Natural Bridges National Monument

8" x 10" oil on gessoed masonite
$195.00 + $10. s/h
please contact me if interested

My husband and I recently visited Natural Bridges National Monument in Utah.  As I've posted before, the National Parks in Utah are unbelievable.  There are so many of them; they're so large and scenic. If you want to just drive through them, or hike, or paint, or 4-wheel, or see the geology, or archeology, there really is something for everyone.   Utah should be on everyone's bucket list.  Anyway, Natural Bridges Park has 3 large bridges.  This is a view of Kachina Bridge from the bottom of the canyon.  Even though it is massive, it is considered the youngest of the 3 bridges because of the thickness of its span.

I did a quick value study of this with a "Sketch & Wash" pencil.   The graphite in these is "washable", so when done shading, you wash over it w/ water  to exaggerate the values.

It's hard to get the feel of how big these bridges really are.  These boulders resulted from a rock fall in 1992, when approximately 4,000 tons of rock broke off the bridge.

The bridge is named for the Kachina dancers that play a central role in Hopi religious tradition.

Another Turnip

6" x 8" oil on panel
$100.00 + $10. s/h
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I painted a piece very similar to this last fall.  As I said at that time, since we've retired, my husband does most of the shopping and cooking.  And, when he came home with these turnips again, I decided I needed to do another daily painting.  I loved the complimentary colors the last time, so I chose the same cloth once again.

Lee's Ferry--Grand Canyon

12" x 16"  oil on clayboard
$395.00 + $10. s/h
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Lee's Ferry is where the Grand Canyon officially starts.  For people headed out on Colorado River raft trips, this is the official launch spot.  Actually, the launch site is right behind me.  Our son just got back from a 30 day river trip down the Colorado, through the Grand Canyon; it took 30 days due to the fact that they were in motorless rafts.  My husband did this trip several summers ago in 10 days;  they had motors to help speed them through the slow, rapidless spots.  Our son went w/ a group of guys he met while a geology major.  One friend "put in" for 8 years before getting a spot.  If you choose to raft on your own, without a commercial guide, it's a lottery.  And, winning the lottery is a huge deal.  Only a few rafts are allowed to launch each day.  This alleviates overcrowding on the river and the camping places each night.

Lee's Ferry is just down river from the Glen Canyon Dam, outside of Paige, Az.  Before the dams of the 20th century, Lee's Ferry benefitted from a geologic circumstance.  Due to shale deposits it was the only place to cross the Colorado River for 260 miles.  Everywhere else along the Colorado from Moab, Utah to Laughlin, Nevada, the river had cut through limestone and sandstone creating vertical cliffs and gorges as it eroded, making it impossible to ford.

In the paintings I've done lately, I've been trying to think about and be aware of the value.  For this one I did 2 quick value studies in pencil.  In the top study I have the lights, mediums and very dark shadows.  In the bottom I blended most of the darks together into one shape.

Then I did an value study in oils.  For these grays I mixed terra rosa, black and white.  I don't do this w/ every painting.  But, I will say that when I got to the color, it was pretty quick and easy.  I tried to stay right w/in the true value ranges and just put down the color notes.

Pauline Chapel

8" x 10" oil on gessoed masonite
$195.00 + $10. s/h
SOLD

This is my submission for Lee Brown's A Day Not Wasted blog challenge.  The challenge was to paint Pauline Chapel from a photo he included.  His photo was amazing.  He's a great photographer, artist, and has an incredible blog which includes his paintings, travels, other artists, book reviews.  

I have been to this chapel; it's about 1 1/2 - 2 miles from my house!   It's a beautiful chapel in a beautiful setting.  I hope I've done it justice.

Springtime in the Rockies

SOLD
6" x 6"  oil on panel
$100.00 + $10. s/h
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Spring is here.  In many places that means warm weather and blooming flowers.  In the Colorado Rockies, it is still winter in March.  Yesterday we had 4 inches of snow with temperatures in the low 30s.  Today it's still in the 30s, but a beautiful sunny day.

On Thursday I had lunch with my art group, (we get together once each month). My friend Marianne brought daffodils for us.  They did not grow in Colorado!  Such a great gift for a snowy day!  The flowers looked so spring-like and cheerful in front of the window, with gray skies and snow flying outside!  The daffodils seemed like a great daily paintings.

Another Look

6" x 6" oil on panel
SOLD

Last weekend I went to Kelley Macdonald's virtual cocktail party.  I brought the wine. I thought the cork made a great painting.

Fruit of the Vine

6" x 6" oil on panel
$100.00 + $10. s/h
please contact me if interested
SOLD

Kelley Macdonald is having a cocktail party on her blog.  Since I don't really drink many cocktails, I'm submitting these wine bottles.  They're from the wine I have with dinner, so I think that works!

I did a setup similar to this in late December.  It had a burgundy background which I found much easier.  When I softened those edges, they just blended in.  With this lighter background, when I softened the edges, the elipses seemed to be wrong.  So, I'd fix the elipses and the edges appeared hard.  Before I knew it I was ready to have a cocktail.

Colorado Cow

6" x 6"  oil on panel
$100.00 + $10. s/h
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My last two paintings were of Texas cattle.  I thought I needed to do a painting from a little closer to home. This guy lives just a little bit west of our house.

Texas Steer

12" x 16" oil on stretched canvas
$395.00 + $10. s/h
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I like the challenge of painting whites and grays (that's what the colors really are.)  This Texas day was filled with neutral color notes: the steer, the leafless shrubs in the background, the partly cloudy sky.

Texas Midhorn

12" x 16" oil on stretched canvas
$395.00 + $10. s/h
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You can't go to Texas without seeing a lot of cattle.  I'm not sure what this kind was, it's not quite a Longhorn;  so, I gave it it's own name.  It seems like the cattle and cows that I see around here stand by the side of the road when you approach.  But, in Texas, every time we pulled over by the side of the road, the herds turned to look, then ran away.  Must be the old Texas/Colorado rivalry.  The didn't want to see me coming!