Florence Griswold Museum

Over the Memorial Day weekend we visited the Florence Griswold Museum in Old Lyme, CT. Miss Florence Griswold ran a boarding house in the early 1900's that became extremely popular with a group of well known artists (men & women) who painted almost exclusively in the new art form known as Impressionism. Her boarding house, which was really a beautiful mansion, eventually became "The Home of Ameican Impressionism" on this side of the Atlantic, and better known simply as the Lyme Art colony.

The original home has been preserved as a museum along with a few of the out buildings and beautiful gardens. In the main house the down stairs portion is a self guided tour, with one room set up as an artist's bed room. There is the main hallway with paintings from the many artists who stayed there over the years and the main parlor. The upstairs now houses paintings done in that time period by many of the famous artists, such as Childe Hassam and Henry Ward Ranger, along with many others. The last room in the house that you see is the famous Dining Room, which is lined with wall panels that were painted by resident artists. This was done by invitation only, and considered a great honor.

There is also The Kreble Art Gallery on the grounds that houses temporary exhibitions. Currently there is an exhibit of Impressionist paintings by artists from Giverny, France which became "The Home of French Impressionism" on the other side of the Atlantic. Many of the American artists at "Miss Florence's boarding house" spent much of their time, when away from Lyme, in Giverny France, and that famous art colony.

From the Kreble Art Gallery, the lawn slopes down to a salt marsh & the Lieutenant River, where we sat and watched a pair of Osprey feed their young. As the day wore on I noticed more people bringing their own chairs down to river's edge to just sit and relax, while some even sketched with their children.

It was a great day and worth a trip to check it out - but watch for ticks - as my husband brought one back with him.

Pewter - Kitten on Back - Sketch for Oil Painting

This is a sketch of Pewter sleeping on the couch as a kitten. I will post updates on this piece as I work. This is going to be an oil painting on board

I am going to take some artist license with the couch and background. What I do is use tracing paper on top of the original sketch to layout a new drawing. This way I can keep moving elements around until I find something that works. I do work from photos, and now with the digital camera it is so easy to collect reference material. When the final sketch is complete I'll post it.

Guido's - Scallions & Radishes

I live fairly close to the Bershires in MA., it is a great getaway drive for a day and one I take as often as I can. One of my favorite stores is Guido's Marketplace in Great Barrington which has the most beautiful displays of produce around, you can just drink in the color. I am not a gourmet cook by any means but we always manage to come home with a shopping bag full and the inspiration to try and eat a little better.

Scallions and Radishes on White Plate is an oil painting on 5" x 7" hardboard.

Twist Tied

This title may change, I could not come up with anything creative last night when I finally got to the point of putting this print onto Etsy. However, this morning I see a note on my drawing table with a possible title from my husband. I will give it some time today and see which way to go.

I did want to mention that the color of the sanded paper I used on this piece was peach. I work with pastel pencils and hard pastel sticks to sketch out my image and to achieve detail, along with soft pastels for color. My pastel pencils are Derwent and the hard sticks are Faber Castell but on the soft pastels I have several different brands. When I go to the store to pick up some new supplies I just love to look at all the pastel sticks out for display, so many colors and I am still experimenting learning what works for me. This could get a little expensive.

From NPR, May 2, 2008 Storycorps. This was the last line from the interview with Lyle Link.
"Live with courage"

Cat on Pink Blanket

Today was spent on this image, working in Photoshop getting it ready to produce a print. I have not even named it yet, hopefully something a little better than Cat on Pink Blanket. I have a soft spot for Calico's. The original is a pastel on Sennelier La Carte sanded paper.

Since Saturday was devoted to yard work, today I indulged myself. This morning I worked on an oil painting and this afternoon the above image. By mid week I should have the print ready for Etsy.

For now I am going to continue my indulgent Sunday and go watch Monk on TV.

