New Works

Just wanted to share my latest pieces completed this week. The above painting is West Bluff on Mackinac Island. The building on the right, is the Grand Hotel. The buildings on the left are some of the beautiful mansions on the bluff. This piece is acrylic and is 3-1/2" x 2-1/2"

Little Stone Church is a wonderful building with three stained glass windows in the front. I think in the future I may paint the windows from the inside! This piece is also in acrylic, same size as the first.

This final piece is greatly blown up as the original is only 1-1/4" square. I call it Pop Art Pansy.

I have several pieces partially complete and hope to post them soon.

Till next time,

Gail

Getting Ready

Been a busy week in the studio painting and getting ready to mat and frames 30 pieces to deliver to Mackinac Island! I am looking forward to our first trip to the island sometime after May 1st, when the ferry begins to run from the lower peninsula. Last year we traveled to the island on the first day of the official ferry season. It was a sunny brisk day on the island. It is always interesting to visit early in the season as the tourists don't arrive till month end. It is fun to walk around and see all the carpenters and painters busy working to get businesses reopened for the season. Sidewalks are stacked with delivery boxes and the street strewn with horse drawn wagons full of demolition materials waiting to be carted away. That time of year the Grand Hotel has all their flower beds planted in pansies, about the only flower hearty enough to withstand the cold. As you walk away from the downtown area, the streets are deserted. It is a great time to takes reference pictures as I won't have to paint the people out!!!
My latest piece, is called Garden With A View, acrylic and is 3-1/2" x 2-1/2". This garden really does have a view as the water in the background is Lake Huron and beyond is a view of the Mackinac Bridge connecting the upper and lower peninsula. It is a place on the island I photograph quite often with the changing of the seasons.
Till next time,
Gail

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Spring In The Air

It has been a wonderful week in Michigan. I can't believe how beautiful the weather has been. Today is was over 70 degrees with clear blue skies. It doesn't get any better that this. Both of my dogs sat in front of the open windows in my studio and snorted in the fresh air. The only drawback was their barking at the neighborhood kids running around down by the lake. I enjoy my solitude. I hope that isn't an old people thing. A year ago this week we had a terrible ice storm that snapped tree limbs and left many without power. That is more normal for this time of year. But not this year. I feel like we jumped from Winter to Summer. Well, it is certainly motivating me to get a lot of painting done. Both of my galleries sell the bulk of my work in the Summer, so I need to push forward.
I have posted two paintings I completed this week. The flower garden I call Up Market. It is 3 x 4 in acrylic. I know, Up Market doesn't really apply to the scene. The street behind the hedge happens to be Market Street and it is heading up the hill. When I took the reference photo for this piece, I was standing along the shore of Lake Huron, with the Mackinac Bridge behind me. Just a breathtaking view for the person who lives in the house behind the garden.
The second painting is called The Grand, and is 2-1/2 x 3-1/2 in acrylic. I have done several pieces of the Grand Hotel and will probably continue to do so, because it is a popular subject on the island. The Grand has the longest porch in the world. We have stayed there several times, but really prefer and small B&B on Market Street, because it is less formal. My husband and I swore when we retired, we would never again dress up. Well, most of the time we live up to that promise. When staying at the Grand, one MUST dress formal by 6pm or not appear on the main prominade or porch. Its fun once in a while. They have a band playing during dinner and later you can go up to the portico which is a piano bar and watch the freighters traveling through the straits of Mackinac. It is a wonderful view!
Well, back to work. I think I am going to be putting in some long hours for a while.
Till next time,

