A Few Summer Flowers

Although the desert is not totally devoid of flowers during the summer, they are a little scarce.

So it was fun to come across this bright red-orange crown on a barrel cactus (actually, two of the barrels on this property were flowering). This cactus is not in the wild, and I'm sure it's in bloom because it gets water that it wouldn't get if it were growing in the open desert.

But as a painter, it's helpful for me to know that these cacti can bloom in late summer/early fall. It's entirely possible that I'll paint this little beauty in a wild setting, with the "excuse" that summer thunderstorms gave it the incentive it needed to put on a show!

We painters can do that!

Updated Website

Well, I took some advice from an artist I know ("LB") who has had success selling from her Website, a goal I've had for a while now.

So I've added some additional links to the homepage, including one (with my picture--UGH!) that will take you directly to my Bio/Statement page. I wrote about what aspects about the desert fascinate me. I also removed a page that was all about my technique -- LB thought it would appeal to artists, but they are not my target audience, and most art buyers wouldn't care about all that stuff.

Finally, since I've been making original paintings that I can sell inexpensively, I created a page that features some of these works as well. You can see them here.

And, as before, all of these pieces are for sale!!! (Yes -- that's a hint!)

But if you're not in the market for art today, that's OK. Maybe tomorrow. At least go take a look. Be sure and let me know if you think of something else I need to change or fix.

Enjoy!

Smokey

Not Smokey the Bear, in this case... Smokey conditions!



By now, you may have heard of the fires that are burning in California. We tend to get rain at the end of the year and the beginning of the next, so by summer, everything is dry and ready to burn.

So far this year, we haven't had any fires in the desert. But the wind is blowing smoke from the other fires into our area. (A friend in Colorado mentioned the hazy conditions in her state are coming from California fires, too).

The desert is not particularly inspiring to be in right now. Besides the smokey smell and thick haze, it's also hot and humid -- none of that "dry heat" for the time being).

I'm still working on paintings of the high desert. But I'll have to admit: I'm not working from life!

Another Lizard

I've been on somewhat of a lizard kick lately -- either looking for them or painting them!


This is a desert spiny lizard. I've actually discussed this particular little critter in a previous post. But now I've finally completed a painting of it, sitting on the skeleton of a cholla cactus. There were some thin miscellaneous branches covering part of the lizard (as you can see in the photo), but I had no trouble filling in the hidden parts.


Fun! Painting lizards up-close is a little different for me, but I'm hoping there are others who like lizards as much as I do and who can't live without this painting!

The eBay Blues

Well, the paintings I had on eBay (mentioned in a previous post) didn't sell. So -- why not?

• Not good enough;
• No one is into California desert/Joshua Tree National Park scenes;
• The people who might have been interested were away from their computers this week.

Some (but not all) of my Arizona landscapes normally sell, but I can't always count on that, either. And I don't think I'm asking too much -- $57 starting bid, shipping included, "Buy It Now" is $75. Is that unreasonable?

Is the economy still THAT bad all over the country?

Don't know. But a job opportunity came up that I applied for. If I'm hired, that will obviously affect my ability to paint and market my work.

But we'll see. A career change may be coming.

More Infrared Ocotillos

I'm still painting my life away, but I thought for now, I'll post another one of my infrared photos of the desert. This scene shows an ocotillo in Joshua Tree National Park.


This is one of those views that screams "Desert!" to me -- lots of open space, and the special forms of the plantlife there.

I can imagine this will be a painting some day -- either in color or in "infrared" black and white. I think it'd make a great piece either way!

Summer in the Desert

Visiting the desert in summer is often thought of as being condemned to hell: torrid temperatures, rocks that melt, no signs of life anywhere except for the human tourist wondering why s/he came to this place of torment.
Well, a little of that is true. It does get pretty hot out here, although the temperatures haven't been as high this year as they sometimes get. Also, here in the high desert, we tend to be about 10 degrees cooler than Palm Springs and the rest of the Coachella Valley.

Flowers are scarce, especially during this dry year we've had. Wildlife, even cold-blooded critters like lizards and snakes, stay in the shade or underground until it cools off. The greens, yellows, blues and other colors of spring are long gone. The annuals that produced the flowers are also dried up and blown away, leaving little/no evidence that they were ever there.

BUT -- for a desert lover like me, the "off-seasons" still draw me into places like Joshua Tree National Park. In early morning or late afternoon, lizards are darting under dormant shrubs or rough boulders. Ground squirrels brave the heat to do whatever it is ground squirrels do. Coyotes trot along, looking for a tasty goodie.

And for me, brown and blue is my favorite color combination. I'm sure that's part of the reason why I love deserts. And let's face it: this time of year, my colors dominate.

The heat and the occasional monsoonal humidity does get to me. But the desert keeps the rare beauty that only deserts possess.