Late Afternoon

Late Afternoon, 5 x 7 in.

donation to Arthouse 5 x 7 Art Splurge

Oh, for some rain! It seems as if every other year we have too much, and every other, too little. This field should be ripe with wildflowers and green, but the majority is still brown. We're hoping for some rain this weekend, just in time for Easter and all of it's outdoor activities. But I'm not going to complain. :)

It's so good to be back at the canvas again after a couple of weeks gathering my thoughts and energy post-show. It's interesting what a little time away does, good and bad. I feel a bit rusty, but coming back after a break seems to set me on a new and often more focused course each time.

-julie davis

Oak Alliance

Oak Alliance, 9 x 12 in.

If you've followed for the last month or two, you may notice that this is a little bit larger and slightly different version of "Early Morning Oaks," posted on February 16th. I changed the sky to work in the clouds, which altered the entire time of day / mood of the scene. Both of them appeal to me, but I did have more fun with the brushwork in this one.

-julie davis

Guadalupe Fenceline and Show Photos(!)

Guadalupe Fenceline, 9 x 12 in.

sold

A huge THANK YOU to all of you who came to the opening at Davis gallery last night! We had a huge turnout, and many paintings found new homes, including this one of the treeline on our property in Hunt. I'm still grinning! Bill Davis and his staff handled the opening so well--the work is beautifully put together, and I hope if you weren't able to stop by last night, that you'll come by this month. It's all up through May 7th.

You asked, so I've included a few photos from the show below. My dedicated and ever-supportive husband, Ben, took all of these pictures but the first; a big thank you, love.

Stephen, me, Laurel

friends, and...

family :)

-julie davis

Trail at Lost Creek

Trail at Lost Creek, 12 x 16 in.

sold

Austin has many preserved green spaces--greenbelts, and there are so many wonderful walking/running trails that wind through them. This one follows a small cliff for a while and is so peaceful--it can make me feel instantly like I'm out of the city.

-julie davis

River Valley Elms

River Valley Elms, 16 x 20 in.

donation to ARC of the Capital art auction

The weekend is approaching, and I'm getting excited about the opening at Davis Gallery this Saturday night. I stopped by the gallery yesterday with a friend and saw it all up, and I have to say-- it looks amazing!! Bill Davis (I keep saying no relation--but really--no relation!) has done a beautiful job of hanging the work so that the pieces compliment one another and the show really flows.

The two other artists in the show, my good friends Laurel Daniel and Stephen Parker, have pulled off tremendous bodies of work. If you're in the Austin area, I hope you'll have theopportunity stop in and see it. Kudos to Bill Davis and Laurel and Stephen--see you Saturday!

-julie davis

Old Farmhouse

Old Farmhouse, 9 x 12 in.

sold

The thing that charmed me about this old farmhouse was its cloak of trees. The house stood safely tucked behind them, but kept enough distance to allow sunlight to shine across the front yard. This piece is at Davis Gallery in this month's show.

-julie davis

Granbury Barn

Granbury Barn, 9 x 12 in.

sold

This is another preview piece from the Davis Gallery show. I used a plein air piece I did while on a Plein Air Austin trip to Granbury as reference, but took some liberty to add interest to the foreground and trees.

-julie davis

Still Waters

Still Waters, 12 x 9 in.
sold

This is another piece that I've prepared for the show at Davis Gallery here in Austin. It's a scene from one of my favorite places: Watercolor, Florida. Some of the most peaceful, reflective times I've had while painting have been there. I also love the simplicity of the palette I used in this piece--the grayed tones appeal to me and really describe this particular day.

*please come by and see the show if you're in Austin--it runs April 2 through May 7, and the opening is April 9th from 7-9 p.m. Here's a link to Davis Gallery.

-julie davis

The Guardians

The Guardians, 16 x 20 in.

sold

Here is another preview of the work in my upcoming show. This one was done from a small plein air study I did while in Hunt. The small farmhouse sits just off FM 1340, and I thought this particular angle makes it look as if these trees are watching over the property.

-julie davis

Horse Country

Horse Country, 9 x 12 in.

Finally I'm back in the saddle, to use a pretty obvious pun here. :) Our kids have been on Spring Break, and are now all back in school. Though I'm in the middle of framing for the upcoming show, I'm at least able to post again, and will show you a preview of some of the pieces that will be in it.

