This is another in a series of the beautiful lotus plant. I usually work from my photo and do a preliminary sketch and simplify shapes. The leaf shapes were edited, as there were too many to add anything extra to the design. The main focus are the buds of these flowers. This collage is done on […] more »
My inspiration for this design came about after our visit to the Airpower Museum in Blakesburg, Iowa, last summer. We were surprised by all the different planes on display there; it is a historic combination of early planes, engines, propellers and other related articles. For this design, I worked from a photo. Because of the […] more »
This particular design of my daughter’s electric guitar has been on my mind for a long time. I worked from some old sketches and photographs, but also did a series of just sections of this instrument. Most of the time I use tracing paper to compile my sketches, then edit during the process of designing […] more »
My second piece of artwork this year! This is another petite size of artwork using a drawing from one of my old sketchbooks. I have been trying to keep in the habit of sketching daily. It was a difficult design, since the ladybugs and dimensions were tiny. The shapes are simplified as best I could do […] more »
This is my first piece of the new year. I decided to do a few pieces similar to the Daily Painters’ group. They create a petite artwork every day, usually in the 6” x 6” format. I find it difficult to work so small and prefer the larger sizes. For this piece, I chose a […] more »
This is my third watercolor of one of the most popular eating places in Centerville — Raymond’s Dairy Creme. Since it changed ownership and there is a new sign in place, I thought it would be nice to do an updated version. I always begin with a photograph for reference to work from, so I […] more »
This is a realistic watercolor painting of the newly-renovated bandshell in Centerville, Iowa. Many people have asked me to paint this structure because of the good memories it holds for them. I worked from my photograph, which includes the historic courthouse behind it. more »
Here is another still life of my garden flowers, which are lush and prolific this year. These are mostly daisies, with a couple sunflowers tucked inside the vase for color. My objective was to paint them wet-in-wet, taking advantage of the watercolor properties of mingling pigmented colors on damp paper. The grays were mixed using […] more »
Many of my paintings are part of a series. This was the first depicting a selection of my brushes and palettes. Here, I collected all my painting materials and set them up outside in direct sunlight. I prefer a casual set up and don’t spend a lot of time arranging the items. I take many […] more »
This piece was inspired from a charming display of old school bells. I visited the Prairie Trails Museum in Corydon last year and I snapped a few photos I thought were inspiring and possible painting subjects. After designing and cropping my photograph, I decided to use a limited palette of complementary colors to emphasize the […] more »