Spring at Lake Minnetonka

"Spring at Lake Minnetonka" 48"w x 30"h

Today's painting is titled Spring at Lake Minnetonka, 48"w x 30"h. This piece continues my recent series of spring works that feature vibrant blues, greens, golds, and water reflections. Lake Minnetonka is filled with islands and is quite an interesting lake with all it's bays and towns surrounding the lake. I have many childhood memories of this lake, from YMCA summer camp to driving around the lake and swimming, boating, and fishing. My memories of this lake are warm and colorful, and I really wanted this painting to reflect those memories with a bright gold sun in the center of the piece and light reflections off the water and surrounding landscape and foliage. I imagine the maples are leafing out now around the lake, and it won't be long before other children are making summer memories of this lake. Let the children's laughter remind us how we used to be. -Whitney Houston. Please contact Your Art's Desire Gallery in Minnetonka for more information on this piece.

Glowing Birches

"Glowing Birches"  6"w x 6"h

Glowing Birches is a new 6"w x 6"h landscape featuring .... well, glowing birches, of course. The moon in the center is shining and sparkling off the birches and waters. While I've used my favorite color in this piece, cobalt blue, I've also used something that you'll be reading a lot about on this blog if you're a regular reader. That something is my goal for this year, which is to accentuate my singular brush stroke by using color. To say it another way, I'm intentionally leaving the black canvas ground that I paint on exposed around my brush strokes to give more visual texture and interest to my work. In order to keep growing as an artist, I assign myself new tasks every year, and that's my task. So you'll be seeing new colors, brighter colors, and more contrast, texture, and distinctive brush strokes. I find that setting an annual goal gives me time to explore that goal and stay consistent, because I'd be more prone to try new landscapes, colors, compositions, sizes, etc. on a weekly if not daily basis. While that may be exciting, as an artist, I do have to take into consideration those who collect my work or are viewing it for the first time. I endeavor to have consistency throughout my work in terms of style, color palette, subject, size, etc. And that consistency has helped me stay on track when I'm compelled to explore every deer trail I encounter while on the road. That road is leading me towards more color and expression, more interest and continuity, and in this case, glowing birches. Please contact Your Art's Desire Gallery in Minnetonka for more information on this piece.

Frost on the Lake

"Frost On The Lake"  6"w x 6"h

On a cold November morning I thought this 6"w x 6"h piece titled Frost on the Lake would be a fitting blog post. Birches, stones and a snowy foreground are witness to a light purple lake and distant purple ridge. The sky is a lazy hazy shade of winter, but all these elements combine for one interesting cool blue composition. I recently read that Lake Superior is starting to freeze over the earliest in the winter ... at least in the last forty years. I believe it, with the January weather we've had for the past several weeks. At least we're supposed to have a more moderate mid winter. There's always hope ... in the meantime, there's always frost on the lake in November. Please contact Sivertson Gallery in frosty Grand Marais, MN for more information on this piece.