Crane Conversation by Tracy Wall  36 x 24 x 1.5″  Oil

Tracy Wall. Wonderful artist who isn’t afraid to use color! This painting packs a punch, doesn’t it? I’m loving how the underpainting is showing through, it adds SO MUCH to this painting, then add the bright color of the crane and it’s wonderful shadows and WHOA! Nice painting! Be sure to check out Tracy’s website, she’s got great paintings! This painting is available at Abend Gallery! Also be sure to check out Tracy’s blog!

Read a bit about Tracy, from her website:

“Tracy grew up in the Midwest and has called Colorado home since 1981.  She has studied at the Art Students League of Denver under the influences of Michelle Torrez, Ken Velastro, Kevin Weckbach, John Lencicki, and Rob Gratiot with additional workshops from David Shevlino, Carol Marine and Sally Strand.

After starting at the University of Denver studying Fine Art under the guiding hand of Maynard Tischler, Tracy answered the call to study science (BS in Zoology at Colorado State University), education (MA in Special Education at the University of Northern Colorado) and health (MT in Therapeutic Massage at MTIC). She has now come full circle and has returned to her first love: the visual arts.

Tracy’s work can be seen in private and corporate collections across the country.” Read more HERE…

All images via TracyWall.com, used with permission…

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

Catch you back here tomorrow!

Princess and the Dragon by Paul Bond  33×44″  Oil

Magic realism artist. Perfect description for Paul Bond, his work is amazing and transports you to happy times! Paul’s work is so creative, I can look at each piece and think of different stories, what a treasure!

McKena’s Bittersweet Departure from the Island of Happiness by Paul Bond 24×30″ Oil

Wildly inventive, with that magical quality that transports you back in time but with a modern twist. I love this painting! Be sure to check out Paul’s Blog as well as his Shop – wow, Wow, WOW! I love his coffee table book (you can see a bit of it – how wonderful)!

Read a bit about Paul, from his website:

“Paul Bond’s art lives in the spaces between dreaming and reality. Drawing from the Latin American genre of Magic Realism where symbolic, surreal and fantastic elements blend with realistic atmospheres, they remove the veil on a world where everything is possible. Bond shares the following about his work:

“When viewing a scene, object or line in a novel that moves me, my mind’s eye is continually imagining what elements I could introduce or alter to make a grander statement about what I am experiencing. The physical world to me is heartbreakingly beautiful and profound. And the best way I can know how to channel those deep emotions life inspires in me is by adding to it through a world of my own creation. A world intended to both deepen my own life experience and to stir the souls of my fellow travelers.”

Bond’s award-winning magic realism paintings have been featured in galleries, museums and cultural centers, including the Gateway Museum in Farmington, NM and the San Diego Art Institute. His paintings are now in private collections throughout the US, as well as Australia, Europe, Asia and the Middle East. Corporate collections include the Hotel Hershey and PB&J Restaurants, and his art is featured in many contemporary art publications.” Continue reading HERE…

All images via PaulBondArt.com, used with permission…

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

Catch you back here tomorrow!

Cozy Up by Barb Walker 12×12 Oil

Barb Walker. I love her style. She doesn’t overdue her strokes. Her paintings are wonderful without being overdone. Those of you who paint realize how difficult that is to accomplish. I love interior paintings and this is a wonderful one. I love the character that this wingback holds. Wonderful!

Sconset Lane by Barb Walker 12×12 Oil

Sconset Lane. This is a famous Nantucket view that has been painted by many artists, I love this version. The road is wonderful, the houses, flowers, you really get a sense of it! Be sure to check out Barb’s website and check out her Daily Paintworks Gallery of Art – lots of red dots, I can see why!

Read a bit about Barb Walker, from her website (my favorite bios are personal and Barb’s is exactly that, you read it and get a sense of who the artist is – we share the love for a place called Maine, ahhh!):

“About me? Just have always loved nature, being outdoors, colors, life. Sketched for as long as I can remember. Have met so many good people who are great painters that I’m not sure which I enjoy more – the painting or those I have met. 

