"TK's View"

I love to paint along the river during the summer and, on my last adventure, got lucky to find this new spot and have it all to myself.  It turns out that it is a favorite spot for my friends TK and Charlene!  They like to park their camper here and spend the night...this is their view.

"Mesa Mates"

I was on my way to Pilar to paint along the river when I ran across these two wild horses out on the mesa.
They let me get pretty close....it was an amazing encounter!

"Iris flowers and The Apple Tree"

The "Apple Tree" is (or, was) a restaurant housed in a beautiful old adobe on Bent Street here in Taos.  This scene just inspired me "on the spot"... the flowers and also the shadows cast onto the adobe wall. 

"Ghost Rider"

I seem to have taken a liking to old trucks these days as many of you know.  They're just so much fun to paint and there seems to be an endless "supply" of them around Taos.  I recently found this one on a walk down Hot Springs Road near my house.  Painting anything white is always a challenge b/c white isn't really white - go figure.

"Taos Poppies"

After a long winter here in Taos it's always refreshing to see some flowers...there are poppies all over, these happen to be in town on Bent Street.

"Made in the Shade"

Cows, cows, cows....what can I say?  They're everywhere!  I pulled the truck over to visit with this momma and her new little one and, of course, got some pictures....but what struck me as an interesting painting project were the shadows and light patterns from the tree they were resting under. 

"At Rest in Questa"

There's this old dirt road which is now called the "Old Questa Highway".. it's an amazingly beautiful drive.  I was inspired by this old church sitting quietly in the valley and what seems to be a most peaceful resting spot for those who once lived there.

"Abandoned"

There are many of these abandoned adobes all over Taos.  Who knows for how long and what stories they could tell.  They make me wonder what it was like to live here back then. 

"Handsome Boy #5"

Can't seem to stay away from doing a cow painting every once in a while...this guy seemed to look right at me when I pulled my truck over to take his picture.  I was inspired by his horns, the markings on his face and also the contrast of the red barn behind him.

"Ranchitos Relic"

I absolutely love this old truck.  Even in retirement it still impresses anyone cruising down Upper Ranchitos Road, sitting in the middle of a field with it's beautiful new turquoise paint job, and all summer long with the bed of the old truck used as a garden overflowing with flowers.  I'll paint it again this summer when it's in "full bloom".

"Aurora's Apple Tree"

This painting was painted outside on location in my backyard one day.  It's the only fruit tree in my yard that didn't lose it's blossoms to a May snowstorm.  Aurora is my neighbor, an elderly woman, and this tree is actually on her property....hence the title.

River Series #3 "Gorge at Rio Pueblo"

My new favorite place to hike.  It's about a two mile walk to the rim of the gorge where you can look down
upon Pilar and the river below.  This is where the Rio Pueblo meets the Rio Grande, so there are actually
two gorges here.  It was too windy today to paint on location so I went anyway and took a bunch of
reference photos for my "river" series.. I painted this from one of those photos.

"River Series #2"

There is something about spring in Taos that draws me out of the house and down to the Rio Grande River.
As the snow melts and the river rises, people come to Taos to raft, fish and just "hang out".  I've decided to
do a series of paintings that will capture not only the river, but the willows along it's banks and the massive
rock formations that make up the actual "gorge".  Stay tuned.

"River Series #1"

"Late Summer Sunflowers"

This is actually a "work in progress" ...it's from a picture taken last year.  I started the painting a while back
and just recently decided to break it back out and finish it up.  In the late summer and early fall the
sunflowers are EVERYWHERE in Taos!!  Will finish soon and re-post when I do.

"Taos Diner II"

This little one was painted from a photo I took way back...my friend Cara and I decided not to swim that morning and instead try out Taos Diner's new location on the "south side"...Taos Diner II.  Great eggs benedict!!

"Three Hotties"

These little peppers were bought specifically for painting purposes...to experiment with mixing different colors of orange..there are so many!  Eating them will be another story (if it happens at all) because these little guys are HOT!

"Ten Minute Apples"

This was a quick exercise I did in order to get the "paints" flowing again...it's a ten minute challenge.  The object is to divide the canvas into four parts and pick one object to paint four times, for ten minutes each.
So this was a forty minute painting.  Working on a time frame really forces you to gather visual shapes and
values and get them down with minimal "fuss".  I'm aiming to do a ten minute challenge once a week.

"Monet with Daisies" SOLD

I went missing for a while......I've been trying to finish up this portrait for a friend.  Although I did have a lot of fun working on this piece, I am looking forward to getting back to creating smaller paintings on a more "regular" basis. 

"Mountain Comfort"

This old truck sits parked outside of the Overland Sheepskin Company here in Taos.  I've always wanted to paint it and so I did...from a photograph taken one day while I was there treating myself to a new pair of Uggs!

"Complementary Peppers"

I haven't posted in a few days and so here is one that I did a few days ago...these guys were hanging out in the fridge and so became my next "subjects".  I'm finding that I really enjoy working with the color red.

"Brothers"

This is a painting of my two sons cooling off in a Minnesota lake.  I painted it from a photograph taken several years ago.  This one also being a study in reflections - with water rather than metal.

"A Doll from Coll" SOLD

This little puppet was a gift to me from my sister Colleen.  This is the second time I've painted her...and the second time she's gone to a good home.

"Making Salsa"

This is my most recent painting....more metal....but I can see improvements!!  I love daily painting and all the practice it's giving me!  So I've caught up with posting what I've painted so far for the month of January.  I was anxious to get them up!  Now I'll be posting as I'm painting so it will be more like one painting every day or every couple of days.  Stay tuned!

"A Perfect Pear"

Was compelled at the grocery store to buy this eggplant to paint...and use later for dinner.  No matter where I photographed this one the colors of the eggplant aren't looking "true" - for some reason they're looking more
blue than they are...bummer...more kinks to iron out but I'll get there

"Rachel's Red Shoes"

Another friend at work (Rachel) lent me these funky red shoes to fool around with....it was a great study in the many different colors of red.  I'll probably paint them again before I give them back.

"White still standing"

"

Well I know what you must be thinking....however,  I brought these (empty) wine bottles home from work one night for this exact purpose....to have fun painting glass!!  There will surely be lots more of these coming.

"Nifty Thrifty"

Picked up these little items at the Thrift Store...loved the little vintage towel..but was really excited about experimenting again with metal - this time using copper.  I like it.

"Complements"

Had gotten this really neat polka dot fabric and thought I'd do a set up using complementary colors but the outcome was not what I was looking for....oh well.

"Sarah's flower"

One night at work my friend Sarah put this little flower in my ponytail and somehow it ended up in this tiny little olive can...had to paint it...

"SIIMPLY RADISHING"

Never thought I could get so excited after a trip to the grocery store but I was!  These radishes jumped right out at me and were painted within hours of getting them home!

at first it was the tomatoes that inspired me with this one but found I got more excited over the "reflections" of the tomatoes in the salt shaker....I'm enjoying the challenge of painting metal so I'll be trying again soon

my first attempt in a long time to paint metal and, well, I need a lot more practice.  But I realized how much fun it is to paint egg shells!!  They're almost opal-like on the inside!

This one just made me happy to paint - I think red, green, and Christmas?  Or maybe just the bright colors in the middle of a long color-less winter......