A Successful Tour! Thank You!

Thanks to so many who came to see my art on Saturday. It was wonderful to talk art, and it amazed me how much people knew and cared about. 

I have been asked to show again at Mud Dauber Pottery in Earlysville, VA and am working on getting into another show at a downtown gallery.

Your support is priceless and irreplaceable. Thank you.

The following pieces have found new homes:

Buck Mountain Vineyard No. 2

Earlysville General Store No. 3

Ceramic Horse Head

Ceramic Giraffe

East Fall Blue Ridge No. 3

Pear Portrait

Buck Mountain Vineyard No. 1

Settin' On The Pier: Key West

"Earlysville General Store" on Arts Rivanna Tour

"Earlysville General Store No. 3" Oil on board, 8 X 10"

Driving by this classic old service station daily, I'm reminded of the era it was built and all the people who've passed through that door. It's still in service today and at lunchtime is jammed with contractors looking for deli sandwiches and a fill up. 

This work along with many others will be available Saturday, Sept. 13 on the Arts Rivanna Tour, Earlysville, VA. Would love to meet you there.

"East Fall Blue Ridge Gliding" on Tour

East Fall Blue Ridge Gliding

Can't get enough of the Blue Ridge mountains, especially in the fall. The Earlysville, VA area is in the foothills, not far from Skyline Drive. 

This 8 X 10" oil painting will be available for sale on the Arts Rivanna Tour this Saturday, Sept. 13 and Sept. 20. Additional information available here:

https://www.facebook.com/artsrivannatour
Hope to meet you there.

"Buck Mountain Vineyard No. 2", oil, Twomey

Buck Mountain Vineyard No.1

This original oil painting, "Buck Mountain Vineyard No.2" will be available for sale on September 13th and 20th at the Arts Rivanna Tour, in and around Earlysville, VA. It is 6 X 6", and is framed in a beautiful handmade frame.

I was driving down Buck Mountain Rd., about 2 miles from where I live, and came around a curve to this unforgettable site. There wasn't much room for painting, but I got it done and can't help revisiting the moment every time I paint it. Vineyards are popping up all over here, and they bring endless painting possibilities.

The tour will be Saturday, September 13th & 20th, beginning at 10:00 am. If you're needing directions to the Arts Rivanna Tour, see the following. I'll be located at the studio in the middle, off of Advance Mills Road near Fray Road. Hope to meet you then!

Earlysville General Country Store, ©2014, C. Twomey, oil on linen

Almost dry! Earlysville General Country Store as you head south down Buck Mountain Road, Earlysville, Va.

Available original oil painting on linen board, at the upcoming Arts Rivanna Tour, Sept. 13th & Sept. 20th.

Arts Rivanna Tour - Please Join Us!

Bleak House Barn No.6, 4x6", oil on linen board

I'm taking part in an upcoming studio tour, so hope you can join us!:

A R T S  R I V A N N A  T O U R : 
September 13th & 20th, 2014; 10 am - 5 pm

Contact: Judith Townsend
434-978-7937
judy@judithktownsend.com

Start the Tour here: 3023 Colonial Drive, Earlysville 22936
Take 29 North; turn right on Route 649 (Proffit Rd.);
go one-half mile; turn right on Colonial Dr. 
to 3023 Colonial Drive, Earlysville

"East Fall Blue Ridge 2" Auction Ending Soon!

"East Fall Blue Ridge 2" Twomey Painting Auction

The Dailypaintworks Auction for the following painting ends soon! Take a moment to bid on this original oil painting:

East Fall Blue Ridge 2

I perched along Skyline Drive in Shenandoah National Park looking to the west, towards theShenandoah Valley. Had my paints, easel and an outrageously gorgeous day to capture the fall colors. I loved the layers of mountains dissipating in the distance. And the colors! The blues next to the oranges - irresistible. This took longer than expected, I think because I didn't want the day to end.

Original oil, 6 X 4" on archival linen board, unframed.

