Artist Renee Lammers

    Here are a few of Claude Monet's paintings.  He painted a variety of different subjects.  I believe this is a good idea.  Some of his paintings remind me of a beautiful tapestry.  I enjoyed my hot tea this morning and admired his paintings.

    This looks like one of his earlier works.  Artists style can change over time.  Sometimes artists experiment with a new style just for a day.  I think it is a great idea to experiment!

   Each of his paintings are interesting and beautiful!

 

   His brushstrokes were very expressive.  I would have liked to watch him paint.

   Almost all of Monet's work was completed outdoors on location or en plein air.  He had a helper carry four or five canvases out to different locations all day long.  For a few hours he would work on one painting until the light from the sun changed too much to continue for the day.  Then he would relocate to another painting location.  He would work on another painting.  He would do this all day long.  I have read he worked on some paintings for years.  The surface of the paintings are very impasto or thick with paint.  There are other areas where the paint is thin.  There are whites from the canvas still showing in areas. 

   I drove Daisy and Duke to the Great Mountain Preserve near my house for a hike.  We only hiked a half a mile.   Daisy started to walk very very slow.  I stood there petting her and giving her words of encouragement.  Then we turned around and walked very very slowly back to the car.  She looked like she was limping just a little.  

    I think I will take Daisy and Duke for car rides and trips to the lake to swim.  Hiking is boring and difficult for  Daisy.  We will just adjust our trip's activities.  

     I just agreed to participate in the North Light Gallery's invitational paintout September 13-15.  It is close to my house, within a few hours.  I like Marsha, North Light Gallery's owner and artist.  Last year she took great care of us.  I like to paint in Millinocket and Baxter State Park.  

   Have a great night!  I hope Monet's paintings inspired you to paint!

   "Ferris Wheels at the Blue Hill Fair" 11x14 oil on Clausens 15 Linen mounted on board by Raymar.  Sold.

   I was eager to paint at the Blue Hill Fair today!  I arrived at 1pm before the gates were open.  I just strolled right into the fair with my painting equipment in tow!  I set up in a safe place with this view.  For five hours I worked painting. The fair workers were all very nice.  I thought I would use up this Raymar Linen board.   

   Here is a close up view of the top of the ferris wheel.  It was challenging to paint!  

  Here is another close up on the bottom of the ferris wheel.  Maybe you can imagine a few people on the right?  

   Here is a scene at the fair today at 1pm.  Later in the day there are lovely long shadows from the ferris wheels.

  

   Here is Duke looking a little bit bored today.  I am sure he would have loved to go to the Blue Hill Fair!  Tomorrow I am going back to the Blue Hill Fair again to paint!  What fun!

   Here is Duke with  chicken livers wrapped into a pig roll.  When I returned from working out at the YMCA, Duke put his front feet onto the arm rest of my chair, and howled.   Duke was asking for a treat.  He hardly ever does this unless he thinks a pig roll treat is in order!  We communicate pretty well for being different species.  He likes to show off his treat until he discovers a safe place to enjoy his treat.  Daisy has stolen Duke's treat often.  Poor boy.

    He often waits until Daisy has settled down first.  Then he will find a place!  If you let Duke outside with his treat, he will bury it.  Once he hid his treat among weightlifting dumbbells inside the house.   

   Daisy asleep with her silk pillows.  She doesn't look like a dog who would take away Duke's treat!

   Flowers at Fort Point State Park.  

     I am very excited about the Blue Hill Fair starting August 30 for five days.  I will be painting inside the fair!  Sometimes I even paint at night at the fair.  I always enjoy this event.  Sometimes a few local plein air painters join me!  Have a good night.  Let's paint!

   It was such a beautiful day!  I decided to visit Acadia National Park.  I just felt like walking today!  Here are a few photos of the park.

   Duke and Daisy are sparkling clean!  Duke had two different baths.  He rolled around in dirt after the first bath.  

   Have a great night!  

     This entrance is called the Bottle Gate!

    The beautiful gardens of Abbe Rockefeller on Mount Desert Island are nothing like I have ever seen!  The garden is located in Seal Harbor.  Here is the garden's information:  http://rockgardenmaine.wordpress.com/

    Beatrix Farrand collaborated with Mrs. John D. Rockefeller in 1920 to create this garden surrounded by a wall of glazed gold tiles imported from the Imperial Palace in Beijing.  Since then a member of the Rockefeller family along with a master gardener have continued the tradition.

