Pleinair watercolor painting of a beautiful fountain surrounded by palms in Florida

Watercolor painting 6.5 inches x 10 inches    $100

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When we were on Marco Island I noticed this beautiful fountain in a high-rent shopping area. It was a bit awkward, but i plopped my messy plein air self down on the ground in the middle of the fancy stores and began a watercolor painting. Sometimes you just have to live in your own little art world and not worry what others are saying about you!

Watercolor landscape painting of a beautiful old mansion in Savannah, Georgia

Watercolor painting 9 inches x 14 inches    $500

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Last month I was honored to be asked to do a watercolor painting demonstration for Taylor Jacobsen’s watercolor class — an art mainstay in our area. People have been attending his class for decades.

I chose to work from a cropped photo of a beautiful old, Savannah mansion that I had take a few years ago. I love to paintings of architecture and when I can’t do it in person, I work from reference photos. In this piece, I was attracted to the highlighted plant as the center of interest, and the zig zag compostion that leads your eye up to it. I decide to push the juxtaposition of the complimentary colors, blue and orange, to get a warm, glowing effect.

Plein air watercolor painting of two women by the pool.

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Another unsuspecting pair of models falls prey to the wandering watercolor artist! I wonder if they would recognize themselves lounging at the pool? They stayed put just long enough for me to create a watercolor figure painting of them.

Plein air watercolor landscape painting of a umbrella table next to a pool.

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Afternoon by the pool. The luscious, dark colors of the pool reflection drew me into this scene. Some people came down and sat at the table halfway through the watercolor painting and I had to recreate that area by memory…

Plein air watercolor painting of a palm tree in a nature preserve in Florida.

Watercolor painting 6 inches x 9 inches $100

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I visited a nature preserve near Naples, Florida in hopes of doing a large watercolor landscape of the area. I quickly became totally overwhelmed by the immenseness of the acreage and settled on doing a watercolor painting of a single distressed palm. I wanted to capture some of the fading brown leaves next to the vibrant new growth.

Plein air watercolor landscape of a southern Florida canal.

Watercolor painting 9 inches x 6 inches $100

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While we were in Florida last December, we drove by this picturesque canal right off a busy highway. The next day, when John was golfing, I returned to capture it in a  watercolor painting. The palm trees made a perfect frame for the bridge and slow flowing water.

Plein air watercolor painting of colorful sailboats on the beach

Watercolor painting 6 inches x 9 inches 100

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I saw these colorful sailboats on the beach every day and finally one morning, I braved the sand and wind to do several  watercolor paintings of them. The vibrant primary colors really shimmered in the bright sunshine.

Plein air watercolor landscape painting of a water fountain on Marco Island, Florida

Watercolor painting 6 inches x 9 inches 100

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We are going to be taking a southern vacation soon so I thought I would post some of the watercolor paintings I did on my last trip to Florida. We stayed in a beautiful condo on Marco Island and the weather was wonderful. You would think that I would be in painting heaven. But I find it very difficult to warm up to the colors and atmosphere of tropical locales. I must be too entrenched in the Michigan’s moody woods and rolling hills to fully appreciate doing watercolor landscapes in Florida. It always takes me a good few days to readjust my pallet.

This painting was done from my favorite position. In a lounge chair at the pool with a glass of wine!

Plein air watercolor painting of an old farm from across the spring fields.

Watercolor painting 6 inches x 9 inches 100

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This watercolor painting was done just outside Petoskey on a huge hill that overlooks the town and Lake Michigan. Its an area I return to year after year. It has dramatic rural views, something I love to capture in plein air watercolor landscapes. This particular scene  created a “Z” composition.

Plein air watercolor painting of a lion statue guarding steps in Petoskey, Michigan.

Watercolor painting 6 inches x 9 inches 100

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Every May we travel “up north” for a few days. I paint, while the guys golf. Then we eat marvelous food and start all over the next day. I painted this watercolor painting one sunny day in Petoskey. The spunky little lion statue looked like it was guarding the modest mansion behind it. I was attracted to the light and shadow and the way the stairs formed a natural lead in to the center of interest.

Plein air watercolor landscape painting of a palm tree and balcony in Spain

Watercolor painting 6 inches x 7.5 inches $80

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When my family visited Spain a while ago, I didn’t have much time to paint. There were just too many wonderful cities and restaurants to visit! But I did fit in a few watercolor landscapes while hanging around the pool after long days of sight seeing.

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

Watercolor painting 9 inches x 11 inches $300

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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.