"Dawn Lake St. Clair"

I got up early the other day to an amazing sunrise. I took a few pix from the end of our block. But a  friend took this great photo down at the lake. That the one I used as a reference to do this painting. 

 

"Last Sunset on Eleuthera"

 

On our last evening in the Bahamas we were treated to the most amazing sky. We sat out on the deck and watched it slowly change. Just spectacular!

"Pink House, Harbour Island"

 

We had a day trip to Harbour Island, just north of Eleuthera. It's definitely a swankier area with a ton more money than Eleuthera. Lots of beautiful, well kept houses. 

"Strings Attached"

 

I wanted to do a painting of a violin for an art show on the horizon. So I borrowed a friends instrument and this is the result. I thing the highlights from the late afternoon give it an extra depth and richness. 

"Own Better"

 

I was at Orchestra Hall here in Detroit last week. During intermission I meandered into the second floor atrium and spotted this interesting scene. I immediately thought it would make an interesting painting, s I took a quick snap of it with my phone. And voila! Here it is. The words on the signage read something like "Make Midtown Better", but I like the abbreviated "Own Better"! 

"Queen's Baths Too"

 

Another scene from Queen's Baths on Eleuthera, Bahamas. Experimenting with white gauche for the whitecaps. Not totally pleased with the way this one turned out. 

"Former Depot"

Found this lovely old building while exploring Southwest Detroit. From the looks of it, I think it used to be a train depot. It's been repurposed as some sort of carpeting store. I love the blue color they painted it. It's in a total wasteland of an area, and I can't imagine they do much business here 

 

"Lunaria"

 

Another in my series of watercolors from the botanical book. 

"Trane's Blues"

 

I wanted to do something different for an upcoming show. The theme of it is Music. One of my favorite musicians of all time is John Coltrane. So I found an interesting photo of him playing the soprano sax on the net. I opened it up in PhotoShop and played around with various filters. When I got the effect I was looking for I turned it blue and voila! This is the end result. 

"A Beer with Vincent"

 

Last week my wife and I saw the amazing Vincent Van Gogh show at the Detroit Institute of Arts and it blew both of us away. The amount of work he produced over such a short period of time was astounding. If you get a chance, try to catch this unique show. The work was gathered from around the world, but mainly from the U.S. And it's not going to travel. When it ends in January, that's all folks! When I got home, I immediately started this painting. Obviously invfluenced by the master himsel! 

"Sunset by Fisher"

 

Late last Sunday afternoon I noticed this spectacular sunset. It was behind the oGM building and the Fisher building. Thought it might make a cool painting. 

"Queen' Baths"

 

Thought I'd take a stab at doing a landscape with watercolors. This is from our trip to the Bahamas this summer. Not sure if I like the results, but it is certainly a learning experience!

"I'm Horny"

A recent a acrylic painting I did as part of my ongoing bird series. It's a Great Horned Owl, hence the corny title. 

 

"Erythronium"

 

Another watercolor sketch.

"Thymus"

 

Another in the series of watercolors, inspired 

by an amazing set of botanical books I recently purchased. 

"Reflections on da Hood"

 

As I was snooping around my place of employment, I noticed the cool refections on the hood of this old Model A. Thought it might make an interesting painting. 

"Four on the Floor"

 

Lizzie was heading downstairs. I got a quick snap of here on the landing and I loved the late afternoon shadow of her and her paws. If I had a do-over I'd paint it differently. I painted the floor first, then painted the sunny part afterwards. I'd try painting the floor light first, then paint the shadier parts and the shadows afterwards. That's one of the frustrations and joys of painting. Always learning new things by our mistakes. Or near successes. 

"Belle Isle Beauties"

 

I visited the new garden on Belle Isle last week. It's an amazing collection of plants and flowers designed by a well-know Dutch gardener. There were very few flowers in bloom, but I did spot this beautiful plant. It looks like a Gerbera Daisy, but that's just a guess. If anyone knows what it is, feel free to email me the info!

"Old Assumption Greek Orthodox church"

 

This was the original Assumption Church in Detroit. It's pretty run down these days. Thought I'd document it while it was still standing. 

"Orange In Tent City"

Spotted these incredibly intense orange Gerbera daisies and took a quick snap of them I thought I'd have at 'em with watercolors, and they turned out better than I thought they would. 

 

"Eschscholtzia"

I recently bought an amazing two-volume set of botanical books with very inspiring photos. I'll be doing a lot more of these in the future! Fun way to discover the joys of watercolors!