Caught by Surprise

Caught by Surprise    6x6" oil

Click to Bid in my Online Auction

$40 starting bid

Bunnies run rampant in my yard.  I plant only rabbit (and deer) resistant native plants, but sometime the bunnies just can't resist nibbling away.  This is the look on one bunny's face when he heard me coming.....

I will be open for the OCC Art Walk this Friday night, June 5.  I won't be open for Art Walk on a consistent basis this season, but will let you know when my studio will be open for those events.  I've been concentrating on three new series.  One is a month by month plein air painting of Pikes Peak, another is a return to some of my surrealistic/magic realism subjects, and the third is a fun project I'm calling "About Face."  The series features 6 x 6 inch portraits of the back of people's heads.  The idea is that our family and friends are just as recognizable from the back as they are by their facial features themselves, especially if they are wearing a favorite hat. Come take a look at the first finished pieces. There's an example below to give you an idea.

ArtWalk is from 5:30 to 8:00 pm at the Second Floor Studios in the Michael Garmin Building, 2418 W. Colorado Ave, Colorado Springs, CO.  Our entrances faces Bancroft Park and you'll find me in Studio L.

About Face, No. 1

Pensacola Beach Sunset

Pensacola Beach Sunset                       8x10 oil

I painted this piece in memory of my mother-in-law who was buried in December.  She lived most of her life in Gulf Breeze, Florida, just a stone's throw from Pensacola Beach.  The evening before her funeral, my family and I witnessed this beautiful sunset on the beach and it seemed a perfect memorial to her.  It now hangs in our home to remind us of her.

If I seemed absent online in 2013, it's because my husband and I have entered a season of helping with family illnesses.  Besides my mother-in-law's Alzheimers, my father experienced a devastating stroke last April and my sister is battling breast cancer, so I've spent a lot of time in California with them and will continue to do so for a period of time.  

2013 also brought the early retirement of my husband and the pursuit of his "encore career."  David will be working with a non-profit that empowers poor women in mostly developing countries.  He loves international travel and will be doing a lot of it.  I'll be tagging along on a trip now and then, and am looking forward to the paintings it will inspire.  I loved painting portraits of the people of South Africa when I returned from that trip, and am looking forward to painting more beautiful faces.

Meanwhile, painting has seemed to happen in short bursts, and posting seems not to have happened at all.  In March, I hope to show you the pieces that I have accomplished since last fall.  The 2014 ArtWalk season begins next month, and you'll be able to find me in my studio on First Fridays.  I'm also once again participating in the Pikes Peak Studio Tour next September, so you'll have a chance to visit me in my home studio then.

Sorry for the length of this post--I've blatantly broken my "one paragraph post" rule, but I wanted to touch base with you all and assure you that I'm still painting and hope to be back on a regular basis when circumstances allow.

Thank you all for your encouragement and support!

With Compliments

With Compliments                                           6x6 inch oil Sold

Click to Bid in My Online Auction

As promised, I've experimented with a background color other than red and have decided to explore the compliments of purple and yellow a little more. I'm enjoying mixing yellows that give the impression of petals in shadow.

The starting bid for this painting in my online auction is $45. If you are interested in my "Buy It Now" option, the price is $85 unframed or $125 framed. Just contact me directly, and if no one has yet bid on the painting, I can stop the auction and guarantee that "With Compliments" is yours. Email me at juliekirkland@info.com

Turning Toward the Sun

Turning Toward the Sun                            6 x 6 inch oil

Click to Bid in My Online Auction

I can't promise that this will be the last sunflower on red, but I am moving on to a different background color tomorrow.  In this painting, I'm particularly fond of how abstract I got the background flowers.  I also love the light on the petal that drips into the flower's center.

Plenty of Sunshine

Plenty of Sunshine                         6 x 6 inch, oil

Click to Bid in My Online Auction

A few years ago, I discovered an artist online who painted thirty different compositions of three plums, and for some reason, that made a great impression on me.  I'm thinking of her as I work with my sunflower series, wondering if I won't lose interest before long...my red phase is drawing to a close, and soon I'll turn to some other background colors!  With each piece, I learn something new that I can do with the palette knife...

Red Makes Me Happy

Red Makes Me Happy                   6x6 inch oil

This sunflower was painted entirely with a palette knife and I've decided that is my favorite method of painting these flowers.  The strokes give the petals such energy and expression.

Currently not available for sale.  Please let me know if you'd be interested in purchasing this piece when it becomes available.

Radiant

Radiant                                                      6x6 inch oil

Click to bid in my online auction

Summer is here, and sunflowers are back!  I'm doing a series of them with thick paint, using a brush and/or a palette knife, and experimenting with different background colors.  I find it much easier to be more expressive with sunflowers than I am with many other flowers.  I think that it's because their petals are so pleasantly unruly.

