California Hills

8 by 10 ” Acrylic on Ampersand. $50.00 This little painting was something I painted from my imagination because at times I miss the foothills which surrounds the San Joaquin valley where I grew up. My favorite landscape is a flat farm like valley surrounded by rolling hills and back a bit further, tall mountains. This painting doesn’t have the tall mountains but the rolling hills are very beautiful just the same. The hills just seemed to jut out of the valley floor as if pushed up by magic. I lived in a place called Centersville for several years and it looked very much like this. Outside my living room window I would see foothills and often beautiful horses or cows grazing on the flat valley ground which would be covered in green grass and wild flowers. Across the street I could see acres and acres of orange and avocado trees. The sun filtering thru wind swept clouds shining down on the crops growing in rows which followed the contours of the land. It looked like a painting waiting to be painted.

Sunset Mirage

Its a beautiful day here in SC the kind you wait for all year. Too bad I had to clean out my aquarium, house, pool and do books for most of the day. Maybe tomorrow I’ll go to the lake and let the dogs swim. It may be one of the last times this year for the dogs to swim in the lake. Once it gets cold only one of my dogs will even get into the water.

I planned a play date for them, isn’t it funny to actually have a play date for dogs? Well if you want to get a lot of work done its best to wear them out. It takes a lot to get them so tired they lay down for the rest of the day. Its one way to get things done without having too many winey complaints.

wild acres at Dusk

If this looks familiar its because this is almost the same painting as day before yesterday. This time I put a pink or magenta glaze over the painting to give it the appearance of early evening light.
8 by 10 acrylic on illustration Board. 75.00

Monet's tribute 10

Acrylic on gallery wrap canvas $300. This is another painting from the “Monet’s tribut” series… This piece is a bit larger than my other pieces in the series. I also used a different palette. I like it, it has a bit of gold mixed into the paint which gives it a special glow. This was painted with the new Golden Acrylics which look and work very much like oils. These new Open acrylics are great and if your considering trying them I encourage you to do so. The process is very much the same as regular acrylics but there is a special medium which extends the already long drying time. Also there is a thinner which you can use to actually remove the paint from the canvas. The real key is to never use water. Water only makes these acrylic paintings look dull. The mediums makes them glow.

wild acres

 

Just me

6 by 9 inches watercolor on paper 75.00
I love these colors

Reflective Lake

fall is approaching!

Grandmother's Visit

Watercolor on paper 22 by 30 $ 500.00 SOLD
I sold this painting today and thought I should at least post it because I realized the client is coming tomorrow to pick it up and I hadn’t even taken a photo yet. I really didn’t have time to take a decent photo and you can see that there is a big flash right in the middle of the sky. Oh well, you get the idea and this photo at least give me a record of the painting.
I used to paint light houses all the time because I used to get a lot of requests for them. Not so much any more. Now folks just like water paintings of the waves on the beach or breaking on the rocks. Its more of a mininamalist trend.

Shaun The Sheep | Still Life

This is all so true for any artist who paints outdoors. I mean it is a collaspable easel after all. Would that be the Mona sheepa?

Koi Pond at Dusk

22 by 11 $200.00 watercolor on paper

This looks great either this way or Horizontal...

pool party

This fun painting is an 8 by 8 inch watercolor on masonite.

Young boys portrait

I've been working on a portrait and if you would like to see an update there is a link below. It will be finished tomorrow and then I'll put up a final photo.

Butterfly Koi

Watercolor on Masonite 8 by 10. $75.00 Some folks call these fish ” fairy fish” or “Dragon fish” and “long fin Koi”. I watched this Butterfly Koi swimming back and forth under about a foot of water and I was desperatly trying to see if this little long fin fish would hold still. Not a chance, she was moving like Isadora Duncan, & her fins were flowing all around her like veils. She swirled in and out of the Lillypads. It was like watching an underwater dance all alone skimming thru the water and dancing for no one but for herself. They are beautiful fish and so different than the standard Koi. Some folks think their not Koi at all but a hybrid. I don’t really get involved in show Koi ( although they are beautiful) and I don’t care about the correct classifications of Koi, I just like them as I like my three rescue dogs, for the pleasure of watching them and having them be a part of my life.
I’ve owned several purebred dogs in the past but none ever gave me the love my three mutts have given me each and every day.
Also that reminds me of my Walmart fish.. I told this story a while back…who would have thought, its an ugly duckling story all over again.
It started to rain tonight and the weather seems a bit cooler. Its refreshing after a couple of very humid days.

