Thursday 2nd July 2009

I finished this one off in the studio. If you'd like to compare it to the earlier photo, you'll find that I sharpened up the values by lightening the sky and the road/paving, took out the blue gate which wasn't adding anything, warmed up the shadows under the portale of the shops behind and brightened up the flowers.

Hollyhocks at Caffe Tazza - 16 x 12" - oil on canvas - $750

Tuesday 30th June 2009 - Hollyhocks at Caffe Tazza

Jane and I walked around looking for the perfect painting spot for the wonderful hollyhocks that are blooming all over Taos but ended up in our favourite spot at the Caffe Tazza - the other places were either too close to traffic or too exposed - easy to get sunburn this time of year at this altitude. I finished this one off later in the studio.

Hollyhocks at Caffe Tazza - 8 x 10" - oil on canvas panel - $395

Friday 26th June 2009 - Hollyhocks at Caffe Tazza

I love "hollyhock season" here in Taos, they are such glorious flowers.

Hollyhocks at Caffe Tazza - 16 x 12" - oil on canvas panel - $750

Friday 29th May 2009 - Bent Street Bench

I met up with Jane and Shari and another painting buddy, Michelle Chrisman, at Bent Street where the flowers were looking lovely.

Bent Street Bench - 12 x 16" - oil on canvas - $750

Wednesday 20th May 2009 - Irises at Cafe Renato

The lilacs are already over and the irises are coming into full bloom. These ones outside Cafe Renato are just gorgeous.

Irises at Cafe Renato - oil on canvas panel - 12 x 16" - $750

Monday 11th May 2009 - Hacienda del Sol

A new home for my paintings!

Some good friends of mine, Reg and Dale, have taken over the running of a luxury B & B here in Taos and invited me to hang some of my paintings in their communal areas. This is me with Reg and my recently reworked truck painting.

It truly is a lovely place with south-west style interiors and great gardens with views of Taos mountain. They also invited me and my artist friends to come paint in their gardens.

"One of the 10 most Romantic Inns in the U.S." - USA Today

www.taoshaciendadelsol.com

Thursday 7th May 2009 - Ray's group

I painted these two about 18 months ago, pictures I liked but, with all I've learned, I felt could be just that bit better. I took them into Ray's group and worked on them some more. Ray, a big fan of bright colour, especially orange, urged me to lay in the bright orange of the adobe buildings behind the truck. I tried it (I can always paint over it!) and I really liked it.



Taos Truck - 12 x 12" - oil on canvas - $575
The Church at Ranchos - 12 x 12" - oil on canvas - $575

Friday 1st May 2009 - Pink Trees

It was great to get back out Plein Aire painting with Shari and Jane - it felt like it had been a long time. We walked around the centre of town looking for pink blossom trees next to adobe buildings, taking photographs and choosing our spots. I picked this spot outside the Bent Street Deli.

It was early and quiet when we set up but became busy and then my 'maestro' Ray Vinella came to eat breakfast at teh Bent Street Del and parked right in the middle of my composition, so I painted around the cars.

The painting looks empty to me, like it needs a stronger focal point, so I plan to paint in a girl walking her dog or something.

Taos Love Letter - 12 x 16" - oil on canvas panel - unfinished

Thursday 5th February 2009 - Ray Vinella, superstar!

Another Wednesday class with Ray Vinella. I've told him that I write a blog about my painting but it took a mutual friend, Jan Mellor, to tell him that I write about my Thursday lessons on the blog for him to ask me about it! Here is a photo of Ray and I at this morning's group along with a portrait I painted of him a year and a half ago.



In this week's class i finished off this evening painting of the Plaza with the pretty twinkle lights in the trees in front of Ogelvie's and painted this scene of the main road through Taos with fresh snow and Taos Mountain behind. The red sign on the building on the right is Jan Mellor's gallery - the Taos Gallery.



Late Night Shopping on the Plaza - 12 x 12" - oil on canvas panel - $575
Beautiful Downtown Taos - 12 x 12" - oil on canvas panel - $575

Thursday 21st January 2009 - Adobe Glow

After a day in the gallery last week, I walked back to where I park my car and there was this fabulous slanting light making the Cabot Plaza tower glow a rich shade of orange, brightening the winter trees and making Taos Mountain glow softly in the distance. I took a photo and worked from it in Ray's Class this week.

Adobe Glow - 12 x 16" - oil on canvas panel - $750

Friday 29th August 2008 - Hollyhocks at the Blumenschein

I met up with Michelle and a painter friend of hers from Santa Fe and we painted the flowers at the Blumenschein Home and Museum.

I did one like this a few weeks ago and it sold very quickly - the hollyhocks and adobe theme is quite popular.

Hollyhocks at the Blumenschein - 9 x 12" - oil on canvas panel - $475

Wednesday 23rd July 2008 - Bench in the Flowers

No Wedensday group today so i got together with Shari one last time before her 5 week trip to sell her work at the Renaissance fair in Pennsylvania.

I painted this lovely view at the Blumenschein Home Museum here in Taos with the gardens in full bloom.

Bench in the Flowers - oil on canvas-board - 8 x 10" - sold

Thursday 17th July 2008 - Ray's Class

I painted this one last week and I was quite happy with it but I felt it could be stronger. so I took it to Ray's class and a bit more work and his guidance has made it a much better painting I think.



I'd started this one nearly a year ago on a trip to Wild River with Shari, we'd spent so much time driving around and exploring that by the time we got painting the sun was going down fast and we didn't have time to finish. I also ran out time at Ray's session so I may come back to this one.



Our Lady of Guadalupe Church with Hollyhocks - 16 x 12" - oil on canvas panel - $750
Wild River Gorge - 16 x 12" - oil on canvas panel - unfinished

Tuesday 8th July 2008 - Hollyhocks at Caffe Tazza

Shari and I got together to paint in the central place in town to catch the hollyhocks in full bloom, but also to hand out leaflets about our upcoming joint show on Saturday. We chatted to a lot of people and Shari sold her painting wet off the easel!



Hollyhocks at the Caffe Tazza - 12 x 16" - oil on canvas - $750

Monday 12th May 2008 - Irises at the Blumenschein

It seemed like Shari and I hadn't been out plein aire painting together in a long time! We met up in Queznel Lane as I had liked a tree in full pink blossom in front of a pretty adobe house that I had seen a couple of days earlier. It just shows that if you snooze you lose, because the wind had blown off most of the flowers. Shari suggested some trees in Kit Carson Park but when we got there we found they too had had most of the petals blown off.

We took a walk around the Ledoux Street area and found these first irises under a lilac tree in full bloom and this was definitely the spot. I have to be excited to paint a subject, for it to turn my eyes on, so to speak, or the painting is flat and lifeless and it's all a big waste of time and paint.

Irises at the Blumenschein - oil on canvas - 20 x 20" - sold

Tueaday 23rd October - Morada

I met up with my good friend Michelle Chrisman for lunch and then we went off looking for a spot to paint. The cold snap over the weekend had turned all the yellow leaves brown, so many of the spots we had in mind were no longer as interesting.

We ended up at the Morada, always a good spot to paint, and caught the hills behind in the late afternoon light.

Morada - oil on canvas - 11 x 14" - SOLD