    Today I had a golden ticket for the entrance of this private gardens.  Lucia and I were escorted by a Master Gardener into the gardens.  He told us details about how certain plants were cared for, how certain gardens were created, and other things making the visit more special.  

    You first drive onto a road from Route 3.  I have never noticed this road before.  They have a green sign they place by the road for four hours and then remove the sign.  So it is unlikely to see the entrance normally.  There are three different guards helping you park.  Then you walk down a gravel lane along a long pink wall with gold tiles.  This is the entrance into the gardens.  Surrounding these gardens are the private lands of the Rockefeller family.  The ground is completely covered in green moss grown by spraying Buttermilk on the lawn.  Yes, Buttermilk.  

   You walk along a gravel path lined with tall Asian granite sculptures.  This path is called The Spirit Path.

   This was of my favorite parts of the garden.  Down into the dark crack within the green moss is a man made creek.  You could hear the water running!   Granite ledges were created leaving a few inches of the creek showing.  Then the green mosses were allowed to grow.  Most people might think this was completely natural.  They also placed red pine needles on the ground.  This red color complements the color of green moss!

    I would love to have this granite ledge pond in my backyard!  The rocks are kept clean inside the pond by the gardeners.  The pond is man made but somehow natural looking. 

      There are numerous flower beds on two levels within a walled garden.  Here are miniature daisies.  There are interesting shaped entrances in the long pink wall surrounding the garden.

 

     Here is the Frog Pond.  There really are many large Frog enjoying the pond!

      Here is a view of the formal gardens within the pink wall.  There are a few entrances with old doors.   

   We had fun taking photos of each other in the different doorways of the formal gardens. Here I am in the Moon Gate.   Well!  That finishes the tour today!  Have a nice day!  I hope you enjoyed it!  Let's paint!

"Thuya Garden's Flowers" 8x10 oil on copper.  Sold. Thanks.

   I met Lucia to paint at Thuya Gardens on Mount Desert Island.  First we asked permission to paint inside the gardens.  The head gardener said yes with a smile!  So all day long we painted.  We found obscure locations as not to be in any photographs from the guests.  We left our cell phones in the car.  Good idea to be respectful of the head gardener. 

"Lilies of Thuya Garden" 8x10 oil on copper  Sold.  Thanks.

   Here is my second painting today.  I took a break in the shade between paintings.  I walked around and looked at the flowers.  I admired Hummingbirds and Butterflies.  I am making sure to enjoy my surroundings more.  I had to add more Lilies than were present.  There was only a half a white Lily on the right.  There were two clumps of Star Gazer Lilies on the left.  I liked the idea of a line of lilies.  Hummingbirds flew around me while I was painting on a few different occasions.  Their fluttering wings sound a little quieter than a weed wacker. 

      A man asked me if I was going to paint in one of the Hummingbirds?  I told him I had thought about this.   I didn't know if I could do this without a photo.  He suggested he talk me through painting the Hummingbird.   This was a first!  He said  for me to picture a Hummingbird ornament for a Christmas tree.  I did sit there for a minute trying to remember what such an ornament might look like!  Garden people are so much fun! I didn't paint in the Hummingbird.  Maybe I should practice painting a Hummingbird from a computer monitor.  Then I know I could paint a Hummingbird on location!

   I think I may have inspired a few dozen people to start Beekeeping!  

   When the head gardener wasn't looking, a Red Squirrel climbed up the Sunflower stalks to eat a few seeds!  He froze.  He saw us watching him.  Later I overheard one of the gardeners talking about this Red Squirrel.  They knew about his activities.

I thought he was cute.  Many garden guests admired him.  

Here are a few happy Monarch Butterflies enjoying flowers.  This activity is allowed in the garden.

    The Lilies are almost done.  There are still many lovely flowers.

   Tomorrow I was invited to tour the Abbe Rockefeller Gardens.  I am allowed to bring a guest.  So Lucia will be joining us. 

    I will show you pictures of the garden tomorrow!  How exciting!

"Birch Tree at Seal Harbor" 8x10 oil on copper. Sold. Thanks.

