"Piping Plover" (gouache on paper; 7" x 7") sold

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During the winter term at the Art League School in Alexandria, VA, I taught a new class called "Experiments in Watercolor". I introduced the students to various mediums, such as dip pen, brush pen, watercolor pencils, watercolor crayon, oil pastel, colored pencils, and gouache, to enrich watercolor. Being relatively new to gouache myself, I practically taught myself how to paint in this opaque watercolor. When I pulled off "Piping Plover" one evening, I knew I finally figured out this tricky medium!

"Chesapeake Bay Sunset" (oil on stretched canvas; 12" x 12")

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The sun is setting in the Chesapeake Bay. Tundra swans are flying over the dock pilings. It is an altogether peaceful scene.

"Goosey Goosey Gander" (oil on stretched canvas; 20" x 16")

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Goosey goosey gander, Whither shall I wander? Upstairs and downstairs.... Well, this family of goose, gander, and goslings are swimming in a row in a pond. How many goslings do you see?

"Paired for Life" (watercolor; 5" x 7")

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Lately I have been doing a lot of sketches, partly because I've had a low energy level for a while.  I still don't feel well, but I continue making sketches, usually in the evenings, for fun and as compositional studies for future paintings.  I use different paper and material, depending on what the subject calls for.  "Paired for Life" was done in watercolor, started out with a quick line drawing of an aquarelle pencil, which "melts away" in the wash.  The sketch turned out well enough to list on Etsy--loose and fresh!

"Eastern Bluebird" (oil on linen; 7" x 7") sold

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The eastern bluebird is a small bird found in open woodlands, farmlands, and orchards. It is the state bird of Missouri and New York.  My painting of this beautiful bird will make a perfect gift for a bird lover!

"Springtime Warbler" (oil on stretched canvas; 8" x 10")

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It took a while to paint a male prothonotary warbler perched on a tree branch on a sunny spring day.  Why?  It was tough to achieve the feeling of the sunlight streaming through the budding, tender leaves.  Do you think I got it?

"Goldfinch in Summer Garden" (oil on linen; 8" x 10")

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I am what you call a lazy gardener.  I don't have the patience or time to trim all the deadheads. As it turns out, that is what good environmentally-minded gardeners do.  Look at the goldfinch in the reference photo below.  It is eating the seeds of the spent coneflower in my tired summer garden!

In case you are wondering why the colors are so different between the picture above and the step-by-step photos below, here is the answer.  I took the final image of the finished painting in natural light and Photoshopped it, whereas the step-by-step photos were taken with my smart phone in my studio under artificial lighting.  The painting looks very close to what you see above.

Reference photo

I just laid down the transparent underpainting.  No opaque colors or whites are used at this stage.

The second step is done.

I edited out the coneflower right below the bird.  It looks better.

I like the circular movement of the flowers.  Time to firm up stems, some flowers, and the goldfinch.  Then I will be done!

Roseate Spoonbill in the Pond" (oil on linen; 6" x 8") sold

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A friend of mine saw this beautiful bird with extravagant plumage, brunching in her pond.  I am green with envy.  When I see golden finches in my garden, I quiver with excitement.  If I have one of these spectacular birds in my neighborhood, I would die of ecstasy!

"Kauai Rooster" (oil on linen; 8" x 8") sold

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Some birds are born to rule.  Look at this Kauai rooster with a red crown.  Kauai is called the garden isle for its lush vegetation.  Now people are calling it the chicken isle because it is overrun by roosters, hens, and little chicks!

Most of the birds are believed to be descendants of former fighting cocks unleashed during a devastating hurricane more than a decade ago.  The birds now forage at outdoor food courts and parking lots, and ruin sugar cane and corn crops.  They wake islanders and tourists with predawn crowing.

When we first saw them, we thought they were exotic and fun.  We took gazillion pictures.  But there were just too many of them to remain excited.  Some resourceful islanders capture them and put them in a chicken coop for future dinners.  The wild hens are edible, but remain tough even after hours of cooking.  How about roosters?  Well, as I said, they rule the island.

"Guarding Alcatraz Island" (oil on linen; 8" x 8") sold

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A seagull takes a break, while eating the famous San Francis sourdough.

Alcatraz Island is located in the San Francisco Bay, 1.5 miles offshore from San Francisco.  It is home to the abandoned prison, the site of the oldest operating lighthouse on the West Coast, early military fortifications, and a seabird colony (mostly Western Gulls).  Today the island's facilities are managed by the National Park Service.  As far as I can tell, due to the recent budget cuts, the island seems to be guarded mainly by the seagulls!

