Lavender , 9 X 7

It's a sure thing now, I'll be having a solo show at a popular restaurant next March. Years ago I would had been in a rush to start painting but I'm actually fixing some paintings that I did on location this summer. Somehow it doesn't feel right to start new work when there are paintings begging to be finished. This also gives me time to think what I would like to paint from the tons of reference photos I have, and hopefully a theme will emerge.

This painting is from Lockwood Farm in Skaneateles. By chance, this past spring I learned that there was a lavender farm in the area and without waiting too long I contacted the owner, Karen, who very gracefully invited me to paint at the farm. She also has sheep, and a very friendly barn cat who almost knocked my pastel box when he jump on it! Check out her blog and enjoy the beautiful photographs.

Jim's Old Place (Payne's Marina), en plein air, 12"x9"

This painting was done during the Old Forge paintout on Sept 3rd.

I had already painted another pastel at a different location but was not satisfied with the results because I had painted it with me under the shade of a building. Once finished, I noticed that the colors were different from what I thought I had when looked under different light. This was the third time this happened to me, so with that in mind I went out to paint another location.

These old buildings in Inlet had called my attention earlier on but at the time they were totally back lit. At 1:30PM I was on the parking lot across the street, in full sunshine with only my hat and sunblock for protection and ready to start. Now that I look at it, I wish I had had more time to tweak it a bit, but at the time it looked fine and I was in a hurry to have it framed for the auction before I left Old Forge.

The Outhouse at Leetonia, en plein air 10"x10"

For the last 5 years our family has been invited to spend Memorial Day and Labor Day weekends at a friend's camp in Leetonia, in northern PA. For me it's time for relaxation, bird watching and painting.

This is my second attempt at this outhouse. I wanted to include some dead trees but was having such a hard time with them that I had to stop and think whether they were important or not. Since the painting is about the outhouse, I decided to leave them out and I'm happy with the results.

I used watercolor paper prepared with Golden's fine pumice gel and iridescent bright gold. The surface doesn't offer as much tooth as regular sanded papers, but it forces me to be more careful with the pastel application.

Rainy Day at Old Forge, 9" x 12" SOLD

It's been almost 2 months since my last post, and even though I feel very guilty about it, I have had my reasons. One is that I was fixing a room that now is going to be my framing area. This room used to be my sewing/storage room and there was so much clutter that it took weeks to get rid of most of the stuff. Now it looks beautiful and I'm determined to keep it clean, even after going through a framing spree.

I was invited again to participate at the Old Forge Plein Air Paint Out this weekend. The live auction will be on Sunday, and the proceedings will help finance the last stages of the new Art Center. The painting above will be for sale at the event tomorrow. It was started on location but I had to finish it at home because of the rain.

To all of you who have subscribed to my blog or visit it regularly, thank you!