X-Large 36x60
A Boy and His Boston (Be the Person Your Dog Thinks You Are)
36x60 Oil on Canvas
from my instagram post:
As has previously been established, I love dogs more than Scrooge McDuck loves money ... or more than Batman loves gadgets ... or even more than Shaggy & Scooby love Scooby Snacks ... (I could to this all day) ... so i was immediately drawn to this photo.
I also loved the Norman Rockwell-esque-ness of the image. Sentimental? Who, me? Pffft.
I decided to go big on this one ... 36" x 60". I really enjoy working large, though, I'm going to need a bigger table for varnishing. Oh ... and a bigger easel. And probably a bigger storage room to hold all my unsold paintings. 🙃 #artistproblems
Many, many thanks to @anonymousphotoproject for allowing me to use this magnificent found photo as a reference. 🙏
Off the Deep End
36x60 Oil on canvas
From my instagram post:
Wanted to take a break from painting small, so I started workin on this 36x60 ...
... that has a bunch of tiny figures in it! 😳 (There is something seriously wrong with me).
For an upcoming show at @peninsula_gallery this summer.
Join my newletter for info/updates ...
Many thanks to @anonymousphotoproject for allowing me to use their found photo as reference!
Large 36x36
A Day at the Museum
36x36 oil on canvas. Black frame.
from my instagram post:
When I first saw this reference photo, it reminded me of my dad, taking me and my brothers to museums when we were little. Mom generally didn't go. (Probably for reasons of sanity.)
I remember the first time we went to the Franklin Institute. It has a giant beating heart that you can walk thru. I learned so much from that exhibit! For example, I learned that I'm terrified of giant beating hearts!
(Google it. It's ghastly.)
The giant beating heart also acts as an experiment: It can tell you whether or not you have claustrophobia. Turns out, I do. Though whether or not I already had claustrophobia, or developed it by being inside an enclosed space with the theme song from Jaws playing loudly through speakers, science will never know. (Chicken/egg.)
I just wanted to enjoy a day at a museum without having a panic attack and being forced to face my own mortality ... was that too much to ask?
At the end of the day, my dad allowed me and my two brothers to each buy one thing from the gift shop. This, in turn, allowed the Franklin Institute to buy a whole new wing of exhibits.
Many thanks to @negative_recovery_project for allowing me to use their photo as a reference! 🙏💙
Large 24x36
Coney Island Cowboys
36x24 oil on board. Black Floater Frame
This painting is currently (Sept 18th - Oct 24th 2021) being shown at The Teresa Haag Studio & Gallery 2nd Anniversary Show in Phoenixville,PA.
https://www.teresahaag.com/anniversaryshow
Along with work from 6 other artists.
Original Instagram post:
"Coney Island Cowboys"
While scouring the interwebz for early color photos, I came across this image, and HAD to paint it. The structure in the background is the Parachute ride on Coney Island. My grandfathee used to paint that thing!
Back in the late 40s to early 60s, Grandpa had a painting contracting business, and one of his clients was the Steeplechase Park, (amusement park on Coney Island, New York). After school, my dad often helped paint all the buildings and rides in the park.
And they DEFINITELY used all the latest government regulated safety equipment.
And since there WAS NO government regulated safety equipment, Grandpa saved a lot of money. Yanno ... On safety equipment. (And thank goodness, because those race horses and card games weren't going to bet on themselves).
The original reference photo was used with permission from the Ruth Orkin Photo Archive. Many thanks to @ruthorkinphoto The photo was taken on Coney Island during the making of the film “Little Fugitive” (1953) which Orkin made with her husband Morris Engel. Ms. Orkin was an inspiring woman and an award-winning photojournalist & filmmaker. She worked for all the major magazines in 1940s (impressive). According to Google, she'd be 100 years old this year. Check out the original photo (and others) on her site:
OrkinPhoto.com
#coneyisland #newyork #earlycolorphoto #vintagephoto #oilpainting
A Woman No Carin'
36x24 oil on panel
from my instagram post:
My Scottish Grandmother used to say she was "A Woman No Carin'" which I think translates to "All Outta Fucks" in American, but she would never curse. (I guess I inherited that from my Dad's side).
original reference photo by Toni Frissel, Library of Congress
Before Spray Tans
24x36 oil on cradled panel
I vaguely remember having lounge chairs like this when I was a kid, and this image reminded me of sitting in the back yard, as a teenager, with high hopes of getting a beautiful bronze tan.
