Snow

We just had our first snowfall of the winter in Minnesota -- only a few inches here in our area that has now melted a bit. Last year there was a fabulous deep snowfall the day before Thanksgiving and a beautiful crisp sunny day for the holiday. I couldn't resist running out into into it for a photo shoot :) -- for most of the day in fact. It was one of those snowfalls with very large flakes -- the sunshine caught them like diamonds glittering in the soft shadows and the wind. There was a delicate breeze that would occasionally gust, sending an outburst of flurries that had settled on the smaller branches. In a hike through wooded areas you could hear a cheery serenade by a chorus of chickadees singing to one another, and me I suppose. I would imagine this could easily be looked at as an everyday occurrence, but it was very inspiring for me -- even a year after my shoot it seems magical. There were some very striking scenes of light and shadow, one of which I'm painting now. I've never shown this piece though it's been sitting in my studio for a while. I began the sketch and roughly blocked in the scene right after my photo shoot last year, but was unable to progress further with it because of other deadlines. I think the fresh snowfall has put me in the mood to paint something appropriate. It's hard to paint flowers in the winter or snow in the summer. Anyway, I will post a photo of it a little later.

I have also begun a new miniature commission of a bathing mute swan. Right now the sketch has been added my commissions page. I will be adding images of the painting as it progresses.

First of all, Happy Thanksgiving to all of you -- at least to those who are observing the holiday.

I've just started a new miniature commission of a single giraffe -- posted in my studio's commissions page. The piece is coming along very quickly, which is always nice. Both starting a painting and completing a painting are refreshing for an artist -- starting something new and the sense of accomplishment respectively, I suppose. I think that's why small pieces, such as this one or other miniatures, often (but not always) progress more smoothly than larger paintings. This piece is actually my first giraffe painting. I haven't painted many African animals yet, but I do plan to paint more of them.

I really enjoy painting a variety of subjects, at least when I am able to -- It keeps my painting sessions from getting too dull. It is a creative challenge, however, to paint the same subject many times and still find various way of keeping the paintings fresh. I think that both variety and repetition in painting can stretch the artist's abilities in a number of ways. I recall seeing work by one oil landscape painter that did an exquisite job of painting a large number of paintings featuring the same scene, each slightly different -- quite a challenge I would imagine.

My family and I visited several of our exhibitions and galleries before we returned to Minnesota. My Mom, Karen, and sister, Bonnie are showing work this year in the Society of Animal Artists' Annual Exhibition that recently opened in Oradell, New Jersey at the Hiram Blauvelt Museum. It was very nice to see work by some of my past instructors in the exhibition; and of course I am very proud of my mom on her winning an award of excellence this year. I was also able to attend the Patron's Preview of the Miniature Painters Sculptors and Gravers Society Exhibition at the Strathmore Hall in Bethesda, Maryland. It was a nice opening and I was very pleased to have sold my awarded painting during the preview. (Both shows are listed with more information & photos in What's New.) I also want to extend a big thanks to our galleries in New Jersey for their kind hospitality, as always! It was also nice to see some of our collectors again who stopped by to visit while we were in town. If you are in the area, there is now a fresh selection of paintings on display.

I have enjoyed my escape from the studio. It was not a "vacation" in any form, but an escape none the less. I don't think my family or I could survive a vacation without some form of art related aspect to it. We always seem to have the need to paint or photograph something. :) Getting away for a while helped me to study my existing body of work and painting process. I have some fresh ideas for my painting approach that I am very excited about. I hope to implement these in at least a portion of my new paintings.

I enjoyed meeting so many new people at the Easton Waterfowl Festival. Being on the east coast has also been a wonderful area to gather waterfowl and other references for new paintings. The weather was a bit chilly during one photo shoot in particular -- especially the cool breeze near lake areas. Some of us were a bit numb & tingling by the end of it all, but wouldn't trade the experiences for anything. We've gathered thousands of new reference photographs for creating new paintings. I've just started a new painting from some of these references (while traveling). I will share an image of it with you after I get a little farther on it.

One of the reasons I've added this journal to my online studio is to, in a way, meet more of you. I realize that I will likely never be able to actually meet many of my online studio visitors, but I hope this will help you to share in some of what I experience -- for those who are interested anyway.

"There are no speed limits in the pursuit of excellence" -- Unknown

I have started a new larger mute swan painting for an upcoming exhibit as well as a few miniature pieces. I will add pictures of them after I've painted on them a bit more. Also, both of the commissioned paintings I was working on have been finished.

I was able to attend the American Art in Miniature Exhibit's reception at the Gilcrease Museum www.gilcrease.org in Tulsa with my family recently. My Mom and I had work in the show this year. It was very elegant and quite a crowd turned out for the event. I like getting out to these events to see all of the beautiful paintings. It's also nice meet and chat with other artists and art/wildlife/nature enthusiasts attending.

Recently, I have had so many kind comments about my work from collectors and web visitors. Thank you all so much! I, like many artists I know, spend long hours in the studio painting, hoping the work will be received well at it's final exhibition or showing place. I am very appreciative of your supportive words.

I have had a bit more enthusiasm to paint lately - which of course leads to faster results in the studio. :) When surrounded by deadlines, it is not uncommon to paint for 12 to 15 hours per day with a few breaks. This schedule does get to be tiresome after a while. Of course, if the painting is going well, you don't notice that you've been sitting at the easel for 5 hours -- except for the fact that one or two limbs have dosed off. I suppose it's the kind of job that you have to love, which I do deeply. I couldn't imagine doing anything else. I love being able to speak through my paintings, share the magic I see around me & things that inspire me -- hopefully helping others to see those things around them as well, even after I'm gone.

My commissioned artwork for Harvard University is now in it's final stages of adjustments. I also hope to get to that point with the commission of Samantha, the great horned owl, soon. I have a fair number of commissioned pieces requested over the next year or so. I will be posting the paintings on my studio's commissions page as I begin the paintings.