San Juan Island Artist

Madronna Tree

2008-06-24T21:44:00.000-07:00

We have finally had some great weather to paint outdoors. Here is a small oil painting a 12" x 12". Palette knife, for a more abstract approach

New Work from New York

2008-05-22T15:53:00.000-07:00

Old Troller, 27" x 27" acrylic and mixed media.

This painting, a memory of my old boat, came out of nowhere while working in Manhattan. When I returned from New York, heard that my old boat, the Marvel, sank this spring up in Sitka.

Bob, Pet Portrait

2008-03-19T12:36:00.001-07:00

Bob,local fixture over at Roy's coffee shop, 24 x 24" acrylic on canvas.

New paintings for Work Show

2008-03-19T12:30:00.000-07:00

March 21, opening at Westcott Bay Museum in Friday Harbor, the Figure at Work.
Longliners,30 x 40" Net Mending 30 x 40" , and Claire Reading.22" x 28. all oils

Men at Work, Tire Shop

2008-03-03T21:01:00.000-08:00

24" x 30" oil on panel, painted from sketch.Great shapes at our local tire repair shop!

Woman with Blue Wrap

2008-02-27T21:55:00.001-08:00

Working with our lovely model, Linda, with a nice long hour + pose. Great color with her blue wrap and apricot fabric. This is a 24" x 24" oil on canvas. Sold

Winter Plein Air, San Juan Island

2008-02-25T16:49:00.000-08:00

Stormy day out at Rueben Tarte Park on San Juan Island. There's a small tree up on the big rock there that manages to hang on thru the winter storms. Wild roses grow everywhere around here. Large canvas, 24 " x 36" Started on location, but blown out of there....Oil painting, available at Funk & Junk

Work Show, Seiners

2008-02-08T22:12:00.000-08:00

Here's a recent update on my Seiners, Net Mending painting. The surface is getting built up with thicker oil paint now. I will continue with better faces and hands next.
Sold.

Figure at Work Show, Spring 2008

2007-12-19T12:31:00.000-08:00

Starting in March of 2008 I will be organizing a show at our local museum of Art here in Friday Harbor. The show's theme is the figure at work. I am working on a series of commercial fishermen. Other people are creating pieces that embody the idea of work in different ways. Here is a 30" x40" oil on canvas in the very early stages of the painting. Just blocking things in with thin washes of turp and paint so far. I like this stage when you can move things around, wipe off, start over.

Final version Nude with Reflection

2007-11-24T11:27:00.001-08:00

I often let painting sit in my studio, to tweek them, a little here a brushstroke there. This one is now finished. Scroll below to see the original idea, an earlier version of this canvas.
A big thanks to Suzy at Dream Keyper for a nice write up, following my dreams. Suzy and I developed the famous Funk Shui T-shirts years ago!Get your Funk on, Suzy!

from 20 minute pose to larger painting

2007-11-18T18:34:00.000-08:00

What luck to have a pregnant model at the Anacortes figure drawing group! My friend Dick doesn't see what the appeal is, but I guess he's never been pregnant.....Here is a quick 20 minute pose oil on 12 x 16 panel. I didn't quite know what to do with the side view back pose, so I added the reflection in the mirror behind and included a bit of a self portrait, painting the painting in the mirror. I like the concept of figure and reflection. So at Dick's suggestion I decided to enlarge the composition into a 24 by 30" canvas. Sometimes it doesn't quite work out to enlarge the composition, in this case the proportions aren't quite the same, but I like the exaggerated perspective. Almost done. Small study is available unframed $250
24 x 30 oil on canvas is available $975.
For inquiries please phone me at toll free at 1 866 374 4272

Portraits including Self Portraits!

2007-11-14T17:20:00.000-08:00

Just returned from a 3 day weekend painting workshop focusing on self portraits and portraits. Challenging!!!! We set up mirrors next to our easel, strong light and warmed up with a few 20 minute thumbnails. The first self-portrait was over a 2 afternoon period. Mine changed radically in color as the painting progressed. We also did a quick 2 hour self portrait, I tried to stay in a mostly red format and mid values. We also had a great model with a very chiselled face, great to paint! Here are the results, all oil on panels.

Fall Workshop, San Juan Islands

2007-11-07T12:18:00.000-08:00

A great workshop this fall, perfect weather, wondeful people, and a productive time for all. We started off on San Juan, talking about field equipment, setting up palettes, sketching on location....limited palettes. Our second day we worked with underpaintings, the next day we rode the inter-island ferry to Shaw and found way too many painting locations. The fourth and final day we all set up on the cliffs at the South End of San Juan Island, for great views across the water

100 Faces, large oils

2007-02-18T20:06:00.000-08:00

Here are 4 new panels, part of my series of 100 faces, people killed in Iraq. These are oil on panel, 24 by 33" each.

More paintings from 100 Faces

2006-11-18T15:23:00.000-08:00

More oil paintings

Start of 100 Faces Project

2006-11-18T15:00:00.000-08:00

Here are my first paintings of 100 Faces, soldiers who have died in Iraq, all since 2004. As I listen to the news, soldiers who have died are portrayed as if they are statistics. ....."4 more soldiers killed in Iraq......" The references for my pieces come from the CNN website, you can go over and read all the names, ages, where people were from, and how, supposedly, they were killed. 19,20,19,23,28,22, years old. I have created 100 drawings and now I am working in oils for larger paintings.

Painting on Shaw Island

2006-10-11T17:20:00.000-07:00

Just returned from a Great painting weekend on Shaw, here are some of the oils. Old reef net boats, hauled out on the shore.

September Workshop

2006-09-28T11:51:00.000-07:00

Just finished with a great plein air workshop here on San Juan Island in early September. Here are a few plein air oil demonstration paintings during our 4 days. Very nice group of people, some beginners, some working as professional artists. Larry Bennett, pictured while he was painting at Jensen'e shipyard, arrived in Friday Harbor via his own boat. On the last day, he took us all out to a non-ferry island where we painted at Jones Island. The painting with the sailboat anchored up, and Orcas Island in the background was done from Jones. Larry is captured on canvas painting inbetween 2 old boats, hauled out and on blocks. The other pieces were at private homes. One with beautiful red barked Madronna trees, the other, a sunny front door on San Juan Island. Just set dates for 2007 workshop, July 8th, one day and Sept, 6,7,8,9 for an indelth 4 day. More info at www.sanjuanartworkshops.com Annie

2005-12-15T16:25:00.000-08:00

Hey there, just starting with my blog, hope to post paintings as they happen, or complete, or even in progress. I work in oils, sketch, teach, and learn all the time. My interests range from abstract to plein air to figural to portraits. Different ways of working, all good.
Most recently I've been experimenting with making my own frames, starting with lumber, making linen covered liners, and distessed frames. Nice to have color input in frames. I find framing can be a giant headache, so I'm getting into the idea of making my own. Like a distressed look with multiple layers of colors, dark turquoise over burnt red, things I can't find in a frame shop, or couldn't afford. I like the idea of creating an environment for a painting. Just read an interesting book about the history of frames. There was a fantastic frame made by Picasso for one of his cubist painting. The frame was fairly flat and wide, he had added a zig-zag down each side, with a 3-d effect. it went perfectly with the painting. I'm guessing he took plaster and formed his zig zag into the plaster and then painted the whole thing when dry. Fast setting sheet rock mud might be a good compound for fooling around with textures. Anybody out there tried this?