The only problem was, instead of inheriting the olive skin of my dad's Italian ancestors, I inherited my skin color from my mom. She was from Scotland. The land of pale blue people ... so my skin only has two settings:
(a) Silas, the albino from "The Davinci Code"
-or-
(b) Hellboy
Many thanks to @secretlifeofnell on Instagram for allowing me to use her photo as reference.
#oilpainting #artshow #shoplocal
First Kiss
24x36 oil on cradled panel
Many thanks to IG: @anonymousphotoproject for allowing me to use their photo as reference.
That Bad Boy Your Mother Warned You About
24x36 oil on panel. Natural wood frame.
From my Instagram Post:
Original reference photo by Toni Frissell, Library of Congress.
Tea for Two
24x36 oil on panel
My mom loved tea. She was from the UK, and if there's one thing British people love more than a pint ... it's a nice cup of ... well ... there's really nothing they love more than a pint. But if you took away ALL their beer ... there'd be nothing they love more than a ... well, probably a dram of whiskey. Okay, so take away all their alcohol, and their favorite drink would definitely be tea.
They especially enjoy their tea with biscuits. Oddly, their biscuits look and taste almost exactly like what we call cookies.
And you'd be forgiven for thinking the British secretly enjoy confusing Americans. It's like when they call diapers "nappies" when they have little, if anything to do with napping. Or when they call erasers "rubbers" when they ... oh wait. Okay, I see it now ...
They also have a thing called a scone. Scones are just like biscuits, if you prefer your biscuits to be hard and crumbly as opposed to soft and flakey. But once covered in enough jam and clotted cream, you can't even tell they taste like disappointment. (Britain has a well earned reputation for it's bland cuisine and their scones are definitely on brand.)
Many thanks to @anonymousphotoproject for allowing me to use their photo as a reference. "The Anonymous Project is dedicated to collecting and preserving mid-century colour slides from around the world. Started in 2017 by filmmaker Lee Shulman, the project brings to light Kodachrome memories of found amateur photographs, taken from the 1950s through to the 1980s."
#vintagephoto #vernacularphotography #oilpainting #originaloilpainting #tea #retro #foundphoto
Sister Toss
Sister Toss 24x36 oil on panel.
***
Many thanks to @anonymousphotoproject for allowing me to use their photo as a reference. "The Anonymous Project is dedicated to collecting and preserving mid-century colour slides from around the world. Started in 2017 by filmmaker Lee Shulman, the project brings to light Kodachrome memories of found amateur photographs, taken from the 1950s through to the 1980s."
After a Hard Day at Play
24x36 oil on panel
From my Instagram Post:
This image couldn't possibly be more 70s ... From the colors in her bathing suit, to the manual crank window.
The 70s were a nihilistic time ... when ashtrays were in every arm rest and seatbelts were optional.
I love this image so much. Partly because, other than the straight hair, it reminded me of me. To say i love dogs would be the understatement of the century. It makes all the other understatements embarrassed about calling themselves understatements. It's like saying the surface of the sun is a bit balmy, or Antarctica is a little chilly.
I love dogs more than Sir Mix-a-lot likes big butts. Seriously, nobody loves dogs more than me, just as nobody loves acorns more than that squirrel in the movie Ice Age. It's just a fact.
My first dog's name was Pierre ... which, at the time, i thought was a very clever name for a white toy poodle, but it makes for an awful stripper name, (mine's Pierre Burmont). And if you don't already know what your stripper name is (hi Dad!) ... it's the name of your first pet and the street you grew up on. What's your stripper name?
Many thanks to @dear.fran for allowing me to use her photo as a reference. If you love vintage photos ... Go follow her account.
