This painting was done as a study of fabric folds, for a workshop I took on that subject. But I also thought that the model had struck a wonderfully expressive pose and I really enjoyed working on the painting. I found the study of fabric to be good...it can be so tempting to just work on the expression of the model and not give adequate effort to the fabric which helps tell the story. This painting is 12" x 9".

By the way, I will be at art festivals in Texas the next couple of weekends so it will probably be at least 2 weeks before my next post.

This week's painting was done from a live model doing a quick pose...it was either 5 or 10 minutes to do this painting. She is standing on the sill of a large window at the Art Students League of Denver, where this was painted. Twice a week this time of year I paint in a class where we spend the afternoon (3 and a half hours) painting quick studies like this one. It is exhausting but a lot of fun, and great practice. In an afternoon we do dozens of paintings...each time going through the process of deciding on the composition and massing in the large simple shapes of the painting. There is not much time for finishing touches, so the paintings all look pretty sketchy like this one. I try to say as much as possible with each brushstroke. It has had an enormous impact on how I paint, even when I have more than 10 minutes!

Both the barn and the tree in this scene are old timers. I liked the curve in the tree trunk and the low branch, and the gentle curve in the front of the barn roof. Scenes like this one can be found in many places, but here we are deep in the heart of Texas, somewhere between Austin and Houston. I'll be heading there again later this month for several art festivals...maybe I'll find some more ideas for paintings!

This painting is 14 x 18 inches. I haven't come up with the right name for it yet.

This week I did a series of paintings of Elk Meadow, in Evergreen, Colorado...not far from my home. The painting depicts a clear but slightly misty day, in which the distant trees become more blue and less clear. This painting is 14 x 18 inches. Elk Meadow is a park with good trails through the meadow and up into the mountain (Bergen Peak) behind the meadow.

This is a scene in the old warehouse district in Milwaukee, now renovated (but not overly so) to include lofts, restaurants and shops. We were there on a beautiful summer evening in 2008. Figures, streets and cast shadows in the late afternoon sunlight appear many times in my paintings...it's one of the subjects I enjoy very much and return to again and again. This one is 14" tall and 18" wide.

This is an early morning view in August of Lake Michigan from one of the elevated trains in Chicago (on the Red Line. I don't remember exactly where but somewhere north of Lawrence Avenue). Chicago is one of my favorite cities and I really like the views from the EL. I plan to visit the city again this coming August. One of the challenges with an urban scene like this is to avoid getting too fussy with details but still have a convincing painting. This painting is 18" x 24".

This is a scene in southern France in early spring when the grass in the pastures has turned green but the trees are still winter-bare. I liked the collection of hilltop farm buildings. In painting this I was thinking of a composition of mostly neutral colors, with some areas of green and a few accents of complementary red. Showing the distant trees on the horizon as bare trees, without painting every branch, was an interesting challenge.

The painting is 20" tall and 16" wide. I painted it on Saturday while listening to the Metropolitan Opera broadcast of Lucia di Lammermoor. It was a breathtakingly good performance and I am naming the painting "Lucia's Farm" in its honor.