Junk Yard Bus

I was out to lunch with some girl friends, and on the way home I saw this great bus to paint. I rushed home and got my camera and took this picture. It was a lot of fun to paint because there was so much stuff. Watercolor

Moment Of Prayer

This was such a wonderful temple. It was full of smoke from the incense. Lots of different size pots and tables for people to make a wish or pray to Budda. There were not very many tourists there which was nice. I took this picture of the smoke and the incense to capture the moment but when I looked at my pictures I really liked this women in it. We were in Cambodia at the time. Watercolor

Sunny Day In Italy

This was a great trip. I fell in love with Italy. The weather was perfect, around 70 degrees. I went on a painting trip with Steve and Janet Rogers. Everyday we had around 15 artists painting together. When you woke up in the morning and looked outside , off your balcony , you saw the lake with the Swiss mountains in the background . I would love to go back! Watercolor

Tibetan Door

My husband and I have been to Lhasa, Tibet twice. I loved the Himalayan Mountains but the altitude gave me terrible headaches. I will not go back so I will have to be happy with the pictures I took. This is a door not far from where the Dalai Lama used to live. The stones and steps are white washed. The door and surrounding area is wood. Most doors are painted many colors. This picture was fun to paint. The steps and stones I painted in white gesso which makes the surface slick. Watercolor and Gesso

Early Morning

What a fun morning this was! We had dropped my daughter off at school in Colorado, I was crying all the way to Oregon. My husband and I drove up the coast and stayed in this fishing village. We were up really early and heard this awful sound over by the water. The fisherman were cleaning fish and feeding the seals. So of course I took pictures. This photogrph was a conbination of three pictures. Watercolor

The Water Market

The first two times I was in Thailand our group did not want to go to the Market. I have always wanted to visit. There were lots of canals back in the day but as time went on they filled the canals up. Too many people for the area and it was a lot easier to sell your wares on land. One reason I like the area is it transports you back in time and this really gives you that feeling. I loved the umbrellas, not the heat. I took this picture on a bridge with the boats going under me. It was soooo wonderful! Watercolor

Sharing Lunch

" Sharing Lunch ", touches me like no other photograph I have ever taken. My husband and I were in China and from quite a distance I took this picture. The picture is a little fuzzy but I was able to paint this watercolor from it. Although the grandmother and grandson are Chinese , sharing a lunch from the same plate could be done anywhere in the world by a grandmother and grandson. It reminds me of all the lunches and picnics my brother and I shared with our grandparents.

Camel Festival In Puskar, India

This is only part of the picture. The right hand side of the picture is missing with the third camel. The men are the main theme so we will look at them. I loved this part of our trip in Puskar. The fair is only there for two weeks out of the year. It is the largest camel, horse, and cattle fair in the world. It was also like stepping back in time hundreds of years. One of the only reasons I travel. We stayed in tents in the desert, how much fun was that! No air and a bucket of hot water once a day to wash. Can't have everything. Watercolor

Thai Guy

This is my very first original watercolor. I took the picture in Thailand while I was taking classes making baskets out of bamboo. I used wax and very thin paper. I love this photograph and I have never again been able to get this close to someone picking rice and planting it. What a backbreaking job! Watercolor Batik on Rice Paper

A Sunny Day In Italy II

I sold a picture similar to this one and I felt a need to replace it. I really get attached to my art. I know I shouldn't but they are part of me and they spark a memory. I will sell my art! I need to say that about a thousand times and maybe it will work. It is exciting when someone other than friends and family buy one. This was taken in Italy with other artists I was traveling with. What a fun trip. Watercolor

Lummi With A Humpy

Rae and I were walking along the boats in Bellingham, Washington. I was taking pictures of the working fishing boats. A man called out and asked what we were doing and I told him. He asked if we would like a couple of salmon for dinner. We were both surprised and pleased. We followed him back to his boat and he held out two big fish for us. I laughed and asked him if he had a bag to put them in. He laughed and asked if I wanted him to clean the salmon too! I said sure! This is the picture of him cleaning our dinner. What a great day. He was a Lummi Indian and the salmon is called a Humpy. Watercolor

Deep In Thought

This women was deep in thought or she was ready to fall asleep. We were in Africa when this was taken. My son was about eleven . The men who were getting married were his age. He thought that was pretty cool. This was the only trip that my children can remember anything about. So much for taking kids on trips! This painting was done on Yupo Paper. It feels like plastic and takes awhile for it to dry. The Paint stays on the top and mixes with the paint around it so you never really know how it will dry. I find that really exciting! Watercolor on Gesso

Moroccan Cat Women

I came upon this older women feeding the cats when we were at a ruins in Morocco. She had a bowl out for money so I gave her a little. She let me take a few pictures of her and her cats. I took about 1500 pictures in the three weeks we were there and this is the first picture that I have painted. Why? I guess she tells a story that touches me. I also like cats! Watercolor

Gold Digger

I took this picture in Thailand. The girl shown in this picture was sifting through sand and finding flicks of gold. There were two other people helping her . One was digging sand and putting it into baskets. The third girl was dragging the baskets over to the girl in the water. They would do this all day out in the hot sun. Watercolor

Jewelry Of India's Women

Women from all over the world love jewelry. My husband and I were in India, in a remote town where there were no tourists. We saw this ankle bracelet and was interersted in it because a lot of the women had them on their ankles. The bartering went on and on. We left and walked around a little and decided to go back and buy the bracelet. It was an item that was truly part of a women's life in India. This lady had it on when we went back and I asked if I could take her picture. I did and after we left my husband said she was fixing her hair and the shaw she had on. I felt bad because I took pictures of her feet! This is a batik painting on rice paper with wax. Watercolor Batik on Rice Paper

Tibetan Yak Bells

This red door held a number of items that I find a challenge to paint-the red wood, metal of the bells, the yak hair, and rough cloth , all in one painting! This picture took awhile to paint but it also brought back many memories of my trip to Tibet. Watercolor

Contemplating Life

The Thai Monks sitting here enjoying their coffee could be in the United States at Starbucks. I thought the contrast between the modern plastic chairs and the two monks was wonderful. This picture was taken on a hot day in Thailand . Everyday in
Thailand is hot and we were there in January when they were having their winter. Watercolor

Waiting For Lunch

This picture was painted after ,"Gold Digger". They are matted the same and hung together as you go down to my steps to the lower level. This photo is missing another bird on the left. Not a good picture of this painting. The background was boring so I lifted a lot of it with a stencil and it took forever. I do like the outcome though. Watercolor

Retirement Is Good

My husband and three of his friends take a long motorcycle ride at least once a year. Here they are in the Tetons. Mike, the guy on the right took the picture. When I painted this, Mike was not in it. My husband wanted all the guys in the picture. Sooooo , I had to find a picture of Mike in his leather and place him where I thought he should be. It was a little tricky but he looks like he belongs. Watercolor