On The Dark Side

The name of my latest piece pretty much sums up how I have been feeling the last week or so. The weather in Michigan, like a lot of the country has been downright crummy! We have had nothing but black skies and snow and rain. I always feel colder when it is above freezing and wet outside. It seems to go right through me the older I get. I have been living in my studio keeping away from the weather. That is OK. If I was still working I would be getting up at 4:30 to face the crummy weather!
I always feel inadequate in my posts because my life is much the same from day to day. No events to describe in colorful detail or observations on life in general. I could lament about politics, but I think most of us are downright sick of that. Not that I am complaining. What that means is there are no crisis, illness or other problems in my life. Boring is good.
I am really looking forward to spring and we had a glimpse of it today. The sky was blue, and the sun was warm. For the second year in a row, we have a rabbit living under our porch and I have been watching him (and he me) from our lower level kitchen. He is obviously enjoying the warmer weather. He watches me with nervous attention waiting to see what I will do. When my daughter came home from work she exclaimed "baby bunnies!" I freaked out. I thought we had a clutch of little rabbits all living under our porch. I had visions of our golden retrievers chasing half dozen bunnies through our yard. False alarm. She didn't realize we had ONE rabbit, so she was all excited.
Daylight savings time has added time for me in my studio. I really enjoy painting in the daylight although I always use additional lighting. More hours in the studio and less time to snack! I have recently eliminated sugar completely from my diet and reduced the carbs. Till I get used to this new regiment I am craving sugar like mad. Keep painting Keep painting.
Till next time
Gail

A Week For Patience

This has been a week for patience. I have just completed the above painting I call The Essence of Mackinac done in acrylic and is a miniature that measures 3-1/2 inches by 2-1/2 inches. When I think of Mackinac Island, this is the kind of image that comes to mind. This is one of the many historic homes on the island in all its glory! It is a piece I started several months ago and put on the shelf. Sometimes I lack patience. But as I said before, this has been the week for patience or is it patients?
My daughter had surgery on Tuesday and as I always suspected, it is easier to be the patient than the caregiver. Don't get me wrong, I don't mind being the caregiver, but I think it is exhausting. My daughter is 27, but had never been in the hospital before, let alone for major surgery. I stayed with her overnight in the hospital sleeping on a recliner they provided. I am pleased she is doing well, but she is anxious about every little ache or pain, so I must constantly reassure her. She has been quite content to be waited on hand and foot, so I finally started making her get up and do simple things on her own. I know it is better for the healing to move. I was unable to paint for a couple of days and it felt good to pick up a brush late in the week.
Today was quite warm for Michigan this time of year and I sat outside with my coffee this morning and just soaked up the sun. It felt sooooo good. I was energized for the entire day. I am really sensing the changing of the season and I can't wait!!
Plan on spending considerable time in my studio this week and hope to complete several other half finished pieces on my shelf.
Till next time,

The Ultimate Test

Well, in the past couple of days I have been working on the above painting. I have been taking gouache out for the ultimate test drive! A lot of the paintings I do are highly detailed architectural landscapes. I have found it difficult to get the level of detail I have desired-thus one of the reasons for experimenting with gouache. I found this painting to be a challenge, especially since it is only my 3rd in gouache. All in all, though I was pleased with where the gouache is taking me. I had a very intense day in my studio as I really wanted to complete this piece and post it. Tell me what you think! It is called Autumn on Bogan Lane and is 3-1/2 inches wide x 2-1/2 inches high.
Cheers, from gloomy Michigan
Gail

More Adventures in Gouache

I spent quite a bit of time in my studio this week and continued my adventures in gouache. One painting I turned into a frisbee out of frustration, one I finished (shown above) and I will complete another one tomorrow. All in all not bad. Its like anything else, there is a learning curve to working in another medium, not matter what the change is. Paint was too thin or paint sunk into the paper and disappeared. I'll get it eventually.

I am really getting anxious for spring. I don't mind the snow and cold, but the dark days without sunlight are making me want to sleep. The only advantage to this time of year is not having to spend time gardening. I like gardening, but it takes time out of the studio. So much for a balanced life!

Till next time,

Gail

p.s. the above painting is called Hidden Retreat and is 2 -1/2 x 3 -1/2