Door County Interior 8x8" oil on canvas - $99

I returned to my file of photo's today. I view my photos while painting on a canon projector (It's this model). I project the image on the side of the chicken coop studio, and then stand back at my easel from the image about 12 feet and paint. I took my time researching projectors, and I'm happy with the canon model. The image that I project is around 8 feet large and is very bright and colorful, even when I have the lights on in the coop.

I used to paint photo's from a tablet screen, but I find that having a large reference makes me feel like I'm there just a little bit more. The projector has a usb drive, so I just download photo's on a thumbdrive, and can then scroll through them. I also have my dvd player hooked up to it, and I watch skate video's when I ride my elliptical trainer in the mornings.

Little Cow

Here's a little backlit cow sketch. I enjoy painting subjects such as this because the rimlight simplifies the composition and creates great value and color contrasts. The frame came from an estate sale this past autumn. I'm hoping for sun so that I can get outside and paint. I enjoy working from reference, but after I do it for a few days I am ready to get back out there.

LC the Cat with Yarn

LC the Cat with Yarn 7.75x16" oil on panel - $199

Here is my cat playing with yarn. Her name is Little Cat, but we call her LC. She is a spirited tabby. LC will climb up your back to sit on your shoulder, or sometimes jump on it from a chair or the back of the couch. I can learn a lot about painting from the cat's behavior. Just jump right in and hope for the best.

Evening Light Cow

Evening Light Cow 11x14" oil on canvas $199

 

 

I've been in the studio, the last couple of days painting sketches from my inventory of photos. This is one of the 4 cows next door, photographed in the late evening. I shot this photo in early November. I liked how he looked kind of angry, even though it was a beautiful afternoon. I got the color harmonies from another painting, that I did under similar light this summer. I have a studio full of sketches painted en plein air, and it's good to give them new life by "borrowing" their colors.

I'd like to say thanks to everyone who has purchased work off of my blog during the 30 in 30 challenge. I am going to keep posting regularly after the challenge. Before the challenge, I would normally just paint, and let them dry in my upstairs studio, but now it's fun to photograph them and get them up right away.

Glazers Doughnuts January 18 - 30 painitngs in 30 days

Glazers Doughnuts 8x8" oil on canvas - $99

Alright more sugar. And it's a good time for it because I'm giving it up on Wednesday. Two years ago, I gave up sugar for three months, and I felt great. But it isn't going to stop there. Just like two years ago, I'm giving up gluten, eggs, peanuts, dairy, artificial sweeteners, soy, and corn. Those foods are hidden in a lot of what we eat and we end up eating so much of these foods them that we end up with varying degrees of food intolerance to them. By cutting out these seven foods, your body is given a break from them. The best part is that I have a great recipe book full of the foods that I love to eat, that also happen to be free of the 7 foods that are eliminated. It takes more effort to follow the diet than just grab food and go, but I'm looking forward to more energy for painting.

Oh, and the coffee that's in the painting, I will NOT be giving that up. It's alright to drink coffee on the elimination diet.

Lemon Water - January 17 - 30 painitngs in 30 days

Lemon Water 12x12" oil on canvas - $199

 

We have great water on the farm. We have a unique well, meaning that we don't get a water bill, it comes straight out of the ground. There are several artesian wells (Maci calls them Indonesian wells) in the Rock Springs area, and there is even tankers a few miles down the road that supply a national bottled water company (I'm not sure which one). I start my day with a half lemon in a large mason jar with our water and ice, and this still life is a tribute to that. By the way, Cory drinks her morning lemon water warm, it's supposed to be more healthy :)

Christmas Cookie Leftovers - January 16 - 30 paintings in 30 days



Christmas Cookie Leftovers - 12x12" oil on canvas - $199

My sister made the Christmas Tree Sugar Cookie and my Aunt made the little lemon cookies with the white frosting. The doughnut was made at a bakery here in town. I'm glad I got this one done now, because I'm ready to give up sugar!



Barn Door January 15 - 30 paintings in 30 Days

Barn Door 6x8" oil on carton attached to stretched canvas - $75

This is a painting that I did last week. I only had a half hour to paint this morning, before running to Chicago to pick up my girlfriends daughter, so I'm glad to have one for reserve. This is our barn door out here on the farm, in late afternoon. The chicken coop studio is seen in the upper left of the painting as well. This painting was made on carton, from Gurella Painter. It is a modern, and formaldehyde free version of the support used by Toulouse Lautrec and Edouard Vuillard. I didn't leave much open areas of tone, as they did, but it was a fun surface to try out. Tomorrow, I'm taking a couple sheets of it to Madison, to do some heightened drawings at the Union, after we visit the Geology Museum, the Chazan Art Museum, Lao Laan Xang, and Gallery Dillon. This 30 in 30 challenge has shed some light into a otherwise grey month!

I'm also sending out a package to a repeat collector from Washington DC. I thought I'd share a photo of the contents of her package. The cow is a three color reduction print that I threw in as a surprise for her.

Just the Facts - January 14 - 30 Paintings in 30 Days

Just the Facts 8x10" acrylic on panel

Last evening, I noticed the light on the buildings by the Baraboo River. The buildings were built by the Ringling Brothers for their Circus. I knew that I wanted to paint there.

Today, there was sun for most of the day, but when I got my things set up, the clouds rolled in. I painted for a couple of hours under overcast skys, hoping for the sun to come back over the river and buildings.
Then at 4, the sun came out! It was the effect that I was looking for, the one that I remembered from last evening. I changed canvases, and painted this little one in a few minutes, and then the sun left again.
Painting outdoors is like that. When the light changes, there is a choice to make. Sometimes, it's possible to change the canvas that you have going, but sometimes it's better to start a fresh one. The rule is to not chase the light, unless it would strengthen the painting. This painting is just the abstract shapes and colors of the scene. I'm not trying to celebrate this sketch by posting it, it's just a record of the moment that we had today and nothing more. Often, that's what we get when we go out. I can say that to me, it's special, because the feeling of chasing those 15 minutes felt way better than recording the facts of the overcast day. Painting fleeting light will always be my favorite thing to do.

Candy Hearts January 13 - 30 paintings in 30 days

Candy Hearts 8x8" oil on panel - $75 free shipping

I had a great day today. After I finished painting this still life of sweethearts, I went thrift shopping with my sweetheart! My best find of the day was a 3 pack of Fredrix Red Label canvas for $2, and also a simple frame for a painting that we are hanging in the kitchen. I got such a good deal, that I'm offering this small still life for a small price. Candy Hearts.

Gredes Foundries

 

 
 
 

Foundry at Noon 8x8" - $99

 

 

 

 

 

Foundry at Two 8x8"  - $99

 

The light was good today, so I wanted to get outside and paint. My painting didn't work out yesterday, so I'm putting up two today.

 

I painted these from the passenger seat in my car. It was 6 degrees when I started, and 8 when I drove home. The "feels like" temperature was much colder, and the windows that were not facing the sun were covered with thick frost. When driving home, someone ahead of me had a frost covered back window, and a cop was trying to pull them over. They couldn't see the officer, and were just driving around like nothing was wrong.

Bathroom Window Interior

Bathroom Window Interior 9x12" oil on canvas - $99

 

Today I had an hour to squeeze in my painting for the 30 paintings in 30 days challenge. After I painted, I drove up to Stephens Point, to drop off two paintings for a group show of Wisconsin Landscapes at the Scarabocchio Art Museum. The show opens on January 22, and I'm really excited because I'm showing with some great painters! It is my first museum show, so this is a big honor.

The following paintings are the two pieces that were selected for the show. Both are 24x36"