I'm Going to be on TV!

My good friends at Terrat Elms Interior Design just finished working with the crew of the PBS program, "This Old House" on the Bedford House project in Bedford, MA. For the project, they used several of my Cape Cod landscapes to help with the interior look of the 300 year-old home. (You can see one of them hiding on the mantel piece above) I'm thrilled to have my work be a part of it and excited to see myself on tv!

Sneaking Away Downeast

I got to get out painting this past weekend. A real treat for this father of a 3 month and 3 year old. And I really got out--about 3 hours down the coast towards Acadia National Park. I was in Deer Isle for a long weekend and had lovely weather throughout. In this photo, I was up before sunrise just watching the lobster boats head out and down the bay towards Isle Au Haut. When the sun came up, I was ready to go and got in a couple of hours of painting before breakfast. It's one of the most wonderful simple pleasures there is; to be at the start of the day and painting.

Back to Work

Good to see you again!
I think it's safe to say that I'm back to work. At least for the moment. The hurricane that is a newborn has settled down a bit and Jill and I are getting our "sea legs" under us. The new routine has allowed me a bit of time to get out and pick up where I left off. Here is yesterday's effort working downtown in Portland's Old Port. I love this building and have painted it a number of times before. Today I'm in the studio trying to tighten it up (but not too much). Stay tuned for its development.
ps A note for all you Plein Air painters: never paint next to a restaurant serving lunch when you haven't eaten anything, and you forgot to pack your own lunch!

Through The Trees

Through the Trees, 6" x 8", Oil on Panel, 2011

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In many ways, the coast of Maine is hard to get to. It's either privately owned or, in most cases, at the edge of a thick pine forest. It's the glimpses one sees while walking along a spot such as this that really make an impression. The trees part and for a moment the view is spectacular!

Last Light

Last Light, 8" x 6", Oil on Panel, 2011

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Years ago when I worked on Hurricane Island, we always wished we could turn the island around at sunset. Instead we had to walk across the island (I know. The hardship of it all!) to catch the fading light on the islands of Penobscot Bay. In the mornings however, we were up long before the sunrise and hardly missed a one!

Knight & Mistake

Knight and Mistake, 6" x 8", Oil on Panel, 2011

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I'd be hard pressed to come up with a better title than "Knight and Mistake" for this piece, which are in fact, the names of the islands this iconic Maine lighthouse is situated on. To get to the lighthouse, you have to land on Mistake Island which is connected by a very low-lying spit of land to Knight Island. The lighthouse overlooks the far downeast coast of Maine and from here, you can even spy Grand Manan Island in Canada!

On The Hard

On The Hard, 6" x 8", Oil on Panel, 201

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I have to apologize for not posting in some time. Our household has grown by one, when Jill delivered our new son Alex into the world just over two weeks ago. We're all doing great and having a good time, despite (or because of?) a real lack of sleep here. Still, we've managed to still keep all the balls in the air and I've even had time to slip away for a bit of painting! This image is a regular sight here on the coast of Maine--and perhaps coastlines everywhere--and I'm always amazed to see a boat on the hard like this, when it's so often the thing you're trying to avoid while underway.

(Alex dreaming of being underway...)

Soft Landing

Soft Landing, 6" x 8", Oil on Panel, 2011

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From a recent trip to downeast Maine.

White Islands Sunset

White Islands Sunset, 6" x 8", Oil on Panel, 2011

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This used to be my view from "my office"--granted, my office was a 30' open sailboat crammed full of Outward Bound students who hadn't had a shower in weeks. But you couldn't beat the views. I still miss it.

Downeast Summer

Downeast Summer, 6" x 8", Oil on Panel, 2011

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From a recent trip to downeast Maine.

High Cliffs

High Cliffs, 6" x 8", Oil on Panel, 2011

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Summer is only a few days away on the calendar, but some of the nicest days have already arrived here in Maine.

Morning at Two Lights

Morning at Two Lights, 6" x 8", Oil on Panel, 2011

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What a crazy day today has been. It started out cool and foggy here on the coast, then more humid than I care to deal with. By mid-afternoon it was so hot in the studio I decided to cut the lawn--at least the part that was in the shade. Thunderstorms this evening and now very pleasant and quiet.

Saltwater Road

Saltwater Road, 6" x 8", Oil on Panel, 2011

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Don't tell anyone I was here.

Two

Two, 6" x 8", Oil on Panel, 2011

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Another stunning day here on the Maine coast. Summer has arrived in full color.

