Rock Study 1

Charcoal and pencil on archival paper, 8" x 11"
$65 plus $6 shipping in U.S.

For check payment or other arrangements, email don@dailyartwest.com

I worked today on a couple of small drawings in the stone series--here's one of them.

Stone Series (works in progress)

Charcoal on paper, each sheet approx. 22" x 30"
Click image to enlarge

No daily painting today. The day was spent with rocks in my head, working on these drawings that continue the "Heaven and Earth" theme. I begin with photos of actual stones which are then "re-invented," freely interpreted with paint or drawing media. The search is for more than just a picture of a rock. I struggle for a poetic equivalent...some kind of felt reality, I guess. It seems impossible to describe this intuitive process in words. It is often frustrating, not knowing what I want until I see it, but I do love working in this open-ended way.

Here are some links to previous posts related to this series:

http://www.dailyartwest.com/2009/04/nine-stones-progression-1-nine-stones.html

http://www.dailyartwest.com/2009/11/four-stones-studio-view-click-images-to.html

http://www.dailyartwest.com/2010/04/untitled-work-in-progress-oil-on-board.html

http://www.dailyartwest.com/2010/05/heaven-and-earth-1-2-3-4-charcoal-on.html

The "Heaven and Earth" exhibit continues through September 10th in the Memorial Building at Whitman College, Walla Walla, Washington. If you go, use the back entrance--they have the front of the building blocked while doing construction/maintenance.

Studio Wall with Painting

Oil on board, 6" x 7 1/8"
$140 plus $6 shipping in U.S.

SOLD

A painting within a painting. While casting about for a subject, I noticed the glowing light filtering across a studio wall, where I had recently hung one of my large shell paintings.

Rockslide

Oil on canvas, 12" x 12"
$750 plus $12 shipping in U.S.

For check payment or other arrangements, email don@dailyartwest.com.

I've recently done a little more work on this larger painting that was posted about a year ago. The changes are very subtle--a little re-structuring of the clouds and some glazing work, but it was enough that I decided to re-post.

Monumental Pepper

Oil on board, 7" x 5"
$125 plus $6 shipping in U.S.

For check payment or other arrangements, email don@dailyartwest.com.

Even small paintings can have a large feeling. This painting was posted back in 2007, but the image is no longer available in my archives (it's a long story having to do with my old server destroying my image database.) I think it deserves another look. I've always enjoyed the lush, painterly feel of this piece, and the sense of monumental scale it seems to have, due to the low perspective and close-up viewpoint.

Second Cutting

Oil on board, 6" x 6"
$125 plus $6 shipping in U.S.
SOLD

A rich green crop of alfalfa on a neighbor's farm. I couldn't resist the complementary red/green color scheme.

Uh oh...there's been a chill in the air the last couple of nights, a reminder that autumn is fast approaching. Are you ready?

Once Upon a Time

Oil on canvas panel, 6" x 6"
$125 plus $6 shipping in U.S.

For check payment or other arrangements, email don@dailyartwest.com.


The idyllic looking place in this painting no longer exists. It was painted from a photo I took a couple of years ago. Today, the area looks like the photo below, taken yesterday.

Catherine Creek courses through this low-lying land, and if it weren't for the earthen dike you can just make out along the treeline in the photo, this farmland would be a marsh year round. Even with the dike, water finds it's way into low spots, and my painting shows one of those backwater channels. The farmer has graded out the channel and dozed the trees down, probably in an effort to reclaim agricultural ground and in hopes of reducing flooding.

I watched a program the other night on a photographer (forgive me, I don't recall his name) who took many photos of older buildings. He said "Every photographer is a historian." The simple truth of it struck me. Even painters, artistic license and all, work at freezing a moment of time...a fleeting impression...an historic instant. And we are constantly reminded that the only constant is change.

