I was getting ready for a dinner party, lighting candles and stuff, when I turned around and saw this scene. In addition to the candlelight, the early evening light was streaming across that corner of the room, creating quite an evocative scene. After I painted it, I jokingly called it a Sargent, without the people.

Price: $40.00

Oil on gessoed board

Approximately 7 inches by 5 inches

A friend of mine lives on the east side of Napa, an area a little more rural than other parts of Napa proper, known as much for horses as it is vineyards. On the way home I was struck by this scene, with a lot of depth: from the English walnut trees on the right side of the road, to the dip in the road in the middle, to the Lombardy poplars in full color on the hillside next to a rather Tuscan-looking house. Yes, there are places where the Napa Valley looks very much like Tuscany, but those of us who know it well, know it has its own peculiar charms.

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Oil on gessoed board Approximately 7 inches by 7 inches This was one of those sunsets that had friends and neighbors calling each other, saying "did you see that sunset?" I like that about my friends and neighbors, that they'd call to alert me to some wonderful accident of nature, that in ways earthbound and heavenly, make folks come together in some kind of miracle that none of us can really understand. Except for the fact of its beauty.

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Oil on gessoed hardboard Approximately 7 inches by 5 inches When I was painting this still life, my kitchen, which has 11-foot ceilings, was perfumed with the scent of narcissus. All y'all know the ancient story of Narcissus viewing his reflection in the stream and falling in love with himself and not being able to scoop into the water and revive his thirst because he was afraid to refract his image into bits of reflections. It's a story I've never been able to really understand, but I guess that says something about me. I put the rose hips into the picture to have bookends to the season: The 'Iceberg' roses have finally stopped blooming and have started to produce "hips," whilst the narcissus have begun blooming – a sure sign of another spring. Can the solstice be far behind? Oh, please . . . longer days and shorter nights, please? Click on image to enlarge.

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Oil on gessoed card

Approximately 7 inches by 5 inches

I can understand why parsnips, rutabagas, turnips and the rest of the root crops are associated with winter, but citrus? With all their tropical associations, bright colors, and snappy flavors, it just seems odd that they're ripening just now. My neighbor has a gigantic grapefruit tree (the biggest I've ever seen . . . maybe 30 feet tall and as wide), some of the branches of which hang over into my backyard, and they're just laden with fruit. Low-hanging beauties, just right for painting and eating.

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Oil on gessoed card

Approximately 7 inches by 7 inches

We're finally getting the rain we so desperately need and, considering last night ushered in the first day of winter, I guess it's "season-appropriate" weather. That said, I just don't do cold and dark well, let alone wet. But it does make for some soft landscape scenes, with all the edges blurred, and the coaxing of first very green grasses and the brilliant mustard in the vineyards. If it has to be dark, cold, and wet, at least it comes with some visual benefits. Here's to the season!

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Oil on gessoed board

Approximately 7 inches by 5 inches

It's getting to be slim-pickings (literally) in the fruit department, this time of year. Thank goodness for pears! My friend Patty moseys over to my place on Sunday nights for dinner and pinochle; she's on a winning streak, which is something of a bitter pill to swallow, but dinner definitely wasn't: pork chops, steamed new potatoes, and peas, along with some "pear sauce" (think apple sauce, only different) I made from mashed canned pears we put up last year, a little balsamic vinegar and sea salt, and chunks of fresh pear from the half missing in this painting. Gone, but not forgotten, as they say, and good eatin'.

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Oil on gessoed board

Approximately 7 inches by 5 inches

I keep thinking that the 'Iceberg' roses in my garden have produced the last of the season and I think I can say that these are, indeed, the last. We've had some really cold weather recently (down to 22 degrees at night) which, for some reason, causes the normally white 'Iceberg' roses to turn pink. You'd think they'd turn blue!

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Oil on gessoed card

Approximately 8 inches by 8 inches

I was up at Schramsberg Vineyards in Calistoga the other day, the second oldest winery in the valley and a very beautiful spot. It was a dark, cold, and rainy day which, somehow, made this scene even more appealing to me. There was quite a bit of sound associated with the site: rain dropping on the pond, on the dry leaves on the hillside and the lily pads floating on the water, the wind in the tops of the pines, all of it very evocative. It's strange how what looks like a very dreary day from inside the house can sometimes be anything but, once you get out in it.

