I’ve been painting this summer…with bold and colorful strokes of paint, much like Vincent van Gogh did many years ago. I am certainly happy when I have loads of paint on my hands, arms, apron…and yes, sometimes my hair! But it’s all worth it, when I can stand back and see a finished work of art.

First of all, sunflowers has been a favorite subject of mine for a long time. Even before painting them, I would photograph them every summer as they grow in my backyard. For this painting, called Summer Sunflowers, I used Vincent’s many sunflower paintings as inspiriation for my own still life painting. 

 When I look at landscapes now, I see them in a whole new way. Now I wonder to myself…how can I make them into paintings? I don’t just want to make a copy of what I see…I want to add my own flair to it…give it something just a little different. This painting, Three Trees, reminds me of a fairy tale illustration, where imagination takes over…where else but in a story book, can tree branches become clouds in the sky? You probably notice Vincent’s influence here too…in those thousands of tiny brush strokes that make up the fields in the foreground. 

 I cannot see a big yellow sun in the sky, without thinking of Vincent. He put them in quite of few of his landscape paintings. So, when I came across a scene I wanted to paint, with a bright sun above…well, let’s just say that the sun was the very first thing that I wanted to paint! Of course, I fell in love with the farm house too…oh, and the rows in the field too. This is my favorite painting I’ve done this year. It’s called A House For Vincent.

I’m happy to say, that these Vincent-inspired paintings are now available in my online shop, along with my unique collages, assemblages, and prints. If you haven’t been over there in a while…you’ll have fun perusing all the new things!

What’s been inspiring you this summer???