New-The Pet Project-Art Helping Animals

Best Friends Cup

"Best Friends Cup"

6"x6" Oil on Canvas Panel

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Some days are all in color and some days are shades of gray both are wonderful when you have great friends and family.

Five New Paintings

"Above and Beyond"

6"x6" Oil on Canvas Panel

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"Red September"

6"x6" Oil on Canvas Panel

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"Reach for the Sky"

6"x6" Oil on Canvas Panel

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"Sunset Walk"

6"x6" Oil on Canvas Panel

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"Summer Slope"

6"x6" Oil on Canvas Panel

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Wow! It was a gorgeous day out today. Almost 60 degrees and sunny too. It was a fantastic day to take paintings outside to photograph. And to play ball with the dogs in the backyard! Actually most of the elements I use for my landscape paintings come from observing the surroundings on our walks and then putting those bits and pieces together. They come out on the canvas more as a state of mind or feeling of the place than it would look if I painted them as they are in reality. We're always on top of the world when we all walk together. Getting to watch my dogs be so happy and carefree is my moment of zen first thing every morning!!

"Turning Leaves"

6"x6"

Oil on Linen Panel

Every year when the trees are turning and all of nature is getting ready to settle in for winter there are always fields of bright green new growth. It's the beginning of winter wheat. It's not quite this shaggy but all of these colors together are my favorite.

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"Iris"

This iris painting is 12"x12" on Gallery wrapped canvas.

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"Work Boots"

"A Clear Blue Sky"

Oil on Gallery Wrapped Canvas

12"x12"x1"

Design Continued on Sides

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I enjoyed painting more sunflowers this week. I didn't get in as much painting time with Thanksgiving this week, but now I have the next two days to get another painting ready to start and hopefully finish. I managed to get this photo early in the fall when the most of the sunflowers had already faded. These two refused to give up to the cooler weather and stood out against the clear blue sky behind them. I took Sampson with me for this photo trip out in the country, he jumped out at every stop and sniffed around to make sure the area was safe for us to be in.

"Buck"

Oil on Panel 6"x6"

This painting is for my son-in-law, the hunter, for Christmas. Pretty sure he doesn't care about reading my blog so there isn't any danger of him discovering his gift early.

"Kiera"

Original Oil on Panel

16"x20"

This is our oldest Shepherd, Kiera, I've done a portrait of her to hang in my gallery. I've decided to start doing some pet portraits again now that I don't have to be in the salon full time. It will double as a Christmas present for my husband. He was at his parents cleaning up leaves and got this photo of her "helping". She's his girl, he takes her everywhere. She's thirteen and has some back problems so he has to lift her in and out of his vehicle but well worth it.

"Red Cow"

Oil on gessoed panel

6"x6"

sold

This cow painting is done from a reference photo on Karin Jurick's "Different Strokes for Different Folks" blog, where she posts a weekly photo and artists all paint their own version. I did not get this one photographed in time for the deadline to post on her blog. I've been working for quite some time to figure out how to photograph my art indoors so that I can do it whenever it is convienient and have high quality images that represent the painting and get the color as accurate as possible. I think I've finally arrived at a suitable setup.

6"x6" Oil on Canvas Panel

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"Sunflower"

12"x12" Canvas on Panel

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Finally getting back to posting after a break for my daughters wedding and catching up on some commissions. I'm excited to be able to say I've got some paintings in So-Oh Art Gallery in Lincoln, Ne. and going to be working on more paintings for a couple of art festivals coming up this summer.

A Past Portrait

This is a portrait I did in colored pencil a while back. I felt like some of the shadows were fading so now I'm going to look into more lightfast colors and redo them a little. I love colored pencil but it's very slow work. I have 2 portrait commissions waiting right now and I'm going to try them in oil. Now that the hustle and bustle of the Holidays is over I'm anxious to get painting again!!

Egg & Shells

6"x6" Original Oil - Canvas on Panel

I thought this painting looked pretty good in person, now on the computer screen I think the "white" of the egg looks like butterscotch pudding.

Gold Field

12"x12" Original Oil - Canvas on Panel

Summer Fields

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6"X6" Oil Painting-Canvas on Panel

"Intrigued"

12"x12" Oil Painting-Canvas on Panel
This little guy was watching the planes at an Air Show. His parents were there with the National Guard. The background in the reference photo was actually different than in this painting, I may use him with the original background in another piece.

Note:I'm finally getting back to posting after taking some time off to catch up on commision pieces and getting the "puppy project" under control. (See the Dog's Life Blog) I've still been painting every day and have been practicing speeding up my technique a little. I don't think I've reached the point I can shell one out every day but getting closer all the time.