May Fog

May Fog, 6" x 8", Oil on Panel, 2011

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I was looking at my calendar the other day wondering why I hadn't been outside very much in May (not much riding and not much painting on the record). What I had forgotten was how rainy and wet May had been. June is off to a great start, let's hope it stays that way!

Summer Shore

Summer Shore, 6" x 8", Oil on Panel, 2011

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Nice weekend here in Maine--easily one of the top ten weekends of the year. It made a long winter seem well worth the wait. It won't be long before we can finally get in the water, rather than just paint it!

North Haven (commission II)

North Haven Commission Painting, 6" x 8" Oil on Panel, 201
The second painting of a two piece commission for a family on North Haven Island in Penobscot Bay, Maine. I used to pass this house and farm when I sailed with Outward Bound and didn't know that nearly a dozen years later I would be looking at it again in my studio.

North Haven (commission)

North Haven Commission Piece, 6" x 8", Oil on Panel, 2011
It feels like forever since I last posted--not that I haven't been busy. I've been putting work together for a gallery on Cape Cod for starters. But for those of you who don't know already, we're expecting our second child in less than a month! We're very excited and Jill is ready to be done being pregnant. And of course when it rains it pours, so for various reasons, life has been exceptionally busy here in Maine of late and my time in the studio has been fairly limited (though I expect it may be even more limited in the very near future). In any event, I've been working on two commission paintings for friends who spend part of their year on the island of North Haven in Maine's Penobscot Bay. It's a pretty special spot, and studying it recently has been a real pleasure in making their paintings.

Untitled

Untitled, 10" x 14", Oil on Panel, 2011
I don't have a title for this piece yet from Wellfleet, Cape Cod, MA, but I would love to hear your ideas.

Library Light

Library Light, 10" x 14", Oil on Panel, 2011
The library in Provincetown was formerly a church and only recently had its wonderful steeple returned to its rooftop. The building is classic New England and it looks great in that Cape Cod light.

Free Street

Free Street, 8" x 6", Oil on Panel, 2011

SOLD

If there is one place in Portland that I love most, it's Free Street. At the top of the street is the Portland Museum of Art. And down nearly at the bottom is the world's greatest coffee shop, Arabica. What's more, the architecture and light that shines down this narrow little one-way street makes the great architecture of buildings like these even more pronounced.

Cape Ice

Cape Ice, 6" x 8", Oil on Panel, 2011

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I doubt there was any ice in this freezer so early in the season. But soon the little inlet at Pamet Harbor will be full of boats and not so quiet for a painter like me.

Antique

Antique, 6" x 8", Oil on Panel, 2011

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I had the good fortune of having to stop the other day on the return leg of a bicycle ride. I was also fortunate it enough to have brought my camera along as well. When I stopped, I turned and there was this scene. In fact, I had to simplify the sky--you would have never believed me.

Vinalhaven Sun

Vinalhaven Sun, 6" x 8", Oil on Panel, 2011

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From a recent trip to Vinalhaven Island on Maine's Penobscot Bay.

Wellfleet Skies

Wellfleet Skies, 6" x 8", Oil on Panel, 2011

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From a recent trip to Wellfleet on Cape Cod.

Spring Storm

Spring Storm, 6" x 8", Oil on Panel, 2011

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Today might just be the first real spring day here in Maine. It seems we've been locked in the fog and rain for all of April. Despite it, there were some wonderful waves to be seen down at the water's edge.

East End Sunlight

East End Sunlight, 6" x 8", Oil on Panel, 2011

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Just after the last little bit of thunder rolled through town late this afternoon, a glimpse of the sun as it set.

Island Native

Island Native, 6" x 8", Oil on Panel, 2011

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We took a quick day trip out to the islands on the ferry over the weekend when the sun finally came out. A great little getaway when you live here. It's always a bit of an adventure.

Island Boats

Island Boats, 6" x 8", Oil on Panel, 2011

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It's not quite that time of year here in Maine...yet. But soon the waterfront will be bustling and the bay will be full of boats.

River Bend, Grand Canyon

River Bend, Grand Canyon, 8" x 10", Oil on Panel, 2011
I have wanted to work on a western landscape piece for some time, and by coincidence started playing with this image just as a friend needed a painting for a fundraiser in Colorado. I spent a lot of time in my 20's in the Grand Canyon, but haven't been back for many, many years. Still, every time I see a painting or photograph of this majestic landscape it reminds me that I need to get back there someday.