Gray Studio Paintings of the Day

Passing by a Historic Building

2012-02-02T23:24:00.000-08:00

Oil on canvas on panel, 6" x 6" -- Click here to bid

This is based on a photo I took in downtown Pullman, WA this morning. I like the juxtaposition of the yellow modern car and a historic building.

Driving through Wheatland

2012-02-01T22:00:00.000-08:00

Oil on canvas on panel, 6" x 6" -- Click here to bid

This is a typical landscape around Pullman, WA. I drove for three hours from Ellensburg to Pullman to come visit my husband last Friday. He studies and teaches Economics at WSU. Having my ground transportation makes this possible. Now I have someone looking after our pet chickens and sparrow at home, and I feel more at ease taking a road trip like this once a month. I thought painting snow on the hills would be more appropriate first, but I changed snow to golden wheat field. The color expresses my feeling better.

Dutch

2012-01-29T23:27:00.000-08:00

Oil on linen on panel, 6"x 6" -- Commissioned

This is a pet portrait of a rabbit named Dutch, that I just finished. I must admit I used to be rabbit-crazy before I started oil paintings of birds as a body of work in college. When I was little, I had more than 30 bunny rabbit stuffed animals. I also had some bunnies as pets. At the schools I attended in Japan, art classes are mandatory through high school, and I usually found a way to twist the class assignment to incorporate a rabbit in my subject for sculpture, painting, and drawing. So I was excited to do this commission.

Red Apple & Reflecton

2012-01-22T21:39:00.000-08:00

Oil on canvas on panel, 6" x 6" -- Click Here to Bid

I've been working on some pet portraits these days. Then I thought I could use some color studies from still life painting for my current projects.I wanted to paint this red apple because it had these green leaves and stem. I wanted to focus on the color, based on "Tangerine Tango," the rich red-orange.

Tango for Tobi the Sparrow

2012-01-17T21:48:00.000-08:00

Oil on linen on panel, 6" x 6"

The Pantane Company chose "Tangerine Tango" as THE color of 2012. This week's Challenge given by Daily Paintworks is to do a painting based around this color. I painted our pet house sparrow, Tobi, in this color theme. First, I pre-mixed my "tangerine tango" with Shiva Red and Cadmium Yellow Pale. After I did underpainting with Terra Rosa and this mixture, I reserved the beak and foot with the pure tangerine tango, which I blended with more colors later to create gradation. Then I painted the local colors which all shares a hint of this orange. I made sure that brush strokes are clean enough to show through the base color here and there, by wiping the brush and reloading color from the palette after each stroke.

Penguin Pears

2012-01-15T10:32:00.000-08:00

Oil on canvas on panel, 6" x 6" -- Click Here to Bid

I painted this last night, but didn't have time to post it. These are the pears for my breakfast today. We bought these pears from the WSU fruit orchard in Pullman, WA. I just love those colors and shapes. Since I love birds and painting them, I thought they looked like three colorful penguins, having a breakfast meeting. In order to show verticality in the composition, I used a coffee mug, and a small bowl to help the pears stand still.

Horses in Green Pasture

2012-01-13T21:54:00.000-08:00

Oil on linen on panel, 6" x 6" -- Buy it at Daily Paintworks Gallery

These are the horses in the pasture of our neighbor across the street. I was painting this pasture from our front yard, and two horses showed up.

Too Early for Breakfast

2012-01-12T21:23:00.000-08:00

Oil on canvas on panel, 6" x 6" -- Click Here to Bid

This is my "Progressive Breakfast" series #1. It's titled "Too Early for Breakfast -- Apple and Pepper Grinder in Dark." Here in Ellensburg, WA, it's still dark in the early morning, and our pet chickens have not laid fresh eggs yet for our breakfast. It's so cold in the morning that our chickens sleep in till around 8 A.M. So there are no eggs in this painting. (They all go to bed by 4 P.M. these days. It's different in the summer, though.)

Field Search

2012-01-11T20:29:00.000-08:00

Oil on board, 6" x 6" -- SOLD

This is our Shantie, a Buff Orpington hen. She is very good at hunting bugs, especially grasshoppers, in the backyard.

