Save the Date: Opening Reception August 4th

Planning your summer calendar? Pencil me in!

There is an Opening Reception at Bishop's Stock Fine Art on Friday, August 4th, 5-8pm, to kick off my two-woman show there during the month of August. I am showing all new work.

Plus, the annual Blessing of the Combines is the following day in Snow Hill, MD. Should be a really fun weekend!

Paint Snow Hill 2017

Paint Snow Hill 2017, the short version:

For the past 11 years in a row I have spent the 3rd week in April at the plein air (outdoor) painting event in Snow Hill, Maryland. The stars aligned so that my kindergartner's Spring Break matched up with my painting trip, so once again we also had a family vacation during the paint-out. My little video was the talk of the town and even got me recognized on the street by a stranger. By Saturday I had 7 finished paintings to show for my efforts. 1 of my paintings sold, 1 traded for another artist's work, and 1 stayed in Snow Hill for the upcoming plein air exhibition at Bishop’s Stock Gallery in May 2017.

Paint Snow Hill 2017, the long version:

Work in progress - "Morning on Church Street," acrylic on wood, 8 x 8 inches, sold.

On Thursday I set my alarm for 5am, so I could get fully caffeinated and out the door before sunrise. But I must have needed more sleep because it was 7:30am before I was set up near the corner of Federal and Church to paint the lovely play of light and tree shadows on the side of this home. An hour later I realized it was Ann and Randy Coates' house when Randy came out walking Sarge and Moe (their sweet dogs) to work. They bought the finished painting--THANK YOU!--and it's hanging in their kitchen now. Paint Snow Hill started in 2004, so it is amazing that this year was the first time anyone (me and Alison Menke) chose the organizer's home as their subject.

Work in progress - "Recycle Day on Federal #1" and "Recycle Day on Federal #2," each acrylic on canvas panel, 6 x 6 inches. 

I headed further down Federal, parked in front of the Flag Man's house (an actual place), facing southwest. Not only do I paint sitting in my car most of the time, but, yes, what you see here are my sketches and panels taped to the steering wheel. That is how I worked. And then, a lady named Beth out for a walk on her lunch break leaned in my passenger side window and said, "You're just colorin'!" because she recognized me from my Youtube video. Which was both awesome and sobering at the same time. That evening I said to Robb, "I broke the internet."

Work in progress - "Gone Fishin'," acrylic on canvas panel, 6 x 12 inches, available at Bishop's Stock Fine Art.

Late Thursday I stopped by Porter's Crossing to paint. There was a very chatty group of fishermen, who weren't catching much. I was chatty right back, so I wasn't catching much either. But I returned Friday morning, determined to take another stab at this peaceful spot. Apparently all I needed was a night to sleep on my ideas. I saw the river outfitters drop off a family of canoers. An old farmer from Westminster checked on my progress several times. He liked to draw as a boy but was not able to continue. He showed me his trembling hands and said, "It runs in the family." I told him that painting and fishing are a lot alike: even a bad day painting is better than a good day at work.

Obligatory selfie looking down Green Street after checking in at Bishop's Stock Fine Art. My "Follow Your HeART" t-shirt is courtesy of Savvy Painter. Thank you, Antrese!

"Gone Fishin'," acrylic on canvas panel, 6 x 12 inches, sold.

Speaking of selfies, the Bayside Gazette must have my headshot on file from last year's interview (p. 18) about Paint Snow Hill because they reused it for this year's event coverage. People are really getting sick of seeing me.

"Instigator," acrylic on canvas panel, 6 x 6 inches, traded away to Jess Cross.

Peer pressure led me astray. Again. I saw on FaceBook that Kirk McBride had been painting over at Ocean City Harbor. I haven't painted there during Paint Snow Hill before. Because the harbor is not in Snow Hill. Or near it. Not even close.

But my thought process went like this: "That's less than a mile from my hotel....if Kirk's doing it, it must be fine..."

"Tiki XIV," acrylic on canvas panel, 5 x 7 inches, available.

Nope, completely out of bounds. I completed 2 naughty paintings while there.

The Instigator docks across from The Shark bar & restaurant and Atlantic Tackle (used to be Ake Marine), and I had a particularly calm morning to paint her. The Tiki XIV docks further up, along the municipal lot. I painted her under a streetlight in complete pre-dawn darkness. Sunrise sneaks up fast, so this painting took 2 sittings to complete, starting at 5:30am on Friday and Saturday.

Our hotel room was on the second floor, and I decided not to lug all of my gear up and down the stairs. That meant painting, signing, varnishing, and framing all happened in my car this time. Definitely a first.

Of course the Easter Bunny found us at our hotel. Also, we had lots of
disregarded bedtimes and a trip the zoo and ice cream for lunch and sightings of wild ponies and movies and an egg hunt on the beach and putt putt.

"Morning on Church Street," acrylic on wood panel, 8 x 8 inches, sold.

