Three Apples by Curtis Jaunsen  14×11″  Oil

Curtis Jaunsen. I love the abstract quality in his beautiful paintings, it really jumps out at me. Great light in his paintings. Be sure to check out his work! His lemon still life’s… whoa! Be sure to stop by his website, you’ll be glad you did! Beautiful work! Cool signature too!

View more of Curtis’s work from these links:

Website  |  Facebook  | Instagram

Read a bit about Curtis, from his website:

Curtis Jaunsen grew up in Atlanta, Georgia. He studied architecture at the Georgia Institute of Technology and worked as a professional architect for the next twenty years. During this time he spent many hours working as an artist primarily painting abstracts. He had a brief affiliation with the short lived Urban Art Gallery in Midtown Atlanta. 

Artist’s Statement: For as long as I can remember I’ve been drawn to the emotional potential of art. I began my career as a full time artist by first spending two years at the Florence Academy of Art in Italy. Among the so many valuable lessons I learned, one of the most important was learning to appreciate much more deeply the beauty of light. Now, whether I’m painting landscapes, portraits, or still lifes, whether I’m adhering as closely as possible to nature or exploring the abstract possibilities of paint, I remain enthralled by the beauty of light. Today I live with my family on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, painting in my studio or outside, always seeking to filter nature’s innate beauty through the eyes of an artist. Read more here…

Catch you back here tomorrow!

All images via CurtisJaunsenArt.com, used with permission…

Images are not for reproduction, they are property of the artist.

Aspens by Jake Gaedtke  24×16″  Oil

Jake Gaedtke. Powerful paintings. Aspens is just one example. Look at the magnitude of these trees and the way the light hits their trunks. You can see how deep and dark the surrounding forest is, yet these trees shine. Stunning!

See more of Jake’s work via these links:

Website  |  Facebook  |  Instagram

Read a bit about Jake, from his website:

As a second grader, Jake was completely lost and separated from the rest of his class as they toured the Detroit Museum of Art. The paintings that surrounded him had Jake so spellbound that he was cut off from his class, and found himself mesmerized in a sea of art. He wanted so much to be able to do the work he was seeing before him on the walls. That desire never left him.

Like most landscape painters, Jake loved the outdoors and he grew up spending a great deal of time camping, fishing, hiking and exploring. As a teenager of sixteen Jake’s parents allowed him to take the two year Famous Artist Course for Young People. A correspondence art course that started him on a path of learning and discovery of the art world. A high school art teacher fresh out of college bellowed the fire inside of Jake through his passion, enthusiasm, and love for drawing, painting, and art history. His personal interest in learning and growing as an artist is something that has never left him. Unfortunately, other teachers and friends convinced Jake of the old stereotype that one cannot make a living as an artist and he took on other career paths including graphic design and advertising. It was still creative and offered a good pay check, but it was fine art that really beckoned him. After years of struggling with his desire Jake finally took classes from the famed illustrator Gene Hoffman at the University of Northern Colorado. They developed a friendship, and through his mentoring and encouragement helped him grow closer to making the break as a full time artist. He was able to do illustration work for a number of clients and advertising firms. Jake spent a lifetime drawing and painting the figure on the side, but always wanted to learn to paint landscapes and the natural world he was so close to. A plein air workshop with the landscape painter Jay Moore finally convinced him that this is what he wanted to do. He was hooked. Jake took two more workshops with Jay when he invited Jake to take his newly formed one-on-one Mentorship program. After five grueling months of extremely hard work and study, Jake’s growth as an artist took a professional turn and he hasn’t looked back since.

After years of painting landscape subjects, Jake’s  interest turned to another passion he has had all his life in the form of seascapes. The Ocean with all it’s moods and mysteries drew Jake into painting seascapes and has added it to his growing genre of subject matter. After living in Colorado for 35 years, he relocated to Bozeman, Montana where he now lives with his wife Janice. Being in Big Sky Country allows Jake to explore and paint the wilds of the Western landscape he loves so much.

Painting from life challenges artists to concentrate every sensory nerve on the information in front of us. We absorb it all, from sight to sound and scent, from temperature to atmosphere – we recreate the experience by channeling those feelings from head and heart to hand, through paint, onto paper and canvas.

