"Mountain Above Ridgecrest"

5 x 7 (plein air)

From Royal Gorge looking east above Ridgecrest. Went with Zack, who took his guitar and went to a deck that overlooks what my kids call Royal Gorge. Had to work fast because the sun was setting. Great colors in the sky and the distant mountains. Hope I did it justice.

Thanks for looking.

"Bridge to West Palm Beach"



6 x 8

I am back from a vacation to South Florida. These were painted from the bike trail on Palm Beach. I took my daughter, Kendall, every morning to the trail that is on the intercoastal side on Palm Beach so she could run in the shade of the tall hedges between the mansions and the water. She is a serious runner on her high school cross country team. Palm Beach in the summer is a hot place, so you look for shade and run early. The trail is a beautiful and peaceful place. It is very well maintained almost like a nice golf course. In morning you hear the sound the gas powered lawn equipment. You don't get to see much of any of the houses unless you can find an empty spot in the hedges. The people on the trail are generally older and nicely dressed and more than a couple women smelled of expensive perfume. Everyone was very friendly. Kendall's workouts lasted just about an hour, so these got done quickly.

"Across to WPB"


5 x 7

These were a great way to start the day. I wish I had had more time, but I was glad to be able to wear the Dad hat, and coach hat, for maybe the last time after ten years of helping kids run during summer vacation. Kendall is a senior this year and over the last ten years I have gotten up with Stephen and Zack and Kendall, and helped make sure they did their summer training. If you think that is crazy, then you are probably right. Having been a runner myself, I know how tough it is to get this done, even when you are not on vacation. And the fact is, looking back on all those years of riding bikes and searching for trails, and early morning wake ups, and after run coffee and donuts and conversations, I would definitely do it again.

Thanks for looking.

"Swimming Dock / Ridgecrest"


5 x 7

At Camp Ridgecrest near Balck Mountain, N.C. This is a big hunk of poured concrete. They have changed the swimming area over the years and I think they call this the old swim dock.

Thanks for looking.

"Cherokee 3"


11 x 14

This is from Camp Crestridge in Ridgecrest, N. C.. This year was my girls tenth year at the camp and they had the honor of being in the Cherokee 1 Cabin which houses the oldest girls at camp. After many many years they are apparently tearing down these cabins to rebuild new ones. There is a tremendous amount of history in these cabins. By tradition the girls sign their names on just about everything you could write on. They find names of cousins, friends, and even mothers that were signed over the years. As an artist I love this deep but plain blue that the cabins are painted with. I have done some other pieces from Crestridge and Ridgecrest and I will post them over the coming weeks.

Thanks for looking.

"St. Marks Blue"


5 x 7

This sky was painted using a new white. Of course any house painter knows there are multiple varieties of white. Its the same with oil paints except we are not talking about different shades of white, rather it is the material the white is made with. I can make my own shades of white without any problem. This white is called Flake White and the principle difference is that it uses lead in the formula. Obviously, this is not something with which you want to be casual. I have only used in this painting. I really like the luminous quality that you can get with it. However I have been freaked out by the paint. There are just to many times that I end up looking in the mirror in my studio and realize I have a paintbrush in my mouth. You know like chewing on a pencil. So anyway, no matter how nice the color is, I'm pretty sure this is my last tube. I have lost enough brain cells already.

"Shrimper at Dock"


5 x 7


A shrimp boat at the dock in Appalachicola. There is a marina on the north side of Appalachicola. There are about twenty boats that are usually tied up there. I always like to go there and take a bunch of photos. It looks like a really difficult life, but that's probably what one of those shrimpers would say if they saw me sitting at my desk doing what I do.

"Foggy Morning"

10 x 12

From a trip to Atlanta in the morning. A Georgia field with fog and plowed furrows. This is what it would be like to live in a cloud. Doesn't seem too bad does it? As I am 'approaching advanced age', (this is a social security term, not mine) my vision is suffering and everything seems to be in a cloud. Especially that up close stuff. That part of my eye just does not work anymore. So with painting I am battling between far vision and up close vision. Sometimes this is helpful. One of the things you do when you paint is to squint at the image. This simplifies the values and the colors. Now all I do is pull off my glasses and I don't have to squint. It stinks to get old!

"Ron's Flag"



7 x 5 (Plein air)

An image from the lake painted during the Memorial Day weekend. Ron is the next door neighbor. I thought this would be good for July 4th weekend as well. I am in North Carolina this weekend picking up the girls from camp and visiting my son who is a counselor at the boys camp next door. The mountains of North Carolina are a fantastic place. I love the views. I love the stream that runs next to the roadway. The sound and the cool water and the rapids. Those are things you just don't get in Florida. Today we drove up from Atlanta through Gainesville, Georgia and into North Carolina at Franklin. We hiked to Glenn Falls near Highlands. It's a really pretty spot with a waterfall that drops about 5o feet. You can actually hike up and under the falls. After my son did it I decided I had to give it a try. Here you are squatting under a ledge that makes a cave about ten feet deep. As you squat under there you realize there is a solid rock above you that is about 5o feet thick. If you just happened to be under that ledge when God decided it was time for gravity to do its job, you would just be 'squish'. Luckily, God was not ready for me yet.

Here's a painting from last year in North Carolina. We hiked up Rattlesnake Summit and watched July 4th fireworks in the town of Black Mountain. It was as good as it sounds. I did the painting from a photo taken while on the summit.

"Dusk from Rattlesnake"



5 x 7

Have a Happy July 4th weekend!