House with Red Roof

2012-01-10T19:25:00.000-08:00

Oil on linen on panel, 6" x 6" -- Buy it at Daily Paintworks Gallery

This is a landscape painting I did from our front yard last summer. Our house is in a quiet rural area in Ellensburg, WA. Our neighbors have pastures for horses, cattle, etc., and we have a dozen of pet chickens. I think I'll do a winter version of our neighborhood sometime soon.

Outing with Kara the Hen

2012-01-09T11:29:00.000-08:00

Oil on linen on panel, 6" x 6" -- Buy it at Daily Paintworks Gallery

This painting is about a little pet chicken walking through the gate by a garden shed. I was doing a study of shadows of trees in my backyard on a warm sunny day. Most of our chickens were roaming in the front yard, and I was alone. When I was about to finish painting, Kara, one of our Ameraucana hens, showed up in front of my easel. So I included her in my painting, and I called it finished.

First Cut

2012-01-08T23:42:00.000-08:00

It is just before the Fourth-of-July. This is the first cutting at a hay field in Cle Elum, WA.

Watering Can

2012-01-07T12:27:00.000-08:00

Oil on linen on panel, 6" x 6" -- Buy it at Daily Paintworks Gallery

This is a quick study of a metallic watering can. I painted this outside of my friend's house on a sunny warm day. I had to work quickly, because the shadows and reflections on the can were changing fast. I liked that challenge, though. I might do more still life painting outdoors, once it gets warmer again.

Step up to Home

2012-01-06T18:46:00.000-08:00

Oil on linen on panel, 6" x 6" -- SOLD

I painted this at my friend's house last summer. I guess this can be considered a still life painting even though I painted it outdoors. There is a local artist group in Ellensburg, and I paint with them from time to time. Every Friday morning, we paint together at one of our member's homes, or at an interesting destination around the Kittitas Valley, then we eat lunch and critique our new works. I hope to join them more often this year.

House with Green Roof

2012-01-05T21:16:00.000-08:00

Oil on linen on panel, 6" x 6" -- SOLD

I originally painted this in Coeur d'Alene, ID, last summer. The white spots are ducks. I found it easier to paint it en plein aire when it's overcast, as the sunlight and shadow don't seem to change too much while painting. Eventually, the cloud cleared toward the end, and the sun shine changed the color and lighting completely. So that became the end of this painting session. Later in my studio, I improved the composition: simplifying it by removing extra trees on the right, and adding more interest in the sky with color and texture.

Morning Rendezvous

2012-01-02T18:39:00.000-08:00

Oil on panel, 10" x 8" -- SOLD

This horse belongs to my friend in Ellensburg, WA. I visited her horses one morning, and took some reference photos of her animals. Isn't he such a good looking horse? I kind of liked the effect of exaggerated perspective.

Green-Red Apples with Silver Pot

2012-01-01T21:30:00.000-08:00

Oil on canvas panel, 6" x 6" -- Buy it at Daily Paintworks Gallery

Painting silverware is fun, but it is challenging! I used this silver pot to break up the plain background. I really like how it works here. I thought these apples were more greenish when I picked them for my models. But they appear to be more yellowish now. I know these apples will be my next breakfast.

Rainier Cherries & Silver Cup

2011-12-31T16:28:00.000-08:00

Oil on linen on panel, 6" x 6" -- Buy it at Daily Paintworks Gallery

This is a piece I did earlier when the cherries were available. I can't wait for summer, to start painting various seasonal fruits and landscapes. I found painting metallic objects very fascinating and challenging. Maybe I'll do a short series of these.

Mini Tomatoes & Bottle

2011-12-30T17:38:00.000-08:00

Oil on linen on panel, 6" x 6" -- Buy it at Daily Paintworks Gallery

I usually do a rough monochromatic drawing as underpainting on canvas, before painting with realistic color.

