Deep Pink Azaleas

Deep rich pink, almost red, azalea blossoms glowing in the morning sun.

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Peach Ruffled Daylily

This is such a delicate and lovely color for a daylily. I love the ruffled edges which make it all the more festive. Not all my daylilies are blooming just yet, but the early ones are, and buds are forming on the others. It won't be long before the garden is full of yellow, orange, coral and pink colors!

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Varied Thrush & Mountain Laurel

The Varied Thrush: a fascinating bird with an eerie song which inhabits the dark coniferous forests of the Pacific Northwest. Similar to an American Robin in size and feeding habits, it is quite different in its song and reclusive manner. How did this bird end up in New England for me to paint? I don't have a definite answer, but from what I understand, it does sometimes appear outside its range, when food is scarce. However, that occurs usually in winter, so to see it here in breeding season is something special.

The other evening, I heard its song - an eerie raspy whistle on one note that resonates through the forest.

I painted this woodland bird sitting amongst Mountain Laurel which is blooming in abundance in the forests surrounding my home at this time of year.

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Country Sunset

This is a typical scene in my area - rolling hills, streams and small farms dotting the landscape between acres of forest land. In fact, this is part of a small farm just down the road. Note the stone walls used for centuries to keep the cows in the fields. Stone is an abundant crop in New England. Just try digging a garden here and you'll see!
Here the sun sets as all becomes quiet. The birds are singing their last songs of the day. Crickets are chirping and the stream gurgles quietly along its stony bed.

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Bermuda Waterfront Cottage

This is a typical house in Bermuda that you might see along the water: white ridged roof to collect rainwater, the sun shining warmly on the pale yellow stucco siding, the boathouse by the water. Looking at this scene can make you feel like you're on vacation - somewhere in paradise!
This painting is #42 of the Zeh Bermuda Collection.

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India Peacock Watercolor Painting

This gorgeous peacock was strutting around at the Bermuda Zoo sweeping the outdoor tile floor with his tail feathers. He was quite nonchalant about having his picture taken, and I've been staring at that picture for some time now. Finally, I just couldn't resist the urge to paint his beautiful colors!

This painting is #41 of the Bermuda Collection

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Sunflowers watercolor painting

Stately Sunflowers against a backdrop of hills and a pale pink sunset.

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White Cyclamen

I bought a pot of Cyclamen at Christmas time and they bloomed for quite a while then died back. Now, they are blooming again, their delicate white flowers gracing my kitchen windowsill. They like a cool area and to be watered by taking up water from under the pot. The hardy types make good rock garden plants as they only grow a few inches tall and enjoy some shade. I've seen these pretty flowers in pink or red shades as well as white.
I've painted them here with their white petals lit from behind by the morning sun.

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Cedar Waxwings

Only a month or so ago, a customer at one of the art festivals I did asked if I'd ever painted Cedar Waxwings. Well, I had never seen one that I remembered so I asked her about them. She said she's seen them in this area for only a few days to a week once every year in the spring. Sometimes they arrive in a large flock. I'd remembered my dad saying that he'd seen a flock of birds that sounded similar one day in his magnolia tree.
Well a few weeks ago, this pair of birds landed in my crabapple tree and stayed there for about an hour. Of course, my camera was put to good use. I'd never seen such birds and hurried to my Roger Tory Peterson bird book. And what do you know, they were Cedar Waxwings! The yellow band on the end of the tail was a dead giveaway along with the black mask on the eyes.
These birds like fruit trees. I imagine they frequent orchards, but on this one day this pair thought my crabapple was just fine! Here I've painted them in dappled sunlight just as they were when they enjoyed my garden.

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Chickadee & Weigela Blossoms

This little chickadee has just landed on a blossoming weigela in my garden. I love his alert pose and eyes. He and his mate have a nest full of babies to feed and his days are full!

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Bermuda South Shore Painting

This painting is #40 of the Zeh Bermuda Collection.

Here you see what is so typical along the South Shore of Bermuda: a coral outcrop close to shore. In the foreground along the clifftops grow Spanish Bayonets, a sharp-tipped plant. I love the sun sparkling on the water in this painting.

