"Mystic Crossing" 8" x 6" oil

A couple crossing the drawbridge in lovely Mystic Connecticut. I love the architecture, the bridge and the iconic red and white striped crossing gate on this spring day.  

See "Mystic Crossing" in the juried art & sculpture show at the North River Arts Festival in Marshfield Hills, MA this Memorial Day weekend.  I'll be painting out on the street with many other artists during the weekend of celebration... music, art, photography, artisans, and a giant book sale at the Clift Rodgers Free Library.  Hope to see you there.
Thanks for looking.

Mom, Maine and me - Pemaquid's rocks

Mom on Kresge Rocks 1995

 My Mom was a prolific, talented artist with a work ethic beyond compare. She was well-educated, graceful, funny, beautiful, industrious, retained information like no one  I have ever met.  Mom's passion for learning was evident her whole life.  She was wise.  Mom was my hero.   She passed away on an evening with a glorious sunset, (much like today's promises to be.)  

Mom and I both painted along Maine's coast, specifically on Pemaquid point at Kresge Rocks... decades apart.  I joined Mom in Maine for a late summer week every year, but I was a vacationing software engineer.  Life was busy, and I hadn't discovered the artist inside.  We'd read, and talk, and antique, and cook, and talk some more.  I would sit by her and read while she painted.  I cherish those memories.  When I did begin to paint, I assumed Mom and I would have years and years together to enjoy these magical places.  I was naive.  So... Mom and I have painted in the same places, but not together.  Her spirit surrounds me when I sit on the Maine rocks hearing the gulls, the waves and feeling the salt air.  Below are some watercolor sketches from Mom's sketch book.  She is standing on the same rocks above. And below is my painting from the same place a couple of years ago.  I love that she and I saw the same contours, the same rocks, the same striations.   I miss her every day but I feel connected across the years.

 Thanks for looking.

From Mom's sketch book - Kresge Rocks

Sun Kissed by Jody Regan - Kresge Rocks 2011

"White House" 6 x 6 oil

The theme for Girls Just Wanna Paint  in April was "white".  I debated setting up a white still life, painting boats, clouds, laundry....  or something or one named "White".  Each Tuesday I take my teen daughter to an evening college class, and spend my time in the nearby library grading my math students' tests and quizzes or lesson planning for the 3 hours.  This past week, I decided to paint.  As we drove to the college-class destination, I had her look up "white" in the vicinity of the college.  She found White Road, White Street, Grumpy White's Bar.. intriguing. I the end, I decided to do a little exploring after I dropped her off.  I found lovely neighborhoods I had never seen, and decided to plant myself next to an interesting intersection where this lovely bungalow sat across the street, caught in the late afternoon sun.  I painted from my car, amid the hubbub of the neighborhood, children on bikes, commuters walking home, joggers, walkers, mailboxes being opened, pizza delivery men coming and going... and I listened to NPR while I painted.  Great way to spend some time.  I love evenings in the spring.  Thanks for looking.

"Setting Out" oil 6 x 6

My latest in a series of working boat paintings. Sun, salt, sea.  I love the lines, angles, and power of these purposeful workhorses. Each of these boats is a minute dot on the ocean surface, and lobstering is a physical and dangerous occupation.  I have been closely cropping the boats to convey their mass, their strength, their volume.   These boats are beautiful. 

Spring is finally arriving here on the east coast and I am heading back to the water to paint.

As always, thanks for looking.

"Don't Walk" 6 x 6 oil Sun in the City

The March theme for my painting challenge group, Girls Just Wanna Paint, was "sunlight".  It has been dark, long winter here in New England.  We had our first blizzard in a few years.  Snow measured in feet rather than inches is doable.  After all, we live in Massachusetts.  However, this storm brought high winds that wreaked havoc on trees and power lines. We had a 4-day blackout (7 days for friends at the other end of town). We huddled around the wood stove, played games, read, listened to the oddly disquieting silence.  It was a winter for hunkering down, in a good way.  BUT, it was gray, and gray, and dark, and gray.  Ergo, the sunlight challenge.  I have a folder on my laptop named "Interesting".  (Really).  Sunlight was scarce this winter, so I poked through the Interesting folder and found some wonderful images of Newbury Street in Boston from a few years ago.  "Don't Walk" is my interpretation of one of them.  Newbury Street travels east/west and ends at Boston's Public Garden.  Later in the day, sun starts to recede behind the buildings, but still illuminates the Public Garden where the adjacent buildings are a block away, or a little lower.  I find my step quickening that time of day to catch the fleeting patch of sun.  Thanks for looking and please check out Girls Just Wanna Paint's take on "sunlight". 

"Distant Manana" and a spring show

I have written before of my fascination with Manana, across the harbor from Monhegan Island, ME.  "Distant Manana" is another view of the small, (mostly) uninhabited island, as seen from the rocks at Dead Man's Cove, a beautiful spot to spend a few hours.  An occasional hiker happens by, lots of gulls on a nearby rocky outcrop, waves, the ferries passing in and out.  
Last night, I had dinner with a couple of friends.  They described a day they spent together on the coast last summer.  The conversation bounced back and forth between them as they relived what they termed "the perfect day".  I listened, and responded, but a part of my brain was sitting in Dead Man's Cove having my own "perfect day".

"Distant Manana" is on view at the South Shore Natural Science Center  in Norwell, MA in the invitational show "Spring Stirrings".  The exhibit runs March 27 - April 30th.  If you're local, hope to see you at the opening reception on April 4th from 6 - 8pm.  As always, thanks for looking.

"Creative Freedom" is in the house!

In January, I blogged about Maggie Price's new book, "Creative Freedom".  She asked me to be a contributor to her book about breaking the artist's block.  Well, I'm thrilled to say, I now have a copy of the book in hand.  It is a compilation of 52 artists' thoughts on moving beyond the block, however that artistic obstacle manifests itself.

The artists are arranged alphabetically. Naturally, I looked at my pages first, and I can attest to the fact that the colors are true to my original work. (Thank you, Liz Haywood-Sullivan for your patience and photographic expertise.)

I contributed two ideas for breaking your artist's block.  One is painting 30-minute studies.  Everyone can find a half hour.  Each of the four paintings at left was completed in thirty minutes or less.  I used an old-fashioned egg timer, and laid the brush down when the bell rang - no cheating.  It was tough for the first painting, but no problem at all for the rest.  (Which was the first?)

My other idea is painting in an unfamiliar size; even a small move outside your comfort zone provides a freshness to the painting. "Birds of a Feather", shown left, is 8" x 12" - a slight deviation from standard sizes.

Once I left my pages, I explored  "Creative Freedom" as a whole.  There are wonderful demonstrations, ideas and paintings in a variety of media.  Beautiful book, beautifully designed, packed with terrific information. I'm proud to be a part of this endeavor.  And, I made the back cover!
 
"Creative Freedom" is published by North Light Books, and is widely available.  Thanks for looking.