Daily Farm Painting, "Valley View" 7x5" SOLD

Red barn, green grass, a little fishing pond.....what more could you ask for on a lazy summer day?

SOLD

This farm is down the road from us on Conley's Creek Road.  I must have painted it 30 or more times.  Each time, I think I have said everything I can, but then I find myself drawn to it again.  A different angle, or new time of day.....it pulls me in time after time.

Set in the valley, I pass it each time I leave my house.  It is the most picturesque spot I know.  Surrounded by mountains and with a curvy drive, the light effects are always spectacular.

Landscape, "Barn on Thomas Valley Road" 6x8" SOLD

When we are in the mountains of North Carolina, we pass this barn on our way to town.  It sits between the mountains on the shores of the Tuckaseegee River, on a beautiful little winding road.

I love the rural life style.  It reminds me of my childhood in Ohio.  I never lived on a farm, but my cousins did and I would visit often.  In these fast paced days of rushing from one spot to another, those lazy, hazy days of the past seem very attractive.  I am fortunate to get a taste of that life now and then.

Hope you find a peaceful moment or two in your day.

One another note, I was checking my stats to what  referring URL's send traffic to my blog and noticed that  many of my readers come from one specific blog.......www.CarolMarine.blogspot.com.  Carol was kind enough to include  me on her blog list several years ago.  I know you are all familiar with her work as she is "Queen of Art Blogs"  but she is also a wonderful kind woman.  So, thank you Carol!  If you have not been to her blog today, please stop bye.

Daily Painting, "White Fence, Red Barn", Oil 16x16

In the summer, I spend almost as much time in the mountains of the Carolina's as I do in Florida.  I am always struck by the beauty of the mountain farms.

Purchase here
495

Maybe its due to the fast paced life we all seem to lead these days.  Usually I have a problem sitting to read a book for more the five minutes.  But take me to the mountains and I can sit on my porch for hours, just drinking in the beauty of my surroundings.

I start the day with coffee, on my front porch, watching the wild turkeys come down from the mountain for breakfast.  This is usually followed by two or three hours of reading whatever novel has me captivated.  Many days I am still in my jams at noon.   Life is good!

Do you have a favorite place you go to just chill out?

You may have noticed that I added a sale page on the right sidebar.  Just click on the link to review all my works that are on sale.  Lots to choose from!

Daily Painting, "Oconoluftee Barn" 6x8, Oil SOLD

This is not an old barn.........it's a replica of an old barn!

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85

This barn can be found at the Oconoluftee Welcome Center of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park at Cherokee NC..  They have a great museum and replica of a farm from the old days, complete with chickens and pigs!  

After walking through the farm, you can follow a path, next to the river and through the woods.  The feeling is that you are in the wilderness, they reality is that cars are whizzing by just a few hundred feet away.  

If you are lucky, you will hear the elk calling in the forest, or maybe even spy one or two in feeding in the meadow.

All together, a great way to spend the morning and absolutely free to anyone who cares to visit!

Daily Painting, "Blue Ridge Barn" 6x8"

During the hot summer months, we leave hot and humid Florida and head for the mountains of North Carolina.

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96

I am always attracted to the many shapes and character of the old barns that are found around every corner.
This one is located in the Smokey Mountain National Park, at the visitor center next to the Cherokee entrance.

It is not an original barn, but a replication that stands on the "pioneer farm" that is behind the center.

I cannot wait to get back in the cool and beautiful mountains this year.  Where do you go for summer vacation?

3X5" MINI'S

I bought several 3x5" canvases several years ago and recently I decided to paint a few.  I had a couple fun afternoons painting these little canvas.  This poppyfield has sold.

I found them to be good editing practice and tried to use as few strokes as possible.

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29/ea.

UP CHILDERS' BARN ROAD, 5X7", SOLD

Living on the side of a mountain is not easy...all those hills to climb, clinging on the edge of the bluff....

The natives in North Carolina, live mostly in the valleys and the foothills, the summer folk live on top of the mountains.

