Picking Raspberries

I've been working on a large commission off and on this summer. It's sometimes hard to keep the energy and drive going on a large piece when you have to keep starting and stopping to do something else. Here are a couple of close-ups of areas I'm about finished with. I have to get it done soon both for the client and my own sanity.

Homegrown tomatoes

Despite a less than spectacular summer, we had a bumper crop of backyard tomatoes. They weren't the most flavorful. Maybe they needed more fertilizer and sunshine. Good subjects though.
Tomatoes on the sill, oil 6" x 8"

Sketching at the farm

With such nice summer-like weather, I headed over to our local farm for some morning sketching. Just trying to get some practice in and not worrying about making a piece of "fine art."

You don't think about how fast an animal walks while grazing until you're trying to paint it. You have to put the paint down quick.

These are both oil on 6" x 8" canvas panels.

Pyramid Point

Another great spot I discovered in N.W. Michigan, just north of Glen Arbor is Pyramid Point. Not having been there before, I didn't know exactly what it was like so I didn't carry all my painting stuff on the three-quarter mile hike in the heat of the afternoon. But I took a bunch of pictures and did this at home. Next time I will get there early in the morning, easel and brushes in-hand.


The View, oil, 14" x 20"