"Twisty Tree" 18" x 24" oil Rework of a plein air piece from last summer. My plein air paintings are loose & sketchy. I'm not a quick enough painter to capture a scene with tight detail on site. Often, I'll rework a plein air piece in my studio, tightening it up into something closer to my style.

"Hay There (Wet Haul on Market Street)" 11x14 oil on canvas It takes a lot of work to maintain the tourist paradise of Mackinac Island, Michigan. I'm sort of intrigued by the juxtaposition of "regular" folks doing regular jobs in such a fantastic place.

"Unnamed Falls" oil on 11x14 board. This is my 1st painting on a cradle board. I sanded the board, taped the sides, & triple primed it. It's a smooth but slightly toothy surface. After painting, I removed the tape to show pretty wood grained sides!

Coffee in a blizzard

I took these pictures last night at sunset. This is the beautifully illuminated tailings pile at the Tilden Iron Mine, from Republic, MI. This is the highest point in Michigan right now. At 2005 feet, it's slightly higher than Michigan's highest natural point, Mt Arvon- 1979 feet.

Spend Friday boycotting everything money related and climb into creative comfort while working on your submission for the BlueSkyArtShow then unleash the flood on SATURDAY, March 1st 🤩🥳 💙🩵🪻🌸🌼🌺🌻

A Lighthouse under dramatic skies in four seasons. Each canvas is 8-inch square. They look good together!

"Legendary Lilacs" 16x20 oil on canvas This is inspired by a picture I took of my wife and her Irish Wolfhound strutting among the Lilac bushes on Mackinac Island, Michigan #michiganart #mackinacisland #oilpainting #oiloncanvas

Moonlight through my leaded window.

Got a cool paint smudge today.😎

Chilly but refreshing walk along Lake Superior in Marquette, MI.

I've been working on these all year! 😉 I painted these simultaneously so they'd have the same colors & the same mood. I love the granite bluffs on the Lake Superior shoreline, especially ones topped with pillars of red pines. It's like being in a natural temple. Red Pines on Rocks I & II 16"x20"ea

I get less tolerant.

Got a phone call from a nearby town. Me: Hello? .......... Them: Hello? M:HELLO! T: can I speak to the business owner? M: where are you calling from? T: I am calling from business account depth. M: What CITY are you calling from? <click!> That's what I thought, b!tch.

What a perfectly typical "grandpa" thing to do! 😴

Queen Isabella in her tower. We just call her Bella. She has thumbs!

It grows… go.bsky.app/6HM3VgH

Ice encased breakwall on Lake Superior.

Oddly enough I found that Pinterest is a great way to keep track of artists' websites! ALSO ARTISTS - please have a place to find you that is NOT a Meta app or Twitter. Websites are evergreen places for you to have an online presence no matter what happens to social media!

The Marquette, MI area community is still mourning the passing of Beth Millner; jeweler, artist, business woman, mentor, arts advocate & good person. If you're thinking of suicide, please reach out to someone. The world will miss you. There's always hope if you're still breathing.

Y'all, one of my artist friends just died by suicide. She was creative, successful, sharing, productive, and seemed happy. She'd just returned from a rejuvenating sabbatical with new ideas and goals. Now she's gone & nobody saw it coming. If you feel down, depressed, please reach out to someone!

"Lake Effect Snow Swirling in the Hills" 11x14 oil on canvas I climbed Marquette, MI's Sugarloaf Mtn in a lake effect snow squall to get this scene. I almost froze to death.😉 I hope it feels cold!

Not even a nice try, Anton.

This person is a scammer - just one minute after following back I get a message offering me money if I let them use my art. Message Ive recieved off other sites. Reported, I hope they see this and now blocked. Beware #art #artists #artscam #scammers #block

I started these two paintings the other day with just three colors plus white. I live Red Pines! When they grow on a rocky hillside or hilltop, they wrap their roots tightly and twist themselves into bends of determination. I'm going to add color and finish these together. #oilpainting #hiking

Happy new year! I hope 2025 is successful for all, especially those of us in the arts business! Here's my first painting of 2025: Fayette Furnaces Fayette, MI is an old iron smelting town turned state park. It's made up of old homes and businesses from the town's heyday.

Four highlights from 2024

Just finished! "Reservoir Rocks" 11x14 oil on canvas #art #oilpainting #traditionalart

Merry Christmas!

#ArtAdventCalendar It's been fun! Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! "Narrow is the Path" 12"w x 24"h oil on canvas Ruins in Jemez Springs, New Mexico.

#ArtAdventCalendar Curious Calf Oil on canvas #traditionalart #oilpainting

#ArtAdventCalendar "Rock Hound" I had this painting (original version, 2nd pic) on display at an art fair this past summer. To my horror, 3 people asked if he was peeing in the lake. No! His hand is in his pocket because it's cold, or he's putting a rock in it. Irritated me. So I had to fix it.

One of my favorite art and language memes

#ArtAdventCalendar A little late today! "Deep Green Gorge" 11x14 oil on panel

#ArtAdventCalendar "The 3rd of July" 16x20 over-saturated fun. Sometimes a scene screams at me, and I try to scream back. Sometimes I forget that less is more. And I'm ok with that.

#ArtAdventCalendar "Gray Autumn Storm" 11x14 oil on canvas Just finished the other day.

#ArtAdventCalendar "Restless Lady Superior" She's not in the lake. She is the lake.

Saw someone upbraiding someone else for having a hobby while the world is on fire, and, my friends: 1. The world is ever on fire, this is today's conflagration; 2. If you don't find time for rest and joy the fire will consume you; 3. Don't let people shame you for being an entire human.

#ArtAdventCalendar "They say there be a dragon 'round here..." 18x24 oil on canvas

Day 17 #ArtAdventCalendar There & Back Again. This is my sterling silver #Hobbit hole, set in the side of a hill with a little round door and flowers in the garden. There is smoke coming from the chimney, the fire is on and there will be a warm welcome for second breakfast! #lotr #lordoftherings

#ArtAdventCalendar NSFW (I guess) And now for something completely different... "The Swing" Happy Monday!

I'm experimenting with tonalism, at least how I understand it. These two canvases are being developed nearly monochromatically, so I can get the tonal values right. I'll add some other color later.

#ArtAdventCalendar "Keep Moo-ving" A nosey cow watching as we drove by. The other cow says "relax, dude! Eat!" #art #oilpainting #traditionalart

#ArtAdventCalendar Leisurely Ride This is based on a pic I took on Mackinac Island, MI. The photo was neat, but the figures were too far away, and the composition on canvas was boring. So I created the horse and rider from imagination, memory, and other reference pics.

#ArtAdventCalendar Morning Rush Hour Nothing like a hike along a rushing river to de-stress!

#ArtAdventCalendar "Market Street, Making Deliveries" A typical day at Mackinac Island, MI. Behind the tourist attractions, the whitewashed bulidings, the fancy carriages, and the picturesque streets, the regular day to day activities still go on like any other town. Paradise takes work!

#ArtAdventCalendar "Mustard Colored Lichens" This is one of my very favorite paintings. I like the simplicity in color and composition. I love how the gold lichens pop off the dark rocks. The whole canvas is pretty neutral except for a few tasty spots. These rocks are about 2 billion years old!

Me with our Irish Wolfhoud puppy, Nolan. He's so damn cute!

A distinctly blustery winter morning in the local cemetery at sunrise. One of a pair of barn owls; they are creatures of habit & typically hunt from the fenceposts to conserve energy at this time of year. #ukwildlife #birds #owls #nature #wildlifephotography #photography