Mixed Media Artist - daily painter of portraits, flowers, abstracts and birds
Oil pastel portrait paintings on torn cardboard
Rescued Series
The sizes in this series range from teeny tiny to around 14 inches.
cardboard cutout
You can find this entire series on Daily Paintworks and some are in my eBay store. To get to the ones pictured above, just click on whichever photo you’re interested in.
More paintings are available in my shop.
Thanks for stopping by.
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Sketchbooks are for the playground, the jamming sessions, the warmup, and trails where I produce and play on my terms, escaping judgment, harvesting shapes, textures, and interplays that would never have happened had I been forced to show the work to the viewer. If I had it my way, everything would come from the sketchbook, it’s where the raw experimentation takes place, that static between what you know and what you don’t. I would recommend sketchbooks, or something which serves the same purpose, to any artist. I’m not sure how people are able to produce work without it.
Chris Gambrell quote from an interview I recently read
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Listening to: Lana Del Rey Ultraviolence full album
I’m currently on hiatus from creating new work to sell, but there are plenty of paintings in my shop for sale. Shipping is free within the USA, if you purchase art directly from me. I also sell originals & prints on eBay and Etsy.
As always, if you want to say hello or have any questions you can write me here. I love getting email, and hearing from you.
Other places to find me online.
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I’m finishing off the week with two new oil pastel portraits that I recently revised. Not too much changed about this one, except her eyes were too close to the top of the canvas, so I moved them down.
I painted this one in oils a few years back. It was a little flat, but I think the oil pastels give her a colorful new skin tone, which makes her come to life.
If you’d like to purchase this painting, it’s available here.
Magnificent Maiden
5×7 inch
Oil pastel portrait on a flat panel
This one looks completely different than it once did. If I showed you the before picture, you probably wouldn’t believe it’s the same painting.
I think the only thing I kept the same is the color of her dress. Everything else has been changed – her face shape, her entire facial features, her hair. I think you get the point.
If you’d like to purchase this painting, it’s available here.
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What I’m reading:
Amanda Palmer – What it feels like to get divorced—and possibly remarried—at TED 2023
All about my mother: the demons of Paula Rego – by her son
What I’m watching:
How to make a living as an artist
The Heartfelt Art of Jim Carrey
I Tried To Make Portrait Painting As Simple As Possible
Olive lays first egg of 3rd Clutch – May 3rd 2023 !!! More hummingbird babies are on the way.
May you have a lovely creative weekend.
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Shipping is free within the USA, if you purchase art from my shop here on my website. If you haven’t checked out my eBay store or Etsy in a while, I’ve been adding new artwork there every day.
You can get some great deals on eBay auctions – in which I practically give away my art, and/or on some of my flash sales I have on Etsy.
As always, if you want to say hello or have any questions you can write me here. I love getting email, and hearing from you.
Other places to find me online.
***
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Today I’m sharing more pages from my art journal. I painted this dude a couple weeks ago, and after seeing this photo I’m thinking he looks a bit like Bert (or Ernie? I don’t know puppets like I should) from Sesame Street. Not what I intended at the time, but that’s what I see now.
Oil pastel portraits drawn over watercolor or acrylic paint.
Quick sketch with graphite
Ink, and stabilo pencil portrait
Um..I think I used soft pastels on this one. I had a Buddhist monk in mind. Sadhu, Ajahn!
What I’m watching:
Julia Cameron – Write for Life | Banyen Books & Sound
Since watching this video, I’ve started to write morning pages again. I’ve done this off and on since reading Miss Julia’s book, The Artist’s Way, twenty years ago. I’ve had a love/hate relationship with the practice. Since I just started again, I’m in the love stage right now. My writing voice is on fire inside my head, and I find myself daydreaming about writing a book. haha! Oooh, I’m so silly.
I struggle every day to be articulate enough to write even the simplest email or blog post without sounding like a dork (see what I mean?). Yet, my brain is trying to convince me to stop creating art, and write instead – all because I’ve written a handful of morning pages. What???!!! Yeah, okay..you write that book, brain – over there. I’ll be over here with my art supplies spread out on the table, but please – do keep talking. I am listening.
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Shipping is free within the USA, if you purchase art from my shop here on my website. If you haven’t checked out my eBay store or Etsy in a while, I’ve been adding new artwork there every day. You can get some great deals on eBay auctions and/or on some of my flash sales I have on Etsy.
As always, if you want to say hello or have any questions you can write me here. I love getting email, and hearing from you.
Other places to find me online.
***
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Working on some new oil pastel portrait drawings
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Playing in theaters now! See my artwork in a new movie – The Whale starring Brendan Fraser.
I’ve been busy slashing prices in my eBay store and on Etsy. Some artwork I have marked down to only $10 or $15. I’m trying to clear out older paintings, so I have room for the new ones.
As always, if you want to say hello or have any questions you can write me here. I love getting email, and hearing from you.
Other places to find me online.
***
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Good Boy No 1
Oil pastel portraits of boys on 65 lb drawing paper
When I grow up I want to be a little boy.
Joseph Heller
This is going to be a very short series of only 5 paintings. I don’t like the title of this series, and wish I could change it – for many reasons. The first one being – I don’t look at children as being “good” or “bad”. Never have, never will.