My calling as an artist is to share my vision and experience of the natural world and its many marvels. My goal is to couple my knowledge of art history and the learned disciplines of skilled technique with all the emotion I feel “in the moment” when I am painting – to capture that moment of intense awareness for the viewer to experience and enjoy. 

In both my field studies and my studio paintings, I invite the observer to journey with me into a world of total sensory awareness of the countless wonders and manifold expressions of nature.

Catch you back here tomorrow!

All images via landscape-art.com, used with permission…

Images are not for reproduction, they are property of the artist.

Almost Home by Nancy Van Blaricom 24×36″ Oil

Nancy Van Blaricom. Almost Home is a lovely painting that has so much interest. The wonderful tree line, the curve of the road, the FABULOUS light streaking across the road as well as dappled along the side in places. Touches of snow fill the branches. The road looks icy. There is so much feeling in this painting. Fabulous! Be sure to check out Nancy’s website to see the progress shots that she took along the way!

In our correspondence back and forth I can tell you this about Nancy. She has a great personality, and her enthusiasm is infectious. She has such a great attitude towards life. Her paintings will make you smile.

View more of Nancy’s works via these links:

Website  |  Facebook  |  Instagram  |  Pinterest

Read a bit about Nancy, from her website (also check out her blog!):

Catch you back here tomorrow!

All images via NancyVanBlaricom.com , used with permission…

Images are not for reproduction, they are property of the artist.

Painting by Jacob Aguiar   12×12″ Pastel

Jacob Aguiar. His paintings don’t look like pastel to me. They look like a combination of wonderfulness… each is absolutely stunning. I love the light – so many fabulous paintings – you’ve got to check it out. If you’re interested in a pastel workshop but you aren’t sure who to take a workshop from… look no further – check the link below! These are going to be some great workshops!

View more of Jacob’s work from the following links:

Website  |  Instagram  |  Workshops

Read a bit about Jacob, from his website:

I have been an artist my entire life. I can remember as a kid staying up until midnight drawing comic book characters with friends or sitting in the car while my parents had to run errands so I could draw what I saw out the window. An avid lover of the outdoors from an early age, my favorite activities as a child included playing hide and seek and building forts in my friends’ woods in rural Kansas. It wasn’t until 2011 that my love of art and my love of nature found each other. Burned out in naturopathic medical school, I took a leave of absence my third year of school to spend time with family and to pursue art. I spent that year in the small Northern California town of Sebastopol. It didn’t take long before I realized I was surrounded by some of the most beautiful landscapes in America. At that point, I really had no direction, debating whether I should try watercolor, pen and ink drawing, oils or one of the many other media out there. I was searching the internet for inspiration and direction when I stumbled across the landscape pastels of Richard McKinley…needless to say, I was hooked immediately. Not only were his paintings incredibly beautiful, he had found a way to combine media in such a creative way. I immediately purchased my first set of Rembrandt pastels, and began my journey of capturing the beauty of the natural world with these little sticks of pigment.

That year I traveled throughout the west, studying with several incredible pastel artists, including Richard McKinley, Albert Handell, Clark Mitchell, and Marla Baggetta. I began entering and was accepted into several national shows including IAPS, Pastel Society of the West Coast, Northwest Pastel Society, Pastel Painters of Maine, and Pastel Painter Society of Cape Cod. Despite my love of pastels and painting outdoors, I returned to Seattle to finish my last two years of school.

I have since graduated from school and am practicing my two passions simultaneously. I work three days per week as a naturopathic doctor in Portsmouth, NH, and much of my off time is devoted to my art. Having a foot in two distinctly different worlds allows me to maintain perspective, and find passion in what I’m doing each and every day.  I am currently… Continue reading HERE…

Catch you back here tomorrow!

All images via JacobAguiar.com, used with permission…

Images are not for reproduction, they are property of the artist.

