Autumn Birches Study

Autumn Birches Study, Acrylic on Gessoboard, 6"x6", $100

This painting was an attempt to capture birches in autumn using a palette knife. I like the way the mountains and grasses turned out - definitely autumnal.  I think the trees and foliage worked pretty well, too.  Definitely a subject to return to. 

30 in 30 Challenge:  I got seriously behind last week - pretty embarrassing.  However, I am working hard to catch up.  So today, I got two small paintings finished and started blocking in a third.

Note:  To purchase this painting, please go to my Daily Paintworks Gallery (icon at right.)

Hornet's Nest - #4 in the 30 Day Challenge

Hornet's Nest, Acrylic on Gessoboard, 6"x6", $100

Yup, I'm now officially one day behind on the 30 day challenge.  I spent the last two days at the Bryan Gallery in Jeffersonville, VT helping install their new exhibits: Living Colors - a juried show of watercolors by living artist members (I have one piece in the show), and an update of the Legacy Collection - an ongoing exhibit of work by 20 member artists, including members of the New England Plein Air Artists.Today I was back in my studio for part of the day; tomorrow will be another partial day.

This painting is of a hornet's nest that I collected last fall.  I found it hanging from a low shrub so it was easy to reach (it is also only a couple of inches across).  I waited until a hard frost had killed off the occupants, then snipped the twig it was attached to.  Paper hornet's nests seem so incredibly delicate and are actually quite beautiful.  I was lucky to get this nest since most of them are destroyed by an animal or bird looking for the larvae within days of a hard frost.

Note: This painting is available for purchase on Daily Paintworks (icon for my gallery at right.)

Shadow Side of the Barn - #3 in the 30 Day Challenge

Shadow Side of the Barn, Acrylic on Canvas, 11"x14", $600

This painting is of a cluster of barns sitting on a hill near here.  When I took my photos, the side shown in the painting was in deep shadow.  The sun was hitting just a few spots on the south-west sides of the buildings.  This photo is a little over-exposed; the reds and oranges aren't quite as saturated as they look above. (My husband usually does my photography, but since I am posting daily, I am doing some of the photos myself - with much poorer results.)

This is painting number 3 in the 30 in 30 Challenge.  It is also the fifth in my current series of barn paintings.

Note:  To purchase, please go to my Daily Paintworks Gallery (icon at right.)

High Bush Cranberries - #2 in the 30 in 30 Challenge

High-Bush Cranberries, Acrylic on Gessoboard, 6"x6", $100

This is a painting of a branch of high bush cranberries.  The bushes are truly loaded this year - the cardinals and cedar waxwings are going to be ecstatic. The berries will stay on the bush well after the leaves fall giving a splash of scarlet to an otherwise gray landscape.

This is painting number two in the 30 Paintings in 30 Days Challenge.  The idea for the challenge belongs to Leslie Saeta.  Almost 300 artists have signed on to paint a painting a day for the month of September - including me.  Fortunately there are no penalties for failing to create a painting every single day - I expect to do my best, but I am not always the fastest painter on the block.


Note: To purchase, please go to my Daily Paintworks Gallery (icon at right.)  

Primary Colors - #1 in the 30 in 30 Challenge

Primary Colors, Acrylic on W/C paper, 7"x5", $50

This is the first painting in the 30 in 30 challenge for September.  It is also the last beautiful summer day for a bit so fitting in a painting today was probably the biggest part of the challenge so far.  This week is a busy one, so more challenges await.

Note:  To purchase, please go to my gallery at Daily Paintworks (icon at right.)

Sunflower

Sunflower, Acrylic on Gessoboard, 6"x6", $195

This is one of the sunflowers that grew in my vegetable garden this year.  Every winter, the birds drop seeds all over. In the spring they get tilled into the garden and subsequently come up amid the vegetables.  I like to leave some of them if they are not in the way.  They add wonderful splashes of color among the orderly rows of produce.

I used Julie Oliver's fracturing technique on this painting. I love the textures and broken edges that using a squeegee introduces to the painting's surface.


Note:  To purchase this painting, click here. To see more of my work, please see my Daily Paintworks Gallery (icon at right) or my web site (www.annavreman.com).

Blueberry Twig

Blueberry Twig, Acrylic on Gessoboard, 6"x6", $100

July and August are blueberry season in Vermont.  This is turning out to be a good year for them - lots of really big, super sweet berries.  This small branch of berries was on one of our bushes - past tense; we ate them!

Note: To purchase this painting, please go to my Daily Paintworks Gallery (icon at right).