Taka

I am a huge fan of Turk’s in Mattapoisett. No doubt about it, Taka is amazing! He makes the most beautiful, delicious sushi my sister AnnMarie and I have ever had and she travels all over in search of great sushi. The best part is that Taka is always happy to see me…and everyone else. He beams with energy and excitement as he works his magic making food to fill the crowded rooms and stunningly delicate flowers from vegetables! I sit at the counter if there is an open seat so we can catch up on each other’s lives while I eat and he creates! Pure happiness!Oil on Panel / 5.9” x 5.9” / 15cm x 15cm

Purchase of this daily painting may be done through contacting my email . Each daily painting is $150 US plus applicable tax. (Please see Terms of Sale)

Trees along the Buttonwood Pond

This was an amazingly beautiful day. The sun was bright and clear but the strangest thing was that it would just start to rain with the sun fully shining! Big rain fell twice for 10 minutes or so and the sun and rain together just intensified all of the colors. The tree bark became dark and the leaves just became shiney and brighter! It was stunning! It was so warm that people at Buttonwood Park just let it rain on them as they walked around accepting the refreshing showers! Great to be part of such a gorgeous day!

Oil on Panel / 5.9” x 5.9” / 15cm x 15cm

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Goulart Square Bakery

This is Goulart Square Bakery on Rivet Street in the South End of New Bedford. They carry a fantastic Portuguese corn bread. The woman in the painting was kind enough to let me do my thing so I could do this painting for my blog. I don't know her name yet but the next time that I go in, I will ask her and then update this post. At one time I lived right down the street from this bakery and would walk here on a weekend morning to buy the bread still warm out of the oven. Not much was better than that with a little butter and some cold milk....I think that I will just have to get some tomorrow morning. Oil on Panel / 5.9” x 5.9” / 15cm x 15cm

Purchase of this daily painting may be done through contacting my email . Each daily painting is $150 US plus applicable tax. (Please see Terms of Sale)

Lilly Tending

I love this flower shop. It is called Sowle the Florist and it is in the North End of New Bedford. It is run by a sweet Portuguese couple who have owned it for thirty years. They bring me in the back and let me pick out my flowers with them. This is one of the owners. He is removing the rust colored pollen leaving the flowers amazingly beautiful. This is one of my favorite places to go. Buying flowers at the grocery store is so impersonal. There are still many family owned unique stores and places to eat in this area. I plan to paint a few of the best.

Oil on Panel / 5.9” x 5.9” / 15cm x 15cm

Purchase of this daily painting may be done through contacting my email . Each daily painting is $150 US plus applicable tax. (Please see Terms of Sale)

Little Woman "A"

5.9" x 5.9"/ Oil on Panel / 15cm x 15cm

Happy Birthday, AnnMarie!

This is my first official daily blog posting. I have finally gotten all of the materials ready that I need to make this a daily practice. During the next days I will go public via e mail, press etc. It is my intention to daily paint the things that make life worth living. Painting with this in mind is for me a meditation on gratitude, leaving me happier and maybe even a bit wiser to have had taken the time to absorb what gives life value to me. Speaking of which, I must paint my sister, AnnMarie! Today is also AnnMarie’s birthday! I have chosen to start the daily painting on this day in her honor for it is a fact that without her encouragement I would not have developed the confidence to become a professional portrait artist. She had all the faith in me that I did not. She helped talk me through the daunting fear of my first commissions. She helped me gain confidence and as a result, she has single handedly help to change my life into something that I truly look forward to every morning.

Today’s painting, Little Woman “A” was made as a complement to the previous post, Little Girl “A” that I painted 14 years ago. The two are both of my daughter who will be 17 years old in a few weeks! She has lost her blond hair and has grown to be so beautiful inside and out. Even her brother felt I nailed her image.

Oh my God. Finally it looks like her…I really love how it looks close up.
--James
(so I included a close up)

Today’s post is a dedication to my family but the entire blog itself is dedicated to the one person who made it possible, my sister AnnMarie. Happy birthday, Ann!

Little Girl "A"

Okay... This is a 6"x6" painting that I made but it does not count toward a daily painting because I painted it in 1994. It was done when my children were little..my daughter here was only two years old. I had just been gifted a huge book of Rembrandt's works and I was inspired. I was new to painting (just over a year) and thought I would go into as a profession but that idea got put on hold until 2008 when I took a summer off to study with some of the best. This work was made with dissolved oil pastels in Linquin. It was my first attempt in the medium. I won't sell it because of sentimental reasons...you understand. I just put it here to give you some thing to look at and something to read!

Not Daily Yet!

I think that it will be a while before I can make a painting a day. I am exhauted and dehydrated from a few weeks of a groolong schedule, staying up too late and generally not taking the best care of myself. I would think that I would know by now how important good food, plenty of water and sleep are to me. ha...I am always tempted to try going without these when there are more fun things to do like painting! I hate to have to put it off in order to sleep or eat or do laundry! This is a start of a painting of a man outside of the Bristol County Court House in downtown New Bedford.

Youth Summer Service Corp

I was taking photos this morning at Buttonwood Park and on my way to leave, a group of teens asked me to take their picture. So of course I did. When they asked what I was going to do with them, I told them...if any come out good, I will make a painting out of it and post it on my blog. So here it is. I don't know the model's name but he did a great job posing. So if you happen to see this post, thank you! One of your friends may be next :-). P.S. Thanks to the whole corp for the great work you are doing in the park. It looks so much better!

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