Twiggy - Flowering Plum

 Twiggy - Flowering Plum

6x8, soft pastel

Continuing with my spring flower theme...there’s nothing like seeing all the flowering trees in the spring. I paint a neighborhood scene almost every year because there are so many flowering plum and crabapple trees around. It’s easy to get a jump on spring by forcing the blooms from a few twigs (as this painting depicts). It’s such a fun thing to do in late winter when you simply can’t wait for spring to begin.

Comfort Zone

Comfort Zone

6x6, soft pastel

In these crazy times we all need to find our "comfort zone" while being as careful as we can regarding the pandemic that is COVID-19.  

Today I'm honoring all the pets around the world who are in isolation with us, providing more comfort than ever before. Jack, the Jack Russell terrier is currently hunkering down in Verona, Italy with his family. You can find Jack on his Instagram page: Beautiful Jack Alfonso. That's where I recently found his photo which inspired this painting.  I reached out to his "mom" and have instantly found a new virtual friend. Someone who is by now well versed in what it's like being in isolation in a country besieged by this virus.

We have been messaging each other during the past few days and she has provided me a glimpse into her world...the world we are beginning to experience here in the United States, an uncertain world indeed! 

So, my message would be: find your comfort zone, take care of yourself and your loved ones, reach out to a stranger and connect...social media can provide some scary information but it also can provide us hope and a way to connect with others around the world.  We can pray, connect, protect ourselves and continue to have hope that one day, we WILL dance again!

God Bless you, 

Cindy G.

Eat Your Veggies

Eat Your Veggies

14x11, soft pastel

What can I say, when kids or grandkids go off to college we all want to impart cautionary wisdom. Don't party too much, don't drink and drive, study hard, make good decisions, keep an eye on your goals and your grades.  But in the end, all I can come up with is: "stay healthy and eat your veggies".

Vintage

Vintage

12x12, soft pastel

I’m always drawn to color and shiny reflective objects...and I suppose I’m quite sentimental as well.  So these vintage Christmas ornaments were just the right subject matter for me.  It’s hard to keep things loosely interpreted and not go full board hyper-realistic...but for me, keeping things loose helps portray the texture (and age)  of each object.  Do you agree?  One of the things I love about art is that there’s something for everyone and everyone’s individual taste.  Love that! 

Abundance

Abundance

11x14, soft pastel

While scouting out locations to paint during the Eagle Plein Air Festival, I toured a nearby iris garden. Two small boys were also walking through the garden trailing far behind their mother.  She told them not to pick the flowers as they made their way down the pathway.  It must have been quite a vantage point to view the blooming garden at eye level, a sea of color, an abundance of life.

Table For Two - Date Night

Table For Two - Date Night

6x8, soft pastel

This is a rework of an older painting I did a couple years ago.   The nice thing about soft pastels is the ability to make changes to an older painting anytime you’d like.  This is one of several special places to go in Meridian...Grimaldi’s at The Village. 

Table For Two - Morning Coffee

Table For Two - Morning Coffee

8x6, soft pastel

No matter what’s going on in my life, a morning cup of coffee just starts the day off right.  I especially like the very early morning hours when it’s still dark outside and blue moonlight is still streaming through the window.

Dusk Along The Riverbank

Dusk Along The Riverbank

8x10, soft pastel

Much of my summer was spent at a little getaway in Cascade, Id.  We were a mile from the lake and only steps away from the Payette river.  This scene is across the Payette and is always a delight to paint whether it be in the early morning or late evening hours.

Summer Bouquet

Summer Bouquet

10x8, soft pastel

Painted this summer...and repainted larger this fall for an upcoming show.  I just loved the sunlight hitting the cement stoop in front of a local shop...especially how it cast shadows from the glowing flower bouquet.

Table For Two - Blue Stripes

Table For Two - Blue Stripes

5x7, soft pastel

A cute little scene I couldn’t help but paint...especially those gorgeous blue striped cushions.  A scene compiled from many photos and a little imagination.

Table For Two - Anticipation

Table For Two - Anticipation

8x10, soft pastel

I’m planning a series for “tables for two”.  I’ve gathered many images over the years...a place setting here, tablecloth there...some chairs occupied, some not.  This particular scene is one I’ve painted before and enlarged a bit this time.  I like to imagine who has sat here...who will come take a seat soon or even, who is the waiter approaching the table?  I love this scene...I can’t explain why.

Out Of The Depths

Out Of The Depths

9x12, soft pastel

This persistent late summer waterlily was intent on blooming one more time before the chill of fall set in.  The sun was low in the sky, peeking through the trees and highlighting the gorgeous bloom.  I suppose it was its final farewell to summer.

