Charleston is full of beautiful spots to take photos, it’s so hard to leave the house without at least my phone! I snapped this one the other day on our morning walk, Charlie (woof) pulling and me trying to snap! Whew, it turned out. The water was still like glass and the reflections were gorgeous!
Enjoy your weekend and I’ll catch you back here tomorrow!
Striking paintings by Lisa Egeli, aren’t they? I like how the subject is close up in For Love and Money, and those colors… very nice! That water is fabulous! Love the sun coming through the sail as well!
Isn’t this painting just so peaceful? Can you feel your shoulders drop slightly instead of being hiked up around your ears? I would like to be sitting at this very spot listening to the slight ripple in the water while watching the moon. Lovely!
Read a bit about Lisa, from the Egeli Gallery website:
Artist Lisa Egeli has been described as “a meticulous connoisseur of nature”. Her portraits and landscapes, in oil and pastel, have been featured in many exhibits and permanent collections since her professional career was launched in 1988, when she graduated from the American Academy of Art in Chicago.
Her life as a painter, however, began long before, growing up a third generation artist in a family of artists, and learning her earliest skills from her father, portrait and maritime painter Peter Egeli. Her early training led her to a series of commissioned portraits and paintings of private homes, and then on to her formal art training in Chicago, to continue developing her gift for representational art in diverse media.
Since then Lisa’s work has taken her all over the world, in pursuit of landscapes. In 1991 she set out on a nine month painting tour that took her to Europe, Southeast Asia, China, and New Zealand. “Views From Around the World,” an exhibition of documentary drawings and paintings, opened on her return. Her work has been recognized in a variety of regional and national exhibitions, including shows with Oil Painters of America, American Society of Marine Artists, Art for the Parks, and Paint America. In 1998, Lisa traveled to Alaska to paint and sketch in preparation for her 1999 exhibit, “Nature’s Moods,” and in 2001 she made two painting trips to Italy. The State of Georgia Department of Natural Resources selected her for their Artist’s Residencies on both Sapelo and Ossabaw Islands in 2003. Lisa was selected to participate in the plein air painting events “Paint Annapolis” in 2005, 2008 and 2009, “Telluride Plein Air” in 2008, and “Plein Air Easton” in 2006 through 2009. A solo show in Baltimore in 2007 exhibited paintings from travels in east Africa, the Everglades of Florida, and her home state of Maryland.
Lisa is a Signature Member of the American Society of Marine Artists and a member of the Washington Society of Landscape Painters. Other memberships include Oil Painters of America and Mid-Atlantic Plein Air Painters Association. “Fine Art Connoisseur Magazine” featured Lisa as one of “Today’s Masters” in the September/October 2009 issue.
Lisa continues to paint portraits and landscapes for a wide range of clients, working from her studio at home in southern Maryland most of the year and in south Florida (at Miami’s Art Center South Florida) in the winter. Her goal, whether portraying the wilds of Alaska, the endangered mountain gorillas of Uganda, or the haunting marshes of Maryland’s Eastern Shore, is to capture a sense of place, and also capture that combination of awe and intimacy that is the essence of an encounter with nature.
Lisa Egeli lives by the shores of the Chesapeake Bay for most of the year and in south Florida for the winter.
232 Shelby Road, a wonderful plan from Our Town Plans. This plan is 852 square feet that is conditioned, and 472 unconditioned square feet (screened porch area), with 2 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms.
This plan is so unique and so perfect for people who want to live close by, yet still maintain their own private space! Let’s just think of a few scenarios…
-Friends or relatives live one on each side, and share the screened porch area. Catch up with a hot tea or a glass of wine. Chat about their day, maybe throw something on the grill.
-Same scenario as above, but these people like to cook and maybe do a little entertaining… why not make the screened porch closed in and a kitchen that can be shared?
-Say it’s just you, and you have a lot of visitors because you live in a wonderful location, like say… Charleston, SC! You live on one side, and when people come to visit, they have their own side. You visit, then you can go back to your own space!
