Walking in the Tailwind

Oil on canvas, 18 x 24 inches -- Available

I took the reference photo of our pet chicken, Shantie, in the front yard on a very windy day. I was very intrigued by the light on the feathers that are blown by the wind. I also liked the her determined look for foraging in spite of the wind.

Greeters of the Meadow

Oil on canvas, 18 x 24 inches -- Sold

I was greeted by these friendly horses in the countryside while visiting my friends on the island. I was drawn to the back lighting on the horses as they appeared from the forest and started walking toward me.


The painting is framed (a light color, rustic wood with gold lip). It looks like this.

Three Sisters

Oil on canvas, 18 x 24 inches -- Sold

This painting is about the three young chickens we got a few years ago. When I took this reference photo, they were just a few months old. During the warm season, as  I walked to my studio on our property, these chicks would always follow me to the door. I usually let them hang out in my studio while I paint. I just leave the door open, so that they could pop outside to eat foliage or sun bathe as they want. The left girl is Kiki, the Barred Rock hen, the center is Kara, the Ameraucana, and the right one is Nikki, the Rhode Island Red. This moment really depicts their unique personalities.

This painting will be available at the live auction of the Heart of the West: Bozeman show. Absentee bidding/online bidding available. See more info...

Listening

Oil on canvas, 18 x 24 inches -- $900 -- Available at Women Painters of Washington Gallery

This is another painting of seagulls from my visit on Vashon Island. I painted a small study of this painting a while ago, and finally decided to paint a larger version of it.

I was watching them closely, and realized that they are a couple, and they do pretty much everything together. I figured that they also talk a lot to each other. In this scene, the one on the right is listening to the one on the left. I wonder what they are talking about.

Taking Off

Oil on canvas, 24 x 18 in. $900 -- Available at Women Painters of Washington Gallery

This painting is based on photos I shot in Vashon, WA. I also used a plein air study from the same beach for the color palette. I like the dynamic movements of the seagulls, especially the left foot of the front bird making a last kick on the beach. My favorite part of this piece is the reflected lights under the birds from the sandy beach  with the warm tone, so I spent extra time getting it right. I also carefully added the last touch of the white foams in the wave, because this is what really suggests the environment.

Dipping Gull

Oil on canvas, 24 x 18 inches -- $900 (framed)

This is another scene from the off shore of Vashon Island, WA. The seagull was just jumping into the water. This is my second version of this composition in a larger scale. The fist version was 6x6. It was actually more fun to work on a large canvas with both brushes and palette knife. I like playing with texture.

Walking on the Beach

Oil on canvas, 24 x 18 inches -- $900 (framed)

I saw these seagulls on the beach in Vashon, WA. I could see they were really enjoying hanging out together. I spent a quite some time watching them, and shot this photo and more. I've painted this composition in 6x6 a while ago, but I really wanted to see how it would look on a bigger and rectangular canvas. There were layers of small waves behind them. But I decided to abstract the patterns, rather than copying the details. Instead, I created my own patterns with brush and palette knife marks. I wanted to make their beaks the focal point, as well as the small accents in the blue-gray scene. I like how the underpainting in transparent oxide red is showing through here and there, and echos with the pink legs of the birds.

Mother and Calf

Oil on canvas, 18 x 24 inches --

This is my latest painting. I actually painted over an old painting. It was a sort of major makeover. I reshaped the cows in the front, and painted over pretty much everything. I added more landscape, including the mountain range in the back. I also changed the color temperature to add more mood. This is a scene inspired by our local landscape and cows in the neighborhood. Below is the painting before a makeover.

Backyard Chickens

Oil on canvas 18 x 24 inches --

I worked over the painting I did before. After doing studies of chickens on small canvas panels, I felt more comfortable to work on the large one again. I mainly updated the colors of the chickens, softened the edges all over, enhances the faces, and added more texture to the foreground grass.

Backyard Chickens

 Oil on  canvas, 24 x 18 inches -- $900 (framed)

This is my new chicken painting I've just finished. I was drawn to the light on these chickens and background. I spent a lot of time creating this composition, maybe several days. Once I did underpainting, it took me just a whole day to finish it. I realized that I enjoy painting wet-on-wet in one setting.
This will be available at the Women Painters of Washington Gallery during the Fall Members Show (Sept - Nov).