Pear Triplet

2011-12-29T21:27:00.000-08:00

Oil on linen on panel, 6" x 6" -- Buy it at Daily Paintworks Gallery

This is a study of pears on a white background. I've been using a BlueMax CFL for lighting still-lifes, and I like it. It seems to show color pretty well. I've been experimenting with different ways to make a white background more interesting. For this one, I placed a sheet of colored paper on the opposing wall to give a variation in the reflective light.

Tomo on the Snow

2011-12-27T21:55:00.000-08:00

Oil on linen on panel, 6"x 6" -- Buy Now at Daily Paintworks Gallery

This is a painting of our pet chicken walking on the snow. Tomo is one of our pet chickens. She is a Delaware hen. Our chickens are free-range in our backyard. At the beginning of each snow season, they are reluctant to walk on the snow, and they tend to stay inside the coop all day. But after a few days, they start to roam around, especially on sunny days, to take advantage of warm sunshine. They also like eating snow. When it's really cold outside, we invite them into a designated area in our house so that they can lounge and warm up during the day. Then they go back to their coop to sleep before dark. Some of them insist to stay with us a little longer, so I end up carrying them back to the coop, and tuck them in.

Apple & Bottle

2011-12-26T21:22:00.000-08:00

Oil on linen on panel, 6" x 6" -- Buy it at Daily Paintworks Gallery

This is another cute little apple from the WSU orchard in Pullman, WA. I saw a very interesting article about apples in The New Yorker recently. I didn't know that the orchard of WSU is one of three major apple orchards in the US which develop superior varieties of apples for eating. For example, Fuji is one of my favorite, but I didn't know that there is so much variation in taste and quality among orchards. The Fuji from WSU is smaller and less reddish, but the best kind of Fuji I've had so far. We've been buying apples and other fruits from the WSU fruit market. Those fruits have been my main still-life models and breakfast lately.

Two Apples in Purple

2011-12-23T20:41:00.000-08:00

Oil on linen on panel, 6" x 6" -- SOLD

We gave a nice holiday present for our pet chickens today. We totally cleaned up the loft in the chicken coop where they sleep, and replaced the bedding floor cover with fresh straw. Then we put additional curtains as partitions between them. Sometimes they peck at younger ones on the perch without sufficient partitions. Our chicks are big girls now, and they like to have more privacy at night. ;-)

Sleeping Tobi

2011-12-22T21:18:00.000-08:00

Oil on panel, 6" x 6" -- Buy it at Daily Paintworks Gallery

Tobi is our pet House Sparrow, and my best companion at home (beside my husband, Pete ;-) ). She likes to take a nap on my lap or forearm when I'm working on the computer. She's so precious.

I painted this on Ampersand Gessobord. I've been trying different painting surfaces. I like painting on Gessobords because it's easy to work on details, and to carve my signature. It's not easy to apply thick paint with a brush like I do on canvas because the surface is too smooth. But I think it works well for painting with a palette knife.

My favorite link of the day: Top Ten Quotes of the Year

Yellow Pear & Reflection

2011-12-21T21:38:00.000-08:00

Oil on canvas on panel, 6" x 6" -- Buy it at my Gallery

This is a study of a pear and its reflection with a white background.

A Day on the Beach

2011-12-18T21:48:00.000-08:00

Oil on Canvas on Panel, 6" x 6" -- Buy it at Daily Paintworks Gallery

This is another challenge of reflections on water. I was drawn to this couple of gulls. I watched them for a long time They seemed like the happiest couple in the world.

Gull on a Buoy

2011-12-15T21:05:00.000-08:00

Oil on canvas on panel, 6" x 6" -- SOLD

I saw this gull on a buoy while boating with my friends Hita and Karl who live on Vashon Island in Puget Sound. It was the end of October. It was such a nice and clear evening with almost no wind. The water surface was just like a mirror. I spent a lot of time contemplating the composition for this. There were so many possibilities, but I settled down with this that focuses the gull and his reflection on water..

Dipping Gull

2011-12-13T21:02:00.000-08:00

Oil on canvas on panel, 6" x 6" -- Buy it at Daily Paintworks Gallery

I've been taking a lot of reference photos of water birds around Washington for a while, and I've been hoping to do paintings of these birds someday. This week's Daily Paintworks Challenge is about painting reflections on water, and I enjoyed painting this one.