   Today was an exciting painting day.  My friend Lucia.   She is a great painter.    I drove to Mount Desert Island to paint with Lucia today.  We were painting along the street at Seal Harbor.  A helicopter landed behind us in a field.  Men left on a golf cart, driving right by us.  I waved to the elderly gentlemen in the front (who turned out to be David Rockefeller).  In the back was a refined looking gentleman who was videoing Lucia and I.  Later this gentleman came to see our paintings and meet us.  He turned out to be David Rockefeller's personal physical therapist!  He and David Rockefeller had just returned from having lunch with President Bush at his family complex in Maine.  He liked both of our paintings.  It was so much fun to hear about his day!  

   Here is Lucia on the right painting while on the left you can see the helicopter landing!  We both were speculating on who the passengers were!   Was it going to be Martha Stewart?  Or President Obama?  There are so many famous people who live here or visit.

     Luckily I always carry my camera!  

    I think this was the helicopter pilot getting out.  There were a few guards too.  

   Here is another view of the large Birch tree.  I am heading back to the same spot tomorrow to paint!  What a fun day.  

   Let's paint!

"Low Tide at Seal Harbor" 8x8 oil on copper Sold.  Thanks.

   I received an email from the Bold Brush Painting Competition by FASO my painting, "Low Tide at Seal Harbor" was selected for the top 15% of the Judge's favorites.  There are hundreds of painting entries.  So it is nice this painting was selected.  

    I am off to paint in Bar Harbor today!

     Here is Daisy and Duke receiving a Frosty Paws Ice Cream Treat for a painting sale last week.  They said "Thank You Brenda!".   

    Here is Duke retrieving a stick and looking for a fish at the same time!  

    Daisy swimming today at Lake Alamoosook.  

Here are a few photos from Thuya Garden from my trip to Mount Desert Island a few weeks ago.

 I have been staying close to home.  My car needs tires!  I was wondering why the car sounded so loud!  

 I also have run out of copper!  So I must wait for my check from Bucks County Fine Art Gallery. 

  I will watch Daisy and Duke swim.  Maybe I will exercise.   Have a good night.

"Dreaming of Sushi" 6x6 oil on copper 350$ Framed in gold wood.  Shipped free.

     Here is the last Sushi I ate on Nantucket in 2010.  It was delicious.  Today I was dreaming of Sushi.  I think Sushi may be my favorite food.  It is beautiful to eat and healthy.  It was just as fun to paint as the sushi was to eat!  Well almost.

"Awakening" 6x6 oil on copper 350$ Framed in black and gold wood.  Shipped free.

    Water is fun to paint.  So are these old Cod Dories.  

    Daisy and Duke barked loudly until Robert and I received the message!  They wanted to go for a car ride!  So we drove to Castine to watch the sunset.  

   

Castine always has fantastic sunsets.  Often there are rainbows, sun dogs, white rainbows. 

    The streets scenes in Castine are beautiful even at night.  Elm trees are the very tall trees.  White picket fences are everywhere.  

   Beautiful Tug Boat at the dock!

  
    Daisy and Duke are now asleep.  Without them we would not spend so much time at the lake or in Castine watching sunsets!  Have a great night!  Let's paint!

   Robert and I have a tandem Kayak.  We like to Kayak in Lake Alamoosook.  The water was calm today!  There are several little islands to paddle around.  Here is one of them.  Loons nest here in the Spring.

     We stopped at one island.  We decided to swim out around the island immediately to our left.  Not the island way off in the distance!  After we swam around one island we swam out into the middle of the lake and back.  Robert pointed out a few large rocks and a tree trunk so I didn't smash my head on either one!  There are a few dangers of swimming in a Maine lake.  

The water was the perfect temperature to swim!

   It is wonderfully quiet here on Lake Alamoosook.  Once in awhile a Loon pops his head out of the water.   I may try to swim out to this island again.   I am trying to have more fun.  I tend to work very hard painting and painting.  

   The water is crystal clear.  There seems to be a lot of fool's gold mixed with the gravel.  

   After kayaking we brought Daisy and Duke to the lake for a swim.  Here is Daisy lowering herself in a really cold creek coming off of Craig's Pond.  It is so cold Daisy only stays in this water for a minute before she jumps up and runs off!  She prefers Lake Alamoosook's water a few feet away from this creek. 

