'Follow Your Nose'

"Follow Your Nose"
12X9
Oil on Masonite Panel
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No secret I love dogs...so here is the latest! I slapped a lot of paint on this with the palette knife to get the background textures I wanted....ergo, this one will take quite a while to dry.

Crazy stuff happening this week, mostly involving the hot water heater, the heating and air conditioning, water flowing where it shouldn't have, workmen coming and going, all interspersed within the other nutty things going on...so it was paint, stop, paint, stop, paint, stop.....until you just have to subscribe to the chaos reigns theory and go with it. Glad I could get one finished, to tell you the truth.

Onward and upward.....stayed tuned!!

'Gilded Cage'

"Gilded Cage"
9X12
Oil on Raymar Linen Panel
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As you walk the paths at Stowe Botanical Gardens you will come across a Victorian birdcage the likes of which you have never seen......or, at least like I have never seen. I could never cage a bird. In fact, if I could fly I would be gliding over the tree tops right now. But the irony is that I think bird cages are pretty...no doubt because I've never been cooped up in one. This one is amazing. It is the biggest one I've ever seen and it is a new version of a Victorian style. If you look closely at my painting you will see a red and yellow parrot that was sitting on a perch in the middle section. As I painted this I was wondering how the birds in it are managing the unbearable heat we've been having this entire month. I'm hoping they took the birds to an air conditioned location and left the birdcage empty for the summer months.

One of the challenges of painting this was indicating the screens. I hope I accomplished that. I worked on this painting off and on all week due to the other obligations of taking "the ancient one" to Dr.'s appts. and making meals for him as well as our household. I feel like I should apologize for the drop off in my posts the past few months, but it just can't be helped since I have taken on some family duties I didn't have prior to this. What is that movie quote? "I'm dancing as fast as I can."

'Red, White, and Blue'

"Red, White,and Blue"
12X9
Oil on Raymar Linen Panel
©Cheryl A. Pass
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Most of my Hydrangea blossoms have devolved to some green colors, due to the acidic quality of the soil, I guess. This one was one of the last really blue ones. I bought some sulfer additive that is supposed to bring the blue colors back, but the package says it will take a few weeks. Meanwhile, I grabbed this one to compliment the beautiful reds of the cherry. The colors are more intense in the actual painting. This reminds me to tell everyone that the color representation on everyone's monitors are different, so take that into account. I do try to get the best possible image for computer display, and it is usually pretty accurate, but intensity sometimes blows away in the digital process.

About the title....I think my heart is with the founders of the country these days, so the colors of our flag come to the forefront of my mind often. So much was given to us, and yet today, so many people are trashing our country that sometimes I just want to shake people's shoulders and say, "Wake up dimwits...you are throwing away the greatest gift you could have ever been given, i.e. the United States Constitution." So red, white and blue are the colors of my mind today and most days lately.

'Cherries on Blue'

"Cherries on Blue"
5X7
Oil on Gessoed Board
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These were called Rainier Cherries at the grocery...very pretty little things with yellow and red and most of them still had their stems. I was trying to do something with a different background color here (got out an old blue shirt and laid the cherries on it)...and really slapped on the paint for a more impressionist texture. I made myself back up and loosen the brush strokes. I honestly don't think this picture does it justice..much prettier in person.
There went Monday.....

'Idyll Moment'

"Idyll Moment"
9X12
Oil on Raymar Linen Panel
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Well, I could have titled this a number of different things; "Election Year Bull," "Pasture Idol," "Here's Looking at You," "Invest in Cattle Futures,"and more.....But I landed on "Idyll Moment" because this guy was caught on camera just surveying his domain. (The election year comment seemed too demeaning to the guy since I think he is quite grand and has more integrity than the politicians! You can vote for the title you like the best, if you wish.) I think the guy has that Alpha Male presence... Really fun to paint!! The photo was given to me by a friend who was doing a lot of plein air painting and took this shot while on one of her outings. She handed it to me saying that she doesn't do animals, but she knew I like to do animals so she thought I might like to try this one. I am emailing this to her as soon as I post it, so she can see what she wrought from her gift.

'Fourth of July Zinnias'

"Fourth of July Zinnias"
12X9
Oil on Gessoboard
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Zinnias always seem old fashioned to me. I don't know why. They are common and not terribly formal like Irises or Peonies or Lilies, but they are the brightest light in the garden in the summer. In fact, if Mother Nature created fireworks I'd say these are the flowers that suit the purpose! They create a wonderful riot of colors in the garden! I couldn't get the seeds in the ground this year to the disastrous shape of my front flower garden, so, alas, these are borrowed from my daughter's garden.

It took me more than one day to do this one. So much going on here that I am lucky if I can paint for more than an hour without crazy interruptions. Also, I am having a disagreement with this gessoboard. It doesn't like to hold the paint without quite a bit of trouble. The finish effect is good in that it shows the brush strokes, but it starts out with a lot of slipping and sliding that gives me fits. Patience wins in the end, but it takes longer to do than linen or a rougher surface.

Hope everyone had a great 4th of July celebrating freedom.....even the freedom to make fools of ourselves. A great price has been paid for that freedom and I hope it remains in the forefront of everyone's mind this year as the election nears. I, for one, plan only to vote for those who will promote freedom and not vote for those who would steal it from us through more and enhanced big government programs. That is what was on my mind this 4th of July....as I was painting away on the zinnias.

'Beach Baby Ella'

"Beach Baby Ella"
10X8
Wash and Pencil on Ampersand Gessoboard
NFS

Scroll down to see Beach Baby Bennett, too.

Well...changing my mind. I originally was doing these two pieces as underpaintings. But as I worked I decided I liked the effect of the washes and pencil on the surface and, honestly, I don't think I could do a full blown painting of these that I would like as well as this....so I'm leaving well enough alone and moving on to the next thing.

Ella and Bennett went to the beach in Hawaii with their parents on the way to Korea. I think if you are going to the beach for the first time, it might as well be some gorgeous place like Hawaii....don't you? They were actually sitting side by side on a water board in the sand, but I split the picture into two parts, thinking that they might like to each have one of their own someday. What strikes me in both of them is the look of concentration as they try to get familiar with this strange stuff that they have never seen before.