field sketches ~ Spring 2023

"Hunting The Shallows" Great Egret

"Hunting The Shallows" has been chosen for the 2023 Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum's "Birds in Art" exhibition in Wausau, Wisconsin. The painting will be on exhibit from September 9 through November 26, 2023.

"Hickory" Grey Squirrel and Shagbark Hickory

"The seasons and the changing of seasons must surely be among life’s greatest treasures. It’s difficult for me to pin down my favorite of seasons but fall, with it’s mosaic array of color, certainly holds strong in my heart. Sassafras, ash, sugar maple and that impossible yellow glow of a late October mockernut hickory. A world of color on fire immersed in melancholy. But it’s shagbark hickory that pulls at my heartstrings. Late to color with golden yellow green, a seasonal finale and the season of the grey squirrel. Moving with the flow of liquid silver amid an autumn drop of leaves, amassing as many nuts as possible, both devouring and burying, it’s the hickory nut that’s most prized by the greys. And those legs, those steel spring legs can catapult him off that hickory trunk or send him as a ghostly wisp to the upper reaches of the branches".

"Hickory" has been chosen for the Society of Animal Artists 63rd annual exhibition and national tour. The exhibition opens at The Stifel Fine Art Center in Wheeling WV from Aug 12th through Oct 28th 2023. Dates and locations for the national tour will be forthcoming.

"Hickory" can also be viewed in the current May/June 2023 copy of Gray's Sporting Journal and a special thanks goes out to Gray's for featuring "Hickory" in that issue.

"Magnolia"

I have a tendency to work on paintings that have a connection with an upcoming season. "Magnolia" had been on the proverbial burner for a while but I didn't know what kind of backdrop I wanted for it. This past winter I was looking through some seasonal reference photos and stumbled into a number of late winter, early spring water images and everything clicked!

Gracie Mayhem

This is Gracie my Llewllin Setter, taking a break in an unharvested soybean field amid Autumn's splendor. This image was taken two years ago and now at 15.5 years she can no longer make the trip into the woods. Short walks around the yard is all she can muster these days. A happier dog would be hard to find though, she sleeps hard and long now but knows just when to wake up for lunch and dinner. Life is good!

This was her 'swimming pool' in a near by stream. She would race ahead at a certain point in our walk and plunge into the cooling waters. Definitely the highlight of the walk!

And this was Gracie in late 2010 with my English Setter Ruger. They were best friends.

And currently with my two year old Llewellin Setter, Foxxer who is painfully jealous of Gracie. On good days they tolerate one another at best.

February 2021, Foxxer at 4 months engaging Gracie in a little snow play and she ain't having any of it!