This is how the painting would look, framed:

"East Fall Blue Ridge 2" Twomey Painting Auction

The Dailypaintworks Auction for the following painting begins Saturday, March 22. Thank you for your interest.

East Fall Blue Ridge 2

I perched along Skyline Drive in Shenandoah National Park looking to the west, towards the Shenandoah Valley. Had my paints, easel and an outrageously gorgeous day to capture the fall colors. I loved the layers of mountains dissipating in the distance. And the colors! The blues next to the oranges - irresistible. This took longer than expected, I think because I didn't want the day to end.

Original oil, 6 X 4" on archival linen board, unframed.

This is how the painting would look, framed:

Award Winning Original Art Auction Ends TODAY!

"Advance Mills Hay Bales 1" Auction Ending Today.

Visit the auction on Ebay: Original oil landscape titled

"Advance Mills Hay Bales 1"

Advance Mills Hay Bales 1

Advance Mills was an old mill town about two miles from my home. The road, Advance Mills, is one of my favorites - twisty, turny, on a ridge - the views along it are so spectacular you really have to focus to stay on it. We looked at buying some of this land, so I spent a lot of time walking it and loved catching it at sunset. You can see why. I had to work fast. The woods behind were already dripped in shadow, with sky holes poking thru. What a glorious day.

Original 6 X 8" oil on archival linen board, unframed.

This is how the painting would look framed:

Advance Mills Hay Bales 1

My artwork has been featured at the world renowned TED (Technology, Education and Design) conference (TED MED in San Diego). I recently won the nationally acclaimed ArtInPlace competition in Virginia which placed a 12' X 24' mural on aluminum of my work, now seen by thousands of commuters daily. Two museums currently house my art: The William H. Benton Museum in Connecticut, and The LLoyd Museum. It was a great honor to be asked to exhibit and I continue to add to their collections. Speaking of collections, my work is a part of hundreds of private collections worldwide.Fine art influencers include Georgia O'Keefe, da Vinci, Rembrandt and Degas. I look to their struggles and triumphs, and their unflinching persistence. 

"Advance Mills Hay Bales 1" Auction Ending Soon

Ending in about nine (9) hours: Visit the auction on Ebay: Original oil landscape titled "Advance Mills Hay Bales 1"

Advance Mills Hay Bales 1

Advance Mills was an old mill town about two miles from my home. The road, Advance Mills, is one of my favorites - twisty, turny, on a ridge - the views along it are so spectacular you really have to focus to stay on it. We looked at buying some of this land, so I spent a lot of time walking it and loved catching it at sunset. You can see why. I had to work fast. The woods behind were already dripped in shadow, with sky holes poking thru. What a glorious day.

Original 6 X 8" oil on archival linen board, unframed.

This is how the painting would look framed:

Advance Mills Hay Bales 1

My artwork has been featured at the world renowned TED (Technology, Education and Design) conference (TED MED in San Diego). I recently won the nationally acclaimed ArtInPlace competition in Virginia which placed a 12' X 24' mural on aluminum of my work, now seen by thousands of commuters daily. Two museums currently house my art: The William H. Benton Museum in Connecticut, and The LLoyd Museum. It was a great honor to be asked to exhibit and I continue to add to their collections. Speaking of collections, my work is a part of hundreds of private collections worldwide.Fine art influencers include Georgia O'Keefe, da Vinci, Rembrandt and Degas. I look to their struggles and triumphs, and their unflinching persistence. 

Ebay Auction: Advance Mills Hay Bales 1

Now at auction on Ebay: Original oil landscape titled "Advance Mills Hay Bales 1"

This is how the painting would look framed:

Advance Mills Hay Bales 1

Advance Mills was an old mill town about two miles from my home. The road, Advance Mills, is one of my favorites - twisty, turny, on a ridge - the views along it are so spectacular you really have to focus to stay on it. We looked at buying some of this land, so I spent a lot of time walking it and loved catching it at sunset. You can see why. I had to work fast. The woods behind were already dripped in shadow, with sky holes poking thru. What a glorious day.