Aceo "Asian Influence"

This little painting was painted in between my commissions. They are rather tedious so its nice just to paint for painting sake. I love the rich thick color of oil sometimes.

Watercolor will always be my favorite but sometimes its nice to just paint without too much forethought.

I'm painting a child's portrait right now and if you want to check it out go to http://h20color.wordpress.com

Country Dream

I painted this some time ago but I can't remember if I ever postd it. Its a watercolor (1/2 sheet)15 by 22 and is for sale for $300.00

I love the colors in this landscape and I like cows so of course I like this painting. Sometimes you just like sentimentality.

Under the influence

11 by 15 Watercolor and Carendach on WC paper $130.0
Busy busy busy… its been hectic this week and now they say a Hurricane is on its way, I had the rain gutters cleaned out and I can’t think of anything else to do to prepare. We are really very much in land from the coast and usually all we get is rain so I think everything will be OK. Last week with the last hurricane we got five inches of rain in about 15 hours… but everything went well and I think it will be OK this weekend too. Cross your fingers for me. We have been in a drought so this helps us so much, I just wish it didn't all come down at once.

Lady in pink

This watercolor sketch was painted in one hour with a live model. This is a good way to brush up on your skills. Your decision making skills are put to the test.

15 by 22 watercolor on paper

e bay Lily

I wanted to show everyone the yellow water lily I purchased from ebay earlier this year, it was pretty small when I purchased it, but It did bloom.

Thres Koi

This painting is a watercolor on gessoed WC paper.

6 by 9" 50.00

I was pretty busy this weekend and didn't have too much time for myself but I was able to paint this painting. If course its 11:00 pm but I did get it finished.

Lavender Skies

This little 3 by 5 card is $15.00 and is a bit out of focus... I'm sorry for the bad photo I'm a bit tired its a Watercolor on Paper.

I was pretty busy running around today and getting a new Refrigerator for our Condo's pool house. Whew! It's in and ready to go for labor day. Of course we will be bar- B-queuing and I thought it was needed to keep all the food cool since its been about 90 degrees. Our old refrigerator wasn't cooling the food and was running 24/7, so it had to go.

We had to take off the gate at the pool house because it was too big! AGHHH... as things would go, everything kinda went wrong, they were moving it and dropped it! It was a comedy of errors. When they dropped it I thought someone got hurt since the guy holding it on the hand truck tripped. He went flying off one way and the fridge went another. Oh well it now has a bump on one side. No worries, its going to be sitting outside all winter, in fact its best if it isn't too nice. Then when we opened it (it was used) it had old moldy food in it... Uggh!! So it took another two hours to clean it up. I'm glad that's over.

little red bud

7.5 by 5 $ 25.00 Its almost my birthday! one more day...

h2o a tribute to this beautiful earth

8 by 10 watercolor and Gesso on masonite. $ 75.00
I haven't been to the beach in several years and if given the opportunity I would go to the mountains before I would go to the beach, yet when I do travel to the coast, I'm always in awe of the mighty ocean.
Its been a long day and I think I'll hit the hay. This morning when I woke up there was a stuffed rabbit laying on the pillow next to my head. I know my dog, Glock left this present for me because he loves stuffed animals and makes sure I have at least one to sleep with.

Tiny Falls A painting a day

6 inches by 12 inches, watercolor on paper this is the right side of a two part companion piece...

Ocean Blue "A tribute to the Earth"

When I paint these oil paintings with a palette knife I always try to keep the colors clean while allowing them to blend. I thought to put in the sky some lavender right at the Horizon line, but didn't because I wanted to upload this photo and didn't make the changes because the paint was just a bit too wet and it would have looked stiff. 

These ACEOs are $15.00 plus $2.5 for shipping. Write  me....email...

shantmarie@aol.com for pay pal or credit card information.

 

Lake Wylie Lab

This photo is of me in my Pjs and my Dog Sam, he is about 11 years old but I love him to death.













