What's the Point?

Amid all the cooking and eating I have been doing this Holiday season, there has also been time for painting. This is a small piece (5" x 7") I did to experiment with different palette knives from the ones I usually use.
It is of the beach at The Point in Dana Point. This is a favourite place I like to visit. I find the rolling in of the waves very therapeutic and allows me to focus my thoughts about what I need to do that day or in discovering a better way of doing some things than I have been doing.

Setting the Scene for 2012

It's been quite some time since I last updated my blog. Life and a trip to Hawaii for fun and for painting ideas has nudged painting out of much of my daily schedule just lately. Even though the hours in front of my easel have been lower than usual, art has very much been on my mind. I have been thinking a lot about what I want to do and how I want to proceed in 2012. I have also been putting some of those ideas and plans into action. I will be talking more about my plans as they come up during the coming year.
Meanwhile my most recent painting, above, is 'Doheny Sunset' 8" x 10" Acrylic on Board.


Wishing everyone a wonderful Holiday Season and a Happy and Healthy New Year.

Room and Board

Many artists keep a mood or inspiration board in their studios. Mine is currently a little bare after I revamped it after setting up my new studio in southern California. So it is a work in progress.
Every artists' board is personal to them. Mine consists of colours and images I like (either my own or those of others) which may provide inspiration or may remind me of people and places (or both). My board is also home to small gifts and souvenirs: badges I bought from the Tate in London, a extravagant ribbon that wrapped around a notebook given to me by a friend (top left), a Japanese jingle bell bought during a long ago trip to a Shinto shrine (bottom right), and an English postage stamp turned into a jigsaw puzzle from a friend (bottom left). 
Some of these items and images have lived on this board have lived on this space for several years and will continue to do so - others are here short-term and are just passing through.

Sun Worshipper

I never get tired of watching a sunset. It is a magical event.

I saw some beautiful sunsets when we lived in Arizona with colours that were more vivid and varied than I could have imagined. But I have a soft spot for a sunset at the beach.

In The Pink

When not at my easel, I can sometimes be found hunched over a sketchbook.

I was supposed to have pink coneflowers blooming in my garden but they have decided to be fashionably late instead (still waiting). So I used photographs I took at a botanical gardens we visited this summer.

Mellow Fruitfulness

There are a few signs of Autumn here in Southern California. There's a nip in the air and a few trees that are changing colour. Autumn has always been one of my favourite times of the year.

Pear- 5" x 7" Acrylic on Paper.

A small painting I did recently as my mind was on falling leaves, rich russets and browns, and having an excuse to make warming soups and stewed fruit.

Garden Update

The beautiful summer and mostly warm October we had has resulted in a mostly flourishing garden. In addition Hubby improved our bird bath, making the bottom of the water bowl much more attractive with the help of left-over tiles from our shower remodel.

Our yellow ginger bloomed bringing the scent of Hawaii to southern California.

Another star of the garden is our Black Taro. Was it the extra water that helped or me telling it how lovely it is all the time?

As well as its gorgeous purple/black front colour and the beautiful green a leaf starts off as (which is also on its back side), the leaves produce a semi-opaque maroon colour when the sun shines through the leaves.


Sadly we seem to have lost our plumeria which appears to be rotting from the inside. I've decided not to show a picture for those among you who find the sight of injured and dying plants too distressing.