A Beautiful Sight in Mastic Beach

There is so much beauty in the world arround us… all we have to do is open our eyes and see it.

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Vermont Vacation

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I always wanted to spend the fall in Vermont painting the colorful mountains, and this October my wish came true, I spent three weeks at my home in Brandon Vermont.

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My home is quite comfortable nestled deep in the woods high on a mountain.  We are not connected to any town supplied power company, our electricity and water  we produce ourselves from generators, a well for water and now we are installing a solar system.

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Hiking early in the mornings with the dogs besides me and the ground covered with fallen leaves, this is a perfect way to start a crisp fall day.

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Into The woods

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Carpet of Leaves

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Driving locally the mountains are blazing with colors. This is a painters dream! Everywhere I look is a perfect painting, I take lots of reference photos.

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Color, Shape & Value

Color & Contrast

Texture & Focal Point

Color Composition & Texture

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The view from my porch is spectacular  every day the lighting on the mountains changes with the weather.

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Oct Art Shows

Entering art shows allows me to receive critique from unknown judges and lets me know how I’m progressing as an artist. Now don’t get me wrong, many excellent pieces of art are entered into these shows and do not receive awards, the judging is still only the opinion of the individual asked to evaluate the artwork.

With that said, I am excited to have won ribbons in 2 shows this month.

The North Shore Art Guild at the Gallery on the Hill in Holtsville, NY held a show where my friends and I received awards in the watercolor division. 1st- Mary….2nd – Jeanne….3rd - Lorraine …Congratulations to us!

The Wet Paints Studio Group held it’s annual members show in Oakdale NY. I won 1st place in this show!   My friend Jeanne S won a honorable mention ribbon.

I currently have 2 pieces of art hanging in the town of Brookhaven annual art show in Blue Point, NY. This show runs till Oct 30th when they will announce the award winners.

Last year in Oct I won awards at all three show where I entered my art. That was a thrilling feeling and since I’m already holding ribbons from 2 out of 3 show I could possibly repeat that amazing achievement, I’ll let you know.

Painting and showing my art in local art shows has opened new worlds for me. I used to paint and then hide the paintings in a portfolio in my closet. One day, I decided to come out of the closet as an artist and I walked into an art gallery, introduced myself to the owner and asked if she would like to see the paintings of a local artist. We set up an appointment,  she liked my art and offered me the opportunity to hang it in her gallery. Now almost 3 years later I’m winning awards, you never know what can happen, but you must at least try. I have sent my art to The American Watercolor Society to be considered for their annual show, I was rejected last year and I will try again this year. Rejection from one of the worlds best shows was not upsetting. The excitement of entering was wonderful.

I’ll continue to paint what I see and what I like. I’ll enter shows and hope that one day to be accepted into the AWS. In the meantime I’ll paint with my artist friend, attend workshops and have lots of fun….starting today as I wet my brushes and start a new painting.

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I Paint What I See

What is it I look for when I pack my art supplies and  head outside for a day of painting? It doesn’t matter where I am or what the subject matter is, I look for several things that must be present SHAPE, COLOR, TEXTURE & LIGHTING.These photos, taken at the creek overlooking Mastic Beach, are examples of Texture &  Shapes.

Anyone who has painted with me knows how drawn I am to shadows. This late day photograph of the wetlands in Mastic Beach is an example of the contrasting dark & light that I love to paint.

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The lighting changes  constantly and quickly. Here the upper photo has texture in the sky in the form of clouds but the land is lacking color and lighting. I can combine the sky into the lower photo so I have all the components I desire in one painting

As an artist I can alter what I see to help me create the best imagining for my painting. When I paint I want you the viewer to feel what I felt as I stood on the water’s edge. I want you to wish you were standing there at that moment when the lighting and colors were amazing. I hope I have achieved that in my paintings.

As you go through your day, no matter what you are doing, look for the textures, colors and shapes around you.   Painting brings me joy and lets me see the world differently, and I want you to see it too that’s why I ask you to

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Two Days of Painting

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I’m trying to get outside and paint as much as possible before the weather forces me to stay indoors. I met friends at 2 gorgeous locations on Long Island the past 2 days and spent 4 & 1/2 hours at the Herb Farm in Calverton and 3 hours at Southaven Park in Brookhaven.

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The Herb Farm was the most amazing place, 14 acres of exquisite gardens. arbors and cottages in a tranquil wooded setting, there is even a river… this place is a painters paradise.

I’m always drawn to the dramatic lighting and this cottage was shadowed perfectly…..I struggle with architect when trying to paint buildings but I must like the challenge because I keep working on them.

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This was so much fun to work on. I’ll be going back to this farm next week and resume painting.

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Southaven Park has Carmens River running through it and we painted from the shore while the geese and swans waited patiently hoping for a free meal. The sky has been so blue recently but today we had some interesting gray clouds.

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Mary painting overlooking the river.

Jeanne working in oil.

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Chris did a great little painting. her colors and shapes flow beautifully.

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I have had  2 terrific days of painting in 2 fine looking locations.  Good weather allows me to play outside awhile longer. As the days grow shorter I’ll get different lighting and it will be interesting to see the longer shadows from the lower sun.

