Cleopatra

Cleopatra                                              12x12 oil on panel

Described as an alluring temptress of surpassing beauty who was brilliant to look upon, Cleopatra is always portrayed as sexy and captivating.  The Cleopatra that you see above may not exactly fit her namesake's description, but she does have an irresistible charm of her own.  She's a service dog as well. Doesn't she put a smile on your face? This recent commission is intended as a Christmas gift for her owner.

Now's the time to contact me if you are interested in a painted portrait of your own pet or as a gift to someone special for the holidays.

Summer Reverie

"Summer Reverie",  12 x 12 inch oil

This little girl was in costume at the living history museum and her white bow stole my heart.  I loved capturing the light on it and on the apron.  When I see it, I feel the heat of summer and hear the cicadas singing.  Remember when summer felt endless?

Getting the Work Done

Colorado Springs artist, Laurel Seibels Justice has been doing a wonderful series on how artists work in the midst of life as we know it. Her latest profile tells a bit about my process.

"On how artists get their work done: this is my friend Julie. She is in that stage of life where aging parents and traveling with a retired husband can be distractions (enjoyable distractions, but distractions nonetheless) to getting to the studio. When asked how she handles the time away from her studio, she replied, “Being away breaks my focus, and it takes me a few days to regain it.  When I feel unfocused and unready,  I drag my unfocused and unready self to the studio and get to work; gradually, my head gets back in the game." This idea confronts the myth that artists are some sort of exotic creatures who just exude inspiration and motivation to do their work any ole' time. It's been my experience that there's a lot of "showing up" in spite of "everything" going on, that brings art/music/writing to life. Here she is showing up to the sketchbook doing thumbnail value studies for her next painting."

Speaking of getting the work done, I'm continuing to work on a series of what I plan to be 100 small paintings.  Here's a detail shot from one.