"Winter Cheer", 8x10, oil, winter, yellow roses, impressionism, windowsill paintings, wintry weather

 "Winter Cheer", 8x10, oil

I haven't painted or posted much in recent months. Hurricane Ian did a lot of destruction to our little town and to our home as well. So my husband and I have been working for days on end trying to get our front and back yard repaired. The storm took down two huge trees (which luckily didn't hit the house) But they created a lot of destruction in the course of their own demise. In addition, our "bird cage" , which is the large aluminum structure that covers and protects our pool and lanai, collapsed and our roof needs to be completely replaced. It's been a lot of work and frustration over the past two months, but I determined to get back to painting recently.

The above painting is my attempt to get looser and less left brained in my approach to painting. I have always enjoyed doing windowsill paintings, which is what I call paintings of florals with a window as a backdrop, and so winter storms up north recently were the inspiration to paint something warm and inviting against a cold wintry background.

I hope to continue to post regularly in the future!

"Peaceful Cove", 8x10, oil, Peggy's Cove, Nova Scotia, palette knife painting, texture, clouds, ocean, fish shack, blue, red

 "Peaceful Cove", 8x10, oil

It's been awhile since I posted. Without going into detail, the past few months have been really hard on many levels. So I was grateful to be able to produce anything after all these weeks.

I used mostly a palette knife and there's some sweet texture in this little piece.

It's a peaceful scene of a little red fish shack up in Peggy's Cove, Nova Scotia. I've painted this scene before, and it brings back positive memories for me of clean fresh air, long vistas of sand and sea and the bracing smell of salt, sea, and the ice cold Atlantic.

If you are interested in this painting, please send me a message at maryannejacobsen@aol.com.

"Cypress Cove", 11x14, oil on linen panel, paintings of Point Lobos, California seascapes, Carmel California. Pacific Ocean, nature preserves, beautiful nature preserves, cypress trees

"Cypress Cove", 11x14, oil on linen panel

Cypress Cove is located along the Cypress Trail in Point Lobos, a nature preserve in beautiful Carmel , California. The trail is one of the most popular in the park and contains the Old Veteran, a 200+ year old cypress tree with a wide girth.

Point Lobos is eye candy for artists, and I have painted numerous scenes here, including Pinnacle Point and China Cove.

Painting en plein air here is a treat, and the sounds of the sea lions are a lovely accompaniment to the crashing surf.

This painting is the only painting of Point Lobos that I currently have that is available. If you are interested in purchasing the painting, please contact me at maryannejacobsen@aol.com

"Senorita", 8x10, oil study, small portrait, portraits of beautiful ladies, affordable art, señorita, Spanish woman, Spanish dancer, little gems

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 "Senorita", 8x10, oil study

I really enjoy doing these small portraits. The trick is to not spend a lot of time on them, because they are only studies, otherwise they start looking overworked.

I don't think I overworked this one. I did have to rework one of her eyes a bit, but overall I think it still looks fresh. The best art video I have ever owned and watched is Jeff Watts, Gesture Portraits. In that video he demonstrates about 6 or7 quick 30 minute gesture portraits that result in a fresh, dynamic end result.

I have tried to do these in half an hour, and I never succeed. But I do manage to keep them under 2 hours.

I hadn't done one of these in a while, though Jeff advises that we do them everyday for a warm up. This little portrait is of a lovely señorita with a wistful look in her eye.

Thanks for visiting my blog. For purchase info, please go here.

"View from the Lake House", 16x20, oil, colorist art, Lake Glenville North Carolina, Cashiers, lake scene, view form the porch, mountains, lake, Blue Ridge Mountains

 "View from the Lake House", 16x20, oil (Click on image in order to see a close up)

So if you have been reading my blog, we recently took a trip into the Blue Ridge mountains in southwestern North Carolina. It was a very short trip, but nice nonetheless because it inspired me to do a plein air painting (3 actually) for the first time in close to three years.

The weather didn't cooperate, so I had to be content with rainy/ cloudy/foggy views of beautiful Lake Glenville, as seen from the deck of our airbnb.

The wonderful thing was that I was under a roof and both myself and my painting were totally protected from the elements.