I painted an ACEO today of the Ocean, its a bit shiny because I painted it in Oil so I'm waiting in hopes it gets less shiny. I'll post it as soon as possible.I like BIG dogs cause they are the perfect size for a hug.

Lake Wylie and the Dogs

This little cove I’ve named Dog Island because its where I take my dogs. After we get there, we all take a few moments to enjoy the peace and serenity that is the lake in the morning. Of course a squirrel or something gets Missy’s attention and all three labs follow her for a run thru the woods while I sit on the bank and watch the sunrise or an occasional fishermen in his bass boat. You have to walk across some pretty tough terrain to get there but as you can see its well worth it.

Don’t forget to save water… How about this? When you fill your tub for a bath, put the stopper in immediately and turn it to hot, then after it gets going adjust the temp. This will save the water you usually allow to run down

Koi Swirl ACEO

ACEO or Artist Collector Original or Edition …This is an original watercolor on gessoed masonite 2.5 by 3.5 $15.00 S& H is only $1.50This is a sweet way to start your own collection of Koi.These little paintings look great on an easel or in a frame. I have several in out of the way nooks and in places you wouldn’t think to hang a painting…Its like a little treasure hidden away only to be found by you. They are small but very delightful and fresh!

Frida, A butterfly Koi

This is a picture of Frida, can you see why I named her after Frida Kahlo?

She has one eyebrow just like the Artist! Also, she is rather beautiful!

Yellow Boy

8 by 8 watercolor on gessoed masonite. 75.00
I gave this guy a little more form by painting his underside a deeper gold, you can’t see it here but it makes him look a little less animated.
I hear a storm is headed our way “Fae” lets hope she doesn’t dump too much water on us. Two years ago we had a pretty good drenching and it flooded my bedroom, hallway and kitchen.
I’m having all the french drains checked tomorrow just to make sure they aren’t clogged. Other than that there isn’t much you can do but hope the winds don’t knock down any trees. I 'm planning to put out my rain barrel and some containers so the following week I’ll water my pots from them. At least I’ll get some free water!

Someone asked me about my fish, well….I know it’s crazy but I named all my fish after famous artists, I have Picasso, Vincent, Freda, Georgia, Mary & Claude. There are more but you get the idea.

Koi Friends

8 by 8 75.00 watercolor on gessoed Masonite.
I use my aquarium water to water my plants because it’s great fertilizer and my plants thrive. Koi are a great example of living within an eco system and being able to be a part of the system without ruining it. They live in the water and yes they dirty the water but as long as all the other things, plants, air, other fish are all in balance they will be able to contribute to the environment rather than take away from it. If only we could do the same.
One of my fish gave birth to about 30 little babies ( platties) and just the other day she did it again. Wow so many babies…. I need to find someone who wants to raise these little guys. At the very least, I’m going to have to separate the parents. Things always get fatter around me. My husband was a tall thin guy when I met him, My dogs were all strays and you could see every bone, now the vets says they could lose a few pounds. Two months ago I bought 10 little feeder goldfish for 12 cents each… now they are about 4 inches long… I didn’t think they would grow so big! They are so big they have outgrown the tank. I considered buying another aquarium but I can’t see spending $50.00 for $1.20 worth of fish. Thank goodness, I did find someone who wants them. Lets home they show up to take them home. People tell me to throw them in the lake and I can’t do that, not only would they be food for a Heron, you should never introduce a fish to a lake, they don’t belong and if they survive, it could hurt the delicate balance that exists.

Koi Solo, Tribute to the Earth

7.5 by 8 inches 72.50

Watercolor on gessoed masonite, this painting can be turned in several directions, and it still looks good. Thats the beauty of water…

Koi like to be with other koi, they tend to all hang out together and when one strikes off to swim over to the other side of the pond the rest just automatically go with the Koi who has decided to move. Often the largest fish will swim will lead the other fish or so it seems, the smaller fish follow the larger fish hoping to be under the large fish’s protection.

Usually there will be one or two Koi who are loners, these fish seem shy and like to hide under Lillie pads or behind plants. They swim out in the open but usually all alone. It makes me think of how there are always people who would rather be alone rather than swim along with the crowd.

Waterr Saving Tip: Use the minimum amount of water needed for a bath by closing the drain first and filling the tub only 1/3 full. Stopper tub before turning water. The initial burst of cold water can be warmed by adding hot water later.

