Strawberry Mansion, 8x10 Original Oil Painting on Canvas Panel

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Now a restaurant, this house was called The Strawberry Mansion for many years, and now is remodeled and called The Mansion. Built in 1905, it was originally a residence called The Queen Anne. As The Strawberry Mansion, it had delicious pink and raspberry colors. 

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Van Gogh Slept Here, Original Oil Painting on Gallery-Wrapped Canvas 8x8 Provence France

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This is Saint-Paul Asylum, Saint-Remy, France, where Van Gogh spent a year. He was seeking treatment for his mental illness, and he painted 100 paintings while living there. The place is still a facility with patients, but we only saw the part open to tourists. It was a thrill to actually be in Van Gogh's room. His mental health improved there so much that he was allowed to wander the countryside and paint to his heart's content. 

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The Gondolier, Oil Painting, Original Art, 8x10 Venice Scene

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Since we are now into the Christmas season and I have had no time to paint, I am re-posting one of my favorites, a scene in Venice. It brings back wonderful memories of that very unique place. 

Yesterday our painting group, Pieces of Eight, had our Christmas party, which is always a hoot. 

From left to right: Donna Vines, Carol Schiff, me, Jean Thomas, Mary Warnick, Denette Schweikert, Kathy Garvey, and Fay Picardi. 

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Gull Cottage, Pen-and-Ink Drawing, 5x7

In the past two weeks I have painted a large oil painting, drawn this pen-and-ink drawing, and painted 8 x 20-foot flats for a play. Oh, and below are journal entries I did during my stay on North Captiva in Gull Cottage (above).

Pretty good for a woman of certain age.

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The Gondolier, 8x10 Oil Painting on Canvas Panel, Scene in Venice

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One of my favorite places I've ever visited is Venice. Its ancient beauty is the stuff of dreams. The only vehicles are boats, including fire, trash, buses, and commuter vehicles. Where else do you see office workers carrying briefcases and standing in a gondola?

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Strawberry Mansion, 5x7 Oil on Panel

This is the old Strawberry Mansion, a restaurant in a historic building in Melbourne, Florida. The place was sold, remodeled, and is now a restaurant called The Mansion, and all the strawberry colors are gone. 

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Jefferson Memorial, 7x5 Oil on Canvas Panel

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I love nocturnal paintings because they are dramatic. Daily painter Karin Jurick used to have challenges on her blog, and I painted this in response to one of her challenges. Another nocturnal painting I like a lot is below, Nighttime at the Loveless Cafe. Any trip we take to Nashville includes a trip to the Loveless Cafe, which is a famous restaurant attached to a 50s motel. We went there one night and spent considerable time waiting to get in, so I had plenty of opportunity to take photos and paint and name the painting in my head.

$95, Click to Buy

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Bok Tower, 5x7 Oil Painting on Canvas Panel

$99, Click to Purchase

Back in the old days in Florida, before Disney came to Orlando, the big attractions were Silver Springs, Cypress Gardens, and this one, Bok Tower. Bok Tower is a National Historic Landmark in Lake Wales, Florida, built on Iron Mountain, a whopping 295 feet above sea level. Pretty high for Florida.

The gardens were built in 1921 by Edward Bok, editor of Ladies Home Journal. The Singing Tower, above, plays carillon bells daily. Frederick Olmstead, architect of Central Park, designed the beautiful landscape.

Anyone visiting Bok Tower should also stop by Spook Hill in Lake Wales, where you can put your car in neutral and roll uphill. Honest. Go try it.

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House of Blue, 5x7 Oil on Canvas Board

Apparently I'm in my Blue Period, having painted a blue frog, a blue birdie, and now this. I was in Larry Moore's plein air workshop and we were at Ballard Park yesterday, a gorgeous location on the water in Melbourne, Florida. Well, what a day! There was a regatta of little sailboats as well as a pirate ship. Out of the pirate ship came--what else? a pirate, in full regalia. Larry immediately began painting a portrait of him, and it was wonderful. Oh, and the pirate had--what else? a parrot. You never know what you'll see around here.

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Larry Paints a Pirate with a Parrot with Painterly Perfection

St. Mark's Episcopal, 5x7

This pretty church is in Cocoa Village, Florida. I love its Spanish flavor. Cocoa Village is chock full of lovely little scenes, and I have painted several. It is a historic place that has been successfully preserved, very artsy with lots of little shops and a beautiful old theater that has been restored. Nice place to visit.

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