Basket Maker

Here is the original photo.
I design most paintings in Photoshop. I removed the large tree, which was a distraction, and I already had this picture of my friend Fabi, from another project I worked on several years ago. Same position!
The 22x28 canvas is then painted bright orange, and black lines added.
Colors are filled in. And details added. I had intended on just starting this and finishing it on the day of the event, but it was decided that the artists could sell their work, so if I was to have a booth, I couldn't paint as well. I ended up finishing 3 paintings in advance, and worked on one at my booth. And by working on, I mean talking to guests all day.

This painting SOLD, 5/7/2011, $450.

Yokuts Woman

Original Photo.


Fabi's sister Marilu poses for this.



















Orange and black....
















Colors filled in....







Finished. This painting is also available at $450.

Yokuts Story

This was painted on a 36 square canvas.



























Josephina Belman and her grandchildren Jamie and Fabilu, along with my grandson, were my models.
Almost done.
Finished. On the day of the event, I had all 3 finished paintings on easels set up at the spot where I painted them. I sold this one at the event, $650.

Robin Eggs

ROBIN EGGS are warm and comforting. It might be their color, or tiny size, or maybe what they represent – new beginnings. For me, they are a means of time travel, an instant journey back to a 10-year old me.

I GREW UP on a vineyard. Each spring, my brothers and I would grab our little notepads and, in my organized manner even back then, traverse the rows, searching for birds' nests. We very carefully peeked into each vine, documenting each find, and then following the progress of each nest until, at last, all the baby birds flew away.

SOME EGGS didn't hatch, while others were eaten by small mammals or other birds. And it always broke my heart to scribble, "Dead hatchling– not strong enough." Occasionally we got to see the parents feed worms or bugs to the babies. It was so exciting I couldn't sleep some nights.

SOON the nests were empty, and we moved on to new adventures. We ditched our notepads and found other ways to amuse ourselves, not giving nests another thought – until the next year, when it would seem like just the best idea all over again.

I painted Robin Eggs on 16 x20 hardboard panel, which I cut with a jigsaw.

Blue Window 4

Well, finally – here is the finished painting. I finished it 2 days after the last photo, but it's been raining ever since! I like to take my photos outside. While shooting this I leaned it up next to a wall and I liked how it looked, so tomorrow I am going to shoot it hanging on the red shed next door. It needs a background in order to make prints. Thank you Jerry Jonnum for the hook- I love it.

Blue Window 3

To do the lace, I printed the lace exact size and taped it over painting – placing a sheet of carbon paper between print of lace and painting. With a ball point pen I marked the dots. To paint the dots with acrylic paint I use a #1 point brush that I have let paint dry on. The hairs are stuck dry and only the tip touches the painting. (I discovered this great use of a ruined brush because I am quite lazy when it comes to clean-up time.) The lace you see so far took a whole work day to complete.

Blue Window 2

THIS took 2 days- sorry, I forgot to post it. I've now added the red, green, blue and white. Some was taped off, some free-handed.

Blue Window

WINDOWS intrigue me. They can invite you in or shut you out. They can brighten your day or leave you feeling lonely. From either side they give you a glimpse into another world.
LAVINIA MARIN of Bucharest, Romania shows her photos on Stock.xchng and has graciously given me permission to paint her photograph of a blue window. I love the bright bold paint colors juxtaposed with lace. I am going to paint this on plywood that has been cut to the shape of the window in the Trompe L'oeil style. The overall size is 36" x 48" so it will give the impression of a real window when hung on the wall. I am using 1/2 inch plywood cut with a jigsaw.


I CUT the shape, puttied the edges with Elmer's Wood Filler and then painted with a thinned Nova Color acrylic wash, using various old-wood colors. I then painted on 2 coats of Clear Protector sealer on BOTH SIDES of plywood. I can now paint my picture.

TAKING FROGTAPE, I mask off the most obvious black lines. After painting in the areas black I mask off other obvious sections. I need to section off the parts of the painting so I can see what I'm doing. GETTING BORED with straight lines so I played with the lace for a while. I'm a little nervous about the lace. There's a lot of detail and I have failed with lace in the past. Wish me luck. OOPS! I forgot to pick up my grandson Miklos at school. See you after lunch!