Prickly Pear

12X12

Oil on Canvas

Reference Photograph by Melanie Marquez

People who have seen this painting say it screams "New Mexico." We don't have them here in Alto, but they are not too far away and they are plentiful. 

Childhood Memories

12X16

Oil on Linen Panel

Reference Photograph by Dianne Hewitt

I remember swinging in a swing like this when I was a small child in Illinois. When we moved west there were no trees where we lived that would hold a swing like this. We live in the mountains of New Mexico with pine trees. Tire swings absolutely don't work.

The Guardians 

24X12  

Oil on Linen Canvas  

Reference Photograph by Trevor Reeves 

I especially like the colors in this painting. We've tried to make sense of the motion of the waves in the photograph, but they seem to go all directions. There's lots of power in that water. The photograph was taken in British Columbia, Canada, by Trevor Reeves. The birds give an idea of the size of the rocks.

San Patricio Church

14X11

Oil on Linen Panel

Reference Photo by Albert Schenck

We have a lot of small old churches like this one in our area. I've taken pictures of it, but Albert's was exactly the right setup when I got ready to paint it. 

He loves Me Daisies

6X12 

on linen canvas

Reference photograph by Dianne Hewitt

I've always loved this kind of daisy. I remember my friend and I, as second graders, sitting in the field, pulling off the petals as we said, "He loves me, he loves me not." It's such a small canvas that it painted up rather quickly

Sierra Blanca from Rancho Ruidoso

24X12

Oil on Linen Canvas

This is another painting of another side of Sierra Blanca. This one is 24X12, oil on linen canvas. I took this photograph of the mountain and the fields from the square corner at Rancho Ruidoso. The horses are from a photograph by Lawrence Splitter and the photograph of the mountain I took with my iPhone in the middle of the day. I most appreciate my husband walking through while I was painting and saying things like, "The mountains aren't that steep." and "You should be able to see the horses legs a little better." It's a much better painting because of him.

Gerbera Daisies in the Shadows

8X8

Oil on Linen Panel

I love all kinds of flowers. Daisies seems especially friendly, even in the shadows. I wanted to keep the flowers relatively small, but by the time I completed the painting I was wishing the canvas was a little bit bigger.