I live in the valley.  There is an old saying "It's better to have a friend with a boat, than to have a boat" which I have changed to "It's better to have a friend with a mountain view, than to haul everything you own up the side of a mountain!"

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SOLD

Johnny's Barn, 6x8", original oil, canvas board SOLD

"I was so naive as a kid I used to sneak behind the barn and do nothing."

~ Johnny Carson (October 23, 1925 - January 23, 2005)

This is not really "Johnny's Barn", but I kind of liked the idea of him sitting back there, trying to think up something unacceptable to do.

This is the final post for "Barn Week" at the studio.  I still have more barn paintings rattling around but I will save them for another time.  Have a great weekend and thanks for stopping bye.

THE OLD BARN SLEEPS, IGNORED, 5X7, SOLD Original Oil, Canvas Board

http://www.helium.com/items/1099578-barn-old-gold-rush-nostalgia-ghosts

The old barn sleeps, ignored, beside the highway
Where tourists thunder by, vacation bound
And in her dreams, she sees her past unfolded
And ghosts of folk who once walked here-around

P. Smith

Autumn is just around the corner.  How did this happen so fast?

I have been spending a lot of time in western North Carolina...so expect a lot of barn paintings in the near future!

Hope your's is a happy day :0)
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SOLD

COUNTRY ROADS, TAKE ME HOME, 6X12, OIL

Almost heaven, West Virginia
Blue Ridge Mountains
Shenandoah River
Life is old there
Older than the trees
Younger than the mountains
Growin' in the breeze

I hear her voice
In the mornin' hour she calls me
The radio reminds me of my home far away
And drivin' down the road I get the feelin'
That I should have been home
Yesterday, yesterday

John Denver


One of my favorite songwriter and recording artists.

I find his music to be so moving.  It evokes images and memories of my childhood.  

His lyrics  are as moving today and they were when he first wrote them.  Don't you miss him?
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150.

WHERE THE MOUNTAINS MEET THE SEA, 6X8, OIL

California is such a beautiful place.  Every time I go the word "rugged" is in my mind during the whole trip.  I think the weather, the sea,the landscape,  the people and the animals all seem to be larger than life.  Like everyone and everything there is tough.  Not to say it is a bad thing...I love it, but maybe it is a little tougher there than on the east coast where everything is pink and teal and the waves are 2 feet instead of 20.
Of couse my time has been in Northern California, never got south of Carmel, so maybe it weenie's out as you go south.

This scene is from an image by Shelley Smart.  If you have not visited her blog "A Year at the Beach" you must go.  She is a wonderful artist and photographer and did a project of photographing the beach every day for a year.   I hope she approves of this painting.

I just want to remind everyone that when you purchase an item from either of my Etsy sites between now and March 31, 2011, you will be entered in my painting give-away.  So hop on over to CarolSchiffStudio or CarolOnEdge and purchase a painting.  I have several choices in my "make me an offer" section.......

and then hop on over to Art by Karena where you can get a chance on winning this painting just by following her instructions on the bottom of my interview.

HALF WAY UP THE MOUNTAIN, 11X14, OIL

Last October, we were driving through the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, when I photographed this old barn with an equally old tractor.  It was a beautiful, warm day and the leaves were close to "peak".  The whole scene seemed to speak of days gone bye.

I want to remind you that I am having a painting give-away on my Etsy sites.  You will receive one entry for each item you purchase between 1-1-11 and 3-31-11.  The drawing will be for a 6x8" original oil painting shipped to your home at no cost to you.  Purchases from Carol Schiff Studio or Carol On Edge will  give you an entry in the drawing.  Good luck!

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$225.

CAROLINA BARN, 6X8, OIL SOLD

I love driving around the back roads of North Carolina looking for old barns full of character.  This one caught my eye on my last trip.  I don't know if it was the barn or the stone retaining wall that appealed to me.  Maybe a combination of both.

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SOLD

MOUNTAIN BARN II, 6X8, OIL

A few weeks ago, I posted a 8x10 similar painting. This was the study for the 8x10. I really liked this one best, so I thought I would post it too.

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