Painting helps me see the world through the eyes of an artist, sharing that vision with others artists is joyous, knowing they can see the same colorful world as you.  While you are outside take a look at the different greens in the trees and on the ground, I bet you never saw so many shades of color.  Seeing color is one of the reasons I want you to

Paint with Me

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HAPPY BIRTHDAY DONNA …I LOVE AND MISS YOU

Maritime Festival in Greenport NY

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I was one of several artist who painted plein air in the village of Greenport LI during the “Maritime Festival”.

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Each artist painted a scene from a location of their choosing within the Festival and their paintings went into a silent auction, part of the proceeds will be donated to help support the maritime museum.

Bruce was with me for the 2 days, he set up and sold my paintings, entertained the crowds and soaked up the sunshine.

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I had a wonderful time painting and talking to the dozens of people who stopped by to watch me paint and check out my artwork.

This is the water view I was painting.

This is the painting that was auctioned off Sat night.

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Hello to all the people I met and thank you

to all the who purchased my art.

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Next year I will enter more plein air events around Long Island. This is a great way to spend the time painting and have the opportunity to show my art to a large group of people. I received many very kind compliments, which were greatly appreciated.

Seeing the art being bought by people who expressed a love for it is priceless.

I’ll continue to paint out on Long Island at various locations, if you see me come over and

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No Such Thing As A Bad Painting

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Today I painted on the North Fork of Long Island in wine country.  I met several artist who graciously invited me to join them on Mondays to plein air paint.  We were painting on the property of the owners of Briermere Farms, beautiful acreage with old barns, a huge green house, an old school house and a colorful old farm house.

I had a good time BUT my painting was not up to my expectations, very weak and unexciting.

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So I had a little fun with my Photoshop Program to see what I could do to re-paint it and make it better.  First I checked my composition, by turning it into a black & white, to see if it worked.  It has a great structure to it, good darks and lights. This tells me I can use the sketch again, I just need to paint it with more contrast and a different palette.

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Next I played with various settings to see what I could create and these are the results.

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What do you think of the results?   I was so disappointed in my painting today yet I would be happy to display either of these versions.  I will paint this scene again and use some of the suggestions from the altered photos. Even though I came home with a painting not to my liking, I’m thrilled to see what I need to make this turn into a winner.  I try to believe that there are no bad paintings and today I proved that to myself.  You can paint and enjoy the process, then see what your art can turn into,  just have fun, play like a child with colors and shapes and smile while you

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End Of Summer Skies

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As the weather grows cooler the sunrises become more colorful, this is not a scientific fact, just an observation of mine.

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When I wake up in the morning and see the glow of pink coming through the windows coloring the ceiling of my bedroom, I must dress very fast in order to capture the photos before the lighting changes.

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Within minutes the sky show shifts into completely different colors and shapes. As the sun hides behind the cloud cover I lose the golds and pinks that were present moments earlier.

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With patience I wait hoping for another change of sky colors. A cool breeze is blowing while I play with my cat who has joined me for my early morning walk on the sand. Minutes later, I am excited to see another showing of natures palette of colors painted  across the sky.

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Today I watched the summer sky change before my eyes from pink to grey to gold. I think of how I would paint these colors. Each photo would be a unique painting even though they were all taken minutes apart.

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Painting brings me peace and serenity.

Find moments of peace in your day

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Painting Betty’s Gardens

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Today the ladies of South Bay Art Association met in Bellport at the home of Steve & Betty to paint in their beautiful gardens. The back yard was filled with a large assortment of shade loving plants and tall mature trees which provided the cool shade.  Soft colors were found within the dark silhouettes of the foliage.  But it was the front garden that drew my attention.

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The Scene & The Beginning of The Painting

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I found the lighting on the arbor, the shape of the bench and the various darks & lights surrounding this scene interesting.  Architectural objects are extremely challenging to me,  I still doubt myself when it comes to my drawing  abilities. But I only paint what I find interesting and I like to confront my fears, so this was the spot I choose to paint.

I had a great time and was surprised by my results.

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Planter with Flowers

Close Up of the Arbor

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Pretty in Purple Painting

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I’ll add the finishing touches to this painting, it needs a little more work. I feel that I handled the subject matter well. I do love the cool purple shadows, the multi greens of the foliage and the dark against light of the arbor.

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Every artist approaches a painting different, chooses a different focal point, picks their own color palette and ends up with an individual painting, even though we all are in front of the same scene. All the artists painted beautifully today, and we all enjoyed painting together.

Next Tuesday I’ll be outside in a gorgeous location painting another scene,  maybe you would like to join us and

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Beginners Art

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Anthony is a great artist when he is working with his favorite medium, hair.   I have seen this enormously talented man create exceptional works of art on women with long hair.  He designs amazing hair ornaments to compliment the hair styles  of brides and anyone dressed for an elegant evening affair.

We spent a  weekend together recently, as we do every summer, but this time along with the good food and delicious drinks, Anthony painted with me.

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The time I  spend with my  friends is always filled with laughing, drinking and constant talking about all the fun times we shared. Anthony taught me so much about doing long hair designs, now it’s my turn to teach him how to use watercolor paints. Painting with a friend, especially one who has never painted before, is ideal.

Get together with a friend and

Paint with Me

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