Clouds Over Bethel-SOLD

A demo piece for this past week's workshop showing how to make all the first shapes very simply and get the color notes right before worrying about anything else. i painted it from a larger piece done plein air and ended up liking this one better than the original.

Fiery Morning-6x8-SOLD

today's the last day of the workshop and i've got to give a shout out to the workshop sponsor Tracy Bell (tracybell.blogspot.com) who did a great job of keeping up with all the business type stuff that needs doing like ordering lunches for everyone, registering everybody, keeping up with painting sales, on and on.
the other shout out is to Sis Hall who opened this beautiful beach cottage to us for the week to paint in. you couldnt ask for a sweeter hostess. and thanks to all that came and took the workshop. everybody left with the tools needed to paint better paintings.
another workshop is planned for april. if youre interested in taking this three day class email me to see if there's any room.

For the Birds-SOLD

Here's a quick one done right outside the beachhouse where we're on day four of the nags head workshop. i liked the way the birdhouses were lit up against that lavender sky. it only lasted a few minutes and BOOM it was gone! these lighting effects are fleeting and youve got to work fast.

Rick Nilson, from out here in Kill Devil Hills, joined us to paint today. google his name and blogspot to get over to his blog. He did a sketch of a beach cottage from memory of something we painted today.

Tracy Bell (who put the workshop together) also has a nice blog. google her name and blogspot to get over to hers as well!

Sis' Wine and Fruit-7x5-$50

$8 s/h
to purchase- be the first to email me or click the "buy now" button below to pay instantly with a credit card PayPal

Peggi Ann's Still Life- 6x8

SOLD

Both of these were demo's during the weeklong workshop i'm teaching on the Outer Banks. it was kind of warm outside first thing this morning so i couldnt resist taking a plate, mug and some fruit in the sun and paint. i showed them how to paint warm colors on all the "Light shapes" (all those surfaces getting light). then you paint cool darks on all your "shadow shapes".

you get such a feeling of light when you do it this way.

if you'd like to learn how to do this technique too, sign up for my Cape Cod Underpainting workshop in Atlantic Beach. the date's on the right side bar. Email me if youre interested and want to sign up.

Nags Head Sunrise-6x8-SOLD

OK let me brag a minute :D

this is the view i saw when i rolled over in the bed this morning! the beach cottage that i'm staying in and that we're holding our workshop in sits right on the ocean and feels like you can reach out and touch the water. it's absolutely beautiful.

i wanted to sleep in just a little but HAD to get up and paint this and as soon as i got it blocked in it was gone. just did get the colors and feel down, before it went all glary and the sun was up over that big cloud in front and it was gone.

mixed the colors (3-4 light values and 3-4 dark values) and furiously tried to get the scene down.

today in class i showed how any color imaginable can be mixed from red, yellow, blue and white. at the end of the day the ladies were saying they didnt need the forty colors they had in bags resembling suitcases. now they can carry 4-6 colors and make any color imaginable. its liberating for sure!

Here's the view off the cottage's back deck. there's maybe fifty feet of sand and then the waters edge. very cool during good weather but very precarious during hurricane season or Nor'easters, when i'm sure the water runs right up to the cottage's footing. if that happens enough the cottage tumbles into that pretty blue water you see there

is this a sweet place or what?

Dancing Shadows-SOLD

Didnt paint today. this ones from Sunday. a clear chilly day from nags head on the Outer Banks.

today was the first of a weeklong workshop. i had all the students painting in monochrome color just learning to see everything in five values. much easier than trying to paint the hundreds of values the eye actually can see. we painted cubes i made out of construction paper and lit up on one side with photo flood lights. then they tried to describe the still life cube using around five values. it simplified the painting process and the cubes looked like cubes sitting on a table. i know it doesnt sound challenging..... but you ought to try it. guaranteed to make you see and paint better. whats more important? seeing or painting? definately seeing!

tomorrow we will break out the colors now that they know how to see value.

Out in Front-SOLD

Evening light on the turquoise beach cottage caught my eye on this one. that and the orange sand and its complement, the blue shadows was electrifying!

it was soooo cold doing this one in the late winter sun with the wind coming off the ocean. hands got where they didnt want to work too good. but i think i got the feel of the place.

buy this little jewel for the Outer Banks fan in your family!

i'm teaching a weeklong workshop here and i'll post paintings and happenings throughout.

Magenta Rest-SOLD

I rescheduled tomorrow's Color 101 class to the 25th of April in Morehead City/Atlantic Beach. Too many people had committments and wanted something later. so if you'd like to sign up check out the right sidebar for a description of what you'll learn, how much etc.