#oilpainting #vintagephoto #retrophoto #retro #vernacularphotography #foundphoto
***
Many thanks to @anonymousphotoproject for allowing me to use their photo as a reference. "The Anonymous Project is dedicated to collecting and preserving mid-century colour slides from around the world. Started in 2017 by filmmaker Lee Shulman, the project brings to light Kodachrome memories of found amateur photographs, taken from the 1950s through to the 1980s."
Keep Your Glass Slippers. She's Building Her Own Castle
24x36 oil on panel. black floater frame.
From my Instagram Post:
Keep Your Glass Slippers. She's Building Her Own Castle.
24x36 oil on panel
Oh, honey ... if you lose your shoe at midnight, you're not in a fairy tale, you're drunk.
Also, he says you're his soul-mate, but he has to go around town trying your shoe on every single-lady's foot?
M'kay.
And is this the same guy who kissed that roofied chick he found in a coffin in the woods?
Prince Charming?
More like Prince Alarming ... amirite, ladies?
🤣
Stop by @ginkoartswestchester tomorrow night 5-8 for First Friday, open studio. Meet guest artist @mia.fabrizio and check out her installation. The weather looks good, so no excuses this time. 😁
Many thanks to @anonymousphotoproject for allowing me to use their photo as a reference.
Mutton Chops
24x36 oil on panel
from my instagram post:
Sure, you can laugh now, but those mutton chops would have been smokin' hawt in Victorian England.
Who wore it best:
Martin Van Buren
Elvis Presley
Or this guy
I'm going with this guy.
My thanks to @houseofmirthphotos for allowing me to use their found photo as reference. House of Mirth Photos is a buyer and seller of vintage snapshots and photo albums for over 20 years. Follow them on Instagram, check out their website houseofmirthphotos.com or visit their gallery in Easthampton, Mass.
Medium 16x20, 18x18, 16x24
The Gift
20x16 Oil on Panel. Black Floater Frame.
Many thanks to @anonymousphotoproject for allowing me to use their photo as a reference!
Making Her Own Damn Crown
20x16 Oil on Canvas. Black Floater Frame.
From my original instagram post:
"Making Her Own Damn Crown"
16x20 Oil on Panel
***
Reference photo from the Library of Congress:
"About this Item
Title: Training. Work Projects Administration (WPA) vocational school. This young lady is training to work on the assembly line of one of our great war plants. In preparation for this task, she devotes six nights a week to a WPA vocational training school where experienced instructors show her the technique of modern welding
Contributor Names: Liberman, Howard, photographer
United States. Office of War Information."
Hawaii 1956, Watching Another Tourist About to Become a Meme
16x24 oil on panel
original reference photo by Toni Frissel, Library of Congress
When Men Are Left Unsupervised
16x20 Oil on Panel. Black Floater Frame.
Many thanks to @secretlifeofnell for allowing me to use their photo as a reference!
Hello, 911? My Brothers Stole My Doll and They Won't Give Her Back
16x20 Oil on Panel. Black Floater Frame.
From my instagram post:
Hello, 911? My Brothers Stole My Doll and They Won't Give Her Back
16x20 oil on cradled panel
I know! It's a long title! I'm really bad at this, you guys.
Please submit better titles in comments. Winner gets ... um ... to name this painting. 😁 And also, my everlasting gratitude. 🙏
Many thanks to @secretlifeofnell for allowing me to use their photo as a reference!
Small Retro, plus TV characters 5x7, 6x6, 8x8, 10x10, 12x7
A Smidge: The Exact Amount Of Soda To Add To Whiskey
8x8 oil on linen board, black floater frame
smidge /smij/ noun informal a very small amount or part
I think the title says it all.
Many thanks to IG: @secretlifeofnell for allowing me to use their found photo as reference!
When You’re Feelin’ Cute And See Yourself In A Mirror
Sold out
6x6 oil on panel, black floater frame
This has literally NEVER happened to me. I’m more likely to scare the shit out of myself if I open my cellphone with the front facing camera on.
Many thanks to IG: @anonymousphotoproject for allowing me to use their found photo as reference!
The Corner Store
10x10 oil on panel, black floater frame
Did everyone grow up near a corner store? It seems like there’s always a corner store. How else would you get your Bazooka bubblegum?
Don’t get me started on Bazooka, which was about as chewy as a Chevy Chevette was fast, which is to say, the opposite of chewy.
