Shining in Woods Hole-SOLD

This is from Woods Hole on Cape Cod, where i'm painting again this week. really love the glimmering water and the backlit boats of this early morning scene.

what is it about a harbor with mirrorlike water that is so calming?

South Cape Beaches-9x12

SOLD

this is a very crowded beach in Woods Hole. the third of the day. am enjoying pushing paint around on 9x12's today, which is a little bigger than i usually do. was really doing a lot of 8x10's last week. no rhyme or reason to my size choices. maybe there is a subconcious reason, and i just dont know what it is.

South Cape Sunset-9x12

SOLD

Hit my stride today.... this was the sixth and final of the day.

the key to very edited paintings is speed. put down just the necessary elements to tell the story. believe me! there was alot of stuff in this scene i left out, or i'd still be out there painting!

feel i paint better the faster i go. why tickle something for hours when you can try to boil something down to its barest elements?

Just Chillin'

No paintings to post today

Wouldnt you know?? the hurricanes have followed me to cape cod. there was a ton of rain and wind and no painting today. probably good to rest while i wait for the sun to come out and i start the grueling sunup to sundown shift. when youre out of town you have to make every cent count so production is the name of the game. i'd love to say that i'm the consumate "purist" and only care about "the art" but hey.... this is my blog and honesty is the rule of the day, here anyway.

this is a business like any other business... produce a product, keep costs low, sell at a price people cant say no to, and get out enough of it to not lose weight from starvation because you didnt do one of the above LOL

so far this recipe has kept me fat and happy. dont know how the rest of the world does it, dont care. only care if i keep getting fat.

didnt say you'd get rich or famous mind you. just working steady, paying the bills, buying a toy to play with once in a while, and eating regularly.

wanted to mention one of my new "codder" friends. she shows her work in the new gallery i just got into in wellfleet, Lora Barret. she's a great artist and lady. check out the link here.

there is some fantastic talent up here and i'm stoked to see all the Cape Cod School of Art disciples that paint this area in the tradition of Henry Hensche and Charles Hawthorne. i have a real connection with them even tho ive never met them (and are seperated by almost half a dozen states). we are connected by the technique and "ethos" of the schools influence.

Woods Hole Mooring-SOLD

6x8

a neat little place with dingies all over the shore that people take out to their sailboats in the harbor

Orleans Morning- 8x10

to purchase drop me an email

My wonderful painting partners and guides this week. who says the south has the market cornered on hospitality? and these ladies love to paint. we hiked into this location thru poison ivy, a mile thru the woods and up and down dunes. they were as stoked as me to get up to that view and paint!


High above Truro working on my new favorite size- 22x28. Gave this one to dear friends Betsy and Doug Hornberger. i'll post the finished product soon.



My dear old 93 toyota bessie. key west to cape cod since march and thousands of miles in between this summer. she's my baby. i'm over this girl like sailors are over their boats.

Hurricane Dannys on his way to the cape. seems i'm a hurricane magnet. if i'm in NC they want to hit there. i come to new england they hit up here. should be out of here by sunday and i can get back to slinging paint.

When it got cloudy and we couldnt paint, we went to an awesome gallery today called the Rowley Gallery and was very impressed with the artists represented there, and with elizabeth, the gallery owner. a very top notch gallery and lady. check her out at 84 route 6a if you're in Orleans Mass.

Truro Cottages-SOLD

5x7- oil on canvas

Heather on the Cliffs 2

8x8

To purchase: drop me an email

Sorry for the delay in posting from my painting trip to Cape Cod. i got here and tried to get online and my broadband card wouldnt work.

ive been painting sunup to sundown everyday, and just found the time to find a Wi-Fi hotspot, so i'm just now getting online. i'll be posting more now, promise.

i uploaded Heather on the Cliffs 1 and realized i had some tweaking to do on a shape or two, so i gave you Heather 2 before Heather 1.

i have some great news. i'm happy to report that i've been picked up by Sandpiper Gallery in Wellfleet here in Cape Cod. now i've got even more incentive to get up here regularly (like i needed it. i fell in love with this place the day i started painting!)

High dunes a hundred feet over the ocean, cape cod architecture, millions of boats, coastal mudflats, bays, marshes, whats not to love?!

i've already completed 12 paintings in just 2 1/2 days. i'm on a tear.

I wanted to publicly thank my dear tourguide and fellow painter Linda Young for helping me find my way around the Cape and Joyce for showing me a sweet "secret spot" hint: the cliffs!

Swan Quarter Sailboats-SOLD

on its way to Australia!

My last post from NC until i get back from my paint trip to Cape Cod.

a lot of folks dont realize that painting is as much about the mind games as it is about the skill. sometimes you psych yourself out and have to find ways to overcome it. the closest thing i can tell you its like is.... when you play pool and youre shooting the game winning eight ball into a really close pocket, you can psych yourself out thinking how easy the shot is, and MISS!

in painting... if i go a few days without painting... in my mind, i think i wont be able to paint. i dont want to go to cape cod with a few days of not painting haunting me. so i went out today, even tho' i really didnt feel like it. saw this scene and changed the way i felt LOL

a good scene to paint will do that for you.