Seattle Landmarks

Seattle Landmarks

14x11, soft pastel

This is a commission piece I promised to do quite some time ago (sorry, the image isn't the best).  It was tough to really think of a good way to layout a painting with so many landmarks.  And for me, it was tough to limit the detail in each scene in order to stay more on the "painterly" side of things rather than photo-realistic.   So, it's somewhere in the middle.  There's little chance the recipient will see this blog post so I thought I'd share it here.  Happy Thanksgiving!

Adrift

Adrift
9x12, soft pastel

This piece is a larger version of Morning Calm which was donated recently for a giveaway on Dailypaintworks.com.  I love this particular scene because it's just so darn peaceful!  I may paint it larger yet again. This piece will be on display at the Meadowlake Art Show on Nov. 10th in Meridian, ID.  The show will actually run for a full 30 days.  If you're in the area stop by and let me know what you think.

Backyard Bouquet

Backyard Bouquet 

12x9, soft pastel

For the past couple years I focused on learning all I could about the use of soft pastels and (for the past twelve months) kept working at landscapes using a traditional realism style.  There are so many great artists (past and present) and I wanted to follow in their footsteps.  So, I tried like heck to temper my use of color over the past year...but I just couldn't achieve what was in my mind's eye.  

I often got bored painting trees, fields, mountains and lakes in realistic colors.  So for the next little while I'll try embracing my weakness for vibrant saturated color.  This style is reminiscent of Fauvism, the Colorists, and reminds me a bit of some of VanGogh's use of over simplification (as in his "Bedroom in Arles") and vibrant use of colors (such as "Starry Night" and "Cafe Terrace at Night"). 

Backyard Bouquet was a gorgeous vase of flowers from my yard sitting next to my favorite oval blue vase sometimes used to hold pens and pencils...all I had to do was add three oranges and I was all set with a colorful still life.  Yum!

Little Brown Eyed Girl

Little Brown Eyed Girl

8x6, soft pastel

Here we are, Sept. 1st once again and the 30in30 Challenge has begun.  The summer rushed by and I didn't accomplish half of what I thought I would.  As I told my oldest daughter recently, "The best laid plans of mice and men, often go astray."   You know how it is.  So many times in life we think we know what our immediate day/week/month will entail only to be cast off in another direction, reminding us that we are simply not in control of our lives.  

Less than a month ago my sweet mother passed away.  She had a full life and at 87 was ready to go.  Ironically, that's about what she weighed (87) when she fell and broke her hip.  With dementia in full control of her mind for the past several years and her body weakened, she sometimes had thoughts of heaven and asked just days before the fall, "When I get to heaven, do you think I'll get a new coat?".   "Oh yes mom!" I told her.  "You can pick out any color you want.  What color will you chose?".  "Oh my!" she exclaimed with sheer glee and a twinkle in her eyes.  "I always wanted a RED coat!".  As a child she lived an impoverished life during The Depression Era and was often hungry...and certainly never had a new coat.  So this thought of what heaven would be like for her simply delighted her.  

Since her passing, I told myself I would someday paint a picture of her with a new red coat and maybe someday I will. The painting above is my mother at the age of six years old wearing her very best clothes for her first grade picture.  Not a new red coat for this little brown eyed girl...but her very best clothes none-the-less.

I had resigned myself to passing on this month's 30in30 Challenge.  I have a lot of things I still want to paint but I just haven't had much inspiration lately.  We'll see.  I have no plans or expectations of how this month will unfold.  I'll take it a day at a time and see where it takes me.  After all, isn't that all we really have anyway?

Dancing Reflections

Dancing Reflections

9x12, soft pastel 

I so enjoyed the 2016 Plein Air Festival in Door County, Wi.  Unfortunately, my trip was cut short...but not before I could visit Gordon Lodge for a second time at sunrise.  On this morning, the featured artists weren't there...just me...and a gentleman quietly fishing from the shoreline.  It was so very quiet and peaceful as the sun rose and reflections danced across the water.   I hope to return to this magical place someday.

Hanging Out In Door County

Hanging Out In Door County

8x6, soft pastel

There are many homes and cottages around Kangaroo Lake near Bailey's Harbor, Wi.  A nearby neighbor's laundry provided a great little scene to paint.  With five brothers and sisters, hanging laundry on the clothesline was a frequent activity and fond childhood memory.

On The Way To Sister Bay

On The Way To Sister Bay

9x12, soft pastel

It doesn't take much to find a nice scene to paint in Wisconsin...this shed outside Sister Bay with an old boat beside it was just the ticket.  I especially liked the shadows on the rooftop.

Roadside Hollyhocks

Roadside Hollyhocks

10x8, soft pastel 

Door County is one of the most picturesque places I know. Boats, harbors, spectacular sunrises and sunsets...and more flowers than you can imagine!