Red Door Nocturn

Red Door Nocturne

Oil on Canvas

5 x7 inches

2009

Auburn, Alabama

Some days time runs out before I can get out and paint. This will usually make me stay in and paint a still life but my son Christian said I should try to paint a night scene.

This little shop is on Gay Street in Auburn. It is an odd old building that sits all by it self between two parking lots. Its current tenant sells vintage clothing and the combination of light and the window display caught me. It was difficult to paint at night but I now have a dozen ideas for other paintings.

If you would like to buy this painting, please Email me at

bayens@bellsouth.net

Western Ring

Western Ring

Oil on Canvas

5 x7 inches

2009

Auburn, Alabama

This was painted at Southern Springs Equestrian Center. My daughter Savannah was working with her pony in the ring in the late afternoon. The sun was going down and the lighter kept getting warmer. I chased the light so long that she was finished with the pony before I could put them in the painting.

If you would like to buy this painting, please contact me at

bayens@bellsouth.net

Frozen Marsh

Frozen Marsh

Oil on Canvas Panel

8 x 10 inches

2006

Haliburton, Ontario

Painting in the winter is an experience especially when it is cold and today it was cold. You have to dress appropriately to be able to stay relatively still for an hour or two. Even with warm clothes, the cold creeps in without movement. Probably the most difficult part besides the stiff paint is painting with gloves on. It is hard to be dexterous with a brush when you have a layer in insulation around your fingers.

I was painting with my friend renowned Canadian artist Tony Bianco. It is always a blessing to paint with an artist of such talent. It gives you a chance to get quality opinions of your work as you paint.

We had found a nice bend in a road that crossed a frozen marsh. There were still bits of open water where the main channel came through.

It was midday and I painted one direction while Tony was a little ways down painting in the opposite direction. After an hour or so I went to look at his painting and saw that he was painting a sunset over the trees. The sun was directly over our head! It looked great.

His years of painting in the field have given him a visual knowledge bank that he can pull from to improve any work. I always learn something new every time we paint together.

When the painting was done it was nice to hop in the van and turn the heat up to full.

Mary Full of Grace

Mary Full of Grace

Oil on panel

8 x 10 inches

2009

Auburn, Alabama

August 19, 2009

There is a little statue of the Virgin Mary in a garden behind St. Michael’s Church on Magnolia. She has been a constant in my life since I moved to Auburn many years ago. The town has changed and grown and so have my children, but the little statue of Mary stays the same, but soon that too will change. The church will be moving and I’m sure that she will move too.

If you would like to buy this painting please email me at

bayens@bellsouth.net

Test Plots

Test Plots

Oil on panel

9 x 12 inches

2009

Auburn, Alabama

August 21,2009

I think I will find an endless source of painting material with the Auburn University agricultural test plots. They look different every time I see them.

If you are interested in buying this painting, contact me at

bayens@bellsouth.net

The Mushroom

The Mushroom

Oil on Canvas Panel

8 x10 inches

2007

Killarney, Ontario

This was the first time I had been back in Ontario in the fall in twelve years. I had travelled alone to spent some time with my Mom who had rented a cottage in Killarney. Killarney is a wonderland at the north end of Georgian Bay. The landscape is mountains of exposed quartzite that makes the hills always look like they are covered in snow. The lakes are emerald green and turquoise blue.

My friend Tony Bianco had come up to spend two days painting with me. Will all the scenery around, you would think that finding something to paint would be easy. This is not always the case.

We headed up a trail that promised to have the chance of opening up to a grand view of the mountains and so off we went. After a mile lugging painting gear, we were still in the woods. We decided the trail would do.

As happens so many times when I paint with Tony, he painted looking up and I painted looking down. I found a large mushroom and liked the way it sat in the leaves.

We had a great laugh over my choice of subjects. It later became part of an ongoing joke. When I would botch a painting he would say, “Well you will always have the mushroom”.

Thinking of Vincent

Thinking of Vincent

Oil on panel

9 x 12 inches

2009

Auburn, Alabama

August 18,2009

I painted the same group of flowers with a darker background for my afternoon class. It worked well but it got me thinking of, “why not use the same yellow background as Van Gogh, worked well for him”. I changed the backdrop and proceeded to use a lot of yellow.

