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A Flock of Cardinals (#2)

 As so often happens when I paint a picture, after I decide that I am done, I look at it a couple of days later and think of all the things that I wish I had done differently. And the only remedy for those thoughts is to paint the picture again, and sometimes several times again! It was that way with the last painting I posted about a flock of cardinals in some winter birch trees with snow on the ground. Here is the second attempt: For purchase information, click on the image.

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A Flock of Cardinals

 It’s January, and as usual in southern Maryland, the winter is mild. We have temperatures above freezing and any indications of snow that appear in the weather forecast tend to evaporate before the day arrives and we get rain instead. It is the time of year when I start longing for snow, privileged as I am to have my studio in my home and I don’t have to drive to work. So, I create my own snow in my paintings. Birch trees are fun to paint in watercolor. To do these, I painted in the sky and the background trees, making sure to use pigments that don’t stain the paper.…

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Where the Leaves Are Not

 This is one of my favorite exercises in the autumn because it combines the colorful leaves with the concept of negative painting. We easily understand positive shapes because we can name them. They are things like leaves, chairs, circles, cups, cows, etc. Negative shapes are the shapes between positive shapes, like the hole between your…

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Red Chair

 I saw this house on my walk this morning, and I loved all the red – the chair, the mailbox, the birdhouse, the flag, and the flowers. This is in a neighborhood where lots of people walk and others sit out and greet their neighbors. We did get a break in the hot temperatures though, and it was overcast and drizzly this morning, so I had to imagine in the sun. Would you be a walker or a sitter? For purchase information, click here.

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Monarch Butterfly

 Today’s World Watercolor Month prompt of “Do-Over” wasn’t giving me any ideas, so I painted what I wanted, this monarch butterfly enjoying the nectar from some cone flowers. (Thanks to Virginia Westrick for the reference photo that I used.)

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Pose

 World Watercolor Month is almost at an end. Today’s prompt is “Pose,” which is what these two are doing! Would you ride with these guys?

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Yesterday

 “Yesterday,” the World Watercolor Month prompt for today, can refer to the previous 24 hours, or it can mean a long time ago. This picture is from a long time ago. I remember having a pram like this for my dolly, and I would push my baby while my mother pushed my little brother in her pram. We went for a walk most days. What do you remember from a long time ago? What special thing stands out from your childhood? This picture is for sale. For purchase information, click here.

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Complementary

 Things that complete each other, that go well together, are complementary. Colors are called complementary if they are across the color wheel from each other; they mix together to make a neutral. This painting brings together the complementary colors of yellow and purple to depict a kayak and a paddle, two items that are better together than separately!

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Shine

 Today’s World Watercolor Month prompt is “Shine,” and I thought about all the times we have run across an antique car show and stopped to admire the old cars, lovingly restored to their glory. The paint shines, the upholstery glows, even the engines are clean! Do you remember your first car? Most people do, as this is a major purchase and a big responsibility. What kind did you have? What color was it? (For purchase information, click here.)

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A Favorite Song

 One of my favorite pieces is Ottorino Respighi’s Ancient Airs and Dances, which I listened to while painting this response to today’s World Watercolor Month prompt, “Favorite Song.” This sketch is a first attempt to start a scene in which all kinds of instruments are at a ball dancing (instead of sitting in the orchestra). What other instruments would you include? Would it be male or female? What is your favorite song? How would you depict it visually? For purchase information, click here.

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