ACEO - Roses for Love

ACEO (Art Cards Editions and Originals) original oil painting 

2 ½ x 3 ½  inches

oil on ⅛ inch archival canvas • gloss varnish (UV protective)

sold unframed

This painting, "Roses for Love" -  painted from life- roses from my garden! - I love painting flowers in the sunlight. The cast shadows bring as much drama as the golden sunlit areas! I'm getting close to the season where most of my flowers will come from the florist or grocery store! 

ACEOs "Window Warmth" sunflowers and zinnias in my studio window

ACEO (Art Cards Editions and Originals) original oil painting 

2 ½ x 3 ½  inches

oil on ⅛ inch archival canvas • gloss varnish (UV protective)

sold unframed

This painting, "Window Warmth" - painted from life- of a big bouquet of sunflowers and zinnias in my studio window - I love painting flowers in the sunlight (whether they are indoors or outside. The cast shadows bring as much fun to paint as the golden sunlit areas! I'm trying to get in all the painting time I can before frost hits us here in southeastern Connecticut and zaps the last of my flowers!

ACEOs are back! "She Loves The Sun" - Sunflowers!

ACEO (Art Cards Editions and Originals) original oil painting 

2 ½ x 3 ½  inches

oil on ⅛ inch archival canvas • gloss varnish (UV protective)

sold unframed

This painting, "She Loves The Sun" - painted from life- of a big bouquet of sunflowers on my back patio table- I love painting flowers in the sunlight. The cast shadows bring as much drama as the golden sunlit areas!

These little ACEOs have been requested since I painted the last series of them, last fall. So here they are again, in time for gift giving season....or for your own collection.  I recently met a new friend who collects ACEOs of all her favorite artists, and keeps them in a lovely ornate box...a box of her treasures. What a lovely idea!  Other collectors have commissioned coordinating series (of hydrangeas) and had them beautifully framed as a set. Lots of wonderful ideas with these little gems. I've finished five of these so far in the series of ten! Available at auction on ebay, as part of my current online "Flower and Garden Show".  

ACEO - Sweet Peas in Summer - sold!

2.5"x3.5"

Click here to bid!

Sweet peas are another of our garden favorites. My husband manages to choose some really lovely varieties...the fragrance is heavenly!

  

For those of you not familiar with the acronym ACEO, it stands for Art Cards Editions and Originals.  The miniature paintings are the size of a baseball trading card, 2 1/2 inches by 3 1/2 inches.  This category of art has become increasingly popular on eBay the last couple of years.  These can be displayed on their own, or with a tiny little easel (like the kind you can find in Michaels Arts & Crafts type stores) on a display shelf, or these beautiful gems can be elegantly matted and framed with perhaps a mat of 4 inches wide.  

So, each year I have time to make just a few of these...and there's never any leftover. Here's your chance to join in on the fun and have one of these dear little mini's.  If you've just GOT to have it, and you can get to it before the first bid is placed, you may buy it out-right (and avoid the whole bidding process) at the buy it now price.  AND, my Christmas gift to you, FREE shipping!

Pink Peonies

 

6"x6" oil on gessoed archival panel

For more information, or to purchase, click here!  

 In our friends, 

we see our own humanity, 

our frailties, 

as well as our best sides.

A mirror of ourselves, 

reminding us that we are not invincible...

but we are loved.

Recently I've been thinking of a dear friend and neighbor who passed away following a long struggle with ovarian cancer. It had been difficult to paint during that time. I'm slowly getting back to the paints, back to the plein air work out doors, and back to the studio on days when weather doesn't cooperate.  I'm in the middle of one commission, and another waiting in the wings...as well as another show of my Barn Island paintings coming up.  I'm grateful that these things are here for me, and I'm able to share these paintings with you all.  But I do still miss my friend. 