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Oil on gessoed board

Approximately 7 inches by 4.5 inches

I was definitely in the mood for a little light and bright today, especially given a spate of dark and dreary days around here. I have a Mandarin tree that surprises me every year at how good the fruit is, given that Napa's climate isn't exactly ideal for citrus. The perfume of the split peel informed this painting – pretty sweet! The pencil cup is from a long-ago trip to St. Bart's; the crest signifies absolutely nothing, other than wonderful warm, sunny memories. Click on image to enlarge.

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Gouache on 100% rag paper

Approximately 7 inches by 5 inches

Visitors to the valley are often surprised with how green it is during the winter. We usually get our first rain at the end of October and within a few days, the hills and fields magically turn green and stay that way until it starts to warm up in July. That green is an interesting complement to the gray skies so typical of our winters, with drifts of fog hanging on the hills like so many shifting veils, alternately obscuring and then revealing what lies behind.

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Gouache on 100% rag paper

Approximately 7 inches by 7 inches

When the weather is unsettled, with a storm blowing in from the coast, things tends to change fast, particularly after the storm. This was one of those days, with huge cumulus clouds racing south down the valley. As they move, things move in and out of shadow rapidly. I happened to catch this scene just as it lit up a stripe of yellow mustard plants, making it look like it had just been plugged into an electrical socket. And yes, in these conditions, the hills really are that blue!

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Oil on gessoed cardstock

Approximately 7 inches by 5 inches

Well, Edouard Manet painted this really great painting of a big brioche with pink and rose peonies kind of hanging over the brioche. I've always been fascinated with the painting, but had to do with what was at hand: namely, a sourdough batard from the Model Bakery (which, dangerously, I can walk to) and camellias from my backyard. I added a little a butter because, why not? Small pleasures in hard times suddenly become more acute. In the main, aren't we lucky? Click on image to enlarge.

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Oil on gessoed board

Approximately 7 inches by 5 inches

There are two seasonal items I simply have to have my fill of before they disappear for the year: home-grown tomatoes (usually as a tomato sandwich with mayonnaise and salt and pepper only); the other is Dungeness crab. If I don't get enough of either one while they're in season, I feel bad for the rest of the year. Really. Funny that neither of them really requires any "preparation;" they're best enjoyed just as they were made. A wedge of iceberg lettuce with good blue cheese dressing, a few lemons, and some sourdough french bread, a cracked Dungeness crab, a cold bottle of beer or a glass of dry white wine . . . well it just doesn't get much better. Cheers!

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Oil on gessoed board

Approximately 7 inches by 5 inches

No, these pears aren't from my backyard, but at least they're still available in the market. I fished a book out of my library the other day on the still lifes of Manet and I was really taken with one he did of pears in a basket. Well, at least I tried . . . Here's a good trick for your next dinner party: Take however many just-ripe pears you need and take a small vertical slice out of the pear from stem-end to stern; reserve. Using a melon-baller or a teaspoon, remove the core and seed cavity. Fill the cavity with good Gorgonzola cheese and put the cut slice back in place. Stand the pear up on a dessert plate with a couple of cookies or biscuits of your choice, along with a fork and a sharp knife. Cheese-fruit-and-dessert course all in one! And really delicious.

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Oil on gessoed board

Approximately 7 inches by 4 inches

The sun streamed in through my kitchen window this morning, making these blood oranges look more like big jewels rather than fruit. Kind of took my breath away. Their skins are a combination of rich orange and deep rust color and the insides really are red. Yes, things are bad but they're also still beautiful. I guess it's a matter of where you turn your attention.

