Breaking Thru-6x8-$99

$99 plus $10 s/h
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braved the swarms of misquitos out last night at dusk. and the humidity was off the charts. sweat and blood literally went into this one!

was trying to capture that intense sun behind a tree look. i kept it very light and pure color and muted and darked everything else. as always, the digital picture on a computer monitor doesnt do the real painting justice.

Safari-8x6-Sold

a commissioned piece for a friend. this was an exercise in changing the photo reference for the betterment of the painting. the ground was way too light in the photo so i darkened it down and gave it more saturated color. the sky was also very light in the reference so i took it down a little too. i enjoyed using warm and cool grays to model the form of the giant beast. wouldve loved to have seen a figure in the photo so i could judge this guys size relative to a human being.

Blue Heaven2-6.5x6-$150

$150 plus $10 s/h includes table easel!
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Turquoise and Baby Blue-6x4-$150

$150 plus $10 s/h
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the date on the rehoboth beach Paint Camp has been changed to friday september 9th and the two day Loose and Colorful Plein Air workshop has tentatively been changed to the 7th and 8th. i had a few interested in the 7th and 8th but i didnt write your names down so i couldnt email you the news. if that was you, please email me again so i have your email and i know you can make the new dates.

More news
*there's also a chance that i'll be doing either private lessons or a one day workshop plein air in portsmouth rhode island after the Paint Camp on friday august 5th. if you'd be interested in that, drop me an email.

*i'll be on cape cod the whole month of august so if you'd like some private instruction there let me know. its $35 the first hour and $25 each hr. after that.

Take Off-5x5-$150

$150 plus $10 s/h
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on this one i'm trying very hard to limit the amount of strokes i make. you'd think that wouldnt be that hard until you've tried it. most of us make three strokes when we should only make one. when you do so many tentative strokes instead of a sure and direct stroke, it gives the work an overworked and "niggled" appearance. dont know if thats really a word but i heard it in a workshop and loved it so i stole it.

Hang Time-6.75x5.75-$150

$150 plus $10 s/h
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Come on In-5x6.5-$150

$150 plus $10 s/h
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the series is starting to take hold on me. when i first start these beach figures they are very difficult but the more i do the easier they are to do.

what i'm after is to show all the nuances of color in the people on the beach. there are areas of their bodies that can pick up reflected light from the sand, some from the sky, and some from things bouncing into the shadow. every plane is a different color. the fun is seeing how many you can see and render. and i want it to have a sculptural, simplistic, fun and spontaneous look about them at the same time tho'. thats why i keep doing these things. i'm going to get it exactly right one day. just wasnt today or probably wont be tomorrow or the next day either. maybe someday before i'm too old to paint anymore!

Texting on the Beach-8x8-$150

$150 plus $10 s/h
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a very common occurance to see this on the beach these days. and not just kids. my wife is a huge texter and she was sixteen in 19.....

i love living too much to divulge that LOL

Boogie Boarder-5x6-$150

$150 plus $10 s/h
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another in the beach people series.

did a private lesson today in the marina and it was absolutely beautiful. crystal clear light, nice cool temps. and great scenery. doesnt get any better! we covered how to paint underpaint in my offshoot method of the cape school technique where i put yellow down where the lightest warmest shapes are, orange for the second lightest warmest, and pink for the least warm shape in light. blues, purples, and cool greens go in the shadow areas. then you "color correct" by adding the right color note on top of this temperature map.

btw, i'll be around topsail island a week or two more so if you'd like a private lesson on values, drawing, cape school underpainting, loosening up, or how to capture the scene outside quickly just give me a call at 919-920-9718 or email me. the first hr. is $35 and $25 each hr. after that. we'll work on just what you want to cover and you'll get personal one-on-one coaching at a great price.

Lending a Hand-6.75x8-$150

$150 plus $10 s/h
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getting some beach figures to my outer banks galleries. i dont mind studio work (painting from my photos) when its 100 degrees outside. its miserable sweating into your paint, and you have to move real slow out there to survive. i used to brave that kind of heat but thought it was more efficient to paint and mail paintings to my far away galleries instead of proving to myself how "tuff" i was!

the score- brain: 1, ego: 0.