-Or say, you’re an artist OR you work from home, yet you would like your spaces to be separate. Tada! Instant Studio or Office! That can double as a guest room, or maybe even provide rental income at some point! Hey, depending upon your location, this house may even pay for itself! Ok, those were totally my words, and I am no expert, but you know what I mean ;)
I can come up with so many more possibilities, I love plans like this! Check out the (drop dead gorgeous) images of the interior and exterior! (Just scroll down when you get to that page).
Images via OurTownPlans.com, used with permission…
Catch you back here tomorrow!
Low Tide Morning has such great movement, doesn’t it? Faye has nailed the color of the water. That’s one thing that will stand out to me quickly… if the color of the water is off. Water is different in color and clarity depending upon where you are. This is gorgeous! Faye said on her website that she painted this at Mariposa Beach, which is close to her house. She painted it plein air and finished it in about two hours before the tide came in and submerged her subject.
Beautiful!
Read a bit about Faye from her website:
Painting is my passion, and I have always dreamed of pursuing a life in the arts. From a young age, my dad, also an artist, taught me the joys of painting. Since childhood I have been surrounded by amazing art and inspiring artists.
Originally from New Mexico, I graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of New Mexico. I then moved to the San Francisco Bay Area to chase adventure and explore whatever creative avenues I could. From Art Gallery Management and Sales to Commercial and Fine Art commissions, I have experienced many creative and business opportunities within the art world. As a professional artist for over 15 years, it has been a great experience working with companies like Disney and Universal Studios. Working for Disney brought me to Southern California, where I now live.
I recently launched Fay Wyles Fine Art to pursue my lifelong dream. My love of surfing, experiencing the outdoors and traveling is what fuels my passion and inspiration for art. As a full time artist, I now live my dream every day.
Catch you back here tomorrow!
Image via FayWylesFineArt.com, used with permission…
Fabulous new paintings by Tim Bell! This man has fabulous brush strokes, each one deliberate. Stunning!
Another stunning painting, what fabulous colors! The boats are so elegant… Tim is a magnificent artist, and these two paintings are now available at The Gallery on Broad, located in Charleston, SC – if you’re in the area, be sure to check it out!
Hey! If you’re an artist, there is a workshop that begins this Friday, April 17-19, 2015 with another fabulous artist, Ken DeWaard! Contact the gallery if you’re interested, it’s going to be one heck of a workshop – here in Charleston, SC!
Catch you back here tomorrow!
Oooh! Dramatic, intense, FABULOUS color. Laguna Canyon – California is a wonderful piece at a super wonderful price ($120, if it’s still available)! Check out Kevin’s Etsy shop, you’ll be amazed at the work that’s available and very affordable! This oil painting almost looks like a mixture of pastel and oil to me. I love the texture and the many colors showing through!
I thought this would be a great piece for a cool laundry room, The Laundry Scene. This was painted at the Suds O Fun, ha ha… with the paintings come a little blip about it. This is a watercolor ($50 if still available)!
All images via Kevin Inman’s Etsy shop, used with permission…
Catch you back here tomorrow!
This building demands your attention. Striking isn’t it? This is the John Rutledge House Inn located on Broad Street in Charleston, SC. We spent a night there almost twenty three years ago! It was so wonderful, the breakfast was to die for, and the inn itself… absolutely beautiful! This wasn’t the best photo, but it was snapped on the way to my car, as usual ;)
Here is a little bit about the history (from their website), but I urge you to check out their website, they have wonderful photos that show the transformation of this building!
John Rutledge built this elegant home as a wedding gift for his bride Elizabeth Grimke in 1763. In the 2nd floor drawing room, now the Signer’s Ballroom, John Rutledge, chairman of the drafting committee, wrote several iterations of the Constitution of the U.S. He later signed the document with the other founding fathers. In 1791, George Washington had breakfast with Mrs. Rutledge during his Presidential visit to Charleston.
Catch you back here tomorrow!
Cool shot, eh? Broad Street, Charleston, SC taken through the car windshield with my iPhone. Charleston has such unique charm and beauty, I love sharing it!
