Smilin' Santa

 

My snowman for this year is what I call a "Smilin' Santa."  I had a lot of fun with him and the original of the painting has already sold.  He will be on my holiday cards and it is always fun to realize some people have collected them over the years and display them together.  

CAPITOL IN SPRING

 

This is something a little different for me.  One of my friends wanted a painting for her granddaughter's new home.  The idea was something that was very DC but also pretty.  I didn't feel confident to do it, and referred my friend to some other artists who did such paintings.  My friend and her husband found one that they liked, but it wasn't available.   It was the Capitol building with blossoms in front of it.  I decided to give it a try and this is the result.  I'm pretty happy with it and so is my friend  I hope the granddaughter likes it, but right now she is on a six-month assignment Qatar, so it will be awhile before she gets it.

HAND LABYRINTH

 

Here's another labyrinth.  I didn't post it when I finished it...a couple of months ago.  I'm not sure why...I think it was just oversight.  I like it and it was fun to do.  I was trying to fit the labyrinth idea into a hand held up in greeting or maybe in peace.  In fact, I kind of pair this one with the peace labyrinth.  

PEACE LABYRINTH

 

This is my latest labyrinth....a plea for peace.  I got the image from pinterest, but modified it with the peace sign in the middle.  

I am always intrigued by the labyrinth patterns...there are so many and yet they all have one thing in common:  a path to the center (although it may not be direct), a place to rest in the center, and a path out.  

I usually make them more colorful, but the blue and white seemed to be the best fit for this idea.

End of Day West Coast

This is a special memory kind of painting.  It is of Louisa and Peter walking along the coast near Fort Bragg, California (Northern California).  We were there for the wedding of Jenifer and Erik--so it was a time to cherish and be together and create some memories.  We spent several days there, so it was more than just participating in the wedding.  In addition the wedding and the time on the beach, we got to hike in the forest and meet some of the locals.  The painting will be in an upcoming show at Frame of Mine here in DC.  The show's theme is Seashore.  I think it fits right in.  Reception is August 24 1-3 pm.

TY Catherine

I recently had a visit from Catherine Rondthaler.  We had a nice dinner at my house with Louisa and Peter.   Catherine brought these beautiful sunflowers.  What a nice surprise.

We got to go to a the Renwick Gallery--always a big treat.  She also got to spend some time in the Capitol Hill neighborhood and some other adventures.  A real treat to spend some time with her, and the sunflowers were worthy of a thank-you card.

Catherine was on her way to a memorial service in Woods Hole Massachusetts for her uncle and my brother-in-law George Woodwell.  I wasn't able to make it to Woods Hole, but I did get to see the service on-line and it was beautifully done, with a balance between his professional and family life.  His professional life was as an environmental scientist and he was the founder of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, later named Woodwell Climate Research Center.  He also was a wonderful family man.  We are both honored to be related to him.

Multnomah Falls

 

This is the second painting in my sketchbook of handmade papers, and is another favorite place of mine.  It is Multnomah Falls in the Columbia River Gorge.  It's a spectacular place.

Another reason I love it is because it has the imprint of Howard, who laid out the trail to the bridge...and beyond.  He also oversaw modifications on the lower part of the trail for wheelchair accessiblity.  What an acheivement!   And many good memories for me.

Bodega Head

 

I have painted this scene many times...from photographs.  It is on the Northern California coast and was one of my favorite places growing up.  Just beautiful...and usually not crowded.

This particular painting was a big challenge.  It is the first painting in the hard bound book I was recently given that has hand-made paper pages.  I think I will have to focus on loose landscapes in this book.  My plan now is to paint places that I love.

Me as a Papoose

 

This was quite a challenge!   I received a bound book of handmade paper--it is inspiring and also a little intimidating.  I decided to practice first on some loose handmade paper that I have.  My idea of the book was to make paintings that would capture different places and people in my life.  I am not sure I can do that, but my first test effort was to make this painting of my mother with me in a Native American cradelboard for carrying babies, or "papooses."  My dad's Aunt Duckie had a whole collection of baskets and this was one of them.  That pose was fun for the whole family and I am glad I have the picture.  Painting people on the handmade paper is hard, though!

I took this first one to my critique group and the suggestion was to do another one, using gesso on the paper to give it a better surface before applying the watercolor paint.   I decided to try the same photo and this is the result:

Both versions are interesting.  I didn't even finish the second one because I meant for them to be tests.  I think the color of the original is better in the first version, but the picture I took is not good.  I can't take another as I gave that one to Jenifer, who was visiting from Tennessee.  It went home with her.

It was a fun experiment, but the bound book is probably going to feature landscapes.  I love doing them on handmade paper.

ILLUMINATED LABYRINTH

 

Here's another labyrinth.  I really enjoy doing them and trying to make each one different.  This one started out as one thing and then just evolved into its own pattern.   The colors are vivid, and I kind of like that I used a stepping stone idea to get to the center and then back.