This is the 768 Post for this blog… Its two years old and still going strong.

Surf and Sky

Watercolor on canvas panel 8 by 10 75.00

It seemed like a beach sort of day today and I thought I would paint some surf. I love all the colors you can see in water and especially water that's moving. I have always thought the color of water was pretty much the same everywhere you go but now I know this isn't true. The water on the east coast is much more green then the water on the west coast, and of course the water in the gulf of Mexico is much more Turquoise, Sure, the time of day and the season also makes a difference so an artist can never really capture all the subtleties in the colors of the sky and Ocean.

You could be painting a beach painting everyday for a year and never really paint everything you see.

Its funny because this painting makes me want to paint a waterfall, so check back ...maybe I'll paint a waterfall tomorrow.

Hey! Are you even trying to save water? How about this, buy a rain barrel. You can water your yard in between rains. If you don't want to spend the money for a rain barrel, put out a bucket or two, you can always water the plants on your porch.... every little bit helps.

Storm Clouds

I’ve been hoping it will rain, I ‘ve always like the rain and I think it because I lived in California for 42 years and it rarely rained. Seriously it rained maybe once a month in winter and almost never in Summer.
Its 1:00 am and I had to rush to get this painting on the daily painter’s page. The Deadline is Midnight but I’ve noticed it takes a while for all of the photos to get uploaded to the site so I think my painting will make it.

I went to Mc dowell Park today and the temperature was a bit lower then last week and the dogs (and I) just loved it. I don't know if this is true but one of my friends said someone she knows told her, he saw a pack of coyotes there last week. Oh great.... lets hope the guy is near sited and it was just a pack of dogs. Once my husband was on a deer stand and he saw what he thought was a coyote but being a dog lover he couldn't shoot it cause it looked to much like a dog.

Camp Thunder bird in Winter

This is the way Lake Wylie looks on several days each year. A gentle reminder of cooler days to come.

Doesn't the snow look like powered sugar?

15 by 22 watercolor on paper. A nostalgia snow painting in the middle of summer.

Tulip Time again

The one on the top is a watercolor on paper 4 by 12 inches $25.00
Before I started this month’s theme I was working on a series of red tulips, you may look back and see four I painted…. I don’t really have them out of my system so here are a couple of more tulips I painted this week the other one, is 7 by 7.5" watercolor on paper for only$45.00

Also …a painting tip… the dark background in Tall Tulip.. is pathalo blue and indigo painted with a 1 inch flat brush in a random cross hatching manner and sprayed with water before it had time to dry. Also,I don't usually mix my colors on the palette, I mix them on the paper.

9 by 7 watercolor on paper $50.00
I’ve been wanting it to rain because we are in a pretty bad drought and the trees really need it. I was on my usual walk around Mc Dowell park and many of the trees are losing their leaves already and some have gone brown or yellow. The creek near the handicapped trail is almost dry and it looks worse than last year. I don’t want a torrential rain, but a nice slow rain would be nice… I guess I’ll put my order in… never know unless you ask.
Mushrooms always pop up after a rain and its fun to get out and see whats growing in the woods.
Water Saving Tip : Repair dripping faucets by replacing washers. If your faucet is dripping at the rate of one drop per second, you can expect to waste 2,700 gallons per year which will add to the cost of water and sewer utilities, or strain your septic system.

Beautiful Earth 09

Watercolor and gesso on Illustration board. Painted with a pallet knife 9 by 15″ $125.00
Water saving Tip: The faucets in your bathroom sinks generally use about 2.5 gallons of water per minute (gpm). By turning off the water when you brush your teeth, you can save approximately 3 gallons of water! Filling the basin to rinse your razor when you shave can save about 4 gallons.

Beautiful Earth 08.08.08

This abstract painting a day is 11 by 15 " and is a painting in mixed media on gessoed watercolor paper $200.00..
The gesso gives it a bit of texture.
I think it fits today's date and this months theme. If you really look you can get the feeling of water drops.


Wow, it feels great to actually have my painting uploaded and on line before midnight. I've been burning the candle at both ends lately and I may actually get some sleep tonight!

