Lucy

This is one of the dog portraits that I have been working on. It is in its new home and Lucy's owners are very happy with it!

Ho!Ho! Horses Gift Sale Display

This is my display at the Ho!Ho! Horses Gift Sale in the hamlet of Goodwood, Ontario, a very horsey area. In spite of the inclement, albeit seasonal, weather there was a steady stream of people all day. I had a lot of really nice comments and sold a small painting called "Rainy Day". I did a large horse portrait as a sample, so that horsemen and women could see the way I would treat a portrait of their horse(s).

Autumn Brilliance

This is one of my favorites from this year. I spend a lot of time in High Park and it was a very colourful fall this year.

I haven't posted in a while because I have been busy with dog portraits, a horsey gift show where I showed my equine paintings and a show in a local cafe which runs for the month of December and the month of January 2009. It is at Lou's Coffee Bar at 514 Annette St. in the Junction area of Toronto, one of the best coffee shops in Toronto for their ambiance and great coffees and goodies.

Storm Clearing

SOLD

Driving westward in Toronto during a very windy rain storm, the clouds parted and beautiful light shone through creating wonderful reflections in the pavement. I just had to photograph it. Lucky I was at a stop light.

High Park, Fall/08

Maple Leaf

Fall is my favorite time of year and this is the first in a series of autumn studies.
Thanks to Michael Naples for the inspiration.

An Alabama Cow

This is another submission to the weekly painters challenge called Different Strokes From Different Folks hosted by artist Karin Jurick. I love doing this and looking at all the wonderful interpretations of the challenge. We all see so differently.

Early Evening Light

Farmers Market

People in Toronto can't get enough fruits and vegetables straight from the farmer who actually put their hands in the dirt that grew this bounty. This particular market, Dufferin Grove, features organic produce, fresh honey, eggs, homemade baked goods and it is a visual feast as well.

Bella

This is a portrait I just finished of this lovely little Maltese called Bella. I am working on 3 more dog portraits for Christmas.

Morning Mist

Fall Corn Field

Fall is my favorite time of year, even though it's a bit melancholy.

Barn in Late Summer

End of Summer Fruit

Man Reading Newspaper

This is this weeks www.differentstrokesfromdifferentfolks.blogspot.com challenge from artist Karin Jurick. What a great way to paint something from someone else's camera and then see many different interpretations of it.

Blue Bottle

Morning Mist

Borderline

This is this weeks submission for a blog presented by Karin Jurick, in which Karin posts a photo to www.differentstrokesfromdifferentfolks.blogspot.com
and artists are invited to paint their interpretations. It's a stroke of brilliance!

Morning View from Back Door

The light isn't always this dramatic when I let my dog out at 5:45 every morning, but there is often light that is worth noticing.

Lake Gordonier

This is a small plein air painting that I did at my friends' cottage in the Muskokas. It is a beautiful, peaceful spot, and my friend Marylin and I painted while Marylin's husband happily worked on his latest project, a tool shed.
My first painting was a dud. I fought with that blasted french easel, trying to get it set up on uneven ground (my subject was a moss covered rock on a path in the forest with lovely dappled light), and got covered in paint, and by the time I was set up the winds had blown the clouds away, and the lighting had completely changed. I was determined to get a painting out of this set up, and I carried on. My dog had a good time being entertained by chipmunks and other critters while she waited for me. My set up set the tone for the painting. I left it at the cottage.

The second attempt on the same day was happier. It was a beautiful sunny afternoon, and the light was not quite as changeable as in the am.

High Park Summer No.1

I really need to change the name of this blog! Maybe to "Weekly Paintings" or "A Bunch Every Month Paintings", and if I did end up doing a painting a day, it would be a pleasant surprise. I think about painting all the time, and plan in my mind projects that I would like to do. I have a dog walking business that is not as much time consuming as energy consuming, so being a morning person, I get up early every morning with painting as a goal, but it often doesn't work out that way. This morning I stretched a few small canvases in preparation for a couple of dog portraits that I will do.
I am going to a Plein Aire Workshop in August, so I will be able to focus on art. Really looking forward to that.

