"Red and White House by the Sea" (oil on stretched canvas; 12" x 12")

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Build a red house with a tall chimney by the sea. Paint white stripes for fun. Kind of a grown-up fairy tale.  One wonders what goes on behind the dark door and windows.

"Assategue Island Dusk" (mixed media on paper; 18" x 14") sold

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A popular camping site along the mid-Atlantic coast, Assateague Island is also famous for its feral ponies.  I was aiming for the peace and solitude that can be found at dusk when the crowds are gone.  The painting is a mixed-media piece, with colored pencil and oil pastel on watercolor.  How do you like it?

"Whiff of Spring" (watercolor, 20" x 14") sold

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In northern Virginia, where I live, the magnolia trees are budding now; by the next week, they will dot the sky with their noble flowers.  Whereas cherry blossoms are dainty and flirty, magnolia flowers are elegant and proper.  Magnolias are very popular in Korea; we even have a beautiful song about them.

This still life setup posed a major challenge.  All the props were white (or transparent); so was the backdrop.  The only colors were found in the branches and the faint pink magnolia buds.  The shadows lacked colors as well.  All purity and Oriental.  So I had to make up colors.  Nothing overpowering, but subtle grays and mauves--just like an early spring day.  But there is a whiff of spring in the air.  It shows that although I am a colorist, I can also exercise restraint in my color choices when the occasion calls for.

"Peony Season" (watercolor on paper; 6" x 6")

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Every now and then during the flowering season, I arrange flowers from my garden on a piece of white paper and take pictures for my watercolor still lifes.  I am more interested in shadows than flowers themselves.  Photographing is necessary because the shadow shapes will keep changing as the sun moves.