Sunday, December 26, 2010

Walking through the Tidal Pool

 When this little boy began to follow his sister through a tidal pool in the direction of the setting sun, I knew I had captured the perfect moment for this commission. In the final painting, I like the way I caught the sun's glow on their little bodies and its reflection on the water.

Wednesday, December 8, 2010

Standing at Sunset

This is one of the first commissions I did for a family of young adult children. It was a challenge. For years I had been posing young children engaged in typical beach activities - digging in the sand, making sandcastles or catching blue claw crabs. When I met up with this family at the beach, I instinctively went right to my comfort zone. I had them sit down in the sand, but no one started building a sandcastle, no one was digging. It was awkward. Hmmmm.



Then, in a flash of genius I yelled to them, "Just stand there!" I love when I remember to keep in simple!

Monday, December 6, 2010

Portrait of a Family in Summer

This is one of my favorites. I'm happy with the way I captured the warm temperature and light of a late summer afternoon. The composition works, too. The children are engaged in their activities -  all together, yet, still doing their own thing. So typical of this age.


If you compare the photo I worked from with the one of the finished painting, you can see that I made some big changes here. I eliminated the dune from the background and substituted more water. I think it was a good decision. I also painted the little guy in the wet suit from another photo I had taken that day. His mom thought he looked a little left out in this one. I think she was right. Yup, mother knows best!

Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Little Boy Blue and His Sister

This is the work of a very clever Mom. She called me when her son was 18 months old and asked me to paint a portrait of him.                                                                                                                                                    




















Then a few years later, she called me again...yup...a little girl. I posed her on the same bench we used in her brother's portrait. (That's him darting through her photo shoot.)




She's turned in a direction that complimented her brother's pose, so that the finished paintings could hang side by side in the family dining room.




















        I love it when a plan comes together so nicely. Especially when it is years in the making!


Friday, November 19, 2010

Checkers in the Park



I thought it might be fun to share some photos of the private commissions I've done over the years. The top photograph is the one I worked from for this painting. I took it late in the day, when this brother and sister team were engaged in a friendly game of checkers at their favorite park. The bottom photograph is of the finished painting.

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Cover Girl


This little doll became a cover girl overnight. She was featured on the cover of Dan's Paper in the August 24th 2001 edition. She turned heads again last summer when she was selected as one of the featured favorites in Dan's 2009 Commemorative Cover Issue. Go to www.danshamptons.com/gallery/ and click on "Galleries" then click the Commemorative Cover Issue to find her. 

SOLD

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Little Blue Boat



               This is a little blue boat that sits quietly on a mooring in Sag Harbor, New York. I think it's secretly hoping to go out for one last ride. Patience.

                                                                SOLD 
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