Oil on Board 11 x 14
My most recent completed painting is called "Interlude".  The tea cup reminded me of my grandmother, who only drank tea.  She had a special cup and she used the same tea bag over again all day.  The creamer and sugar bowl were part of my mother's set of crystal.  Painting objects that tell  a story is interesting.  It can lower my stress level and bring back many memories.

12 x 16 Oil on Board
These roses were from my front yard several years ago.  I am not sure where this painting is, it was sold from the Lenox Gallery.  Yellow is my favorite color and crystal is always interesting to paint. The roses in our yard are especially beautiful this year.

At the end of each year my students have a showing of their work.  My students are adults.  Most of them did not have the opportunity to do any art in the past.  I tell them there are seasons in our lives, and this is the season for them to work on their creative, artistic side. 

The showing is my opportunity to see the pieces finished and framed.  The students have the opportunity to be in a show and participate in the reception for their work.  We have done this for 12 years and it is a popular event.

11 x 14 Oil on board
We found this nest in the grass under a tipped canoe.  We put the canoe back right away and went swimming instead.

4 x 6 Oil on Board
Sometimes the best things come in small packages.  This little painting has hung in every room in our house at one time or another. I use brighter colors more comfortably in a small painting.  My favorite part is the cinnamon sticks.

My adult students have their annual show on Friday, May 17, from 6-8 PM.  These are some examples of their work.  I hope you can join us.

8 x 10 Oil on Board
This eye level still life was inspired by the Peale family.  They were from the Philadelphia area in the 1700's.  Their fruits and vegetables were bug bitten and far from perfect, but they were beautiful.  The warm color of peaches is one of my favorite hues.

12 x 16 Oil on board
It's all about the pepper!  This piece hangs in a hallway in Wisconsin.  Garlic and onions have interesting translucent skins.  This painting glows in the rather dark area where it is hung.

8 x 6 Oil on Board
This was begun at a National painting conference as a demonstration of my painting technique.  The board in the background was an old door we found in the basement of our first house.  Peeling paint can be very attractive visually. The twisted paint cast shadows on the raw wood underneath and the minerals from the wood stained the aged paint.  The subject matter is very good for this area.  Someday I'll have to paint some Indian Corn again.

16 x 20 Oil on Board
To get the perspective on this painting, I sat on the ground under our apple tree and took a photo looking up at the sky.  We called this painting "Looking Up".  The tree has died since then.  The painting lives on!

9 x 12 Oil on board
This painting is currently hanging at the Miller Gallery on Elm St. in West Springfield.

16 x 20 Oil on board
This pitcher had my favorite bug, a dragonfly, in dimension on it.  I couldn't resist it, the warm colors and the nature inspired me to paint it several times.

10 x 20 Oil on board
The wall paper on the background was painted.  Once I entered a piece like this to a show and they assume it was decoupage and rejected it.  It was flattering in a way.  I got revenge by entering it into another show and winning best of show.

11 x 14 Oil on board
The roses grow on a trellis in my front yard.  The balloon flowers grow in a patch a few feet away.  The combination seemed perfect.  Grey is always a safe background, and by adding a little red to it, it is less stodgy. 

12 x 12 Graphite on Illustration Board
This piece will be in my students show on the 17th.  Everyone brings a piece of art that they completed this year and this will be my contribution.  Still love this little thing.

20 x 24 Oil on Board
This was the painting that won me the faculty award the year I was at Paier College of Art.  This is a Trompe L'Oeil with a sense of humor.  The hook will not fit into the eye, the hinges are very rusty.  The little doll pin cushion was very old,  faded and has rotted since then. The brass piece was originally used to sweep crumbs off the dining room table. I thought it was a fancy dust pan.  This painting is hanging in San Francisco in a craftsman style house. 

11 x 14 Oil on Board
This painting was a commission for a patron in Southwick.  Her bedroom was done in blue and white and she loves sunflowers.  I get nervous about commissions (what if they don't care for it?) since art is so personal, and we may have a different interpretation.  Fortunately, she loved it.  She had tears in her eyes and I got a hug.  How many professions can say they get a hug for doing something they love?

8 x 10 Oil on Board
This piece was inspired by an early American Still Life artist named Rembrandt Peale.  His whole family were professional artists.  His father named each of his sons after famous artists like Titan.  There are many of the Peales' paintings in museums.  I've seen a painting of a large watermelon by a niece at the Wadsworth in Hartford.  They are still an inspiration to me.

12 x 16 Oil on Board
These raspberries grow in my back garden.  There is a cement wall behind the patch that is now hidden by ivy.  When this was painted the cement was exposed, so I had to do some fancy inventing to make it look good in the painting.  The raspberry canes have leaves starting. Very soon we will have some fruit.  Nice time of year!

8 x 10 Oil on Board
During the spring a few  years ago, the hyacinths were very full and I couldn't resist painting them. This is a red/orange blue/violet color scheme.  It is almost, not quiet a direct complement. 

16 x 20 Oil on Canvas
This is a warm, traditional still life with  more formal elements.  It found a good home in New Jersey.

Granny, Del and Mac

8 x 16 Oil on board
Three of my favorite fall fruits on the railing of my front porch.  The sun leaves a lovely yellow reflection on the green paint.