About 10 or 12 years ago, I titled one of my boy portrait paintings “Good Boy”. One of these new portraits reminded me of that one, and that’s where the series title came from. Once I had time to think about it, I knew it wasn’t going to work for me.
Good Boy No 5
SOLD!
Unfortunately, I’ve already signed, titled, and dated the backs of these paintings. I can’t change them now, so I’m stopping here at 5. I need to come up with a better title before I continue.
I hope you have a lovely creative week ahead.
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Playing in theaters now! See my artwork in a new movie – The Whale starring Brendan Fraser.
I’ve been busy slashing prices in my eBay store and on Etsy. Some artwork I have marked down to only $10 or $15. I’m trying to clear out older paintings, so I have room for the new ones.
As always, if you want to say hello or have any questions you can write me here. I love getting email, and hearing from you.
Other places to find me online.
***
Sign up now to get my blog posts delivered to your inbox for free.
I added a few more to my series of men oil pastel drawings. These are all 4×6 inches on cardboard, and available for purchase.
If you’re wondering why the price for my 4×6 inch portraits on cardboard is higher than my portraits on watercolor or construction paper – it’s because the cardboard paintings take a lot of prep work.
First, I have to break down boxes, and cut the cardboard into smaller manageable pieces. Last week it took me two hours to cut 2 boxes into 4×6 pieces. It’s a lot of measuring, and time spent leaned over my cutting mat with a sharp knife in hand. Not only is it back breaking, but the whole process isn’t something I enjoy doing, if I’m being honest.
I used to not mind the cardboard cutting process, but that changed when my husband ended up in the emergency room back in late October because he slipped while cutting a box out in his shed. I felt so awful. I had just given him a new utility knife, and he was trying it out. :/ He ended up with a nasty, deep painful cut and a bunch of stitches, which was only the beginning of a long saga.
Long story short – it got infected, took forever to heal, the skin all around the cut turned black, and he lost the tip of his finger. He actually lucked out because he could have lost his entire finger. The doc said if it didn’t start healing properly, he would need surgery to amputate.
It was a traumatic, scary experience to watch him go through, and it made me look at my cardboard art in a whole different light. I stopped using cardboard as my substrate for about 6 weeks, just so I wouldn’t have to cut up boxes. I now wear a safety glove (which I should have been doing all along), and I’m super cautious. I didn’t give much thought to cutting cardboard in the past, but now I do every time I pick up a knife.
Man No 22
SOLD!
After I get the cardboard cut up, I have to gesso the front of each one – twice, letting them dry in between. This is another few hours of my time. Only then can I begin to think about the artwork, which is when the real work begins. What to draw? Hm…this process can take a while.
Once I have the drawing completed, I usually also paint the back of the cardboard. Not only do I prefer the back of my paintings to look as nice as possible, but I need space to title, sign & date each one.
Man No 23
SOLD!
When I’m working on watercolor or construction paper, I don’t have to work nearly as hard. I still have to cut up the paper, but with a paper cutter, not a sharp knife. It’s a much faster process. I don’t have to gesso the paper, just cut and draw. Less work, less time involved, less risk of injury = lower price for the watercolor paper portraits – for now. My prices are always subject to change, and do all the time. At some point, all my 4×6 inch paintings will be the same price – just to make life easier. Until that happens, enjoy the lower prices on the paper ones.
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Playing in theaters now! See my artwork in a new movie – The Whale starring Brendan Fraser.
I’ve been busy slashing prices in my eBay store and on Etsy. Some artwork I have marked down to only $10 or $15. I’m trying to clear out older paintings, so I have room for the new ones.
As always, if you want to say hello or have any questions you can write me here. I love getting email, and hearing from you.
Other places to find me online.
***
Sign up now to get my blog posts delivered to your inbox for free.
4×6 Oil pastel portrait drawing
Frosty Reflections
I was planning on starting the year off by challenging myself to paint 30 of these little ones in 30 days, but I decided against it.
4×6 Oil pastel portrait drawing
Icy Intensity
SOLD!
Challenges are good for something to do when things are quiet or if you’re going through an artist block. It can get the ball rolling again.
4×6 Oil pastel portrait drawing
Snow-Dusted
The more I thought about it, the more I realized I don’t need to challenge myself to paint or draw more. Being creative is who I am deep down inside, and that’s all the motivation I’ll ever need.
4×6 Oil pastel portrait drawing
Winter’s Chill
There are many other things I could challenge myself with that would be extremely difficult to pull off for 30 days – such as not creating art every day. OMgosh, my brain isn’t reacting well to that crazy thought. hahaha What would I do with myself if I wasn’t creating??? Ack!!! Not going to think about it, and skip merrily back to my drawing table. la la la
4×6 Oil pastel portrait drawing
Winter’s Solitude
You can find this new series titled Little Ones here in my shop. Most in this series will be listed between $15 and $25. Shipping is within the USA only, and is free here on my site.
I hope you have a lovely creative day.
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Playing in theaters now! See my artwork in a new movie – The Whale starring Brendan Fraser.
I’ve been busy slashing prices in my eBay store and on Etsy. Some artwork I have marked down to only $10 or $15. I’m trying to clear out older paintings, so I have room for the new ones.
As always, if you want to say hello or have any questions you can write me here. I love getting email, and hearing from you.
Other places to find me online.
***
Sign up now to get my blog posts delivered to your inbox for free.
Good Boy No 2
Good Boy No 3
