Miss Marley

 

11x14 Oil on stretched canvas - NFS

An adorable (and tiny!) Yorkie some friends adopted from a shelter a couple of years ago when she was 12. She is the center of their household, so I wanted to do something a bit regal.  Princesses deserve that!

It never ceases to amaze me that someone would give up a dog when they get old, abandon them, or turn them into a shelter, but I've worked rescue long enough to know it happens all the time.  

Up the road a ways...

8x10 oil on panel

sits this house at the rear of the beautiful lot where the tree below lives. It was built about 3 years ago, and I couldn't figure out why it looked out of perspective until I realized the house doesn't sit square on the lot. but I know why they placed the house the way they did - to take advantage of the view of their lot.  Because it's just a plein air sketch, I won't try to correct it.  It's the light and shadows that made me want to stand there and puzzle it out.  Tip: Put out more paint than you think you'll need.  At least 3 times as much!

 

Idea: Go outside. Paint a tree. So I did.

9 x 12 Oil on panel 

After months of ignoring everything but the news and training myself for our new 'normal', I packed up my homemade pochade box and walked around the corner from my house.  This tree has captured my fancy at other times of the day, but I noticed the shadow pattern and decided to have a go.  Even on a gravel road, people stop to see what you're doing, so I'll have to find a sneaky way to paint outdoors in the future.