Water Sonata

Looking through my photos one day I came across this beautiful sight. I am not sure where I took this photo, or even when, but I just loved the fall of the water, so I painted it. Many times when I am out doing photography I just take dozens of photos and pile up all these ideas to paint. It's an little overwhelming when I find that I want to paint dozens of them!
On this painting I especially like how the background trees got really soft and blue, I changed a lot of this from the photo just to get the softness into the painting. This is a 18 x 12 pastel called Water Sonata. The falls are either in Norway or Colorado...I think! Somewhere I've been anyway!

September Song in Aspen Grove Gallery

This March I have been putting my paintings in shows all over Colorado and Wyoming. It is a busy time! Last Saturday I was thrilled to see that one of my paintings, "September Song", won a My Choice award at Aspen Grove shopping center in downtown Littleton, CO. The gallery is right next to Pottery Barn so it is fun to visit and see what's new! (I love Pottery Barn and bought some gorgeous orange tulips while I was there...I digress) Anyway, my painting won a brand new wooden easel, value $300.00! That was a thrill. Prints of this painting are in the Surgical Waiting Room in the new Medical Center of the Rockies. This is one of my favorite paintings, it is 20 x 30 pastel and took forever to paint, it's definitely not a predictor of the value of paintings...how long they take to paint. Some great paintings go together so quickly...others take forever. Other painting take forever and never turn out no matter what you do! Such is the life of an artist!

Serene Reflections National Show Piece

I am so excited I finally got a piece in the Artists Association of Colorado's National Show. I have entered nine times and gotten in twice. Tough show to get into and it is shown in a great venue right here in Fort Collins.
Because the show is so difficult to get into I spend about a month every fall painting a piece a hope has a chance. Those pieces often garner lots of awards in other wonderful shows, but obviously don't get into this one!

My painting this year is a pastel, 24 x 36, and it is a scene of a heavy snow in the mountains, with lots of unusual colorations. It was difficult and time consuming to paint so I have priced it accordingly. The frame is going to also be an expensive deal since it is so big, but it has earned the best frame I can afford! Or not, as the case may be! Hopefully, art will start selling again after the recession is over! Our gallery is holding its own, but with spring coming on I hope the art sales also come on!