When life gives you lemons, draw them, 11 x 14 inches dry pastels, graphite on paper

"When life gives you lemons, draw them." (Nikki)

"Color! What a deep and mysterious language." (Paul Gauguin)

Montana

Skies

Saturday, November 18th, 2023


 

Cumulonimbus - Montana Sunset, 18H x 24W inches soft pastels on paper

Cumulonimbus: Montana Sunset (2020), 18H x 24W inches soft pastels on 90 lb watercolor paper. For many years I’ve wanted to try painting night skies. In July 2007, I was driving through Montana to Alberta as the setting sun bounced golden-pink hues through the already fantastic storm clouds. I pulled over and took some photos, thinking that even if they didn’t turn out, something is better than nothing. Reference photos don’t have to be perfect to bring back the experience of a particular moment; they are just a starting point. I intend to paint this with acrylics when I’m through with my soft pastel kick.
Six pieces are showcased in Art Room Gallery’s “Skies” Nov. 17 – Dec. 17, 2023.

  Storm at Dawn, Denman Island BC Canada - 18H x 24W inches soft pastel on paper   Alberta Bound, 18H x 24W inches soft pastels on paper   Summer Storm, Montana, 18H x 24W inches soft pastels on paper  
  Summer on the Prairie, Smoky Lake, Alberta, 14H x 20W inches watercolors on 140 lb. cold pressed premium. 20H x26W inches approximate size framed.   Morning Has Broken, 16H x 20W inches soft pastels on watercolor paper   Finalist certificate for Art Room Gallery Skies Exhibition  
             

Scenic 2022

Monday, July 18th, 2022


 

Montana Valley, 18H x 24W inches soft pastels on paper

Drawn earlier this year in Feb. 2022 – will be showing online at Exhibizone’s exhibition, ‘Scenic 2022’, Aug 1st -31st.

Early evening shadows while driving through Montana Valley foothills and grasslands, where the Great Plains meet the Rocky Mountains. 18H x 24W inches soft pastels on paper. Framed size 27H x 33W”.

Montana Valley

Friday, February 25th, 2022


 

Montana Valley, 18H x 24W inches soft pastels on paper
Early evening shadows while driving through Montana Foothills, valleys and grasslands, where the Great Plains meet the Rocky Mountains. 18H x 24W inches soft pastels on paper.

Framed size 27H x 33W”.

Elements of Nature

Saturday, January 1st, 2022


 

Paint Arson, 11H x 11W x 3D inches acrylics on canvas


 
Cumulonimbus, Montana sunset, 18H x 24W inches soft pastels on paperPaint Arson, 11H x 11W x 3D inches acrylics on canvas (2009), wrapped sides painted, frame unnecessary. Set on shelf or hang on wall. This and Cumulonimbus: Montana Sunset (2020) are in J. Mane Gallery’s ‘Elements of Nature’ online juried exhibition, showing through January 2022.

I don’t always have clear intentions behind my work, other than to make it interesting of course, because I wonder if too much explanation muddies a fresh impression of it. However, the writing connected to “Paint Arson” is worth the read. Fire is a destructive force, and positive associations with it are not immediate. For example, the pinecones of Sequoia, the largest trees on Earth, only open under the extreme conditions presented by fire. Read on…

Summer Storm, Montana

Tuesday, February 23rd, 2021


 

Summer Storm, Montana, 18H x 24W inches soft pastels on paper

Summer Storm, Montana, 18H x 24W inches soft pastels on paper

Cumulonimbus: Montana Sunset

Friday, October 23rd, 2020


 

Cumulonimbus, Montana Sunset, 18H x 24W inches soft pastels on paper

Cumulonimbus: Montana Sunset, 18H x 24W inches soft pastels on 90 lb watercolor paper. For many years I’ve wanted to try painting night skies. In July 2007, I was driving through Montana to Alberta as the setting sun bounced golden-pink hues through the already fantastic storm clouds. I pulled over and took some photos, thinking that even if they didn’t turn out, something is better than nothing. Reference photos don’t have to be perfect to bring back the awe of a particular moment; they are just a starting point. I intend to paint this with acrylics when I’m through with my soft pastel kick.

Summer Storms

Wednesday, August 22nd, 2007


 

Evening storm - Stony Plain, Alberta

Evening storm clouds accumulating at about 5:30 p.pm. mid July in Stony Plain, Alberta

Sky Falling, Airdrie, Alberta (July)

Sky appears to be falling, Airdrie Alberta, July 2007

Trainstorm

Train and storm, Montana in July

Travel

Monday, July 30th, 2007


 

Morrill, Nebraska

Morrill, Nebraska

 Driving up through Oklahoma, Nebraska, Wyoming, then Montana to Alberta. Awesome, awesome. Back to Dallas August 8th.

The Lazy U Motel, northwestern Nebraska

Lisco, Nebraska – The Lazy U Motel

Southeastern Montana, sunset

Storm cloud, Montana - mid July

Southeastern Montana

Montana - Grain elevators