My latest painting

"Carpe Diem"

Usually when I do a painting it contains no "deeper" meaning.  I paint for the joy of painting and for the fun of using intense color.  On the other hand, this painting is full symbolism.  I did it for my grandson Michael.  He came up with the subject matter and the meaning of each item in the painting.  Here is his explanation of the meaning of the painting...."The Candle on the skull represents the time we have to live, The Flame is Life itself, The Skull, of course is the inevitability of death. The Books ( a Bible and a Journal) represent history and guidance,   The Pen and Ink represent the potential we have while we are alive."  I must admit I had lots of fun doing this painting as I did when I did the one for my Aunt which also had deep meaning.  They are both very different from my usual painting subjects which made them very interesting and exciting for me to create!

Mandevilla

Mandevilla
8X10

Leslie's photo of her mandevilla

I haven't posted for awhile because I went through a dry phase. I lost my motivation and went through a "painters block".  That was the bad news.  The good news is that I got some spring cleaning done during that time. I now have my "mojo" back and am painting again.

  The above painting is one I did for my daughter-in-law Leslie.  The frame is an antique that was built by her grandfather.  She wanted a painting of her Mandevilla plant.  She gave me a photo of it and mentioned the photo shows the flowers a deep pink while in reality they were more red.  I decided to do them with the lattice as it makes a nice background.   I am now working on a painting for my grandson Michael which is very interesting. I'll post a photo when it is done.  I also have scheduled an arts and craft show for mid April.  You will here more about that in the near future.

Paintings for my adult grandchildren

 As each of my grandchildren (I have 14) leave home and get a place of their own I do a painting for them. The  above painting was done for my grand-daughter Kara & her husband Rich.  They live in Michigan.

 This was done for grand-daughter Laura and her husband Patrick who live in Georgia.

 Here is grand-daughter Megan's painting.  She lives here in Tucson.

 This painting was done for grandson Jake and his wife Kim who live in Michigan

This is the painting I did for my oldest grand-daughter Stacy and her husband Dan who also live in Michigan.

I will start a painting for grandson Michael soon and will post it as soon as it is completed.

Tootie Fruity

I was looking over some of my older posts and realized how many of the paintings I have posted in the past are my desert scenes and saguaros.  The problem is that so  many of them are similar that they almost look like the same painting.  I wanted to let you know that I do paint other subject matter it is just that the southwest stuff is my biggest seller.  So.....I want to show some of my other work.  The paintings above are from my "Tootie Fruity " collection.  Hope you like seeing something different for a change!

Happy Valentine's Day

Endless Rose

I've posted this painting before but I thought it would be a nice way to send Valentine wishes to everyone.  Hope you enjoy seeing it again!

Chair with quilted seat

This project was a combined effort with my neighbors George and Gloria.  They are both accomplished, prize winning quilters.  Last year Gloria saw a painted chair with a quilted seat in a quilter's magazine and suggested we do one together.  I found the chair at our church rummage sale last March.  Gloria & George came up with the quilt design for the seat and finished it during the summer.  I finally had the time to do the painting.  I wanted to keep it simple to not detract from the beauty of the quilting.  I picked up part of the flower design for the back of the chair and did a simple border.  I think the painting compliments the quilting without overpowering it.  We will sell the chair and split any profit.  There is a quilt show here in our community next month and hopefully we will be able to show it there.

Something Different

Chameleon on Clay Pot
22X26

 Here is my newest painting.  It is based on the photo you see below.  This is a pot that belongs to friends who though I might want to use the idea for a painting.  It was something different so I thought it would be fun to do my own version of the chameleon and pot. I gave the chameleon a whimsical look and added the cactus to help fill the canvas.  I picked the frame first.  The one I chose is a large golden oak frame.  I decided to keep the color scheme simple using shades of brown and green.  They help to bring out the beautiful wood grain of the frame.  It doesn't have the impact of some of my more colorful paintings but I think the more subdued earth tones have their own value and will look good  in the right setting. 

I am tossing around some ideas for my next painting and also will be doing a chair that is a shared project with a neighbor.  She and her husband are quilters and they came up with a beautiful quilt pattern for the seat.  I will paint the chair frame and pick up some of the pattern and colors used in the seat. 

If you are interested in more information and prices of any of the paintings I have posted in this blog you can email me at rogpamd@msn.com