"Julia" (oil on stretched linen; 10" x 8") gift

gift

This beautiful young lady is my daughter's best friend since middle school.  She is a straight-A student and an accomplished pianist and artist, which makes her choice of college major difficult.  For now, she will be an "arts and sciences" major at the University of Virginia.  Hopefully, the two girls will share a dorm room.  The portrait is my graduation present for Julia, as she embarks on her higher education and adulthood.  I wish you my very best!

"Baby Emperor Penguins" (watercolor on paper; 6" x 6")

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Whenever I work on an animal series in watercolor, emperor penguins are always one of the first animals I paint.  How can you resist their quirky beauty and resilient life story in the Antarctica?  Have you ever seen "March of the Penguins," the 2005 French feature-length nature documentary, narrated by Morgan Freeman?  If not, you must!

Here a couple of baby emperor penguins huddle together for warmth. Instead of fussing over the fuzzy texture of the fur, I used granulating paints, such as Holbein mineral violet.  For the black head and feet, I used ivory black, which may sound natural to you, but it is a major breakthrough for me.  There are many "stupid" rules in the world of watercolors; one of them is NEVER use black.  Why not?  I think it looks rather punchy, don't you agree?

"Bountiful Peony Bouquet" (watercolor and oil pastel on paper; 10.5" x 15.5")

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With this peony painting, I did something unusual and crazy.  After finishing the painting, I decided not to leave the background pure white.  I first tried several vertical stripes of dark colors, which made the background come forward.  Oops.  How about dark squiggly lines in oil pastel over those random stripes?  Then, I spritzed water where the flowers met the background to soften the edges.  It was a complete mess!  Finally, I strengthened the now fuzzy-looking bouquet with white gouache and dark paints.  I think the result looks rather dramatic and contemporary.  What do you think?

"Group Hug" (watercolor on paper; 7" x 10")

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The mother, aunt, and baby African elephant are having a group hug!  By the way, how do you like the not-realistic colors on the elephants?  African elephants are known for their intelligence, loyalty, strength, etc., but not for their beautiful colors.  So I used the artistic license to suggest the intense heat of the African savanna.

"Baby Giraffe" (watercolor on paper; 7" x 5")

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I have been working on watercolors lately although I haven't shared them on my blog because many are what I consider sketches.  Here is a painting of a little wobbly but adorable baby giraffe.  More watercolor paintings to come, I promise!

"Jefferson Memorial Glow" (oil on linen; 8" x 10")

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The Jefferson Memorial at the Tidal Basin in Washington, DC, during the National Cherry Blossom Festival becomes a lavender jewel as the sun sets and bathes the beautiful structure in golden light.

"US Capitol Nocturne" (oil on linen; 12" x 9") sold

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The US Capitol's dome turns golden against the dark night sky. The seat of the US Congress and the equestrian statue of Ulysses S. Grant and their blurry reflections in the Capitol Reflecting Pond make the image hauntingly beautiful.