We live in Ohio, and travel to Maine almost every year. The galleries are amazing – the coast is breathtaking!”

All images via BarbWalkerPaintings.com, used with permission…

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

Catch you back here tomorrow!

Cadenza by Mary Aslin 12×9 Pastel

Mary Alsin. Pastel. Stunning work. I think the fluidity in Cadenza is beautiful. Soft, movement with beautiful light. Mary has a way with pastels doesn’t she?

Reverie by Mary Aslin 20×26 Pastel (Sold)

Another beautiful, soft painting. The edges are carefully blended, yet details like the hair and flowers appear more crisp and detailed. Another stunning painting!

Be sure not to miss Mary’s blog, it’s full of wonderful information!

Read a bit about Mary, from her website:

With the recent passing of my father, and the contemplation that comes after a major life event, I asked myself–again–“what is it that really moves me as an artist?”.  There is so much visual imagery available to everyone these days and so many artists from which one can take inspiration. 

Looking back at the work I have done and what I will continue to inspire, three key elements remain as fundamental as a cornerstone of my art:  light, story, beauty. 

Sometimes, these words when applied to art implies that the work is trite or too sentimental.

Yet, my working methods and inspiration are neither. 

Most of my art is based on working from life and grounded in the fundamentals of classical art.  I draw the live model and study figure anatomy.  I reference art of the Masters, and have visited many of the world’s art museums. 

The natural world–with all of its light and beauty and the stories told–is the stage.  I am the audience.

At my easel, I applaud. Continue reading HERE…

All images via MaryAslin.com, used with permission…

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

Catch you back here tomorrow!

Ponte Vedra Outpost by Kami Mendlik 12×9 Oil

This painting is moody and thick with not only paint, but with interest. The lighting is perfect – I happen to love the power lines, subtle, yet adds to the interest. Those dark trees are amazing, they really make the other trees, sky and path stand out, don’t they?

Be sure to check out Kami’s blog, lots of great information and beautiful scenery! Wow, what a studio she’s got! I love it!

In case you missed the article in the June/July 2016 Plein Air Magazine, check it out! Interested in taking a workshop? Check it out HERE!

Read a bit about Kami, from her website:

My deep passion for exploring and capturing nature with paint came at an early age.  I grew up just North of Stillwater Minnesota on my family farmland where my daily wanderings kept me endlessly curious about this land that I felt very much a part of.  I have vivid memories of watching the pink tops of the seedpods in August, and thinking how incredible it was that the grasses seemed to dance across the prairie.  It was clear to me then that they do not exist on their own, and that the rhythm and harmony of nature was incredible!  They had a wave and a rhythm unique to themselves, but were very much a part of a greater thing that I later in life learned was belonging and harmony. I loved that!  The grasses dancing belonged, just as I, and could not exist without each other element connected to another that made their existence possible.  I would escape for hours completely engrossed with my sketchbook or paints observing the land.  

 As I grew up, I continued to paint and study.  My decision to become a painter for the most part was not in one conscious moment, but rather an accumulation of my life’s experiences and my strong desire to study and capture nature and her harmony with paint.  I went on to study from both living and dead masters of the craft and to this day consider myself not only an artist and a teacher, but very much of a lifelong student.  The more I know, the more I know I don’t know, and this found knowledge keeps me inspired to pass on to others my discoveries of all nature’s beauties through paint.  The respect that I have for Nature and her awesomeness is beyond words.  My desire to study and attempt to translate this, is why I paint!  

 St Croix River School Of Painting:

 In 2008, Kami started and founded the St Croix River School of Painting in Stillwater MN where she teaches the fundamentals of representational painting with a special emphasis on color.  In January of 2014 she purchased a 16 acre farm just North of Stillwater, where she converted a 100 year old hip roof barn into her studio and the St Croix River School of Painting’s new location.  The property is a landscape painters dream with endless inspiration for painting. Read more HERE…

All images via KamiMendlik.com, used with permission…

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

Catch you back here tomorrow!