The not-so-lazy days of summer

I still have very fond memories of childhood summers.  Life seemed to pass in slow motion.  Our Whatcom County Library book mobile would park at the top of our driveway every other week and I can still remember the magical feeling I got inside that vehicle.  It was so quiet, the sun always seemed to stream down through the little sky light, and there were all those books to chose from.  Fast forward several decades...let's just say life is different.   

Body Art

While browsing my photo files for something to share, I ran across this image and I was reminded of the fellow who visited my booth at the farmer's market several weeks in a row asking if I would grant him permission to use one of my designs as a tattoo. I told him that I was not a big fan of tattoos actually. They remind me of that old Rod Steiger movie "The Illustrated Man" in which his character had managed to tattoo EVERY inch of his body with illustrations that became his reality. I eventually acquiesced and granted the gentleman permission to tattoo my painting on his body....what part, I never found out. To date, he has not returned to the market to show me the results. I hope it worked out to his satisfaction.

This painting was done using Oilbar on metallic gold gessoed hardboard (Masonite).

Contemplating

Contemplating Crows' Feet. This is the third of three paintings that earned me my signature member status with the NW Watercolor Society a few years back. The judge for the show was Carla O'Connor, of whom I am a huge fan. The catalyst for the painting was turning 50 and coming to terms with my age. I refuse to try to out-run it. There's actually something quite comforting in living "below the radar".

This painting was done using gouache, watercolor and water-soluable crayons on metallic gold gessoed 140-pound hot press watercolor paper.