This pastel painting "Rusty Creek" 12 x 24 is in the Women Artists of the West show in the McBride Gallery in Annapolis, Maryland.  It will be shown there until the end of January.  What an honor to have my painting featured in a National Show with the talented Women Artists of the West!

                                    The End of Winter--Eastern Colorado, 24 x 30 Pastel
I was very happy when Senator Michael Bennet selected this pastel painting for his Conference Room two years ago, and even happier this year when they decided to keep it there!
Sometimes when you paint things just fall into place and it's like they almost paint themselves!
This was the case with this painting.  I used a large sheet of Wallis Belgian Mist paper (which is no longer made, darn it) and it just worked out like it was meant to be.

I was very excited to hear that this painting, "The Water's flow" an 18" x 18" oil on linen was accepted into the 45th Annual Women Artists of the West  National Exhibition which will be held in Tucson, Arizona at the Tucson Desert Art Museum November 4-30th.  This is a very prestigious show and it was an exciting moment for me!

"Bales on the Front Range of Colorado", Oil on linen, 24" x 36".

Sometimes I am looking for the spectacular mountain scene and sometimes just the placid, calm and beautiful scenes of our rural state of Colorado.  Since I grew up in North Dakota, I enjoy the sight of the rich farming and ranching tradition here on the Front Range of Colorado.

My painting is mainly about the details and the smaller features in the landscape, and, of course, the light in our high altitude state.  I love the warm light of early evening and how it illuminates the landscape.  This painting is obviously that time of day with the mountains receding into the atmosphere and the warm light on the golden bales.  I love the texture and brush strokes that make the painting look like it was painted by the hand of an artist.  I have been painting for over 35 years and scenes like this are always interesting and beautiful to me.

Rollin' Up the Barbed Wire, Gilman Peterson Christmas print from the Edwards family

Merry Christmas and God July from Diane and Dale Edwards
        I decided to do my annual Christmas print as a tribute to my Dad, Gilman Peterson, who would have been 100 years old this year.  He lived to be 95 so we were all lucky to have him for so many years.  This painting was done from a photo of him doing what he loved to do, work on his treasured farm/ranch.  The hill in the background was named after his father, Halvor's Hill, and is a landmark of the area, topped with a 75 foot flag pole put up after World War I as a tribute to the veterans of the area.
Dad put his whole life into our farm, and, of course, we all helped!  There was always plenty of work to go around and my Dad was a meticulous farmer, actually enjoying the kind of tedious work most farmers didn't even bother with, like rolling up the barbed wire so the cattle, deer, antelope but especially the horses wouldn't be harmed.
     Dale and I have had a great year, enjoying our grandchildren and doing some traveling.  Dale is retired, but doing some part time security officer work at the hospital and I am not retired...painting almost every day!  It is work, but the kind my Dad enjoyed...productive and enjoyable!
    We hope you all have a great Christmas!
Diane and Dale Edwards
2013

AANC National Show, Diane's painting

My painting Early Sun at Eldorado Canyon was accepted into the AANC 23rd National Show which opens on April 5th here in beautiful downtown Fort Collins, CO.  The show is at Cocoa Gallery, 148 Oak Street and the opening is from 5 to 9 next Friday.
This painting was done from a study which I did at the Pastel Society of Colorado Plein Air at Eldorado Canyon last year.  It was a very cold and somewhat windy morning, but when the sun hit those aspens I had my camera in my hand!!

Art in Bloom

I am a slothful blogger, and it's about time I started adding a few things!  It was so great to participate in the Bath Nursery Art in Bloom again this year.  Rhonda, from Florals with Rhonda, came to my studio and picked out one of my all time favorite paintings, Serene Reflections, to use as an inspiration for her floral as shown above.  I also had four other paintings in the show as seen in the photo.  What a beautifully presented show this was this year.  There were 10 artists and 10 or more florals done from the inspiration of the paintings.

I am thrilled to say I sold a couple of my paintings this year, life is very good.  Maybe the art sales corners are turning!!  I also sold one last week so now I can go get new tires on my poor van, which is complaining loudly to me as I slip and slide around town.  It's time!!

Happiness is feeling like you are painting for a purpose!  Now as soon as my nose heals up and I can actually stand to wear my glasses again, I'll get back to work.