Category: Trees

My favorite time of year

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LIQUID AMBERCan you feel it?  That crisp coolness in the morning, the rustle of the breeze, fall is settling in. Just like clockwork the Liquid Ambers over at the farmers market have started to turn and I am happy that summer is starting to say it’s adieu.

That is why I love the beginning of September a time of transition from the hot humid summer to the coolness of fall, and a new color pallet for me. Since the Liquid Amber is the first tree to herald in this time of year I thought it appropriate to paint it.  It is also the harbinger of the busiest time of year for me as a local artist.  Just one month from the Prescott Area Artists Studio Tour. I am busy in the studio painting so you all have a fresh supply of beautiful art to see.

I love this new piece because of the beautiful contrast between the orange and purple, two complimentary colors.  You know me and my love of purple, it is my new neutral.  Purple goes with many of the colors I choose to paint with. A bit of purple in a painting is a wonderful thing…

I hope you are all out there enjoying this wonderful time of year. To find this painting and many more visit my Galleries.

Hope to see you at the Studio Tour Oct. 5, 6, & 7.

Pam

My #1 question? What’s yours?

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PRESCOTT SUNRISE, 16 X 16 ACRYLIC ON 1 1:2 GALLERY WRAP CANVAS, $320.00 BY PAMELA DUNMIRE

“Prescott Sunrise”   Learn more about this painting

Hi Friends,

Today is a question and answer session.  So I will try to answer the #1 question that people ask about my art and let you ask me some.

People always ask,  “Why do I paint what I do?”

Short answer is that it makes me happy, but the long answer is more complicated. My previous career was in Social Work; twenty years working with families, with a Masters in Counseling Psychology .

I saw that people who had broken spirits rarely picked themselves up. A single reflection of hope, in many cases, could be the trigger to make all the difference. Art became my solace after a long day of helping others who were stuck in a mire of self-destruction and hopelessness. It brought normalcy and hope to my life, so why couldn’t it bring this to others? If I were able to help a person move into a positive direction simply by viewing my art or teaching them how to create their own art they could look at life differently and change their lives for the better.

It is little wonder I try to find that spark of hope in all I do. As an artist the themes of hope and positive energy carry through all my work. I choose to paint art that is full of movement, positive-energy, and color to uplift my spirit and the spirits of others. Through my workshops I teach others to find wholeness through art.

So there you have it… I paint to heal grief, disappointment, and failure. I paint to give hope to others. I paint to help people have a joyous life.

So ask away, and then let me ask you how my art can help?  When it comes to picking art for your environment, what is your single greatest challenge?

Have a great day and continue enjoying life to its fullest.

Pam

 

WHERE’S THE SNOW?

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MARCH OF THE TREES

March of the Trees 9″ X 12″ Acrylic on 150 lb. pressed paper

I love when the seasons change and right on schedule the temps are starting to dip as Christmas approaches. Now for a little snow to cap off the holiday events.  However I don’t think that will happen this year.  It has been dry, dry, dry in the West.  I see my friends in California watch as their houses burn this past week and it saddens me.

Here in the mountains of Prescott we should be having snow, but all we get are the dreaded winds and more draught. I hold my breath hoping we do not suffer what California is going through right now.

So I go on with the season praying that Christmas cheer will abound and that winter snows will come and that I get all my commissions completed in time for gift giving. As an artist I can paint as much snow as I want and surround myself with paintings of snow, but I am dreaming of making snow angels and snow ball fights.

Musing about snow, one painting at a time…

March of the Trees

9″ X 12″ acrylic on vellum paper, matted in white to 12" X 16" and ready to frame.

$75.00

ASPENS

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ASPENS

Aspens 14″ X 11″  Acrylic on 1 1/2″ gallery wrap canvas

Just down the street is a beautiful clump of Aspens, they are the first in the neighborhood to turn brilliant yellow. They herald in the passage of time and the dance of Autumn. The riotous colors of the pears and ash were cued to bring forth there graduar and I got a quick step to my gait. Yes Fall is my favorite season of the year; no wonder that my first demo of the Artist Studio Tour was this little gem.

This is nowhere in particular but it was nestled in my heart and spewed out on Friday last. Reminicent of Granite Mountain and the meadows of Aspen that grow in Flagstaff.  It appears to be a composite of beautiful memories of Northern Arizona.  God’s tapestry that brings me joy.

Enjoying the beauty of Autumn on painting at a time…

ASPENS 14″T X 11″W, Acrylic on Gallery Wrap Canvas

Beautiful fall scene. Original one of a kind art, sides painted, and ready to hang. UV coating to protect the colors from fading. Shipping Free in the United States

$230.00

TWO APPLES it’s harvest season…

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TWO APPLES

“Two Apples”  9″ X 12″ acrylic on 150 lb. pressed paper

Today’s painting in my 30 in 30 challenge has broken all the rules.  I should have one tree or three trees but not TWO trees. But I snuck one in as your eye is leaving the paper.  Maybe that means there are a whole slew of other apple trees.  Maybe it is an orchard. If I step back I can envision it.  That is what I tell my students, paint till you are 80% done and let the viewer fill in the rest. Let them envision their own story.

I love this time of year, growing up in Michigan we had this great Cider Mill that I loved to go to in the fall. They have an apple press that was built in the 1800’s and is meticulously cared for.  They make the best fried donuts on the planet, perfectly paired with their cider. I remember as a kid running through their orchards and climbing the trees. Such happy memories I needed to paint an apple tree or maybe two.

Remembering my childhood one painting at a time…

MARCH OF THE TREES, or marching along in the studio.

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MARCH OF THE TREES

“March of the Trees”   9″ X 12″on 150 lb. pressed paper

Today is #19 in my 30 in 30 challenge, you may have notices that this isn’t going very well. I have 5 days till the end of the month and 11 paintings to go. So I think I already lost the battle but not the war. The success of the whole exercise is keep marching along. I had decided long ago that for my own mental health that I needed to take weekends off. So that is what I do, I walk out of the studio on weekends and devote time to family and friends.

Just yesterday at church someone introduced me as a REAL ARTIST to one of her friends. She explained that I did all the sets for Park Avenue Theater. That got me thinking, working all day in the studio and running an art business for the last 10 years does not qualify me as an artist but designing sets twice a year for 6 years does. I guess it is all in the perspective of the beholder so I will just keep marching along with those trees.

Marching along painting one tree, one set, and one painting at a time.

FOR THE LOVE OF TREES

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Blue Bayou 30″ X 30″

Just recently a student asked me, ” Why do you paint trees without leaves?” Hmm I began to think; I do paint a lot of snags and old dead trees. I like the structure of a tree trunk and the branches that reach toward the sky, why should they be covered up.  But I realized that it had been a long time since I painted a piece that was just vegetation. We have plenty of it up in the mountains of Arizona so yes, I should paint some.  Besides I needed a good example for my student.

Prescott Sunrise 2

Prescott Sunrise 16″ X 16″

I found a photograph of one of our lovely sunrises that had plenty of trees (with leaves) and went to work. Than I realized how much I love vegetation in fact that is why we (hubby and me) choose to live where we do. This has turned out to be one of my favorite new painting.  There is something about forests that become so sheltering, nurturing, and comforting. I love to hike in them. I love the scent of pine, especially after one of our monsoon rains.

So I have the bug now, I will be painting many more trees with leaves, and probably some more old snags also.  I really do love trees. Painting the Southwest one adventure at a time.

If you love this art please follow along with this blog.  You can find more examples of my art here.