Ring of Fire

 

This watercolor painted itself. I was sitting outside on the lanai, playing with paint, sipping a glass of wine and not paying attention to what was happening on the paper. Being surrounding by my family who were visiting from Washington state was far more important. My three granddaughters, who I call Cookie, Cupcake and Candy, were also painting which is something we always try to do when we're togther. It's enjoyable for me to see their lovely artwork and realize they must have creativity in their genes. A few days later I added the silhouette of a sailboat to complete this painting.

Delight

 

I truly love to 'throw water', add splashes of paint and work to create a painting. The learning curve includes staying away from colors that make mud, for example adding green to reds, pinks, and oranges. For the flowers I spatter either bright warm colors or vivid cool colors, then wait for the paint to dry. Studying what has 'happened' I look for shapes that I can work into flowers. Adding varied greens for stems and leaves brings the composition together. The final step is to see if some spiky dark branches will compliment the painting.

Seashore

 

Who doesn't enjoy the crisp feeling of the blue sea and white sands punctuated by waving grasses on the dunes, cries from the gulls and the sound of crashing waves? The feeling you get when you first round a dune and see the water? That is what I wanted to convey in this simple beach scene.

Sailing

 

I painted this scene completely from my imagination after spending the day sight-seeing in St. Petersburg, Florida. We drove across the state for a long weekend, a mini vacation. There was lots to see and do including a busy art sale with vendors from all over, an active pier scene and a thriving food market with lots of interesting offerings and music. We ended the day walking along the beautiful waterfront. I tried to capture the feel of the local harbor which is fronted by a beautiful park.