Autumn Sun-Sebago Farm

The more I paint the more I realize how much my experiences and environment influence my work. This is the best way to describe the subjects that end up in my paintings.

While on a short day trip with my husband, who is a real estate broker and was headed to an appraisal, we passed this grand old farm in the town of Sebago.

It was a fine Autumn day and the brilliant overhead sun cast strong shadows everywhere.

The connected buildings are typical in Maine and were designed to make farm work easier during our long, cold winters. Farmers could move from living space to the barns to care for their stock without exposure to the harsh elements. I love the way the buildings hunker into the ground and settle as time passes.

The lack of detail caused by this kind of sunlight intrigued me so we stopped to take photos for future painting reference.

The maple tree had lost most of it's leaves but those remaining were so bright that they provided reflected light near the house. I find it sad to see beautiful farms like this one not working anymore but the ingenuity of it's design remains as a testiment to the people who lived and worked it years ago..

Acrylic and casein. 12 x 14

Old Shoe

Arctic air has slipped into Maine and that means we have to face the fact that winter is just around the corner. It's not such a bad thing especially for a painter like me who loves to work in a nice warm studio as I did tonight .

Anyway..now that it's getting colder and all the "people from away" have hightailed it back to the city we Mainers have a chance to enjoy the scenery again..without getting stuck in lines of traffic, and fighting crowds everywhere. The light now is very intriguing too and casts a rosy glow with long shadows in the afternoon. Compound that atmospheric phenomenon with deserted summer homes and cottages and I find great subjects to paint.

This neat little place is on a favorite lake of ours and caught my eye while Steve and I were headed to one of his real estate jobs. I love the roof shape, the tidiness of it and the trees. Even the propane tanks provided inspiration with dappled sunlight hitting them just so. There was an old sneaker laying in the sand in front of the cottage..but I chose not to paint it. The deep snow will cover and protect it and it'll probably be there next summer when the owners come back, just like the old cottage.

This is acrylic 12 x 15