donna walker

I am a big fan of the artist Donna Walker.  She is based out of my home state of Texas and her pieces are small, bold, gorgeous in color, reasonably priced.  She is just talented and I love looking at her work.  Visit her etsy shop here.  A few samples:

12" x 24" custom original oil on canvas based on photo

8" x 16" custom original oil on canvas based on photo

8" x 8" original oil on canvas  In The Fields

8" x 8" original oil on canvas Small Red Barn Farm Landscape

All photos credit of Donna Walker

away

 

 

             
Out in the country enjoying a relaxing week before the temperature really drops and Winter arrives.  My parents have their wood stacked and are ready for cozy fires and the impending cold.  A heavy rain this morning left a beautiful and interesting fog. 
          

             

shut the front door

so stinkin excited my sweet man cut all of these boards for me to create "painting sketches" for my show next month!  I'm about to be a painting fool....creating whimsical, fun pieces. 

Beginning with this image I could not get out of my head of a lady walking her poodle through the city.

hmmm...could it be I am channeling my inner Rachel Zoe....looks a smidge like her. 

About 50 more vibrant city scenes to come.  Can't wait!

siena

I love how places so far away can have such a universal feel.  Just wrapped up this painting of Siena, Italy...however I can't help but think of Frederick, Baltimore, the towns through Philly you pass on the train up to NYC or NYC itself.  The paint is built up with texture and layers.  Acrylic, pen, crayon and bronze drawing ink on textured cotton with polycrylic finish.  10" x 10" x 1.5" deep.  Will be up on Etsy soon!

Iowa

Finished the Iowa painting for the Rossi family! Lisa provided several photos of her family farm for me to work from.  It's large, 43" x 23" x 2" deep...lots of fun working on this with all of the bold colors and build up of texture in areas. Hoping they will enjoy it for many, many years to come.

An Iowa Landscape And A Girl's Best Friend

Working on a small sketch for a painting Lisa and Mike Rossi have commissioned me to complete.  Very excited to get into the grit of this, the subject is so peaceful with bright colors and vast skies...the farmland of Iowa!  The piece is inspired by Lisa's childhood home and family farm so it is very special to them.  The canvas is extra large and has been custom made...the perfect surface and size for this piece.  We'll see how my vision comes to life...more soon! 

Meanwhile, Leila has decided that Max's ears are her new toy...but the more she tugs at them nothing seems to happen?  Literally.  Max just lies there...poor guy.

finito!

                                                                 

 20" x 20" oil on burlap 



The road to Venice is a long one!

The oil of Venice is almost there...really wish the photos capture the paintings better.  The paint is really thick in places.  Will use a palette knife on it tomorrow and hopefully will be able to finish by the end of the day.

I have always been a big fan of Nicolas de Stael and his use of oils.  He proves the point that sometimes a painting is just about paint and color.  I was lucky enough to view his work at The Phillips Collection over 10 years ago and his work has stuck with me ever since.  Tomorrow I will keep him in mind:

And just for fun, did you know:

The main road route into Venice is the A4, although once travellers arrive in Venice, driving is no longer possible. Most vehicles taken as far as the city are parked at a car park in Piazzale Roma or Tronchetto; parking at these locations is expensive, so travellers often opt to park in Mestre on the mainland and continue their journey by train or boat.

The A4 passes through Turin, Milan and Padua before arriving at Venice. There is good access to this road from connecting routes to other major cities, including the A13 from Bologna and the A1 from Florence, Naples and Rome.


Read more: http://www.worldtravelguide.net/venice/travel-by#ixzz1I2fJDRCO

The Beginning of Venice

Fire Engine Red Sky

I doused the "Changing Seasons" piece I was working on with turpentine this morning after a frustrating attempt to try to get myself to like it.  Glad I did...no wonder Art Therapy is so successful. 

I felt so much better after painting in a loose and gestural form.  Here's the result:  a chunky, vibrant landscape that is equally interesting because of its unique frame. 

3 feet wide x 5 inches high and 2.5 inches deep

The moon

was beautiful tonight (look closely)