This is a whimsical design of nine Iowa hogs running through the tulips. Not something you see every day. I used pieces of an Iowa map for the sky shape and a variety of different colored hogs, plus a green-grass foreground and some happy red and pink tulips. more »
My challenge was to design more whimsical animal Christmas collages. I used sketches of our three goats and added some fun trees and stars. Their shapes describe their breeds: Pygmy, Nigerian Dwarf and a mix of regular-size goat and Dwarf with floppy ears. The colors changed a lot while I was working on this, and […] more »
I have been inspired by my garden flowers — the colors are luscious and bright! This piece was worked from using my original sketch, done from a still life of a Japanese iris. They are much smaller than the bearded variety. I set up the iris in one of my mom’s antique jars that has […] more »
Earlier this year, I wrote down many ideas for subject matter to paint. I intended to do a music series after the guitars and violin. For this piece I used my reference photo taken at the Museum of Making Music in Carlsbad, California. Beginning with a very loose pencil drawing and weaving colors and shapes […] more »
I am continuing my bicycle series and loved the challenge of doing a smaller piece. I began with a simple line drawing of a bicycle close-up and started gluing some of the positive shapes. Halfway through gluing, I decided to add another smaller bike above it — a bit of a squeeze, but it adds […] more »
I have been doing a series of bicycles for my upcoming show for the Artisan’s Gallery in Des Moines. This is the seventh in the series. While cutting some of the map pieces, I have been noticing places of interest and small towns in the state of Iowa. Especially interesting are the scenic routes. The […] more »
Bicycle shapes are wonderful, and I am continually working on this series. The design possibilities are endless. I love the geometric shapes and the challenge of working on this theme. As the others, Iowa maps are used in the background. I used an archival foamboard for the support. Gel medium and a UV Varnish is […] more »
This is another collage I decided to rework. Most of the design was good, but needed fine tuning. Color adjustments were made and I also added details to the ears and cap. Dachshunds are adorable dogs and these cute pups are ready for Christmas! more »
This collage is part of my Iowa Series started way back in ’85. My first collages were a small square format of barns and farm animals. Over the years these have evolved to include other elements of farm life. I love the patterns of spots on the dairy cows and the interesting shapes of barn […] more »
Flowers are a consistent theme in my work. I work from life, drawing my garden flowers and taking numerous photos. I began with an idea for the design and sketched it out on tracing paper the same size as my paper support; in this case I used 300# Arches watercolor paper. The heavier paper doesn’t […] more »