This Little piggy

This image represents one of many back-roads explorations. It was getting late in the evening and the sun had started making long shadows. We were on our way back to a cabin we owned in Cleveland Georgia and made one of our ubiquitous “let's turn here” moves. We hadn't gone 20 yards when we saw the pigs. I shot several photos before the light shifted to flatness. That was quite a few years ago. I kept coming back to that photo thinking I would do a painting. This is it.

This is Charlie

After my last dog died, I said I would never do it again. Well... I did. It wasn't a full year before I started missing having a dog in the house. So, the search began and we finally found one at a dog foster home in Snellville, Ga. Now, you got to really want a pooch badly to drive from Ellijay to Snellville. He's a cross between a Wire Haired Terrier and a Beagle. So, we thought hummmm.. small dog. He now weighs 44 lbs. I think he also was bionically crossed with a shredder. If he wasn't so cute, he'd be dead.

Checking the Coop

We live in a small north Georgia town (Ellijay). On the weekends, we sometimes entertain ourselves by trying to make new discoveries about our area. On one of our trips, we were more than a little lost and stopped to ask for directions. The people here are very friendly and helpful. Before this gentleman would give us directions, he wanted to show us his chickens. His name was Bob. Bob had chickens all over the yard, but was especially proud of the ones in his chicken coop. He was pleased that I wanted a photo of him and his chickens. I bet he had no idea a painting of him and his chickens would end up on the internet. He then gave us our directions and we were on our way. I'm not really, really sure if we could find Bob again.

Slow Day

There is something very inviting about an empty canoe. Usually, on just about any nice clear day, you'll find most canoes are out on the water. On this day, it had suddenly turned chilly and was threatening rain. This painting captures the feeling of reluctance. It has lots of cool colors competing with the warms.

Savannah Morning

Savannah is one of my favorite spots. Every time I go, I see the town just a little different. It's an artist's and photographer's paradise. The sun had been up for about an hour when I started my trek.

St. Martin market

This market is typical of many island markets. We were on St. Martin. We rented a car to go further inland and found this market that was catering more to the locals that to the cruise tourists. I was taken by the colors and animation of the locals.

Wash Day (12x8)

The way the leaves hung on this branch reminded me of clothes hanging out to dry.It brought back childhood memories of mom hanging the wash on a clothesline in the backyard.

BEST LITTLE DOG HOUSE IN GEORGIA

A good friend recently opened a dog boarding and daycare facility. It's almost like a spa. I might even check in myself with all the fun stuff they offer. I love it.

REM Sleep 2

This is the second in a series I'm calling REM Sleep. These are the kinds of images that drift in and out during my dream sleep. Sometimes, upon awakening, I have only a dim memory of them.

Mushroom Condo

 

This painting is almost like a fantasy image. I was on one of what I call a "photo walk" when I looked over on a bank and saw these mushrooms. It struck me that they looked like condos on the side of a hill. It had rained the night before and these just sprang up. Wow.

REM Sleep 1

Sometimes, just as I'm about to go into a deep sleep, images like this parade through my minds eye. I've tried to capture that here.

Moss Garden

Our neighbors have a beautiful cabin on the Cartecay River in Ellijay, GA. They have this really nice Moss Garden in a large bird bath in their back yard. This is a painting of part of the garden.

Good Neighbors

Someone once said the good fences make good neighbors. The fact that the fence is loosely bound implies that it's just the suggestion of a fence.

This painting has lots of warm earth tones with a friendly feel.

Hemlock Cone

We live in Ellijay, GA in the North Georgia mountains. North Georgia and South Carolina are currently experiencing an attack on Hemlocks by the Woolly Adelgid insect. It slowly depletes the tree of nutrients and the tree dies. There is a treatment, but very expensive for each tree. This will be a great loss to this area. This is a painting of a Hemlock cone on my property.

Alaleas at Butchart Gardens

 

A couple years back, I had the good fortune to visit Butchart Gardens on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. The gardens are spectacular. There's no way to see everything in a day. This painting was inspired from some of the pristine flowers and plant life that abound on the 55 acres.

The Mandolin

Last year I attended an art show at the John C. Campbell Folk School in Brasstown, NC. It was as fascinating to watch the people as it was to view the art. As I was leaving the grounds, I spotted this lady holding a mandolin. She was about 20 feet off the path just standing in the woods as if she was in deep contemplation. I shot several images before she moved on. I did this painting to capture that mood.

On the Street

On a recent visit to Vancouver, B.C., we had stopped for lunch and were seated next to the a window and across the street was this man. He appears to be a street person... homeless. I took the liberty of cleaning him up a bit in my interpretation.This image is 8x10.

San Juan Window

While on a recent cruise, we went to the old town section of San Juan. While some of my friends were buying tee shirts, I spied this beautiful old window. I knew when I saw it I was going to create a painting. I took artistic license and changed the composition and wall colors. I thought ... so many people are walking right under this beautiful sight and never see it.

Loyd's Mountain Firetruck

This image was shot in the mountains of North Georgia. We were returning from one of our back roads explorations when we spotted this firetruck. It seemed abandoned. I shot some color and black and white infrared. The black and white was befitting of the subject.

Mossy Log

Lake Consauga in North Georgia. A tour around the lake gives lots of visuals like this one.