Sunday, June 7, 2009



June Blooms

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


At last, another post! I have been away for several days, jurying the Wallowa Valley Festival of Arts, in Joseph, Oregon. Today (Sunday) is the last day of the exhibit, but if you can make it to the show, I urge you to go. It's huge--341 artworks by 131 artists! It was a challenge to jury such variety, basically comparing apples and oranges, but great fun too--like being a kid in a candy store. Fortunately, I didn't have to jury artists in or out of the exhibit, just select awards, which is much less stress-inducing.

The festival had a plein air component, so attending artists were scattered all over that beautiful region of green valleys and rugged peaks--painting away while dodging passing thunderstorms. I painted as well and came up with three works, two of which are hanging in the exhibit; I'll post them on the blog soon.

I thought I had missed the lilac season. By the time we returned from California a couple of weeks ago, the blooming was almost over here in our valley. But Wallowa County is higher in elevation and I was delighted to see the lilacs still in bloom. I painted this beautiful bush along a farm road near Joseph. I also took quite a few photos, so hopefully there will be more lilac paintings to follow.

12 comments:

Stephen Magsig said...

Beautiful greens in this one Don, nice work. Don't you love the smell of these.

Diane Hoeptner said...

Effortless looking brushwork, lovely.

Jane Hunt said...

This is beautiful! I love lilacs - look forward to seeing more like this...

Don Gray said...

Hi Stephen--thanks a lot. Yes, the fragrance is wonderful.

Don Gray said...

Thanks Diane, I appreciate the visit.

Don Gray said...

Thanks a lot, Jane. I think I'll be doing a few more.

Maia T said...

Beautiful spring landscape, lovely.

Don Gray said...

Thank you, Mai and welcome to the blog.

Dean Grey said...

Don!

This lilac painting looks quite soft and airy. I like the movement of the swaying trees in the background.

And I agree with everyone else, there's nothing like the scent of lilacs!

-Dean

Carolyn Finnell said...

What a beautiful and evocative painting. The moment I saw it I thought "When lilacs last in the dooryard bloomed..." (Walt Whitman sticks with you.)

Don Gray said...

Hi Dean--I always appreciate your in-depth comments--thanks!

Don Gray said...

Carolyn, I think of Whitman's poem all the time when I'm painting lilacs--it really does stick in the mind. Thanks for your kind words.