House Cat painting of gray cat in shadow

House Cat  Oil on wood  6" x 6"  SOLD

Coco, looking for the red laser bug...  He's a relentless hunter but prefers to be inside at all times.

Mull it Over Monday: How to Find Your Unique Voice

"It is only with the heart that one can see rightly;  What is essential is
invisible to the eye."  --Antoine de Saint Exupery
Illustration by Mary Englebreit.  Visit her website, here.

One of the best compliments a visual artist can receive is to be told "Your work is instantly recognizable." I normally juggle a variety of different projects. They range from floral still life painting to commercial illustration. The artists I admire are diverse, understatement. (Here's two: David Riedel and Mary Englebreit)  Finding my own  unique style is an ongoing challenge.
I used to think it was necessary to switch hats to be successful. By day I'd paint floral still lifes and that's when I'd wear the JSS/MC hat (John Singer Sargent & Mary Cassatt, I know I'm pushing it, but indulge me!) By night, I'd channel Norman Rockwell and illustrate children's books. It's great to have art heroes but having your own voice and knowing what it is --is the ultimate goal for most artists.  But how do you get there??

One thing I've discovered: Your own voice emerges over time through the practice of painting.every.day. It doesn't matter what project you work on or who you "channel." (I'm not the only one who does that, right? Heh.) If you are earnest about it and apply yourself in a consistent manner, all the things you wish to have manifest mix and simmer in the synapses of your unique brain... and eventually show up in your work. The mental painting notes, the art that inspires will begin to inform your brush... It's like magic when it happens. You can't think it into existence though. You have to actually paint a few miles of canvas first. This is something I'm still discovering. Having patience and working through it is important. I've also found that as my skillset expands my internal compass has become more organic and my need to "switch hats" has lessened. Sometimes it's hard to catch your stride, but painting every day is the by far best method I've found.  What do you do to make your art as unique as you are?

Pig in Mud oil painting by Diane Hoeptner

Pig in Mud  Oil on wood  6" x 6"  SOLD

(:  Happy with this one.  Photo reference provided by Robyn at Love-and-Hisses.

The Zinnias I & II flower pink orange

The Zinnias I & II  Oil on wood each 6" x 6" 

Heehee, I love this quote from Tilda Swinton via a British paper called Metro:  “People who have careers set out to have careers. I always find that very admirable and awe-inspiring, this idea of shooting an arrow with a thread attached way into the future and then pulling yourself up, but I never had that sense. I don’t want to sound ungrateful but I am literally making it up as I go along.”

Toy Talk II vintage mickey and donald

Toy Talk II  Oil on wood  6" x 6"  $95.  SOLD

Another try at vintage push puppet Mickey and wind up Donald Duck.  This time I tried to pay more attention to edges and background application.

Toy Talk I Vintage Mickey Mouse Donald Duck

Toy Talk I  Oil on wood  6" x 6"  SOLD

"Knowledge is power, but enthusiasm pulls the switch."  --Ivern Ball

Mull it Over Monday: How to get out of your head and into your studio.

Floral Rhapsody, art that tiles.  Oil on
gesso'd paper.  Email me for more information.

Ever since I read Eckhart Tolle's The Power of Now, I've been mulling over how best to apply his principles to my life and especially to my art...  As artists we can feel pulled in so many directions.  What should we paint, how should we paint it?  --seemingly simple questions can become quagmires of indecision if we aren't careful. If you find yourself thinking a too much and coming up short on studio time, here's a few pointers to get you back on track: 

• Identify the materials and supplies that serve you best and use them. I've wasted a lot of time and effort blaming materials when what I actually lacked was proper skill and focus. Once you find materials that fit your needs and budget, stop wondering about changing up or switching out-use them.
• Maintain regular studio hours.  Show up with or without your muse, do it again the next day.
• When your muse does show up, enjoy it and don't waste time trying to justify your choices. You don't need to know the final outcome of everything you do. Gratefully accept it when you are inspired to paint something out of your comfort zone. I know for sure, discovering what doesn't work is a great way to finding what does.  Trust your instincts.