725th post... Beautiful Earth 07 by Shanti Marie

Watercolor on Gessoed masonite.... 8 by 10 $75.00
There is a bit of glare on this photo but I'll try to re-post in the morning because the photos are much better without a flash.
If you've ever looked at the moon hanging over the lake on a warm summer evening, you'll know that the colors are muted yet beautiful. You would think it would be quiet but the air is filled with the sounds of cicadas and tree frogs. Its very beautiful and yet very mysterious.
When I was in Camerton I noticed some of the waterways there were choked full of water weed, like blanket weed and Hydrilla, and that made me think of all the folks who unknowingly place plants in the lakes or ponds thinking it will be good for the lake. Its never a good idea to introduce a plant ( or even an animal ) to an area if it isn't native. These plants mess up the delicate balance and many times take over an entire eco system, disrupting the balance of plants and even animals. Usually changing that area for lifetimes to come. Often that area will never be able to return to its natural state.
When your tired of that cute little turtle or fish... don't release it into the waterways, even well meaning folks release alligators, fish or plants into marshes or waterways, thinking it won't hurt. They even think the unwanted pet is getting a great gift of freedom. These Alligators could grow very large in a lake without predators, easily dining on waterfowl and worse, small pets!

Beautiful Earth 06

4 inches by 4 inches, watercolor on ampersand ( aquaboard) $45.00
This painting is similar to my tribute to Monet series I did last month and I’m sure I haven’t finished this series as it’s one of my favorite to paint. Also: it fits the theme for the month of August… Water.
It difficult to emphasize the importance of water and more specifically clean water. If we could all do our part by being more aware of how many things we deal with on a regular basis that can seriously damage the fragile Eco systems in and around our water ways. Most of the time it all comes down to the correct disposal of all types of household cleaners and often used chemicals. Fluids like motor oil, anti freeze or household paint really should not go down the gutter or drain, yet I see folks do this everyday. Paint thinners, varnishes, and fuels are often thrown onto the ground rather than sent to special recycle centers . People over spray insecticides in and around their home not thinking about how these chemicals hurt lizards, frogs or small mammals. I watch folks spraying insecticides all around bird feeders and bird baths not thinking they are actually hurting the birds they are attracting and these insecticides eventually end up into the ground water. Take an extra moment next time you have to use any of these items to please be aware of how they are used and where they may end up. Of course last but not least… make sure to dispose of them properly.

Beautiful Earth 05

Today I went to Cramerton ( about 9 miles from my home) with 25 or so local artists and we painted standing in the grass along a winding river. The scene was a small bend in the river with ducks and submerged logs. Really very nice, but of course It was about 96 degrees and that was at 5:30 pm... It didn't take long for the sun to start to set and the temp to drop, good thing too cause I was melting. Painting plein aire is always a little tricky and today wasn't an exception. The warm air kept drying out my paper so the first plan to have a nice wet into wet water scene kinda died as the paper was drying faster than I could paint. Then again the oil painters had lots of bugs in their paint so I can't complain...On to plan B and I decided to do some exaggerated color and see how that would look.

Here is my buddy Marth who was painting to my right and Martha's boys who were very happy to have found a fishing line with a hook and a worm all ready to go.

Some of the other artists

my painting

Beatiful Earth 04

I had to do some prep work today and I gessoed a number of surfaces. Paper of course was on of them. I painted this small colorful painting because I had an urge to do some abstract yet realistic. So I split the difference.

day 02 tribute to this beautiful earth

"Lake Wylie Evening Song" is a watercolor on canvas panel 8" by 10" $75.00

I like these colors together and I find the sunsets here in South Carolina can be very intense. 

The lake is always beautiful but at sunset they can be magic.  These wonderful bright skies only lasts for brief moments and you dare not look away because the light and color is fleeting.

Day 01 of tribute to the earth

This is the painting I finished last night but couldn’t post because it was too shiny, it’s painted in oil on gessoed canvas. size 11 by 14 inches with a 1/2 inch canvas wrap with sides painted.
$125.00

Since its the first day of our daily painters project celebrating the beauty of the earth and our need to conserve our natural resources, I decided to go with the theme of water. What’s more appropriate than to paint the sea for the first painting of this project. The majority of the earth’s surface is covered in water and so much life lives in and near the sea. Last night I wanted to paint this calm ocean scene to illustrate the beauty that we are so privileged to enjoy. Let's try to leave it as beautiful as we find it!