"It is finished!"

11 x 14 oil on mylar

The debt of sin was paid on the cross.  I was conflicted on whether to try and paint a picture of Jesus dying on the cross....I mean who am I to try and depict Him.....I don't know what He looked like and....Is it even appropriate for me to do?  Then I thought, why not?  I have always wanted to try to paint Him and have tried several drawings before.   I know I didn't do it near the justice He deserves but, here it is.

Lake Ferguson backroad

8 x 10 oil on mylar

This is a view from a road leading to Lake Ferguson's water front.   The twist in the road appealed to me and I wanted to try a landscape on mylar.  This is going to be in the Saint Richard art show next weekend in Jackson.

Street Music

16 x 20 oil on stretched canvas - SOLD

This is one of my older paintings I have been attempting to reinvigorate.   It still needs work to suit me but I just can't figure out WHAT!!!!  I might have fiddled with it too much.  These are New Orleans street musicians that you see playing down in the French Quarter in the square around the St. Louis Cathedral.  I love to hear them when I go down there - the sights and sounds of N.O.!!!!

Backyard Cardinal

6 x 6 oil on gessobord

This Cardinal flew in the other day and landed on my curly willow.   I had to hustle to get my camera ready before he flew away.  Birds don't stay long in my teeny new tree.   After completing the painting, I was trying to photograph it and dropped it in a plastic garbage can and totally scraped off the front of his body.  Paint literally scrapes off these gessobords very easily, leaving you with  a big smear.    Note:
Backgrounds give me fits.  I have changed this one 3 times and still can't get the effect that I want.  I love Elizabeth Blaylock's bird paintings.  She has such lively, colorful backgrounds. 

On Stage

11 x 14 oil on stretched canvas

I love when the values paint the picture for you.  This was a fun project that I painted over some old ships from a few years ago.   Painting over old paintings really makes me more aware of shapes and values and I love the build up of paint on the canvas.

Floral Fantasy

12 x 16 oil on canvas board

Sort of a goofy name, I realize,  but that is really what it is - fantasy!  I can't say what flowers these are because they are just "imagined" flowers that I started filling in with.    This was an old painting of stalks of larkspur but it was too "stalky" and purple to me so I started making up flowers as I went along.  I LOVE to paint in the negative so this was fun for me.

Man on Grand

14 x 18 oil on canvas board

I just had to quit on this one!  Grand pianos are tough to paint when your reference is about 2" x 2", in a dimly lit room and obstructed on the end by a singer!  Oh well, it was a fun challenge!