In other news, just finished teaching a three day workshop in raleigh and headed straight to my weeklong workshop on the Outer Banks, so no time to upload new daily's.

i did paint today from the front seat of my truck and was pleased with how it came out but it needs a little work before i can post. got dark on me and didnt get it finished. i've always thought of painting from the warmth of the truck but was afraid i'd be so cramped. that was not the case. i was very comfortable and will be doing it all the time on those freezing cold days from now on. i probably added 75 painting days to my calendar!

here's a blast from the past. it's a graveyard in Key West. there was something magical about the white and purple gravestones in the tropical foliage. it was breathtaking. the painting has 'some' of that charm but how can paint even come close to something that beautiful? we must try tho! LOL

Subtle Beauty-SOLD

This one's a demo i did to show my workshop class how to block in and a little bit about how i underpaint. the vase is my favorite part of the painting. simple and subtle

Corner Lot-6x6-$50

$8 s/h
to purchase- be the first to email or click the "buy now" button below

i'll be teaching for the next three days at Studio 123 in raleigh. if you'd like to attend, email me and sign up for the class. you can take one day, two, or all three. we'll be covering values, color, and composition in painting. lots of exercises and painting guaranteed.

this one's from early fall done plein air in the small town of Kinston, NC. there are so many old buildings like this sprinkled around the eastern half of the state.

i liked the way it looked in the fall afternoon sun. it sits right in the "Y" of some railroad tracks and i bet it was the scene of much work back in its day.

Waiting to Dry-SOLD

Youre thinking what is this? its the "drying couch" in front of the window in my studio. it's where i sit all my wet paintings so they can dry. thus the title "Waiting to Dry"

ok its a weird painting i know, but it was an excersise in painting backlit objects in shadow and keeping them colorful.

i got the idea from chris greco's awesome "bags"series.

Charleston Stroll-SOLD

again, thinking of the charleston trip i'm getting ready to go on.

i dream in paint!

The Crossing 2-SOLD

Everybody who crosses over to Atlantic Beach from Morehead City goes over this causeway. it's iconic and i love to paint it. is has all the elements....architecture, water and the smell of salt water in the air. what's not to love?

now artistically... it wouldnt seem like an issue but painting something that goes from back to front takes some finesse to make it appear that it goes back into the distance. you do this by graying and cooling it as it goes back. keep the bright, saturated and warmer colors up front. the orange roadway helps in this task for instance.

thousands a day get to the beach on this baby. to me its majestic and the sparkles on the water are way cool!

Red Shrimper-SOLD

This ship was called the Good News and moors in the wanchese industrial complex on the outerbanks. i loved the red paint of the boat and it had some coolish red shapes and some warmer red shapes. this boat had such a presence! it needed its own portrait.

Spongers-6x6-SOLD

I'll be teaching a three day painting workshop next week at Studio 123 in raleigh Feb 17-19 so if you'd like to sign up please email me for the details. you can do one day, two, or all three days.

painted this fun scene of a few people enjoying the surf on one of those hot steamy summer days that the NC coast is famous for. these past few pretty and warm days have given me the itch to revisit these types of scenes in paint. wont be long now!

Light in the Window-SOLD

Sometimes working out the value scale and color harmonies on a small piece like this helps you decide if you 'd like to pursue it further. if you dont have a buzz about doing it bigger you dont. if you're jazzed... you grab a bigger canvas. now you have all the elements memorized and you tend to paint it more confidently (and passionately) as a result.

Roof in the Sun-SOLD

this one wont have a bunch of people lined up to click the "buy now" button, that's for sure. this is one i painted ONLY because i wanted to. lets me know that i havent sold out to the urge to paint ONLY thinking of whether something will sell or not. i like the way it came out and expressed the color key of the moment. this will make me a better painter for the ones i WILL paint thinking only of sales LOL

Beach Access-SOLD

Pathway to heaven on earth. this is the beach access i use when i hit the surf. Too cold these days! cant wait for 80 degree water again!

Cottage by the Bay-SOLD

A sweet little cottage sitting on the water. imagine starting and ending every day with that view. maybe one day i can paint off the porch of my own little waterfront cottage like this.

have a new instructional DVD on plein air painting where i teach the how to's of painting an urban scene (Downtown Raleigh) in one session. Click here to see it.

Intercoastal Parking-SOLD

A little ditty from this morning. been a while since i've done a plein air boat. too cold the last few weeks to hit the marina's. forgot how you have to be careful that you dont drop a brush off the dock. if you do they go between the cracks and gone! you can't back up and look at your work either, unless you want to fall into chilly 45 degree water.