This is the color version of a value study I posted a while back. These trailers sit quite often on the Camp Waldemar property in Hunt, though they seem to be arranged in a different order each time we pass. :)

-julie davis

Daybreak's Solitude

Daybreak's Solitude, 12 x 16in.

Here is a larger version of my last post. I changed the tree-line from the study to make it less uniform, and made some other alterations in color and composition. This one is in the Davis Gallery (no relation) show in April. Please stop by for the opening on April 9 from 7-9p.m. if you have the chance!

-julie davis

Inlet on the Lake

Inlet on the Lake, 6 x 8in

The spot we love in Florida has a beautiful lake (Western Lake) that has numerous inlets, piers, and bridges. I love painting there when we go. This is one view off the pier from which I paint most often. In the morning before the sun is fully up it's truly serene.

-julie davis

Watercolor, FL- study

Watercolor, FL study, 6 x 8in.

I painted this study a few weeks ago. The Watercolor area in Florida is one of my favorite places to paint--there are compositions everywhere, and the morning light is gorgeous. It was an overcast day when I took the photo I worked from for this, so the idea here was relatively close values, lots of grays. I worked up a larger one in a vertical format last week. This particular study was a pretty hasty one, thus the simple masses and general roughness.

-julie davis

Tree-lined Riverfront

Tree-lined Riverfront- study, 6 x 8

This is the view from our porch in Hunt. Endless trees line the riverfront--pecans, walnut, oaks--all kinds--literally line the frontage forever. It's a plain composition, and so much so that I hesitate to paint it--"never paint trees in a line" goes through my head. But it's what I see so often in my favorite spot--couldn't help it.

-julie davis

Yellow Farmer's Stand - study

Yellow Farmer's Stand - study, 6 x 8

Each time we go to our place in Hunt, we pass this little yellow farmer's stand. I've never seen it open for business, but there are clearly some well-kept gardens behind the fence.

This was a super-fast sketch of this subject on a gray day--I definitely didn't refine this--just looking for composition and values- not sure I nailed either!

-julie davis

Gray Day, Lake Austin-study

Gray Day, Lake Austin - study, 6 x 8

One of my favorite things about Austin is the Lake. Technically, it's the Colorado River that runs through town and is dammed up several times as it passes through, forming several lakes. The closest to my house are Lake Austin, and Ladybird Lake (formerly Town Lake). This is looking south toward the dam on Lake Austin. I plan to do a larger version of this for my upcoming show.

-julie davis

Early Morning Oaks -study

Field Guards, 6 x 8

Oaks often have a way of growing in clusters, as if they're huddling up to discuss something. This group stood smartly in a field, overlooking things.

-julie davis

Summer Day

Summer Day, 8 x 6

sold

This was a quick study done earlier this summer--I forgot I had it. It's easy to forget during these dry, cold, winter days just how lush the outdoors become in the spring and summer. Of course, it was something like 74 F today in Austin, so we're headed there soon!

-julie davis

Snow Melt

Snow Melt, 6 x 8

Another attempt at a "snow" painting. Kind of a snow painting, anyway. The snow melted so quickly (and was spotty to begin with), that the fields were patches of snow and grass. Temps were down to 17 F here last night, but in typical Austin fashion, the coming week's highs will be in the upper 60s, lower 70s.....ahh, winter.

-julie davis

Light Snow

Light Snow, 6 x 8 in.
sold

Last Friday, Austin received a whopping inch (yes, one) of snow--and school was cancelled (mostly due to the ice that was so nicely hidden beneath the snow). We get so few "snow days" here that we were all pretty excited.

Around noon when the roads became passable, I headed out to Hunt to meet some college girlfriends as planned (we were not about to let a little snow cancel our plans!) Just outside of Austin, I had to stop and take some photos--and make a mental picture of it all. It really was beautiful, and an entirely new way of seeing the countryside with which I'm growing so familiar. I must say, I had a blast painting this, and knocked out a larger version today. Here's to more snow days!

-julie davis

Sketch 4, Board

Sketch 4, 6 x 8

Sketchboard

And the last of my painted "sketches." I've also posted the board on which I did them all for you to see. I like this last one, but it's the least developed of the four, so I'm still tossing it over in my head whether to do a larger one.

