DAILY PAINTING: "We" My goal today was to break up some edges and better integrate the couple with the background so that the figures did not look like a cut out that had been pasted down. This is more "active" than you'll see in the final image, so I'll tone it down some as the painting develops, but overall, I'm happy with the day's work.

DAILY PAINTING: "We" (A "couples" portrait) Painting always begins with the darkest values, and you can see the portrait of this couple begins to emerge from the background. Since cool colors recede and warm colors advance, I used largely cool colors to begin to underpaint the male, and I intend to use warmer colors for the female subject so that she will advance to the viewer's eye. It's a beginning!

DAILY PAINTING: "We" Yesterday, I mentioned that I had painted two watercolors on Arches paper. This is the second, and you can see some relatively faint red sketch lines of a couple: a larger male portrait, waist high with a smaller, full length female figure superimposed. The image will become clearer tomorrow when the paint begins to go on. I haven't made any color decisions yet. I was mainly focussed on the figure sketches and the composition. But tomorrow's anothe

DAILY PAINTING: This is one of two watercolor backgrounds that I've begun, with the intention of using it as a springboard to a series of abstracts that I'm working on. These watercolors have been painted on Arches 140 lb paper--really lovely stuff! I'm using Sennelier watercolors (which are made with honey, if you can believe that!). I've used other watercolors, but they're easily my favorites, by a long shot! Wonderful color and consistency!

DAILY PAINTING: "UNresolved" This is a dynamic composition, in keeping with the deep-seated & strongly felt emotions & conflicts common to toxic relationships. The limited palette is working well. Some small adjustments might yet need to be made, with an objective eye, but the concept & its execution will largely remain as stated. Today is my wonderful daughter's birthday! How truly grateful my husband and I are for the incredible blessing she and our son have always been

DAILY PAINTING: "The UN Series" "UNresolved" : This painting is about dysfunctional relationships. We all have one or more people in our lives--friends, family, co-workers, neighbors, etc.--with whom we cannot seem to find connection, understanding or harmony, no matter how hard we try. To express this conflict, frustration and tension, I'm using warm and cool reds (with black and white) in jagged, thorny forms. This is just the beginning of the image, and experience tell

DAILY PAINTING: The "UN" series This is the underpainting for two, 12" x 24" panels in this series which will focus on those things in our lives that are UNresolved, UNanswered, UNforgiven, UNdiscovered--you get the idea. The series will be united by a limited palette (of Cerulean and Viridian, plus white, black & neutrals) yet each panel will have its own theme, main image & colors specific to it. This will be a long-running series, so stay with me to see how it develops

DAILY PAINTING: "The Disappeared" My painting time was cut short by rain, but you can see that I added the barbed wire flower stem, and I sharpened the detail on the pot. You know I prefer to paint by natural north light, and by 3 pm, the rain had so darkened the room that I could not longer see well enough to paint effectively. But I hadn't expected that the underpaint would be dry, so I'm happy to have been able to paint at all! Again, final colors yet to come!

DAILY PAINTING: "The Disappeared" This painting focuses on the five missing booksellers in Hong Kong. They began to disappear in November, and the last man was gone by December 30. They all work for a book store that sells items that could be seen as critical of the mainland Chinese government. This is largely an underpainting, with the main color choices yet to come, but you can see the concept. I have used a wilted orchid because that flower is on the Hong Kong flag, m

Hope everyone enjoyed the holiday season! I know I'm happy but also a bit exhausted--wow! As nice as the break has been, I'm ready to get back to work. DAILY PAINTING: "Paris Attacks" I haven't had a chance to share a bit of progress with you, so here's a close up, which shows the word "fear" written in four languages (English, Spanish, German & French, respectively) to show that it's a universal human response, one we all share. Other details will follow in the next few