"Looking for Catnip", 6x6, oil on panel, paintings of kittens, little cats, animal portraits

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"Looking for Catnip", 6x6, oil on panel

I painted this little kitty in between making homemade bread and broccoli cheddar soup from scratch.  I dropped the painting face down on the floor when I went to photograph it, but happily it didn't seem to have done much damage!

"Walking to San Gimignano", 12x16, oil on board, Tuscany, paintings of San Gimignano, vineyards, Tuscan scenes, impasto

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"Walking to San Gimignano", 12x16, oil on board

I haven't done one of these palette knife, colorist paintings in a long while, and yesterday I just felt like letting the paint fly. It was fun to push the color in this Tuscan scene.

Note: You can click on the image to see the impasto better.

"Thinkin' Spring", 6x6, oil, hyacinth, blue hyacinth, purple hyacinth, banana, small studies, quick studies, red apples

"Thinkin' Spring", 6x6 oil on panel

I di this quick little hyacinth study last night and the light was pretty poor. So I had to finish it up this morning.

Here's my reference:

 I'd never painted hyacinths before so this was a first. They are definitely tricky! However, the beautiful scent was a charming accompaniment to the soft music in the background as I painted.

If you are 'thinkin' spring', you can find these lovely little hyacinths in Trader Joes this week!

If you are interested in purchasing this little study, just send me an email at maryannejacobsen@aol.com.

"Another Beautiful Gulf Morning", 16x12, oil on linen, old boats, fisherman, Gulf of Mexico, Florida art, fishing boats, seascapes of Florida

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"Another Beautiful Gulf Morning", 16x12, oil on linen (Note: you can click on the photo for better detail viewing of the painting.)

I took the two plein air studies that I did over the last two weeks from my outings to the North Jetty, as well as a reference photo, and used them over the past few days to create this studio painting.

I added the figure of the boat's owner and stuck with a limited palette to keep the painting unified. I combined both brushes and palette knife to keep the painting interesting and lively.

This painting will be going into the Light Chaser's annual show at Art Center Sarasota next month, but if you have any interest in the plein air study, "Old Boat, New Day", that I painted last week,  just contact me at maryannejacobsen@aol.com for pricing. Below was the reference that helped me add the gentlemen in the boat:

"Old Boat, New Day", 12x16, oil on panel, old boat, fishing boat, Venice Florida, North Jetty Venice Florida, paintings of boats,

"Old Boat, New Day", 12x16, oil on panel

Last week my plein air group painted at the North jetty in Venice. I did a small 8x10 and was happy with it. So yesterday I decided to go back there and do a larger painting.

As luck woul have it,  a fisherman was just bringing in his boat as I was setting up! I was so excited! The boat was old and had tons of character. I kept hoping he was not docking the boat just to go to the bathroom or something! But the old boat stayed there for the next two hours and so I worked quickly to put it in.

It turned around a couple times in the current, but not before I had a chance to capture it.

The painting has lots of texture in it and I was pleased with how it turned out. Just goes to show you, sometimes returning to the same spot really helps. In this case, I felt that I had a better chance to study the tree mass to the left which had been a little vague in the first painting.

"In Between Customers", 12x12, Venice Italy, Venice canal, gondolier, Italian landscape, alla prima, impressionism,

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"In Between Customers", 12x12, oil on board

 This is an older painting that I took out today and reworked a bit. I had fun with this one when I first started it. It was  challenging because of the different perspectives, but I loved all the  contrasts between light and shadow as well.

If you are interested in purchasing this painting, please contact Galerie du Soleil.

"North Jetty Morning", plein air, 8x10 oil on board, plein air, Venice, Florida, impressionist art, beach, Southwest Florida art

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"North Jetty Morning", plein air study, 8x10 oil on board

I have not painted outdoors since late September, thanks to circumstances. This morning , however, I decided I was ready! Slathered with sunscreen and additionally armed with my new Tillie Hat, (skin cancer will change your painting habits!),  I decided to go out bright and early so I could get a quick painting in, before the Light Chasers had their first plein air demo by award-winning artist Hodges Soileau.

I snagged a great spot under some mangrove trees, so there was no chance of worrying about sun on my canvas. (Or on me!) There were many pelicans in the water early in the morning but I was painting very quickly and didn't manage to get any of the birds in my painting this time. However, I did manage to finish this in less than an hour!


Hodges demo was superb, as usual, and since I have taken quite a few of his workshops, I knew in advance that the artists unfamiliar with his teaching style were in for a treat! There were about 50 Light-Chasers that turned out for this awesome event!

How lucky are  the Light-Chasers (my plein air painting group) to have this beautiful setting, gorgeous weather, and amazing teachers to do demos for us under the mangrove trees!

After about two hours I went back to my spot to try to put finishing touches on my painting, but the light had changed radically and the rocks were covered with water. That's okay. I like the painting the way it is. It's alive. And my paintings have not been alive for a very long time.

Thank-you Lord for helping me get over my fear of painting outdoors!

And thanks to our fearless leader, Terry Mason, for all the selfless work she does to keep our Light Chasers outdoors and painting with the best!