      Duke was doing his usual fishing.  I think he did knock out a fish or step on one.  But he didn't see this.  I saw the fish struggling.  Then the fish recovered and swam away.  We will give Duke a half a point for fishing today. 

    I hope you are having a great Summer!  Have a good night.

   Here is a great view of Alamoosook Lake.  We live very close to this lake.  Daisy and Duke just love it here!  

  Another view of Lake Alamoosook.  The clouds made lovely reflections on the lake.  

  Duke searching for a Fish.  

   What a beautiful Summer day!  I am enjoying not painting or driving much!   Have a great day!

        After the month of October, many tourists have left Maine.  After the month of October, many Summer Maine residents have left Maine.  From the month of October all the way to June, my painting sales are generally from my website!  Without a strong website and large client base, I would not generate any income during those quiet months.  I am very thankful of my website.

http://faso.com/boldbrush/painting/36738

Here is the link to vote for this month's painting.  Click like only once.  Thank you!  Have a great day!

   I drove to Mount Desert Island.  I feel very lucky to live only 45 minutes away.  I wanted to take as many great photos as possible!   All the boats will be pulled from the water soon.   This is Somes Sound from Southwest Harbor.  

    These little boxes in the water are filled with lobsters!  

   This is the entrance to Thuya Gardens!  Notice the hand carved wood doors done by Mr. Savage?  The gardeners only put the wooden doors on after Spring until the end of Summer to protect them.  

   The Thuya garden has a cottage to tour.  They always have an arrangement created from the flowers in the gardens and antique vases.  

   August is peak flower time in Thuya!  

  There were many people touring the Thuya Gardens!  

   Here is a view from the top of Cadillac Mountain in Acadia National Park.  Have a great night!  This is an excellent time to add a painting to your collection!

   I found a few old photos from 2007.  This is Daisy and Duke's first time inside of their new home, a 2008 Airstream International 25 foot RV Trailing (Ocean Breeze 75th Anniversary Edition).  Daisy seemed a little more impressed.  She quickly claimed the couch.  Duke, however, is not as excited.  He enjoyed his home and fenced backyard in Florida.  

  Here they are a year later at a campground in Maine.  Duke looks a lot more relaxed.  Daisy is sleeping!  

   They saw Robert pull up in this car!  Robert is home!  

    All day I have been locating painting images and photographs for a book!  I am 48 years old.  I would like to have this book published before I am 50.   The book will showcase paintings completed thus far.  I will also show Daisy and Duke's best photos!  I will write stories concerning painting, living in an Airstream, and Daisy and Duke.

"Perfect View" 6x6 oil on copper. 350$ 

"Jordon's Pond Bridge" 6x8 oil on copper just sold!   Thanks Brenda!  Your support is very appreciated!

      Daisy and Duke will still celebrate each painting sale with the Frosty Paws Ice Cream Treat! 

  

   It was a warm Summer day!  I declared today Duke and Daisy Day!  Last night I told Duke all the places I would take him.  I told him all of things we were going to do!  His ears perked up when I mentioned car ride, swimming, ice cream!  Robert said, "Do you think he understands you?"  I said, "Yes, he does."  Then he asked me, "Do you understand what Duke barks about?".  I said, "No."  Then Robert said, "Who is smarter, Duke or You?"  I said, "Duke is smarter".  Hmmm.

   Duke likes to walk around this creek searching for minnows.  People stop and watch Duke.  He is completely unaware of all the attention he gets.  He is deep in concentration.  The water is ice cold.  I can not even keep my feet in this creek for more than a minute.  

   Daisy prefers the water at Alamoosook Lake.  This water is so much warmer than Duke's creek.  

   Every once in awhile, Daisy will come over to Duke's Creek and lower herself very slowly.  Then she runs to the lake again.  I always need to keep an eye on Daisy.  She is developing cataracts in her eyes.  She is having difficulty seeing.  It is very sad.  Her hips are also bothering her.  She has difficulty climbing down the stairs.  So we have a barricade by the  stairs to prevent her from falling down.  Duke has been cleaning Daisy's fur more often lately.  She is in otherwise fine shape! 

   Here is Duke taking a dip in the lake.  