Although really, Mary Jane candies had to be the worst. What they lacked in chewiness, they made up for in ghastly flavor. They really put the ASS in Molasses.
It was the kind of candy you’d eat if you wanted to remove a tooth filling without going to a dentist.
Damn near child abuse.
Many thanks to IG: @anonymousphotoproject for allowing me to use their found photo as reference!
Tiny Dictator And Servant
6x6 oil on panel
Life with a toddler, summed up in one image.
Alternate title: “The Turdler: A toddler who, when they have a poopy diaper, won’t let u change them.”
I once saw a meme that said having toddlers was like “raising a heavily caffeinated chimp allergic to sleep.” So while my husband and I never had children, my guess is, parenting is 90% chasing your kid around and 10% wishing they would just go away.
But what do we know? We recently adopted a six-year-old tiny tyrant we named Izzy, who is fifty percent rat terrier, fifty percent chihuahua and seventy-five percent chicken. (She’s also bad at math). She has terrible separation anxiety, so I’ve now become HER emotional support pet (Where do I need to go to get a certificate for this?)
Her previous owner died and her kids dropped Izzy off at a kill shelter in Kentucky. She can’t hear very well. Can’t see that great, and has a hard time learning new things. It’s like we’ve adopted a tiny me. Poor Fran.
Many thanks to IG: @anonymousphotoproject for allowing me to use their found photo as reference!
Awkward Prom Photo Time
I bet these two spent all week practicing their super sweet dance moves, like the mashed potato or the funky chicken …. All while hoping their crush was going to ask them to dance.
And I bet, when they slow danced, they had to remember to “leave room for Jesus!”
Flag on the play! Jesus has no business being in the middle of two middle schoolers slow dancing. (That’s creepy AF) Also, he has better things to do. Like giving people piggyback rides so there’s only one set of footprints in the sand.
Now, go sit in the bleachers and think about what you've done. Y’all are weird.
Let the awkward slow dancing begin!
Many thanks to IG: @dear.fran for allowing me to use their photo as a reference!
We Can Make It To The Next Station, He Said
6x6 oil on panel, black floater frame
Twenty bucks says his wife wanted him to stop at the last station, and he assured her he knew his car.
Car companies: Design a gauge with an E on it, when your tank is empty.
Men: I can go 20 more miles.
The correct amount of miles you can drive when your gas gauge is on E while on a family road trip, is exactly 2 miles short of the next gas station. I could go on and on about this, but I hope you've all learned your lesson, Fran.
Many thanks to IG: @anonymousphotoproject for allowing me to use their photo as a reference!
Foot Powered Non-Electric Vehicles
6x6 oil on cradled panel, black floater frame
When I was a kid, we didn’t have any of your fancy battery powered cars or electric bikes. We had car-shaped metal death traps that you powered with your feet. Like friggin’ Fred Flintstone.
Wait … You don’t know who Fred Flintstone is? ZOMG, what are you … a Gen Zer? Get off my feed!™
Sure, you could get to your destination faster and expend far less energy by walking, but walking was for losers.
Also, if you kept your feet up and got your friend, Jimmy Neederhorn*, to push you down a hill, you could get going REALLY fast. Right before you stopped going really fast by turning too quickly and flipping the car over.
Though you only did that once.
(Unless you were Mikey Higgins*, who was a bit of a slow learner).
Ahhh, good times.
*Names have been changed to protect the boneheads.
P.S. Please tell me I’m not the only one doing the cartoon sound effect: “dinky dinky dink” in my head when imagining this boy’s little sneakered feet shuffling along
Many thanks to IG: @anonymousphotoproject for allowing me to use their photo as a reference!
Before GoFundMe.com
6x6 oil on panel, black floater frame
We didn’t have crowdfunding platforms like gofundme or kickstarter when I was a kid.
We had a lawn mower and a rake.
I’m not a cranky old lady. YOU’RE a cranky old lady.
Okay. I AM a cranky old lady. And I’m embracing it. Currently, my Amazon shopping cart contains a beaded eyeglass chain, rhinestone reading glasses (ala Dame Edna), and some grandma stockings I can roll up to my knees.
