Autumn Hay Wagon

The word I was given for this month's WordSpark challenge was "Rectangular." The world is full of rectangular things... buildings, doors, windows, boxes, crackers, dollars, books... My mind kept returning to those rectangular hay bales that I grew up with. 

Now days it seems that most farmers have switched to the big round bales, but the hay bales of my memories are the small rectangular ones.

I learned to drive in a hay field... Didn't every kid? At least nearly every kid I knew did. When you were too little to hoist the 60 pound hay bale from the field into the truck bed an onto the stack, you got put behind the wheel.  You could sit on the very edge of the seat to reach the pedals. There wasn't much you could hurt if you got it wrong... Worst case scenario, you ran into a hay bale or got hollered at by your brother for going too slow or too fast. Who needed driver's ed when you had a hay field!

I combined the ideas from a couple paintings I did over a decade ago and used a palette knife to make an old-time autumn scene that felt charming to me. I wonder if the farmer put the little sister at the reigns of the hay wagon.

For the complement piece, I moved the scene up a few decades. Modernized the house, brought in a pick-up (Ours was a red GMC.), chopped down the big tree, and built a road.

I've been trying to draw more lately.  I rarely draw.  I'm good enough at it, but I'm trying to find some joy in doing it. (Was that more positive than just saying that I hate drawing.) I'm getting better.

I don't know that you'd automatically know that "Rectangular" must have been the prompt, but it will do. There are many rectangles in each piece. You can count them!

Also, my Weekly-ish challenge was "Wheels," so this painting did double duty!

Original Oil Painting on 9"x 12" Wrapped Canvas.

Click Autumn Hay Wagon if you'd like to purchase this painting.

Peek-a-Boo Kitty in the Pumpkins

Sometimes a painting holds deep meaning. 

Sometimes a painting represents emotion through symbolism.

Sometimes a painting shows an important memory.
Sometimes a painting is just fun.

Which category do you think this kitty in the pumpkins painting falls into? 

My Weekly-ish Painting Challenge was "Pumpkins."  It was fun to paint with colors that I don't often use.

Original Oil Painting on 9"x 12" Wrapped Canvas

[SOLD]

Autumn Still Life

I'm not sure I ever slowed down enough to really enjoy autumn for the first half century of my life.  The older I get, the more I love fall.  I've been noticing that  feeling in the air lately... the tinkling sounds from the wind chime on the back porch... leaves beginning to let go and flutter down... grass and woods a little less green... garden looking sad and needing to be put to bed for the winter... chickens molting to get ready for their cold weather feathers... a full freezer of the summer's harvest... sunset earlier and earlier...
I love autumn.

I painted this still life with one of my favorite human beings in the entire world.  How lucky I am to have Cheri for my art mentor / teacher / friend!

I haven't posted new paintings lately, but it's not because I haven't been painting!  One day each week this month, I've joined Cheri in her studio.  When the opportunity for painting lessons presented itself, I was not going to pass it up. Cheri inspires, helps me... and pushes me way out of my artistic comfort zone.

If you happen to be near Shawnee, Oklahoma, stop in to Inspire Studio and Art to see her beautiful work in person.

And, if you aren't near there, you an still see it here.

Original Oil Painting on 12"x 12" Wrapped Canvas
Click "Autumn Harvest" if you'd like to purchase this painting.

Bippity Boppity Pumpkin

 

Fall is in the air!

We went for a walk down our neighborhood road the other day... 

...and found that one of our neighbors had planted a whole section of his yard with pumpkins.  The whole yard was covered in gorgeous vines with big orange pumpkins tucked here and there.  

Right then and there Ron decided that we'd cover the hillside of our pond...

...with pumpkin vines next year.
Just on the other side of this rise is our little pond...

... where the deer drink each day.  But, the neighbor kid told me that the deer didn't bother their pumpkin patch.  His word is as good as Google, I suppose.  Next year, that hillside will be covered! 
I walked back today to take a picture of their patch.  It was gone, but...

... the kid said, "You can take pictures of our pumpkins if you want to!"  Yes!  I wanted to!
Things look pretty green still, but as I walked home, I really began to notice autumn showing up.
The air is crisp, and the leaves are just beginning to turn.

We have so many trees that turn beautiful golds and yellows.

Some turn red...

 ... like this dogwood.  It may have been this very limb that I painted a while ago... Only it was covered with big white blossoms then.

I love that we have all four seasons here; however, I need autumn to hold off just a little longer...

... so that the rest of my tomatoes can turn red!

In other fall news, those four baby chicks who hatched in August are nearly as big as their mama now.  I'm waiting for each of them to either crow or lay an egg.

And finally... our old faithful autumn friend is beginning to put on his annual golden show.  The hickory tree beside our deck...

... We love him so!

Acrylic Painting on 16"x 20" Wrapped Canvas
[SOLD]

Red Barn at Harvest Time

Who wouldn't want to go to a party here?

We could pick a pumpkin for the jack-o-lantern carving... There might be a wheelbarrow race down the path... Maybe there's a haunted house in the loft... And, I bet there's a tub of apples for bobbing inside...

Yeah, I know the barn's probably a little too red, the pumpkins are a little too orange, and the sky's just too yellow... But, I love it.  I want to go there!