Anatomy of a painting - Gifford Covered Bridge in Winter

I like to keep a record of how my paintings progress and occasionally share the. This is the photographic record of how my Gifford Covered Bridge In Winter progressed. It started with a photo from Vermont-Four-Seasons-Photography page on Facebook and went from there.
As you can see, my style is to block out things in black, let it dry and the paint over that, painting the entire background. The anything in front of that, I block out in black and paint over that. I'm trying for depth.

                                                                       final product

Start with the picture and go from there

from Marya Jan - 23 tips for making blogs conversational

Great post from Marya Jan from her writinghappiness blog giving us  23-top-tips-to-make-your-blog-posts-more-conversational. Blog writing can be a bore to our reader if it we don't make like we are having a conversation. If it gets lecture-like, your reader will make an early exit.
If my blog is going to be longish, what I do is I tell them to get a cup of tea or coffee and their favorite pastry and  get comfortable.

Lots of good tips here. I'll just write a few of them. Check out the rest

1. The most important word in blogging is “you”

Address you audience. Imagine you are sitting across the table from a really close friend, and write your post for them. 

3. Use contractions

6. Start your sentences with a conjunction

But that is not grammatically correct, you say. Well, this is one of those rules.

11. Avoid being formal

Instead of saying however, moreover, or furthermore, say but, so, or then. We are aiming for conversational here. Get a dialogue going.

Check out the rest. Make  reading fun and interesting and not

How a painting buyer framed my painting

It's nice to sell a painting, but its also nice to see how it's displayed after it leaves your hands and goes out into the world. I've also given some paintings as wedding gifts and have seen the results in my friends' homes. As previously posted, I sold my Babbs Covered Bridge in Winter painting to a couple from church, Rob and Suki Blumenstock.. They got it nicely framed and here is the result.

Alyson Stanfield - 3 questions for a better artist statement

Artist statements are an essential part of letting the world know who you are and what you want to convey. It's your resume. In the business world, there are all sorts of ideas as to what should and should not be in your resume. Same with the artist. This post in art biz blog by Alyson Stanfield gives 3 good ideas what should be in there. The basic points are:
1) What do you want people to see in your work
2) What is a distinguishing characteristic of your work
3) What do people find delightful or surprising about your work

I occasionally get a good feedback on #2. There is a family camp in the Adirondacks called Camp-of-the-Woods that my family has gone to for generations. I've done a few paintings of the camp and they hand in the 3rd floor stairway of the main building. Some friends who did not know this passed by, saw them and thought "these look like Jack's paintings". On inspection of the signature, they discovered they were. My painting have distinguishing characteristics that people recognize. How to put that into a statement is the challenge

New painting: Gifford Covered Bridge in Winter

Covered Bridges are one of my favorite things to paint, as I've said before. This is from a photo by Vermont Four Seasons Photography of the Gifford Covered Bridge in Vermont in the winter. I like to paint barns also, and this has both. I love the combination. You can purchase a mug or bag with this picture via Zazzle.

Bob Ross raps! Every day's a good day when you paint

I started painting because of Bob Ross. His technique may cause some sneering, but it has given a push of confidence to many people to start. Came across this digital remix of a number of Bob Ross-isms and creates a Bob Ross rap. I believe, I believe! Everyday day is a good day when you paint.

New Painting: Maine Lobster Dock

Another  painting in the fishing village genre. A dock somewhere in Maine, the home base for a lobster fisherman. 11x14 oil on canvas board.