My next blog post will be done from Cape Cod. hope you like 'em!

Commissioned Piece-9x12-SOLD

SOLD

This as a commissioned piece for a couple who have this beautiful wood boat in a slip in my favorite marina. i've always admired it (i love wooden boats) and was tickled to be asked to paint it for them.

i'm leaving monday for a two week painting trip to cape cod. i will be online posting daily paintings while i'm up there but they'll be less frequent, and i wont be able to ship anything till i get back home.

Carolina Farms-SOLD

9x12- oil on canvas board

'07 and '08 Studio Sale Piece

Sunset in the Marina-6x6-SOLD

Starting to pack for my painting journey to Cape Cod. leave monday. i've never been, so i'm really looking forward to painting some new landscape. it rejuvenates me. can only paint marshes and local marina's so long before you get burnt out (in my case about 6 months)

Traveling keeps me stoked and keeps the work improving.

if you know some good painting spots on the cape leave me some comments on this post. if i use your suggestion i'll give you first dibs on the painting.

Beach-cul-de-sac-SOLD

18x24- oil on canvas

'07 and '08 Studio Sale

One from Wrightsville Beach last summer. this painting sold for more than twice this last year but since its an '08 i'm willing to let someone steal it.

if i didnt tell you it was painted last year would you have known it? why not save?

Afternoon Ferry Ride-SOLD

Anybody who's ever ridden the ferry over to the outerbanks, or between ocracoke island and hatteras island will recognize this. its a quisessential outerbanks ferry image.

this one will be at Down Creek Gallery on ocracoke if it doesnt sell here first.

Cow Siesta-12x16-$200

Last year this sold for $400 framed- now $200 unframed

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'07 and '08 Studio Sale

This is the NC State Vet Farm out near the fairgrounds. who would have thought you'd have a farm scene like this in Raleigh?

it was hot and the cows were taking a siesta under the metal roofed buildings. i'm out in the blazing sun painting them. who's smarter the cows or me?

Today i was giving a private lesson on the marsh in Surf City. we learned all the steps required to make a good painting. good drawing, proper values, mixing color, and hard and soft edges.

if you'd like to sign up for private lessons theyre $35 per hour and you can email me to schedule something.

Blanket Dance-SOLD

Got a little tired of all the landscapes ive been doing the past few months, so today i wanted to do something with figures. this is from my day at the beach, on the 4th of July. love the movement of the blankets and the sun-filled color harmonies. look at all the color in the skin Luana (i know youre out there lurking)

i really like this one. its loose and accurate.

River Rocks-SOLD

8x8

On a very hot day i found this cool river scene out in the boonies, and the bonus was i was under a bridge where it was nice and cool. a hornet landed on me and was crawling around. usually i would brush at something crawling on me while i'm concentrating on painting,but thank God.,,, this time i looked to see what it was and flicked him off before he had a chance to sting me. Jeez that was close!

Part II- Dreamy Marsh- available

Dreamy Marsh- 30x40

the finished product.

in the last phase i just make subtle temperature and value shifts in each shape, breaking big shapes into smaller shapes.

my acid test for that is....if i can squint and NOT see the difference (from a distance of say 6 ft on one this big) its considered "subtle enough".

can y'all believe how big i've been painting this summer?! this is the highest volume of big paintings i've ever done. theyre getting easier and easier, the more of them i do.

Part I- Work in Progress- 30x40-NODP

This will be a two part post. i get lots of requests to show step-by-step demonstrations, so i decided to take pics along the way on this 30x40 commission piece.

here are the brushes i'll lay in this painting with. the larger one is almost 2" wide when you push down on it and the second one is about 1 1/2" wide. my ratio for width of brush to size painting is about 1:15. thats just a guide not a formula. what this means is this....

the width of the brush x 15 is about the width of the canvas. i use these brushes on anything 16x20 up. i dont like brushes bigger than 2" as they get a little unwieldy that big. i love these two cheapo synthetics by American Painter. who wouldnt love a brush that big that costs about $15. available at any Michaels mega craft store. any synthetic will work tho'

after doing a 3"x4" sketch of the scene i gridded it onto the large canvas to get all the shapes in the right places. it just gives you confidence to know that everything is where its supposed to be. that way all you have to worry about is the painting.

here i've laid in all the shapes with pure colors out of the tube, based on the final colors temperature and value. yellows, oranges and pinks in the very warmest areas. blues and purples in the coolest.

Here's the second phase. lay in realistic colors leaving good size chunks of the underpainting showing. i usually either lay in all the dark shadow shapes and then all the light and warm shapes next, or the other way around. this time i went all the lights first. whats nice about doing it that way is then you can surround the lights with darks that arent to dark. this will give it a really sunny look. remember the only place that should be really dark is under the bush where no light is bouncing around. if you work from that area and making it the darkest shadow, you just make sure that every other shadow is lighter than that area.

i'll finish the painting up in a few hours and take some more pics for tomorrows post when i show you how it came out.

oh, BTW this is already sold.

