"Wolf on the Prowl" (oil on linen; 8" x 8") sold

sold

No, this is not a pet.  It is a wolf on the prowl.  I saw it at the International Wolf Center in Ely, MN several years ago.  As you may know, wolves are back in North America, which is thrilling to some and alarming to others.  The center is one of the world's leading organizations dedicated to educating the public about wolves.

We were safely behind the glass barrier; all the wolves out for the visitors to admire appeared pretty darn friendly.  I don't remember the name of this "ambassador wolf".  In another picture it looks like smiling!  I did my best to make the wolf look menacing, on the prowl in the moonlight.  I must say it was fun!

If you send me your pictures to kimstenbergart@gmail.com, I may make paintings out of them.  How fun is that!  At the end of September, I will do a drawing and one lucky person wins a free painting.  You can buy the painting anytime, but there is no obligation.  Thanks!

Oh, by the way, it's Day Five of Leslie Saeta's 30 in 30 Challenge.  Only 25 more to go!

"General Stonewall Jackson in Moonlight" (watercolor on Yupo; 8" x 8")

matted size: 12" x 12"
click here to buy

The equestrian statue of General Stonewall Jackson, the Civil War hero, is located at Jackson Park in the Old Town of Charlottesville, VA.  I have painted the statue before in oil in the overcast, late afternoon light.  I thought I would try it again, this time in watercolor on Yupo.

Gone are the lush spring growth in the background as well as the stone stand, on which the horse and rider are standing.  I also conjured up an indigo blue sky--a dark, somber atmosphere that somehow seems to befit the hero who died tragically young.

As the paints don't behave as politely on Yupo as the artist wishes, I had to spray off the sky with the atomizer several times.  The statue and sky melted together in some areas, making them all mysterious.  The moon appeared behind the general too. Interesting!  Finally I restored the darks on the statue that had been washed away.  I really like the new painting!  What do you say?

"General Stonewall Jackson's Equestrian Statue"
(oil, 14" x 11"; sold)

"Capitol Nocturne" (oil on linen; 12" x 12") sold

sold

I thought I would create a series of evening scenes of famous Washington landmarks.  "Capitol Nocturne" was actually the third in the series, but it was the first one that turned out right at the get-go.  Painting from the reference photos of nocturnal images that did not give much information about details and colors was not easy. I also wanted these nocturnes to be as evokative and stirring as Beethoven's "Moonlight Sonata."

Capturing the drama of the brilliantly-lit US Capitol dome  and lights and their reflections in the pond was my goal in "Capitol Nocturne."  About half of the painting session was spent painting upside down in an effort to get the image and reflections to match up more or less.  I would bring the painting to a mirror to look at it reversed, only to put it back on the easel in the wrong way!  Wait a minute, which way was I painting?