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Watercolor on tinted watercolor paper

Approximately 7 inches by 7 inches

The other day my friend Tony emailed me from Kansas City, where I used to live, saying that he was suffering from the monochromatic gray-ness of that city in mid-winter. "Would it be possible for you to send me some 'Meyer' lemons?" he asked. "We need more than a plate of beef." I sent them off – a box of sunshine from California, and even after it was wrapped, you could smell the perfume from the lemons. Powerful, those 'Meyer' lemons! This painting is a little different – it's painted on tinted watercolor paper, so the white highlights have to be added at the end, and the shadow pattern across the white canvas tablecloth gave it an abstract, almost Asian quality. Click on image to enlarge.

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Oil on gessoed board

Approximately 8.5 inches by 5 inches

When I started this painting, it was a little like the proverbial "polar bear in a snow storm;" I wasn't sure whether or not there would really be anything to paint . . . turns out that white onions aren't really so white, afterall. When it was finished and propped up on the kitchen table, I caught it out of the corner of my eye and it reminded me of Vermeer's "Woman with a Pearl," albeit a mighty large pearl!

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Oil on gessoed board

Approximately 9 inches by 6 inches

I painted these Blood Oranges last week and was about to eat them (gulp) when I looked at them again on this blue plate yesterday and granted them a reprieve. They were just too beautiful. So I painted them again. My kitchen faces east, so there's really strong light coming through the windows in the morning. And even though I've got a separate studio, I somehow always wind up painting at the kitchen table where the light seems to illuminate everything. Beautifully. Click on image to enlarge.

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Oil on gessoed board

Approximately 9 inches by 6 inches

I painted this scene basically just to see if I could. For all its substance, it's practically all light and reflection. I've always thought there's a big difference between "looking" and "seeing." I had to look pretty hard to see what was there on this one; the reflection of the creamer on the surface of thermos surprised me. The thermos is from the 1920's, something I found in a secondhand store years ago in Kansas City. It used to have a mirrored glass stopper that was very cool which, unfortunately, broke a long time ago. The coffee now stays hot with the aid of a champagne cork. Hey, it works! Click on image to enlarge.

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Oil on gessoed board

Approximately 8.5 inches by 7 inches

Finally, something besides camellias to paint! It was so warm last week a bunch of stuff practically popped into bloom: the 'Bradford' pears look like they have snow on them, the star magnolias are magnificent, along with flowering plums that are used as street trees in my neighborhood. And then there was this clump of daffodils next to my driveway, which seemed a rather pedestrian location for such perfection. I'm guessing they were planted a long time ago because the clump is so large and that they are that old-fashioned variety, 'King Alfred.' Long live the king! Click on image to enlarge.

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Watercolor on 100% rag paper

Approximately 8.5 inches by 7 inches

Normally I shy away from cliche images of the valley but, at this time of year, there's simply no getting away from the mustard. It's so incredibly vibrant, it almost vibrates. Combined with the blue of the hills, it's quite the combination. By the way, that's the trunk of an ancient Washington palm at left, growing rather incongruously in the middle of the old vineyard. This painting reminded me of late friend, artist John Puscheck and one of his more enigmatic pronouncements: "No matter what the question, the answer is yellow.

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Watercolor on 100% rag paper

Approximately 7 inches by 7 inches

I originally painted (and posted) this painting couple of weeks ago. As soon as I did, I realized that it wasn't quite "right," but what was done was done. As it turned out, it didn't sell and I continued to look at it to see what was missing. I went back in and fixed what I felt was wrong (not easy with a watercolor!) and I like it better now. Click on image to enlarge.

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Oil on gessoed board

Approximately 10 inches by 8 inches

It occurs to me that there's a lot of yellow around this time of year. First of all, the brilliant mustard blooming in the vineyards, then there's the rich yellow of the 'Meyer' lemons, and as I look out my kitchen window there are grapefruits hanging in the huge tree that almost look like big clusters of yellow grapes – no kidding. And then there's the acacia trees, which are at their peak of bloom right now, dotting the hillsides and lining the country roads, drooping with a jillion star-like flowers, releasing their sweet scent to passersby. It really is like an explosion of color and exuberance. Click on image to enlarge.

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Oil on gessoed board

Approximately 7 inches by 5 inches

I'm not quite sure what I was thinking when I embarked on this one; I do know I'll probably need new glasses tomorrow. It did, however, give me a new respect for pattern. And working with good light! Click on image to enlarge.