Tobi the Sparrow No.3

2011-12-10T21:55:00.000-08:00

Oil on linen on panel, 6" x 6" -- SOLD

This is our pet house sparrow, Tobi. She is five years old. She flies freely inside the house. She's my best companion at home. She likes singing to running water and music. It's hard to feel depressed when I'm with her. Tobi means "flight" in Japanese.

Princess Kiki

2011-12-08T21:11:00.000-08:00

Oil on Linen on Panel, 6" x 6" -- SOLD

Kiki is one of our lovely pet chickens. She is a year-old Barred Rock hen. She's very friendly, intelligent, and a quick learner. Oh, she's also a great egg layer. She has a big gorgeous comb which looks like a crown. She is a pretty girl, and even has a beauty mark on her beak.

Matsu the Rooster

2011-12-06T21:53:00.000-08:00

Oil on linen on panel, 6" x 6" -- Buy it at Daily Paintworks Gallery

This is another rooster painting. The model is Matsu, our pet rooster. Matsu is our Australope rooster we used to have. He was my super model for painting, and always visited me in my studio. He loved to pose in front of camera.

Matsu & Molly -- Dinner Date

2011-12-05T23:34:00.000-08:00

Oil on canvas on panel, 6" x 6" -- SOLD

This is a painting of rooster and hen. Matsu is our beloved, beautiful Australope rooster, we used to have. Molly is our "alpha" hen, and also the best friend of Matsu. He was killed in an accident recently. We all miss him so much. But I know he'll live in my art eternally.

This was submitted to Daily PaintWorks' "The Best Friend Challenge."

Shantie

2011-12-03T22:21:00.000-08:00

Oil on linen on panel, 6" x 6" -- SOLD

Shantie is one of our pet chickens. She is a Buff Orphington hen. I've used her as a model from time to time.

Apple & Teacup

2011-12-02T23:55:00.000-08:00

Oil on linen on panel, 6" x 6" - Buy it at my gallery

Another cute apple from the orchard of Central Washington University in Pullman, WA. They grow all kinds of apples, and I love shopping the apples at the fruit market every Fall for still life painting. It's like visiting a candy shop. Instead of using shadow box, I painted this by the window to suggest more mood.

Baby Meenie

2011-12-01T21:44:00.000-08:00

Oil on linen on panel, 6" x 6" -- Buy it at my gallery

Meenie is another baby chick our friends got this spring. She is a sister of baby Moe which I painted before. Meenie is now a beautiful Ameraucana hen, and she has been laying blue/green-ish eggs starting this Fall. Apparently for a while she was laying eggs somewhere very well hidden in the yard. And the owners will be hunting for the Easter eggs...

In order to get the realistic colors, first I laid out the composition based on a photo, then I added the color and texture while holding the chick in my left hand.

Many Mini Tomatoes

2011-11-30T22:25:00.000-08:00

Oil on canvas on panel, 6" x 6" -- Buy it at my gallery

I harvested these mini-tomatoes more than a month ago, just before the first major frost hit central Washington. We had minor frost much earlier, but I kept those green tomatoes in the garden, covered with heavy duty plastic sheet. I've been storing the green ones in the mud-room. Now many of them are starting to ripen, changing colors. It's so amazing. I wonder how long they will last. This painting is a study of tomatoes. I spent ten minutes for each box, and switched the model with another tomato for variation. This is based on the DPW Ten-Minutes Challenge. It's a great exercise for my painting skills.

Pepper in Black No.7--Solo

2011-11-29T21:27:00.000-08:00

Oil on canvas on panel, 6"x 6"

I thought I had a great idea for today's composition with two peppers, and I was excited about it all day. Then once I set up the still life in a shadow box, it was not like what I imagened. Those peppers were not working together. I ended up removing the second pepper.

Peppers in Black No.6--Salt & Pepper

2011-11-28T21:23:00.000-08:00

Oil on canvas on panel, 6" x 6" -- Buy it at my gallery

This is another unique miniature pepper. It has gradation of red, yellow, and green around the side. The title sounds a bit like a cliche, but I bet not many people have seen this combination of "salt & pepper."

