Waiting for You

"Waiting for You"

8" x 16"

This is not my normal subject matter, but I fell in love with the photo my friend Lee Brown took in a restaurant in Paris and I lucked out that he posted it in another one of his now famous painting challenges. Click here to see Lee's photo. Using Photoshop, I cropped the figure tighter and removed the shadowed figure in the right foreground and added a chair in his place. The chair back points up to the figure and helps direct the viewers eye back up to the girl and also also adds weight and depth to the bottom of the painting. I also use a filter in Photoshop called "Median" that blurs the details without losing the shapes. When I'm plein air painting the only way to achieve similar results is to squint at my subject.

I painted my painting only looking at my Photoshop image on my computer screen. I have to admit I was surprised when I finished it and looked back at the original picture because it had tons of details I had lost, but hopefully I did Lee's beautiful photography proud. Thanks for another fun challenge. Make sure you visit Lee's "A Day Not Wasted" blog and see the other entries and tell him "Hi" for me.



Behind the Barn

"Behind the Barn"

9 x 12

“I was so naive as a kid

I used to sneak behind the barn

and do nothing.” 

- Johnny Carson

Free Painting!

This is my 100th Blog post and to celebrate I will give a painting away. All you have to do is leave me a comment on my Blog this month. I will then use a random generator to pick a name from everyone that posted and that person will be able to choose from one of the paintings shown above. The paintings range from 8 x 10 to 9 x12 and are all plein air works from random Texas locations. Each painting was featured on a previous Blog post, so you can read more about them and see where they were painted.

Thank you to everyone that follows my Blog and supports me as a painter.
Here's to another 100 posts!