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

abstract love

This fun little number will be available on etsy as soon as it dries.  This would do well in a girl's room or any room that suits bright colors.

14" x 14" x 2" deep original oil on burlap.  Edges painted soft blue, ready to hang. 

a new leaf turns over & summer begins

The last few weeks have been a roller coaster ride with Max passing, traveling, working, cleaning, being a mom.  You know the drill.  So, I decided to break out of my shell and start a free spirited, carefree, colorful oil (on burlap).  I let the brush do the talking--we'll see where this takes me.  I'm beginning to wonder if I see my shop on etsy becoming real soon...my goal is to have it up sooner rather than later.  Maybe end of Summer?

And, today we enjoyed a fun day of swimming.  Leila loved it...she wondered how her bathtub all of a sudden got so darn big.  Don't worry, dada didn't dunk her. 

I'm off on a road trip the next few days but will return the end of the week!

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

Venice Update

We had my sister in law's baby shower over the weekend and Leila decided to take it upon herself to steal her unborn cousin's sunglasses... 

Working on the painting of Venice....difficult the last week or so to paint.  Leila is much more mobile and my husband is in the middle of busy season, so time is limited.  Only a few more weeks and he will be done, we can't wait!

None the less, it is coming along...I'm liking what is happening with the sky...the photo I am working from was taken after a rain storm and I'm really trying to capture that.  Hope to have this one done by the end of the week. 

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

Changing Seasons

Working on a new oil based on the the changing of seasons and trees.  Hoping for a painterly, thick texture and vibrant colors when complete...it's a larger painting with a nice, deep gallery frame!  Looking forward to getting into this one and seeing what direction the painting takes me...will post more photos as it progresses.

City Stars

Working on a new oil.  I love the way the lights of a city can contrast against the dark night sky and the stars can look like they are gently dangling, as if each one was purposely placed there.  Just getting started, but I'm loving the color scheme so far...almost exactly how I imagined it.

Also love the colors of the flowers my husband gave me for Valentine's Day.  Still enjoying them, I've cut them down to go into small vases now, they are beautiful:

Letting Spring In

I want to apologize to all my blog followers for the delay in posts this past week.  My computer is down at the moment, hopefully it will be up and running again this week (keeping fingers crossed)!  I have lots of new things I am working on, so I'm anxious to get some photos up for you.

I've completed the painting inspired by the book, Each Peach Pear Plum.  16" x 12" oil on canvas.  I think we are all wishing to be able to open up our windows and let the fresh air in these days!  Leila and I were so thankful for two beautiful days this past week.  We got out, took a few long walks, strolled downtown, got coffee...it was wonderful!  She fell asleep in her stroller at one point, so I just kept on walking...turned into a two hour walk in the fresh air and I felt like a new person.  Come on Spring, we are ready for you!!!

On an other note, Leila is officially eating rice cereal and loving this new mush that has entered her world.  So much so that she has learned to spread it all over her face and laugh out loud at her accomplishment...oh, here comes feeding her naked and baths after each meal :)

I love it.

Each Peach Pear Plum

is one of my favorite childhood books.  I was reading it today to Leila and it brought me right back to when I was little.  The illustrations are so sweet, reminds me of being in a little English cottage.  One of my very favorite things is the first day of Spring when it is warm enough to open all the windows and bring the outdoors in.  This illustration reminded me of just that and inspired me to start a new oil today, here we go:

Also finished the leaf painting today!  11 x 14 oil on canvas.  Edges are painted a midnight blue acrylic with polycrylic finish:

Why waste?

Since my husband and I made the decision that I would stay home to raise our daughter, we have learned to save money in ways we would never have thought, had I continued to work.  Simple things, like using every scrap of food to make a casserole just so we aren't wasteful and throwing away perfectly good food.  Or, why not cut dryer sheets in half...hey, you get twice the use out of them.  I love using coupons now, such an easy way to save. 

Its become almost like a game..how resourceful can we be this month?  And, I'm not embarrassed about it at all...in fact, I find it to be quite liberating.  It's my way of contributing in some small way to the whole green movement.  Living in one of the most expensive areas in the nation, I wish I had started this years ago.  I've learned to not take anything for granted and I feel fulfilled by much simpler things in life now.

Today I found a nifty new tool that I can clamp onto the end of my tubes of paint and squeeze every last oz. out!  I can't wait to use it...and all the paint the tube can hold.

Here, my clumpy, colorful paints are displayed.

I'm late, I'm late, I'm late!

Last night was our first family movie night!  Leila was happy as a clam with her buddies next to her as we put in Alice in Wonderland, one of my favorites.  But, I remember the 1984 version from when I was little...not the cartoon version, there is a big difference. 

As we watched, the mother in me couldn't help but worry that maybe Alice in Wonderland wasn't the best choice for her first movie.  Of course I don't want our daughter to learn to eat things that make her hallucinate, chase rabbits down scary holes or do whatever anyone tells her to do, just to see what happens.  I made the comment to my husband this morning that maybe Alice in Wonderland is just one movie out of the Disney collection that appears to have been made while under the influence. 

Apparently I need a lesson in Disney movies, he said that Fantasia is just as strange...just without words.  The words worry and Disney don't seem to go together, is this normal motherly worry or just my subconscious?

Also, an oil I started yesterday.  While watching last night, I noticed how similar the design is to the foliage found in the animation of Alice in Wonderland. 

And lastly, Leila just getting a kick out of herself  :) 

Poppy Field Dream

Just finished!  15" x 20" oil on canvas

At work today

on the poppy painting as it is making progress...its been a tedious one but I am loving the dream like quality and the contrast in colors.  It would be a sweet piece for a little girl's room.  Hope to have it done today...

My mind keeps on going to this koi fish painting which I started a few years ago and never quite finished.  It was inspired by a trip to Hana, HI, the hotel we stayed at had these huge koi fish in the pond outside.  Painted on a burlap textured canvas, its a large oil, 50" x 38" x 3" deep.  I think this may be on my list of upcoming projects to complete.

And, here, my little angel likes fish too and wears them quite well...dontchya think?  Here she is hanging out with me while I paint.

Poppy, please

Last night was met with little sleep.  Leila was up several times to nurse and when her little eyes would finally close, my mind was racing with new ideas and images of paintings in my head.  But, my creativity had to wait until after we ran a few errands this morning, one being a trip to the mall.  Leila loved all the lights and I didn't mind all the oohs and ahhs from strangers over her cuteness.  I would politely say "thank you", but secretly I was beaming with pride inside.  By the time we got home it felt like we had been through a marathon...running errands just isn't the same with a baby in tow.  Probably because I literally am running...hmmm.  I would just rather stay cozied up at home reading books and playing, but I guess life must go on.

Here is the beginning of one of my middle of the night visions.  Just getting some color on the canvas right now.  But, when complete I'm hoping for a poppy field that will look so refreshing you will want to become the very girl in the painting to smell them all for yourself.

Complete

I love how sometimes a painting can just be about shapes and color.  I have family in Hawaii and the shapes and lines in this painting remind me of the canoes my uncle and cousins surf there.  If you look closely, the arbitrary shapes have also formed a fishing boat and a sail boat in the rough waters.

Oil with acrylic trim and polycrylic finish trim   8" x 10" x 1.5" deep

A recent photo also of my family surfing at Keei...pretty cool.

Ocean

Listening to my new Beatles CD, Live at the BBC, and working on a new painting on this chilly Saturday...