"SIDES - SIDE BY SIDE"

   Studio "SIDES"                        Complein air "SIDES"

I wanted to see what the difference would be of the same image painted

in two different situations. You be the judge.

NEW "SIDES"

painted in my studio - music playing - no bugs

no twigs falling on my painting and no sand. 

I'm a studio painter for sure make no mistake.

Old "SIDES" painted complein air style. 

I call it com-plein air because I complain the entire time I have to paint outdoors. 

I'm a complein air painter!

Thanks a bunch 

I'm painting like crazy just a bit too lazy to turn on my computer to post.

"HAYDEN GRANARY PROCESS"

Here are 3 process shots of the Hayden Granary 

the final painting tomorrow.

"VALLEY GIRLS"

Here are some new girls! I've been in the mood to paint some animals - I thought I had a show

Scheduled for March and these girls would be the stars. Turns out I've been bumped from

The schedule so now I'm not sure where to put these new paintings. They may have to wait

Until summer. I'll enjoy them in my studio. Thanks for taking a look. MB

"PROCESS"

Sorry my posts have been few and far between.

 I've been painting likeMad! Or I am mad???? 

Anyway my computer is fixed and I plan to get back On a posting schedule soon. 

I drew this composition last year and never knew how to approach the idea.

As you can see I started at the top and I'm working my way down

Instead of the left to right approach. In fact the last couple of 

Paintings I've completed were approached in this way - so much

For best laid plans!?!

 Thanks for taking a look and have a fabulous weekend - MB

"THINGS GO BETTER II"

30" X 30" 

Oil on canvas

"Things Go Better II"

Now showing at the Steamboat Springs Arts Council

February 5 - 27

If you get a chance stop in and see the show

I leave everything up until the next day to decide whether it's 

finished or not. I was happy with the result the next day 

I ordered a frame and the rest is history. 

Thanks for taking a look - MB

"PROCESS - THINGS GO BETTER II"

Here's the next day - I usually don't add the background color till

the end but for some reason it felt right to do it all at the same time. 

I used a palette knife instead of a brush

(tried a brush first but didn't like the results so I got out my knife because I

wanted to create a different texture for the surrounding color - I thought it would add 

some interest I didn't think there needed to be any more brush work 

because there was plenty of action on the surface of the coke bottles).

Thanks for taking a look!

Andy Warhol my hero 

"THINGS GO BETTER II"

Here's the start to my new piece for the Palettes show at the Depot.

 I'm trying this post on my i pad - just to mess with my head and 

Learn something new. We'll see how it goes. It's always good

To have a plan. Thanks for waiting - MB 

"JESS & MOM"

Jess riding on the 4 wheeler with her Mom!

Thanks for following and looking. MB

"JESS"

Here's what Jess's neighbor has to say about her(this portrait was 

a surprise for Jess's Mom). She was a border collie and german short

haired pointer. She was very opinionated, but lived to ride with her

mom up in the mountains on the four wheeler checking on the cattle.

Thanks for all the patience in lack of posts. 

I've moved to a new gallery and it's been emotionally and financially trying. 

 I will be at Circle 7 Fine Art for 3 months trying it

out to see if it fits. More on that later.

Thanks a bunch

"BOB'S DOWNTOWN CONOCO"

Bob's Conoco station is in downtown Steamboat Springs.

Bob just sold the Conoco station after running it for too many years to

count. I'm pretty happy for Bob he's the nicest guy you would ever want to meet

he deserves to retire and have some fun.

The new owner is going to keep it going - gas station and car repair, how cool is that?

Here's a quick story about Bob and the guys that work there.

Many years ago I had to drive to Texas to meet my husband.

He needed a ride home - anyway it was 104˚ in Texas that 

summer. A functioning air conditioner in my truck would be a 

nice feature. I had the truck packed - turned on the key and heard a 

thump!!! It wasn't a mechanical thump but the sound of a mouse

type thump. The first auto mechanic I went to had no time to look at my

problem(and didn't really care that I was driving into the inferno we call Texas).

I was desperate to find this poor mouse. I stopped at Bob's, the

guys dropped everything after they heard my story - they took apart the 

wheel cage under my dash and voila they found the mouse. 

I was on my way mouse free with a functioning air conditioner. 

Crisis averted - although the mouse was not so lucky.

Thanks for taking a look.

"A LITTLE SUNSHINE"

Here are some process shots of Sunshine

Her story will follow. I fixed her today so now I'm happy

YEAH!!!!!

"WILD THING"

California car!

A day at the beach.

Later MB

"JOY"

"HAPPY 3RD ANNIVERSARY"

I started this blog 3 years ago today!

The blog has changed a bit over the years. It started out as a quest to 

post everyday but has morphed into something a bit different.

I post when it's right rather than posting for the sake of posting.

There are a few more gaps in the process and that's working

out better for me. You have all been instrumental in this process

and I wouldn't be here without you! I really can't do it without

all the comments and encouragement - thanks for sticking

by me all these years!!!!!!!!

Takes a village to raise a painter.

"BORN FREE #11"

This is another extra painting for Born Free - it was #11.

This is going to be a crazy week not sure how many posts

will happen if any. I'm getting everything ready for my 

show at Creekside Cafe for November and December.

The Born Free drawing will be this friday as well 

It's going to be really hard to part with these paintings.

I've had them hanging in the studio for awhile

I will be lonely without them.

Thanks for following!

"GEESE AT THE LAKE"

I painted some extra Born Free images - not sure where they will end up.