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Goauche on 100% rag paper

Approximately 12 inches by 8 inches

I was visiting my friend Susan yesterday, whose office is located on an old ranch in south Napa. Right at the entrance I was struck by a classic combination of California trees: the native acacia in full yellow bloom, a grove of giant eucalyptus (though not a native, it certainly acts like one), and a Canary Island palm, probably planted when they were all the rage in the late 1800's. Story has it that the eucalyptus arrived in California from Australia, intended as a fast-growing source of railroad timbers in the mid 1850's, when the Transcontinental Railroad was being constructed. Turned out whoever imported the trees chose the wrong species; the lumber from these eucalyptus twists as it dries, making it totally unusable for railroad ties. Lot a history in that little corner! Click on image to enlarge.

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Gouache on 100% rag paper

Approximately 9 inches by 7 inches

I was upvalley the other day and it was raining like crazy. I turned off of Silverado Trail onto the Yountville Crossroad, heading west, when I happened on to this scene. The clouds were scudding low over the western hills, moving fast. What made it almost surreal was, as gloomy and wet as it was, there was also mustard yellow glowing at ground level – a strange and wonderful combination. Click on image to enlarge.

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Oil on gessoed card

Approximately 10 inches by 8 inches

I've lived in the valley for a long time and I've looked at Mt. St. Helena – which anchors the north end of the valley – for an equally long time. What really amazes me is that for something that must, in reality, weigh a gejillion tons of stone and soil, at some times of the year, at some times of the day, looks like a weightless scrim, lit a pale blue or lavender. I think it's something of a magical, natural, theatrical trick of some kind. Or maybe it's just the nature of light. I've actually seen that big thing shimmer in its lightness of being. One recent rainy day in February, it looked to me like it could have been blown away with the clouds. Click on image to enlarge.

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Oil on gessoed card

Approximately 7 inches by 5 inches

Did you grow up with "spring onions?" I certainly didn't, but I really like the way they taste and the way they look. Basically they're somewhere between a scallion and a full-fledged onion. They can be any variety of regular, big onion -- planted from seedlings in the early fall -- and then harvested in late winter or early spring, before they have a chance to mature. Had these been left in the ground, they would have become purple 'Bermuda' onions, so popular on hamburgers. I think gardeners of old were so hungry for something fresh at this time of year they just pulled them out of the garden as soon as there was something down there in the dirt to eat. Click on image to enlarge.

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Oil on gessoed card

Approximately 11 inches by 7.5 inches

One of the many great things about our climate is that even on the dreariest, darkest, wettest days of winter, there's still something in the garden that makes one think of brighter, warmer days to come. The red and pink camellias in my garden started blooming around Thanksgiving and they're still blooming! This Camellia japonica 'White Waves' just started blooming this weekend. The large petals and yellow stamens make them look almost like water lilies. Given the amount of rain we had today, they probably felt like water lilies.

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Oil on gessoed card

Approximately 7 inches by 5 inches

My friend Ellen came for dinner the other night; she showed up the next day with a bag full of Navel oranges off her tree as a thank-you. Nice thank-you! The oranges were very large and, well, very orange. I put a couple of them on one of my favorite platters – a Catalina Island gem – from the turn of the last century, glazed in that strange bluish-green, so emblematic of the California pottery of that era. I really liked the combination of colors

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Oil on gessoed board

Approximately 7 inches by 5 inches

We've had some warm spring rains here recently, the kind that makes everything appear very lush and fresh, very fast. I was driving up Silverado Trail the other afternoon and caught this scene. I particularly liked the juxtaposition of the gnarly walnut trees against all the new, very green grass and that band of yellow mustard in the background. The cumulus clouds were very puffy and coming in from the west, signaling more rain to come, but that's okay, because we need it. For those who might not know, the short black areas at the base of the walnut trees are black walnuts, and the lighter trunks above, are English walnuts. They are grafted together in their youth because black walnuts have great root systems (which the English walnuts do not) and the English walnuts have great, meaty, easy-to-crack walnuts, which the black walnuts definitely don't.

