watercolor

This small watercolor painting was inspired by a photo taken by my friend Debra of her husband Mike, all bundled up for a walk in a snowstorm. I was drawn by the overall monotone blue-grey coloring, contrasted by his skin tones. I decided to crop the image tightly to a square format, putting my main subject smack in the center – not the best composition by the ‘rules’ of painting, but I thought it appropriate in this instance. As I … Read More

“Baby Boomer” is my newest painting, finished and framed just in time to include it with my 17 other original paintings on their way to my Solo Exhibition in Clarksville TN, which opens on October 5th, 2021. Time is eating away at this old vehicle and I was inspired to feature it in a painting since I first spotted it parked behind a commercial building near where I live in SE Tennessee. I knew that the fabulous colors and textures … Read More

I’ve created a short video, called “Scratchboard Start to Finish,” to demonstrate my step-by-step progress in creating this 6” x 6” painting “Silly Selfie.” See my initial inspiration, reference photos, tools I used for scratching, tips and techniques, the addition of watercolor and the finishing details. You might recognize this selfie from a photo transfer I demonstrated in my Claybord 101 workshop and video. Recently I was trying to think of something unique and challenging for a new Scratchbord™ painting, … Read More

My big red poppy watercolor painting “Remembrance” has just been juried into the Arts in the Airport exhibition at McGhee Tyson Airport in Knoxville, TN. Juror Caroline Covington selected only 41 pieces from 484 entries, so I am excited and honored to be chosen among so few. Only artists from 33 counties of East Tennessee could enter, and original works in these categories were allowed: Painting, Graphic Arts, Photography, 3‐D, and Fine Craft Objects. This biannual exhibit has been presented … Read More

My rescued cat Jethro is full of personality and extremely willing to pose for endless photos (he loves attention!). This is the first of my nine portraits of Jethro, each using a different art medium on a 3.5″ x 3.5″ Claybord™ Tile, created and manufactured by Ampersand Art Supply. For this painting I chose a limited palette of primary colors, letting them mix randomly on the smooth surface to create beautiful hues. Claybord has the unique feature of allowing dried … Read More

Remember the scratchboard “Wee Lad” I last posted about? Well, I messed it all up! Here’s what happened…. I considered this a learning piece, so I decided to continue beyond the black and white stage and add some color. Since I was imagining the little boy as a Scottish lad, I thought it would add to the look to give him blue/green irises. I stratched away a bit more in his eyes to allow the color to show better and … Read More

“Fishing the Tellico” is the first watercolor painting I’ve completed in months, having spent my “art” time creating scratchboard art, painting a few pet portraits in acrylics, participating in some Zoom art sessions, and creating this new website. Switching media keeps things interesting, but it always takes me a bit of time to readjust. I put together a palette of many transparent colors for this painting and arranged them like a rainbow. To help me see the colors better I … Read More

  When we moved to our house in Tennessee, red foxes were among the abundance of wildlife we spotted in the surrounding woods. The red fox reference photo I found on Wildlife Reference Photos for Artists intrigued me, crying out to be painted! I love doing animals on scratchboard, and the inquisitive fox pose was a perfect candidate. Initially I planned to use black #Ampersand #Scratchbord™, my recent focus. As my design concept developed I switched gears… watercolor on #Claybord™ … Read More

It’s been more than a year since I first learned of my artwork being chosen among a select group to be featured in two eminent fine arts magazines. With the publisher changing ownership and adjustments due to the pandemic, both magazines were delayed from their original publish dates. Now they are out and my printed copies have arrived in my mailbox. I am proud to have my artwork honored in two mediums, acrylics and watercolor. The Best of Acrylic… honors … Read More

Chief curator of the Association for Visual Arts Gallery (AVA) in Chattanooga TN, Kreneshia Whiteside, ‘ “…says her favorite is “What a Wonderful World” by Judy Lavoie. “There is this one of a little boy blowing bubbles,” she says. “I think it’s so adorable.” ‘ (Read the entire story from yesterday’s Chattanooga Times Free Press.) Thirty paintings, specially selected from the original 72 juried into the 37th Biennial Exhibition of the Tennessee Watercolor Society, are on the move. The Traveling … Read More