I will be away from my daily posts for about a week, but meanwhile...... Here's a call, out to all of you in the Basque community...While I'm not accepting  painting commissions, if you have a photo that incorporates the Basque theme, email it to me at art@marymaxam.net  and it might wind up in a painting!  By submitting a photo, please remember that you are giving me permission to use it as a photo source in my work. Please keep in mind that I may not use it at all but, I'd love to see what's out there.
Thank you  :) Mary
P.S.- Do  not send hard copies

First Cast  8" x 10" oil   Here's that early day light that creates just a few sharp edges and a soft almost monochrome palette.

The Day's Last Cast  14"x 11"  oil    The color of this sunset was blazing, at the end of this day in B.C. Sunsets can dazzle  the eye a little too much. When this dries a bit, I think I need to reduce the value contrast in the figure. It will help put focus back onto the color of the scene. Just wanted to post it for now and think about it.

Any Rises? 14" x 11" oil   This is a scene from the Willimson River that runs through Yamsi Ranch in Oregon.  I did a brief sketch and took photos. The light was soft but bright and it showed up the lightstruck edges of the figures nicely. This couple was staying at the Ranch, and were just about to go out and try their luck.

Fish On the Pasagshak  8"x 10" oil   sold This is a sunny,  cold day on the Pasagshak River in Alaska.
I may go back in and punch up the blues a bit. Overall, it seemed to work.

Winter Reward 11"x 14" oil    Here's a composition using a cold day of fishing and a neutral color scheme. I used a few warm tones to contrast and bring a little life to the figure and dry grass in the forground.

No Begonias   14" x 11" oil   sold  I really enjoy painting fly fishermen and am beginning several more  fishing figures for daily paintings. So Steve, lest you imagine that I'm painting too many begonias at the expense of fly fishers, here's one you might enjoy!

Jaialdi Musicians  14" x 11"  oil     Here are two more of the musicians providing entertainment and great color at Jaialdi.

Jaialdi Musician 14" x 11" oil    Every few years the Boise Basque community sponsors Jaialdi , a festival celebrating our culture with music, dance and food. This is one of the musicians from a past Jaialdi who was kind enough to pose for me.

Hi and thanks for checking in...I am unable to post a picture due to tech difficulties, but please check back in a day or two...Thank you, Mary

Blue Swirl 10" x 8" oil   Here I was trying for the graceful position of the dancer and that blue swirl of the skirt as it bells out when she turns.

 
Dancing At St. Inazio II 11"x14"  oil    I put a fair amount of energy into the brushwork here in order to try to capture the movement of these two. I may post a larger image of this as it doesn't quite show some of the edges and bits of color.

Red Cap  8"'x 10"  oil   sold  Here are two more Oinkari dancers getting ready to perform. What painter could resist those red berets?!

Dancing at St. Inazio 8"x 10" oil  NFS    I am of Basque heritage and it has been too long since I've had fun painting the wonderful color and culture of our family. This is one of my handsome nephews, dancing at a festival this last summer in Boise. There are several good websites and books about the Basque people if
you're interested.One place to start is http://www.oinkari.org/ and for some excellent contemporary folk Basque music, look up Amuma Says No on YouTube.

 sold This is  from a photo and sketch done in the spring.
The weather right now doesn't quite match the optimism
of this bright painting, but sometimesfor me, that's the
best time to paint something like this.

Another pear still life. I went for more harmony this time
 in both color and value.

We've been trying to eat a box of pears before they go south.
So, I thought we could spare this one for a little still life...fun

On the way home from a fishing trip, this sunset started a blaze across what
seemed like the whole sky. The farm silhouette made for nice contrast-y
shapes in the foreground . This is about 30 minutes west of Spokane.

As promised, another sunset. I washed on Cad.yellow med. before
going into the deeper tones. A bit more like the handling of a watercolor,
but it seemed to work out.