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Oil on gessoed board
Approximately 7 inches by 7 inches

I have this rather scrawny lilac bush growing next to my house but, despite it's rather weak appearance, it sure puts out the blossoms. Specifically, it's a Korean lilac (Syringa meyeri) introduced to this country from Korea in the very early 1900's by Frank N. Meyer, a plant explorer for the U.S.D.A. Interestingly, he was also the person who introduced the wonderful 'Meyer' lemon to this country in 1908. Meyer was quite the character, described as "a fanatic walker, natural traveler, trained botanist and gardener, and Buddhist." He also introduced a bunch of soybean varieties to American farmers and was the first to suggest that tofu could be a viable food product for the American market. Lot of history in the garden!

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Oil on gessoed board
Approximately 7 inches by 5 inches

Just south of Mustard's restaurant on Highway 29 there's a road called "Yount Mill Road." It's a dog-legged detour around what are known as the Yountville Hills; it's a step back in time if there ever was one. The current owner inherited it from his grandfather and it's one of the few tracts of land in the entire Napa Valley where the owner runs cattle – long-horned cattle at that – simply because that's what his grandfather used to raise. I have a feeling, as the ad says on television – they're "contented California cows."

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Oil on gessoed board

Approximately 10 inches by 5 inches

I bought this beautiful bunch of organic asparagus yesterday and decided to paint it's portrait before the asparagus went into the copper pot. Somehow, rereading that line, it sounds a little like a plot line from a Grimm's fairy tale . . . anyway, it's done now and they were, indeed, delicious. The light was coming head-on in this one, which makes it feel different from what I usually paint. Not that there's any comparison, but it reminds me a little of the feeling you get from many of Lucien Freud's paintings.

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Oil on gessoed board

Approximately 16 inches by 6 inches

This must be my bovine week . . . some people call these "Oreo cows," but they're really Dutch Belted dairy cattle. They're great-looking cows; not so great was my idea for painting advertisements on their white stripes. Hey, these are tough economic times! Ads or not, I've never seen them anywhere else but on the Stewart Ranch, just south of the town of Napa. The property has been in the family for over 100 years and it really gives you a sense of what the valley was like a century ago.

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Oil on gessoed board

Approximately 10 inches by 8 inches

This one is kind of weird: I took a vase painted by Manet, and combined it with a bunch of "Duchess de Nemours" camellias from my backyard. I guess the operative word is "took." You see I really liked Manet's vase, so I guess I stole it, and just put my own flowers in it. Should I ever meet him, I hope he forgives me . . . and gives me some painting lessons. Click on image to enlarge.

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Price: $0.00

Oil on gessoed board

Approximately 7 inches by 5 inches

My friend, Patty, lives just a few blocks from me here in Old Town Napa. She inherited the house she grew up in, along with its garden. Back in the 50's her father planted an apple tree in the backyard and it's still there. I helped prune it this winter and even though it's old, it's still plenty vital. I was there yesterday, which was darn near the perfect spring day, and tree was in full bloom – a beautiful and fragile emblem of spring from one generation to the next.

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Watercolor on 100% rag paper Approximately 10.5 inches by 6.5 inches I live within walking distance to the Oxbow Market, which just celebrated its first anniversary last weekend. If you don't know it, it's a collection of restaurants and food-related shops where you can get the best the region has to offer, like local grass-fed beef, oysters from Hog Island, the fantastic Model Bakery, a charcuterie that smokes its own sausages, hams and even makes its own mortadella, the best I've ever tasted. It also is home to Lisa Minucci's shop, Heritage Culinary Artifacts, filled with really wonderful pieces, mostly related to serving food and drink. It's a very tempting place; if I could, I'd wipe out half her stock with one shopping spree. When I saw this black-and-white English porcelain platter (one of five in graduated sizes), I knew I wanted to put some 'Meyer' lemons on it and paint it. Lisa graciously loaned it to me and this is the result. The platters are in the "Argyle" pattern and are from the 1920's. The set of five platters is 0. Lisa can be reached at www.heritageartifacts.com. Click on image to enlarge.

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Price: $0.00