"Washington National Cathedral Summer Day" (oil on linen; 14" x 11") sold

sold

Looking up from the summer flowers of the Bishop's Garden, the beautiful Gothic architecture of the Washington National Cathedral with its flying buttresses and pointed arches appear almost immaterial in the glorious light.

"Tulips in a Dutch Vase" (oil on stretched canvas; 12" x 9")

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Danni Dawson gave her portrait painting class a homework last week: paint an interesting tulip still life.  So did we, as she must be obeyed!  This is what I came up with.  I arranged five tulips from my garden in a small Dutch vase on a reflective metal serving platter, then painted them against a muted gray background.  Sadly tulips are pretty much done now.  My husband and I are going to plant lots of specialty tulip bulbs this fall for my painting fun!

"Bishop's Garden Summer" (oil on linen; 8" x 10") sold

sold

Tranquility reigns at the Bishop's Garden of the Washington National Cathedral in Washington, DC on a sunny summer afternoon.

"Georgetown Key Bridge Afternoon" (oil on linen; 6" x 8") sold

sold

This is the view of Georgetown and the Key Bridge from the tiny Roosevelt Island in the Potomac River.  The undersides of the bridge arches glow in the afternoon light.  Can you believe this lovely cityscape is only 6" x 8"?  I am becoming a miniaturist!

"Clare" (oil on stretched canvas; 16" x 12")

I was happy to be back in Danni Dawson's portrait painting class yesterday.  The beautiful model who was dressed in a tutu got me all excited.  Regretting not having a larger canvas, I finished off a 16" x 12" one as a sketch.  Next week I will work on a more decent-sized canvas for real!

By the way, Danni gave me a high rating to the spring break homework, "Primavera".  She found in the painting nothing to criticize and everything to praise!

"Primavera" (oil, 18" x 24")

"Smithsonian Castle Magnolias" (oil on linen; 12" x 12")

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Near the Smithsonian Castle on The National Mall, the administrative headquarters of many national museums in Washington DC, there is a beautiful garden complex called Enid A. Haupt Garden. Visit it during the magnolia season.  As hundreds of mature magnolia trees become heavily loaded with big, pale pink, cup-shaped flowers, the garden is transformed into a fragrant pink heaven!

"Central Park Spring" (oil on stretched canvas; 12" x 9") sold

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On a sunny spring day, take a walk in the cherry tree tunnel at the Central Park in New York City.  Tread lightly as the pavement is covered with pink petals.

"Viola Solo" (oil on stretched canvas; 14" x 18") sold

sold

Aldwin is a high-school senior and talented musician who plays the viola, guitar and piano and also sings in the school choir.  As I was listening to his solo performance of Max Bruch's "Romanze for Viola" during the winter concert of the Washington Metropolitan Youth Orchestra at the beautiful auditorium of the George Washington Masonic National Memorial, I was impressed by his poised mastery of his instrument.

"Primavera" (oil on stretched canvas; 18" x 24") nfs

nfs

Danni Dawson, my portrait painting teacher, gave the class an assignment for the spring break--either a large still life or a 3-4' full-length portrait in outdoor setting.  The operative word was BIG.  I considered painting a self-portrait, because I have a perfect reference photo.  But where do I hang a 40"-long painting?

Then, I thought of the picture of spring flowers with my darling daughter in the background that I took three years ago.  Get two birds with one stone, as it is both a still life and an outdoor portrait!  How big?  A 24" x 30" or a 22" x 28" canvas would make the girl's face larger than life size; do I want to see it day in day out in the family room, no matter how much I love my baby?

So I settled on a 18" x 24" canvas, with a 6 1/2"-long head of my daughter.  It took many sessions to finish the portrait/still life.  The subject, my husband, and myself are all happy with it.  We'll see what Danni has to say about the painting.

By the way, why did I title the painting "Primavera"?  Because it is about spring--the season and the phase in a life!

"Twelve Inches Squared of Sunshine" (oil on stretched canvas; 12" x 12") sold

sold

I put sunflowers, purple statice, and white Peruvian lilies in a creamy porcelain pitcher by the kitchen window.  One sunny afternoon, I saw the side-lit bouquet; et voila, it was a painting subject.  It has been a few weeks since the magical moment, when I finally got around to paint "Twelve Inches Squared of Sunshine".

The Collage of My March 2016 Paintings

The Collage of My March 2016 Paintings

Another busy month has gone by.  Last month I worked on a lot of portraits and cityscape paintings.  How do you like the collage of my March paintings? Which is your favorite?