Rabbit Ears and Zinnias 

24 X 18 

Oil on Stretched Linen
Photographed by Ilene Taylor

I also took a few photos of the mountains and the garden, and yes, that is rain. We don't see much of that in these parts. This painting has been designed and redesigned over and over. Should the flowers be larger or smaller? Should I cover up the yard and just show flowers and mountains? What's the focus? Etc. I finally decided I like the space, or isolation the prairie portrays with the flowers only on the edge. Maybe sometime I'll just paint the flowers. Getting them to look real and not cartoonish was an issue as well. Below is a watercolor I did while trying to plan the painting.

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Serenity

16 X 12 

Oil on Linen Panel

The painting with the tiny cows is from just out of Ruidoso Downs toward Roswell. It's a beautiful, serene place that we notice every time we go that way. 

The Wet Bear

16 X 12 

Oil on Linen Panel 

Reference Photo by Joan McDaniel

The Wet Bear made me laugh. The photograph made me think of the cartoon character (Ballou). In the photo the bear had already eaten the fish's head, but I couldn't make myself paint it that way and I like the way they are eyeing each other. The fish could still get away (maybe) as we have seen on some other experiences and photographs. The way he is hanging onto his feet was hard to paint because I had difficulty deciding what went where.

Small Red Barn

16 X 12 

Oil on Linen Panel 

The Small Red Barn is in someone's backyard in Capitan, NM. I drove around the block from the library and there it was. I added chickens and repaired the barn door somewhat and added a different kind of fence to protect the chickens.