Back before we had kids and a mortgage, Robb and I lived in Ocean City while he finished his degree. A little known fact about Old Pro Golf: if you've ever worked there, you get to play miniature golf for free for life (as long as someone recognizes you). And this is how we continue to reap the benefits of part time jobs of yesteryear. The kiddos made it through 9 holes of dino-golf before we retreated to the arcade. That little one can really fling a skeeball--guard your head!

"Recycle Day on Federal #1," acrylic on canvas panel, 6 x 6 inches.

I had a wonderful dinner and visit with my dear friends Jessie and Cindy Lingebach. My daughters decided that the Lingebach sisters are twins now, so when the Mowery sisters grow up they can be twins, too. Thanks for making the trek to the shore for me!

Also, the Jess Cross display at my house grew once again. I traded "Instigator" for one of her enchanting alcohol ink on Yupo paper creations. More on this in another post.

"Recycle Day on Federal #2," acrylic on canvas panel, 6 x 6 inches.

My painting “Gone Fishin'” stayed behind to be included in the Plein Air Paintings exhibition at Bishop’s Stock Gallery, in Snow Hill, MD. The opening reception for the show is Friday, May 5th, from 5-8pm. I hope you can come!

Some links for you:
Paint Snow Hill page on FaceBook, so you can get it on your 2018 calendar.
Kirk McBride, general bad influence.
Bishop’s Stock Fine Art, plein air exhibition in May.
Bets Cole, winner of 2017 Artist’s Choice Award. Hooray!
Jess Cross, badass.
Savvy Painter, amazing resource for artists.
Old Pro Golf, source of family fun.

Up with the Sun

Even with the holiday season beginning, I was able to squeeze in painting time last month. Here are a couple of small (6 x 6 inches) paintings I made recently. Above is "Runoff" and below is "Time to Make the Donuts" (sold).

Add a duck!

Some progress shots of another river painting in the works. While I was working on it last night, I showed it to Robb for feedback. He said, "It needs something....why don't you add a duck?" He was being (at least half) serious, but I giggled so hard that I'm afraid, "Add a duck!" might become his standard response to all future painting questions. I will post the finished painting in the next few days. Probably without a duck.

3: Ocean City Harbor scene

"View from The Shark" - 5"x7", acrylic and china marker on canvas panel, 2015.



One of my high school teachers asked me if I had any beach or boat paintings. When I told him that I'm mainly into farms and trees, he said I needed to expand my repertoire. Thanks for the challenge, Fred Husman! Using a picture he took of Ocean City Harbor looking toward Assateague Island for inspiration, I made a series of sketches. The painting above is my first stab at it. And I'm working on a looser, larger version as well.

2: Three years thinking about this one

"Dave's House" - 11" x 14", acrylic and china marker on Gessobord, 2015 -- SOLD.

Dave lives along the highway in Snow Hill, Maryland. I was a little nervous when he marched toward my car. But he wanted me to pull my car into the driveway, so I would not get clobbered by a chicken truck. He was pretty proud of the fact that the old house frequently attracts artists.

A friend said to me, "Such a nice story," and I told her, "Oh, that's not the story of this painting."

Dave is a tall, thin man with his long hair tied in a low, uncombed ponytail. He walked up shirtless in his Levis and work boots to give me fair warning that he was about to do some target shooting out behind the house. He didn't want me to hear gunfire and freak out. I remain grateful to him for having the forethought to leave his rifle on the porch before coming to talk to me. If I'd seen an armed property owner coming at me while plein air painting...then this would be the story of how I soiled myself and drove like a bat outta hell.

1: Into the mist

"Going Wander-Ways" - 7x5, acrylic and china marker on canvas panel.

The title is from something Keats wrote in a letter to a friend before embarking on a walking tour of Great Britain. Shame he didn't pack a scarf... This painting is of the Pocomoke River as it meanders through Snow Hill, Maryland. I painted it from memory and imagine this to be a misty morning in early spring. There is a fresh, wet, green smell in the air.

Inspiration from rural Wisconsin

"Falling Light" - 5x7, acrylic and china marker on canvas panel.


"The Summer's End " - 5x7, acrylic and china marker on canvas panel.

Summer painting

"How Good to Rise in Sunlight" - 5" x 7", acrylic and china marker on canvas panel -- SOLD. (The title is from a poem by Rita Dove called "Dawn Revisited.")


"Emerald Isle" - 7" x 5", acrylic and china marker on canvas panel -- SOLD.


"Hazy Days" - 5" x 7", acrylic and china marker on canvas panel.


"Midsummer Meadow" - 5" x 7", acrylic on canvas panel.


"Out of One Nothingness into Another" - 7" x 5", acrylic and china marker on canvas panel. (The title comes from a poem by Steve Kowit called "Some Clouds.") -- NFS.


"Ruth's Farm Study" - 7" x 5", acrylic and china marker on canvas panel.


"At Ruth's Farm" - 11"x14", acrylic and china marker on masonite. (Really I don't know the owner of this horse farm's name. Why not Ruth? I just love this farm and drive by it every chance I get.)


