Blog

To celebrate this first week of summer I thought I'd showcase "Prairie Home Companions," a painting that's all about summertime fun. The subject is 3 farm buildings on a farm in historic Port Oneida, MI, located in the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. The third building is only implied in the shadow on the shed next to the granary. I love this sort of visual pun -- it delights me to paint something like this and hope you enjoy it too!

Don't you think Garrison Keillor would like to have a painting by this name? I do! How about you?

I've just returned from a rewarding trip to the Lake Huron side of Michigan where I went to scope out painting sites for the Alcona Arts Retreat. (I've been invited to participate on the faculty for the upcoming event Sept. 5-9.) Several of the organizers, Will St. John and Mary Ellen Jones, gave me a tour of the area with an eye to showing off their county's great barns and then they also wowed me with a truly fine lighthouse. I get to decide where my plein air oil painting group will spend 6 outdoor painting sessions -- it's a tough job and I'm more than happy to do it!

Here are some of the possibilities I'm considering. To learn more about the Alcoma Arts Retreat visit http://www.inspirationalcona.org/ . I hope you'll consider joining us for a fulfilling painting experience.

By the way, which site would you choose?

In the middle of my Vieques winter I received a call from someone I'd never met. She was seeking permission to interview me for an article in Women 2 Women Michigan, a magazine I'd never heard of before. I was very pleased when I received this beautiful publication in the mail a few weeks ago. It's not only gorgeous, but packed with interesting resources and information. Thanks, Mary Ellen Jones, for this opportunity to share my work and ideas about art-making! You can check it out for yourself: http://women2womenmichigan.com/magazine/may2013/index.html.

My studio is abuzz with preparations for my "Barn Love" show that opens at the Center Gallery in Glen Arbor on July 5. Each of the 15 or so gallery-wrapped canvases are receiving finishing touches: 2 coats of Gamvar varnish and a jet black wooden strip frame. I've shown paintings many times without framing them -- it's so much easier! -- but I love the look of the black outline so much, it's now the new standard for my work.

I'm very grateful to my husband Roo Davison, pictured above applying a frame to "Coming into the Light," and to Kyle Gala, who's shown painting one of several coats of black enamel on a bunch of strips. When they get done with the frames for this show, they'll be getting to work on the ones for the (even larger) exhibit at the Oliver Art Center opening on August 9. Well done, guys! And thank you.