 ***

This one was a bit of experimenting with color. I came back in with a muted/grayed blue green to soften the effect of the background and allow these pink peonies to really 'sing'. Much happier with them now! This large bouquet was in my studio window, back-lit from the window on a bright day. The piece is finished with a light coat of varnish, ready to frame, or to display on a small table-top easel. I can recommend a beautiful silver frame for this piece, just contact me!

Peony Passion - Mentoring Monday Classes

12"x12" oil on archival panel

For more information, or to purchase, click here. 

Can you tell it's my favorite time of year?  I'm so excited once everything starts blooming. The peonies this year are BIG, abundant, and have a light, tender fragrance.

Perhaps it's because I have to wait so long for them to arrive that I appreciate them so much. This bouquet was the subject in my "Mentoring Mondays" class. Luckily we finished before the the rains set in for the day.  

"Let us be grateful to people who make us happy, they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom." - 

Marcel Proust

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Sunflower Memories

20"x16" oil on gallery wrapped, stretched canvas

For more information, or to purchase, click here. 

This piece has some of my favorite still life items in it, an antique plate from my brother, and a "lettuce" cream pitcher from my mother.  Have you considered the possibility of commission a painting with some of your favorite items in it?  Are there special mementos from family and loved ones that you'd like to commemorate in a painting?  These can be especially lovely with these items displayed in front of the painting!  And a painting, will last for generations!  Contact me for a collaboration on that unique painting just for you!

Daisy Riot - SOLD!!

 

4"x4" oil on archival panel

So far, this is my favorite of the group of recent florals! Very happy with the depth on this one, it's what I've been working to achieve with this broken color and attention to edges in these recent studies.  So it is a mix of technique, using transparent colors (yes, as well as opaques), brushes, knives, and even a squeegee!! These are the techniques I'll be teaching next summer in Ireland! Follow this link for more information about this.  Also, if you live in my area of southeastern CT, I still have a spot available in my studio class in January- "Mentoring Mondays"...from 9 to noon, Jan. 6th, 13th, 20th, and 27th.

 

Zinnias On A Sun-Dappled Table

 

4"x4" oil on archival panel, $100

Click here to purchase, or for more information. 

These small paintings are beautiful placed on a small display easel, or especially elegant mounted on linen mat board & beautifully framed! Just ask your framer!

These little paintings are addictive, and capturing the light on a summer's day is the best cure for deep winter's cold and snow! 

 These last few small paintings have been so satisfying, I've been quite pleased with them.

"Red Pitcher of Daisies" - ACEO - Miniature Floral Oil Painting

3.5"x2.5" oil on fine canvas board

Bidding starts at just $1

(link to auction is scheduled to go 'live' at 5:30pm EST)

 

For those of you not familiar with the acronym ACEO, it stands or Art Cards Editions and Originals. The miniature paintings are the size of a baseball trading card, 2 1/2 inches by 3 1/2 inches.  This category of art has become increasingly popular on eBay the last couple of years. These can be displayed on their own, or with a tiny little easel (like the king you can find in Michaels Arts & Crafts type stores) on a display shelf, OR these beautiful gems can be elegantly matted and framed with perhaps a mat of 4 inches wide (truly royal on a linen covered mat, just ask your framer!!). ACEOs make wonderful gifts! The gift of original art is truly a thoughtful treasure! I had less than a handful of these tiny ACEO canvases...so I do hope you win the auction bid on your favorite one!

It seems I only have time to do these little gems at Christmas- perfect for me as I wind down a busy year of larger works, and perfect for YOU as a great opportunity for original art at a truly affordable price.  These daisies were cut just before the first big frost here in my New England garden, the same day I cut a huge batch of zinnias as well.   I knew I couldn't paint them all in a day, so I used every last one to put in a variety of vases, to paint summer flowers later in my studio.  These are wonderful little studies for larger paintings. 

 

Today the snow is falling outside, and I'm so glad I have these paintings and photos to remind me that summer will be here once again...in all its colorful glory!