Peppers in Black No.5 -- Hot & Sweet

2011-11-27T22:42:00.000-08:00

Oil on canvas on panel, 6" x 6" -- Buy it at my gallery

These peppers are both habaneros, but only one of them is very, very hot. The other one is a rare sweet habanero, not spicy but with a lot of flavor. I forgot which one was which. I'll find it out when I cook them tomorrow.

Peppers in Black No.4 -- Three Amigos

2011-11-25T23:58:00.000-08:00

Oil on canvas on panel, 6" x 6" -- Buy it at my gallery

These are very tiny sweet peppers from Central Washington. I had no idea that there were so many kinds of peppers in our region. I got all these special peppers at a farmers' market. These lasted very well in the fridge. We've been eating peppers pretty much every day after I'm done painting.

Black Eyed Susans No.2

2011-11-24T23:44:00.000-08:00

Oil on linen on panel, 6" x 6" -- SOLD

I painted this a month ago in Pullman, but I didn't have a chance to post it. I saw these flowers at the edge of a fruit orchard when I was doing my series of orchard paintings. It was sunny but breezy, and not the best condition for painting the flowers from life. But I didn't want to miss the last opportunity before the first major frost. I love the gradations of yellow petals in this.

Green Apples & Reflections

2011-11-23T12:42:00.000-08:00

Oil on canvas panel, 6" x 6" -- SOLD

I spent extra time working on the stems with a fine sable brush to accentuate the composition, and I love the result. It's a Richeson #6 Pure Red Sable brush, and I normally use it just for signing my name.

Pepper in Black No.3

2011-11-22T22:51:00.000-08:00

Oil on canvas on panel, 6" x 6" -- Buy it at my gallery

This is the third pepper in my Pepper in Black series.

Pepper in Black No.2

2011-11-21T21:12:00.000-08:00

Buy it at my gallery

This is my second painting in my pepper series. The color intensities of peppers are much stronger than of the landscapes or animals I'm more used to. I could almost use the primary colors straight out of the paint tubes, and leave them alone. But I kept mixing and blending the colors to make enough variations.

Pepper in Black No.1

2011-11-20T11:54:00.000-08:00

Buy it at my gallery

I got various vegetables, such as peppers, from the farmers' market just before the end of the season. I've started painting a series of them. It seems like a great project for the cold and snowy winter. I've noticed that including a corner of the shadow box in a composition adds an interesting effect with a variety of lines and shades, creating another focal point.

Orange & Reflections

2011-11-19T21:06:00.000-08:00

Buy it at my gallery

I've been fascinated by reflections, and playing with different ways to see and paint the reflections of a subject. The orange looked too lonely with a single reflection. So I added a stainless steel milk pitcher to add another reflection of the orange. I also added more shadows. I like how the reflection looks more vivid in the shadow.

Pear & Reflection

2011-11-18T11:55:00.000-08:00

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As it got cold outside, I've been doing small still-life paintings lately. I have a couple of portable shadow boxes that I bring with me when visiting Peter in Pullman, as well as painting at my home studio. For now, I'm keeping the composition as simple as possible so that I feel like "I can do this everyday..." I like buying my still-life fruits from the WSU orchard fruits market in Pullman because their products are not waxed, unlike the ones at grocery stores. These also come in all kinds of colors and shapes, sometimes even with nice stems and leaves. Once I'm done painting, I get to eat these tasty fruits.

Orchard Hilltop

2011-11-17T19:19:00.000-08:00

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This is the last painting from the Orchard Series of this fall. It might be interesting to paint there in the winter, etc.

Orchard Series - Red Apples

2011-11-16T22:08:00.000-08:00

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This is another plein air series from the WSU Orchard in Pullman. I didn't bring my plein air umbrella with me, and it is not very easy to find a painting spot with consistent and solid shade for my canvas and palette, even though I was in the middle of the orchard with a bunch of trees for shading. It might help to start painting earlier when the sun is lower and the shadows are bigger. The biggest problem was that there were too many different apples and compositions out there to choose from for a painting, and I wasted so much time looking for a spot. Then, I lost track of where it was. Off course, by the time I finally returned to the spot, the details such as the sun light and shades were not there anymore. It's not so easy to paint still life en plein aire.

