Sunset Glow Pine Tree and Margaret Egli Portrait Demonstration and Lunch

This pine tree is on my daily walk.  Every day it draws my attention as it stands alone and on the crest of a hill.  Usually I walk in the mornings but this time it was sunset and it glowed in a such a beautiful way that I had to document it as a memory and share it so others could see it.  The frame is a strip frame of urethaned pine and it can be hung or will stand on it's own.

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This wonderful artist, Margaret Egli, is the person who runs the fantastic European Art Trips that I have attended for many years.  Her work is lose and colorful.  I feel fortunate that she and her husband, Arwed, moved to Florida after living in Switzerland all their lives and have provided the opportunity for so many of us to travel to Europe and learn so much about the history there and see so many amazing places.

My friend Judy and I went to a portrait demo today from 9 to noon at Margaret's home and had lunch. There were a dozen painters in attendance and Judy was the model.  Everyone brought a dish.  Margaret's home is located in Rotunda, the area where yesterday 80 acres were burnt to the ground, no homes were involved, but her neighborhood was evacuated up to across the street from her, so she didn't have to leave, but could see the flames.  Here are a few photos of today's event.

Margaret Egli

Margaret painting Judy

 The Lunch Buffet and Margaret's students

The Portrait in progress

Foreign Food Delights

Since I've been here I've eaten at an Indian Restaurant and today I ate at a Vietnamese Restaurant.  Today's food was Pho pronounced like Fha, and it's a noodle bowl with condiments of bean sprouts, basil and lime, spring rolls with peanut sauce and a Bahn Mi sandwich made with meat and vegetables.  I  haven't been sleeping very well, so I was at a low ebb today and didn't feel like painting.  I was in contact with people in Massachusetts about the upcoming hanging of the new gallery on Sunday and posted to DPW and worked on my computer.

The Annual Naples National Art Festival

I look forward to this event every year, and I've attended almost every year for decades.  It has 100 exhibitors from all over the country who work in every medium and have been juried into this show.  I was hoping to see more mixed media works but I loved about 10 booths and talked with a lot of artists about their works.  I loved the show, but the pictures of the works didn't give them justice so I'm not posting them.

 Ceramic Artist

 Friends Judy and Jessica

 Cambia Park, Naples FL

gmceramicart.com

There was this little "GITA' cart that follows you where ever you go, for example, you can walk to the grocery store and put your stuff in it and walk home.

After the show we went to Goodwill and had a good time there as well. I love a bargain.

Quilt Show and The Theater and BIG YELLOW (a painting)

First we went to the quilt show, then to a play called, "My Husband's Wild Desires Almost Drove Me Mad".  There were some great quilts as it is a semi-annual show that draws from everywhere.  Here is my favorite one although there were many others that I liked.  The inspiration for it was a trip to Alaska.

At the quilt show they had a room full  of things for sale that were hand-made and had many household uses.  They also had a large table of scraps of cloth that were for sale for $2 for a small bag full.  The small bag was large enough to fit a giant loaf of bread, or like a large lunch bag.  I filled one with small scarps that will come in useful for making mixed media works.  I've seen materials incorporated into mixed media using clear gels or mediums or glue (all the same thing really).

The play wasn't very good, however.  We came home after because we are having a strenuous day tomorrow.  

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First thing, I posted this 6x6" yellow flower that I finished yesterday to my DPW online gallery.  

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The Friday Report :) Weaving, Eating, and Walking in the Woods

At the Visual Arts Center today I went again to the VAC with my friend Judy to take a class in Swedish Weaving.  They had a meeting beforehand and I went to look at the national show again, then after the class we went to dinner.  We went to Ryan's, a place that has all-you-can-eat fish-fry on Friday nights.  It was delicious.  
I'm re-reading Carol Marine's book, "Daily Painting", an excellent book, and she explained how she edits photos so the shadows are not so deep and maybe the contrast is less, and I took  a lot of photos today to test out this theory.
Here is Phyllis Copelin's afgan in the Swedish Weaving Style:

 Ryan's fish fry place, here are our steamed clams and fried mushrooms:

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Shady Path Camden

This scene would be familiar to you if you ever enjoyed walking in the woods--breathing the wonderful scent of pine, seeing the dappled light coming through the trees and enjoying nature. This is a path in Camden, Maine but it reminds me of hiking in the northwest as well.

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Hitting My Stride, and VAC Winners

Hitting my stride:  Yesterday I worked on and finished three paintings from my box of 'almost finished paintings'.  It felt really good to have those brushes in my hands again! One was a barn in Beverly MA that was painted in plein air, and needed a bit of drawing correction; another was a flower painting that needed some punch and still keep the brush strokes loose and free; and the last one is one that is high-key (light colors) which is difficult for me as I like a lot of color and contrast.  Here they are:

 5x7" oil on Ampersand gessobord

6x6": oil on Ampersand gessobord

6x6": oil on Ampersand gessobord

I wish my new Apple 11 phone took better pictures, but it just doesn't get the color right.