"Watch yourselves," Bermuda Sister warned. "You don't want to brush against those!" She called them Spanish Bayonets, and upon looking at them closely, my middle sister and I could see where they got their name. Each leaf shard ends in a very sharp point.
We were hiking along the cliff tops above Bermuda's South Shore, magnificent views dazzling the eye at every turn. Bermuda Sister had warned us to wear sneakers. The paths are deeply sandy and steep. Waist-high vegetation bordered the narrow, twisting and climbing pathways. At some points, the path would cut through a narrow passageway between two coral outcrops.
Bermuda's bedrock is coral. They say there is only six inches of topsoil over the coral throughout the island. It's amazing how lush an island can be with only six inches of soil! The beautiful clear turquoise color of the ocean around the island is attributed to the coral reefs which prevent plankton from washing in past them to shore and the fact that there are no rivers to bring silt into the water. I can still see the bright sun on the water, the cool breeze and the splendid views along our hikes above Bermuda's South Shore.

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Dogwood Blossoms Watercolor Painting

When the spring sun shines brightly on white Dogwood Blossoms, they seem lit by a heavenly light. I am fortunate to have a large dogwood at the edge of my yard. It was growing wild when the property was cleared for the house. As it is native, the only maintenance it needs is to trim back the pine tree growing behind it to give it headroom. So every so often, I send one of my boys up the pine with a saw to trim off a branch or two.
Look closely and you'll see a honey bee filling up on nectar and pollen from one of the blossoms.

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Purple Lilacs

Lilacs are just gorgeous in my opinion. We get a long season of them here starting with pink double lilacs which bloom first and ending with Miss Kim which are blooming now. These are the much loved common purple lilacs, the ones which bloom in May always around Mother's Day.

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Bermuda Harbor

This painting is #39 of the Zeh Bermuda Collection

A typical and well-known scene in Bermuda. When I saw it, I exclaimed, "Oh, what a pretty scene." Bermuda Sister looked at me quizzically. I guess she didn't see what I did. But when I took the picture I had in mind and showed it to her, she said, "Oh, that is nice. You have a good eye." I hope so. Otherwise, I wouldn't be in this business very long!

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Red Hibiscus

This painting is # 38 of the Zeh Bermuda Collection

This is a stunning red flower I found blooming away with other red and yellow Hibiscus in an abandoned field in Bermuda.

Here's an update on the Robin's nest in case you're wondering. For those of you who are new to my posts, I woke one morning a few weeks ago to a number of rustling noises in the large lilac bush outside my upstairs bedroom window. When I looked out, I found a robin weaving a nest almost hidden, but if I looked sideways through the screen, I could see her. Despite my continued interest in the happenings in the lilac, the robin seems undisturbed. Maybe the screen offers enough protection. I wouldn't dare remove it in order to see better.
For the last week, every time I've looked, I've seen her sitting on that nest. I began to wonder if she ever left, although she has to eat! This evening when I checked, she was gone, and as my eyes adjusted in the dwindling light, I could make out four turquoise-blue eggs. She didn't stay away long. When I checked back several minutes later, there she was, back on that nest. She is incredibly patient waiting for those little babies to hatch!

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Sunset Seascape

There is a certain quiet drama about a blazing sunset over a body of water as large as the ocean. I imagine the effect may be similar over one of the Great Lakes. This painting reminds me of salty air and the crash and shush of waves rushing in to shore, the feel of cool sand between the toes, and the peace of evening just before the sun disappears beneath the horizon.

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White Azalea Blossoms

How can it be June already? The red Rhododendron is starting to fade as are the first pink azaleas. Now, the white azaleas make their appearance in my garden.
I love painting white flowers. Believe it or not, there is a lot of color in white especially in the sunlight. The color is in the shadows. It's delightful to take turqoise and rose and pale yellow paints and let them run together in the shadows of a white petal to see what happens. It makes a stunning effect - a white flower full of glorious color!

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Rose Red Azalea Blossoms

I painted these azaleas in early morning light while the dew is still on the petals.

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