"Shall I Find Comfort?" - 5" x 7", acrylic and china marker on canvas panel -- NFS. (The title comes from a poem by Christina Rossetti titled "Up-Hill.")


"Shame About the Highway" - 7" x 5", acrylic and china marker on canvas panel -- SOLD.


"Wakes the Green" - 14" x 11", acrylic and china marker on masonite. (The title comes from a poem by W.S. Merwin called "September Plowing.")


"Will You Stay With Me?" - 6" x 12", acrylic and china marker on canvas. (The title comes from the 1993 Sting song "Fields of Gold.")

I've been a busy girl this summer. Most of these are in the shop now.

Cleaning up and back to work

My husband and daughter gave me a fabulous gift for Mother's Day this year: several hours of uninterrupted studio time. Aahhhh.... So I cleaned up the work table and got to work.



I got a lot of panels prepped for painting. I have been using a color called Process Magenta as my base coat lately. It works the best for me because it creates nice contrast with all the green in my palette. You can see it peeping the finished pieces. And speaking of finished pieces, here are a few that I wrapped up this week.


"Dandelion Breath" - acrylic and china marker on canvas panel, 5" x 7", Barbara Mowery, 2014.


"Meadow Study" - acrylic and china marker on canvas panel, 6" x 4", Barbara Mowery, 2014.


"Mosquito Cut" - acrylic and china marker on canvas, 6" x 12", Barbara Mowery, 2014 - Sold.


"Third's a Charm" - acrylic and china marker on masonite, 9.75" x 12", Barbara Mowery, 2014.

For as busy as I've been, you might notice that my Etsy shop doesn't have any of the new work in it. I am concentrating on building inventory right now. Ann Coates invited me to submit several small paintings for a "smalls" feature wall in June at Bishop's Stock in Snow Hill, Maryland. So I'm painting my little fingers off to put together a cohesive group for that show.

In other news, I am increasing my prices as of June 1, 2014. The most significant change will be to the 5" x 7" sized paintings. If you have had your eye on something in the shop, now might be a good time to purchase.

Paint Snow Hill 2014 recap

This year's Paint Snow Hill (my eighth) still has me reeling with astonishment and gratitude. Here's a photo at the beginning of Saturday night's show. See those paintings next to me? Every one of them went home with someone who wasn't me. That's right, I sold nine paintings!

(I realize that's the climax of the story, and I shouldn't just blurt it out in the first paragraph, but why bury the lead?)



This is my mom outside our little cabin at Shad Landing, part of the Pocomoke River State Park. I have had a lot of morning sickness with this pregnancy, so Mom came with me to Snow Hill to make sure I didn't pass out in a ditch somewhere. We ended up having a terrific time together. It was really nice not to be alone on Easter, too. I painted, and she took walks and made jewelry and read books. And she really kept me on task. I'm not exactly Lindsey Lohan when I leave my family to go on a painting weekend, but Kirk McBride was correct to describe Mom as my "handler." Ordinarily I might have taken naps or long lunches or spend inordinate amounts of time looking at ducklings with David Diaz. (It happens.) Instead Mom made sure I went to bed at a decent hour and ate my veggies and kept on working.

So here are the paintings I made in the order that I made them. I apologize in advance for the iffy quality of photography.


"Beside the Still Waters," 5" x 7", acrylic and china marker on panel - Sold.


"Here, Take My Sweater," 12" x 12", acrylic and china marker on panel - Sold.


"And The Grass It Was A' Ticking," 7" x 5", acrylic and china marker on panel - Sold.


"The Springing of the Year," 7" x 5", acrylic and china marker on panel - Sold.


"Start Where You Are," 5" x 7", acrylic and china marker on panel - Sold.


"Brisk and Shallow Restlessness (of Early Spring)", 7" x 5", acrylic and china marker on panel - Sold.


"Make Me a Channel of Your Peace," 12" x 12", acrylic and china marker on panel - Available.

Some PSH statistics... There were 68 painters laboring for 2-3 days (depending on when they arrived) in the coldest, windiest weather the event has ever known. We sold a total of 47 paintings and raised $2,700 for Arts on the River. I brought one painting from home and picked up two more from Bishop's Stock that had shown in December. I created 7 new pieces in two days of painting. I showed 10 paintings total and sold 9. I finished up the final painting on Sunday morning, "Make Me a Channel of Your Peace," and it remained in Snow Hill for the May show of local artwork at Bishop's Stock.



I purchased this lovely little painting called "Pine Bank" by Lissa Abrams. But I waited until my handler stepped out to buy the Sunday paper. Haha!

Here is a link to my full PSH 2014 photo album with some behind-the-scenes foolishness, shots of the countryside, and a sideways selfie of me looking (I think) very pregnant (although no one else really thinks so). Also worth mentioning was the invitation from Ann Coates of Bishop's Stock to start sending paintings to her on a regular basis. Oh happy day!