Lake Glenville has an elevation of about 3400 feet, and is just a few miles from Cashiers. I just found out that there is a plein air invitational in Cashiers every other year, and this year I know quite a few of the invited artists, so maybe we'll go back up in mid-July for that event.

Evidently this area is actually a rain forest environment with weather like what we experienced pretty common. But being an artist that prefers sunny day scenes, when I got home I decided to try my hand at turning the scene into a brighter and more colorful one.

So I played around a little with the editing tools on my Mac, and used that and my plein air sketch to have a go of it. Here you can see the painting in progress.

As you can see, my first notes were basically saturated color. I eventually covered much of the saturated color with local color, but kept enough of the first notes showing through to give the painting a colorist impression.

This painting was a lot of fun to do. I think it helps tremendously to do a smaller plein air sketch first to get the feeling of the scene.

Thanks for visiting my blog!

Farmhouse Morning, 8x10, oil, Amish country, Honey Brook, Pennsylvania, farmhouse, morning light

 "Farmhouse Morning", 8x10

Bck in the fall, we took a trip to Amish country in Pennsylvania. We stayed at an organic farm, and the owner introduced us to all his chickens, roosters, goats, cows and ponies.

We had an awesome week and the farmhouse was especially rustic and cozy. I so enjoyed sitting on the porch in the morning, having my coffee, and watching the hens and roosters come up on the porch and walk around.

There was also a kitten who lived under the porch that became my best friend after I gave him half of my tuna salad lunch.

It took me a while to get together the nerve to paint the porch scene. There was a lot going on with the light and shadows, the stone walls and perspective and I was a little intimidated by it.

But I knew it was a good composition and so I set my mind to painting it, and this is how it turned out.

Overall, I was happy with it, but think it would be even better in a larger format. We shall see if I attempt that or not.

This painting is available through PayPal for $250.00. Just use this link to my website  in order to purchase. 

Thanks for visiting my blog. See more of my paintings at my website.

The Lake House, 8x10, oil on panel, plein air, Lake Glenville, Cashiers North Carolina, mountain retreats, paintings of lakes, Cashiers art, Lake Glenville paintings

 The Lake House, 8x10, oil on panel, plein air

The second day of my little mini vacation at Lake Glenville  arrived once again overcast, foggy and threatening rain.

Although we had hoped to hike to some waterfalls, we decided that under the circumstances, it was probably not a great plan since some of the hikes involved treks down into chasms with slippery rocks and such. So the morning was spent painting a floral from a bouquet of snapdragons that I purchased at the Farmer's Market in Cashiers.

The afternoon weather was unfortunately the same as the morning with threat of rain increasing. We had an outstanding lunch of homemade black bean burgers and fresh fruit at Cornucopia Restaurant in Cashiers, and after returning back to our Airbnb, I decided to have another go at the gorgeous lake scene I had painted the day before.

This time I decided to change the composition a little by inserting a bit of the neighboring house.

Overall, I felt more confident the second day, and realized that I just need to get outside and paint and my confidence and abilities will return!

I painted in many competitive Paint-outs over the years and it is sad that I wasted 2 years as a result of fear of more skin cancer and other stuff that is somewhat preventable with a little caution.

Here was the scene from the porch as I painted it.

I loved the fact that porch was covered, and I could paint to my heart's content without myself or the painting getting drizzled on!

"The Lake House" is available for purchase for only $99, through my website. Please click here to purchase.

Thanks for visiting my blog!

View From the Porch, 8x10, oil , paintings of lakes, water view, plein air, small paintings, all prima, Lake Glenville, North Carolina art, Cashiers art, mountains and lakes

View From the Porch, 8x10, oil (Note: you can click on the image to see it better.)

When we decided to go to Cashiers for a mini vacation, I was uncertain whether or not to bring my paints. It was a short trip, after all, and sometimes it's not worth it to schlep all the paints and stuff. But I had bought a small Plein Air cigar box easel over 2 years ago, and when Covid began, and had yet to use it!

Between being isolated through Covid lockdowns, a new and serious bout with skin cancer, and a bunch of other annoying things, I simply stopped painting outdoors.

Unsure if I would ever paint en plein air again, I packed my gear after 2 years of not painting outdoors and we headed up to the North Carolina mountains. 

As it turned out, our AirBnb lake house was just the inspiration that I needed to re-ignite my joy in painting outdoors!

The view of Lake Glenville was even better than the description, and although we arrived to overcast weather, my husband and I relished eating our lunch out on the deck overlooking the lake.

After lunch, I took out my new easel, the few brushes and paints I finally decided to bring , and started to paint.

I was sadly out of practice, but had a great deal of fun anyway!

"View from the Porch" is available on my website for $99. Just click here to purchase through PayPal.

Thanks for visiting my blog and return often to see more paintings!

 

"Rainy Day Bouquet", 8x10, oil on panel, plein air, rainy day, all prima, paint from life, soft color, impasto

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"Rainy Day Bouquet", 8x10, oil on panel, plein air

We took a brief trip to Cashiers  North Carolina and although our Airbnb is lovely and has a view of Lake Glenville, the weather has been damp and rainy.

We had hoped to do some outdoor activities, but with the bad weather, I was happy to buy a bouquet at the farmer's market in town and paint the flowers out on the beautiful porch overlooking Lake Glenville.

So that is what I did.

This painting can be purchased through PayPal by using this link on my website. Thanks for visiting my blog and have a great day.
 

"Checking out the Brushwork", 8x10,museum, people in museums, impressionist art, Philadelphia museum of art, art lovers

 "Checking out the Brushwork", 8x10

I love to go to museums not only to see the artwork, but to checkout the people. You see people of every age, shape and ethnicity in various attire. This couple caught my eye at The Philadelphia Museum of Art because they were so well dressed, and I enjoyed watching the husband follow his wife around, like a little puppy dog, (well maybe a big puppy dog), as she studied the brush work in every painting. This painting is available through my website here.

Thanks for looking!

"The Ferryman", after Edouard Léon Cortès, 9x12 oil. paintings of French countryside, post-impressionism, Old Masters, pastoral scenes

 "The Ferryman", after Edouard Léon Cortès, 11x14

Edouard Léon Cortès was a French painter of French and Spanish ancestry. He is known as "Le Poète Parisien de la Peinture" or "the Parisian Poet of Painting" because of his diverse Paris cityscapes in a variety of weather and night settings.  (From Wikipedia)

I have always loved the artist's Parisian scenes. However, his pastoral scenes of the French countryside are also lovely. This one was a challenge , but I learned a great deal in the process about his color mixing. His paintings look so very vibrant , yet he mutes all of his mixtures down . Even the vibrant yellow has a little purple in it.

I was attracted to the light and shadow pattern in this work. Copying works by old masters, or in this case, a famous Post-impressionist, teaches us many things. I  will probably do more.

"Summer Waterwheel", 11x14, oil on panel waterwheel, Radnor Township Pennsylvania , Eastern University, summer, Philadelphia Main Line, St. Davids Pennsylvania

 "Summer Waterwheel", 11x14, oil on panel.

The waterwheel at Eastern University in Radnor Pennsylvania is gorgeous in every season. I was fortunate to discover this beautiful campus while taking a ballet course there many years ago. Later on, my youngest son would attend Eastern for 2years, and so I had numerous opportunities to explore its delightfully beautiful campus. This is a fresh version of a scene that I did about 8 years ago.

It's always fun for me to revisit scenes that I've painted before in the hopes that I've made progress as a painter. Here is the 8 year old version of the first time I painted this scene.

I think I did a pretty good job painting the scene back in 2014!

Thanks for visiting, and hope you'll leave a comment and tell me what you think.

"Can-Can Dancer", 7x9 oil, paintings of dancers, small portraits, all prima, miniature paintings, can-can

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 "Can-Can Dancer", 7x9 oil

Had a lot of fun painting this little portrait. It's a throw-back to the days when I had my ballet school. We performed the can-can quite a few times over the years and it was always an audience favorite.

"Autumn Still Life", 12x16, oil on linen, paintings of sunflowers, Ukranian national flower, peace, peace for Ukraine, still life with sunflowers

 "Autumn Still Life", 12x16, oil on linen

I have always loved sunflowers. They never fail to cheer me up when they are in my house. I buy a bunch of sunflowers every other week and keep them in my kitchen to keep me company when I cook.

The sunflower is the national flower of Ukraine, and in support of the Ukrainians, artists are encouraged to blast social media with paintings of sunflowers. So don't be surprised to see a lot of sunflower paintings in the days ahead.

Let us pray that this conflict will be short, and that peace will be permanent.

"Spring Thaw", 9x12, oil, winter, snow, snowfall, creek, flowing stream, winter landscape, snowscape

 "Spring Thaw", 9x12, oil

It's been a very long winter in many parts of the country and with three weeks left until Spring, it's time to start looking for those daffodils!

Winter is a time for reflection, and simple enjoyments, and so as spring slowly approaches us, my hope is to take time to savor some of those moments when winter is displayed in all its quiet stillness and beauty. 

I painted this with a quiet palette, using many grays and the coldest blue of all-Prussian blue. It's not a blue that I use often, but for winter scenes, it seems to feel appropriate.

This painting is available. Please contact me at maryannejacobsen@aol.com for more info.

"Dappled Forest", 11x14, oil on masonite panel, Brandywine river, dappled forest, light and shadow, impressionist paintings. paintings of trees

 "Dappled Forest",11x14, oil on masonite

A few years ago, during a trip to Pennsylvania, I took a walk along the Brandywine River. The morning light was dappled along the path and into the trees along the river. I took a picture of the scene because it was so beautiful.

Yesterday, I painted it. I remember there was someone fishing along the river that day. I hope I can find the picture of the fisherman, because I would like to try to repaint the scene with the fisherman in it.

This was an experimental painting. I started out by shut throwing a lotto big shapes on the panel to see if I could find my way back into the scene. I think I did. So now I'll try a bigger one, hopefully with a fisherman in it.

If you would like to purchase this painting , it is on special this week for only $200. Use this link to purchase directly from my website. 

Thanks for visiting my blog!

"Printemps", 6x8, oil on panel, women in hats, springtime, expressive portraits, little gems, portraits of women

 "Printemps", 6x8, oil on panel

I will always be an old-fashioned girl at heart. I have always loved things that reflect timeless beauty, history, charm, and a simple way of life. So I am of course attracted to things of the past. 

I think it would have been amazing to live during the Roaring Twenties, when fashion was influenced by the Jazz Era or the Great Gatsby era as told through F. Scott Fitzgerald. I also love the Victorian age and the 40's and.... oh I could just go on and on. The fashion of today is just not fashion at all!

Anyway, I digress. This little tiny painting is all about a romantic era. The girl's dreamy eyes are thinking perhaps of a lost love, or a husband at war. 

All I know is that she is sad, but still beautiful.

I enjoy painting little small portraits because I think they can be more expressive when they are done quickly, as this one was.

I named the painting "Printemps", which means springtime in French.

Thanks for checking out my blog. Check out more of my paintings at my website here.

" Tango", 12x16, oil on linen, Latin dance, ballet, dance art, ballroom dance

" Tango", 12x16, oil on linen

Before my art career began, I was a dancer. I took ballet classes 4 to 5 times a week until I was in my mid-fifties, at which point I decided that painting was a lot easier on my joints than dancing. I was director of a large dance school for many years, and Artistic Director or a regional Ballet Company join the suburbs of of Philadelphia.

The love of dance never leaves you, once you get bitten by the dance bug. After moving to Florida and quitting ballet, I tried ballroom dancing with my husband. I absolutely loved it, but unfortunately, he hated it. So rather than look for a new partner, I quit as well. Today I still take line dance classes for fun and to keep my memory sharp, but it can't replace the joy I used to feel in ballet class.

The Tango is my favorite latin dance. It epitomizes the passion of the Latin people and the syncopated sultry rhythms of Spanish music.

I did enjoy painting this one, if only for the memories it brought back of thousands of dance classes over the years, and hours spent at the barre honing technique.

To all dance lovers out there, keep on dancing.