Nikki

2011-11-15T12:41:00.000-08:00

Buy it at my gallery

This is a painting of our pet chicken, Nikki. I drove back from Pullman yesterday evening, after visiting Peter for several days. It's so nice to be back home and see our birds again. Nikki is a Rhode Island Red hen and one of our precious chicks. Nikki also means "Cinnamon" in Japanese. I really enjoy looking at her beautiful reddish plumage in various lighting effects. She is at the bottom of pecking order, and she likes to hang out with me all the time. She loves lounging under my easel when I'm painting in my studio, or scratching the ground around my plein air easel in the backyard.

Orchard Series - Golden Delicious

2011-11-13T07:02:00.000-08:00

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Orchard Series - Crabapples

2011-11-12T00:21:00.000-08:00

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Orchard Series - Plum

2011-11-11T10:19:00.000-08:00

Oil on linen on panel, 6" x 6" -- Buy it at Daily Paintworks Gallery

Blue House on the Hill

2011-11-10T00:05:00.000-08:00

Buy it at my gallery

This is another plein air painting from Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. I like to combine natural and man-made elements in a landscape.

Yellow Shed in the Woods

2011-11-09T15:12:00.000-08:00

Buy it at my gallery

During last June, I attended the national conference and its annual national show of the Oil Painters of America in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. During that week, I painted out with the fellow artists. The day I painted this was overcast. Ellensburg where I live is usually sunny during warm seasons. So it was a different experience for me. For a change, I used a no.8 flat brush, instead of no.6 filbert which I usually use for this size of painting. So, the brush strokes are bigger, with a more abstract feel. I'm pleased with the composition.

Molly the Black Star

2011-11-08T11:56:00.000-08:00

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Molly is one of our pet chickens, and she is the alpha hen of the flock. Black Star is the name of her breed. She likes to follow me everywhere and pose in front of camera. I used a palette knife mainly to create this unique texture, as well as small brushes for the facial details.

Cat in the Shed

2011-11-07T22:38:00.000-08:00

SOLD

I painted this a while ago, but didn't get to post it earlier. I saw this cat when I was doing a plein air study of an old shed in country side. I'm glad I had a camera to capture this moment. I painted this with brushes and a palette knife. It is more detailed than my other pieces, but I love the result.

Pumpkins in the Garden

2011-10-31T13:01:00.000-07:00

SOLD

While I was visiting Peter in Pullman, I painted this by a community garden at Sunny Side Park.

Baby Moe

2011-10-12T21:38:00.000-07:00

SOLD

This piece won the Best of Show--Oil Award at the 2011 Celebration of Western and Wildlife Art Show which took place in Puyallup, WA, in October, 2011. The model of the painting is Moe, a baby chick that our friends got this spring. Now, she is a beautiful Buff Orpington hen.

Study of Cattle Field

2011-09-18T22:29:00.000-07:00

Oil on linen on panel, 4"x 6"

I went for a walk on the Iron Horse Trail just outside of Ellensburg, carrying my portable painting kit with me. The sun was almost setting, and I did this tiny painting in a few minutes. By the time I finished the white calf, the mother moved away. So I used another cow as a reference to complete the foreground. Then I finished the background. It was one of my quickest paintings.

Barn Swallow

2011-09-16T15:26:00.000-07:00

Oil on linen on panel, 6" x 6" SOLD

Quick study of a barn swallow, using only Transparent Oxide Red oil color which I often use for underpainting. This type of painting works better on oil primed linen canvas like this one.

South Lake in the Afternoon

2011-08-16T23:01:00.000-07:00

The last quick sketch of the colors (less than 30 min) by the lake before heading back to Bishop.

Rocks in the Woods

2011-08-15T11:59:00.000-07:00

Oil on lienen on panel, 6" x 6"

Peter came along with me to the South Lake in Bishop Creek in the afternoon. He was reading in the shade while I was painting.

