Shades Beach

Warm breezes, comfortable temperatures, deserted beaches...Autumn is delightful. Unless you are a Red Sox fan. September has not been kind to my sox. September is almost over. Hard to imagine what winter here will bring, I know what winter on the Great Lakes looks like, not pretty. Like the Red Sox this past month.

Fall in New England

I lived in New England for almost seven years. I miss the magical color show in Autumn. Last week I went back to visit family, and although the rain was a pain, the beauty is always present. One of my favorite places is Minute Man National Historical Park in Concord, MA. It is not a showy place and there is a lot of walking. After crossing Old North Bridge, you wind uphill through trees, fields, ponds, river, stone walkways and various odd shrubbery. A great place to reflect, be still, and just enjoy.

Concord, MA

I had an opportunity to visit Minute Man National Park in Concord, MA, last weekend. Is there anything better than New England in the Fall. The leaves are just starting their turn to vivid in patches.

Clementines, Bananas and Freedom

Added 5 more strokes to complete, I am a nit picker.

Clementines, Banana and Freedom

I did the DPW challenge this week with an open mind. One of the obstacles I constantly need to overcome is my stingy nature. I need to free myself and not think about how much paint I am using. The weeks challenge hit that nail right on the head. Use lots of paint, a number 8 brush, limit the times you lift the brush off the canvas...very difficult for a miser like myself. I did it, and by far, this was the most enjoyable painting I have done. Like this abstract quality that loading up the brush and limiting the strokes accomplishes.

30 strokes.

Hey There Lonely Rose

Ever have a flower you just couldn't throw away? This is mine.... I did the paint works challenge in blacks, greys and whites last week, and wanted to do another with a hint of color. Maybe a hint of love gone wrong?

Value challenge

The challenge of the week. Paint value without color. This was a photo of the Grand Canyon of Australia. My son and daughter visited this magnificent place a few years ago.

A difficult task to keep your mind off the beautiful colors and focus on shapes and four values. It has been a long time since I last tried a black , white, and grey value painting. I was taking a college course and did another students jacket, I forgot how delightful this exercise is to do. Something different.

September Blues

Today is Labor Day. Living in a beach town, this signifies the end of Summer. Always makes me a little melancholy. I love the beauty and color splendor of Autumn, it's just too short here in beach town. Winter, well, I don't even like the word. In the meantime, life slows down at the beach, the tourists are gone, the place becomes magical with moments of solitude, wildlife come out of hiding, I couldn't imagine a life without this refuge in my backyard.

This painting is a little more on the abstract side. Used the rectangles concept from the DPW challenge last week. It offers a freedom of color and movement, and most important, I really enjoyed this painting.

Paint Your Pig

Challenge for this week, this was a tough one.... I painted light yellow and deep blues for the background, finished the background with white using a pallet knife. I thought it would add interest next to the smooth piggies. Pigs are smooth characters.

Seasons

When the rain, beats upon my windowpane, I'll think of summer days again.... Lyrics from one of my favorite songs a long time ago.

The seasons are gently changing now. You can feel it in the air, the clouds start to look different. September, one of my favorite months.