ohhh…remember the full moon during the first week of January?
Hoping to catch a peek at it, my husband, dog and I walked along the shore near Bodega Head. The weather was unusually dry and windless. The big gorgeous moon popped up over the dunes and the sky turned pink…reflected in the water. exceptional!
this one is for you sis!
Sheep in Pasture mixed media on canvas 30" x 30"
The first weekend of Art at the Source was great in spite of the weather on Saturday. It was so nice to see so many people out looking at (and buying) art… visitors to our Studio #45 also came to see me paint and Craig explain his process of custom woodworking.
Although I haven’t had 5 minutes to update my site here with new work, the image at the left is one of a series of new pieces with sheep…those darling lambs we see each winter and early spring around Sonoma, Marin and Mendocino Counties. This one has sold, but there are others in this series. Also I have some big new up-close images of barns…that I really love…in oil and some in mixed media, and the poppy paintings, plus the red jar paintings. So come see us this weekend and enjoy a fun and free outing on the coast. Studio #45 in Valley Ford, behind West County Design, 10 am – 5pm June 11-12!
Here is a close up of the rug that Peggy made using my images as a reference. And here are the original paintings..you can see that she did an amazing job of creating a new piece of art with wool no less!
“Three Barn Farm” Janet Moore copyright 2009
As long you get permission from the artist, I completely encourage this type of work… we all are inspired to create based on other peoples work..so why not extend that to other media? Peggy will not be selling this piece (I tried to buy it, so I know) but she will enter it into shows. And I bet she’ll win a prize because it is a great piece.
“Pasture, Shed and Fences “ Janet Moore copyright 2008
Imagine this! A very lovely woman came to my open studio last year and asked if she could use the image from my paintings for a rug that she was going to create. 
Well she contacted me again in February and brought in an adorable rug…the results were amazing. She not only used the image from one painting, but she combined 2 of my images to create something new. How creative!
For all of you who want to try acrylic paints for the first time…my January weekend workshop is just the ticket (January 22-23 10am – 3pm). I provide all the materials and you get a complete and thorough introduction to painting with professional grade paints. My specialty is using a simplified palette of transparent primary pigments plus white. You would be amazed at how your color mixing skills quickly grow using this method and your work will always have a continuity…all the colors you use are related to this small family.
Many oil painters want to move away from the toxicity of oils but are afraid that acrylics look too fake. Well, I might have agreed with that about 10 years ago (yes, I was a naysayer myself) but the technology has caught up with the hype and acrylic paints are now very high grade in terms of pigment, flow and open time (ability to stay wet long enough to blend). They are incredibly versatile in that you can thin them to use like watercolors or add media to make them thick and paint impasto like plein air oils…and everything in between. Plus clean up is a breeze; just use water. No nasty chemical smells or flammability issues with acrylic paints and this new generation of products has lost the look of plastic…most people cannot tell which of my paintings are acrylic or oil (its difficult for me to tell too sometimes.) Oh yes, since you asked, I use primarily GOLDEN products and find their quality and consistency to be exceptional.
Check out my site for a list of upcoming classes and workshops…you’ll be happy to spend your winter months painting and meeting other inspired artists!
All open studio painting sessions and workshops are held at the Sebastopol Center for the Arts www.sebarts.org
More than a dozen new paintings of mine will be shown at Earthtone’s lovely office in downtown Sebastopol beginning this Thursday November 18th. I’ll be there for the reception from 6-8pm. The show will hang for several weeks…so stop in and take a peak. Earthtone is a great local company known for their clean design and renovation of buildings and homes. The show has 2 large pieces (36″ x 36″) and several medium sized ones (20″ x 20″ ) plus a bunch of 8″ x 8″ pieces I did on location recently. All are oil on canvas. I’ll be posting all of them on my site during the next few days too.
Houses in September Sun
Freestone Barn & Silo
This Sunday November 14 my Bodega Bay studio will be open for visitors from 10am – 4pm. Stop by and take a look at my new work, have a cup of coffee and hang out. The weather on the coast can be gorgeous (like today) and the crab fleet is getting ready for their opener on the 15th…so there is excitement at Spud Point (just below my studio).
Also, on Thursday November 18th from 6am – 8pm there is a reception for a show I’ll have at Earthtone in Sebastopol. Located right in the plaza, directly across from Whole Foods, this company is well-know for their thoughtful design and careful renovation of homes and buildings. Since we both admire the clean lines of buildings, this is a nice match. Stop by and see. http:// www.earthtone.com
I ‘ve added several new paintings to my on-line gallery. Likely inspired by my trip to Michigan, I think I got my “denmark” back. More than 14 years ago I was inspired to start painting after a trip to Denmark and Sweden. The clarity of color spoke volumes to me…and this fall, I got it back. I am really pleased with the three pieces shown here…they feel so right. The line work in oil is such a natural progression from my previous watercolor with pen, then acrylic with charcoal work…kind of exciting for me. More will follow shortly.
Coastal Red Barn
Coastal Triplet Barns
Coastal White Barn
All these relate to barns in light reflected by water. The sea or in the case of Michigan, the large and plentiful lakes. Since I live on the coast, its high time I incorporated them into my paintings…you betcha!
Haven’t posted in a while since I have been traveling. First to Washington State and then to Michigan and Ohio. I have never been to Michigan before and must say…I was very impressed. My friends Jill & Charlie live just outside Ann Arbor in a charming village surrounded by corn fields, farms, and little lakes. It all reminded me of New England. We traveled north to visit Traverse City and see Lake Michigan…also incredibly beautiful. I took lots of pix and hope to paint some of the scenes I remember. Especially the barns. Here is one photo of a phenomenal barn near the big dunes on the eastern shore of Lake Michigan….how cool is this?
Michigan Barn
Hay Bales
Tonight is the big annual benefit auction for the Sebastopol Center for the Arts. It will be a fun party with many items to bid on…fine art, travel packages, wine, gift certificates for restaurants and shops, art classes and more. This is the painting that I am donating. I hope it brings in a good price for SCA since they are a wonderful resource for the entire northern California arts scene. Here are the details
21st Annual Benefit Auction Friday September 1- 7-10pm
6780 Depot Street Sebastopol tickets $25 at the door www.sebarts.org
