DUSK

“...dusk is the time when men whisper of matters about
which they remain silent in the full light of the sun.”   
~  simon raven

'CONVERSATION WITH DUSK'

12 x 12" Acrylic on textured canvas

For more information on this piece Please click HERE

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A few weeks ago I mentioned, that when I retrieved my photos of our trip over to St. Ignatius Mission in Montana off my camera, I would post them.  I finally managed to get that done. I hope you enjoy the tour!

Remember, these were painted by the Cook!

They were working on renovations when we were there.

And no Catholic Church is complete without one of these . . . The Confessional! 

Some of the surrounding landscape in the area . . .

and ...

CLOUDS OF THE DAY . . .

It's dusk here too, and foggy, as you can see.  

Have a great day!

Charleen

TO TEXTURE OR NOT TO TEXTURE ...

I painted the top Piece 'Nature laughs in Color' several weeks ago.  Un-textured on a blank (black) canvas. I just painted the smaller Piece 'On a Summer Evening' yesterday, on a textured (black) canvas.  I thought it would be fun to do two that were similar in content and color but on 2 totally different canvas bases. 

I used a brush to paint both, but the bottom Piece was finished it off with a few 'swipes' of the Palette knife. :)

'NATURE LAUGHS IN COLOR'

12 x 12" Acrylic on Canvas

'ON A SUMMER EVENING'

6 x 6" Acrylic on Textured Canvas

For more information on either of these Please visit my Website at:

www.charleenmartin.com

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Clouds of the Day . . .

To semi-quote our daughter, who took this photo, "This was a cool cloud thingie she saw on the water recently, and she thought of me." :)  I actually think she may have been out 'Orca scouting' when she saw this.  It is a cool cloud thingie.  It reminds me of a Great White shark ... probably hovering out of the water and away from the Orcas.  The Great White may be the school bully (all talk, sharp teeth, just mean but no substance) but evidently the Orca is the Star Football player in this match up.

Charleen

WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE PLACE TO BE ?

MORE FROM THE FAMILY TREE ...

'THE FAMILY TREE:  TOGETHER IS OUR FAVORITE PLACE TO BE.'

12 x 12" Acrylic on Textured Wood Panel
For more information on this Piece Please Click HERE

HEAVEN GOES BY FAVOR.

IF IT WENT BY MERIT, YOU WOULD STAY OUT

AND YOUR DOG WOULD GO IN.

~  Mark Twain

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CLOUDS OF THE DAY ...

WELL ... I DO KNOW I'M BEING WINKED AT!  :)


CHARLEEN

THERE'S GOLD IN THEM THAR ... FIELDS

A Little MIDNIGHT GOLD ...

'MIDNIGHT GOLD'

6 x 6 x 1.5" Acrylic on Textured Canvas

For more information on this Piece Please click HERE

This reminds me of the miles of Golden Wheat fields down in the Palouse region of Eastern Washington.  We were down there last week and the wheat is already peeking up through the soil. 

I'm currently working on a Pointillist Piece and it is taking me a lot longer than anticipated.  And ... I'm not even sure I am happy with it at this point. (No pun intended.)  I had a request from a Customer to do more (she's already bought two :) so that is why I am diligently working on this one.  It needs a lot more work so I took a break and did this Abstract landscape.  I needed a break from the minute detail. 

Yesterday was a beautiful day here.  Sunny skies and warmer temperatures (high 40's may not be high to some but for us, it was great!)  We decided to take a drive over to Montana, a whole 6 miles away (although we did go further than that!).  I've been fortunate to have traveled through most of this country and Western Montana is very high on my list of some of the most beautiful landscapes we have.  We drove over to Plains, Mt., had an ice cream in a cute little Shop called 'Ripples' and came back home.  Saw lots of Wildlife on the drive ... Deer, Bald Eagles, Canadian Geese but we did miss the Mountain Goats.  They are all over this area, to the point that there are signs telling you to drive carefully, 'Mountain Goats are on the road ahead'.  They just weren't ahead of us.  :(

"IF PEOPLE WERE SUPERIOR TO ANIMALS,

THEY'D TAKE BETTER CARE OF THE WORLD."

~ Winnie the Pooh

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CLOUDS OF THE DAY ...

I think the Smurfs are back and having a Face-off!  I'm sure you can find more than that!

Charleen

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

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

 I HOPE YOUR DAY IS FILLED WITH LOVE, LAUGHTER, 

AND WONDERFUL NEW MEMORIES. 

HAPPY  THANKSGIVING!

MANY HUGS ... 

CHARLEEN

ON THE ROCKS PLEASE ...

If you read my last blog then you know we made a recent trip to Las Vegas.  I posted some of the photos I took while there. (Scroll down to last blog)  Last visit it was into the heart of Las Vegas.   This time we go outside the city.  This area is called Red Rock Canyon which is just outside of Las Vegas. To all my Artist friends, Please feel free to use any (or all) as reference photos if you would like.  If you are familar with Carol Nelson's work then you would know why this area reminds me so much of her geological Art pieces.  :)  If you aren't, just click on her name and it will take you to her website.  It's a visual treat!

I don't know about you, but the 'stripes' in the rocks just amaze me.  That was some amazing Paintbrush!  :)

I have one more set of photos that I will share with you next time.  Again, there might be some good reference photos in there for those interested.

And then ... there is my version ...

RED ROCK CANYON

12 x 12" Acrylic on Textured Wood Panel

I just took a small section of one of the photos I took and enlarged it.  I think if I were to do this again I would take an even smaller section and play up the individual rocks more.  

Considering the climate of our Politics right now, I thought this quote quite apropos ...

IT IS MUCH EASIER TO THROW ROCKS THAN IT IS TO GOVERN.

~ Karen Bass

See you soon!

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

ASLEEP. UNDER THE NORTHERN LIGHTS.

ASLEEP. UNDER THE NORTHERN LIGHTS.

6 x 6"  Acrylic on Textured Wood Panel.

I have been very fortunate to have seen the Northern Lights, actually, more than several times.  They are truly magnificent.  Since I have seen them more than once I was very surprised some years back when my Hubby and I were on an Alaskan Cruise, and the Captain, in the middle of an Evening Stage show, came on stage, stopped the show, and made everyone get up and go outside to see the lights.  He said that in all the years he had been at Sea he had never seen the Northern Lights.  He was so excited to share the event.  :)  And I have to say, that seeing them while semi-surrounded by massive Icebergs did give the whole experience a surreal feel to it.

EVENING KISS

Here is another piece I did for the Studio Tour recently.  Those are large, beautiful chunks of Chalcedony that make up the front focal point of this Necklace.  Chalcedony is considered by many to be a nuturing stone.  It absorbs negative energy and is said to bring the Mind, Body and Spirit into Harmony along with many other positive traits.   What more can you ask for!

THEN THAT'S WHAT THE NORTHERN LIGHTS ARE.  

ALL THE LIVES WE ARE NOT LIVING.

~ Adi Alsaid

Happy Monday!

CHARLEEN

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