My artwork has been featured at the world renowned TED (Technology, Education and Design) conference (TED MED in San Diego). I recently won the nationally acclaimed ArtInPlace competition in Virginia which placed a 12' X 24' mural on aluminum of my work, now seen by thousands of commuters daily. Two museums currently house my art: The William H. Benton Museum in Connecticut, andThe LLoyd Museum. It was a great honor to be asked to exhibit and I continue to add to their collections. Speaking of collections, my work is a part of hundreds of private collections worldwide.Fine art influencers include Georgia O'Keefe, da Vinci, Rembrandt and Degas. I look to their struggles and triumphs, and their unflinching persistence. 

Advance Mills Hay Bales 1: Auction!!!

Advance Mills Hay Bales

Auction listed at: http://www.dailypaintworks.com/buy/auction/200537

Advance Mills was an old mill town about two miles from my home. The road, Advance Mills, is one of my favorites - twisty, turny, on a ridge - the views along it are so spectacular you really have to focus to stay on it. 

We looked at buying some of this land, so I spent a lot of time walking it and loved catching it at sunset. You can see why. I had to work fast, as that shadow in the background rapidly crept over the sun spots. The woods behind were already dripped in shadow, with sky holes poking thru. What a glorious day.

This original oil on archival linen board is 6" X 8" and is unframed.

The painting would look like this if framed:

Rural Landscape With Plantation Barn 1 Auction

Bleak House Plantation Barn 1 Auction listed at htt1http://www.dailypaintworks.com/buy/auction/198951

The first in a barn series at the Bleak House Plantation in Earlysville, VA, in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. At this nitial painting stage, I'm there to understand the correct structure, lighting and "mood" of the building. This barn has it all. It's imposing, to be sure, and as the sun was slowly heading down, the barn's history ebbed forth. 

I'm often at heightened state of, well - anxiety - at this stage. There is only so much time to get things painted correctly, and especially settle on the shadow's shapes. If you can imagine, what's calming are the barn sparrows and doves quietly having a conversation while an intruder (that would be me!) makes strange stroking motions on an easel and board.

This barn was built in the 1700's, when slaves worked the plantation's wheat, tobacco, corn and livestock.A dream-like glow seems to infuse the barn, much like the way I view the plantation.

This original oil on archival linen board is 7" X 5", and is unframed.

This painting would look like this if framed:

Red Barn Star

The painting below was just added to my gallery at Daily Paintworks.

Red Star Barn

As a new member, I'm beginning to build my gallery there and have added this image to it. In addition, I'm offering auctions of original fine art, two of which are live now:

Bleak House Plantation Barn 3

Sedona Day's End

Hope you have a moment to visit and bid!

Rural Landscape With Plantation Barn Auction

Bleak House Plantation Barn 3

Auction listed at http://www.dailypaintworks.com/buy/auction/197172

This gorgeous, symmetrical barn is just down Buck Mountain Road in Earlysville, Virginia, in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. It was irresistible, it had to be painted; and what I like about this oil is how free the brushstrokes became. The structure became a dreamlike symbol of it's history, and it's history is deep.

The Bleak House Plantation was built in the 1700's and covered hundreds of acres planted in corn, tobacco, wheat and other crops.

This original oil on archival linen board is 7" X 5", and is unframed.

This painting would look like this if framed:

Bleak House Plantation Barn 3, Sample Frame

5 Ways To Identify A Painting For YOUR Taste

There are so many choices of painting styles - when you're in the market, it helps to quickly narrow down what appeals to your individual taste....(continued below)

Bleak House Barn III

Working on a series of the Bleak House Plantation Barn located in Earlysville, VA. What I'm liking very much about this painting is that I'm loosening up. A dream like, luscious quality is infusing the structure - a quality I very much feel when I'm looking at this venerable barn.

This original is available for sale as a 5 X 7" oil on archival linen board. Framed in a gorgeous custom gold and black floating canvas frame. 

