More Thoughts on What I Love to Paint

This blog thing is hard!!! Life happens and then you realize it has been a week since your last posting.

We now know I am not and never will be an equestrian artist. And although I have painted foxes, thats not my true calling.

I am often in Washington DC at the National Gallery of Art and I am always exhilarated by the city hustle and bustle, the sounds and smells and in general, the exact opposite of where I choose to live. But, for me to paint cityscapes would be a real mistake. I am and always will be a country girl. Dirt under my nails, quiet country noises of the birds and crickets, and rural vistas are what define me. I am so motivated by a dilapidated barn or a vineyard vista. The Blue Ridge Mountains are visible from my front porch and I can pick my own vegetables each year from my back yard garden. Oh, did I mention that I canned 40 quarts of tomatoes the year before?

No, I am not a painter of Urban sprawl or city scenes. Neither am I a plein air painter, although I do it from time to time. But, I am indeed a landscape artist in much the same manner as Parrish, Church and Cole were landscape artists. I love the landscape and am often outdoors. I have hiked a few trails, done my share of camping and white water rafting. Indeed, I do love the landscape and landscape painting, but only from the warmth of the studio, field notes and glass of Merlot in hand. You don't have to pick flies out of your paint that way.