Saxe Point Moon by Jeffrey Boron   28″ x 22″   Oil

Jeffrey Boron, a Canadian artist with such a cool style. His water scenes have fabulous movement – His trees are magical, almost as if they could come alive – Snow scenes – pure heaven! Tree’s loaded with snow and dipping at the top – I adored every one of them – his paintings of a woman swimming are stunning. Have I piqued your interest? I thought so…

View more of Jeffrey’s work via these links:

Website  | Facebook  |  Instagram

Read a bit about Jeffrey, from his website:

Art has always been part of Jeffrey’s life. Born in Concord, Ontario, he began sketching and painting watercolours of his rural neighbourhood at an early age. Jeffrey’s creativity developed into an early career in graphic arts. While living and working in Ontario’s north, Jeffrey’s love of birds and nature led him to wood carving. His waterfowl and shorebird carvings became his main artistic focus at that time. Many of Jeffrey’s carvings are in collections throughout Canada and the USA. After moving to Victoria Jeffrey’s love of painting and sketching was rekindled by the beauty of the coastal environment. Painting in oil and acrylic has re-energized his love of landscape and marine painting. Jeffrey’s bold and colourful art has gained much popularity in Victoria and beyond. Read more HERE…

Catch you back here tomorrow!

All images via JeffreyBoron.com, used with permission…

Images are not for reproduction, they are property of the artist.

The Nook by Brenda Swenson 22×30″ Watercolor

Brenda Swenson. A fabulous watercolor artist – so many beautiful paintings! Brenda also has wonderful journals – words and paintings in a sketchbook. A beautiful diary of sorts. These sketches depict various subjects: places she has visited, locations she has painted, meals she has eaten, and more – including a description for each. Very creative!

Brenda also teaches workshops. A lot of them. She’s in demand (hence the waiting list on many), so if you see one you like you may want to sign up now!

View more of Brenda’s work via these links:

Website  |  Blog  |  Facebook  |  Instagram

Read a bit about Brenda, from her website:

Brenda Swenson is the artist author of two books, Keeping a Watercolor Sketchbook (Award of Excellence Finalist) and Steps to Success in Watercolor. Her paintings and sketches have been featured in numerous books... read more here.

Catch you back here tomorrow!

All images via swensonart.net, used with permission…

Images are not for reproduction, they are property of the artist.

Painting by Zac Retz

Zac Retz is a Visual Development Artist at Sony Pictures – never heard of a VisDev artist? Click on the link to learn more.

I haven’t really explored the world of digital paintings much, but let me tell you, after looking at Zac’s Instagram and Facebook, I am hooked! He has such a way of portraying feeling with his work – it amazes me the amount of talent in one person. Zac is very good at what he does, and in his spare time it looks like he paints (as shown above). Lunch breaks or any free bit of time is spent doing a small painting that is STUNNING. There are so many, you’ve got to look for yourself! I can’t wait to see what he paints next!

See more of Zac’s work via these links:

Facebook  |  Instagram  |  Blog

Catch you back here tomorrow!

All images via instagram.com/zacretz, used with permission…

Images are not for reproduction, they are property of the artist.

Mercer and Congress by Patrick Saunders 16×20″ Oil

Patrick Saunders. This guy is one prolific artist. Painting at various events around the country (check his website for details) – so many great paintings. Hard to pick just one (go look – you’ll see what I mean) – I selected this painting because it has such character and is so different. Those vibrant greens with the purple -whoa! Like magic!

Find more of Patrick’s work via these links:

Website  |  Facebook  |  Instagram  |  Blog  

(Check Patrick’s website for more social media links!)

Read a bit about Patrick, from his website:

Patrick Saunders is an artist, painting and creating art while traveling across North America in an Airstream Bambi with his photographer wife, Kimberly. He has studied with many renowned painters, including Mark English, Malcolm Liepke, Wilbur Niewald, Richard Schmid, and Burton Silverman. Painting a variety of subjects including portraits, pet portraits, landscapes, cityscapes, and florals – Patrick’s work is sold internationally.

Always seeking the next challenge, Patrick has worked as an illustrator, designer, animator, educator, musician, entrepreneur, and a fine artist. Throughout his career, Patrick has been recognized by his peers for outstanding work, earning awards – continue reading HERE!

