Yellow Truck

I love painting this truck!  The first time it was red and now it is closer to the real color, a faded yellow.  When I made up these figures I just had to add a beer belly to one of them.  This piece will be in a three person show in which I've been invited to exhibit.  More to follow on the art show later.

"Waiting for a Lesson"

One of my young art students was patient enough to pose for me while I sketched him holding a violin.  I'm still fine tuning this one and may paint him again.  This is the third watercolor I've tried of this young guy.

Sip and Paint Class in Ocilla

This great group of ladies painted our "Southern Snow" known to others as cotton.  Their efforts paid off with some beautiful artwork.

An Apple for Your Thoughts

Isn't fall the most wonderful season?  The weather in South Georgia has been so pretty.  This watercolor of an apple shows the simple things in life are the best.  If you are in the Tifton area Saturday night, November 19th, come by St. Anne's Episcopal Church for "Arts and Eats".  There is art for sale, a silent auction, and good food to eat.  Proceeds go to the church's food box ministry.  Hope to see you there.  I'll have lots of my work for sale and I am donating a month of adult art lessons to the silent auction.

Cotton for the Picking

My Ocilla Sip and Paint class will be painting pictures of cotton bolls in November.  I myself had never painted them so I tried it out last night.  Thanks so much to Lynn and Linda who brought me lots of cotton stalks from their farms.  These beautiful white plants are so much fun to paint.  I can't wait to introduce the girls to this subject matter for their next paintings.

Sea Scouts

This watercolor is from a memory of seeing a group of boys outside Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris.  It took me forever to find out to what group they belonged.  They are Sea Scouts.  I guess they are like our Boy Scouts here in the states.  They were about to have a bake sale when I took a photo of them.

Two by Two

Here is the last one of the vintage farm toys.  I am plowing through my studio looking for more objects that would be good subjects for paintings.  Send me ideas you might have for subject matter.  Happy Halloween!

Vintage Farm Toys, Cow

Here is the second in the farm toy series.  I spent the weekend scouring Scott's Antique Market for old Scrabble letters to use on these.  I didn't have much luck finding those but what a fun place to visit and shop!  If you've never been, you have got to go.  It's open the second weekend of each month.  It is off 285, Jonesboro Rd. in Atlanta.

Sip and Paint Class in Ocilla, Georgia

Our group had a fantastic time painting still lifes of pumpkin gourds and flowers. I look forward to our November class.

Vintage Farm Toys

I recently purchased a set of old farm animal toys.  Each one has made a great subject for painting.  To make it seem more like a toy I used a cut piece of old printed paper with the animal sound stamped on to it.  Then I attached it to the oil painting with a magnet.  The printed word can easily be removed.  Here is the first of a series of these animals.

Sunflowers for Sale

If you've never been to Mark's Pumpkin Patch in Sasser, GA, please go!  The sunflowers and pumpkins make great subject matter for paintings.  This painting came from a photo I took of an old "yellow" truck that with a little imagination turned red with pots of sunflowers for sale from its tailgate.  I am so ready for autumn to get here!

Sip and Paint Class in Ocilla, Georgia

Last night was a blast!  The Shoppes at 4th and Cherry hosted our Sip and Paint class with twenty-two participants.  We painted very colorful roosters and just had a super time.  The class for October is already filled but there's room for November's class.  Thanks to Roxie for making this possible.

The Friendly Basket Weaver

When I last visited Charleston and tried to take a photo of the basket weavers, all but this kind lady would hold up their hands to stop the picture taking.  I don't really know why.  This watercolor, I hope captures some of the kindness this lady showed me.
By the way, $18,000.00 has been raised by artists and followers of Carol Marine's art blog.  She and her family are some of the ones who lost their homes in the Texas wild fires last week.  They are living in their camper in an RV park.

Groovy Van

This oil painting is actually of a decorative wooden box.  I bought it to finish off a decorating job of a friend's St. Simons townhouse.  Doesn't it just sing, "Have a groovy, fun time at the beach and peace, man!"

On a very somber note, Carol Marine, whose painting blog inspired me to start my own art blog, posted yesterday that her house was about to be taken by the wildfires in Texas.  She was evacuating just after she posted about it.  I hope for the best for her and her husband.  They are in my thoughts and prayers.

Which Way Did They Go?

This little fella is ready for his folks to come back.  

Patience

What a good and faithful companion this one is!  Surely his owners haven't gone far and are bringing him a treat!

Linda's Cosmos

One of my adult art students, Linda, brings these pretty flowers to class each week from her garden.  I hope this painting conveys some of the joy they bring to me.

Three for the Beach

My two nieces and nephew are all grown, but I captured them as children on St. Simons Island's beach in this watercolor.  Where do the years go?  The summer is almost over and I'm looking forward to painting some autumn themed works to post to the blog. 

Bean Counter

This little fella has been fun to paint.  I will have to look hard to find another subject this enjoyable.

Parasol

I have been off line for a while due to lightning damage to all my electronics! It's good to be back.
Here are two more "Chick" watercolors to add to the series.

Berry Picker

In High Cotton

I started this series of small watercolors using a ceramic baby chick.  The name comes from a local shop where I used to work part-time. 

"Red Suit"

Here's another East Beach scene from St. Simons Island. I think this lady in the red suit is contented just to get her toes wet on such a beautiful day.

Beadboard Flag

You can make one of these flags easily to hang in any room of your home or vacation place. The theme can be adapted to any location. Materials: rectangular piece of beadboard, glue gun, acrylic paints, small stretched canvas, brushes, sandpaper, rope and other found objects. Attach hanging wire and hooks on the back.
Directions: Mark off a section where you would find stars on the flag. Paint it a color from your color scheme. Paint a smaller canvas that can decorate this area. Hot glue objects like seashells, flattened bottle caps, curly wire, anything that might have sentimental meaning or that is decorative. Hot glue the canvas to the beadboard. Paint the horizontal stripes of beadboard in different repeating colors. When it is dry have ready a set of words and phrases that describe your family, the beach, the mountains, lake, for wherever you will hang this. Thin out the acrylic paint you choose with some water and simply write the words across each line. They can run off the board, it doesn't matter. When it is dry, take sandpaper and rub it to give it a distressed look. Use a length of rope with a knot at each end to hot glue onto the left side of the flag. There you have a great piece of art to hang on your wall!

Where do We Eat Tonight?

Serious conversation on the beach ALWAYS involves planning the next meal out!

Magic Potions

The bottle in this watercolor is French.  Anything written in French is magical right?  Do you think all those lotions and creams we buy really help with those wrinkles?  I sure hope so!

Life on East Beach, St. Simons Island

This watercolor reminds me of the good times my friends and I have every summer on East Beach on St. Simons Island.  This piece is one of the first paintings I sold on the island at Parker Gallery.