Helpful purchasing guidelines:

1. What's your budget? You can purchase original pieces of art - art that will increase in value - for less than $500.

2. When looking at art samples, what draws your eye first? This includes identifying that eye-grabbing trait: A color or colors? Subject matter, pattern, abstraction? The stroke (or lack of) of the artist's hand?

3. What size? This seems obvious, but are you open to whatever appeals? Or are you trying to fill a big space over the sofa? 

4. Will the artist's work appreciate in value? If this is important to you, take the time to look at their awards, their statement about their work, their Biography. These will tell you if they're in it for a quick fling or have the staying power needed to increase the value of their art.

5. Are you buying from your heart? If so, that magical quality that drew you in is likely to capture others as well. Successful collectors bring their hearts, their instincts AND their minds to the table when making an art-purchasing decision. 

How to Paint An Emotional Icon

Bleak House Barn 2 I have to have a reason to paint. There is so much local history here in the foothills of the Blue Ridge that's it's tough to focus on just one thing. A focus on the barn at Bleak House Plantation tempers an impending sense of overwhelmed-ness that comes with so many choices.

Having just seen Twelve Years A Slave, that's what I'm thinking of as I read about the history of this plantation. I'm revisiting this barn series at the Bleak House Plantation in Earlysville, VA. Built in the1700's when slaves worked the plantation's wheat, tobacco, corn and livestock. 

I wandered around on a hot spring day, capturing many opinions of what this barn meant to the surrounding landscape. It was silent but for the birds in the country, yet I could hear the voices of past inhabitants and the earth gave up hints of previous homes and outbuildings. Google search was an enormous help in finding obscure references to the slaves that worked here, their names, position, ages, value, etc. 

This particular viewpoint is the third in the series. I simplified the structure, concentrating more on the light and shadow colors and shapes. Emotionally I wanted something beautiful but imposing, as this barn was a symbol of prosperity and enslaved toil. 

This original is available for sale as a 5 X 7" oil on archival linen board. Framed in a gorgeous custom gold and black floating canvas frame. 

Huckstep's Store Oil Painting

Original 5" X 7" Oil on linen board, C. Twomey

Working on a new series, starting with the iconic Huckstep's Garage and Store in Free Union, VA. Just to get there is a pleasure. I head west along Buck Mountain Road, which is on a high ridge overlooking the Blue Ridge Mountains on either side. Rolling farmland, critters in the fields, the sun baking the grape vines - all of this leads to the charming and somewhat dissolving village of Free Union.

Having worked on computers since 1978 (Apple II), I've worked a lot with the Filter Gallery. I realize that it is influencing and helping to infuse my paintings with light that I control - light that can suggest a nostalgia, a dreaminess unlike anything else. This exploration is how I arrived at this view of Huckstep's - real, but not quite; a play on emotions and longing for the way things were.

Huckstep's Garage Redux And Beyond

Just finished this latest rendition of Huckstep's Garage in Free Union, VA. This was commissioned by the person whose father actually made the "Huckstep's Garage" sign on the right. This iconic set of buildings just sold, and I'm hoping beyond hope they won't be razed, but rehabbed instead.

This almost brings to an end a large number of commissions I've been working on since October. There's a sea change coming as well. Meaning, I'm feeling an overwhelming need to paint in a vastly new way.

Representational is good. But of late, however, it's not been enough. Having "done" representational and accurate forever, I need to dig deeper and see what's there. There's this unavoidable need to move beyond and into a previously untapped expressiveness. That, I think, will be the next step, and as per usual, I'm gung ho to get going. Look out! No promises being made, but a deluge of energy pouring forth.

Red Horse Barn Snow Storm Virginia

Red Horse Barn Snow Storm Virginia

The recent spring snow storm brought great destruction and with great beauty. This lean-to barn is in my back yard. It only looked this way for a couple of hours until the heavy wet snow began to melt, but it was stunning until then.