Sometimes I like to switch up from using bright primary colors to something different. Everything I paint depends on my mood. After visiting the Southwest, earthy browns and turquoises were embedded in my mind.
“Rising Phoenix in the Desert” – acrylic on canvas board
When I was a kid I was fascinated with 3-D art – holograms and 3-D viewers were my two favorite things to stare at for hours. Incorporating texture into some of my paintings gives a somewhat 3-D effect.
This is the first of a series of three sunset paintings.
“Sunset I” – acrylic on canvas board
Detail of “Sunset I”
Detail of “Sunset I”
I was taking an abstract painting class in the Florida Keys when I painted this. I don’t quite recall what the assignment was, but I believe it had to do with creating a landscape. I had no intention behind it when I started to paint, but this is how it ended up. Can you see the little people?
“The Little People” – acrylic on canvas
Detail of “The Little People”
I’m sure most people will question why I named this “Gator Country.” Going with the flow of sunset colors, my husband pointed out that it had a lot of blue and orange, his two favorite colors together (note: not mine 
). He was excited and thought I was painting this for him.
If you’re familiar with college football, you have probably heard of the Florida Gators (University of Florida) football team. This is my husband’s team, and I am not a fan. I attended Florida State University, which is UF’s rival. We are a house divided when it comes to college football, so this painting became a gift to him.
“Gator Country” – acrylic on canvas
As I’ve said before, I love using bright colors in my abstract work. Many times when I’m painting in abstract, I have no plan attached to it. It’s a “go with the flow” thing for me. It is after I feel the painting is complete that I can see what has subconsciously come from my soul. Many people have seen a parrot in this piece. I saw a heart shape with many colors. At the time I painted this I was living in the Florida Keys and had just met my husband. So I named this “Mending Heart in Parrotdise.”
“Mending Heart in Parrotdise” – acrylic on canvas
This was an abstract piece after which I painted thought it appeared to be looking down from an operating room table.
“Operation”
Tomoka State Park on the East Coast of Florida is a great place for nature lovers. This was an ordinary photo I took, and then made it into a digital painting with bright colors.
“Purple Haze Over Tomoka”
Naming my work can be just as much of a challenge as it is to paint them. Sometimes putting names to abstract pieces helps others understand what the piece is about. This is one I named “Approaching the Island,” perhaps from a sky view.
“Approaching the Island” abstract painting
Every holiday season I make my own gifts. A few years ago I started making shower scrub for friends and family to see how they liked it. Some came back begging for more. The following year I decided to use glass paint on jars to make them decorative enough to give as gifts, and I filled them with scented shower scrub. (They can also be used as tealight candle holders.) Some were given away and others were sold.
Painting on glass was something I’d never attempted, and quite honestly, I was discouraged when I first began. Nothing was coming out as intended. So I mixed some of my favorite color combinations and rolled the jars in the paint and added others by brush to give them an abstract appearance. Then I named them according to how I felt about them.
“Fairy’s Dream” abstract art jar
“Reaching for Gold” abstract art jar
“Pastel Realm” abstract art jar
“Full Moon Eclipse” abstract art jar
“Elf Forest” abstract art jar
“Cotton Candy Skies” abstract art jar
“Amethyst Road” abstract art jar
“CandyLand” abstract art jar
“Angel Flutter” abstract art jar
“Emerald Cave” abstract art jar
“Pandora’s Daughter” abstract art jar
I painted this when I lived in a home overlooking the bay in the Florida Keys. Living in the Florida Keys is a great place for artists, because the colors and vibes are inspirational. I painted the majority of my abstract work while living there, and it’s also where I began painting my sunset series.
In this particular painting, I used both gold and silver paints. If you look closely, the part that appears like gray specks on the sand is actual beach sand I blended with it.
“Seaside”
