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“Spring Tulips” Oil 6x6 $108 © Sharon Lewis
It’s that beautiful time of year with the promise of new life everywhere. The birds are singing glorious new songs, the trees are blooming, the hours of light are increasing, and my “baby” is expecting her baby any day now. I love spring!
Happy Easter, Happy Passover, and Happy Weekend!
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“A Night Out” 10 x 10 Oil $200 © Sharon Lewis
I started this painting years ago in a painting class taught by the talented artist, Karen Appleton. I apparently made a very rough start, filed it away under other photos and paintings, and then got busy again with my day job. Unfortunately, my reference photo was terrible so I did my best to research what a gold purse would look like if spotlighted. Even given the challenges, this was a lot of fun to paint.
Happy Weekend!
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“Fleeting” 4 x 6 Oil $70 © Sharon Lewis
This past week I was able to get away to the beach and had a wonderful time walking and running on the beach as well as trying to capture the beautiful sky and sea. It was a beautiful respite from the news.
Happy Weekend!
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| “Going Sledding” 8 x 10 Pastel $160 © Sharon Lewis Click Here to Buy |
This painting is loosely based on a photo of a snowfall several years ago in the Atlanta area. Given that snow is not that common here in the south, we react differently from my northern family and friends. We get out and enjoy the snow since everything shuts down at once. Everyone, including adults, grabs something that remotely resembles a sled (garbage can lids, trays, cardboard), finds a hill (plentiful here in the foothills of the Appalachians), and goes sledding.
Happy Weekend!
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“Last Impression” 7 x 5 Pastel $105 © Sharon Lewis
Last summer I was fortunate to stay at a lovely rental house on the coast of Maine. The house had beautiful views of the ocean from the deck and Reid State Park nearby. Reid State Park was essentially two beaches enabling long walks with gorgeous sea, sand, and skies everywhere you looked. I really didn’t want to leave this place.
This was the very last painting I did. I needed to pack up all my art supplies which was going to take a while so I didn’t have much time. The view down these rocks was partially obscured by shrubbery but with the magic of art, I whisked that away and painted the glimpses I could see. It was a little more impressionistic than my usual paintings but it was one of my favorite ones of the trip.
Happy Weekend!
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“Lean on Me” 8 x 10 Oil $160 © Sharon Lewis
With all the grey, rainy weather lately, it’s a relief to be working on something colorful. Pears are fun to paint for their rounded shapes and their diverse colors. I love also how they can lean on one another helping each to stand steady, much like good friends. This week and every week, I am so grateful for the support of my friends. When things get scary, I know I can lean on them to help me stand steady.
A round of applause for good friends and Happy Weekend! 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
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“Dunes Walk” 8 x 10 Oil $160 © Sharon Lewis
I’ve always been attracted to the play of light and shadow on the landscape. However, when we stopped at this National Recreation area, I thought I wouldn’t be able to find anything worth photographing, given how intense the sunlight was. Then I saw these dark shadows falling across a path, contrasting with the bright sand giving me my inspiration for this painting.
Happy Weekend!
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“Summer in the Mountains” 6 x 8 Oil $144 © Sharon Lewis
It was a beautiful summer night when I was lucky enough to have this view. The sun was setting beyond the mountains and flinging beautiful colors up into the sky. The clouds starting drifting lower until they started to hide the tops of the mountains. The air was rapidly cooling as the colors grew more intense and then gradually faded away.
Happy Weekend!
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| “Pink Mums” 14 x 11 Pastel $260 © Sharon Lewis Click Here to Purchase |
I find that if I want to continue to grow as an artist, it’s a good idea to take a class or workshop from time to time. It’s not that easy to try another artist’s method when I’m used to my own, but I’ve discovered that I often end up adopting at least one idea or technique from the array presented, I often gain a different perspective or learn an alternative approach to painting, and I always meet some wonderful kindred souls in these classes. I started this painting in a class taught by Margaret Dyer, an amazing figure painter. Happy Weekend! |
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| “Delightful Diversity” 8 x 10 Oil $200 © Sharon Lewis Click Here to Buy |
When I decided to paint this scene, I didn’t really stop to consider the difficulty of painting so many different shades of green. However, once I began painting, I just got into painting all the beautiful textures and forms of the trees and plants in this park. Although each plant is green it differs subtly from some of the plants around them. This reminds me of how delightfully different we all are and yet, in the end, we are all humans, worthy of kindness, respect, and compassion. I admire the people of Minneapolis who are going out of their way to help their neighbors. They are demonstrating through their sacrifices, what it means to love your neighbor as yourself.
Have a safe and Happy Weekend!
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| “Finding the Light” 14 x 11 Pastel $300 © Sharon Lewis Click Here to Buy |
I ran across an older social media post where I referenced Amanda Gorman’s poem, The Hill We Climb, and thinking of those in Minneapolis, I want to share these words:
We will rise from the golden hills of the West.
We will rise from the windswept Northeast where our forefathers first realized revolution.
We will rise from the lake-rimmed cities of the Midwestern states.
We will rise from the sun-baked South…
We will rebuild, reconcile, and recover.
And every known nook of our nation and every corner called our country, our people diverse and beautiful, will emerge battered and beautiful.
When day comes, we step out of the shade aflame and unafraid.
The new dawn blooms as we free it.
For there is always light, if only we’re brave enough to see it.
If only we’re brave enough to be it.
I have great admiration for all the people out in the bitter, Minnesotan cold, helping their immigrant neighbors.
Happy Weekend!
“Warm Colors in the Cold” 4 x 6 Oil $70 © Sharon Lewis
I’ve been thinking a lot about good teachers lately. I’ve been lucky to have had good teachers in both my Psychology and my art careers. The teachers that stand out in my art career as being exceptional have been of course, excellent artists themselves but they have also been kind, especially when giving critical feedback (criticism is so important when you’re starting out but it can also be demoralizing). They’ve also been: generous (with both helpful information and praise), patient (as you continue to make that same mistake that they pointed out last time), good problem solvers (as they help you out of the mess you may have created), and passionate about art. I think of Karen Margulis when it comes to teaching pastel painting. She is one of the most dedicated and talented artist-teachers I know. I also think of Karen Appleton who no longer teaches oil painting but is an exceptional artist. I love her creativity, her kindness, and her compassion. I learned so much from these outstanding artists.
The painting above is based on a modification of a still life that Karen Appleton set up for a class several years ago.
Happy Weekend!
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“Loving Pink” 10 x 10 Oil $ 225 © Sharon Lewis
With these grey days and the news getting increasingly scary and heartbreaking, I find myself trying to focus on something beautiful. When I go grocery shopping (a chore I hate for some reason), I treat myself to some flowers. I tell myself that I’m investing in a painting subject (which is true in this case) but sometimes, I just need to a reminder of the wonderful fragrance and colors of nature.
Happy Weekend!