Catch you back here tomorrow!

All images via PatrickSaunders.com, used with permission…

Images are not for reproduction, they are property of the artist.

Sunset by Maria Reardon 12×16 Pastel

Maria Reardon creates lively pastel paintings. You can see the sun setting through the trees in this painting, aptly named, Sunset. I like the various colors that are going on. Very nice!

Check out more of Maria’s work, via these links:

Website  |  Facebook  |  Instagram  |  Blog

Read a bit about Maria, from her website:

Maria Reardon paints the world around her. Working primarily in pastels, she loves being outdoors, immersed in the world, observing and experiencing everything going on around her.  She’s drawn to the unique and ever-changing relationships of form and color.   She is intrigued by the unexpected combinations of light and color which characterize her work, while working within the confines of physical forms and the spaces they inhabit. 

“A painting is an opportunity to explore something new. A new subject matter, a new color or technique.  That’s one of the things I love about plein air and painting from life, the experience will be different and exciting every time. I am seeking to represent a mood or an emotional quality but also be representative of the specific location.”

Maria is a Virginia native and received her formal education from Virginia Commonwealth University earning a Bachelor’s of Fine Art in illustration. She studied portraiture with Daniel Greene and continued her study of landscape by attending workshops with Albert Handell, Lorenzo Chavez and other nationally known artists. Her work has been exhibited throughout the Richmond area and is in private collections.

Catch you back here tomorrow!

All images via mariareardon.com, used with permission…

Images are not for reproduction, they are property of the artist.

River Light by Mary Byrom  10×20″  Oil

Mary Byrom. A Maine painter with such a cool style. There are so many things I like about her paintings – the trees I just love – they have personality! The light – that cool green and then sun on the island, lovely! Mary catches those subtle details that make her paintings really stand out.

View more of Mary’s work via these links:

Website  |  Facebook  |  Instagram  |   Blog

Read a bit about Mary, from her website:

Sometimes the best times are the quiet moments. An evening walk on a late fall day, watching  rain turn spring sidewalks into soft, blurry mirrors or low afternoon light in early winter making everything turn golden.

I paint these moments so I have them forever. Painting moments of beauty is the best way I know of recording the days and hours as they flow by in this big river of life.

Come along on the blog adventure!

Catch you back here tomorrow!

All images via MaryByrom.com, used with permission…

Images are not for reproduction, they are property of the artist.

Two English Plums by Felicity House – Pastel

Felicity House. A wonderful artist from Dorset (UK) – Fabulous paintings! So different. Felicity uses pastel in most of her paintings and she has a way of giving these paintings so much life! Each one is fresh and different. She has amazing drawing skills, which is so necessary to a good painting. There is an innate classiness to her paintings. They are airy and not heavy.  They make you smile.

View more of Felicity’s work via these links:

Website  |  Facebook  |  Instagram

Read a bit about Felicity, from the Bio on her website:

As a young child, paper was in short supply and there was never sufficient for my prolific graphite output. I clearly recall making pencil drawings on the insides of unfolded food cartons, the plain end papers of books and surreptitiously behind curtains on the wonderful surface of painted wall.

I was fortunate to benefit from a post-war education that gave time and status to Art and this encouraged and developed my visual skills.

Following a career school teaching I worked as an illustrator and as a tutor of life drawing and short art courses. Such flexibility gave me the opportunity to travel and fill numerous sketchbooks.

I discovered the versatility and immediacy of pastels and was elected a Member of the Pastel Society in 2003. As Archivist for the Society I regularly research the archives for information in response to requests from the public.

Active member and Former Chairman Bournemouth Arts Club, a meeting point for Artists in the region which regularly holds selected Exhibitions. Continue reading HERE…

Catch you back here tomorrow!

All images via Felicityhouse.eu, used with permission…

Images are not for reproduction, they are property of the artist.

Adopt 171 by Katya Minkina  8×5″ Watercolor (Sold)

Katya Minkina. A wonderful artist with beautiful paintings. Be sure to check out her paintings of Maui as well as her figure drawings! I first ran across one of Katya’s pet paintings and let me tell you, this girl has a way of capturing the soul of the animal. It’s wonderful, be sure to check out the many other paintings!