Catch you back here tomorrow!
Michael Orwick. Beautiful painting! What else can you say? Stunning with the dark trees against that beautiful background. Everything about this painting is appealing. You see the sharpness of the detail that is up close and you can feel the distance. There is some wonderful light going on! Michael’s paintings are fabulous, and it wasn’t easy to choose just one!
Michael has some workshops coming up this year, so be sure to check them out!
Be sure to read MY STORY on Michael’s website – I LOVE his style of writing! Brilliant!
Read a bit about Michael, from his website:
Growing up in the Oregon Cascades and the Willamette Valley, nature and the landscape have had a profound impact on Michael Orwick. He has always been inspired by the ability of landscapes to tell stories.
Michael’s career in art started in animation at Will Vinton Studios and moved quickly into illustration, where he enjoyed bringing the ideas of others to life. As is true for many creative people, Michael was drawn to develop his own signature style of “Inspired Expressionism,” painting his ideas on canvas and inviting the viewer to provide the narrative.
Orwick is a master of creating mood through atmosphere and color, utilizing space, a sense of place, and time of day to convey his vision. His work hints at a story and it is what he leaves untold that that engages the viewer in the creative process of storytelling. He often hears that people feel as if they have “seen this place before”.
Orwick’s paintings offer the chance to return and explore a special place that lingers in memory and imagination.
Art evokes the mystery without which the world would not exist. —Magritte
Michael Orwick, at his best melds pictorial storytelling with a hauntingly familiar world. He creates compelling views of our world that move beyond time and place – full environments for your mind to explore, your senses to imagine.
— Mari Rockett, Curator, DragonFire Gallery, Canon Beach, Oregon
Artist Statement …
There is a reason we are drawn toward beauty. It is the language of God and nature.
Nothing more provocative than beauty — it inspires deep reflection and motivates me to create.
I blend from a primary color palette, painting wet into wet and with layers, to both reveal and hide what lies behind; in this way I entice you into the painting. I love it when people share the feeling and stories my paintings evoke. It is my sincere wish that you will want to revisit these beautiful locations and painterly stories again and again.
Catch you back here tomorrow!
This is the Dewees Breeze house plan by Flatfish Island Designs. This plan has 2,750 square feet with 3-4 bedrooms and 3.5 bathrooms.
I love the aesthetics on the exterior of this house. The white and the light metal roof make it appear cooler to me on a hot day. The dormers add charm and I love the cool awnings over the windows. They will help protect the window as well as keep out some of the harsh light, but still let in enough light!
But just wait until you see the inside… Click above link for the house plan to see images of the interior on the Flatfish Design website – whoa!
An open floor plan gives you the ability to participate while you’re cooking or cleaning the kitchen, something it seems that we do quite often! The master bedroom/bathroom are downstairs which is so convenient! Off the kitchen is a wonderful pantry (oh la la!) and a very nice size laundry room! What a dream!
Upstairs are 2-3 bedrooms. Two bedrooms over the main portion of the house. Above the garage is a wonderful space, perfect for an artists studio, extra bedroom, or office space! The options are limitless! There is also room for additional stackable washer/dryer upstairs. Which is a nice option should you need it! Personally I would make the bathroom a Jack & Jill with a door to each bedroom? What a great plan!
House plan images and photo of house via Flatfish Island Design Blog (FlatfishIslandDesigns.blogspot.com), used with permission…
Catch you back here tomorrow!
Mark Kerckhoff. Mark’s paintings are fabulous! He stops painting before the painting is tight and has every little detail included. His use of color is AHmazing! Just look at the light in the painting! That wee bit of color, the orange and red, just a dab here and there, stunning against that gorgeous blue, sky with those fabulous fluffy clouds. Nice!
Another great painting with a bit more looseness which I really love! The colors SING. Yep, they sing… a perfect harmony of color, feeling of movement, composition, and it’s just a great example of a nice painting!