9x12 Oil on Board
These items fascinated me for two reasons.  The red in the shadow was a surprise.  I thought the pear would show as a wider shape between the red areas on the table.  The shadow would have been wider in a view directly from the top.  It was also a challenge to make the glass area look transparent enought and add all the glints in the pressed glass area.  I actually finally got it after purchasing a white from Winsor and Newton called Cremnitz.  It holds better, it actually sits on top of the surface of the painting and stays very white.

9x12 Oil on Board
Sharen Harris and I painted this set-up in her studio when she was still in Agawam.  The painting was sold from the Lenox Art Gallery.  I have the little statue in a box with other pieces for more still lifes. 

8 x 10 Oil on Board
At this time of year, we start to think of our gardnes.  The books in this picture are all gardening books.  This was a very healthy geranium before I potted it for the front porch.  I borrowed the duck from a student.  This was sold through the Lenox Gallery.  I never met the collector. 

8x10 oil on board
This composition is a true Trompe L'Oeil, Trick the Eye.  By painting the objects life size and keeping the depth of the picture very narrow, it is easier to fool the viewer into thinking they can touch the object. Lots of fun for the artist.

Traditional Still LIfe

12 x 16 oil on board
This piece resides in New Jersey.  I still have all the objects in the still life, except the fruit of course.  It might be time to use some of these things in a painting again.  It's very traditional, and timeless.

16 x 20 Oil on Board
Inspired by the carousel horses in Holyoke.  The carvings are beautiful works of art and history that are still in use. 

5 x 7 Oil on Board
These books and the candle symbolize life, learning and man's dreams.  In Western art the snuffed candle reminds us that life is finite.  Painted 20 years ago, still a favorite.

Little simple set up

5 x 7 Oil on board
This is a little treasure in the corner of my studio.  It has a primary color scheme, red, yellow, blue.  The colors are very rich, which is easier to do on a small painting than a large one. 

8 x 10 Oil on Board
I've used this brass pitcher several times in still life because of the reflections.  One can almost see the room behind me upside down at the top right and right side up on the bottom right.  When I paint I don't always analyze the image, so this was an unexpected surprise.

10 x 20 Oil on board
Joy and her friend when they were about 12 years old.  It still makes me smile.

Both of these paintings will be at the exhibit at the Dane Gallery (Indian Orchard Mills), Mass. starting Sat. April 6.  Opening reception is from 12 - 4 and 10 of the artists will be there.  I am proud to show my work with this talented group.

11 x 14 Oil on Board
This is hanging in the law offices of Caroline Murray. 
Black is a very dramatic effect in a background.

Baby Dress in graphite

Graphite on Paper
This little dress will be in the Dane Gallery (Indian Orchard) show for the Artists at the Crossroads.  The opening reception is Saturday, April 6 from 12-4. 

Trompe L'Oeil

11 x 14 Oil on Board
This is a true Trompe L'Oeil painting.  Roughly translated that means to 'trick the eye.'  By keeping the depth of the still life very shallow and painting the objects life size, the viewer is drawn to the images to see if they can touch it.  This painting has fingernail marks in the varnish.  People tried to scrape the paper book cover at the corner.  I consider that a big compliment.

12 x 16 Oil on Board
This arrangement was done by a student for one of my students' annual shows.  All the flowers were in her garden.  The painting has a double significance. First, it is all spring flowers, and at this time of year we are looking forward to these plants.  Also, it reminds me of the show, the good time we always have at our opening reception, and it is time to remind the students to get their favorite painting that they did this year ready to exhibit. 

11 x 14 Oil on Board
The postcard in this painting was sent to my husband in the mid 1970's from his brother in Paris.  The old man looked so melancholy, it made a nice addition to this still life.  The purple rabbit was carved in Oaxaca, Mexico.  We purchased it on a trip in the 90's.  If you add the oriental bamboo and vase and the New England flowers, we have a very cosmopolitan set-up, but you have to look for it.

Grandmother Lucy

11 x 14 oil on board
This is a portrait of my Father's mother, Lucy Ellen Billings Bitgood.  The photo that I copied from was taken when she was 16 years old.  This hangs in my living room, next to the portrait of my Mother's mother, Rose.

Melon with Spoon

8 x 10 Oil on board
Sometimes the simplest images are the best.

Spring Daffodils

9 x 12 Oil on Board
This is an old friend, purchased out of the Lenox Gallery.  The daffodils and tulip were out of my yard and they remind me that spring is almost here.  Time to look for the shoots from the spring bulbs.

9 x 12 Oil on Board
Any ideas for a name for this new painting?  It will be in a show in April for the first time.

8 x 24 Acrylic on board
The surface of this painting was very textured. It caught the light well. The pears are from the trees of one of my students.  They were imperfect and muchmore interesting to paint.  The fruit crock is from another student.  Everything worked together.  From the Collection of Connie Galli.

12 x 16 oil on board
Orange and blue are complimentary colors and create tension and spark when used together.  The blueberries are from my own yare, and we had to scramble to find enough blue in other items to make it work.  My home has very little blue. 

Rose

11 x 14 Oil on Board
This painting won best of show at the Piedmont Art Show in 1991.  It is a Trompe L'Oeil of items that remind me of my mother's mother, Rose.  The photo is my painting of her at 16, and she crocheted lacey doilies and table cloths for all her family.  It hangs in my living room with another one of my Father's mother.