I WORK EN PLEIN AIR, OUT IN THE COUNTRYSIDE… Welcome. I am back to painting again after a sabbatical that included a few pieces done for charitable fund raisers. I am continuing to make small, 6" x 8", landscape oils, but not every day. I am also working on larger pieces. Every time I finish a painting, I will place it here on my website. If you see something you'd like to purchase, email me. Thank you for enjoying my work and keeping me creating new pieces. Your interest stimulates and inspires me and has made me a better painter. Sign up for my emails and I will send you an image of each new painting. I love to paint and am happy to share my painting experience with you. Most of my work is impressionistic landscape oils, inspired by the beauty of the Island of Martha's Vineyard where I live.
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“Lighthouse Beach”, this is a small painting, 6″ x 8″, oil on canvas panel. $750.00 USD
This was a fishing and painting expedition. Robin and I walked about 3/4 mile down the beach to get to the fishing hole and the painting spot. The weather was calm, but the tide was near low. I mostly painted while she fished. We caught a lot of seaweed salad for dinner… Oh well, at least I have the painting to show for the effort…
“After Summer”, this is a small painting, 6″ x 8″, oil on canvas panel. This painting has SOLD.
It is always a bit sad to see the lifeguard stand empty, no one on the beach and fishermen working the shore and jetty. Fall seems to come too quickly with its riotous color palette and warm afternoons. But soon enough the colors will turn to grays and the air will chill…
“Crumbling Cliff”, this is a small painting, 6″ x 8″, oil on canvas panel. This painting has SOLD.
I have not been to this beach for a few months, nor since the storm came through. It is amazing how much was eroded by the large sea and wind which swept past. I have gone back to view paintings I made on the beach in the winter of 1995 and the loss of cliff is really noticeable. It is like 2 feet per year in many places. Boulders I would paint next to then are in the surf zone now. It was great to be in the sand working with the sound of a heavy surf muffling all other thoughts until a rogue wave washed up around my easel’s legs…
“Menemsha Creek”, this is a small painting, 6″ x 8″, oil on canvas panel. $750.00 USD
It rained most of my painting time here. No one was out. I parked on the wrong side of what I call “Fishermans’ Lane” and worked with my windshield wipers going on and off and then on and off. It was drismal, except for the finished piece…
“Surf’s Up”, this is a small painting, 6″ x 8″, oil on canvas panel. $750.00 USD
I went back to yesterday’s location to paint a landscape view behind the dunes and cliffs. Not only was it not raining but the surf was so much more impressive than the day before. I abandoned my plans and concentrated on the seascape from the cliff tops…
“Rollers”, this is a small painting, 6″ x 8″, oil on canvas panel. This painting has SOLD.
Rain came down most of the day. When it wasn’t rain it was mist or drizzle. Radar showed there might be an hour window of just plain clouds, no moisture, toward the end of the day. I took the chance, scouting when I got to this beach using my iPhone camera to take photos. I went back to the van to get my paints and mull over the photos. No sooner was the door shut than it poured. I was able to manipulate the van into a painting position and worked until dark with the wipers on and off and on and off. It was a grand sea out there. Big rollers were continually pitched against the cliffs below, probably from the force of a nearing tropical depression. It was tempting to jump in, but for the fact that I was alone and the cliff stair was missing the bottom 2/3rds steps…
“On A Clear Day”, this is a small painting, 6″ x 8″, oil on canvas panel. This painting has SOLD.
I have a commission to do a painting of this lighthouse and decided to do a small one for my daily piece as well. As I was packing up for the night, the Coast Guard Station Chief came out (that’s his residence attached to the lighthouse) and introduced himself to me. He was curious to see what I had done all afternoon. Then he made me an offer I can’t refuse. He gave me his cell number and said anytime I’d like to come onto the grounds and paint to give him a call. I guess I will try to do one or two more from different angles later in the fall…
“Brickyard Before Storm”, this is a small painting, 6″ x 8″, oil on canvas panel. $750.00 USD
I have never painted here before. Almost 2 miles of hiking on a very humid day, uphill and then downhill one way with all my gear, seemed less and less like a good idea. Upon arriving at the look out point to find a nice breeze and incredible view, I allowed that maybe I had made a good choice. Walking back through the woods in the dark was another matter entirely…
“Wetland Path”, this is a small painting, 6″ x 8″, oil on canvas panel. $750.00 USD
At most locations where I find myself painting I also do a bit of scouting for the setting of my next piece. While I was working last week in the blueberry grounds, I followed the through path down hill into the glades beside a stream. It may have been the Tiasquam River, but I am not certain. The path is well maintained and had this short passage over a wet area before a foot bridge. Taking a quick snapshot to refresh my memory later in the studio, I liked the image enough to go back and create this work. I tried some Skin So Soft to ward off the multitude of mosquitoes and came home smiling, happy but odiferous…
“Squibnocket Rain”, this is a small painting, 6″ x 8″, oil on canvas panel. This painting has SOLD
It poured rain most of today. I resigned myself to sitting in my van and painting a land or seascape. Not as much fun as standing outside and working, but another option. It rained all the way up on the drive to the beach. When I parked in a spot overlooking the surf, the drizzle stopped too. I was able to get out and work as the mist and fog ebbed and flowed along the farther reaches of the beach until it became too dark to distinguish colors, mine or the beachscape…