$100

Windsock

Wind Sock

Oil on Canvas

5 x7 inches

2009

Auburn, Alabama

August, 18, 2009

Sometimes I never know what I am going to paint, so I just head off in one direction and see what happens. I had to get some ink for my printer and it brought me close to the airport.

The airport was very quiet and it was overcast. I liked the abstract nature of the runways and the one bit of color from the wind sock.

$100

Live Oak and Tombstones

Live Oak and Tombstones

Oil on Canvas

5 x7 inches

2009

Auburn, Alabama

August, 19, 2009

I have driven past this cemetery hundreds of times but have never stopped to look. I know it is an old cemetery set up for African Americans after the civil war. The place is in poor shape, many of the tombstones are damaged or missing.

In the middle is a large oak tree. It has seen many of the changes in Auburn and the south.

$100

Tangled Sunflowers

Tangled Sunflowers

$100

Oil on Canvas

5 x7 inches

2009

Auburn, Alabama

August 15, 2009

Sunflowers have been a favorite of impressionist painters ever since Van Gogh squeezed out an entire tube of yellow and painted them. It is hard to say why they are so captivating, perhaps it is just the size or the bright yellow.

These sunflowers are part of Auburn University plot. They are part of a study as is everything else grown out there.

Goldfish

Goldfish

$100

Oil on Canvas

8 x 10 inches

2009

Auburn, Alabama

August 14, 2009

The university has some wonderful little places hidden hear and there. One of my favorites is the goldfish pond behind Samford Hall. The pond has nice lilies and other aquatic plants but mostly it is the bright orange goldfish that make it special.

The light shifted fast over the corner of the pond and I had to keep reassessing what could move with the light and what couldn’t. At first I didn’t even think about putting fish in I was just going for the reflections but as soon as I saw them swim into the picture I know I had to try and paint them.

Auburn Water Tower

Auburn Water Tower

$100

Oil on Canvas

5 x7 inches

2009

Auburn, Alabama

August 14, 2009

Auburn had great clouds today. I had painted in the morning but after being in the studio and seeing the clouds on the way to the bank I went and got my paints. There is a field on the university campus that is used mostly for people to park their RV’s during football games. It gives a nice open view of the sky. In the far distance you can see the top of a large white water tower.

I used my motorcycle to get to the painting site. It is a great way to get around unless there is a cloud burst. Which is exactly what happed on the way back to the studio.

Yellow Lilies

Yellow Lilies

$100

Oil on Canvas

16 x 20 inches

2009

Auburn, Alabama

This painting was done as a demonstration for my Tuesday painting class. The lilies are from my front yard.

Mid Morning Sanford Hall

Mid Morning Sanford Hall
$100

Oil on Canvas
5 x7 inches
2009
Auburn, Alabama

There is nothing in auburn that has been painted, photographed and drawn as much as Samford Hall. For that reason I have avoided painting it for the years I have lived here. But you can’t help being drawn to it. It is simply a beautiful building and it is instantly recognizable as the unchangeable heart of Auburn.

I decided looking up at it was my best bet. I like looking at things in a way we are not used to. The sky framed the towers and it the building suddenly could have been on the Grand Canal.

It was a difficult piece with all the angles for a small 5”x 7” but the most difficult thing was that I brought nothing to wipe my brushes with. I was all set up and I didn’t want to go back to the studio. I glanced down at my feet and figured that a painting is worth sacrificing a pair of socks for. It was all done by 10:30. You never lost track of time while painting a tower with a clock and chimes in it.

Pond Reflections

Pond Reflections

Oil on Canvas

8 x 10 inches

2009

Auburn, Alabama

One of my students Sheri has started a Plein Air painting group in Auburn. She has asked me several times to come to“paint out” and something has always come up. Finally I had time this Wednesday.

The site was Town Creek Park in Auburn. The park has a man made pond that has a robust turtle and algae population. I was attracted to the little white flowers growing along the edge of the pond and wished there were lily pads to fill out the composition. Fortunately there were clumps of algae and duck weed. I figured if I kept it loose enough they would have the same effect. There is a lot to paint in this little park and I will be back there soon.

