"Pumpkin Time"

Fall is in full force in Southern Utah so I decided to paint something seasonal. This little oil (5" x7) was a lot of fun to paint and reminded me of all the years we carved pumpkins with our children and how much fun they always had at Halloween. I hope my children are continuing the tradition with my granddaughters. I am heading to Denver for a few days to see family and some old college friends. Should be a great time and I believe the weather will be perfect. My sister and I will do a canvas and cocktail class....should be interesting. I’ll post our paintings when I return to St. George.

"Sun Going Down"

It’s been a few weeks since I last painted and I feel a bit rusty. Between moving back to Utah and having company my time has been limited to family which I believe should always be first. I just completed my first painting since returning to Kayenta in Utah. In this painting I have tried to capture the moodiness of the late evening just before sunset, as the sun moves down the red cliffs and casts the desert in shadows leaving the tops of the cliffs as if they were the embers of a dying fire. I call this painting “Sun Going Down”. We attended the auction for Xetava Gardens Café the other evening and I am pleased to say my pastel painting “Passing Storm” sold for over $500.00. “Cheyenne Man” is still for sale in the cafe.

"Passing Storm" and "Cheyenne Man"

I'm finally settled again in Utah and back to blogging. I has taken a while to get back to doing art and I must admit the paintings I am posting today were done last year. I am donating them to Xetava Gardens Cafe here in Kayenta. They are doing a fund raiser auction to improve their kitchen and although this isn’t a non profit we are friends with the owner and want to see his restaurant succeed. The first painting is done in pastel and is called “Passing Storm” the second painting is an oil painted from an historic photo of a Cheyenne Indian man. I have joined the emerging artist studio in Kayenta called the Blue Raven you can connect to them at this link http://www.blueravenartstudio.com/ You can connect to Xetava Gardens Cafe at http://www.xetavagardenscafe.com/ It’s good to be back on the desert and in our home in Kayenta.

Finger Lake and a Colony Barn

I had good intentions of painting at least one painting while we vacationed in Tahoe with the family. I should have known better. With everyone around for the family reunion, life just got in the way. At any rate I have a couple of paintings I completed earlier this year that I have wanted to post.The first painting is of Matanuska Peak from Finger Lake in the Palmer/Wasilla area. The second is of a Colony barn that is now located on the fairgrounds in Palmer, Alaska. It is a good example of the style of barns you find in the Mat-Su Valley. The Alaska State Fair is held here in late August/early September each year and if you are interested in livestock, and huge mutant style vegetables this is the place to see both. This year the largest pumpkin grown was 1019 lbs. and the largest cabbage was just short of a world record set last year at 127 lbs. My remaining days in Alaska are growing short and I need to accomplish some yard work so my painting time will be very limited and I may not get any other paintings done until we return to Utah. Stay tuned.

Red Beets

Abundance in this life is what gives us feelings of happiness and joy; and not just about the physical possessions you own or your financial net worth. True abundance and true joy comes from having valued relationships, doing the things you love, good health, and a life that lets you live according to your values and beliefs. I have one more definition of abundance....and that is our summer garden. We grew a wide variety of vegetables this summer and in spite of all the rain it rewarded us with great abundance. We love red beets both the tops and the beets and when I saw this bunch fresh from our garden I knew I had to paint them. 6" x 8" oil

The Birches

We live beside a lake in the wild woods of Alaska where ferns, mushrooms and mosses grow in abundance. The woods are mostly birch and aspen and have grown skyward 70 feet or more. The trees shelter and house a multitude of bird life and normally I don’t pay them much attention, but on the rare occasion when the sun has come out this summer the trunks of these trees reflect the most amazing colors. I have tried to capture those colors along with a bit of our lake in this painting that I call "The Birches". Oil 6" x 8".

Hay Bales

This was painted at the Matanuska Experiment Farm in Palmer. They have a number of research and demonstration projects that may be of interest to anyone who has questions about agronomy or horticulture. My interest is in the old barns and buildings that are located on the property. I loved the way the shade draped across the road leading to the old cow barn. The hay bales added another point of interest in this painting, and once again one of the mountain peaks that surround the Matanuska Valley towers in the background.