TY BLUMS

 

I got two dozen roses from the Blum family for Mother's Day.  It took me awhile to do the little thank you painting and now I am just posting to this blog.  They were so pretty--yellow, red, and some yellow/red.  I put them in a special vase that my mother bought for me when Louisa was an infant...like two weeks old!

When I did this painting, I thought I would do a background, but I was encouraged to leave it just as it is...so I did!  I hope the Blums enjoy the card as much as I enjoyed the roses.

I have been making posts through an email feature on my website, but think I will go back to "PlumGallery,blogspot.com"  I find that easier.  Maybe because I have done it for several years.

TY BLUMS

I think this is my last holiday gift post.  Max and Sally Blum sent me some amazing wine glasses that were made in Austria.  I have made paintings of wine glasses before and felt like I wanted to do something a little different.  I went on-line and found a picture of an Austrian village  I don't think it's where the glasses are produced, but I never did find out about that.  I just liked this village scene.

By the way, the glasses have a shape that makes them suitable for almost any type of wine and makes sniffing the aroma a very special experience.  So nice!
 

TY JOANN

 

Another fun gift I got was a bookmark that is an abstract painting, done by my friend JoAnn Laboy.  It is fun because it has little magnets that hold it in place.  She also gave me a card that is a beautiful abstract painting, but the bookmark is more fun.  My little painting doesn't do it justice.  JoAnn gave it to me at the brunch hosted by Tara Hamilton--I have written about that before.

I made a thank you card to JoAnn, but didn't take a picture for this post before mailing it.  She went on a vacation and I had to wait for her to return to photograph it and send the photo to me.  We worked it out and it is a little late, but here it is.

BUMPER

 

This is Bumper, Jenifer and Erik's Old English Sheepdog.  This is from a photo when he was a puppy.  I talked to Jen recently and she reports that he is still growing.   They knew he would be a big dog when they got him.  He joined the family after I visited, so I haven't seen him in person yet.  I hear he is smart and is learning the routines of the house and the commands he needs to know.  They are very happy with him.

TY JEFF

 

My brother Jeff gave me an Amazon gift card---I can always find a use for that!

We had a fun visit when he was here from Southern California.  We didn't do a lot, but did see the movie "Boys in the Boat" with Louisa, Peter, Griffin and Sophia.  Another fun thing was going to the Guinness Brewery in Baltimore.  What a sight that was and fun for an Irish-phile like Jeff.  There were many more good meals and times to catch up.  

I look forward to his visit each year.  

TY TARA HAMILTON

One of the fun things over the holidays was going to a brunch that Tara Hamilton hosted at her house.  We have a group of women artists who have done pop-up sales together, gotten together for lunch and generally stayed in touch and supported each other.  Tara kept it going with this brunch.

In addition to providing a great food, Tara gave us all ornaments that are so much fun with a riddle tag that what they want is to "hang" together.  The ornaments are small pinecones in a wooden bowl and trimmed with beads.  I had fun painting it, too.  

TY KAREN ZENS

 

This is a fun treasure from my friend Karen Zens, who has worked in many countries around the world.  This ornament is from Canada--she remembered that I lived in Canada for many years and that Louisa and Jenifer were born in Canada.  Karen knows Canadian things are special to me.

She also makes me special cards each year...she makes original prints and cuts windows and folds the cards and each is unique---I don't even try to make a little painting of the one she did this year.  I save them each year and use them as background for my creche at Christmas.   

We had a fun brunch with some other artist friends.  I've said it before, but I am grateful for my artist friends.  

TY HALLERS

 

It's hard to tell from my little painting what the gift was.  But it was an excellent gift--several bottles of wine from Oregon!!!!   The painting is an interpretation of the label and it is special because it shows that Honeywood Winery produces wine from all kinds of fruits..not just grapes, and also from honey.  The wines I got were Marionberry Wine,  Loganberry Wine and Mead.  Nice sweet treats!!!!

Erik and Jen know that still feel connected to my Oregon friends and family.  Six bottles of wine arrived in a secure package.That was a pleasant surprise.

TY SMITH FAMILY

 

It is always special to spend time at Christmas with the Louisa, Peter, Griffin and Sophia Smith.  One especially memorable thing this year was that we had Bonne Maman advent calendars.  They had one at their house and I had one at mine---a new treat every day for the first 25 days of December.  The carton was amazing and it was hard to focus on what to paint.  Many elves, jars of jam, animals, and much more!  I decided to focus on one of the elves and a jar of jam and what I think is a fawn.   

I also got lots of Christmas morning treats from them....and stored up lots of fun memories.

TY SOPHIA

 

This is a fun time of year for me.  I have, for many years, made little watercolor thank you cards for the gifts I received.  I enjoy doing it and my family and friends find the little paintings a good sign of my appreciation.  

It may be a little hard to figure out what the one above is.  It is a spoon rest for on top of the stove.  Sophia found a beautiful stoneware one----and with a dragonfly!  She knows I like dragonflies and also  handmade gifts.  She bought it at the local Eastern Market.  It is already happily placed on my stovetop and making me smile.