I’m ready to start living my best life in pink slippers, a muumuu and no bra, 24/7.
Many thanks to IG: @negative_recovery for allowing me to use their photo as a reference!
Slug Bug (Permission to Punch the Person Next to You)
6x6 oil on panel, black floater frame
This one was a bit of an experiment. I decided to try using AI (artificial intelligence, for you luddites) to generate an image to use as a reference, because I couldn’t find a vintage photo of a VW Bug to paint.
Apparently, people who drove VW Bugs in the 60’s had more important things to do than take pictures of their cars. Things like, protesting wars, and stickin’ it to the man. Turns out, they were terrible at this, because we STILL have wars and our corporate overlords have now invented artificial intelligence to make workers obsolete. Workers who would otherwise have had jobs and made money to spend on all the shit the corporations want us to buy. (I feel like “the man” hasn’t thought this through).
P.S. My husband has never heard of the awesome, and fun, “slug bug game” (alternatively called “punch buggy”) … can you even believe that? How could he not know this time-honored game?
Then he told me about a game he played called Padiddle, where if you see a car with only one headlight at night, you shout Padiddle, then punch your seatmate. Which is just about the dumbest game I’ve ever heard of. Pffft. Padiddle.
People In Florida When It’s 65 Degrees Out
6x6 oil on panel, black floater frame
How people from Florida dress when the temp plummets to 65 degrees.
Conversely, I once visited my grandparents in Scotland, during a “heat wave”. (Again: 65 degrees out). You’d have thought they were standing in an oven … in the middle of Death Valley … in July.
Many thanks to IG: @negative_recovery for allowing me to use their photo as a reference!
Batman (Adam West)
8x8 oil on panel. black floater frame
Who was the best Batman?
...
...
...
Trick question. It's Adam West.
Fight me.
Penguin (Burgess Meredith)
8x8 oil on panel. black floater frame
I'd probably be a supervillain too if my parents had named me Oswald Cobblepot. Aaaand the winner of The Best Quacking Cackle goes to: Burgess Meredith, the original "Aristocrat of crookery".
Joker (Cesar Romero)
8x8 oil on panel. black floater frame
Cesar Romero wasn't my FAVORITE Joker ... I mean, the guy couldn't even get rid of his mustache for the part? Cheesus. I mean, Christian Bale ate one can of tuna and an apple a day to lose 63 pounds for his role in The Machinist, you'd think the least Cesar could do is shave his 'stache. Didn't anyone tell him, it'll grow back? Sheesh.
The best Joker is probably Heath Ledger, but if you said it's Joaquin Phoenix, I wouldn't fight you.
On the other hand! If you say it's Jared Leto, we can never be friends.
Mary Tyler Moore Retro Panel
approx 12x7 retro panel
Oil on @trekell_art_supplies retro panel.
Live Long, and Prosper
Approx 12.5" x 6.25" rocket panel
Oil on Trekell Rocket Panel
from my instagram post:
Another fun panel by @trekell_art_supplies
Not to take anything away from Zachary Quinto, but Leonard Nimoy will always be my favorite Spock.
In addition to Star Trek, we also watched his TV show "In search of ..." as kids. The Sasquatch episode in particular, terrified my little brother. He wouldn't sleep alone in his own room after watching it. He had to bunk with our older brother. Hahahahaaaa!
Oh, and did you know Mr. Nimoy was also a photographer? Check out his "Full Body Project" (photos of women from the burlesque group the 'Fat Bottom Revue"). They are stunning. Could I possibly be a bigger fan of the man? I think not.
RIP Mr. Nimoy
Bewitched (retro panel)
approx 12x7 retro panel
Oil on @trekell_art_supplies retro panel.
from my instagram post:
From the tv show "Bewitched" (1964 to 1972)
Massive plot flaw: While I can suspend my disbelief that witches are real and that sometimes their husbands are replaced by completely different actors, it's impossible to believe a man married to a witch asked her NOT to perform magic. I mean ... come on!
Side note: Paul Lynde was hilarious as Uncle Arthur. He was also my favorite celebrity on "Hollywood Squares". Thanks for the laughs, and RIP Mr. Lynde.