Getting ready to move- no art making

Moving is a full time job! No art making for the short term.

Seahorse graphite drawing

Sea Horse

5 x 7 graphite on paper

I enjoyed drawing this last night. I haven't been creating much art lately. Life sometimes gets in the way of my artistic endeavors. But I can find time at night while watching TV. I like to draw while I am watching TV, not sure why, just do.  This is a graphite drawing on white drawing paper. My reference photo was a post card I found at a local store here at the beach. It was a photo, and I exaggerated the features on the sea horse a lot to give it a funky look.

Rocks in oil

Rocks

4"x4"

oil on board

Still getting my feet wet again in oils...round organic objects seem to work for me. Yesterday was an egg, today is rocks.  I had company for about 10 days and did a fair amount of traveling so I have not painted lately. It feels good. My new home has this great big center island and it is perfect to set of my table easel and paint. I can stand or sit on a stool and move around.

back to basics

egg in a cup

4"x4"

oil on board

It's been a long time since I painted in oils so I felt the need to get back to basics. Painting an egg is about as basic as one can get. I put it in a ceramic egg cup. It felt so good to mix oils and spread paint. I forgot to add a shadow. My reference was sitting on my granite counter and I didn't see much of a shadow and then forgot about it. Ah well....

marine themed watercolor

seahorses

watercolor on 140#paper

prints of this and others available here.

Living near the ocean has started me thinking about painting marine and ocean paintings. I've been having fun painting sea horses, jellyfish and crabs. I love the loose style and used it in this current series of paintings.  

jellyfish watercolor painting

Jellyfish

watercolor on hot press 140lb paper

I am having fun exploring and making ocean themed watercolors!  I really like this color combination.  I just start painting and see what happens. Reference photos are used. I want to fill up my beach house with ocean art and thats why this new series of paintings. Lets see where it goes...

really blue Blue Crab watercolor painting

Blue Crab 1

watercolor on paper

7" x 9"

I was shopping the other day and saw a print that intrigued me. It was a blue crab on a  map of the Chesapeake Bay. It got me to thinking...that I would do the same type of painting on a map of Delaware. So here is a preliminary painting of a blue crab. When I was a small girl, my family would go crabbing in and around Bethany Beach, Delaware. We would catch a basket full and then my mom would boil them up and we would have a great crab meal. I don't remember exactly what she would make, but my mom was a wonderful cook. I'll have to ask my sisters or brother if they remember.  

Next comes a painting of the small state of Delaware...