This commission was done for a couple who had lost their young adult son to illness. I borrowed a favorite shirt of his and used it in the piece to try and enhance the portrait in a more personalized way.
Pastel on paper: 24"x 18"
SOLD
This Santa Claus portrait was originally done for a Christmas party invitation. Originally done in black and white, I later added the red suit, green mat and gold frame when I decided to market them for sale. Old Saint Nick makes a framed, free-standing Christmas decoration for a mantle or tabletop, or simply "hung on the wall by the stockings with care."
Christmas mini-print:
Framed size: 10"x 8"
Framed price: $30
This portrait was completed of a neighbor's three-year-old daughter. We had spent the afternoon at a local playground, determined to do the portrait in an outdoor setting. However, when I walked into the playroom of her home later and saw her in her stocking feet, rocking with her teddy bear, I knew I had found all the elements needed to complete the painting.
Pastel on paper: 36"x 24"
Private Collection
I was approached by this bluegrass band, called Tiller's Ferry, to conceptualize a design for their first album cover. Photographs of the band were taken, then sepia-tinted and mounted to the painting surface. I then applied thin washes of oil color, overlapping each band member's instrument they played with their photo likeness.
Album Cover
Oil on board: 24"x 22""
SOLD
I was hired by a friend who wanted to surprise her parents for their 35th wedding anniversary by having a portrait made showing how they looked when they were courting in the early 1950's. I was given individual photographs of the couple together, her car that they drove during that time, and shots of the lake that they frequented. Using this reference, I was directed to complete a finished painting giving the appearance of the hand-colored look of that era.
Pastel on paper: 13"x 11½"
SOLD
In portraiture, sometimes the true character and essence of an individual is best captured through a quick sketch or pre-study. This small watercolor was such a study for a much larger commissioned piece of Mark Twain. The final painting included a riverboat and other elements that told a more complete story, but I've always thought this small piece captured a more soulful portrayal of the author.
Watercolor on paper: 11" x 9½"
SOLD
I liked the idea of doing this pencil and pastel house portrait from a straight-on vantage point. The symmetrical balance of this sixty-year-old home contributes to its character and charm. The grandiose front entrance is a dominate architectural feature, which combined with the second-story palladium window above, neatly divides the house in half.
Pencil and pastel on paper: 12"x 16"
SOLD
I approached the painting of this large, stucco-surfaced home similar to the way I would treat a landscape. I attempted to simplify all the various angles and exterior shapes while building colors on top of one another in a layering process. I typically start with a charcoal drawing underneath, then gradually build my pallet of colors from dark to light, trying to save only a few highlights for last.
Pastel on paper: 13"x 20"
SOLD
I ;started with a warm, sienna-tinted paper as a foundation color prior to rendering this stately old neighborhood home. Then by building other tones of brown and white on top, I gradually brought the forms to life.
Charcoal and pastel on paper: 12"x 16"
SOLD
I have spent many hours at the various gardens in Charleston, so when I was asked to do this garden painting, I looked to Magnolia for my subject matter. My clients wanted me to include a blue heron or egret as a focal point in the composition. I felt a heron would get lost among the darker colors, so I contrasted this white egret against the deep greens and reflected his image into the water.
Pastel on paper: 30"x 20"
SOLD
This painting was a watercolor done as a gift for my grandmother who always loved cardinals. She would spend hours looking out her large picture window at the two cardinals who were always there in her front yard, ;pecking the ground for food during the cold winter months. When I hung this painting on her living room wall she commented, "I think those two cardinals of mine just flew into my house and landed on the wall. Sometimes I go to the window to see if they're still out there."
Oil on canvas: 30" x 62"
SOLD
This painting was a commission for a client living on Hilton Head Island. Rendering the marsh in off-season allowed gold grasses to contrast with the green pines and the blues in the sky and water. Egrets and herons were abundant, so I chose to make them an integral part of the painting. By placing the row of birds in flight across the middle picture plane, life was added to the scene, along with a greater sense of depth overall.
Oil on canvas: 30" x 62"
SOLD
I was visiting the Audubon Zoo in New Orleans when I saw these two exotic and graceful Asian birds, which originate from Tibet.
Pastel on paper: 32"x 24"
SOLD
