Restaurant Themed Greeting Cards

$15 + sh - set of 8 blank greeting cards

I've made a set of restaurant themed greeting cards featuring 4 different reproductions of recent paintings. The cards are blank inside, about 4"x6" and include envelopes.

Peony Tea Room

14x11 oil on panel

Available at Castle Gallery for the Living Color show, opening May 11.

This little tea house has been the source of much inspiration for me. I need to get back to Fort Wayne for another visit! The restaurant is in a beautiful historic home not far from Castle Gallery and they serve a lovely traditional English tea.

Tete a Tete

11x14 oil on linen

Ask Castle Gallery about this painting.

Happy Valentine's Day! For your listening pleasure - the wonderful Edith Piaf - l'hymne à l'amour

New Year, New Projects

Happiest New Year wishes to you all! I am very much looking forward to the new year and new projects. I love this time of year actually. Its also my birthday today, so I start the new year with all kinds of new hope and determination and good feelings! I'm making plans for the year, coming up with new ideas, and setting goals. Some of those I will share here, naturally!

To start, I want to introduce a project idea that I began just before the holidays hit. I'm working on a series called "First Impressions." I hope to show the paintings as a group sometime this year.

Founder's Room
10x12 oil on panel

Having learned that I waste a lot of time looking for the best images or subject to work with, and getting overwhelmed sometimes, I've determined to stop shopping around and respond to my first impression. Usually what catches my eye is light and shadow, but sometimes just the way something seems framed naturally, happening upon a scene as I pass a doorway, things like that. Sort of like with fire, I need to "stop, drop and paint" (or sketch).

Tea For Three
10x12 oil on panel

I paint more instinctively, I think, when I paint rapidly. So I am relying on my trusty timer, and allowing that first half hour to be the pure energy of inspiration. What follows might be some focus on the main area of interest and some cleaning up, but for the most part, I want to leave these paintings loose and undefined. So its an exercise in freedom and restraint! All of the paintings are to be 10x12 and I have a lovely batch of Ampersand gessobord ready and waiting!

I feel more focused than I have in awhile. Last year, to be honest, didn't feel like the best year for me creatively. I hope that trusting my instincts and following my muse will allow me to enjoy the process and create more beautiful work than ever. Cheers!!

Tête-à-tête

11x14 oil - linen mounted on gatorboard

Finally following up with my demo painting. I really liked the loose quality I had when I finished at the New Braunfels Art League meeting and didn't want to muck with it too much. So I worked a little more in the faces and gestures of the couple and filled in some of the white canvas... but left the majority alone.

There is a good lesson in that. Stopping before its done. Was it Richard Schmid who wrote something like that? It takes two people to paint a painting... the artist and someone to tell the artist when to stop.

Today I needed that person. I lost my vision, got carried away with too many small brush strokes and ended up with a busy mess. The only good thing about a bad painting is that it makes me anxious to get back to work first thing in the morning and do it right.

Painting Demo

Last night I went to New Braunfels and did a painting demonstration for the New Braunfels Art League. I have never done one before. I am pretty proud of myself today! I think it went well and I was reasonably relaxed. They talked and asked questions and I described my working methods some while I painted for about an hour.
I had a harrowing drive down there through rush hour traffic in Austin. But once out of town, the highway cleared and I made it on time. (just)
I have to say, I think New Braunfels is one of the nicest small towns in Texas. They have a thriving downtown area, a large art community, nice landscape, and really warm, welcoming people.

As for my demo, I chose to paint something that I have done before. I actually took a large version of this which is finished and going to my show in July. I thought it might be nice to show the final product while I developed the new painting.


11x14 oil on mounted linen

I worked for about an hour so its still quite loose. I massed everything in and then just began to refine areas. I'll probably put another hour into this to complete it. I will post it again then.

Thank you to Gaye Sekula who so gently pressured me to trying this and to the NBAL for your interest and attention and a warm welcome!

Tea Service

12x9 oil on panel

This is the finished version of my start I posted on Friday. He is preparing the goodies that accompany high tea at Payard's in NYC.

I thought I'd give you a sneak peek below of whats on the easel now. I think my long dry spell is over. I'm certainly enjoying my work again and more inspired. I can't wait to get to work everyday!



I began this with washes of color applied with a paper towel for the most part. Sometimes I start with a "line drawing" and sometimes with large shapes. It depends on my mood really.

Tea Service

6x6 oil on panel

Ask Castle Gallery about this painting.

Back at Payard for this elegant scene.

Three for Tea

7x5, oil on clayboard
$100 via PayPal/$10 shipping/insurance - sold
This little scene is in an old house converted into a tea room in Fort Wayne, Indiana. The room is full of light from large windows on two walls, but the light was very cool and I have discovered that I can't paint cool light very well. I painted this scene four times until I was satisfied with what you see here. Naturally, my digital camera does not quite do it justice. Once again, its the yellow/blue factor.