Homage to Jena

Oil on board, 24" x 30"
Private commission


This is a recently completed commissioned work. Robert, a longtime family friend, wanted a painting of a barn he had renovated inside and out. The interior is certainly not your typical barn any longer. It has been outfitted with a concrete floor, kitchen, gallery lighting and much more. It is used for family gatherings, weddings, etc. Robert is part of a large and loving family of wonderful people who are highly respected and appreciated in our region. Brenda and I had the honor of attending their family gathering this year and unveiling the painting.

I was given complete freedom in my interpretation of the subject. Later I was thrilled to learn that the view I happened to choose held special significance for the family--Robert's father and neice are buried under the two large pines at the top of the hill. The neice, Jena, was a young aspiring artist who was working on a painting of this barn when she sadly passed away.

This was a commission that held special meaning for me--thank you, Robert!

August Light

Oil on board, 6" x 6"
$125 plus $6 shipping in U.S.

For check payment or other arrangements, email don@dailyartwest.com.

Shaded Up

Oil on board, 8" x 8 3/4"
$250 plus $10 shipping in U.S.

For check payment or other arrangements, email don@dailyartwest.com.

A typical summertime sight along the backroads here. Standing this way, they can sweep the nuisance flies away from each other with their tails.

Click image to enlarge.

Cherries in a Metal Bowl

Oil on board, 6" x 8"
$150 plus $6 shipping in U.S.

For check payment or other arrangements, email don@dailyartwest.com.

I love working with these saturated colors. There is something richly satisfying about laying the groundwork of colors and values, then coming in at the last with highlights that bring everything to life.

Click the image to enlarge.

Tomato and Bowl

Oil on board, 5" x 7"

For check payment or other arrangements, email don@dailyartwest.com.

This tomato with the vine attached caught my eye in the kitchen this morning, so I took it up to the studio to paint. I loved how it looked against the stainless bowl, and the blue cloth added to the color richness.

I forgot to bring it home this evening, so our dinner salad was tomato-free (except for one tiny one from the garden--the rest aren't ripe yet.)

Harvest Evening

Oil on board, 6" x 8"
$150 plus $6 shipping in U.S.

For check payment or other arrangements, email don@dailyartwest.com.

Ahh, these summer evenings. We complain about the heat, then long for August days during the frozen depths of winter.

The huge round hay bales are a tempting subject to paint, with their imposing, sculptural presence. I worked the hayfields of this valley as a kid. We wrestled rectangular bales that weighed maybe 70 pounds. These round ones might weigh a ton. They are moved with tractors and specialized equipment, one person doing the work that once took a haying crew.

And what kind of jobs are left for the kids of summer?...

"Do you want fries with that?"

Stilt Walker

Oil on board, 6" x 8"
$150 plus $6 shipping in U.S.
SOLD


A slightly larger painting today. This long-legged fellow is called, appropriately, a Black-necked Stilt. I watched him wade along in the shallows out at Ladd Marsh the other day. He moved pretty quickly through the water, spindly legs flexing in a curious rolling gait that reminded me of someone walking on snowshoes.

White Shore 9

Mixed media on paper, 6" x 6"

$125 plus $6 shipping in U.S.

To pay by check or make other payment arrangements, email don@dailyartwest.com


Sometimes the best thing you can do is ruin a painting. Why? Because the pressure's off. The work is already toast, why not mess around with it a little more and experiment--maybe try an approach or technique you haven't tried before?

This painting began as a watercolor on heavyweight Fabriano paper. I wasn't happy with it, so I sprayed it heavily with fixative to isolate the paper surface, then overpainted with oil. The watercolor acts as an underpainting and the oil allows a range of subtle color and value that better captures the beautiful porcelain-like quality of the shell. I'm much happier with it now. I just hope nobody heard the cussing earlier.

Cherry Season 2

Oil on board, 5" x 7"
$125 plus $6 shipping in U.S.

For convenience I'm going back to using purchase buttons. They allow fast and easy payment by credit or debit card, or by PayPal account. If you prefer to pay by check or make other arrangements, email don@dailyartwest.com.