And God Set A Bow in the Sky (Photo)

Sometimes I look out and see interesting weather effects and I can hear the waves crashing, so I rush across to the beach with my camera. I am frequently rewarded with sights like this. I am wondering: if I painted this, including the rainbow, would it be believable?

Can you tell I haven't had time to paint? I have had time for family gatherings in celebration of the holidays, so I'm not complaining. Just having some withdrawals. You artists know what I mean.

Morning Sea, 4x5 Oil on Canvas

I went small on this one. I love the colors of the sky and ocean in the morning. Sometimes they don't even look real.

PURCHASE

The Pieces of 8 had a wonderful luncheon this week and exchanged our very creative gifts. Here's the happy group:

Robert Duvall

I have a new Modus Operandi. When there is no time to paint, go to my journal. This is Robert Duvall's driveway on his beautiful farm, where he raises longhorns and does the Tango with his beautiful wife.

Yesterday as the beautiful little children performed a Christmas play at our church, it was hard not to think of those little souls lost last week. I read that the number of people lost in massacres in our country this year is now up to eighty-four. My friend songwriter Bobby Braddock is quoted below on the subject, saying it better than I could:

"Maybe...instead of thinking that gun control advocates are exploiting victimized children to promote an agenda...and instead of thinking that gun control opponents care more about guns than children...and instead of threatening to remove from our pages the opinions of those with whom we disagree...and instead of letting "liberal vs conservative" weave its way into every fabric of our lives including this heartwrenching national tragedy...why don't we come TOGETHER, as we did on September 11, 2001, and why don't we listen to each other and try to figure out ways to truly help prevent the recurrence of mass child murders. I think there are few if any who sign on to Facebook who are not deeply saddened over the hideous loss of those babies in Connecticut."

Verdant, 18x24 Oil on Canvas

I can't imagine being an early settler in Florida and trying to slog through swamps and palmettos, but I really enjoy seeing what is left of that jungle. It's a lot more beautiful to look at than condos. Yeah, yeah, I'm a treehugger. I love the woods. Being in the quiet of a forest makes me mindful of the beautiful planet God gave us to inhabit.

PURCHASE

Sealight II, 10x10 Oil on Canvas

This is the other end of the wave I posted previously. The color is completely different from my first one, because I was painting in different light. Also, I painted the first painting from my iPad and this one from a photo. I am painting in the square format on gallery-wrapped canvas for an upcoming show, so I cropped the wave and got two paintings from one wave.

I painted this at yesterday's Pieces of 8 Holiday Sale. We had such a great day, the paintings were flying from the shelves! We sold a great variety of things, and our black-and-white mix-n-match earrings were a huge hit. Kudos to Kathy Garvey for that smart idea! One customer came twice, and said she can't wait until next year.

Pieces of 8 Sale Saturday

The Pleininator

I will be painting tomorrow at the Pieces of 8 Studio Sale. There will be gift items and bargains galore. You won't believe the prices, and they are products that are Made In America, which makes them unique!

The sale will go on, rain or shine, and there will be refreshments and much congeniality. The address is 3532 Samuel Place, Melbourne, Florida. Watch for the signs.

Sealight, 10x10 Oil on Canvas

This wave posed nicely for me the other day, and I enjoyed painting it. I noticed the sky was doing interesting things and I could hear the waves from my house, so I rushed over to the beach and got some very nice shots. This will be displayed in my exhibit next month at the Art and Antique Gallery in  the Eau Gallie Art District in Melbourne, Florida. My exhibit is called "From Highland to Island," and I will have paintings of subjects from the mountains to the sea.