Very nice.

Thank you Charlie. There's so much to learn isn't there?

i kie it. 

i like it. i start sketches all the time and put them away only to get a better idea of what i need to do.

Thanks curtis. I do the same thing. It's been a solid year of experimenting for me. I've learned that there are some subjects I don't like to mess with and some colors I enjoy more than others. My biggest problem, and one that has been preventing me from doing anything complicated, is the background and setting up balanced composition. I think this next year will be spent not only drawing but also learning about putting together still life ideas and understanding the perspective and light in landscape ideas. 

im the same way with colors. i have no training in art. i look at a picture for every imaginable color and jump in.

Catherine, an interesting and enigmatic series ...

Thank you Alex. This is an ornament I have hanging on the light where I paint. It's 10 inches long and 5 inches wide. It's like a little doll and the costume he's wearing catches the light in really interesting ways. I was goofing with the bells and had a spot left over so I put him in just to see if I could do him well enough to actually paint him in entire.

curtis I read alot about art and artists and just finished Winslow Homer the Color of Light. It was a little pricey even used on Amazon but it was worth it and I have a total new appreciation of light and color. Light and shadows are so beautiful and seem to have a personality! Another one I've been chewing on for many months is The Practice & Science of Drawing by Harold Speed. I actually carry it with me to work everyday so if the power goes out or the computers are down I have it to open up. It is full of the "meat" of the subject and I plan on rereading it many times as it is so helpful. Another one I just got a month ago and haven't read yet is Landscape Painting Essential Concepts and Techniques for Plein Air and Studio Practice by Mitchell Albala. I bet you would love this book. It is full of great information on landscape painting. Again, Amazon sells used books and as long as they don't have a bunch of highlights in them you can get used ones pretty cheap. Cragslist sells books sometimes. Last summer I got over $250 dollars worth of watercolor instruction books for $50. I don't think any one them had even been cracked!