Thanks for following and have a wonderful weekend!

Thanks for all the support too - you've all been a big help.

"MUFFIN"

A friend stopped by the studio the other day and made a suggestion

"paint a bunny"

Hardest thing I've ever done.

6" X 6"

Oil on Panel

Thanks for taking a look!

"COMING AND GOING"

I finished 12 paintings this week for my special project(more on that later)

 I have no photos of those paintings due to dark days and rain.

I thought I'd throw something fun your way for the weekend!

I think this car is parked in Rawlins, Wyoming 

but I could be wrong - I've been wrong once before????!!

I took this photo in 2009 on our trip back from scamping in Yellowstone.

 I had a great week painting and starting this saturday I will be participating in the 

Steamboat Art Museum Paint out. I will post if I get some good stuff.

Thanks a bunch and have a wonderful weekend.

"THE NOMAD"

This is a 1956 Chevy Nomad. This painting went through many titles - in 1956 Chevy advertised 

this vehicle as "THE HOT ONE" because the boxy new Chevy was crisp, clean and thoroughly 

modern-looking. Nomads like Bel Airs came fully loaded - and the beat goes on

 I was going to name the painting the Hot One or the FAHA(Federal Aid Highway Act)

but somewhere on the unreliable wikipedia page Eisenhower referred to the highway

act as "The Grand Plan" hence the vanity plate that really didn't exist in 1956.

Artistic license one more time. This might be too much info but some of you may enjoy 

a little banter. Thanks for looking and waiting again. 

New project on the way and it's much smaller.

Let's hope for more posts.

I have not had much time to respond to all my emails about this car but thanks for all the thoughts.

These old cars are pure art and important reminders of Car Culture in the US of A.

My dad bought an Edsel - that's another story!

THE INTERSTATE HIGHWAY SYSTEM(abridged version full version below)

On June 29, 1956, President Dwight Eisenhower signed the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956. The bill created a 41,000-mile “National System of Interstate and Defense Highways” that would, according to Eisenhower, eliminate unsafe roads, inefficient routes, traffic jams and all of the other things that got in the way of “speedy, safe transcontinental travel.” At the same time, highway advocates argued, “in case of atomic attack on our key cities, the road net [would] permit quick evacuation of target areas.” For all of these reasons, the 1956 law declared that the construction of an elaborate expressway system was “essential to the national interest.”

National Interstate and Defense Highways Act (1956) Popularly known as the National Interstate and Defense Highways Act of 1956, the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956 established an interstate highway system in the United States. The movement behind the construction of a transcontinental superhighway started in the 1930s when President Franklin D. Roosevelt expressed interest in the construction of a network of toll superhighways that would provide more jobs for people in need of work during the Great Depression. The resulting legislation was the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1938, which directed the chief of the Bureau of Public Roads (BPR) to study the feasibility of a six-route toll network. But with America on the verge of joining the war in Europe, the time for a massive highway program had not arrived. At the end of the war, the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1944 funded highway improvements and established major new ground by authorizing and designating, in Section 7, the construction of 40,000 miles of a "National System of Interstate Highways." When President Dwight D. Eisenhower took office in January 1953, however, the states had only completed 6,500 miles of the system improvements. Eisenhower had first realized the value of good highways in 1919, when he participated in the U.S. Army's first transcontinental motor convoy from Washington, DC, to San Francisco. Again, during World War II, Eisenhower saw the German advantage that resulted from their autobahn highway network, and he also noted the enhanced mobility of the Allies, on those same highways, when they fought their way into Germany. These experiences significantly shaped Eisenhower's views on highways and their role in national defense. During his State of the Union Address on January 7, 1954, Eisenhower made it clear that he was ready to turn his attention to the nation's highway problems. He considered it important to "protect the vital interest of every citizen in a safe and adequate highway system." Between 1954 and 1956, there were several failed attempts to pass a national highway bill through the Congress. The main controversy over the highway construction was the apportionment of the funding between the Federal Government and the states. Undaunted, the President renewed his call for a "modern, interstate highway system” in his 1956 State of the Union Address. Within a few months, after considerable debate and amendment in the Congress, The Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956 emerged from the House-Senate conference committee. In the act, the interstate system was expanded to 41,000 miles, and to construct the network, $25 billion was authorized for fiscal years 1957 through 1969. During his recovery from a minor illness, Eisenhower signed the bill into law at Walter Reed Army Medical Center on the 29th of June. Because of the 1956 law, and the subsequent Highway Act of 1958, the pattern of community development in America was fundamentally altered and was henceforth based on the automobile.

"DETAILS - THE NOMAD"

THERE ARE 5 SELF PORTRAITS IN THIS

BUMPER - ALL THOSE CURVES 

WHERE EVER YOU SEE RED THAT'S ME

SELF PORTRAIT IN BUMPER

"MORE PROCESS IF INTERESTED"

I can't tell you how many days this was because I

stopped keeping track. All I can tell you is that it

was slow - slow for me anyway.

If you don't know I'm left handed so I typically work

right to left to not smudge my previous work. Again

this is not written in stone - it can change but for the

most part it's how it comes together.

No shadow here but I blocked it in. Had to think about

it for a day before I knew what I wanted.

Here's the photo of the 1956 Chevy Nomad

This car is a work of art!

Thanks for hanging in there I hope to post a finished

painting soon with some close ups for you.

Have a great weekend! 

Happy painting or whatever you're into.

Thanks MB