Nodding Off

Nodding Off as a print as been added to my Etsy store. The original oil painting measures 8" x 10" on hardboard, I have been working on this piece off and on all winter. I am a slow painter, its seems that I need time to evaluate each piece as I work on it. Or it could be that my comfort zone is just pokey. In any case, it is something I am working on, trying to speed things up a bit.

The painting is of Ember, our older male cat, who is the alpha of our herd. He has done well with each new addition, just letting them know his limits.

New Britain Museum of American Art

On Saturday morning after the usual errands were run my husband and I took a ride over to the New Britain Museum of American Art. We had been there, maybe 10 years ago, and I had seen ads in the Hartford Courant for them lately. What a great day we had. What a gem the state of CT. has in this museum. We spent the better part of the day there enjoying the art and the new building it is now housed in.

It is located on 55 Lexington St., and looks out over Walnut Hill Park. The museum has a great collection of Impressionist paintings in one room with ample space to stand back and admire each piece. One feature I did enjoy, they have a table with books on Impressionists for you to read in this gallery and in the gallery for the special exhibitions. Currently they have California Impressionist Paintings on display there.

All of the work is American Art, they have a display of Illustration, that includes N.C.Wyeth and Norman Rockwell.

We treated ourselves to lunch in the cafe and recharged our batteries. So if you live in CT. or are in the area please keep this art museum in mind.

Archival Prints

I am adding archival prints to my Etsy shop. They will be printed on Velvet fine art paper which is producing a rich colorful print. I love the texture of this paper. For now there will be two sizes, first the larger, on a 8 1/2" x 11" sheet with an image of 7 1/2" x 10"and the smaller mini print 5 1/2" x 4 1/4" with an image of 4 1/2" x 3 1/4". As I add the images to my Etsy store I will post them to my blog.

Sunflower in Blue Vase

This is the second small painting that I have done using this blue glass vase. And, with each new painting there are a different set of issures to be worked out.

I have already started to buy my flower seeds for this year. I probably should order them in one shot from Burpee, but it is more fun to pick up a few at a time from the grocery store, big box store or where ever I happen to be. Each week my little collection starts to grow. Today I brought home Cosmos in orange and white. It will be a while yet before we can plant, snow, sleet and freezing rain for Friday.

This painting is oil on a 5" x 7" board.

Slumber Party

Two years ago at Easter we came home to find a stray cat on our back porch. She hung around the house for a few weeks allowing us to talk to her and feed her but you could not touch her. Of course she was pregnant and finally moved in with us to have her three tiny kittens in our bathroom.

We were very fortunate that one of the girls who works with my friend found a home for Mama and one of the kittens leaving us with two, "Pewter" and "Fred" (formerly known as Fredrika). Even though we really didn’t have the room those kittens just stole our hearts and it was hard to finally let go.

However, Mama did not like our dog - perhaps she was even abused by one and we did not have the room in our house to make it work. And yes, we were just as bad as new parents with the photographs and videos of the adorable kittens.

The above painting is of "Pewter" and the 3rd kitten my husband named "Cookie" (because he was black & white like an Oreo). While I really do not need any more cats, it was really a great experience even as we were wondering what we were going to do with them and how we were going to feed them all. And as a side note - Mama and her boys have all been to the vet so this won’t happen again.

The above painting is a 5" x 7" oil on board.

Nasturtium in Blue Vase

Nasturtiums are one of my favorite flowers. They are easy to grow with bright colorful blooms and great foliage. I have a small yard where space is at a premium so I grow these guys in pots and flower boxes as well as in my front garden. This painting is 5" x 7" oil on hardboard. I have been working on small paintings lately, and it really has been helping with a size that allows you to finish a painting in about a week. ( for me that is ). Here's how we use Nasturtium in Blue Vase as a greeting card.

My eBay store has prints & greeting cards of this image & others.
My Cafepress store has more samples on my 2nd new website.
My Etsy Store has more samples on my 3rd new website.