Sierras from Round Vallery

2011-08-14T11:49:00.000-07:00

This is another view of the Sierra Nevada mountains from Round Valley, near Bishop, CA.

Pine Creek

2011-08-13T11:55:00.000-07:00

This is a plein air study of Pine Creek Canyon from Round Valley, near Bishop, CA.

View from SouthLake

2011-08-12T14:40:00.000-07:00

View from North Lake

2011-08-11T14:42:00.000-07:00

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During last week, we visited Bishop, CA, where Peter is from. Peter and I drove for 16 hours to get there in two days. It was a wonderful trip for visiting Peter's home AND painting landscapes. This view from North Lake, in the Sierras above Bishop, CA. The mountain in the distance is White Mountain Peak.

Rooster's Coop

2011-06-25T23:19:00.000-07:00

This log house is for just one little rooster. It's in Cle Elum, WA.

Summer Downtown

2011-06-24T19:00:00.000-07:00

SOLD

Study of Shadows

2011-06-23T13:07:00.000-07:00

This is a quick study of shadows I did outside the front door at home.

Study of Rocks

2011-06-16T13:45:00.000-07:00

On a sunny day, I did this study of rocks in front of the chicken coop. The colorful shadows of the rocks are amazing, and I enjoyed painting them from life.

Bridge

2011-06-14T13:31:00.000-07:00

Oil on linen on panel, 6" x 6"

This is an old brige at by the water fall outside of Coeur d'Alene.

Shoreline

2011-06-13T13:36:00.000-07:00

I painted this in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. I joined the plein air artists group during the Oil Painters of America national conference, and we painted for three days. It was overcast and raining from time to time when I was painting this, and it was certainly not the most ideal condition for painting outdoors. It initially turned out to be lacking value contrast. So I added highlights on the shoreline in the background, and I added skyline.

Front Yard in the Afternoon

2011-05-29T22:07:00.000-07:00

I painted this near the front door. It's a quick study of light and shadow in the afternoon light. I have a bunch of hardboard (masonite) panels that I coated with a few layers of gesso. Masonite panels are not archival as they tend to warp easily unless the reverse sides are sealed. But they are cheap and ideal for studies like this.

Studio in May

2011-05-28T22:48:00.000-07:00

This is my studio building at home. It is May, and there were not so much leaves on the front trees yet.

Egg Study -- Pink

2011-02-12T19:59:00.000-08:00

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These are the eggs that our four individual chickens laid. Some are shiny, and others are mat. Some are light, and some are dark, etc.

Egg Study -- Green

2011-02-11T20:02:00.000-08:00

$60 -- Buy Now with PayPal

I'm a big fan of Carol Marine and her daily paintings. I did a Ten Minute that she posted on Daily Paintworks. Basically, I divided a small canvas panel into four squares, and did a 10-minute painting in each cell. My models were the eggs from our pet chickens. For this green series, I picked the eggs from our four different Ameraucana chickens. These chickens are known to lay blue/green eggs (typical Easter eggs), but one of them lay pale pink eggs.

Love Apples

2011-01-20T20:31:00.000-08:00

Oil on canvas panel, 6x6 in, SOLD

Pear in Green

2011-01-16T16:22:00.000-08:00

Oil on canvas panel, 6x4 in. SOLD

Apples in Deep Space

2011-01-07T19:58:00.000-08:00

Oil on Canvas panel, 6x6 in. Available

Apple & Pepper Glinder

2010-12-14T16:46:00.000-08:00

Oil on canvas panel, 6x6 in, SOLD
I painted this piece at The Lodge at Suncadia during Artist Series weekend as a demo. I didn't have a good way to photograph this when I finished it after dark. That's why this photo is not so great. But I'm glad I shot it because it was sold the next day.

Apple & Wine Glasses

2010-11-20T22:41:00.000-08:00

Oil on canvas on panel, 6" x 6"

I painted this with a combination of palette knife and brashes by the window.

