"To change one's life:
Start immediately.
Do it flamboyantly.
No Exceptions."

--William James


This guy is 24"x24." I kept working and working on him, knowing something wasn't quite right. A friend saw him and said to try some yellow. I did, which of course became orange, which I liked. So I worked in different shades of orange, yellow and pink. What do you think?

Marley

"Your present won't always match up to your past, but your future can surpass both.
----unknown


This is the final of Marley. The owner wanted these specific bits of text in the background. I'm not sure if they show up in the photo but they say things like "good dog" and "go outside?".

Marley commission view #1

 

"My friends are my estate."
Emily Dickenson





This is the commission I am working on currently. His name is Marley. He is a pound dog, part boxer. Isn't he sweet? The piece is 24"x24." I haven't written here in so-o-o-o long, because I've been doing nothing but painting. It's wonderful to be so busy, but I need to learn to handle the stress better. It's all "good stress," but my body doesn't know the difference between good and bad stress, so my neck and shoulders are in knots. Geeze, more lessons to learn...

Artist and Subjects

"If the only prayer you say in your whole life is 'Thank you,' that would suffice.
-Meister Eckhart


I delivered this commissioned painting to Lance and Gena yesterday. They are the owners of Ricky and Lucy, the subjects of the painting. They are the sweetest little dogs. It was such fun to meet them and visit with their owners. One of the bonuses of being a painter is meeting wonderful people (and dogs).

Iris Bouquet

"Love many. Trust a few.
Learn to paddle your own canoe."
-Author Unknown


My husband brought me these iris from the grocery store. They were so lovely; they begged to be painted. Perhaps the background is too loud. I'll live with it a day or two and then see.

Stargazer

"Discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes but in having new eyes."

This is a commission I just finished. It is to be a birthday present. I usually paint the entire canvas red before I begin a painting. This one is no exception. I like the way the red shows through in places. In this one, I left more red showing than usual-----the edges around the flower---and spots in the background. It is 6" x 6" done in acrylic.

Ricky and Lucy

 

"Life ain't no dress rehearsal!"
-Mark Twain


It seems like I have been working on this commission forever. That's why I haven't posted in so long. I still have to work on the background a bit, but I hope the dogs are finished. I've just emailed the photo to the client. Painting a white dog from a photograph challenges me almost too much. I'm fairly happy with this, but am always open to input. Oh, it measures 18" x 24."