Day 14 and Working Toward 30

It is Day 14 of the Thirty Paintings in Thirty Days Challenge!  I recommend that you click on the link to the Challenge to see the work of the artists that are also participating in the challenge.  I am finding some new artists to follow and am inspired by the excellent artwork posted each day!

This piece is the second in a series of paintings. I often work in a series to see where a painting might take me.  A series allows me to decide on a composition and then work through the paintings to change up colors, values and watercolor techniques to achieve something new.  If you look at yesterday's post, this is similar in composition, but is a different take on the background.        

Mom's Coffee Creamer

Funny the treasures that remind us of home.  The silver jar with the spoon on the side was on the counter at my parents home for as long as I can remember.  It is a simple reminder of Mom.  She loved anything silver and used this daily to add powdered creamer to her coffee.  Nice memento.  The painting will hang in the dining room at Crossings Winery during the month of May.

Fond Memories

Another piece that will be in the Crossings Winery Show in May!  This painting was done from a photo I took years ago when I drove my parents through North Dakota farmlands to Minnesota to visit relatives.  We stopped along the way for periodic rests and I took a lot of reference photos that got stored in a box.  Looking for inspiration for show paintings, I was happy to discover the long lost pics I had taken on that trip.  With both parents gone now, it is a gift to find fond memories of good times with Mom and Dad.

Time for Aspens!

Nature Patterns is the name of this latest piece in my Aspen Series.  I placed it today in the Full Moon Gallery at the Twin Falls Center for the Arts.  Stop in the lobby to see it and let me know what you think.  Look closely for the residents of this piece.

Long Stem Series - Blanket Flowers

Finally, the next addition to the Long Stem Series.  I have a lot of Blanket Flowers (Gaillardia) in my flower garden and they brighten the garden now that the daisies are gone.  They are drought tolerant and plentiful.  The seed pods are fun to paint, and the flowers a challenge with the brick red flowing into a bright yellow.