  Daisy enjoying her Frosty Paws Ice Cream Treat in celebration for a painting sale in New Hope, PA.  Thank you!  

   Here is Duke enjoying his Frosty Paws!  Sometimes they bark in unison before the ice cream treat.

   Here is the view across Lake Alamoosook!  There are small islands in this lake.

     Here are Robert's Lilies.  He grew these lilies for me to paint.  I feel tired from traveling.  I am feeling lazy!  Yes it is hard to believe!  Maybe I deserve a few days of rest.  Let's paint soon!

"The Lily" 5x7 watercolor.  100$ framed in oak, under glass, with a white mat.  Shipped free.

"Casablanca" 5x7 watercolor, framed under glass with a white mat in oak frame.  Shipped.

       I have studied watercolor for over 25 years.  Some days I just feel like painting with watercolor instead of oil!  

     Two Winters ago I was daydreaming about sitting in front of White Lilies painting them.  That Summer I went to Thuya Garden, asked permission to paint the White Lilies, and was allowed to paint them standing 10 feet away.  The head gardener wanted me to stay 10 feet away from these White Lilies so I would not be in any of the photos taken by the garden's guests.  The problem was I couldn't paint any details! I could not even smell the White Lilies from where I was positioned.  I couldn't see the radiant quality of light bouncing off these White Lilies as I imagined.  

     So the next year Winter came.  I was dreaming about the White Lilies again...but this time planning!  I bought some White Casablanca Lily bulbs in the Spring.  Robert graciously planted them.  To my delight they have grown and blossomed!  They are simply magnificent!  

    I painted five other White Lily watercolors today.  Two came out good!  I like to draw out five or six.  Then I paint loosely having fun!  I know only a few will turn out.  This is a fun thing to do!  Have a great night!  Get out and paint!

   Here is Daisy resting as usual on top of her silk pillows. She is also enjoying an AC unit especially installed for them.   Seems like only yesterday when I brought these beautiful silk pillows stuffed with feathers home.  Daisy right away claimed them.  See how some of the tassels are missing on the gold pillow?  Daisy took those tassels off in 2004.  I might have trained her to keep off these pillows.  I decided long ago these were Daisy's pillows.  I have enjoyed painting, drawing, and taking photos of her enjoying them.

   In contrast here are two feral cats living in Castine.  They were thin and weak.  There were three of them living in the woods.  I hope someone helps them before Winter.

   I took the day off to go to the Farnsworth Museum to see the Frank Benson's Impressionist paintings.  They were exquisite.  I admired his brushstrokes especially after seeing flat looking Alex Katz's paintings.  Then I went to Colin Page's opening next door at the Dowling Walsh Gallery.  I complemented and congratulated Colin Page for his successful show!  

  I was amazed at how many types of boats I could see with in one area!  See the little tug?

   I have been out searching for a Dory to paint.  I have not been able to find a singe Dory.  I found one, the Hunky Dory, at Owls Head wharf last Autumn.  I did ask where this dory was.  A lobster man told me he knew the man who owned this dory.  The dory is in the man's yard.  Oh well.  I have two photos of this dory.  I have painted four paintings from these two photos.  I would like to have a collection of dory photos to work from this Winter.  There are dories in Grand Manan, Canada.  I am waiting for a few days of sun.  Then I will go find a few dories there!  

 

   What a pretty Pigeon I found in Rockland, Maine!  Have a great night!  Let's paint!  

   I woke up early, drew many Fife Yachts from the computer, drank one hot tea, and drove to Castine, Maine!  First I went to the docks.  Seemed like most of the Fifes and other sailboats were heading out.  A lady said to try Fort Madison.  She said I might have the perfect view.  Well this is my view of the Yachts passing by to the starting point of the race.  Very thick fog rolled in!  I could only see a few boats.  We could hear them slowly pass by.

   A lady asked me why I like to paint boats.  I had to think about this for a minute.  I love water.  I spent a lot of time when I was young in a little john boat with my parents and brother.  My Dad loved to leave early in the morning.  Most of the time we boated at Lake Butler in Orlando.  He enjoyed touring the chain of lakes there.  Sometimes we would all fish.   My brother and I admired the bait.  We always swam.  It was a nice time.  

