Another Blossum

I've been challenged by one of my mentors to paint one of these blossums....petal by petal....so I have decided to make this one of my projects during an April getaway.

Flowering Cactus

Since I appear to be "in to" cactus for a bit, did an adjustment to this 2004 painting which was used as a seasonal greeting card for an international corporation. I tried to put a little more depth into the shadows and also bring out the petals of the blossum. I believe it makes for a more dramatic look.

Cactus in Bloom - March 2009

Well, these beauties are starting to bloom again....even though the rabbits think of the cactus as a piece of celery and continue to chew away. I understand they chew continuously in order to keep their teeth filed down, but how do they digest the thorns that they also eat. This one is in our back yard. The blooms open in daytime; close at night and always face the direction of the sun.

Stunning Saguaro

This is a beautiful example of a mature saguaro. Keep in mind that a saguaro takes at least 50 and sometime up to 100 years before any arms start to grow. These beauties sometimes live up to 200 years old. So, in terms of "saguaro years"....I am still very young. I intend to revisit this piece of natural sculpture in about 3 weeks to take photos of blossums that will appear at the crown. Thanks to Ginny for sharing the day with me; thanks to Tony for buying the regional/state park pass; and thanks to Larry for taking us to lunch while we were still hot and sweaty. It was a great day!

Lingering Lizard....

This little guy must be a professional model for hikers trekking in his/her domain. He stayed on this rock while I took several photos...each time getting a little closer. He moved his head around so I could get most of the face. I'm surprised he didn't ask for a contribution to keep the park open.

What can I say...I love saguaros

I tried to get close to these two beauties without straying off the track, again using my camera lens. In reviewing this photo, I can just see the balancing rock in the far left of the photo.

Saguaro sillouettes

These were perched on the mountaintop and I used strongest lens to bring them close.

Colors of Mother Nature

This whole mountainside was a vision of yellow.

White Solitaire

Almost missed this treasure! It was the only white flower seen all day.

Flowers in the White Tanks

These are absolutely gorgeous colors against the rocks.

Spring in the White Tanks

I took a hike today in the White Tank Mountains and although many flowers were just getting started, the yellow Brittle Bush was astonishing.

Best Friends

We did have a Mexico Gekko on our front patio wall in an effort to keep the seasonal doves from using the wall as mating wall.....unfortunately, this dove fell in love with the gekko. Hmmmmm...must have been the colors.

Pueblo Pottery #2

This is the same painting but I have edited out my genius striping.

Pueblo Pottery

Another typical example of my photo skills. This is 22x30 on 200#paper and when I try to photo while it is still attached to my gatorboard, you can see that it ripples. 300# paper (my fav) wouldn't dare ripple. A friend shared this photo with me. Her friend actually designed and painted the pottery and because she had seen some of my earlier paintings with two views, wanted me to paint this pot the same way. I thought adding the two stripes of color would compliment and "finish" -- but that may end up being cut out. On top view, I used a blending technique (compliments of Arlen Madole) to phase the dark interior up and out on the lip of the pot. Open to comments.

The Turqouise Necklace

When taking Susan Roper's watercolor class, one of our last assignments was to paint a subject of our choice. I photographed this arrangement in my media wall. A sandalwood candle, a metallic copper, bronze and gold bowl, and my turqouise nugget necklace. Even though I used AJ metallic paints - copper, gold, and silver (for the silver chain and nugget base), it does not show up in this photo. I played around with my original photo using my Picasa program thinking I would get some of the metallic finishes to show but believe I only succeeded in messing up the photo. I am so pleased that I still feel challenged to learn new techniques both in painting and on the computer. There are times, however, when I would like to spear the monitor with my new brushes. Am open and soliciting comments.

Chihuly Perfection

Ahhh! The sun on another piece of perfection. This is just a small fragment of this particular exhibit which has approximately 150-200 pieces.

Chihuly's Blue Chandelier

Too bad I can't convey the size via the photo and again, the sun is behind the clouds. So although you can see the rich, deep blue, it lacks the sun-kissed sparkle. Fantastic piece

Another Chihuly Exhibit

This photo actually shows two of Chihuly's exhibit. The yellow in the distance is his Tree of Sunlight and the orange pieces in front (just a few pieces of approximately 75 similar shapes) are like bursts of flame. Unfortunately, these are in the shade and you miss the stunning impact of their color.

Chihuly Exhibit Entrance

If you can ever have the experience of attending a Dale Chihuly Exhibit, take it! This exhibit is at the Desert Botanical Gardens and goes thru May,2009. These 3 pieces are at the entrance of the Gardens and there are a total of 17 separate exhibits within the Gardens. As you can imagine, it is rather like going to Alaska and taking photos of the glaciers. No photos can do justice to the color, especially when the prisms of light travel thru each piece.

Peruvian Maiden II

Another version, but my photo is less than desirable on this...too fuzzy and I cropped top portion of hat. I believe I'm getting into the eyes better and the nose is better formed just by using the undiluted Burnt Sienna. Can hardly wait for my next "portrait".