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The VAC winners:  The Visual Art Center in Punta Gorda has posted the photos of the award winners in the current national art show.  There were an enormous amount of wonderful paintings--the best show ever--but it baffles me about which painting won first place.  I'm posting the link here for the show, and the awards are many, starting with the least and ending with the best.  Please take a look, at least at the first, second and third places.  The second and third place paintings are fantastic, as are many of the other paintings in the show.  NATIONAL SHOW AT THE VAC

You'll have to scroll down about 9 pages to see the beginning of the list of awards section.

Boys Rollerskates

I finished these paintings of  BOYS ROLLERSKATES  last night.  It was a fun experiment and a gift for two kids as well.  I have previously painted two paintings of girls rollerskates.  For those I used pinks, whites, and of course, pompoms!  I'll post those in a couple of weeks when I get home.
p.s.  I needed to get my mojo back for painting, and it has returned, so that's good!  Now I'll work on some small paintings that I've previously worked on that still need a few adjustments.  This fits into my current mood of neatening up and decluttering.  :)

Alcohol Ink Painting

Yesterday I went to the Visual Arts Center in Punta Gorda FL to see the National Show they have there now.  This is a show they host bi-annually.  It is an exceptional show.  At the center Jill Lindsay was teaching an advanced alcohol ink painting class and I listened in a bit while touring the show.  Afterwards I said hello to her and she gave me a quick lesson, and I'm pretty excited to do some experimenting with that medium.  Lately I'm thinking about mixed media quite a bit and there are a lot of wonderful artists in FL doing that type of art, so I'll have a great opportunity to see and study it when I go to the Naples Show coming up this weekend!!! because I know there will be many artists there with mixed media on display.  Another thing about Florida art shows is that the art is big and colorful, two things I like that you don't see as much in New England.
I'm doing a tiny bit of painting myself just because I'm working on a couple of presents for some kids.
I'm also looking forward to the hanging and reception, etc., of my new gallery in Newburyport called Pleasant Street Gallery which will begin to happen the day I get home.

Wilton Studio Visit, RV Show, Driving to Punta Gorda

The Highlight of this trip is the Wilton Studio Visit!
My day yesterday (Valentine's Day) was amazing.  I did a couple of very different things.  I toured maybe 60 RVs from tiny to gigantic.  It was lots of fun to see them and it took maybe 2 hours.  I was with my son, Marc, and Kim, Cameron,and Kim's mom, Cheryl.
After that I went to visit John Wilton's studio as he graciously invited me to see it.  This put my head in a tailspin.  It was a nor'easter of an experience.  Both the building itself and the contents were very exciting to see.  The building is like something I have been thinking and dreaming about for a long time, pretty much exactly.  He built most of it himself after the drawings were done and a company constructed the main framework.  He did the walls and all the rest.  It has a bathroom in one corner and otherwise is open space. Any divisions of space are painting racks on wheels or the like. There may be one small column of wall space where the utilities are probably housed.  It has a polished or painted cement floor.  The dimensions are 40x80'. There are clerestory windows the length of the building in the roof, as you can see in the photos, and windows on the ends of the building, one being north light.
He invited me to roam around and see whatever I wanted to see and volunteered to answer any questions I might have had.  We did have a conversation about both his building and his art and he was very forthcoming and I enjoyed meeting him very much .Link to John Wilton's art. and a  Link To John Wilton's studio and works on his walls. If you go here, it is an article followed by photos, after the first several photos, other artists are featured.
He is a prolific artist who works in many mediums, or maybe all mediums!  His work, for the most part is very large and he has done many public works, like murals, civic buildings, utility boxes, sculptures, too many to name but you can reference his web page or do a google search.  I'll post some photos here.

THE TOWN-DELAND

THE MAN

THE ART & STUDIO

Lace Cap Hydrangia

I've had a great visit with Marc, Kim and Cameron in Sanford FL and will be leaving tomorrow for Punta Gorda FL to visit my friend Judy.  I contacted the artist whose studio I mentioned as being my dream studio and he invited me to see it tomorrow afternoon.  I'm psyched.  Not only is his studio fantastic but his work is also.  He is famous around here.  http://www.johnwilton.net/www.johnwilton.net/INFO.html

This plein air painting was painted in a friend's yard in the late afternoon and not a sunny day.  

I remember when my aunt got a lace cap hydrangea--it was the first time I ever saw one, how gorgeous they are. Flowers and people--all different from one another.

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White Hibiscus and New Gallery Opening Info

White Hibiscus Painting
Painted in a friend's garden while standing in the shade with the bush catching the sun, I was especially struck by the beautiful blue color of the sky.  I'm trying to get a better photo without a blue cast, the white looks much white in person.

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If you go to this link, you can see it with a magnifying feature and observe that the brush strokes are nice and noticeable.  I always like to do this since it's so hard to really see these paintings online.

New Gallery Opening

If you live in my area, please come to this new gallery opening in Newburyport MA.  There are 26 artists' work to see and refreshments will be available.  Come meet the artists and be one of the first to see this new gallery in beautiful Newburyport.  

