The hike along Cascade Head is one of the most spectacular on the Oregon coast. If you can tear your eyes away from the distant views of rugged coastline and crashing waves to look down at your feet, you will see an beautiful array of wildflowers blooming in the windswept meadows in spring. The conditions […]
A Sketching Short Cut
January 25, 2017 by · 14 Comments
Sketching helps me be more aware of not only the natural world, but of the urban scenes that surround me every day. For some reason, when I sketch something, I am forever bonded to it. I find that worries drop away as I forget everything but the scene or plant in front of me. Besides […]
Lupine Commission Finished
November 25, 2016 by · Leave a Comment
Someone will be surprised this Christmas! (Don’t worry I have permission to share about it online.) This painting started with an inquiry last winter about a commissioned painting featuring Lupine. The client wanted the painting for the following Christmas and gave me artistic license in choosing the variety of Lupine and the composition of the […]
The March of the Insects
November 19, 2016 by · 4 Comments
Insects keep crawling in…through my sketchbook and into my paintings! I know this sounds like a problem that requires a quick search down a store aisle for a certain spray or powder…but I actually invite the insects into the picture. I want to indicate that these plants belong to a community, to hint that there […]
Lupines, Paper and Masking Fluid
September 23, 2016 by · 9 Comments
After doing detailed drawings, color studies and developing my composition, the next step is to bring the subject to life…to create the illusion of a 3D image on the two dimensional paper. So as I paint, my focus is on light and shadow, which is how we see shapes. Choice of Paper But before I […]
This blog is about my journey as a botanical artist--what I am learning, what inspires me and what I am currently drawing or painting. My desire is to continually hone my skills to better express my wonder and gratitude for the beauty of the creation around me in the Pacific Northwest (USA).