“Don’t think about making art.
Just get it done. Let everyone else
decide if it’s good or bad,
whether they love it or hate it.
While they’re deciding, make even more art.”
– Andy Warhol

• Keep your work space separate from your living space. A designated creative zone is crucial to peace of mind.
• Not all artists will agree with the following and that's ok:  If you use photos for reference, print them in black and white if it helps you paint better values.  Take lot of pictures, keep them all --  Blog everything including your blunders, then put them behind you.  Photoshop is your friend and technology is good.

Lanky Teen painting of young cat in window

Lanky Teen  Oil on wood  6" x 6"  SOLD

Love, love, love this one.  Can't remember being so happy with a cat painting and it's not even my cat!  The awesome photo reference for this painting was provided by Robyn at Love & Hisses.  Thank you, Robyn!

Fall Flowers painting of nasturtium orange

Fall Flowers  Oil on wood  6" x 6"  SOLD

I've done a few variations of this one, I never tire of the pretty Nasturtiums.

Two Hollyhocks painting of flowers

Two Hollyhocks  Oil on wood  6" x 6" 

Painting critters for a few days has enabled me to approach flowers again with a refreshed enthusiasm.  Also looking forward to painting a few vintage toys this week too.

Garden Roses red floral flower pair paintings

Garden Roses I & II  Oil on wood  each 12" x 9"  NFS

Roses are hard!  But this time around, I think I got it right.  Last time I tried a pair of rose paintings was here.  These have less stem and more bloom and that definitely did the trick. 

Mull it Over Monday: Art 24 hours, 7 days a week, is this healthy?

I think or do art 24/7.   Sound familiar?  The roses in the front yard don't just demonstrate my husband's new found ability to prune-- they are reference material and that thing I want to do with the color red.  I'm the distracted wench with the camera at____________ (Fill in the blank, all events, locals anytime are correct.)    When I'm in art mode which is almost always, I'm sourcing material, seeking counsel, assesing venues for sales and percolating ideas for future work.  It annoys, it excites and it can be exhausting.   ...in quiet moments I wonder if life is much bigger than my artist filter brain is computing but it's hard to disconnect...and I'm not sure I want to.  Stapleton Kearns wrote about it here.  I love that he makes no apologies for art 24/7.  Outside of my dedicated art activities, I've managed to keep the rest of my life pretty simple.  While I'm not one of those people who believes being "happy" is the end-all or even necessary for a worthwhile life.  Yet, I manage to feel happy fairly often.  There's this idea that a sacrifice is somehow necessary to have what we want... 


Do you believe that "you can't have your cake and eat it too?"   That rare time in the studio when we know we're creating something beautiful or meaningful is worth gold to many of us.  Many artists gladly sacrifice wordly resources, cash money and amazing effort to have that time.  Despite occasional second thoughts Art 24/7 does seem to be a way of life here...  personally I don't feel like I've sacrificed all that much...  Have you sacrificed something for your art??

Paul Guthrie Neilson a portrait painting

Paul the Framer  Watercolor and Color Pencil on Paper 20" x 16"  2003  NFS

This is my late friend Paul Guthrie Neilson.  We used to have our morning coffees together when I had a live/work space in San Pedro, CA.   He was mild mannered, wise and funny and always good company.  When I opened my studio for First Thursday Art Walks, he'd lug his portable piano over and play showtunes.  He was also a talented framer whose services I could never fully afford.  One time he let me do this portrait as partial payment for framing.  About a year after I left CA, Paul died unexpectedly in his sleep.  A mutual friend told me his family displayed the portrait at his memorial.  I'm so grateful I had the chance to know him and I think of him often.

Blue Irises plus a link to Twitter

Blue Hued Irises 

Here's a recent project, blue hued irises that reminded me how much I enjoy painting flowers.  Despite painting cats and creatures lately, I continue to accumulate more still life props.  You can see those on my TWITTER feed.  (:

Mull it Over Monday: The 3 Top Killjoys for the beginning artist, sorry.

Cobalt Clues, available here.