By the way, the seagull population is skyrocketing and the birds are taking over San Francisco. Don't feed the gulls and pigeons!

"Robin Bath" (oil on linen; 8" x 10") sold

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I was taking a walk when I saw a scruffy-looking robin at a shallow brook the day after a heavy rain.  Charming!

"Piping Plover" (oil on linen; 7" x 5") sold

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While taking a little break from my California series, I did a bird painting.  According to Wikipedia, the piping plover is a small sand-colored, sparrow-sized shorebird that nests and feeds along coastal sand and gravel beaches in North America.  The bird I painted must be a baby since it doesn't  have a black band across the forehead from eye to eye and a black ring around the neck.  If you are a beach goer, you must have seen it running in short starts and stops.

It was fun to paint the lovely avian creature.

"Winter Bird" (oil on linen; 8" x 12") sold

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Red berries are heavily laden with snow.  One can feel that it is a cold gray day.  No matter.  The small black bird is intently and happily feeding.  I don't know why this painting induces a happy feeling in me.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

"Cardinal in the Snow" (oil on linen; 8" x 10") sold

After
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Original image

Speaking of Photoshop, I learned something very valuable during the workshop with Bobbi Pratte on Monday.  I have lots of paintings with a white background.  For instance, in "Cardinal in the Snow," much of the painting is the snow-covered ground.  Sure, it is about the red cardinal looking for food on a winter day, but if the bird had been standing on a dark ground, the painting's impact would have been completely lost. 

So it is imperative to show in the photographic image what I had captured with paints.  Unfortunately, whenever I take pictures of paintings with a white background, they come out looking drab.  Whites just are not white enough.  They might reflect too much of the blue sky, turning bluish; or they turn out dull, dirty-looking.  Sigh.

Hoping that Bobbi must know what to do, I asked her.  She did indeed know how to correct the problem with Photoshop.  Go to "Enhance," "Adjust Lighting," then "Levels."  In the dialog box, you will see the Input Levels in the top half.  There are three buttons.  The far right button controls the highest values.  Drag it to the left until you find the satisfactory light value.  That's it!

I could have done some more cool stuff even before I started painting "Cardinal in the Snow," too.  I had to use two different photos while painting: one for the pine tree in the background, the other for the bird's pose.  If I had taken the workshop before, I would have combined the two pictures with Photoshop and worked with just one printout.  If I had wished so, I could have flipped the bird's direction, so that it would look the other way.  You get the idea.  I have just entered the wondrous world of Photoshop!

"Duck Pond" (oil on linen; 8" x 10") sold

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Reference photo

At the outset of every painting, I always feel two emotions: excitement and fear.  I feel excited about the subject AND fearful about whether I will be able to pull it off.  If there is no challenge, boredom will set in and only slapdash work will come out of the painting session.  Yes, I live on the edge.

When  I went to paint at Wide Water along the C & O Canal a week ago, I took a walk to walk off numbness in the toes.  It was a bit chilly, yes; but, oh boy, it was gorgeous.  There were several mallard ducks and lots of Canada geese in the water, fishing and sunbathing.  I took many pictures.  Yesterday, I decided to make something of the above picture, with a bit of both feelings I just mentioned.

I cropped the photo to focus on the ducks and warmed up the palette.  Wobbly reflections of trees and their brilliant leaves fill up the entire painting, but without the two birds, it won't make any sense.  It would have been nicer if one of the ducks had been a female, but I didn't want to invent their colors.  Just to be on the safe side.

"Ducks and Geese" (oil on linen, 8" x 12") sold

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Reference photo

When I showed my teacher, Diane Tesler, the above picture I took at Solomons Island, MD, she told me to keep it as a photo.  Apparently, it was too cute for her taste.  But she is in Indiana on vacation, and I am free to paint whatever I feel like.  So I painted "Ducks and Geese" today.

How can you resist the charm of this tableau?  Three geese decked in bright yellow rain gear were so jaunty that I and my friends burst out laughing when we spotted it while driving by.  The house owner obviously had a terrific sense of humor.  What made it even funnier was the two real ducks that happened to be there, as if they were checking them out.  I could almost hear one of them saying "if they are real, I am Donald Duck!"

"Spring Robin" (oil on linen; 4" x 5") sold

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When you see robins busily building nests, you know the spring has finally arrived--a welcome sight especially if you live in a place with a cold winter such as Minnesota.  I lived there for six years, so I know what I am talking about.  The picture was taken by a naturalist neighbor down the street.