"Pear Pressure"

6 x 6 oil on canvas panel SOLD

The other day I posted "Peer Pressure" featuring
3 apples crowding a pear. Today the bullying
continues with the pears taking their turn at
pressuring the apple.

"Orange Wedges"

8 x 10 oil on canvas SOLD

"Lake Morning"

©2010 Gwen Bell
16 X 24 oil on canvas SOLD

I rarely do landscapes but liked the mirror image
of this scene. Early mornings on the lake are so
incredibly peaceful. No sound except for the birds
and the occasional fish jumping in the water.

My family is fortunate to own a house on 2 acres right
on the lake (Lake Tawakoni in East Texas). It is an old
farm house that my Grandfather built in the 1920's. My
Aunt and Uncle moved the house from Dallas in the 1960's.
The house was cut in half and hauled on 2 huge trailers
in the middle of the night. It was a haven for us as kids
then, and in turn, for my boys.

My sons inherited the house when my Aunt and Uncle
passed. We now spend many fun times taking care of the
place, hiking, looking at the stars and enjoying morning
coffee to a scene very much like the above painting.

"Peer Pressure"

6 x 6 oil on canvas
SOLD

Those fruit bowl bullies can be so cruel. This
incident caused quite a bit of bruising!

Susan Carlin Workshop - phase I

8 x 10 oil study on canvas

Susan Carlin is one of my favorite Portrait Artists
and a dear blog friend. She had an online workshop this
past weekend! She is such a wonderful teacher with
so many great tips about drawing, painting, values...and
so much more. It was such a treat to see her approach
and learn from this very talented Artist!

I'm pleased with my start. Although the paint is not thick
enough and I haven't worked on the eyes, nose or mouth,
I think I managed to find the values. Susan critiques all of
the students paintings (16 of us!). We will continue to work
on them during the week and regroup for a final critique
this weekend.

Update: Horror of horrors! I worked it to the point that
he was unrecognizable and wiped it! I'm so disheartened.
Susan was kind enough to critique this "Phase I" image and
encouraged me to try again. Going to give it another go
although I must admit that I'm afraid this one was a fluke.

"Mocha Egg"

6 x 6 oil on canvas panel SOLD

Tried to think of something that would make an
interesting reflection and decided upon this egg.
Once I had the set-up arranged I realized the shell
was the exact same Mocha color as my coffee. Love
it when little surprises like that happen in a painting!

"China Cup & Apple"

6 x 6 oil on canvas SOLD

Here is a China Cup of my Mom's that I have always
wanted to paint. It is very plain except for the one
bit of ornate pattern inside. I've always liked that
element...a bit of surprise when the cup is full and
the flower barely shows. The matching saucer is also
plain except for the flower in the center where the
cup sits. Very elegant. I sat the solid black cup in the
back just to get some interesting reflections and balance
out the composition.

"Dog Days"

24 x 12 oil on canvas SOLD

This is a commission for a friend. All four of these
dogs have so much personality. This was the basic
pose but I went through tons of photos trying to
capture all of their unique expressions. I've grown
very fond of them in the past few months!

By popular demand, here is some info I received on
the pack. Starting from left to right:

Sergio is a 3 yr old Victorian Olde English Bulldogge
and the dog aggressive leader of the pack.
His nickname is Kujo!

Willow is a trouble maker with a Capital T.
She is a 2 year old French Bulldog

Bella is also a beautiful 2 year old French Bulldog
who was rescued from a Puppy Mill. She had a
rough life and looks and acts older than her age.
She had 3 litters before she was rescued by this
loving family who treats her like the little Princess
she is.

Maggie is a 2 year old Jug - half Pug/half Jack Russel.
She is a "very good girl" and I'm sure she has a lot of
personality with that mix!