Pumpkin Patch Escapee

Close ups

Oil on 5x7 hardboard.
I felt I should do something to say Happy Halloween to all you spooky celebration devotees.
I had fun with this one. I concentrated on giving this pumpkin the appearance of emerging from the darkness by keeping close values on the dark side and using soft edges. This helps with both depth and mystery.

Hope you enjoy it!

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Job 34:3
The ear tests words as the tongue tastes food.

San Fran Rooftops

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Oil on 5x7 hardboard.

This painting is my submission to Karin Jurick's DSFDF.

The hard, straight lines of cityscapes have made me shy away from this genre. For this challenge I decided to really loosen up-go with invented color-to use many small dabs of paint similar to a rough pointillism. I wanted to get away from the up-tight "painting within the lines" feel.
It was a fun challenge...although intimidating at first.

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Psalm 5:3 My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O LORD; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up.

Caring/Sharing

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Oil on 7x5 hardboard.
The reference photo for this painting was graciously supplied by Connie for the WDE at Wet Canvas.
This lovely couple really appealed to me...all they've been through...the many stories they could tell.

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Ephesians 5:25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.

Sitting Pretty

Close ups.

Oil on 5x7 hardboard.

The reference photo for this painting was supplied by Kat for this week's WDE.
All the design elements in this picture appealed to me. The background color, chairs, cat, flowers and foliage all seemed to work together.

The support was first coated with black gesso. It then received a thin layer of acrylic pthalo blue to darken it further. I tried to maintain as much freshness in the brush work as possible. To finish up, the thickest, most textured strokes were placed in and around the area of the center of interest...the cat's face.

I enjoyed doing this one. Perhaps all the more because I felt had overworked the previous painting posted.

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Psalm 50:15 and call upon me in the day of trouble;
I will deliver you, and you will honor me.

Redo of Memory Makers

Close ups.

Oil on 7x5 hardboard.

Some of you may recall this is one I posted on Sept. 19th. It has been reworked. The reaction to it was less than stellar on eBay. I decided the original was a bit on the drab/dark side for a sunny beach scene ( even though I did like the deep color). So I went back in and added warmth to the sky and generally reworked and brightened everything a bit.
The original is here.
Right now the touch up is so fresh in my mind, I don't know if I've helped or hurt it.

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1 John 3:18 NRSV:
Let us love, not in word or speech, but in truth and action.

Cow Portrait

Close ups.

Oil on 7x5 hardboard.

I've enjoyed doing cattle in the not too distant past. Here's another. This is the Murray Grey breed. I've pushed the color to give it the appearance of standing in a still moonlit night.
I started this composition by first applying black gesso to the support. I then applied a thin coat of pthalo blue acrylic which made it even darker.

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Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding, in all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

Unseen Rajasthan Award

I would like to thank Megha Chhatbar
for honoring me with the Unseen Rajasthan Award. Her work is delightful in style and color. Please check her out! At this time, due to time constraints, I won't list artist's names because I just did that a little earlier. Please check out my sidebar...a bunch of very talented folks!
Thank you Megha!

Patrick Swayze

Close ups.

1952-2009

He remained a good man through it all.

Graphite on Canson Bristol Vellum. Approx. 7x7.

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Psalm 23:6 Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

Wow! Thanks, Karen!!

Thanks for this Kreativ Blogger award, Karen! I am honored.
Karen Hargett is a very talented art blogging friend! Her subjects range from figuratives to flowers-from landscapes to wildlife. Never know what you might see when you stop by her blog-but you can count on it being well done! One thing I always look forward to are the scriptures at the end of her posts.

To comply with the rules, here are seven things about myself. I decided to state it as seven things I love.

My 7 Loves!

1...I love the early dawn quiet...the birds and nature noises... before the world gets cranked up and running.

2...My faithful companion through it all...my toy poodle, Dolly.

3... Painting to music...makes the painting flow better.

4....Painting...It seems the more I learn, the more I realize how little I know.

5...Friends

6...The United States of America...I've always been patriotic...what we're facing today as a country is very troubling.

7...I love God's Word...All of the above would not mean a thing without the Bible as the base.

And now I pass the Kreative Blogger Award onto 7 very talented artists. Make sure you check out their work and say "Hi"!

1. Edward Burton

2. Celeste Bergin

3. Barbara Pask

4. Marilyn M. King

5. Sheila

6. Megha Chhatbar

7. Patrice Lynne Young

Matthew 7:7 Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will
find; knock and it will be opened to you.