Devotion

Devotion, 8 x 10 inch, oil on panel        $240

Every time I look at this scruffy face, I laugh!

2013: The Early Bird

                                     "The Early Bird," 6 x 6 in.   Oil on canvas panel    $85 

  

Buy It Now     or    Click to Bid

For the first time in many years, I took a painting sabbatical to rest my "art muscles" and to enjoy the holidays with my family.  I've been working steadily and with intense focus for several years now, and after the Studio Tour last November, I realized that my brain and my body needed a break.  Last week, I returned to the studio rested and refreshed and have some fun paintings that I'll be sharing with you.  Here's "The Early Bird" that started me off bright and early!

I'd like to remind everyone that there are two ways to purchase my paintings online:  

Buy It Now   or    Click to Bid

1)  The "Buy It Now" price is posted beneath the painting's photo.  You can either contact me by email, or click on "Buy it Now"  to purchase with PayPal.  When you use "Buy It Now,"  you instantly guarantee that the painting is yours.

2)  The majority of my posted paintings are also available by online auction.  The "Click to Bid" link will take you to Daily Paintworks, an online auction site for artists.  The starting bid on my paintings is currently $35 (unless otherwise noted).  Bidding is in $2 increments.  I'm still building my online following, so these auctions are often a great way to obtain my work at below retail prices.  

Please note that once a bid has been placed on a painting, "Buy It Now" is no longer an option and bidding in the auction becomes the only avenue to purchase that painting.

If you'd like to take a look at my Daily Paintworks gallery and investigate my current auctions on the site, click here.  

Enjoy!

Double Barrels

"Double Barrels"                      6x6 inch oil on canvas panel

I have a collection of vintage items from the 1950's:  lipsticks, dishes, toys, cat eye glasses, compacts, high heels, lamps, coffee pots.....I'm a sucker for all things retro!  So, when I walked into Retrospect Dry Goods in Monument, CO, I was in heaven.  The owner, Lisa, offered to host a one evening show of my work that featured vintage items, so I'm working on some new paintings  that will complement the themes of her store.  You can see these new works in person on Thursday, September 20th from 5 to 8 pm during Monument's Art Hop.  Retrospect Dry Goods is located on Front Street, just behind The Coffee Cup restaurant.  I'm now turning my thoughts toward a retro outfit to wear!

Don't forget that I'm giving away a small painting this month to one of the lucky subscribers of my blog!  Just enter your email in the "Enter you email address" box on the upper right of this page.

Questions?  info@juliekirkland.com
Visit my Website:  www.juliekirkland.com

Africa Commission

11x14" oil on canvas

This is my newest painting from my experiences in Africa.  While in the villages, we kept our cameras in our bags unless we could ask someone for permission to photograph them.  One afternoon, we did have an hour in the market of Kwaggafontein with the freedom to photograph everyone and everything of interest to us.  The photo of this young shopkeeper was taken across the street from her with my zoom lens.  It's obvious from her posture and expression that her business didn't welcome any "monkey business."   I wanted to capture her youthful beauty and strength. 

To read a bit about my trip, and see all of the resulting paintings, please visit my blog  Painting By Heart

Sir Galahad

This painting wouldn't be nearly as delightful if this puppy's name had been anything but "Sir Galahad!"  He looks like he'd fit inside a small bowl, and I have no idea of his breed, but it makes me happy to just look  at him.  "Sir Galahad" is a 6 x 6" unframed oil.  He comes unframed for $75 plus any applicable tax and shipping.   For more information and to purchase, contact me at info@juliekirkland.com.

My Mug

This week's Daily Paintworks Challenge was to paint your mug.  I sat mine on the sill of my studio window and set about trying to capture the feeling of the sun shining on it. !   "My Mug," 6 x 6 in. oil on panel, $75 plus shipping and tax (if applicable). Or bid on it in my Daily Paintworks Auction..   For more information, contact me at info@juliekirkland.com

http://www.dailypaintworks.com/Artists/jkirkland-51

Bathing Beauty (Reprise)

You may remember seeing this bathing beauty a few weeks ago when I posted her the first time. I was never quite happy with the upper left hand corner of the painting. Yesterday, I changed the dull gray corner by popping in this sunlit summer grass, and the painting really pulled together. Questions? Email me at info@juliekirkland.com. You can bid on this painting by clicking the label below. Bidding starts at only $50.

www.juliekirkland.com

"Lemons and Daisies," Original Watercolor Painting, Julie Kirkland

Blue and yellow are fresh, happy colors that remind me of cool summer breezes.  And what could be more refreshing than "Lemons and Daisies"?  This 15 x 22" watercolor will brighten any corner of your home! 

For purchase information, contact me at info@juliekirkland.com or visit my wesite, www.juliekirkland.com