Good day in the studio. Here's a detail from one of the new paintings I'm working on.

#workinprogress
#abstractlandscape
#contemporarylandscapepainting

Exploring Toulouse France

The Sainte Valière sky tonight is marvelous

Late afternoon walk in Sainte Valière

OMG, the skies!
#artistresidency #sainteValière

Took a short bike ride to a neighboring village for lunch.

My life is all about food and art right now. It's a lovely combination. Pic 1 is the amazing tart we had for dessert. Pic 2 is the charming young man who comes around on Wednesdays with fresh fruit and veggies from his garden.

@hotelsaintevaliere
#artistresidency

For those of you who were curious, this is the contents of my studio backpack- watercolors, acrylic paint, palette knives, palettes, paint containers, sketching kit, paper, brushes, and some misc stuff.

#artistresidency

Getting settled in at Hôtel Sainte Valière. This is a corner of the studio, and the view out the windows.

##artistresidency

Our last afternoon in Montpellier, after several gorgeous days...

The studio is packed and ready to head out for the residency. 13.5 lbs!

We leave tomorrow.

#artistresidence #hotelsaintevalerie

The intense pink of the sky is made hotter by the orange that seems to burn through. Is this a sunset enhanced by some unfortunate man-made event? We are standing on solid ground, in an ordinary scene. But the further we look, the more the world turns into a dream.

#contemporarylandscapepainting

Still loosening up those sketch muscles. Trying to approach a sketch the way I might jazz improvisation. Creating studies drawing from some watercolor artists whose abstract approach I find interesting to see if I want to incorporate these kinds of marks into my process.

#watercolorsketch

Another small work I'll be taking with me for a show during my artist residency.
Title: "Dance with Me." The palm tree is vibrant, formed by abstract areas of pooling paint. It is equally a palm tree, an explosion and a flower.

#goldenfluidacrylics
#contemporarylandscapepainting

Another one of my small works painted in the last several months. "Parliament of Sparrows" The houses perch like sparrows on a wire and seem to lean on each other, conferring, or perhaps trying to keep their balance in an unfriendly environment.
#contemporarylandscapepainting

I've been working on a series of small paintings. This one is titled - "American Dream (Pink)". The intense colors create a slightly hallucinogenic Alice-in-Wonderland feel. The American dream slowly melts into a pile of peppermint frosting.

#goldenfluidacrylics
#contemporarylandscapepainting

Just found out that my fellow residents for the artist residency are: a sculptor/painter, a chef, a writer working on a novel, a "community art maker", a photographer/painter, a lighting designer / sculptor, a musician, and a print maker.

What a group!!

This is part of my prep for the French immersion side of my artist residency. I've been brushing up my French for at least five hours a week for the past several months. Vive la France! AI audio translation has been helpful, although it occasionally leads to histerically funny or obscene results. 😆

Had such a good time at the artists' reception for "Weight of Place" @anyatishgallery . Great to meet the other artists Megan Harrison and Marisol Valencia

Photos by @rjwarren.bsky.social

#contemporaryarthouston
#artistreception

Loose watercolor sketching. Always ready to mess around and try something new. This idea might be something I put in my toolkit.

#studioprocess
#watercolor

Finally, cool enough for yoga outdoors.It's only ninety degrees

😮Oh my gosh! Exactly 3 weeks till I leave for the residency in southern France. Exciting, but I'm not ready!

#artistresidency

Back in the studio!

#studioprocess #watercolorsketch

I spent time in Rocky Mountain National Park today. Pictures absolutely can't do justice

Visiting a friend who lives in the Colorado front range. The light is amazing.

Fabulous show at the Menil Drawing Institute, "What Drawing Can Be, Four Responses." None of the work is adequately captured in photographs. Constantin Luser's work, in particular, is a delight for the eye and the mind. The show is up through August 10. Don't miss it

I encourage you to visit the exhibition Love Languages at the MFAH Kinder building. There's a lot of interesting work focused on personal and collective relationships. This piece by Henry Taylor caught my eye

Noticed that my studio cleaning rag looks like abstract flowers. Kind of fun.

#studioprocess

Another painting that will be in "The Weight of Place" @anyatishgallery opening this Friday. An urban landscape oddly emptied of people and cars, dominated by an expressive sky.

#contemporarylandscapepaintings
#contemporaryurbanlandscape

Love the color interactions!
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