Pastel portrait of young man in sun glasses at the shore.

Pastel painting 8 inches x 11 inches   SOLD

When we were “Up North” a while ago, I was able to coral my handsome young nephew for a figure drawing session on the beach. He sat so patiently, staring out at the crystal blue water, hardly moving a bit. Now that is my ideal of the perfect model for a pastel portrait!

Watercolor painting of the European-style fountain at the Royal Park Hotel in Rochester, Michigan

Watercolor painting 6 inches x 9 inches    SOLD

My son-in-law’s sister was married last weekend. Many of the events, including the betrothal, shower and reception, were held at the beautiful Royal Park Hotel in Rochester, Michigan. As a special wedding present for the bride and groom, I created a  watercolor painting of the European-style fountain that graces the grounds surrounding the hotel. It reminds me of the old fountains in the piazzas of Italy.  They are off on their honeymoon now and haven’t opened their presents yet. Hope they don’t see this post!

Do you have a special place that you would like memorialized in a piece of art? I would be happy to paint a watercolor or pastel commission for you or a loved one. Contact me and we can chat!

Plein air pastel landscape painting of a golf course hole and water

Pastel painting 8 inches x 12.5 inches     SOLD

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I couldn’t resist the view of this hole at the Cork Screw Golf Course. I’m not sure if it was the “signature hole” but it made a great composition for my pastel landscape, I used a red toned sanded paper for my substrate and gloried in the lush greens of Florida. The snow was 2 feet deep in Michigan, so I was happy to play with bright colors.

If you or a friend have a favorite golf hole you would like commemorated, I’d be happy to talk to you about a pastel commission or watercolor commission!

Watercolor painting of people waiting at the cheese counter at Zingerman's Deli.

Watercolor painting 9 inches x 11 inches SOLD

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Here in Ann Arbor, we are soooo lucky to have one of the best delicatessens in the world. Zingerman’s is a true food bonanza! They carry the finest cheeses, meats, olive oils, breads and make unbelievable sandwiches. My husband adores the store and spends way more than he should there, buying mouth watering treats every week. I shot a reference photo of him parked at his favorite location: right in front of the cheese and meat counter.

It was a challenge to do a watercolor painting of this scene which is crowded with so many items, especially on yuppo paper. I cropped in tight and left out a lot of extraneous detail so I could focus on the dynamic composition and the light emanating from the food cases.

Pastel landscape painting of a road leading to an old barn in winter.

Pastel painting 6 inches x 9 inches     SOLD

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The warm sunlight and cool shadows on snow make it really fun to paint pastel landscape paintings from winter scenes. This barn, right down the road from our home, looks really stunning around 1 pm. in the afternoon. The sun creates a perfect highlight on the snow covered shed roof.

Busy day at our Ann Arbor advertising agency tomorrow, but Friday I’m hoping to start on another winter pastel painting.

If you have a chance, come by the opening for the Braun Farm show at My Favorite Cafe in downtown Saline on Friday night 7-9pm!

Pastel pet portrait painting of two sleeping cats.

Pastel painting 9.5 inches x 5.5 inches SOLD

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My friend, Peg, has the cutest little cats I’ve ever seen. They are siblings, very petite and just adorable. Although I’ve always favored dogs and have never been a big “cat person”, I’m a sucker for these two little devils. I asked her for some reference photos and thought this pose, with them cuddling together, would make the perfect dual pet portrait. I really enjoy painting animals in pastel and trying to capture their unique personalities.

Pastel cityscape painting of downtown Cleveland at night.

Pastel painting 8.75 inches x 11.75 inches SOLD

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John and I spent a wonderful weekend in Cleveland a while ago. We visited the art museum and a couple of other exhibits and had some marvelous meals at unique little restaurants. I was pleasantly surprised at what an interesting, cultural and beautiful city it is. We walked the streets downtown and I shot a lot of reference photos to use for pastel paintings later in my studio. This scene really caught my eye. I loved the contrast of blue versus orange and modern versus old, and the sparkling lights were like icing on the cake!

I would love to do more plein air pastel landscapes in cities, but it is awkward to set up, and a little daunting to have hundreds of critics strolling by your easel!

Pastel landscape painting of a wandering creek in a grassy field in Michigan.

Pastel painting 11 inches x 14 inches    SOLD

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A couple of weeks ago, I found this small, meandering little creek while I was out walking. It just called out to be captured on paper.

I’m really excited about the pastel landscape painting of it that I finished last night. It closely approaches the original vision I had of the piece when I started out. Sometimes I have a very strong idea of how I want a completed artwork to look and yet it comes out totally different. Sometimes my ideas change midstream and I spark off that, other times I just can’t reach the original dream and have to hope for a better outcome on the next piece. On this pastel, I feel that all my artistic intuitions “played well together” and we came to a good conclusion!

Plein air pastel landscape painting of a distant farm from the autumn fields.

Pastel painting 10 inches x 8 inches       SOLD

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Some of the painters around Saline, Michigan are coming together to exhibit artworks of a special farm near our town. “Visions of Braun Farms” will be displayed in January and February of next year in downtown Saline. I have completed one piece, but on Sunday I thought I’d try another plein air pastel landscape painting of the beautiful old farm. The fields had all been plowed under and there was very little local color this late in November. But I was drawn to the buildings on the crest with the tractor tracks leading up to them. As I painted, a storm clouds appeared to be moving in so I included them to create a little drama.

9-canvas watercolor family quilt painting

9 separate watercolor portrait paintings.     Finished size 36″ x 36″.     Not for sale.

I’ve been working on this project for a couple of months–which is a very long time for me. I usually paint very quickly because I have absolutely no patience and I want instant gratification. Kind of like a child, no?

But this piece was important to me and worth the wait. These are portraits of 2 generations of my family–myself, 2 sisters, husbands and children. I plan to expand it to 16 watercolor portraits and add my mother, grandkids and new nephews as they marry into the family. But I wanted to have at least part of the quilt finished and mounted on the wall for our family Thanksgiving which will be at our house this year.

Because, after all, this IS what I am most thankful for.

Happy Thanksgiving to all!!!

(these 9 images were painted on the 12 by 12 inch watercolor canvas that has recently become available. I used only 3 colors throughout to harmonize all of the painting: alizarin crimson, utltramarine blue and cadium yellow medium. To finish and protect the paintings, I sprayed with Krylon finishing spray. No need for glass!)