Jamie & Curley - sold

8"x10" oil on Belgian linen mounted on archival board

"Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole."
- Roger Caras


This is my last commission for the calendar year of 2010. I've been quite fortunate to have this opportunity and get to collaborate with one of my collectors on a special painting just for her! Curley was a very loved pet who has gone to the Rainbow Bridge just this year. "Jamie and Curley" is an 8"x10" oil on Belgian linen mounted on archival board.

This painting is already sold, but to see other available works, please visit my DailyPainters.com gallery store.

I'm currently taking commissions for next year - 2011- if you have a special pet, event, memorable place, that you'd like to commemorate!

Welcome to my latest new subscribers! I do hope you enjoy the paintings, photos & stories! I always love hearing comments from my readers!!

An Artist Has Got to Eat! Green tomato & shrimp casserole

After a couple of requests, I thought I'd share this recipe on my blog. After all, an artist has got to eat! Our garden has provided us with lots of great things to cook AND paint!

The end of the season had left us with a lot of little green tomatoes that weren't going to ripen in the chilly air, so I cut them all off before I lost them to frost! I had made one Green tomato casserole & figured with a little alteration I could make a whole dinner out of it...by adding shrimp! So this trial & error turned out great.

The recipe as follows serves two. Double as you need to- there's not too many 'exacts' here.

1/2 an onion chopped
1/4 to 1/2 c. red bell pepper chopped
olive oil (to saute)
4 green tomatoes (plus 1 red one as well since I had it) chopped
almost stale whole wheat bread, but into cubes (approx. 2 cups)
shredded cheese (Mexican blend, or cheddar if you prefer) (approx. 1 cup, more if you like)
Herbs d'Provence
shrimp, 1/2 lb. shelled (if serving 2)

-Preheat oven to 350F.
-Butter the bottom of your baking casserole dish.
-Saute onion & bell pepper in olive oil until onions are carmelized & soft, but not quite browning.
Add chopped green tomatoes (and the red one if you have it). Keep stirring, sauteeing until the green tomatoes have softened a good bit. This may take awhile, as green tomatoes are about as hard as baseballs when you start out!
- Once that is softened, set aside in another bowl, & use the pan to saute your shrimp in olive oil (yes, you'll need to add approx. another tablespoon). Saute until just pink & no longer clear. Be careful not to overcook. Remove from heat.
-Start layering 1/2 the tomato mixture, then 1/2 the bread cubes, then the shredded cheese, then 1/2 the shrimp. Repeat and top with shredded cheese. Layer it so it looks good to YOU! I used the last 1/2 Tbspn. of butter cut into little bits and placed around the top of the casserole. Bake about 10-15 minutes until cheese is melted and bread edges are just getting toasty.

-Good grief, this was surprisingly good! Perhaps you could serve it with a salad- even better!

nodp

October Wedding - sold

10"x8" oil on Belgian linen mounted on archival board

"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams."
-Eleanor Roosevelt


I have had the sweet blessing of painting a wedding portrait of a daughter and son-in-law of one of my collectors. It is such a privilege to take part in someone's life this way. I feel like I've been allowed to get to know the family after going through wedding photos- what a beautiful, exciting, and special celebration the whole event is. It is truly a joy to get commissions like this and even in this small way, take part in the happy occasion. "October Wedding" is a 10"x8" oil on Belgian linen mounted on archival board.

This painting is already sold, to see other available paintings & purchase information, please visit my DailyPainters.com gallery store.

Into The Light

10"x8" oil on Belgian linen mounted on archival board

"Seek not to follow the footsteps of men of old;
seek what they sought."
- Matsuo Basho (from 'Warrior Wisdom' compiled by Daniel Moore)


Have you ever really looked (and I mean really looked) at a white object? Whether it's in sun or shade, the colors that surround it, reflect up into it. In our every day rush, rush, rush we miss a lot of that wonderful-ness...perhaps until we learn 'how to see color' . A simple object, whether a ceramic pitcher, a house, a fence, will look different depending upon how the light is hitting it, whether it is cool or warm light, and what is surrounding that object. We might pass by any one of these objects day after day, thinking that all shadows are gray. While they probably ARE a grayed version of some color, they are also going to be either a warm or cool version of some grayed-down color. Now, for an interesting view, click on the image to make it larger, now set your computer monitor where you can walk across the room to look at it. A strong image will 'read' well from a distance as well as up close! Today's painting, "Into The Light" is an exercise demonstrating those very things. It is a 10"x8" oil on Belgian linen mounted on archival board.

For purchase information, please visit my DailyPainters.com gallery store.

Pumpkin Spice Latte

20"x20" oil on stretched canvas

"Almost all my middle-aged and elderly acquaintances, including me, feel about 25, unless we haven't had our coffee, in which case we feel 107."
- Martha Beck


Flowers are the best medicine on a rainy day. If it's more than a bit chilly, a coffee or something hot to drink is nice, too. This year I learned how to make my own pumpkin spice latte's, so I've had that on my mind. I had a ton of these little 'Jack-be-nimble' pumpkins that we grew this year...so of course I wanted them in the still-life as well - my statement for autumn! I really enjoy painting by natural light of the window....except we are running out of daylight earlier now! But the window light is beautiful, on gray days there is a silvery quality to the light. For purchase information, please visit my DailyPainters.com gallery store.