Tidal Pool Reflection

18x24

Framed in a very nice plein air frame

$600

email me if you'd like to purchase this one

Oceana Pier Overlook-8x10-SOLD

This is the oceana pier, an iconic pier in atlantic beach that has withstood decades of the worlds worst hurricanes and nor'easters. hard to believe it's in danger of falling to developement. there is talk that it may be torn down if the property is turned into condos etc.

that blows me away that it can withstand acts of God and may be torn down by man.....lost to future generations of fisherman and surfers who surf near it because it makes waves. sand piles up around the pilings and raises the profile of the sand under the water. the water comes in out of the deep water and slams into that, causing a nice peeling wave on the surface.

hundreds of thousands have enjoyed this pier over the years. maybe we'll be able to keep keep using it for many more decades to come.

Across from Osprey Creek Marina-SOLD

The winner of the Coastal Beaches auction was B.B. in Richmond Va for $55. congrats BB!

For todays painting i stood on the dock at Osprey Creek Marina and captured my favourite sailboat that has been moored here in the middle of the waterway for most of the summer. i never get tired of capturing her many moods and color harmonies. i almost always go here late in the afternoon. i want to get her one day soon early in the morning, when the light is behind her, backlighting the scene.

New Discovery-SOLD

5x7-oil on panel

Was driving the backroads and chasing after subject matter when i hit a "honey hole". plenty of access, no "no trespassing" signs, and paintings galore!

New Discoveries are another enjoyable part of this artist life!

Intercoastal Beaches-SOLD

i really like this one and i think i'll be doing it 8x20 or so, and maybe even bigger, later.

i promised a few people that i'd post my home-made painting easel. here it is.

what i did was turn a piece of pegboard over and nailed 1"x2"s into a square on the back to firm up the pegboard. then i set it in a cheap easel like you can get at any art supply store.

i use pegboard hardware to hold up the paintings. now you can move them all around for any size painting you want. no muss. no fuss!

did this because the easel by itself made the painting either to low or i couldnt do small pieces on it. now with the pegboard its easy to work on any size in seconds. i've found clothespins, and Bulldog clips work great to hold small paintings if you clip at the edge of the pegboard.

give it a try and see if you dont like it better.

Tidal Creek Low Tide-6x6-$75

$8 s/h
to purchase click the "buy now" button below to pay with PayPal or credit card

Loved the way this creek winds thru the tidal marsh. trying to see every patch of the scene as a seperate entity. for instance see how the creek has FIVE shapes that change value and temperature. this is fun to capture, not to mention interesting for viewers of the painting!!

August Morning-SOLD

18x24-Unframed

The bigger ones are coming easier now that i've been doing them a lot lately.

today was bloody hot and humid. heat index probably close to 100.

i found a little trick on this one. i scrubbed on some walnut oil and thinner on the gessoed canvas before starting and that made the paint glide around early on like i wanted. then i went without medium once i had it blocked in "cape cod" style.

i like how this one came out. has that dogday august look to it!

Watching-SOLD

24x18- $150

'07 and '08 Clear Out the Studio Sale

This is a scene from the Outer Banks and was super fun to paint. this would look great in your beach cottage or as a gift for the beach lover in your life.

Pink Flowers and a Chair-10x8-SOLD

'07 and '08 Sell up Last Years Paintings SALE!

more large paintings from last year priced at '09 small works prices!

Got an email from a guy in cali today eager to pursue a career painting and he asked my advice. here's what i said in a nutshell "paint and market yourself every single day"

thought everybody might like to see it, so here's an excerpt-

"...my advice from having been right where you are is this:

start TODAY!

1.paint something even if its small (6x8) every single day.

2. market yourself somehow every single day. start a blog and post your one or more painting(s) there. that post counts as your one thing. if you dont post something call someone about showing your art at their place. restaurants, places of business love having art hanging that doesnt cost them anything. have tags next to the stuff for people to get up with you about buying it. you have to do something like this every single day.

3. make a goal of getting in an arts council show (or a multiple person show with other start up artists) anywhere that'll have you. exposure is the name of the game.

4. keep some kind of other sure thing job until youre making enough off your art (consistently) to quit it. nothing wrong with working part time at two things. one you love and know will be fulltime if you stay with it, and the other youre just doing for money. actors and actresses do it all the time right?

these are the very first things i'd do. its how i started three years ago and now i'm fulltime.
if you do these things first you'll be living your dream! good luck and trust God for it!! "

i cant stress the last four words in the above paragraph enough!

Wilmington Rooftops-SOLD

This was done from the same exact spot that i did Front St. Watering Hole from (post from a few days ago-below)

nothing like setting up once and getting a few sweet little paintings without having to tear down and move.

Here's a tip too. Most parking decks are free on the weekends and in wilmington the parking meters and parking decks are free on sundays. its murder doing urban locations during the week. now i wait until the weekends when there's less street traffic so i dont have to hike a long way from my parked truck and parking's free.

At the prices i sell these paintings for, every dollar i save is huge!

An Old Workhorse- 5x7
SOLD