A Mill From The Past

One of my readers sent me a photo of this nice old mill located in Sudbury, MA in the USA. The 18' diameter waterwheel powers mechanisms in the building including a complex elevator system.

The Wayside Grist Mill is open from April through November with historic milling demonstrations on weekends. The flour produced here is sold to the public.

Nirlay Kundu sent me this photo along with a copy of his painting to see if I would paint a version. It took me a while to complete this but it is finally done. I like it and it is now framed and ready for sale. Ink and watercolor, 16" x 20". Check out his site at http://nirlay-fdc.blogspot.com/

Proud And Poised

I saw a photograph in a magazine the other day and thought I would draw it. I really like the flowers, the leaves and the curly branches and trunks. This plant is named South African Aloe. It has popped up in some of the drier areas in the USA like California and Arizona.

The long flower spears are very proud and poised as they reach for the sun with their brilliant color. Looks like the flower plants may grow into short trees and eventually into larger trees all producing color. I would like to have some of these in my yard but I think they might grow too large. So I'll just enjoy these plants through my painting. Ink and watercolor.

Open Desert

Loose watercolor painting showing the beautiful colors in the desert and unique rock formations. Spots of green show the new growth of shrubs. The distant hills are in blue. 8" x 10", watercolor. SOLD

Brenna's Art

On our recent trip to San Diego, we visited a friend who has a daughter named Brenna. She is a cute little girl with art talent.

Brenna gave me a color copy of her artwork and explained that it was only a copy and not the original. She also explained she was "angry" because she smudged the painting. She said she just uses "regular" paints and wanted to make sure I noticed the catsup, mustard and relish in the hot dog. She did not explain the purple bun. Her brother, Tyler, was more interested in his computer games and did not provide me with any artwork. Brenna is five years old. She is "home-schooled" by her mother Lisa.

Across The Street

During some idle time, I sat on my porch and sketched the house across the street on a very hot day last September. Simple subject, sketchy lines and a cool glass of wine made this exercise very relaxing. OK, OK!. Maybe I had more than one glass of wine.

But, subtract the heat and the wine and this sketch would not have been as much fun to do, although I did have two little lizards scooting back and forth near my feet if you call that fun. Ink and watercolor.

Colorful Growth

This image shows warm season flowers sprouting out of large pots or urns in a garden. I decided to post this because many of us are ready for the greening up of spring and the warmth of summer days.

The blue and white urn was painted much more brilliantly than it actually was. I do not know the type of flowers but they were pretty and healthy. This was painted on a very hot day last summer. Ink and watercolor.

High Desert Vista

Serene vista of a roadway winding its way up the gradual slopes in the high desert of California. As soon as you begin to see pine trees you know you are gaining in elevation. 8" x 10", watercolor.

Lighthouse At Sunset

This painting was done to fill up an extra 8" x 20" frame I had. This is my summer lighthouse scene as the sun heads downward into the foggy sky which reminds me of the many years I lived in the San Diego area.

Near the ocean from May, June and into July, we would wake up to cloud cover. If the sun came through eventually, the cloud cover returned by days end. When I tell people about the gloom that invades San Diego they are very surprised. But it does exist and is very annoying. Now, who wants clouds when it's supposed to be the nicer part of the year? But, from August thru April, the weather is ideal except for the minimal rainstorms that hit. Ink and watercolor.

Feo And Funky

Extremely ugly (Feo in Spanish) and very funky (Whacky in English) explains this fishes dilemma. This multi-colored sole was done while I was idly doodling. I might add, this fish looks very sad also.

The intricate details on the fish make him unique to most others in the ocean. Please like him because he really needs it. I used Micron, Nexus pens and watercolor and brush pens to complete this art.

Church Flowers

I named this post Church Flowers not because we had lots of flowers at church last Sunday, but because I sketched these flowers during the sermon. Yes, I was listening to the sermon also! I merely started to draw flower after flower then I realized I liked what I was doing. I drew any type of flower that came into my head which was great because I was able to draw whatever I wanted. At home, I added color to my sketch and here is the final with a small Photoshop title. Ink and watercolor.

Elinore's Church

This image is from a painting I did for a friend this past Christmas. It is of a church that my friend Elinore attended for many years in Wisconsin as she grew up. I drew and painted this from a 5" x 7" photograph and I added much more color than I could see. In fact, it was very difficult to see good detail so I made my own judgements.

The painting was given to her on Christmas Day by her children and she was totally surprised since she always had wanted it painted. The final was presented professionally framed. Ink and watercolor.