#122 "Spring! and Little Sandwiches", oil on board, 24" x 18"

Well, I said I was going to paint flowers. Actually, I started this painting several months ago. I took a long time to get the drawing just right, and I laid in the underpainting, getting some idea about values. The original inspiration came from a photo of a garden party birthday I attended last year. For some reason I didn't get back to it until this weekend. I took it to Studio 106 in Langley, invited my friend Faye to paint with me and we had a super delicious day painting and listening to wonderful music. This painting makes me smile. The Ray for the Day is "Spring! and Little Sandwiches".

#121 "Mexico Sketches"

Well, I promised I would try to make a slide show of the sketches I did in Mexico. I did it! How fun to learn something new on the computer. This is a sampling of the sketches I did during Feb/March in Manzanillo. The Ray for the Day is "Mexico Sketches".

#120 "Looking Down Second Street", oil on cradled board, 16"x20"

This is a different view of Langley. On an early morning walk I was struck by the fabulous long shadows and the wonderful shapes of the buildings. Not to mention the water and the mountains and the sky. This was a complicated painting to draw and to paint, and I love it. I tried to just make shapes, alternating cools and warms, different textures and sizes and still have them read as the buildings that are there. It was interesting to make the street appear to dip down and then up again. All on a flat little board. I do so love this little town! Hey! All the Spring flowers that are popping out are making my heart glad. And making me want to paint flowers. Which I will probably do! I hope you know you can click on the painting and see it larger. The Ray for the Day is "Looking Down Second Street". SOLD

#119 "In Her Easter Bonnet..." oil on board, 31"x11"

So for all you whiners out there who feel I haven't fulfilled my promise of A Ray a Day.....well....dang...I haven't. My excuse is this: I was in Mexico for nearly a month and I didn't paint while I was there. I did, however, do a sketch a day and I posted them on www.whidbeyislandsketchers.blogspot.com. We sketch all Wednesday afternoons and well into the evening, complete with food and wine. It is a blast. If you want to see my Mexico sketches you can go to that site, where you will see tons of other really fabulous sketches. I may try to figure out how to put a slide show of them on this site as well. In the meantime, I've decided to do an Easter Bonnet thing for my Langley Open Studio event on April 2, and this is the painting I made to advertise that event. I wanted to paint something playful and I really had fun making this painting. And I'm back. There's another painting on the easel that is nearly finished so look for that later. Meanwhile, the Ray for the Day is "In Her Easter Bonnet...."

#118 "Twins", oil, 14" x 11"

So I did get the companion to Mystery Dress finished this weekend. I invited 4 painter friends to join me in Langley and Studio 106 for the weekend. We came and went at different times, painted watercolors and oils and sketched. We ate fabulous food, drank good wine and talked art and other important things to our lives. During all of that I finished this piece, did a number of sketches (look at www.whidbeyislandsketchers.blogspot.com to see those and other wonderful sketches by Whidbey artists), and worked on a Langley scene I hope to finish before I leave for Mexico. My challenge in this piece was to make it as evocative as the Mystery Dress painting. The Ray for the Day is "Twins". SOLD

#117 "Tall Tulips", oil, 6"x24"

Paintings seem to be taking longer to finish these days. I seem to be working on several at a time. Something new for me. It helps to know I have something started to go back to. I think about them all the time. I am also sketching again, and posting on the www.whidbeyislandsketchers.blogspot.com as well as this one. Open Hearted, the February Langly Art Walk at Studio 106 was hugely successful! Many lovely people came for art, chocolate, red roses, red wine, and schmoozing. I was high for days from it. Every Spring I get a hankering to paint tulips, so here is my first of what I think will be several long, tall flower paintings. I really can't help myself. I also have a companion to Mystery Dress in the works and another scene in Langley. I'm also leaving for Mexico for three weeks, so it may be awhile before you see those. I'll be posting sketches though on the sketchers blog. The Ray for the Day is "Tall Tulips".

#116 "Ready for the Mystery Dinner", oil, 11" x 14"

This painting was inspired by a room we stayed in at Mosswood Hollow Retreat Center. We stayed there with our entire family and had a Mystery Dinner party. Everyone was costumed to the hilt and it was fabulously fun. I first made this painting without the red dress....just the room with the light falling on the bed. Liana Bennet looked at it and told me she "just didn't care about it". It simply didn't interest her. It made me determined to make her care....hence the red dress which evoked an even more vivid memory for me of the family costume party...and won her interest in the painting. I really like this little painting. It is evocative of...what? The title could change if anyone has any better ideas. The Ray for the Day is "Ready for the Mystery Dinner".