Plums on Tissue - SOLD

I've been hesitant to announce that I'm in Sedona for an extra week painting with friends because ... well, frankly, at this point, I'm 2 for 7. Meaning of the 7 paintings I've done so far, I've not wiped 2. Sigh. It's such an overwhelmingly beautiful place, and I'm struggling. But I'm having an absolute blast with my friends, drinking LOTS and LOTS of wine, and getting just a little sunburned and bug bit. Tomorrow we're off to Jerome for a healthy dose of old trucks. I have a feeling my odds will be a little better there. Photos coming ...

Happy Monday - SOLD

Have you ever received a gift completely unexpectedly? On a random day, for no reason? I felt this painting really invoked that feeling. "What's this for?" "No reason." "But today isn't a special day." "Yes it is, it's Monday - Happy Monday!"

For Me? - SOLD

So my class here in Sedona finished up yesterday. My husband and son went with me, and I got a photo from the night we all went out to dinner together. Who's the star here?

Below is one of my demo paintings from last week (sold). A couple of my students found these at a local thrift store. One even wore them ... but could only stand a few minutes of the torture. But they made for a fabulous still life setup.

My kids from Sedona

Here are my most recent kids from Sedona. I took this photo the last day and by this time I had them whipped into shape. If they tell you I paid them to smile, don't beleive a word!

Upon Closer Inspection - SOLD

Somehow we made it through the mid-week slumps - ok, so I had to threaten time-outs a few times - but we made it. And I saw some real breakthroughs, which for a teacher is the best feedback I could receive.

DAILYPAINTWORKS update: We will be opening the site up for general membership (on the all artists & today's art pages, & your own gallery/store page (see mine), for $9.95/mo) with access to auctions (free up to 4th re-listing, then 50 cents & 3% of winning bid) on June 14th. Read more about it.

Bowls Four Breakfast - SOLD, & workshop photos

I'm workin' 'em hard here in Sedona - crackin' the whip. At the end of each day they whimper and cry and slink away, but they always come back for more. I'm sure it's my charm. Below are a few photos, minus the whip ...

Empty Pool - SOLD

The pool I've been lazing around this afternoon was, thankfully, NOT empty. But there were stripes on the towels. : ) Tomorrow is the first day of my workshop here in Sedona. Updates soon ...

Odd Company - SOLD

I've been saving this very cool green bottle for the perfect moment. It was a gift from a student, and I am very grateful to add it to my collection. Thank you!

Value Study - SOLD

This is my example painting for this week's Daily Paintworks Challenge! It's a value study and I've arranged it so I have a dominant value (value that takes up the most room in the painting), a secondary value, and a smidge value (smallest amount). Dominant = mid value, Secondary = light, and Smidge = dark. See the value challenge to learn more.

We Saw the Light - SOLD

Hello from sunny, dry Arizona! Please note I won't be able to ship paintings until I get home, June 5th. I apologize for this inconvenience!

You're So Transparent - SOLD

The whole title for this painting is: "'You're So Transparent,' Said the Apple". My husband really came through for me tonight. I knew there was something obvious to name it, but the naming center in my brain is currently overloaded and malfunctioning.

Tomorrow my fam is flying to Sedona for 3 days of r&r before my workshop starts on Monday. As usual I painted ahead so will post whenever there's time and internet.

Also, if you haven't seen it yet, we just put up a critique section on the Daily Paintworks website. If you have a painting that you need some advice on or ideas for, and/or if you have some opinions for other people, please take a look.

What's the Secret? - SOLD

Sometimes it is such a relief to return to something familiar. For me that's apples. Someday I'll actually count how many I've painted, but for now lets just say - lots! So when something else isn't working out and I'm feeling frustrated, I give myself a little confidence boost by painting something I know well.

Easter Bunch - SOLD

I took my son, Jacob, to an easter event in our small town a few weeks ago. It was overcast for most of the time, but I just couldn't resist snapping a few shots of these 3 girls. They went everywhere together. And those bunny ears ...

Dinghies - SOLD

I snapped this photo in Maine last year. For most of my time there it was gray and drizzly, but we got one morning of sunshine and I took advantage of it.

My friend Tricia took photos at the party last night and has kindly shared them with me. I just posted them here on my Studio blog.

Let Us In Already - SOLD

The dogs above belong to my stepdaughters and their mom. Maya, the star, proved very photogenic. Can you tell it's hot already here in Texas?

