Desert Cardinal

New painting of a desert cardinal (aka pyrrhuloxia), found in southern Arizona and New Mexico, and southwestern Texas, then south into Mexico.

Desert Cardinal                                                   8" x 10" / 20cm x 25"

I added just a little green over the branch in the lower lefthand corner so the green doesn't appear to end abruptly at the branch...but I haven't scanned the slightly improved version of the painting yet.

Mark Junge

www.MarkJunge.com or www.SouthwestSpaces.com

Happy New Year...to You and to All the Little Birdies, Too!

 Happy 2023 to all the humans and the little (and big) critters on the earth!!

Following is a painting I just finished showing a Bullock's oriole that once graced a desert willow we had at our previous residence. We only saw him once, long enough for me to grab a few photos of him before he took off.

Bullock's orioles are the western version of Baltimore orioles which prefer the eastern part of the country; in fact, where their respective ranges overlap, the two are known to hybridize. Ornithologists have an ongoing debate over whether or not these two birds are really the same species.

The world has some incredibly beautiful birds, and I expect to be painting some of them over the next few months. A gallery owner in Ohio asked me to place some bird paintings in her gallery. That could be a great opportunity to show in a part of the country I've never been to yet!

Bullock's Oriole                                                   8" x 10" / 20cm x 25cm

We'll see how this all works out. Hopefully for the better!

Mark Junge

www.MarkJunge.com or www.SouthwestSpaces.com

A Winter Painting and a Christmas Painting!

 A couple of paintings appropriate for the season!

Mojave Snow                   8" x 10" / 20cm x 25cm

A Colorado Christmas    8" x 10" / 20cm x 25cm

One shows the aftereffects of a rare snowstorm in the Mojave desert of Joshua Tree National Park; the other is a Christmas scene in a home somewhere in the San Juan Mountains of southwestern Colorado. (The mountain outside the window and in the painting over the fireplace are the same mountain: Mt. Sneffels, my favorite Colorado Mountain to paint!)

I hope you enjoy these images and that you have a wonderful holiday season!

Mark Junge

www.MarkJunge.com or www.SouthwestSpaces.com

 

Thanksgiving Paintings

 It's almost Thanksgiving, and I actually managed to finish a couple of Thanksgiving paintings in time for the holiday. The still life was one I started many years ago and set aside to finish...someday! 😃 The other piece, complete with church and turkeys, is a totally recent artwork.

Thanksgiving       8" x 10" / 20cm x 25cm

The Blessings of Thanksgiving
14" x 11" / 35.6cm x 27.9cm

I hope you and yours have a lot to be thankful for and that you'll have a truly blessed Thanksgiving!!

Mark Junge

www.MarkJunge.com or www.SouthwestSpaces.com

Halloween Art

 Halloween has come and gone -- too quickly, in my opinion.

Now my thoughts have turned to Thanksgiving, another point in the season that I need to prepare me for Christmas.

But first, here are some Halloween-themed paintings that I finished recently. (One CAN be a Halloween image, but it's really a nocturne that could be thought of as creepy and Halloween-ish). 😃

Hi, Bunny! Hi, Pumpkin       8"x10" / 20cm x 25cm

A Walk in the Moonlight       8"x10" / 20cm x 25cm

The Morning After               8"x10" / 20cm x 25cm

And finally, one painting that is just about autumn, Colorado style near Cripple Creek:

Untitled (so far)                 8"x10" / 20cm x 25cm

Finally, I started on some Thanksgiving paintings that I hope to post here soon.

Enjoy the season! It's moving through fast!

Mark Junge

www.MarkJunge.com or www.SouthwestSpaces.com