The Pinto Oil on board, 5" x 7" $125.00 + $6.00 shipping in US. SOLD This horse reaps the rewards of a greener than usual summer in the upper foothills. That's the Elkhorn Mountains in the far distance, peeking over the hills of High Valley.

Streamside Oil on board, 5" x 7" $125.00 + $6.00 shipping in US. SOLD Patterns of sun and shade flicker along the banks of Catherine Creek. Click image to enlarge.

Western Summer Oil on board, 6" x 6" $125.00 + $6.00 shipping in US. Rugged peaks loom over the classic landscape of the west: rolling valleys dotted with sage and juniper.

Gallery Light

Oil on canvas, 24" x 30"
Email me if you're interested in this painting.

I had a daily ready to post today, but my auto-post system is acting up yet again (sigh.)

Here's a larger painting, done a few years ago. My son Jared and I were making the rounds of galleries in Santa Monica one day, and walked into a show of minimalist paintings. As Jared came through the door, I noticed his shadow cast on the sunlit wall. I immediately thought it would make a great subject for a painting--the realistic shadow contrasted with the literal abstraction of the blue and red artworks and stark white walls. It was as if someone were throwing a shadow across a Mondrian painting.

I made Jared walk in and out the door several times while I snapped photos. The gallery owners must have thought we were nuts. On the other hand...they're probably pretty used to artists.

(Top:) "Window Series #13," by Lorie Baxter
Oil enamel and Galkyd on copper
33 1/2" x 33 1/2"
Copyright 2005 Lorie Baxter

(Bottom:) Detail: "Seven Abstract Paintings," by Lorie Baxter
Oil enamel on metal
7" x 7"
Copyright 2006 Lorie Baxter

My good friend, Pendleton Oregon artist Lorie Baxter emailed me her response to my July 18 post about studios:

"On the subject of studios...I've had only two...little and big. Big lets me do more, including painting larger pieces. But in addition, big lets me have work around for inspiration, for working on a series and for looking at things over a long time...I also think having the studio well away from the house is important. It lets me focus on my work. Having a studio at home (I have a small one at the beach) allows for too many distractions...

"I love my studio in terms of size and lighting and type (big, high old auto-body paint shop). I have excellent movable storage bins and great big work tables and big flat files to store works on paper. But it is along the river in Pendleton and I don't feel safe going there at night alone...so am thinking I'd like to have one on our land at home, but well way from the house, a separate building...with north and east light. So...I'm planning."

Brenda's Bouquet 2 Oil on board, 6" x 6" $125.00 + $6.00 shipping in US. SOLD I love this little glass vase, with those deep ultramarine blues.

Afternoon at Dog Beach Oil on canvas, 16" x 20" Email me for purchase information. Not a daily painting but a larger work, done awhile back. Click image to enlarge.

Mike's Top Ten

North Carolina plein air painter Mike Rooney included me in his Top Ten List of favorite blogs yesterday. It's a great group of artists and I'm very honored. Check out Mike's joyous, painterly work and the other fine artists here.

Thanks to all you artists who have weighed in with comments on your studio spaces. My friend Rik Erickson from San Diego sent me these photos of his studio, along with this message:

"Yes, love my studio...it's a Dedicated Art Space physically and mentally. I share the place and rent with a friend and sculptor ($400 each). We are known around the area as the "artists" because of the public art on the building...Love having the ARTIST identity. Big 14 feet walls...northern light...huge windows...love the light...I can lock everyone out and isolate/create when I like...Need it for the canvas murals I create too..."

Ocean Waves 4 Oil on board, 6" x 6" $125.00 + $6.00 shipping in US. SOLD Posts are going to be sporadic for awhile, as I work on some larger paintings and commissions. I'll try to post two or three dailies per week. Also, in the what goes around comes around department, I've just started re-renting my old studio space above the County Museum in Union, so am busy getting it up and running. It is an absolutely wonderful studio--a large main room with 14-foot ceilings and very good vibes. There are several other rooms for storage, as well as a bathroom and kitchen. The large painting walls, flat file drawers and storage racks I built many years ago are, amazingly, still there. I am thrilled to get it back, having pined for that space ever since we left Oregon 14 years ago. I'd be interested in hearing from other artists on the subject of studios--how important is the studio to your creative process? What is an ideal studio to you?

Low Tide Watercolor on archival paper, 7" x 5" $125.00 + $6.00 shipping in US. Another watercolor landscape today, derived from photos I took two summers ago while painting a mural in New Brunswick, Canada. This image came from my visit to the beautiful Bay of Fundy. Fundy has the highest tide shifts of anywhere in the world--over thirty feet of difference between high and low tides. While walking far out on the tidal plain I turned to see this minimal, elemental view.

Two Shells Oil on board, 6" x 6" $125.00 + $6.00 shipping in US. SOLD

Toothpaste and Shell Oil on board, 5" x 7" $125.00 + $6.00 shipping in US. Here's another in the "Odd Couple" series. Click the image for a larger view.

Dappled Grove Watercolor on archival paper, 6" x 6" $125.00 + $6.00 shipping in US. Back to a watercolor landscape today.

Banana and Rope Oil on board, 6" x 6" $125.00 + $6.00 shipping in US. SOLD Doing this Odd Couple series has made me realize that the human need to make "sense" of what we see is very strong. No matter how bizarre or unlikely a combination may be, our minds go right to work forging connections, searching for ways to rationalize why these objects are together. As I worked on this painting I began to feel it was not such a strange combination as I first thought. I began thinking of "banana boats" and how early cargos were transported on sailing ships. And of course, what does a sailing ship have plenty of?...rope.

The Green Woods Watercolor on archival paper, 6" x 6" $125.00 + $6.00 shipping in US. SOLD Last winter's large snowpack has made for an exceptionally green summer in the mountains. The bark of this Douglas Fir is covered with lichen.

Farmhouse Watercolor on archival paper, 6" x 6" $125.00 + $6.00 shipping in US. SOLD I felt like doing a watercolor today. This is a typical eastern Oregon farmhouse. It has no doubt undergone numerous remodels over the years, most recently the addition of a metal roof over the old wood shingles.

Takeout and Tape Measure Oil on board, 6" x 6" $125.00 + $6.00 shipping in US. SOLD Another in the "Odd Couple" series. Did everyone have a safe and sane holiday weekend? You didn't set fire to the neighbor's lawn, did you? We attended the annual family reunion on my mother's side--a wonderful, life-affirming time.

Catenary Oil on board, 5" x 7" $125.00 + $6.00 shipping in US. SOLD Happy Independence Day! I'll probably paint some more works in the "Odd Couple" series, but for today I'm posting this landscape. The other evening's sunset looked like a fireworks display, so this seemed appropriate. This is yet another painting of the little barn just north of our house. You viewers may get tired of seeing it, but I never tire of the view, with its ever-changing light and color shifts.

Padlock and Blow Dryer Oil on board, 6" x 6" $125.00 + $6.00 shipping in US. I guess this is something you don't see every day...or do you?

Fruit Jar and Sunglasses Oil on board, 6" x 6" $125.00 + $6.00 shipping in US. SOLD I loved painting the crisp but understated reflections on these surfaces.

Tomato and Hiking Boot Oil on board, 6" x 6" $125.00 + $6.00 shipping in US. SOLD I'll bet like me you can't pull on your hiking boots without thinking of a tomato, right?