The Creative Spirit

Creativity is a subject that is near and dear to my heart. I suppose I’ve always been a creative individual, … More

Re-do: Step 3

I hate it. That’s all I can say about how this painting turned out the second time around. Although I … More

Re-do: Step 2

I’m still not getting a good photo of this painting, but I’m making a little progress on it. I’ve completed … More

Re-do: Step 1

I’ve been working on my ruined canvas. I’m taking it very slowly, and thinking things through as I decide what … More

The Dark Side

Most of the time I seem to paint with fairly light and bright colors. Recently, I changed that and decided … More

Back to the Drawing Board

Yes, I’m back to my art studies now, and it’s almost like beginning again. After nearly three months away from … More

A Scene from Childhood

I’m finding that I have an “old-fashioned” spirit when it comes to painting, and that’s how this painting feels to me.

I Wish

It’s hard to go wrong with black and white.

What Does It Mean to be an Artist?

Anyone can learn the proper techniques to follow in art, but that alone does not make one an artist.

Will I Ever Learn?

Will I ever learn to create the landscapes I want? Will I ever be able to paint trees that make me smile? Or will it always be a struggle for me?

A Few Bits and Pieces

Although I don’t like the finished painting, I do see a lot about it that gives me hope for my future as an artist. As you know, I’m still trying to figure out who I am and who I want to be, and I think there’s a lot of me in this painting.

An Artist’s Dilemma

In many ways, the painting does reflect who I am as an artist, and I like that. At the same time, I want to explore so many other colors and ideas.

Next on the Agenda

Recently, I’ve started practicing trees, and while I can do them fairly well in practice, I don’t seem able to get them the way I want when I try to include them in a landscape.

Artistic Frustration

The new painting was turning out better than I’d hoped, and then, at the last minute, I made a disastrous mistake. I wanted to make the water in the lake appear to have a little movement in it, and it all went wrong. I was almost in tears to see what I had done. But I persisted. I could never completely fix the mistake and go back to the serene, placid lake I had before, but I did what I could to salvage the painting.

Nightmare in Phthalo Blue

This particular scene was going to have a river running through it. As you know, I’m not good at rivers. And just as happened with my earlier attempt, a river doesn’t run through this painting either.

Clarkston

When my friend, Kymber recently posted pictures of her snow-covered yard in Clarkston, Michigan, I immediately asked permission to paint them. I only wish I could have done them justice.

Landscape and the Sublime: The Art of Caspar David Friedrich

Friedrich wanted to capture elements of the sublime, that moment of “connection” that often happens when we contemplate the natural world, that inexpressible feeling of our own spiritual being, our awareness that we are but a part of something greater than our insignificant selves.

Just Follow that Road

…I like the pathway I created. It’s not exactly a road, but it does lead somewhere, and for me, that’s a triumph of sorts.

Overcoming Weaknesses

It’s always good to know our weaknesses, and as an artist, I know mine only too well

Twilight Frost at the Old Creek

Being “an artist” involves much more than learning how to apply a medium to a support/surface. It requires a certain sort of vision, an ability to use one’s imagination, and a creative spirit.