What a sweet painting – Katya captures the eyes so well. You can feel this dogs gentle spirit. So sweet…

Adopt 216 by Katya Minkina 8×6″ Watercolor

So many wonderful paintings of Katya’s to choose from – the animals grabbed me – but be sure to check out her website! I love a dog with a scruffy look (like my dog). So much character. Beautiful!

See more of Katya’s work from these links:

Website  |  Facebook | Daily Paintworks

Read a bit about Katya, from her website:

 I fell in love with Hana, Maui at first sight and instantly knew it would nurture my artistic soul for many years to come. A slow-paced life at the backdrop of the spectacular ocean, rainforest and vast green pastures relaxes the soul and opens it up for deep breaths of inspiration.
It was not until 2015 that I really discovered this magical piece of paradise. After the first visit to Hana, the rest of the year was spent in shuttling between Seattle and Hana for gasps of fresh air and a much-needed connection with the magic ‘āina (land). I am blessed to call heavenly Hana my home now – a place of many living paintings that I can’t wait to manifest on my canvas.

My life before Hana embraced several other special places with which I will always keep a strong bond: Moscow where I was born and raised, Hyderabad (India) where I spent the early years of my adulthood, Seattle, a point of big transitions, and Hana, a place I chose with my heart.

I was born in Moscow, Russia in 1981. Growing up among my mom’s paintings, art books and inexhaustible stack of typewriter paper, I thought drawing was the most natural way of being. At the age of 7, I got enrolled into an evening art school for children where, after a regular day in my other school, I was initiated in the fundamentals of drawing, painting and composition. For the next 9 years my life revolved around methodical still life painting in class, field trips to art museums and the zoo, art history lectures and painting homework that filled my weekends and summer holidays. 
In later years after completing my studies in linguistic and foreign languages, I settled in Hyderabad, India, where for five years I taught French in an international school. Painting and drawing took a back-seat, but the longing never quite went away. In 2008, life took me to Seattle, WA and the circumstances arranged themselves perfectly for me to return to drawing and painting. I discovered life drawing at Gage Academy of Art, and the open studio provided me with a much-needed practice to reanimate and hone my drawing skills. In the course of the next few years, I stuck to the disciplined schedule of a studio monitor to be able to attend as many figure drawing sessions as I could. Slowly, drawing yielded a transition to painting.

I remain fascinated with my primary source of inspiration, which is figurative art. On occasion, I turn to still life painting for its immediate availability, challenges of composition and practice of color palette. The real challenge of the recent years has been plein air painting. Meeting and observing the work of contemporary masters of this genre at Maui Plein Air Invitational events has instilled in me a true admiration of their craft and dedication.
Painting on location in Hana is always an adventure. Juggling the ever-changing natural elements, keeping up with the changing light, trying to block out the distractions has all been a steep learning curve.  Continue reading HERE…

Catch you back here tomorrow!

All images via katyaminkina.com, used with permission…

Images are not for reproduction, they are property of the artist.

Red Geraniums, Sunny Window by Janette Jones  20×20″  Oil

Janette Jones. I ran across her work on Instagram. What a treat! I love the loose brush strokes. It’s fabulous that these pots have no perfect edges, it’s so much more interesting to me. She strategically places bits of light where it matters most, maximizing the WOW – be sure check out her work!

Really, is there anything happier than a beautiful geranium? I have always adored them!

See more of Janette’s work via these links:

Website  |  Instagram  |  Facebook

Read a bit about Janette, from her website:

The comments heard most often about her paintings are “they make me feel joyful”, “lift my spirits”, and “they are filled with a sense of light and lightness”. As an artist who is constantly looking for the beauty of light in every subject, this is music to her ears. As a person who is wildly optimistic about life and positive about the future, she is thrilled her paintings reflect this “joie de vivre” attitude and bring joy to her collector. Janette uses a strong sense of design, personal color mixes and an intimate point of view to create her distinct style.

Catch you back here tomorrow!

All images via JanetteJones.com, used with permission…

Images are not for reproduction, they are property of the artist.