Read a blip about Mark – from his website:
Mark Kerckhoff was born in Covina, California in 1959 and studied painting and drawing at California State University Long Beach.
Mark was deeply influenced by his teachers – hyper realist painter Nicolas Boscovich, and figure drawer John Lincoln.
Mark is a self-taught landscape painter.
The base of his interest in landscape painting stems from growing up in rural Los Angeles County raising Cochin bantams and other exotic birds in his suburban backyard.
Many of Mark’s early drawings were of his birds.
Mark also enjoyed exploring the Sycamore-lined gullies near his home and riding horseback through the South Hills, observing the beauty of nature and its peaceful solitude.
These early childhood memories continue to be a presence in his paintings.
Mark rarely paints with companions, preferring the solitude of remote areas far from the maddening crowd and critic.
Inspired by old and modern masters, Mark executes paintings that embrace his love of color, high aesthetics and craftsmanship.
Mark’s favorite quote is by John Ruskin the great Victorian art critic, “All great schools enforce delicacy of drawing and subtlety of sight: as of yet, found without exception respecting art is that all great art is delicate”.
Images via www.KerckhoffPaintings.com, used with permission…
Catch you back here tomorrow!
Wow! Just back from a trip to Michigan to see my family. I snuck this shot in when I arrived. I always loved the ice going down the river, the cool sounds it would make. It’s just so peaceful. There is so much that happens on this river. In the winter the ice freezes, then it jams, involving Coast Guard cutters to break the ice. Then for a period there will be no ice, and then it will start flowing again.
Summer you see boats, jet skies, swimmers, divers, you name it. It’s the greatest entertainment ever! Growing up, our summers were spent in the river, and floating down the river. There is a great current that keeps things moving, and we would jump in at one location and float home. I’ll never forget those days!
This river is always different and always amazing!
Catch you back here tomorrow!
Linda Christensen has a style all her own. She paints (mostly) women, her colors, brush strokes and choice of subject is always interesting and fresh. I urge you to scroll through and see these amazing paintings! In this painting “Tea” it’s clearly a woman drinking her tea, but you can tell by the way she’s holding it with both hands that she’s savoring it. You can tell by her body language that she isn’t in a rush, she is enjoying it. With the nice warm sunlight streaming in the window this is a fabulous place to be. Neat how she continued the pattern on the floor onto the woman. Those few strokes that make up the sink are brilliant!
Read a bit about Linda from Sue Greenwood Fine Art gallery’s website:
I continue to explore the figure and am looking more consciously at the reasons for doing so. I enjoy working on composition whilst creating obstacles for myself – this challenges me to select different solutions to familiar situations.
Sometimes throwing something onto the canvas that has little immediate connection to the current idea opens up a new awareness. I strive to keep myself interested in the process and therefore a challenge is welcome. Reworking my palette and exploring new color combinations is helping me to question the reason for selecting specific colors.
I like the challenge in my awareness of what isn’t happening, what isn’t being used, what isn’t being said and why, these are some of the obstacles I set myself.
Honesty about myself is a crucial factor in my paintings. My overall desire is to emit emotion through the paint, the line, the contrasts and composition. Redundancy is the enemy. I want to keep things interesting and with a hint of danger. Danger in the desire to obscure what is already there and what might be a beautiful passage in the painting. Courage to continue growing and recognizing my need for emotional movement is paramount.
Read more here…
Image via LindaChristensen.net, used with permission…
Catch you back here tomorrow!
Enjoy your day! Happy Easter!
Catch you back here tomorrow!
See that vertical think that looks a little bit snake like? That’s Lizzie #432,994 – Charlie chases these “Lizzie’s” around for hours at a time. He stomps his feet, he kicks, he jumps, and he wags his tail. Constantly. For hours. Then he comes in the house, gets his face and feet washed and goes into a deep happy sleep. No doubt trying to find Lizzie #432, 995.
Speaking of snakes… we saw our first one of the season on the street behind us while going for a walk. Talk about getting your heart rate up. Whew! Tis the season…
Catch you back here tomorrow!
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