BABY ... IT'S COLD OUTSIDE!

But, not quite as cold as it had been ... thankfully!  So, I don't know whether it was the cold weather that made me see snow (we're covered with it here) in the background for this painting, or the texture on the wood that made me think snow.  Either way, that's what I saw after the texture dried on this 6 x 9"  wood panel. I first painted red over the background and then when dry, added the white.  I wasn't sure where I was going next but it didn't take too long before the Cardinal made his appearance.  :)

'RED, HE SAID, IS MY FAVORITE COLOR'

6 x 9" Acrylic on Textured Wood Panel

I'm doing Leslie Saeta's '30 Paintings in 30 Days' Challenge.  I missed the first 3 days due to having company over the New Years weekend.  'Red, he said, is my Favorite Color' is my Day 6 painting. 

'WINTER AT BROKEN LIMB FALLS'

I posted 'Winter at Broken Limb Falls' back in October but wasn't 100% satisfied with it.  (Not that I am EVER 100% satisfied!)  I recently pulled it out and added a little more color to it.  I think it really helps to 'pop' the broken tree limbs.  I posted it here on my FACEBOOK page and another Artist that saw it said "Look at the Heart.  Yay!!"  It probably couldn't be more obvious but I never saw it until she said that.  :/  Can you see it?

Clouds of the Day ... Cataldo, Idaho

Without  r e a l l y stretching it, I can't say I see anything in particular in this photo other than a possible painting.  :)  

Have a great day.  I should be back soon with more paintings from the '30 in 30' Challenge.

Charleen

We cling to our own point of view, as though everything depended on it. Yet our opinions have no permanence; like autumn and winter, they gradually pass away.  ~   Zhuangzi

INTO THE COLD OF WINTER ...

SO ... LET'S SNUGGLE IN TO WINTER.

'SNUGGLE IN TO WINTER'

5 x 7" Acrylic on Textured Wood Panel

For more Information on this Piece Please Click HERE

And, another Cloud formation  for you ....

We were on our way to town after a week of VERY heavy rains.  That little bit of blue peeking out was just such a welcome site.  What I see here are two gruff rain trolls trying to stare down one another.  But, while they are trying to out-do each other, the little blue sky slips silently past them and takes over the sky.

  Moral of the story:  Blue skies are always there for us.  Sometimes we just have to wait for them to get past the turbulence.  :)  

Charleen

FROM THE IDAHO STUDIO of CHARLEEN MARTIN

CABIN BY THE LAKE   ~  SOLD

5 x 7" Acrylic on Textured Wood Panel

This panel is not nearly as textured as the last 2 pieces I showed here  (Dear October, I love how you dress ... and  Winter at Broken Limb Falls) but definitely has enough to add interest to the Painting.   

We recently went for a drive so I could take some reference photos of the Tamaracks changing colors.  I had never heard of a Tamarack until I moved West (They are also called Western Larch).  A Tamarck is a 'deciduous Conifer'.  Very confusing to a lot of People.  Deciduous and Conifer are mutually exclusive ... except when it comes to the Tamarack.  It looks like an Evergreen.  It has needles like an Evergreen.  It has cones like an Evergreen.   But, unlike other Evergreens, its needles change color (from green to gold) and then drop off only to come back the following Spring.  

I took the above photo because it seemed like such a paradox to me. Out enjoying the beautiful Fall colors on all the trees around us and then right ahead of us ... that beauty cut and loaded onto a truck. It didn't seem quite right.  Yes, I know we need the jobs, etc. etc. I am probably a little more sensitive to all this at the moment because they are 'clear-cutting' on one of the mountains up behind us.  (They just came up over the ridge this past week and we can already see a big bare spot from our home)   I didn't think that was allowed anymore but that just shows you what I know! :(  

Below are Tamarcks that have already changed color and started losing their 'needles.  

Almost spooky looking aren't they?! 

Hope your November is going well!

 Charleen

The curious paradox is that when I accept myself just as I am, then I can change.

~  Carl Rogers

WINTER IS COMING ...

'WINTER AT BROKEN LIMB FALLS'

This is one of those Pieces that is already done before you start.  I did some very heavy texture on this wood panel.  Very abstractly, not really with anything in mind.  When the texture had dried and I went back to look at it, I immediately saw the broken tree limb and the rocks.  I also saw Winter.  I suppose it could have been any other time of the year but for some reason I saw Winter which made it a little more challenging.  Winter and cold ...  I guess it is just around the corner.  :(  

LOGIC WILL GET YOU FROM A TO B.  

IMAGINATION WILL TAKE YOU EVERYWHERE.

         ~  Albert Einstein

DECEMBER SONG FROM THE IDAHO STUDIO of CHARLEEN MARTIN

DECEMBER SONG

This is another Piece that I did using a Brayer, Palette Knife and Brush.  It's a fun technique to do because there is still an element of surprise (for me!) to the finished piece.  

5 x 7" on Textured Wood Panel

For more information on this Piece Please Click HERE

In the depth of winter I finally learned that there was in me an invincible summer.
~ Albert Camus