Artists of Colorado show in Denver next week

This painting, an 11x14 titled "The Trail West" was accepted into a show at Brushstrokes Gallery in Denver. It is part of a show by a group called Artists of Colorado, of which I am a member. I have to deliver the painting Tuesday and the show opens Friday, May 6th with a reception between 5 and 8pm. I am looking forward to touring some of the galleries in the area on South Gaylord St. I understand it is becoming quite the art district.

This landscape is right in my backyard, looking west toward Buffalo Mountain. My house backs to the Mesa Cortina trail and forest service land, so we have a big backyard!

Aspen color in April

I live in the mountains of Colorado, and it is still snowing here! While it is great for the ski areas, by April I am ready for flowers and green grass. I am so tired of white! Our landscapes are still under a couple of feet of snow and I am ready for some color.

Little pieces (6x8) always sell well in the gallery, and aspen with fall color do especially well. My biggest issue is to try to vary them somewhat and not get bored with painting them. The photo I used for this reference had more orange and green than others I have done, so it is a little different than others I have done. Will it sell as well? We will see I guess!

My goal this month is three a week, but this one doesn't count as I did it about a month ago. I was hoping this month would be a little quieter at work so I would have more time to paint, but so far it isn't looking like it will be. I will just have to make the painting time. I put it on my calendar first and schedule around it when I have to, and this month will be one of those times.

Gone to the dogs

I haven't had a chance to paint much since I got back from New Zealand, but I just got another painting finished yesterday. One of the first paintings I ever did was a dog, but I have concentrated on landscapes the last four or five years. I am now trying to expand my horizons a little bit by adding some people and animals to my repertoire.

A couple of weeks ago I posted my last painting of a couple of puppies chowing down their dinner, and today it is a retriever ready for his owner to throw a stick out into the water again. I am at my sister's house in Arizona this week, helping her get her house ready to put on the market so that she can move to New Zealand. She needs to paint too, as she has a show coming up and several galleries to supply, so we had agreed we would spend every morning painting. We were not able to paint this morning as we supplies to pick up and some shopping to do, so tomorrow we have to get back at it. She has an entry to finish for Birds in Art and I have some prep work to do for a larger painting I will work on for the painting class I am taking this semester at the local junior college.

Once I get home again, my goal will be to turn out about three paintings a week, so hopefully they will be worth posting and won't be wiped off! I have got to paint in order to improve my skills. As they say, practice makes perfect.....