Deland, Port Orange, The Villages

I visited the second Deland Art Museum (one is dedicated to special exhibits) and The Hand Museum at Stetson College in Deland, and two artists on the art walk in East Volusia County.
At the Deland museum I spoke with the receptionist who gave me very good information about the area and the art scene in general which led me to see the incredible art studio of John Wilton (http://www.johnwilton.net/www.johnwilton.net/INTRO.html) who has the studio that I dream about having.  First photo below.
At the Hand Museum I saw an exhibit that was nicely displayed where they took part of the artists design and manipulated it to make a large background, part of which was flat paper and another part was printed on fabric and hung to look like a curtain.  Second photo below.
Also at the Hand I was very happy to see, touch, etc. a handmade Camera Obscrua.  This is something I have always wanted to make and experience, so now I have experienced it.  Third and fourth photo below.
At the studio of Carol Land (https://perceptionsbycaland.com/about-artist/) I was very impressed with her mixed media and collages.
At the Villages I visited with friend, Vickie, and we traveled around in a golf cart.  She is an excellent golf cart driver. The Villages is nothing like I expected, much better, and as she says, the locals say it's like living in a bubble--which seems true.

Field of Daisies

More daisies!  Can you ever have enough?   What do daisies say to you?  I say they are happy flowers. 

There is something about them that I never get tired of.

This 6x6" oil painting on panel board will bring cheer to any room!

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My Gallery News!

The latest news is that I'm in a gallery in Newburyport starting March 5th.  There will be a reception and I'll be sure to let you know when that will be.  It's called the Pleasant Street Gallery.  It's new and there are 26 of us as members of the co-op.
Yesterday I went to Deland, FL and it is a gorgeous town.  I'm heading up there again today.  Big weekend coming up, I'll be going to an art walk in the Ormond Beach and New Smyrna Beach area on Saturday and I'll be with Vickie at the Villages on Sunday for an Art Festival.

Standing Tall

Since this blog is my art report, which could be confused with my art adventures blog, (even I get mixed up) I want to report that I'm enjoying the warm weather this month in Florida and going to see art galleries and festivals, shows, etc.  I'm using my ancient laptop to do my computer work and it is telling me that its too old for some of the processes I'm doing.  Always something!  I visited downtown Sanford yesterday and a gallery there is preparing to do a mural this month on their side wall that faces an ally.  I'm heading over to the other side of the state next week, but I may return to this area for the last week of the month and see how they are coming along. p.s.  I haven't painted anything yet :(

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This 6x6" oil painting on masonite board will look great on a shelf or table with an easel stand.

I have painted a few little gem paintings lately that have the blue and yellow or blue and white color combination. Initially I got interested in painting flowers because I love COLOR and flower paintings are the most colorful thing to paint for intense clean color.

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Fort Myers Palm Tree

I spent a day taking photos, it was so much fun.  I love trees of all types but these are fascinating.  I remember the people I was with at the time, it was a very good day.  

This 8x10" (oil on canvas on gatorbord) painting has much more beautiful color than the picture portrays.  

It has a despoke solid maple urethaned floating frame, the outside dimensions of this artwork are 10x12". 

Gatorbord is a special type of backing that is very strong but light weight then canvas is attached it that backing.  The weight of the frame is 1.6 lbs so the shipping costs would be more.

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Florida the Beautiful

This is my favorite of all the palm trees I've painted, it really is beautiful. It is a realistic version with a lot of coconuts and a lot of variety in color and brush strokes. The colors are very vibrant--more vibrant that they look here.  

You can almost smell the beach and hear the lapping waves and the bird calls! :)

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Wild Orange Daylily, 6x6" oil on masonite

I love day lilies. I have all kinds and colors in my garden. Last summer I was painting in my garden and this view caught my eye with the river and the woods in the background. 

Even though blue and orange are compliments, the sky and water were a very light gray, and it gives it the wilderness look I like.

I then made a giclee of this and painted the water and sky blue on the giclee to see how I would like it, 

and I'm so glad that I left this original the way it was.

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German Mountain Road 6x6" Oil on board

This painting received a "best picks of the day award" on my on-line gallery:  Daily Paintworks!

I painted this for the DPW Challenge, German Mountain Road. I had submitted an earlier version and wanted to re-work it so here it is. This little gem has high contrast and noticeable texture and brushwork.  You can almost smell the air and feel the heat of the sunshine. :)

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European Arches

This scene is familiar with many visits and memories of my trips to Europe.  It's 9x12" oil on board and you can see and feel the texture of the canvas.  Sorry about the image, I didn't have it downloaded on my laptop before leaving a couple of days ago for Florida for the month of February.  I had to clip it from another source, not a good one for sure, but you can see it better if you click on the link to the on-line gallery :)

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I love outdoor cafes in Europe and all the medieval arches and stone patios, roads, etc.  I also love umbrellas and warm colors, so this charming scene has everything.  I like the jumble of cafe tables and chairs in the foreground and that it doesn't take away from the umbrellas and arches.  I have taken about 10,000 pictures in Europe and will be going back to the Alsace region of France this September (2020) on a painting trip--that region has very German influenced architecture.

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