The Memory Makers

Close ups.

Oil on 7x5 hardboard.
I first toned the board with a laid back red. Some of it peeks through the finished painting. I feel this harmonizes the painting.

I started this painting last night-had to stop-finished it today. I feel that this pause lets the image soak into my head. When I finished it up today it flowed with added improvements. Alla prima is wonderful, but sometimes the pause does wonders.

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Psalm 46:10 Be still, and know that I am God!

Red Rose

Close ups.

Oil on 7x5 hardboard.
The rose has often been my nemesis. At first sight, so simple and predictable looking. It involves many challenges, not the least of which is the color red. Since red is basically a medium value color it's hard to achieve highlights in red. Cadmium red light has definite orange influence...and it's not very bright as a highlight. You can't add white because you simply produce pink.
So, to make this appear to have highlights, I played it against a super dark background.

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^{matthew 6:20-21} But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. ²¹For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

She Remembers

Close ups.

Oil on 5x7 hardboard.

Sept. 11. 2009.
Let us all remember with her.



This photo was taken from my backyard today. The very same beautiful clear blue sky as it was eight years ago. Yes, the heavens are unchanged. But the world...sadly, that's another story.

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Psalm 24:1 The earth is the LORD's, and everything in it,
the world, and all who live in it;

Center Stage

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Oil on hardboard.

This is my submission to Karin Jurick's latest DSFDF. I set myself the task to dramatize the lighting. I wanted to almost show the center cupcake taking a bow in the spotlight of some fantasy play in a bakery window. Strange, eh? Lol.

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john 10:10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

Swim Team

Close ups.

Oil on 5x7 hardboard.

I did these otters in order to show intense light and some texture. My goals were to keep the paint interesting...to avoid boredom. Not sure I succeeded but it was a fun painting.
The photo was supplied by Jerri for this week's WDE at Wet Canvas.

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Psalms 118:8 "It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man."

In God We Still Trust

Close ups.

Oil on 7x5 hardboard.
The hardboard was first coated with black gesso. This brings great life to color and brushwork from the very first strokes.
This painting was inspired by a song which someone sent me. It expresses concern about the direction this beloved country is heading. Special interest groups are trying to tear it to the ground. Understand that this is completely my humble opinion...(thought I'd better get it out there before they outlaw free speech).

Karen Hargett is a superb artist with a great love for this country and strong spiritual faith. At her request, I sent her the reference photo from which this painting was made. I admire the fine version she came up with! Check it out here.

Here's the song I referred to. Give it a listen.



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^{2 Peter 2 :2} Many will follow their shameful ways and will bring the way of truth into disrepute.

Crow/Raven #3

Close ups.

Oil on 7x5 hardboard.
I hope y'all aren't sick of seeing the crows/ ravens, 'cause here's another one.

I came across this great reference photo and I really liked the composition...the great shape of the negative space!
After thinking about it, I came up with another reason I like this theme...I feel that crows and Fall go together. With that in mind, I like playing the blue/ purple feather highlights against the wild abstract, complementary, Autumn colored background.

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Luke 12:24 Consider the ravens: for they neither sow nor reap; which neither have storehouse nor barn; and God feedeth them: how much more are ye better than the fowls?

Boston Terrier

Close ups.

Oil on 5x7 hardboard.
Here's another slice of life as seen from my window. As mentioned previously, the sidewalk in front of my house is a veritable parade of subjects, each screaming, " Paint me!". The colorful garb caught my eye as well as the perky terrier...and I swear that is the actual expression that was on it's face. Kind of a playful, adoring continence...loved it!

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Job 34:3 The ear tests words as the tongue tastes food.

Raven #2

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Oil on 7x5 hardboard.
This painting is from a photo graciously sent to me by a very gifted artist and super nice human being, Saundra Lane Galloway. Please check out her great blog!

This is in a very similar vein as the one I posted on Aug. 2nd. The first had a terrific response on eBay. One of the bidders asked me to do another raven which would be similar to the first. Let me tell you, it is difficult to emulate your own work! At least it was for me...how funny is that??!
Technically, Saundra's photo was of a crow, but since my first painting was a raven, I made this one a bit more raven-y by broadening the beak, etc.

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Proverbs 3:5-6. "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding, in all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths."