"New Horizons" 11x14, oil, Rockport Massachusetts, fishing boats, Bearskin Neck, nautical, paintings of boats, harbor, Cape Ann

 "New Horizons" 11x14, oil

This fishing boat can frequently be seen in the little harbor of Bearskin Neck in Rockport, Massachusetts.

I was attracted to the contrast of light on the boat against the dark background of the seawall behind it.

I hope to someday return to Cape Ann and Rockport. We used to stay there every summer for many years until our favorite Bed and Breakfast, The CAptain's House was sold about 5 years back.

If you would like information about this painting, please email me at maryannejacobsen@aol.com.

"Summer Garden, Rockport",11x14, oil on panel, Rockport, Massachusetts, homes of Rockport Massachusetts, Cape Ann, summer gardens, Maryanne Jacobsen art, Windswept, Old Garden Path, paintings of homes in Rockport

"Summer Garden, Rockport",11x14, oil on panel

Rockport, Massachusetts on Cape Ann has long been a favorite haunt of mine. A favorite activity when my husband and I are there is to take the stroll along the ocean via the Old Garden Path. I have taken that walk dozens of times and never grow tired of it!

This is one of the gorgeous summer "cottages " that line the street called The Old Garden Path. Sitting high and stately  on a slight hill and with a long stone pathway leading to the porch, one can always count on beautiful perennial gardens in the summer. Black-eyed Susan, purple coneflowers, Russian sage- it's a delightful scene to behold as one walks down the street.

I took a photo of this house a few years back and decided to paint it. The home is called "Windswept". I'll bet sitting on that front porch facing the Atlantic Ocean, one can partake of the most marvelous of wind currents!

This painting is available. Please email me at maryannejacobsen@aol.com for more info and thanks for looking!

"Morning on Old Garden Path Road", 9x12, plein air, Rockport, Massachusetts, North Shore, Old Garden Path, Cape Ann, The Captain's House, Marmion Way, New England resorts

"Morning on Old Garden Path Road", 9x12, plein air

We just returned from a great trip to Massachusetts, where we attended our youngest son's graduation from the Harvard Kennedy School. Here I am demonstrating that I am one proud mama!

Although we were only there for a few short days, I couldn't travel to New England without my paints! The 5 days were filled with graduation dinners and various events, but I did find time one morning to venture out and put all my painting paraphernalia to use.

Whenever we travel to the Boston area, we stay at The Captain's House in Rockport, and this time was no exception. Our favorite B& B in the entire world, The Captain's House, (located on Marmion Way), has a backyard overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. The sunsets and sunrises are equally marvelous, and although we were too busy to enjoy the sunrise this year, we did find time to take numerous walks along the Old Garden Path om between our travels back and forth to Cambridge.

The Old Garden Path is Rockport's answer to Newport Rhode Island's Ocean Drive. In truth , I much prefer the simplicity of design of the "cottages" along the Old Garden Path to the huge mansions along Ocean Drive in Newport. They all have beautifully tended gardens and many have a feeling of yesteryear, when life was simpler and preparing a fisherman or sea captain's catch for supper was the highest priority of the day.

I wove my way down to the very end of Old Garden Path Road, where the little path turns up over the rocks to the point called the Headlands, which provides a grand view of the lovely little town of Rockport and Bearskin Neck. If you look carefully, you can see Motif#1 in the distance.

So I set up my easel and painted this little quickie of the seaside house at the end of the path, flanked by the headlands on  one side and the Atlantic Ocean on the other side. What a lovely place to spend a few morning hours!

The weather was perfect and as usual, I could only wish I had more time to enjoy this lovely little seaside town on the North Shore!

I've done many paintings of this lovely area; if you have any interest in my Cape Ann paintings, please send me an email at maryannejacobsen@aol.com.

"Day's End, Good Harbor Beach", 8x10, oil on wrapped linen, plein air, Cape Ann, Gloucester beaches, impressionism, palette knife art

"Day's End, Good Harbor Beach", 8x10, oil on wrapped linen, plein air

Good Harbor Beach is located in Gloucester, on the North Shore of Massachusetts.  This little plein air painting was done during our recent August trip to Cape Ann, and this was my first chance to post.

Cape Ann is a rocky cape in northeastern Massachusetts on the Atlantic Ocean. It is located approximately 30 miles northeast of Boston and marks the northern limit of Massachusetts Bay. We visit there almost every summer becuase Rockport is so near and dear to my heart. We now have another reason to visit since my youngest son is attending the Harvard Kennedy School in Boston. Yay!

So in addition to visiting with our son and catching the beautiful soft sunlight on Cape Ann, we also made the trek to Orleans, Cape Cod for the American Women Artist's National exhibit.

I was very pleased to have been accepted into this prestigious national show for the second year in a row, and so oveall it was a great trip.

The sky was tinged in purple right before sunset on the August day that I set up my easel at Good Harbor. I hope you enjoy this painting. It has thick paint throughout and epitomizes the simple quaint beauty of this New England seaside town, captured quickly as the light kept fading.

"Straitsmouth Cove, Rockport"-plein air, 9x12, oil on panel, Rockport Massachusetts, Cape Ann, New England seascapes, impressionism, rocks, Atlantic Ocean, American Women Artists,Maryanne JAcobsen fine art

"Straitsmouth Cove, Rockport"-plein air,  9x12, oil on panel

I recently attended the American Women Artists Show at the Addison Gallery in Orleans, Massachusetts. Cape Cod is a wonderful place for an art exhibit as there is beauty everywhere and lovely shops and art galleries throughout Cape Cod.

A very special thank-you to Helen Addison, of the Addison Gallery for hosting the AWA show. The exhibit was breathtaking and I was very honored to be included in this prestigious national show for the second consecutive year. The show will run through September 15th, so if you are on the Cape, please stop by and view this magnificent show. There are still many lovely pieces available for purchase, too!

After returning to the Boston area, we spent some time on Cape Ann, in Rockport, long known by impressionist artists for its incredible light and dramatic scenery. My husband and I return here every summer to enjoy the best weather and scenery that New England has to offer!

The weather was more than cooperative this past week and I was able to do some plein air painting every single day. The painting above was done a few days ago at Straitsmouth Cove, right off of Marmion way in Rockport. I was attracted by the beautiful cool blues in the ambient light and used the house on the hill as a focal point.

A perfect plein air morning!

"On a Clear Day you can See Forever", 9x12, oil on panel, trees, water, tiger Lillies, Rockport Massachusetts, Cape Ann, Old Garden Path, Captain's House, MArmion Way, plein air

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"On a Clear Day you can see Forever", 9x12, plein air

The painting above was done during my recent trip to New England.

Once again we stayed at the lovely"Captain's House" on Marmion Way in Rockport, MAssachusetts and the sun came out to greet us after 5 days of dismal rainy weather in Maine. So I took the opportunity to go down to the Old Garden Path and find a spot to paint.

I had always admired the twisting trees that you see at the beginning of the path and so I didn't find a need to go much further down the path to create my painting.

Here's the scene that I decide to paint:

As you can see, there was a strong pattern of light and shadow, and the design, along with the lyrical trees, was what attracted me to the scene. I decided to omit the bench, because I didn't think it was necessary. A couple sailboats went by as I was painting, and so I decided to put one in, instead of the bench, for interest.

My hubby came by while I was painting, and took this photo of me as I painted:

If you ever visit Rockport on Cape Ann in Massachusetts, be sure to take the scenic walk along the ocean at the Old Garden Path. It begins on Marmion Way and winds past lovely ocean "cottages" to the headlands, where you can see the scenic village of Rockport and Motif#1 below.

If you are interested in "On a Clear Day", just send me an email at maryannejacobsen@com.

"Sunrise at The Captain's House", 14x 11, oil on linen-Captain's House, Rockport, MAssachusetts, Cape Ann, sunrise, seaside gardens

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"Sunrise at The Captain's House", 14x 11, oil on linen

Last week we had the good fortune to stay a few days at The Captain's House in Rockport , Massachusetts.  The inn is directly on the Altlantic Ocean and we went to sleep lulled by the sound of rhythmic waves, and awoke to the orange rays of the sun coming right over the horizon before our very eyes. Although staring out the window of our room at the sunrise was just fine, we usually went downstairs and enjoyed the view from the porch.

I was especially intrigued with the dramatic light effect across the flower bed and house in these early morning hours and that is what I  set about to capture in this painting:

Although a picture's worth a thousand words, nothing can compare to the beauty of this place in person!

"Thatcher Island Twin Lights", plein air, 8x10, oil on panel

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"Thatcher Island Twin Lights", plein air, 8x10, oil on panel

We just returned from a lovely trip to New England where we spent a few days in Maine (York area), New Hampshire and Rockport , Massachusetts.If you follow my blog, you'll know I've been visiting Rockport for the past three years and I never get tired of the beautiful light quality there.

We were blessed with gorgeous weather, which gave me a chance to paint en plein air. The location of our accommodations could not have been any better, and I had the chance to paint out on the rocks every day. Our view looked directly over at Thatcher Island and so I did not have to look very far for subject matter!

As you can see, I could not have been much happier!

This was the first painting of the Thatcher light houses that I did on the first day of our arrival. One of the guests at the inn where we stayed walked past as I was painting and asked if I would sell the painting to her. Now don't you just love it when that happens?

I'll be posting my other plein air paintings that I did on the trip over the next few days.

I was so very happy to have the opportunity to practice painting large rolling waves and big boulders. Those are two things I never see here in Florida and boy did I need the practice!

The Rat Boat, paintings of old boats, small boats, wooden boats, rat boats, Rockport, Rockport harbor

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"The Rat Boat", 5x7 oil on panel

I have no idea why this old wooden boat has a little sign on the back that says "Rat", but I'm guessing there's a good reason! Perhaps rats live in the boat and dance to the light of the moon when no ones looking? Or perhaps some villainous human rat stole this charming old boat from its original owners and in a fit of guilt the thief decided to name the boat after the ilks of himself? Or maybe like a  treacherous rat, this tiny little boat in the Rockport harbor sneaks up on unsuspecting fishing boats in the pre-dawn hours and  a boatload of cats sneak up on the unsuspecting fisherman and steal the fish to the horror of the fisherman who had no idea there was a rat on their tail!

Or maybe a family of hungry gulls man the boat and stalk the fishing boats while the fisherman are catching cat naps? (Not rat naps!)

Here's a photo of the rat boat in the Rockport harbor in the pre-dawn hours.

I know it looks small and inconspicuous but that could be a front for the rats.... or the cats...

We are going back to Rockport next week. I am going to see if I can get to the bottom of this mystery.

But in the meantime, if you want to own your own little rat boat, just send me an email at maryannejacobsen@aol.com.