Farm Pond

Farm Pond

$100

Oil on Linen
8x10 inches
Fall of 2006
H & H Horse Quarters, Auburn, Alabama

At the farm where we keep our horse, Remington, and where my wife and daughter ride, is a small fishing pond. It is hidden behind the back pastures and you only see it when you come upon it by accident.

Like many ponds in Alabama, this area is the result of an earthen dam. The remnants of drowned trees still litter the water, becoming perches for a variety of birds.

This landscape was painted late in the day. It was very overcast and still. Light was hitting the trees and the effect wouldn’t last. I worked quickly but had to stop often to throw a stick in the water for my Labrador Retriever, Sully. He still doesn’t understand the whole art thing.

Fallen Flower

Fallen Flower

$100

Oil on Canvas

8 x 10 inches

2009

Auburn, Alabama

These flowers have been blooming in my yard for months now. They are very simple and even when they are wilting have a beautiful color. I thought it would be nice to let just the color of the followers dominate so they were placed in a white on white set up.

One flower lies wilted out of the vase. This was just for design but as I looked at it as I painted I thought of it more as a metaphor or symbol.

Still Life With Pear

Still Life with a Pear

$100

Oil on panel

8 x 10 inches

2009

Auburn, Alabama

It has been a while since I have done a classical still life. It was a good day to stay in the studio as I have not gotten used to the Alabama heat since returning from Canada. I’ll have to brave it and head outside to paint soon.

Sunlit Window

Sunlit Window

$100

Oil on Canvas

5 x7 inches

2009

Auburn, Alabama

Every morning I walk into the mansion’s back door and look into this room and see the light sparkling through the window and say to myself, “I should paint this”. This morning after eights years I finally painted it . I won’t wait so long next time

Log Jump

Log Jump

$100

Oil on Canvas

5 x 7 inches

2009

Auburn, Alabama

My daughter Savannah was attending a horse camp at Auburn University and on the final day the parents were invited to come out and watch. Any horse event involves a lot of waiting so I decided that I could get my daily painting while waiting.

Behind the rings where she was riding there were a series of cross country jumps. Some logs jumps, barrels, and fences. The log jump had an interesting color against the green grass and the large oak in the back framed it out. I haven’t painted a 5”x7” in a while and though it would be quick but as it turns out a painting is a painting “ no matter how small”.

Coosa River

Coosa River

Watercolor on paper

4 x6 inches

2009

Wetumpka, Alabama

All I can fit in my kayak is a small watercolor kit. It is the model of efficiency all folding up to about 3” x6”. It makes for a nice pause on the river to stop and paint. This spot was just to the side of Moccasin Gap. This is a popular spot for kayakers to surf in a large continuous wave.

Window Tulips

Window Tulips

$100

Oil on Canvas

16 x 20 inches

2009

Auburn, Alabama

I thought that finding something to do with tulips would be easy. They are so colorful and simple; surely I could just throw together a set up. I went though idea after idea and nothing caught me. To make it more difficult the tulips were drooping terribly.

To remedy the droop I put holes in a Styrofoam coffee cup, shoved the tulips in and put the whole thing in a pot. I then carried the pot from place to place until it landed on my studio window sill. At that point I was ready to throw it on the floor and paint the mess.

I liked the shear curtain and the glazed pot. I little fine tuning and it was ready to be painted.

Back From Canada!- Leaving the Shade

Leaving the Shade

$100

Oil on Canvas

8 x10 inches

2009

Auburn, Alabama

This was attempting to paint the heat of Alabama. I was looking for a place to paint in Auburn and I thought the farmers market would be the perfect choice. I packed up all my stuff, went to the market, bought some flax seeds, looked all around and decided that nothing was doing it for me . With that the case I didn’t want to fail at a painting with an audience.

I drove over to the area where the university studies cattle. I never could resist a cow painting. The cows however had taken refuge from the sun under the tall pine trees. I was tired of looking for something to paint so I settled on the trees.

The light was very harsh so I decided to boost the color and show the heat. Toward the end of the painting the sun was going down and out came the cows. I kicked around the idea of putting them in for about 5 minutes and before they got too close sketched them in.