The Little Joe- 8x10- Call City Art if you're interested in this one

This one's from the merrills seafood docks in sneads ferry. one of my favorite haunts for backlit boats. the cool thing is that the little harbor sits in the woodline a little bit, so you get trees behind the docked boats. way cool!

Beach Trailers at Atlantic Beach-SOLD

Love the abstract nature of these trailers lined up in the sun at Oceana Pier in Atlantic Beach. made me all warm inside painting this one (thinking of the 90 degree plus day i painted the first one on). they say the low tonite will be in the teens.

i'm getting plans together for my annual key west trip and cant wait to get down there and start painting. this year i want to work my way slowly back up painting small coastal scenes as i go. will paint in charleston and savannah too. i think if i like a place i'll stay there and paint, and when its rainy/cloudy drive towards home. this'll get me max painting time. my plan is to still post everyday and i'll be selling the "Florida Trip" series as i go to pay the hotel bills along the way. that'll be cool! so stay tuned....

i'm teaching a workshop at Studio 123 in raleigh Feb 17-19 so if you'd like to sign up please email me for the details. you can do one day, two, or all three.

also have a Color 101 class in atlantic beach/morehead city, nc, on saturday feb. 21st and a Painting 101 workshop in nags head, nc, february 23rd thru 27th. again you can take as few as one or two days or all of them.

Wrightsville Beach Awnings-SOLD

Another beach house painting from down the road in Wrightsville Beach. there's something about a beach house partly in shadow and partly in light thats irresistable. used this study to do a 9"x12". these little ones help you feel more confident when youre doing the bigger ones. looser you know?

Hack Race-SOLD

Today's is another urban painting. loved the way these cabs seemed to be racing. the yellows against the dark buildings and the streaks of light give this one motion.
started with a black gessoed panel and laid paint on in one shot. no fades with subtle strokes of paint in close values.

no...on this ... see the color and value, load the brush and lay it down. careful now,.,,,dont "lick" it! (the term for painting a stroke and touching it again "just in case").

its a phenomenon all us painters are well aware of. its like we cant help ourself from touching the brush to the shape twice or three times. we know that the best paintings are put on in one stroke but its counter-intuitive for some reason. dont ask me why... but every painter reading this is going,,,, "right on mike, i feel ya!"

its kinda like when you know something is important, so you repeat yourself even when you know they heard you in the first place.

Cab at Dusk-SOLD

I love big cities! there's a real energy. the buses, cabs rushing by, people everywhere, the huge buildings that look like canyons. whats not to love. i liked this moody street scene. i wanted the yellow cab to look like its rushing by.

Lavender Cloud Bank- 18x24

Going to City Art Gallery or you can email me if you're interested in this one

On this one i was trying to stay as loose on the big ones as i do on the smaller ones. for those of you that dont paint, i think this is every impressionist painters goal. when youre working bigger for some reason we 'diddle' with it more because all the shapes are bigger and where we might have painted a shape with one bold swoosh of color on the brush, when its bigger we paint it in in three or four 'thoughtful' strokes. this makes the shape contrived looking and devoid of passion. this is the formula for a 'tight' painting.

i like how this one came out. if you compare it to my older big work i'll think you'll agree that i'm staying looser on the biggies.

Pudding Cup-SOLD

I love these sugar free pudding cups. if you've seen photos taken of me after the holidays you'll know why they HAVE to be sugar-free! : )
you know i have to paint my favorite things. thats what's so neat about daily painting. whatever is on your mind or in front of you gets captured in that one moment in time, on canvas for the whole internet world to see.
a visual, virtual diary.

Been busy (finally) working on some bigger gallery pieces this week. whenever the temperature gets above 40 degrees, i remember that i'm a gallery painter with twelve that will be wanting lots of new work when the spring gets here. i dont want to shrug and say "i've got a bunch of little ones, if you want"
they dont mind a few small ones but they want bigger work from me. i did an 18x24 over the weekend and it felt like a billboard!
today i did an 8x10 and a 9x12. i'll be ready when spring gets here. i aim to please!

i dont sell the bigger ones on this blog but i will post them in addition to my daily's just so you can see what i'm painting and putting in galleries. that way you'll know where they went and you can look for them there (if you live in NC).

Workhorse II-SOLD

NOTE :this one has thick paint so forgive the glare

This one has a great story. as i was painting the study for this one, the guy who owned it came out and starting telling me about his great old truck.
he said in the late 60's he moved his whole family's belongings down to NC from up north in one trip. he said the stuff was strapped down in the back and it was five foot over the cab of the truck. he was scared he wouldnt get under some overpasses.
thats too funny!