Also, I have been working on a one woman show that is taking place this month at Reba's Cafe. the Artist's Reception takes place tomorrow, July 17th 6-9pm 3289 Dundas St. West in Toronto.

Red Tulips

Violet Up Close

Country Road

Grazin'

Horses are my fave! This is a handsome little Thoroughbred enjoying the green stuff.

Spring Garden

Early Spring Cyclists

Early Spring Lake Ontario

Height of Summer

This is quite a departure from my normally more subtle colours. I'm really not sure how I feel about it. The whole point of doing small paintings is to experiment and explore. Working small takes less time to work out visual problems than painting a large canvas. I don't feel too bad about chucking something that I am not happy with if it is small.

Kentucky Horse Park

I went to an art workshop at the Kentucky Horse Park last September given by the very accomplished equine artist Valerie Hinz. There were several competitions taking place that week, and this was a serene moment at the beginning of a busy day.

Lake Ontario

A Toronto view of Lake Ontario just before twilight.

Old Barn

Having lived in rural areas, I always admired the beauty of barns. They represent farming communities, and what they do for us all.

Daisy

Finished this painting of Daisy April 25. She is the sweetest, tiniest little beagle with huge eyes and ears. Daisy was adopted at 2 years of age and has a wonderful home now. I wish all dogs were as well cared for as she is.
Now I'm off to High Park to check out the cherry blossoms.

Humber River at Dusk

Daisy Layer 2

The features of Daisy's face have a bit more detail now. Next, I will tune up the background, add highlights to her eyes and refine here and there.

Tranquil

Daisy - First Layer

I haven't been posting as frequently as I had intended, because I have been working on several larger projects and I haven't been working on my small works much.

This is one of the paintings that is in progress and it is taking shape, but needs more work. Doing small paintings fairly frequently has improved my painting overall, I feel. My brush strokes are bolder and I am faster and I can mix and choose color more confidently.

This is Daisy, a most adorable beagle. I will post the completed work.

Winter Twilight

Trees at Sunset

House on a Hill

This lonely little shell of a farm house always fascinated me as I drove past it on my jaunts to visit my horse. It had a solitary beauty that always made me gaze at it as I passed by. I used a tiny bit of complementary violet to the largely yellow hue of this painting. I think my style is getting looser. It sure seems that I am getting better at communicating through my paint brushes with the right "creative" side of my brain.

Cowboys at O'keefe Ranch in Vernon

This is a colour study for a larger painting that I am working on. When I lived in British Columbia, I attended a Cowboy Festival at O'Keefe Ranch. These guys are the real deal. They are working cowboys from ranches all across BC and Alberta, and they compete annually at the Festival.

Tulips

A client of mine gave me this as a thank you gift, and the logical thing to do was paint it. After many, many feet of snow this winter, it gives me hope for spring. The tulips will live again next spring, after I plant them in the fall.

Toronto Caribana

In Toronto's multi cultural society, there is a large West Indian population who celebrate their culture every summer with the Caribana Festival. It has become bigger and bigger since it started about 30 years ago, and attracts thousands of tourists to Toronto. This was from one of the earlier parades and I think it captures the festive atmosphere of the occasion.

Focus

This is an illustration that I did for a horse magazine.

Waiting for Dinner

Horses have very accurate internal clocks, especially when it comes to food.This fellow was encouraging his caregiver to hurry up.

Toronto Harbour Breeze

Wind Blown Pines 2

Wind Blown Pines

Near Parry Sound, Ontario, these pine trees are permanently bent by the wind and grow on the characteristic glaciated rock.

Barn Cat

As someone who hangs around horse barns, I always notice the local felines.
They earn their keep by keeping down the mouse population. This is quite a handsome cat.

Grenadier Pond

Grenadier Pond