1) Your art drama is not that interesting.   Your family, friends and most non artists will not get it. Unless it relates directly to them, most people have a limited tolerance for your latest painting ideas and art supply purchases...   Even good news can get old.  I remember telling a friend:"I hope the day will arrive when I don't have to shout from a rooftop and do a happy dance everytime I sell a painting."  That day has yet to arrive, but my allotment of bragging rights is long over!  Save the art talk for fellow artists who love to hear all about it!

2) The work you do in the near future probably won't be dramatically improved, be patient.  What I really want to say is that improvement happens over the long haul.  It's important to work the path you are on.  Stay on it long enough to use your unique successes as equally unique stepping stones.  If you haven't seen this Ira Glass animated quote about being creative, it's a must see. I think I first saw it on Linda Popple's art blog.


3) You're gonna have to paint more than many to get where you want to go. "Painting more" isn't really a killjoy-- but it's worth mentioning.  I'm grateful to every gallery that ever represented my art. But sometimes galleries aren't the end-all answer. You need enough art to go around. Try here, try there. Try this, try that. Some of it will come back to you, unsold.  It's not pretty but having a lot of art in stock gives you a minute to figure out what will work for you.

Chicken painting of farm animal

Chicken  Oil on wood  6" x 6"  SOLD

My Sister told me to paint chickens.  She said there aren't enough good chicken paintings in the world.  (heh, not to mention her kitchen)  I had planned three large chicken paintings with semi abstract backgrounds (in photoshop) and got a less than enthusiastic "eh" from her on those...and so, here's a sweet and simple chicken.  Despite my snarky self, I like this painting very much and I suspect I'll do more. 
On a related note:  I had been searching for good reference photos of chickens and  Jala Pfaff recommended love-and-hisses.com.  Blogger Robyn Anderson documents her life on an Alabama farm there.  She shares pictures of her no-kill cat shelter, garden, pigs, dogs and chickens.  I can't say enough nice things about Robyn, she loves what she does and it shows.  Her blog is a treasure trove of wonderful pictures, stories and advice.  I used a photo from Love and Hisses as reference for this painting with Robyn's permission.  Thank you, Robyn!!

Lark & Key Gallery Opening Reception

This Friday night is the opening reception for the Table Manners show at Lark & Key in Charlotte, North Carolina.  Table Manners promises to offer "functional pottery for your table and a feast for your eyes!"  I'm very excited to have paintings included in this exhibit!  Unfortunately, I can't attend the opening--But if you are in the area, do stop in and see it! 

Cat Nouveau oil painting cat

Cat Nouveau  Oil on wood  6" x 6" 

Here's my attempt to combine Coco with an art nouveau pattern that includes a flower, butterfly and bird...  Maybe a bit much for such a small painting.  But I will return to the art nouveau motif w/cats or flowers again.  Note to self:  Buy smaller brushes!

Mull it Over Monday: A Brief Ramble on the Subject of Blog Comments

This painting received many comments, cluing me in that
maybe I had actually painted something half way decent.
American Greetings bought the rights to use it on greeting cards 
and it is one of my all time personal favorites!  SOLD

Like most artists, I am prone to the suggestive influence of visitor comments at the end of my blog posts.  I'm not presenting diamond encrusted skulls...  People generally don't take offense to flower paintings and kitty cats--comments tend to be astute and encouraging...  (:  One thing I noticed though, is that unless you are a Carol Marine or a Qiang-Huang--  receiving comments is not a given for every blog, no matter how good the art.   Most bloggers must actually leave comments on other blogs to receive comments.  Leaving comments for fellow artists is on my to-do list.  Not unlike doing housework (only more so.)  While I enjoy leaving comments purely out of admiration for the art----the first blogs I visit are the people who left comments on my blog.  It's important to return the visit and say something constructive back!  Did you know that when a blog post receives multiple comments, Google places it higher up in searches?

Another perk to leaving comments is an increase in your own traffic. I know one blogger who leaves outrageously sweet, enthusiastic and sometimes very funny comments.  She's playing it smart, her comments pique the interest of everyone who then visit her blog.  She's has hundreds of adoring followers and her art is getting proper attention too.  Just a little food for thought on comments.  Comments?