the page in the upper right corner of this blog.
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Here's the next installment of the artwork for "An Uncommon Beauty", a depiction of a foreman on a farm that raises horseradish in the Klamath Basin. Behind him is the machinery he uses to dig with. He was so great to talk to, explaining alot to me about growing the crop and also freely discussing his life and the good fortune he's found. He may have found good fortune, but it's clear he's worked hard for it too!
Visit this new page in my blog (see upper right) to see the paintings I am creating for this project on rural life and for a description of the project! New work will be added as the paintings are finished. Feel free to comment!
"Thinning Pear Trees, Lage Farms", 16"x12", oil on panel
I think I was about six when I received a paint-by-number set for Christmas--complete with the old enamel oils and stinky turp! I was hooked and have been painting and drawing ever since. Over the past 30-odd years of being a professional artist, I have primarily worked in relief printmaking, drawing and oil painting with an emphasis on landscape and figurative work.
Unless otherwise stated, my paintings are oils on specially prepared boards and are unframed. Prices are listed with the artwork. I accept PayPal and money orders. You do not need to have a PayPal account to purchase through them. The paintings are well-packaged and can be shipped as soon as they are dry enough to handle, which is usually within a week. Email me if you have any questions.