Tobi the Sparrow No.2

2010-11-05T17:34:00.000-07:00

Oil on canvas panel, 6x6 in, SOLD

Red Barn in Cattle Field

2010-09-26T11:45:00.000-07:00

Oil on canvas, 8x10 in, SOLD

I painted this in my neighborhood. I like the spaciousness of this field. There is a nice bike pass along this field, and I enjoy taking a walk here for inspirations.

Heifer

2010-09-06T23:12:00.000-07:00

10 x 8 in. oil on panel, SOLD

Western Village

2010-09-05T23:24:00.000-07:00

Oil on linen on panel, 6"x 8"

I painted this during Ellensburg Rodeo Weekend at the Western Village in Fairgrounds in Ellensburg, WA.

Green Rooster

2010-09-01T19:21:00.000-07:00

SOLD

This is another portrait of our rooster, Matsu. His body is basically black, but it has very pretty green sheen depending on lighting.

Calf in the Sage

2010-08-17T22:36:00.000-07:00

6 x 6 in, oil on gessoboard, SOLD

Three Cherries

2010-08-08T12:21:00.000-07:00

Oil on linen, 6" x 4" -- SOLD

Three Peaches

2010-08-06T22:47:00.000-07:00

6 x 4 in, oil on linen on panel, SOLD

Three Rainer Cherries

2010-07-22T13:08:00.000-07:00

6 x 4 in, oil on linen on panel, SOLD

We picked these cherries in Chelan, WA, when we went hang gliding there. Central Washington is a great place for fresh fruits.

Steller's Jay on the Rock

2010-07-20T23:30:00.000-07:00

SOLD

I painted this in Chelan. It was nice weather, but the wind condition was not ideal for hang gliding from the Butte. So, we were hanging out at the camp site in the morning. We saw some Steller's Jays around a big rock. I happend to have a printed photo of a Steller's Jay along with my painting gear, so I used it as a reference to paint the bird, then painted the landscape en plein air for the background.

Artist's Table No.2

2010-04-27T21:15:00.000-07:00

6 x 6 in, oil on gessoboard

I was visiting my artist friend for a few days, and I painted these in her studio.

Artist's Table No.1

2010-04-26T22:01:00.000-07:00

6 x 6 in, oil on gessoboard

Saturday Afternoon

2010-03-06T20:54:00.000-08:00

6 x 6 in, oil on gessoboard

It often gets windy in Ellensburg especially in the spring. It's usually too cold to paint outside around this time of the year. But it was relatively calm and warmer outside this afternoon.

Grazing for Two

2010-02-24T17:49:00.000-08:00

6 x 6 in, oil on gessoboard

I went to Bristol Flat with a couple of artist friends to paint plein air for the first time of this year. We met the property owners and got permission to paint in the field. They raise and breed farm animals, including paint horses. I thought this paint horse was grazing for two, including her baby in her belly. Later, I was told that these mother horses just look pregnant all the time.

Leaning Trees

2010-02-23T08:39:00.000-08:00

6 x 6 in, oil on gessoboard

"Palouse Vistas" Show

2010-01-10T20:16:00.000-08:00

During December, I painted in my studio almost all day, everyday, to create new pieces for my upcoming shows. My paintings of Palouse landscapes, including the plein air studies, were featured at the Clymer Museum of Art in Ellensburg, WA, during January. Please visit my website to view a sample of my featured works.

First Snow in Pullman

2009-11-15T16:14:00.000-08:00

This turn out to be my last attempt to paint outdoors this season. It was so cold, especially in the shade. I had to quit painting this piece before completing my fingers under groves lost feeling and I could no longer move them. I was so freezing from my head to toe that it was so hard to even start the car and drive back. It might have helped if I was standing in the sunny side of the building... Or, I should just wait for the weather to get warm again.

"Hair Salon on Sunday"

2009-11-05T19:36:00.000-08:00

Hair Salon on Sunday, 6"x8", oil on linen

I was visiting my artist friend Hita on Vashon Island for a weekend, and we painted out her horse ranch. I painted one of Hita's horses getting sponge bath from Hita's daughter, Sarah. It was on a sunny and warm Sunday.