Atticus at Full Gallop

This is the same little guy from the previous post.  Our friend liked two photos of Atticus and decided that she wanted both of them put on canvas.

This little guy is all about motion and speed.  He seems to be trying to be a racehorse in this pose, running along a track on a farm or ranch, probably in North Carolina.

Like the others of this genre, it's all about motion, hair, and clothes.

Atticus on the Beach

A good friend asked me to paint a picture from a photo that she had of her grand nephew walking on the beach in Mrytle Beach, SC.  He is intent on looking at the sand, probably looking for sea shells. 

The two year old is named Atticus, and he is apparently quite active.  This piece reminds me of the four paintings that I did of my grand daughters at two.  Not so much about the face, but all about hair, clothes, and motion.
I also liked the way that the beach turned out, especially the reeds in back.

Brad Paisley Martini Glass

This is the second year that I have participated in the Celebrity Martini Glass Auction as an artist/designer.  This means that I received a martini glass that was signed by a celebrity, and then I developed a design around that person.  The glass was then auctioned off to benefit the Naples International Film Fest.  A really fun project and time at the auction.

This year's celebrity was Brad Paisley, the country singer.  Notice that the glass is filled with (fake) water, and a silver cowboy belt is inserted.  Then, a red-white-blue small cowboy boot is attached to the top.  Lastly, a horsehair hat band wraps around the boot.  Another notable aspect is that the stem and lower part of the glass is painted to look like blue jeans, with boots protruding from the bottom. 

All in all, I like this design a lot, and so did the person who paid to have it.  3X the amount my glass last year raised.

Aspen Path 2012

Saw this type of picture in a gallery, after being triggered by a friend who liked it.  Since it portrayed the best of our Colorado mountain scenery, it just seemed like an obvious subject for a painting. Our friend liked it so much that is is now in their beautiful home.

When it was finished, I really liked the colors, especially the multiple yellows in the aspens.  I also love painting the aspen tree trunks, as each one is different, with a different "personality". Most of this work was done with pallette knife.  The chunky paint adds another dimension to the work.

The week after finishing this one, we went up to Summit County for a Fall golf trip.  I saw numerous places with a similar scene.  Could this be the start of a series?

Taco, The Dog

The Daytons from California recently got a new dog, Taco, named after the dog in the Taco Bell advertisements of old - possibly not politically correct these days.  Anyhow, we met Taco earlier this summer and, while he and we aren't the best of friends, yet, we decided that he can be a member of the family. So, he gets his own portrait for the Dayton-dog Hall of Fame.

 

 

 

 





Colleen's Wedding May 2012

 In May of 2012, we attended the wedding of my only niece, Colleen, in Virginia "horse country", held at a beautiful winery - yes, they have wineries in Virginia!  It was a very nice event, the wedding party looked great, and all attendees had a great time sampling the wines, as well as groom, James' home made beer. Quite a nice event  !

The colors that Collen selected for the wedding were white and purple, and these colors were prominently displayed throughout the event, especially in the flower arrangements for the bridal party. Each of the male participants
also had a boutineer made of a bachelor button of the same color.

As I have done a number of times in the past, I decided to paint the bridal
bouquet and the bride's Mother's flowers, and send them as a delayed wedding present. 

The finished pantings are shown to the right, here.  They came out very nicely, I think.

Tuscany Town

This is an image of the Tuscany town of Lacoste.  Since I love shadows and perspective, it made a natural painting for me.

I decided to do most of the foreground parts of the piece in pallette knife, to add depth and a texture more like the stones in the building.  It went on nice and "chunky" and allowed me to play with various different color combinations on the stones and the walkway.

Lastly, I decided to make the time of day, just after sunset, with the boulangerie (bakery cafe) closed for the day and the lights in the apartment above coming on.  This adds a little luminance of the focal point.