-julie davis

Sketch 3

Sketch 3, 8 x 6

A bit out of order, but here nonetheless, the third "sketch" I made last week on the large panel. Unlike the first two, I haven't painted this one larger yet, and am still debating.

For all my Northeast and Canadian friends out there--brrrrrr!!! Our gorgeous weather is gone and it will be 16 degrees F tonight with a wind chill of 3 or something Wednesday morning. For here, that's really cold. Actually having to wear a real coat!

-julie davis

Pear Therapy

Pear Therapy, 9 x 12

This is one I found that I did recently that I hadn't posted. Initially, it was because I was having trouble photographing the darks--the reflections on them were impossible. I mostly solved that, then just forgot to post it. The pears reminded me of a bunch of girls talking, sharing, leaning on each other's shoulders as girlfriends do....

-here' a shout-out to all my girlfriends, near and far. You are all so supportive and amazing, and for you I am so very grateful!!

-julie davis

River Valley Elms - study

River Valley Elms - study, 6 x 8
sold

When I began really studying trees about two years ago, I had no idea how much influence they, as subject matter, would have on me as an artist. When I try to force them to the background in my compositions, it's almost painful to do so. So, yesterday I resolved to let go of that struggle for a while and just have fun with them again. And I had entirely too much fun doing this little study.

-julie davis

Chapel Dulcinea

Chapel Dulcinea, 6 x 8

sold

Today was the most gorgeous day in Austin, and as if that wasn't enough, I got out and painted with my Plein Air Austin friends. We met at a place a few miles outside of Austin called the Wizard Academy (no Harry Potter--but a marketing school--good name, right?) Anyway, Chapel Dulcinea is a small, open-air wedding chapel on the property that overlooks a beautiful part of the area, back toward Austin. It was a lovely subject to paint, and in this weather, made for quite the perfect morning.

-julie davis

Sketch 2

Sketch 2, 6 x 8

This is the second of four painted "sketches" on a board. I've used them to help me plan some paintings that I'm doing in larger formats. I find that when I'm working in the studio to make a larger painting from a study I've done outdoors I often want to tweak the composition, and doing this really helped me -- almost more than working in a sketchbook with pencil, which surprised me.

-julie davis

Sketch 1

Sketch 1, 6 x 8

Haven't posted for several days, but that doesn't mean I haven't been hard at work! This is the first of several "sketches" I did on a board (this the tape to divide it) to plan my next four paintings. This is the first time I've ever done four underdrawings or sketches on one board, and in one "sitting." I found that ideas just flowed when I worked that way, and not taking the time to finish each one really freed me up to brainstorm, if you will. I was quite a lot of fun, and just as importantly for me right now, productive.

-julie davis

The Lookout

The Lookout, 6 x 8

This is a blatant attempt to study the bovine form. A very small form. :) Sketching and drawing cattle (like anything) is a fantastic exercise, but conveying animals convincingly with as few brushstrokes as possible is something one can practice only with a brush. This bull seemed to be looking off in the distance as if he heard something he might want to warn the others about. Not that cattle ever seem to care that much....

And I must mention some very exciting news....my work will officially be part of a three-person show at the Davis Gallery (no relation) here in Austin in April! The opening reception is April 9. I'm very excited about the opportunity and will be hard at work, so forgive me if I don't post quite as regularly for a bit...I'll be laser-focused.

-julie davis

Over Your Shoulder

Over Your Shoulder, 6 x 6

Apples are a favorite of so many painters as a subject--in addition to their nice shape and the many varieties out there, they carry much symbolism....everything from "bad" or "poison" apple, to the all-American apple pie, Johnny Appleseed, and William Tell. These were a product of my seven-hour studio day recently--a day I am hoping to recreate soon. :)

-julie davis

Late Spring Fields

Late Spring Fields, 12 x 16

donation

This is a piece I've painted based on a 6 x 8 of the same scene--a field / creek in the Hill Country. When it's rained enough, the creeks in Texas actually fill like this and everything is content....too often they're not quite full, or even dry. This one is going to the Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Center Gala Art Auction this spring.

-julie davis