Connecticut Gold Rush

12"x16" oil on linen mounted on archival board

"Autumn carries more gold in its hand than all the other seasons."
- Jim Bishop


There is nothing like a back-lit tree in autumn...with the sun high in the sky, illuminating all those colorful leaves, making it appear as though they are aflame! A single corridor of strong sun light cuts through between the house and tree-line spot-lighting the golden leaves among the tree-top as well as those that have already fallen! At this time of year, long shadows spread far, reaching across field, lawn, and farmhouse lane. There is a crisp deep chill in the air, yet the sun is warm (thank goodness).

This is where I went to paint last Wednesday (before the rain rolled in on Thursday and Friday), down in the town of Chester, on Straits Road. My intentions for the day were to push myself and paint a little larger than I normally do for a morning of painting outdoors. I'm calling this one "Connecticut Gold Rush" and it's a 12"x16" oil on linen mounted on archival board. I'm hoping the leaves hold on for just a little longer, although it is getting cold out there....even in the sun-shine.

I'm currently working on a large floral, and am preparing sketches for 2 commissions I'm thrilled to get started on! It's going to be a great week! Please contact me for more information about this painting! roxannesteed@gmail.com

Take The Long Way Home

5"x7" oil on gessoed masonite artboard

"A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will annoy enough people to make it worth the effort."
- Herm Albright


Finally home from my travels, there were still colorful leaves on the trees. They have hastened their fall and are almost gone. I wanted to get a couple fall scenes painted before the rest of the leaves were down.

Get off the interstate....pass by those wonderful Cape style homes painted that "New England" red...somewhere a long a curvy winding road...."Take The Long Way Home" comes to mind on long road trips. Yep, I've had a few of those lately! This painting is 5"x7" and is painted in oils on gessoed masonite artboard. I'm offering my 'while it is wet' price of $125 plus $10 for shipping/insurance. Contact me at roxannesteed@gmail.com for more information.

Splash! (Norfolk Botanical Garden) sold

8"x10" oil on Belgian linen mounted on archival board

"Where I was born and where and how I have lived is unimportant. It is what I have done with where I have been that should be of interest."
- Georgia O'Keefe

On the Friday morning that I spent painting for the "Out & About Norfolk" plein air event, I took myself back to one of my old favorite 'hang-outs'- the Norfolk Botanical Gardens. One of the most delightful things is to walk the paths through the gardens, and find the ah-ha! place that takes your breath away. Depending upon the season and what is blooming at the time, it can be a different place each visit....most likely many places within the garden will provide this!! And of course, one of my very places to set up and paint is near the fountain. This garden is created so that you can see this fountain from so many different angles...and all the plantings behind that part, frame up the view perfectly! I'm always amazed at the artistry of the plantings, it's like a painting everywhere you look! So here is a view I hadn't noticed to paint before...
This painting "Splash" is an 8"x10" oil on Belgian linen mounted on archival board sold that Saturday evening at the show and now belongs to my newest corporate collector, Bank of Hampton Roads!

Morning Light, Left to Right

12"x16" oil on linen mounted on archival board

"Write it on your heart that every day is the best day in the year."
- Ralph Waldo Emerson


So, it seems I've been stretching out all these stories from my recent travels. Two weeks ago Wednesday I drove down to Virginia to be ready for the "Out & About Norfolk" Plein Air Show, as well as the second event, Ballet Virginia International - Artists Supporting the Arts Gala - both juried shows. I had four paintings juried into the BVI show, and I had been fortunate to jury in to the Out & About Show as well. For the O&A, 40 artists were out on the town painting their favorite locations on Thursday and Friday of that week. These works are exhibited in the 'Wet Painting Sale' at the big event Saturday evening.

My first painting of Thursday was at the Norfolk Yacht Club, and I wanted to push by abilities a bit by painting larger than I usually do outside. I was really attracted to the light on the 'big mass of boats' before me...as well as the light glancing across three kayaks on a pier directly in front of me! This painting brought me an Award of Merit from Jerry's Artarama at the Saturday evening show.

For purchase information please visit my DailyPainters.com gallery store.

Citrus Flowers (Commission) - sold

10"x10" oil on stretched Belgian linen

"The question is not....what is life? The question is...what is your experience of living?"
- Bob Burridge

After returning from my San Diego journey, I was home long enough to do some laundry, frame some finished paintings going into the Norfolk "Ballet Virginia International" show, ready my plein air supplies for "Out & About Norfolk" (the plein air portion of the two event show), AND...finish a commission that I had the sketches already prepared for. One of my repeat collectors requested a painting of a favorite bouquet- it had orange roses, red-orangey gerber daisies, and yellow Peruvian lilies (alstroemeria) in a big green glass vase. Lemons & limes in a bowl and a favorite 'kitty' mug (we both have been 'owned' by a big orange cat!) brought all these citrus colors together. It made me think of Florida (where I'm from, and) where she lives! Thanks for the honor Kathy! I thoroughly enjoyed it!

I'm thinking that once the weather gets too cold to be out painting, I'll be bringing home some bright colored flowers to paint in my studio! They are so cheery when the skies go gray and cold. My neighbor says there's rumors of snow flurries this Saturday?!?! ACKKK- I'm not quite ready for this kind of cold yet! Guess I'd better be thinking about what kind of flowers I'd like to paint!

From Hilltop To Valley At Keys Creek

6"x8" oil on Belgian linen mounted on archival board

"There is only one difference between a long life and a good dinner: that, in the dinner, the sweets come last."
-Robert Louis Stevenson


I took a short break for some water and a snack, and set up my easel again at the farm, up near the top of the hill, by the farm house. There is a wonderful view across the valley. At this point it's approaching mid-day, and I've found a bit of shade to shelter in while I paint this view. I really enjoyed being out in this open space, with long horizons so far away.

Contact me for purchase information on this painting:
roxannesteed@gmail.com