Finished "Sailing Class"!

                       ' Sailing Class' ,  pastel. 24 x 18, ©Mary McHugh 2011


Today was my deadline to finish the big painting for the Superior Watershed show at the Great Lakes Visitor Center near Ashland, WI.  This was inspired by a photo (taken by Linda, my sister -in -law ) of my nephew's Mikael's sailing class in Bayfield, WI. I have been working on it since mid April. I could easily keep messing with it some more.  It is one of those paintings with lots of detail and the sails, clouds, water, and the people are not satisfied until I mess with it at least a dozen times. But it needs to go out the door and hitch a ride to Ashland today!

My show at Firefly has begun too so there are two options  if you want to see my work. Please join me for an Artist’s Reception on Sunday, June 12 from 3 - 4 PM in the “Art Around the Corner” gallery at Firefly. Firefly Trading Company is located one mile south of Cable. WI  on Highway 63.  For more information, visit their website at fireflytradingcompany.com or find them on Facebook.  Firefly is open everyday in the summer; Monday through Saturday from 10 – 5 and Sundays from Noon to 4.

Charac banner painting complete

Our local arts organization is having a Gallery on Main Street this summer in Cable and I painted a long painting of a "Sunlit Passage" for it and here it is. So now I am ready to start a new painting for  our Superior Watershed group show at the Northern Great Lakes Visitor Center which will run from June through October. I will also be having a one woman show at Firefly in Cable during the month of June.

For those of you that haven't heard, I am back in cancer treatment mode again, getting treated for brain tumors, with a series of ten whole brain scans, plus three targeted ones. However, I feel good, my diet has been very healthy, am very hopeful, and have energy to keep painting!

'Sunlit Passage', pastel, 12 x 24, ©Mary McHugh 2011

Spring Projects

the middle of March.. snow is melting and skiing season is over. It's been a rough few weeks with the Tsunami and other disasters plus all the bad politics in Wisconsin. The kids are enjoying track practice and I now have some time to myself. I started a painting for the banner project for Cable, I think they are calling it "Gallery on Main Street".  Next month I will be teaching a kids' watercolor class after school with the Edventure program.  I have been working on some proposals for summer classes in Washburn to help out with Doug Thomas's students. Our Superior Artists group is going to celebrate our 10 year anniversary with a series of shows this summer too. It'll be exciting! I'll post again when my banner painting is completed.

I am getting restless....

and ready for winter to wind down, but there is still at least another month of snow and cold. Today was the huge Birkebeiner ski race and that signals the beginning of the end of ski season. My kids did the 24 km.  Kortelopet which is like half of a Birkie. It was five below zero Fahrenheit when we left home and never really warmed up all that much.

I stopped by the Blue Show at Art Beat yesterday and snapped a photo of my painting (bottom left) . It is a wonderful show. Try to stop by, it lasts one more week.

Just in Time .....

for the February Cool Blue Show at Art Beat of Hayward.

So I didn't want to do water or snow and racked my brain to figure out what I really want to paint. What else is Blue out there in the landscape?  I decided to pick a good composition and see what happened. Anything can be made blue! So this is what happened. I like it a lot. Thanks Deanna and Catherine for making me stretch a little and come up with something cool and blue.
The reception for the show is Feb 12, from 3 to 6 P.M..  I won't be able to attend since I will be at the State Nordic Ski Meet with the team.The show runs through March 5. Stop by and have a look.

'Some Like It Blue', pastel, 16.75 x 12, ©Mary McHugh 2011

Go Packers!

This winter hasn't been very productive for me! Too many distractions. Skiing and Packer football. Most of my Saturdays have been taken up with skiing so that means painting on Saturday night and last night I just couldn't break away. I usually paint at night while my family watches football or action adventure movies. I really want go downstairs to paint but the Packers are doing so well and have been winning their play off games!

Here is a little painting that I did complete for L.J.'s Birch theme show. It's pretty sweet.
Opening reception for "All Things Birch and Beautiful" is February 22, 2011 at Firefly Trading Co., Cable, WI from 3-5 P.M.
My next project will be posted in a month!  (or less :))

'Winter Birch Hymnal', pastel, 7 x 7, ©Mary McHugh 2011

Sold Two Kayaks to the Rice Lake Hospital

I successfully had an online sale through the Portal Wisconsin website last month! So farewell to Two Kayaks!
I hope to post a new painting soon. I need to get downstairs and dig in.

   'Two Kayaks', pastel, 16.25 x 9.25, © Mary McHugh 2008