Holidays are Here

Holidays are Here. Celebrating this week. My classes take a break in December. But, before we do, we celebrate! We gather to celebrate each other and the season.

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McNinch Leather Goods

Robert McNinch, Leather goods

My sweet husband, Robert, is getting ready for his 2nd art show! He has been using his talents to make leather goods for 5 years now – ever since retirement. Time flies.

The big day is DEC 3 / 1-5pm

Robert’s booth will be at 1228 Shirley Street, Columbia SC. (803) 360-3144

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VISTA LIGHTS 2023 – Party Pics

Stormwater Studios Open for Vista Lights 2023 - Robert got a great shot of my open door lit at night!

It is all over but the memories, but this year Vista Lights was a blast. Here are some of the highlights. Thank you for looking in this week. Hope you enjoyed the look into my painting practice. For those of you who stopped by and especially those who took a painting home, many thanks. It is a pleasure to paint for you.

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Light it Up!

This week I have been getting ready for our annual Vista Lights celebration. Picking up from the framers, getting last minute pieces finished up. Cleaning the studio. I have updated my website with all available work. Here are a few new pieces that will be ready for the show.

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Finished and Just Beginning

This painting and the following three comprise a Table Rock State Park Series. It was started in one of my painting classes to show how a series of paintings can all be started on the same day and using the same palette.  This gives a great chance that the paintings will hold together as a series.  Consistent Harmony. A worthy aim.

This week my fall series of paintings were completed and I checked out the venue for an upcoming show. Let me show you… This painting and the following three comprise a Table Rock State Park Series. It was started in one of my painting classes to show how a series of paintings can all be started on the same day and using the same palette.  This gives a great chance that the paintings will hold together as a series.  Consistent Harmony. A worthy aim.

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Fall at Table Rock State Park

There is a little lake in front of Table Rock and a small little area to explore. It is one of the most beautiful places in the whole park. Drive across the street and look for the little paths that will bring you to the lake. Don’t forget your camera.

Table Rock State Park has it all – cooler temperatures, historic cabins (built by Roosevelt’s CCC), and of course there is the vivid show of color during Fall! It is a landscape painter’s dream to have so many opportunities to paint. Nature lovers, camping lovers, and art lovers unite at Table Rock in the fall. Please consider supporting our beautiful park system by bringing all your family and friends out for a day to enjoy what the earth has to offer. What are your favorite parks in your area?

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Santee State Park Revisited

Donnelley Wildlife Management Area, oil, 11x14 Donnelley Wildlife Management Area, a SCDNR public land near Santee State Park and was a lovely way to spend the day. The vast natural beauty in this area is healing to my spirit. To sit in such beauty and paint is the height of my joy. It so effortlessly exists without any input from us humans. ; ) #comeoutandpaint #stormwaterstudios #michelmcninch #coastalliving #naturelovers #landscapelovers #inspiration #artlovers #santee #santeestatepark #beanartist #artlovers #Donnelley WildlifeManagementArea #SCDNR #campinglife

My time at Santee State Park resulted in many paintings over the years. Let me show you some of my paintings from my first visit there. You may have seen some of these. I am hopeful you will enjoy them this time too. : ). Santee State Park is replete with these beautiful places. It seems very holy to me. I don’t really have words to explain, but my spirit seems to connect with these places in a way nothing else does. That is why this is what I paint.

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The Ocean and the Lake

Litchfield Beach, oil, 6x8 This little spot in the world gives spectacular color. I always get inspired to paint there.

What is not to love about the inspiration of the ocean and lake for the landscape painter? Work on my SC State Parks series brought out these paintings that were waiting patiently for their last licks of the brush.  I enjoyed a pleasant day in my studio with the door open and the breeze blowing while I had my last session on these paintings.

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Paintings from SC State Parks

At Santee State Park, there are cabins on the piers. This is the view just as the sun sinks into the water. The smell of the brackish water comes to mind and the squawks of the shorebirds settling in for the night. I wanted to paint the “end of day” drama.

Four paintings in the State Park series were completed this week. Hope you enjoy these new images. Do you have any favorite state parks? These paintings will be part of a social media campaign in the next few weeks. When you see them in your feed, please share them. It would mean so much to me. Many thanks to those of you who already share my work. Thank you for supporting the arts on the individual artist level. We could not do it without your help.

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Blocking In Landscapes – my new paintings

Oh, how I love to start a new painting. Favorite thing to do. I have a million ideas. How many will I have time for? Only one way to find out. I am blocking in new landscapes this week. I have heard that you like to see the process. It’s not always pretty, but it is always fun! So, here ya go.

My new paintings are just getting started – The images are from time I spent at Huntington Beach State Park.

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While The Paint Dries

Time to clean up. The paintings have been completed and they are drying on the easel as I write to you. Now, I see what else has been surrounding me. Palettes for each painting brimming with color, rags, tissues, brushes, cats, boxes. Creative chaos. When I have a painting going, I don’t see that stuff. In the end, I get the paintings and the mess.

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