Coneflower & Fritillary Butterfly

A pretty garden-in-July painting. Here is my purple coneflower in front of Annabelle Hydrangeas. I always hestitate to call it "Purple" Coneflower because it's pink. Still, that's the common name, the botanical name being Echinacea. Great Spangled Fritillary butterflies are ever present while the coneflower is blooming so I've painted one atop one of the flower heads.

Coral Pink Rose Watercolor Painting

This is a pretty rose. It has pale pink at the outer edges of the petals and pale yellow toward the center. There are many layers of petals to this rose and I made sure to paint them all!

Palms at Hamilton Harbor

The palms in this painting are monumental. I saw them in Bermuda in Hamilton Harbor on a green near the water. They make a splendid picture with their large fronds rustling in the breeze!
This painting is #48 of the Zeh Bermuda Collection.

Northern Cardinal

There are lots of these flashy red birds around my studio. We have a tall row of evergreens along the driveway where they like to nest each spring and summer. Conveniently, the bird feeder is nearby. I love hearing their songs and calls in the evening. Here is one at the birdbath. His bright red color is set off nicely by the hydrangeas in bloom behind him.

• This painting has been sold.

Great Blue Heron

Down by the shore at the art festival this past weekend, there is a salt marsh full of herons, egrets, gulls and other sea birds. Here I've painted a great blue heron emerging from the marsh grasses. He has the extra plumage of breeding season as you can see from the two plumes on the back of his head.

• This painting has been sold.

Bellflower

These flowers are so pretty blooming next to the yellow daylilies in my garden. If you like purple, this is a great painting for you. I like how the sun highlights the blooms in this piece.

• This painting has been sold.

Pink French Hydrangea

I saw this lovely hydrangea blooming in a garden near where the outdoor art festival was held this past weekend. It is sometimes called Big-leaved or Florist's Hydrangea. The art festival was near the shore which seems to have a different ph than I have here because mine don't bloom like that! I found it so pretty that I just had to paint a picture.

• This painting has been sold.
  

Bermuda Sunset

Imagine walking down a beach of coral pink sand, palm trees rustling in the evening breeze, the ocean making a shushing sound as the surf comes rhythmically in. The sky is just a blush of pink at the horizon. Your toes feel the wet sand beneath them, the water is pleasantly cool after a hot day. A quiet and peaceful scene.

Pink Peony Flower

After painting the white double peony, one would think I'd had enough of painting such intricate things for a while. But I must be a glutton for punishment as they say. In truth, this peony has been calling to me to paint it for some time. It is so lovely that it was a joy to paint. And being involved in the ins and outs of the many layers of petals, the time just flies by!

• This painting has been sold.

Ocean Breeze Bermuda Watercolor Painting

Here is a windy beach scene that I saw on a walk in Bermuda along the sandy shore. But it's a scene that you could find many places on the Atlantic coast. It's a bit impressionistic in order to capture the feeling of the trees swaying in the breeze.

This painting is # 46 of the Bermuda Collection.

Orange Daylilies

These are growing by my mailbox down by the road. They're the kind that will just naturalize in a sunny spot and grow wild.
I planted them some years ago, but this is the first year they are blooming en masse. Every other year, the deer munch them down before the buds open. But it must have been a good acorn year. When the acorns are plentiful, the deer remain deep in the woods. They have only just begun to come out of the woods, actually, not quite out of the woods, but close enough to be seen from my house. By this time, I've already sprayed the lilies many times with deer repellant, and that seems to be keeping them off. They are a glorious sight by the end of my driveway!

• This painting has been sold.

White Peony

Peonies are gorgeous, lush flowers. I remember my Polish grandmother had them in her flower garden. She did love flowers. I think I got it from her. This white peony was fun and challenging to paint. There are not only all the colors of the shadows, but the petals are intricate. Drawing the structure of the flower is a bit like wandering in a maze!

Louisiana Waterthrush

Despite its name, this tiny bird is not a thrush but a warbler. It is about the size of a chipping sparrow and when it comes to the very edge of the yard I can't tell from a distance which it is until I get the binoculars out. If those aren't handy, a clue is that this bird will not come out into the lawn like the chipping sparrow, but stays at the very edge of the woods. It is very similar to the Northern Waterthrush but has a white breast and eye stripe rather than buff-colored.
I suspect that when I don't see it, it is down by the stream as waterthrushes love stony wet areas to hunt for food. They WALK rather than hop which is interesting. Perhaps it's because they must pick their way carefully over the slippery rocks by the water.
Here, I've painted our Louisiana Waterthrush in its preferred environment by my ferny stream!

• This painting has been sold.

Monarch on a Butterfly Bush

I painted this monarch butterfly on a Butterfly Bush or Buddleia. If you like butterflies but don't have one of these shrubs in your garden, it's a good idea to get one. At least one! I have three. The one that is in full sun grows the largest. I cut it back to the ground in fall or spring and it will grow to seven feet tall by August. That's when the blossoms come out and the butterflies swarm to it!