Soundside Cottage-7.5x 6.5-$150

$150 plus $10 s/h
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Did this from a photo i took while painting out on ocracoke island last summer. just made plans to go over there and paint when i get back from new england in september. that will be the perfect time. it wont be covered with tourists on vacation and the weather is beautiful then.

Phillips Seafood from Bridge-16x20

headed to Tidewater Gallery- $790

painting this one was harrowing. i was standing on a very narrow sidewalk on a bridge with traffic zipping by at 55 mph with just inches to spare. needless to say you have to have lots of focus to concentrate with that going on. i tried not to think about some acne-covered 17 year old princess from emerald isle texting the love of her life, only to see me rolling across her windshield when she does finally look up. if you want to practice intense focus this is a great excercise if done from this vantage point. of course, i'll deny having said it if anything terrible should happen to anyone. this should cover me in this litigious society we live in-DISCLAIMER- i'll say that i'm a professional (and must have a horseshoe where the sun dont shine). those of you at home should not try this stunt! LOL

Tanning in a Beach Chair-6x10

$150 plus $10 s/h
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Soft Landing-4x4

another from the kiteboarding series

Neighborhood Shadows-16x20

Started in swansboro on the fourth of july and finished it today. it was hazy from the smoke and there was a milky sky on the day i blocked it in. went back today with really low humidity, blue skies and beautiful sunshine. its amazing how many shapes i had to redo because the lighting effect was so different. i'm getting where i can notice subtle differences that can only come from thousands of hours of looking at it in person outside. my desire is that all that observation will work its way into my paintings.

Shallow Spray

this little 4x4 painting of my kiteboarding buddy was inspired by the surfing/skimboarding series my online daily painter friend robin cheers has going on her blog. check her out here

this is what i'm doing when i'm not painting. i love kiteboarding. you can have a surfy style with a surfboard or do big jumps with a twintip. you can cruise around or go hard after it doing trick after trick. here i am getting a little air. thanks kim for shooting action photos and helping us land and take off all week.

Light as a Feather-8x7-SOLD

$150- SOLD

this is one from a picture i took on a ferry ride over to the island of ocracoke. i was drawn to this lady holding her "little baby" as they took in the scenery.

Beach Duo-6x6-SOLD

 SOLD

these cottages are just a few yards from the the atlantic ocean. cant help but think they are always at risk. hurricane season will start ramping up in about a month. water temps here are already in the 80's and thats the fuel these killer storms feed on. hopefully the island will be spared again this year.

The Rankin Family- 18x24

a commission that i just finished. the client wanted the painting to have a loose and comfortable feel, like a snapshot of them doing what they love in their backyard. i started it on site getting the big shapes (minus the people), the colors and spontaneous brushwork. then i shot a bunch of photos of them doing their thing in the yard so i'd have lots of reference material. i took it about a little less than 1/2 done into the studio where i finished it up. i added the family, tweaked shapes, edges, and added subtle color shifts into the big shapes.

Clean Lines-6x6-SOLD

one from swan quarter marina. i loved this cool little boat and the lighting effect. we have a huge wildfire raging a few miles from here for the last month now. it puts a smoky haze into the air and on some days its so heavy it looks like its about to rain. for weeks ive been traveling an hour away to get away from it. lately the high winds have cleared that out into a thin gauzy light. at first it drove me crazy but i'm getting used to it. its a cooler, less intense sunlight.

Workshop Updates

on the way back down from cape cod/maine the middle of september i will be giving a few days of workshops in Rehoboth Beach Delaware Sept. 7th (Paint Camp) and Plein Air Loose and Colorful on the 8th and 9th. also one day of plein air lessons in fairfax virginia on the 10th of sept. and if you'd like to join us give me an email and we'll go from there. these classes will be very small and you'll get loads of personal attention.