But not tonight. Tonight, for my party, the weather was perfect! Cool and dry. I gave my husband the task of taking pictures and unfortunately he took VERY few and only of just a few of our visitors (I mean, where am I, David?!), at the beginning of the evening. I guess he was too busy visiting. I want to thank all of you who came, and all who wrote wishing you could come. It means a lot to me to be surrounded by such kind, supportive folks. And no, this is not just the wine talking. : )

Yellow Scattered - SOLD

Lately I've switched pretty exclusively to the Ampersand gessoboards. I personally LOVE the smooth surface (though it took some getting used to and does NOT work well with bristle brushes, in case you want to try them out). I've got a bunch of Raymar panels in varying sizes that I'd like to replace, so I am offering them for half what I got them for. I don't want to mess with shipping them, so I'm hoping I'll have some takers at my party tomorrow. They're great panels, especially for starting out. I used them for years, and was always very happy with both the panels and the service at Raymar.

Sittin' in the Shade - SOLD

This is another car scene from the Gold King Mine in Jerome, AZ.

Plum Line - SOLD

Sorry I missed posting yesterday - I am helping my folks with a building project for a few days, and the internet is spotty here. I am currently in a tent near the beach, hiding. For some reason, as soon as the sun goes down at the night the mosquitoes come out in droves. Ack! So even though I am covered from head to toe to OFF! the only way to survive is in the tent. Thinking of the plums I painted recently helps me forget the itching.

Keaton - SOLD

Happy Mother's Day to all you fellow mom's out there! This is a painting I did last week of my nephew, Keaton. When Keaton was two I was watching him one day and he saw some ant bites on my son's legs. He said "what happened?" I said, "oh, he got bit by some ants." He thought for a few minutes and then said "Aunt Carol bites?" I still get a kick out of that. I hope Keaton's mom is having a wonderful day!

Uncomplicated Joy - SOLD

Another image from our foray to Central Market. These folks were sitting at a table near us, eating. The baby was an eye-catcher for sure, with that red hair and orange outfit. I took nearly 100 pictures of her (from a distance), and I'm sure I made the parents nervous ... but fortunately they never asked me to stop. This was my favorite, mostly because of the pure expression of joy on the baby's face.

Kid Paint - SOLD

Click Here to Bid

I set my son up to paint the other day with some watercolors. When he was done he brought me the little bowls to wash, which all had just a tiny bit of paint left over. It suddenly occured to me - dude, these are cool - I could paint these! Duh. Sometimes the coolest stuff is right in front of me and I don't even think to paint it. I vow to keep my eyes more open.

Dappled Apple Snack - SOLD

Here is another one from my playground excursion at Central Market. This girl was so cute munching her apple among the legs of mingling mommies. The playground is surrounded by huge oak trees - beautiful! - which makes for lots of dappling. Which I love ... except that of the hundreds of photos I took, only a few turned out well enough to paint from, as the dapples were often in the wrong places.

Yellow Girl - SOLD

Sorry about the typo yesterday. Unless someone quickly invents time-travel (maybe a future project for my husband?) the party will be held MAY 14th, not March.

On our days off, my husband, son and I often walk from Pease Park in Austin to Central Market (about 45 minutes), have lunch, and walk back. There's a great playground at CM, which is part of the attraction, as Jacob (6) can play while we eat. Recently I brought my camera along and snapped a bunch of photos of kids playing. This girl was especially cute in her all-yellow outfit, and I just loved how a sliver of sun caught her here.

Dainty in Glass - SOLD

The flower above is actually ... ahem ... a carnation, but I'll be the first to admit it looks more like a rose. So, lets just pretend, shall we?

I'm throwing a PARTY! ... in less than 2 weeks, here in my studio, and if you're reading this you're invited. I know many of you live too far away, but if you're going to be somewhere near Bastrop, TX, May 14th, at around 6pm, join me for some wine and food and fun. Please email me for directions.

Leaning Slices - SOLD

Atlanta Girls School

These girls (above) are from the Atlanta Girls School. Their art teacher, Mrs. Joss, had them watch my blog this year as a class assignment, and even gave them a quiz - about me! So since I was going to be in town anyway they asked me to come by and say hello. I felt like a celebrity! They had some great questions for me - surprisingly grown-up questions, and afterwards we all trooped out the garden to get a group photo. As they were lining up I realized to my horror that many were taller than me and I was going to blend right in! So here's your pop-quiz - where is Carol?

Egg-centric - SOLD

This workshop (in Atlanta) had the complete opposite space issue than the one previous to it - we had more than enough. So much I had to whistle sometimes to get their attention. In the photo below you can see the space I used for demos in front, and all my kids ranged throughout the room.

Below are my demos from class, including one where they took bets to see how few strokes I could use to paint a pinky/red knockout rose. I think the total was 47 (for those in the know, please correct me if I'm wrong).

Here are of my few kids looking awfully serious. This was during the 5-minute value exercise, so they were concentrating, understandably.

And here is the whole, silly group! I told the one hiding I wouldn't call her out on it, so I won't. And I'm not one to break a promise. Nope, not a peep from me. I won't even mention it.

It was a great 3 days!!