Day Dreamer

Day dreamer is an 8" x 10" oil painting on board of my Cogi Lily taking a mid-afternoon nap maybe dreaming of squirrels (yes squirrels!). I painted the blanket in a much looser style, trying to find a balance that works for me. I tend to paint tightly which can sometimes translate into a stiff painting. When I try to loosen up it feels like I am being too lazy to finish a section or too sloppy, but I like the way this turned out. I hope you enjoy this piece. Here's how we use Day Dreamer as a greeting card.

My eBay store has prints & greeting cards of this image & others.
My Cafepress store has more samples on my 2nd new website.

My Etsy Store has more samples on my 3rd new website.

Tumbling Snowmen

Tumbling Snowmen - new Corgi Christmas card for 2007. I had such a good time with these snowmen drawing them tumbling end over end. May your Christmas stocking be brimming full of good cheer this holiday season and may your Corgi’s be full of dog treats and rawhides.

Tumbling Snowmen is an original oil painting on board inspired by many illustrated childrens books. Here's Tumbling Snowmen as a Christmas Card.

My eBay store has prints & greeting cards of this image & others.
My Cafepress store has more samples on my 2nd new website.
My Etsy Store has more samples on my 3rd new website.

Mug Shot

While I don’t have a Pug myself, my niece has three perfect models to chose from. I would like to start adding some different breeds to my yearly Christmas cards besides my traditional Corgi.

Thought that a Pug card might be fun. As usual, I have way too many ideas some sketched out and some just in the thought process were you think that you will remember them. For me it is best to sketch it out, no matter how rough just to have a record of an idea. A month down the road having that sketch will come in handy. I have a bunch of small 5" x 7" sketch books, that I use around the house, one on my drawing table, and one in my work tote bag. I constantly refer to them.

Mug Shot is a pastel painting done on Sennelier La carte sanded paper, and came from a sketch I did of him a while ago napping on a comforter. I loved the pose with the paw behind his head. Here's how we use Mug Shot in our 100 year archival Giclee prints.

My eBay store has prints & greeting cards of this image & others.
My Cafepress store has more samples on my 2nd new website.

My Etsy Store has more samples on my 3rd new website.

Hanging Out The Wash

This fun little illustration is an oil painting on a 5" x 7" primed hardboard surface. I’ve done a few of these whimsical pieces and hope to continue the series because I really enjoy them.

It's such a departure for me to paint bright bold colors and repetitive patterns and not get lost in some minute detail. I have a book on the wonderful artist Charles Wysocki which I've started looking over and studying how he handled patterns. He has a stylized way of depicting the mountains, hills & trees in the background that flattens the object, which is a large part of the charm of folk art painting.

I have a lot of fun when I paint like this - here's how we used Hanging Out The Wash as greeting cards in our new Etsy store.

CAN YOU FEEL THE BREEZE !!

My eBay store has prints & greeting cards of this image & others.
My Cafepress store has more samples on my 2nd new website.

My Etsy Store has more samples on my 3rd new website.

Happy Easter

Doc & Pete

I've always been fascinated by the 'Pony-Pulls' they have at one of our local Autumn country fairs. Pound for pound these little guys show more energy & unbridled enthusiasm than the huge draft horses that also compete in this type of event. The adult horse teams often pull weights up to 18,000 lbs which is incredible to watch.

These little guys pull a much smaller load in comparison, but the best thing about them is the way they seem to really enjoy the competition. I think it's something akin to the way a race horse, running side by side & neck to neck with another horse really is trying, all by himself, to beat the other horse. The jockey is pretty much just along for the ride and it's the horse's heart & spirit that determines the outcome in that indefinable moment.

You see something similar with these teams, when competing. There's a certain something in the look in their eyes, seconds before they're released to try their 'Pull'. The best thing is the way their owners put more concern to their well being than winning a prize. Their drivers often wave off any more attempts when they know their little guys have given enough. It really touches the heart, how much concern is shown to them, and always elicits a big round of applause from the gathered crowd. All in all, the finest side of both horse & man.

