Dec 22, 2015

Dinner at the Enoteca


This is a behind the scenes view of a cook working at an enoteca (wine bar) in Florence, Italy. He takes a break from preparing meat and cheese boards to pour a glass of wine for a customer. Oil on 11"h x 14"w x 1 1/2" stretched canvas. SOLD.

Dec 20, 2015

Where Are You


A lady sits on the ledge of a bridge in Florence, Italy. She appears to be texting someone she was supposed to meet to find out where they are. Oil on 20" x 20" x 1 1/2" stretched canvas.

Dec 19, 2015

Dec 17, 2015

View of Rome


We got lost on our way to find the Spanish Steps in Rome, and ended up climbing up a big hill. We were rewarded with this view, which contains Saint Peter's Basilica in the background. Oil on 15"h x 30"w x 1 1 /2" stretched canvas.




Dec 16, 2015

View of Rome II


My husband and I recently took a subject matter gathering trip to Italy. We stayed in Florence and took day trips to Rome and some of the smaller towns in Tuscany. This is the first picture I painted from the trip. I snapped the reference photo while walking across one of the bridges to Vatican City, and you can see St. Peter's Basilica in the background. Oil on 15"h x 30"w x 1 1/2" stretched canvas. SOLD.

Oct 27, 2015

The Espresso Bar


This is an espresso bar I found while exploring one morning in Paris. I wished I could move there and make visiting this place my before-work morning routine. Oil on 12"h x 9"w stretched linen. SOLD.

Oct 26, 2015

Oliver


This is a life-size acrylic painting of my late cat, Oliver, that I recently completed as part of a mural in our town. He can now continue to watch over the town, which was one of his favorite activities.

Oct 19, 2015

Cat and Book


My cats like to prevent me from reading. They have to sit on my books, magazines and laptop at every opportunity. That's okay, I'd rather give the cats attention, anyway. Oil on linen on 6"h x 8"w panel. SOLD.


Oct 16, 2015

Oct 13, 2015

Kitten in the Sun


This is the first painting I've done of our new kitten, Alfred. In this painting he is taking a break from antagonizing his sister, Stella, to lounge on a chair in front of a sunny window. The painting is on 5"h x 7"w stretched canvas.


Sep 19, 2015

Busy Cafe


I painted this from a photo I took at Cafe Prueckel in Vienna. It was a lively and warm oasis on a cold, rainy October afternoon. Oil on 12"h x 9"w stretched linen. SOLD.

Sep 17, 2015

Bird Watching


A calico cat wakes from a peaceful nap to watch some birds. I'm sure after the birds left she promptly went back to sleep. Oil on 8"h x 6"w linen on panel. SOLD.

Sep 13, 2015

A Tourist in Venice


I painted this from a photo my mother took of me on our first day in Venice in 2007. I normally paint from my own photos, but occasionally my mom and I share photos, especially if we were travelling together and/or I am running out of subject matter. The photo I painted from was taken on our first morning in Venice. I wanted to capture the canals, the shadows of the alley and the red buildings, but he painting definitely needed a person in the lower left quadrant. I was already in the photo, so I just included myself in the painting. This is how I normally look while travelling... holding a camera, not smiling or taking selfies. I really don't have many pictures of myself on trips unless my mom goes with me. Oil on 11"h x 14"w stretched linen. SOLD.


Aug 28, 2015

Venetian Tour II


Several gondoliers navigate through rows of docked gondolas to show visitors Venice's sites. Oil on 24"h x 30"w x 1 1/2" stretched canvas. SOLD.

Venetian Tour


It is rush hour, and the gondolas travel single file in the narrow canals. Even with a lot of other boats in the water, not many things are more romantic than a Venetian canal tour. Oil on 28"h x 22"w x 1 1/2"d stretched canvas. SOLD.

Aug 6, 2015

Outside of Grand Central Station


Outside of Grand Central Station people bustle about, and fortunately there is a hot dog stand for a quick bite before or after hopping on a train. I liked the contrast between the warm lights of the building and the cool buildings in the background. Oil on 12"h x 9"w x 1" stretched canvas. SOLD.

Aug 5, 2015

At The Bakery


A painting of the display counter at Demel of Vienna. It is difficult to decide which dessert to try. One needs to stay in Vienna multiple days and just come back every day! Oil on 14"h x 11"w x 1 1/2"d stretched canvas. SOLD.

Aug 3, 2015

The Waiter


The waiter at Cafe Braunerhof of Vienna takes a moment to straighten the newspapers after the lunch crowd settles down. One cozy feature of Viennese cafes is that they provide a variety of newspapers for their patrons to read. At least that was the case when I visited in 2011, when tablets were slightly less widespread. SOLD.

Jul 6, 2015

Sunset in Sandbridge


This is a painting of kids maximizing their days on the beach by playing in the waves at dusk. I painted this from a photo I took on my first night at Sandbridge Beach. We had been in the car for eight hours, through rain storms, and all I wanted all day was to walk in the waves. So we checked into our house, I threw my stuff in the room, and ran to the beach. I apparently was not the only one with this idea, because even this close to dark, many kids and families were out, playing by the water. You could see the lights of the Virginia Beach boardwalk in the distance. Oil on 6"h x 8"w linen on panel.


Oliver Sketch


I did this sketch of Oliver a few weeks ago, before he became very ill. I was getting ready to go to the beach and thought I'd want to do some painting while there. Then I realized my good intentions to do work on trips never pans out, so instead of taking paint I decided to just take sketching materials and watercolor pencils, as they would take less luggage space. But I hadn't actually used watercolor pencils in a very long time prior to this sketch, and wanted to practice a bit. It was an enjoyable process, mostly due to the inspiration provided by one of my favorite models. I will miss him.

Jul 5, 2015

My Oliver



It is with great sadness that we had to put my beautiful Oliver to sleep yesterday. He has been very sick for the past month. 

He has been a great friend and member of the family for almost eight years. When my husband and I purchased our first house together, our first order of business was to get a cat. My mom had an abundance of cats at her house, mostly strays, and Oliver was the one we took. We had a sunny bay window in the dining room, and we determined it was the perfect place for cat naps. Not surprisingly, Oliver spent a lot of time there. My mom, who is also an artist, suggested that I should take pictures of him and paint him. I took her advice, and in addition to being a wonderful companion, he was a natural model, and provided inspiration for many paintings. 

I am grateful to all the people who have purchased paintings of Oliver over the years. I don't know if any future paintings of him will be for sale. If I do happen to sell any of them, I want Oliver to continue to help other animals, and I will donate part or all of those sales to the local Humane Society. 




Oliver in his sunny window.


Oliver also loved sitting on the dining room table because it was in the middle of all the action, and he always hoped people-food would appear. 


Playing with his favorite toy


A bit disappointed that my snack was not cat friendly.


Sitting in my art studio, keeping me company.