#525 • The Bluebird and My Shells

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We’ve never had bluebirds around here on the property. I think it’s similar to why I don’t ever win the lottery. I don’t have bluebird houses to rent, and I forget to buy lotto tickets.

These shells were in my apartment in Portland when I lived there. I used to collect them on beach walks. I have a stone collection from those walks too. They were all part of the decor, and I always thought that if I moved I would simply return them to the beach. But when time came to move, I couldn’t let them go.

 

The Bluebird and My Shells • 13" x 13" acrylic

#524 • Jumping Into the Spirit of Water Falling

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To prepare for a jump with two feet into the rainy weather ahead, I figured a full-on submersion was the only way to fully embrace it. I started this painting a few years ago and found it under a pile in my studio - the same pile from last week, and decided to try to tackle it not only because it reflects the wetness out there, but to get into the spirit of cleaning up old messes left behind and nearly forgotten while I'm at it.

Jumping Into the Spirit of Water Falling • 9" x 9" acrylic • unframed • $350

#523 • Practice

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Found this old painting on the bottom of a pile cleaning out some stuff in the studio. I loved watching the high school kids practice out in Casco Bay when I lived on the hill in Portland. 

Practice • 15.5" x 15.5" • Acrylic on 300# cotton rag watercolor paper • $350 unframed

#522 • So Long To Winter

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There's always one more winter painting in me before the season ends up here. I didn't get to ski as much as I wanted for a variety of reasons and well... excuses, like the freaking cold, windy and gray days. The days I did brave it were always worth it because the surface conditions were superb. This mountain has the best grooming in the world.

I missed spring skiing - that was the hardest. I hope Sugarloaf made some money and is around next year when I get back into it with a ferocious appetite to freeze my ass off.

I missed the ride up through the valley too. It's one of the most beautiful in Maine. It never gets old any time of the year. But today it's so hot and sunny I'm beginning to forget what I missed already.

So Long To Winter • 28.5" x 21.5" acrylic on 300# cotton rag watercolor paper • $2,100 unframed

#521 • That Sweet Swishing Song of Sailing the Sound

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The first memory that slips into my head when thoughts turn to summer and sailing around the bays in Maine is Sommes Sound. I've taken a lot of photos when we've been up there, but never seem to catch it just right. So I decided to paint that sweet swishing song of sailing up the sound with the tide as I remember it instead.

The Song of Sailing the Sound • 22" x 22" acrylic on 300# cotton rag watercolor paper • #1600 unframed

#520 • Tempting Thoughts of Summer

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It's snowing again in the foothills of Maine's western mountains and for the skiers up this way, it's heaven. But for many like me who have sown all of their cold weather seeds, it's free fertilizer but nevertheless, WTF! 

So here's a little something I was working on because I was actually in the spirit at one point. Silly me. Even Tom got tricked into thinking he was going to spend a day down on the coast getting the boat ready for his annual spring chores. It's Stonington from one of our sail-byes down the Deer Island Thorofare last summer. 

I'll put it aside for a bit. I think I've got it in me to do one more winter scene.

Tempting Thoughts of Summer • 8" x 8" acrylic framed to 12" x 12" • $350

#519 • The Why of Everything

 

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Almost through with March and slipping into April, the light is rapidly changing, the sun is stronger on our faces, and we are tempted to think that spring is something we in Maine know it is not. It’s black fly season that we have to look forward to. In the meantime mud season has arrived, and those cool winds from Canada that refuse to give up continue to add to the torture called expectation.

 

Depressing as it seems, those of us who cultivate indoor plants know they help us bridge the seasons in a state of peace and well being. They are a gift to humans like me who struggle to understand the why of everything.

The Why of Everything • 21" x 21" acrylic on 100 % cotton rag watercolor paper • $850 unframed