The original Pen & Ink of this work took me months to complete because of the countless tiny dots of ink that makes up the image. It's probably the reason I don't do Pen & Inks very often. Here's how we use Doc & Pete as greeting cards in our new Etsy store.

WATCH YOUR STEP !!

My eBay store has prints & greeting cards of this image & others.
My Cafepress store has more samples on my 2nd new website.

My Etsy Store has more samples on my 3rd new website.

Sleeping Beauty aka 'Reclining Dude'

Ember has lived with us for at least 10 years. He is a fairly good sized Tabby male with a large flat head and sweet face. He has one of the most patient dispositions I have ever had in a furry friend. He first started coming around when we had two (fixed) Calico females, 'Roos' & 'Chloe'.

Ember loves the women folk, but unfortunately the only female in his life right now is Lily, our Corgi, but that does not deter him. He is also extremely cool, something I think he prides himself in. His fur is so complicated with the various shades of grey, tan, brown and flecks of gold that it can be intimidating to try and paint him.

What I love about Ember is the way he dominates his space. When he is in a chair he occupies the whole pad, with a little overhang at both ends. When sleeping on the bed or the couch he seems to really enjoy stretching out - I guess you could say he's extremely comfortable in his skin.

The original pastel of Ember - Sleeping Beauty aka 'Reclining Dude' - was a pastel on Sennielier La Carte sanded paper and came from a sketch I did of him a while ago napping on a comforter. I loved the pose with the paw behind his head. Here's how we use Sleeping Beauty in our 100 year archival Giclee prints.

My eBay store has prints & greeting cards of this image & others.
My Cafepress store has more samples on my 2nd new website.

My Etsy Store has more samples on my 3rd new website.

A Christmas Gift Of Peace & 'Thank You'

A big ‘Thank You’ to our eBay and Cafepress customers. We have had a wonderful Christmas season and hope our greeting cards and gift items add to your holidays too! Merry Christmas and looking forward to 2007.

'A Christmas Gift of Peace' was as usual, a collaborative effort between my husband Frank and myself. For my models, I had photographed he and our Corgi together, with him offering 'Maggie' a treat, because I had planned to have Santa offering the Corgi in the painting a wrapped gift. However as an image it just didn't work. Somewhere in my sketches I had done a snowman offering the Corgi that same gift, and I love to paint snowmen. Frank suggested the bone instead, a cat to give it a story-line and the name 'A Christmas Gift of Peace' & the rest as they say 'is history'.

The little cat ‘Twinks’ loves our yard because we feed the birds. She is very furry and friendly with no fear of Lily our Corgi. She has a tendency to nip playfully when she gets excited, so we’ve learned not to pet her too much, but she’s really just a big lovable ball of fur. Here's how we use A Christmas Gift Of Peace as a Christmas Card.

Most pet lovers (the lucky ones) at one time or other have a pet that you just connect with, & Maggie was mine. I think our personalities were similar and she always made me feel special. This card is dedicated to her and that rare bond only a very special companion can bring.

Merry Christmas Maggie.

My eBay store has prints & greeting cards of this image & others.
My Cafepress store has more samples on my 2nd new website.

Friendship Going Downhill Fast

There is a cute little Basset Hound that lives two houses down the street from me. He lives with about fifteen cats. I really don’t know anything about him, I just see him sitting outside enjoying the day surrounded by all his furry friends.

Taking a little 'artistic license' - he now has a Corgi friend to share a Winter's ride with, and I confess I still enjoy Tobogganing myself. The original painting is in oil on hardboard & I think my husband came up with a great title for this one.

Here's how we used Friendship Going Downhill Fast as a Christmas Card.

Let It Snow !!!

My eBay store has prints & greeting cards of this image & others.
My Cafepress store has more samples on my 2nd new website.