   When I grew up, I purchased a very nice one year old Bayliner 20 foot with a cabin.  I purchased this boat from a bank.  They had repossessed the boat from a drug dealer.  The boat had a giant engine!  The Bank had not properly identified the boat on the invoice.  They called it an outboard.  It was a very expensive boat but somehow I paid a lot less than it was worth.  I kept the boat at different marinas on the St. John's River.  I had fun boating up and down the canals.   My brother knew the river well. A few times I skied around the alligators!   I sold the boat after a while for a small profit.

    Then I purchased a very old 1967 Whitcraft 42 feet ocean going houseboat!  I remember my Dad saying on the phone, "You did what?".  My plan was to keep this boat at the marina in Sanford so I might easier commute to my college at Stetson University.  I didn't pay much for this large vessel.  I only paid 8,500$.  It was two stories high, two staterooms (bedrooms), bathroom, and a kitchen.  On the top was a nice 7 foot couch, blue canvas surrounding a second helm (area to drive the boat).  The boat even came with a 17 foot skiff hanging off the back.  So did I drive the boat?  No!  I hired a captain to move the boat to a different marina.  Houseboats are mostly for marina overnight stays.  I did host an Christmas party one year for 25 guests.  This is all before I became a professional artist.  I owned a successful flower business for 23 years.  

   The boat was always leaking.  I would be studying for a Chemistry test and get a call from the marina.  "Renee, your boat at the marina is listing(leaning) very badly."  Then I would drive down to the marina and spend the next four hours bailing out water.  I would drink two or three Redbulls (energy drinks) to get the job done!  Bailing water out of a yacht is great for strengthening your stomach muscles.

   Did I ever stay on my boat at the marina so I could commute easier to college?  No!  Duke did not want to stay aboard the boat!  No matter what I did, I could not get Duke up the steps to the platform to step over onto the boat.  He just would not go.  Once I had Daisy on board.  Then I tried so hard to coax Duke to get up there.  He started to howl.  Daisy became nervous.  She looked like she would jump off.  (Florida has tons of alligators in the St. John's River)  So we all left.  When we were leaving, Duke saw the marina pool, escaped, and leaped into the pool to the delight of a few kids swimming.  Duke was really adorable (four months old).  I could not get him out of the pool.  Daisy was whining.  She wanted to swim too.  What a mess.  Finally I was able to catch Duke.  I never took Daisy and Duke down the marina again.  I sold the boat for a 2000$ profit later.  It must have been those cute curtains my Mom and I sewed for the boat!  They were made of underwater material. Those curtains made the boat!   

    Right after Robert and I were married, I had this idea we would learn how to sail.  I enrolled us in a sailing class in St. Augustine, Florida.  We did graduate with our sailing license.  The Captain who taught us to sail made us promise to never ever take out a sail boat without hiring a Captain to go too.  Yes, we were really bad at sailing. But isn't two days of lessons too little of time to be great sailors?   Robert was great at working with the lines.   I had no idea which command to yell out!  So I would announce, "Hard A Lee!"  and the Captain would look at me.  Then I would realize I had yelled out the wrong command, so I would announce the other one (Jibe Ho!).  There are only two commands.  So Robert would have ran in the front of the sailboat for the lines, but then have to run for the other lines.  The Captain told me it was only a matter of time before Robert would lose his footing, trip, and fall overboard.  We had to spend an extra day of training to graduate.  We spent many hours trying to retrieve a dummy.  We ran over the dummy several times with the sailboat.  The Captain would cover his face.  He really used much self control!  He told us if one of us ever fell overboard, to not try to retrieve the person.  He told us to come up with a plan.  Our plan was to have the person overboard swim to shore.  The person left aboard would try to call for help, or get the sailboat back to the harbor, get the car, and retrieve the other person who had to swim.   We have never tried to sail again.  

    When I am along the ocean painting, I have a greater appreciation for Sailboats and Yachts.  They are so beautiful!  Sometimes I am thinking, "How do they do this?" 

Here are a few flowers for those who don't enjoy boats!  Have a great night!  Let's paint!

"Brilliant Colors of Wadsworth Cove" 6x6 oil on copper Sold.

   Here is my sunset plein air efforts last night!  Robert came with me and took a video.  Here is my first plein air painting video!  I hope you like it.  Good night!  

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