#19 - Does a Pear Beat 3-of-a-kind?

6" x 6" Oil on canvas panel

It seems everyone is painting pears these days so I thought I'd join in!

#18 - Darlin' Clementines

6" x  6" Oil on canvas panel

Today I wanted to paint something opaque and colorful so I chose a group of clementines in a square ceramic bowl. I thought the reflections on the underside of the bowl would be fun to play with but I got hung up on the inside instead. I'll paint this one again because I don't think I nailed it yet.

#17 - Erich's Stein

6" x 6" Oil on canvas panel

One of my favorite childhood memories is visiting my grandparents in their little house in the woods in southern Indiana. Soon after we'd arrive, Grandpa would ask my dad if he'd like a beer. After six hours in the car with four squirrelly kids I never heard dad refuse! Grandpa would head into the kitchen and come out with a brown glass stein with a wooden handle. Years later when I became old enough to enjoy a beer with Grandpa too he served me a beer in the same brown glass stein. Recently, my aunt sent me one of those original steins and I treasure it and the memories it conjures. I thought about my wonderful grandparents a lot as I painted it.

#16 - A Brewer's Dozen

6" x 6" Oil on canvas panel

Today I was drawn to reflective surfaces (and glass again.) Might decide to do this one again with different background colors. I was going for "Interior Dive Bar Chic" but missed, I think.

#15 - Tanqueray of Sunshine

6" x 6" Oil on canvas panel

Painting the Michigan cottage got me thinking about warmer weather and sunshine. One way to capture a little bit of that in the middle of December is with a Tanqueray and Tonic.

Summer Thumb Drive

8" x 10" Oil on canvas panel

Last summer we drove to a friend's Michigan cottage for the 4th of July. The friendship and beautiful weather of the weekend inspired me as I painted the cottage this autumn.

Snifter Picker Upper

6" x 6" Oil on canvas panel

This is a painting from last week. Glass and its myriad reflections have always interested me and they are challenging to paint. (The stuff inside this glass interested me too! A nice double IPA.) Thanks for checking in.

#14 - Tall Order

6" x 6" Oil on canvas panel

Nothing makes the winter somewhat bearable like a full Starbuck's holiday cup! I drank it in the morning and painted it at night.

#13 - Ball and Flame

6"x6", Oil on canvas panel

Number thirteen is an auspicious point at which to begin a daily painting blog but I'm finally at the point where I'm not completely embarrassed by the results. After years away from art I am rediscovering the fun and complete therapeutic immersion I experience when oil painting. 

Eighteen months ago I accidentally bumped into a Plein Air festival, and from there encountered the Daily Painting movement. Both Plein Air painting and Daily Painting have freed me from the big canvas pressure of unrealistic expectations which kept my paints in the closet and my artist sense under wraps. Now, with little 6" x 6" panels it is so much easier to find the fun and immersion I crave with my paints.

I'm hoping to post at least four times a week. Thanks for checking in.