My Latest Little Painting

She's not the only one....two more are even more painted than she is...I should just rub them around on a canvas and call it my painting for the week. Moral of the story....put your palette up higher!! There are a couple more photos on my "It's a Dog's Life" Blog. This would have been more comical if someone else had to clean up the mess....and I would have gotten more pics if the other two hadn't been still "spreading the joy" while I was taking this one. Sadie was just the only one to say "I'm sorry." (You just can't be mad at that little face.)

Afternoon Break

Morning Visitor

6"x6" Oil on Canvas Mounted on 1/4 in Panel

Finally getting this painting photographed. It's been rainy and cloudy most of the week and I need full sun and the shade of my front porch to get the color of the painting reproduced properly. Anything I photograph inside comes out unnaturally bright, it's very frustrating. I always notice changes I need to make once it is on the computer too so I usually have to plan on about the 3rd photo shoot before I'm satisfied. Who knew ten years ago you'd have to be a camera and computer expert to become a successful artist!

Converse Tennis Shoes

6"x6" Oil on canvas mounted on 1/4 inch panel.

This pair of shoes belonged to my husband in college. It's part of the reason I married him, because he hangs on to something forever. It's also part of what makes me crazy about him. I love the old shoestrings, they're broken and frayed and tied back together, kind of like life somestimes. I'm a little nervous though now - I went to pick them up and put them away the other day - and they had a NEW pair of shoestrings in them. How can I work this into my philosophies on life in a positive way now? You can't just buy a new one and I'm not getting any younger!

"The Rose Bud"

"The Rose Bud" 8"x10" Canvas Mounted on Board

It's finally here, finished it last night. This painting is from a reference photo I took of my neighbors roses. They have since moved and the new owners have taken them out. I've worked on painting a little more loose with this one than I have on others however, my need to blend the brushstrokes here and there still won over at times. I like the results on this one.

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"Taking a Bow" Series-"The Final Curtain"

"The Final Curtain"

It seems to me that these girls are waiting in line to take their bow at the end of the recital.

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"Taking a Bow"

6"x6" Oil on Canvas Hardwood Panel

I finally tried photographing a painting in the shade on my front porch. I think it turned out pretty well this time. I didn't capture all the detail but seems to be much sharper than the previous paintings I've photographed inside.

This coneflower was growing in front a large terra cotta chimney and I loved the color of the background against the pinks and purples of the blossom.

I painted another one today also in front of this same chimney but it needs a final layer of highlight so will post it tomorrow.

"Ready for Takeoff"

6"x6" oil on gessoed panel

A monarch sitting on a purple cone flower. This flower is one of my favorite subjects because their petals resemble little ballet skirts. I've spotted some white ones in my neighborhood that will show up in some of my next paintings.

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"Sun Worshipper II"

6"x 6" Canvas mounted on 1/4" hardboard panel.

A flower from last years reference photos. The sunflowers in my backyard right now are only about four tall. About a month away from blooming at their towering 7-8 feet. I have to risk breaking a limb and hover off a lader with the camera to get closeups of these wonderful flowers.

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"Skys' the Limit"

6"x6" Canvas mounted on 1/4" hardboard panel.

These tulips grow every year on the terrace of a house in our neighborhood. There are literally hundreds of them. It's not unusual to see people in the middle of them taking pictures. We were lucky to get just a few this year as we had a very late hard freeze that took most of the spring flowers this year.
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"Tomatoes on the Sill"

"Pansies"

"On the Garden Bench"

12"x12" Original Oil on Canvas

I've had a serious case of spring fever this week and I've been looking at the

old tomato vines from last year. That led to this painting from a photograph that I

took last summer. I love the shadows and the red/green contrast of the tomatoes

against the background.

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"Coffee Cups I"

12" x12" Original Oil

I love different kinds of coffee almost as much as I love different colors, so

this painting just had to happen. It was also a perfect painting to practice finishing

in one session as there weren't a lot of tiny little details.

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"Golden Sun"

sold

5"x7"

A friend and I went horse hunting one day and this is one that we found nice enough to pose for us. You know who your real friends are when they will stand at the edge of a field and call horses and cattle to a fence for you.

"Pansy"

sold

12"x12"

This is an "Antique Shades" pansy. I first started planting them in my garden when I first saw them in a watercolor painting of Susan Harrison-Tustains' . They have such perfect little faces and look like tiny little dancers in groups.

"Jaywalkers"

sold

This painting is of our German Shepard, Sampson, and

my husband, Tommy, returning from their afternoon

"playtime" across the street from the shop we work in.

We actually have two dogs that we take to work with us

everyday. The other is a Shepard also, Kiera, she was

on the other side of Tommy in the photo but not close

enough to work into this composition, so that will be a

painting for another time. I really like the crop on this

one and the long shadows on a sunny yet cool, early fall, day.