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Summer is here!
Ahhhh....Summer plein air painting is the best. No warm gloves and hats needed. Gorgeous views to be had over such long days with...


Presenting a Slide Show with a Talk... You are invited!
I was asked to give a slide show and talk about plein air painting in Yellowstone National Park at the Trail's End Art Association in...


The Weasel That Inspired It ALL
There's A Weasel On My Easel ! A clip of the weasel that jumped onto my easel while I was painting... and inspired it ALL. I’m thrilled...


Maryhill Museum's Pacific Northwest Plein Air 2023
I've been juried into the Show! The painting festivities begin Monday April 24 in the Columbia River Gorge in the Pacific Northwest. The...


Full Moon & Election Day...
Always remember we are under the same sky, looking at the same moon. - Maxine Lee


It's OUT!! Have a listen...
I worked on a program over the summer that has been completed, edited and now aired (!!) on BBC Radio... Yellowstone - The Art of...


Autumn Delights
Live in each season as it passes; breathe the air, drink the drink, taste the fruit, and resign yourself to the influence of each. ...


Detour . . .
After the floods - this is what remained of the Gardiner to Mammoth Road in Yellowstone National Park. PHEW! It has been quite the summer...


Bozeman Art Museum exhibit...
The Bozeman Art Museum’s upcoming exhibition - A celebration of the 150th Anniversary of Yellowstone National Park - runs April 29 to...


Hope + Freedom = Birds
I started a blog post early this week about bird paintings, including some of mine and some of my favorites from art history. I was going...


I'm 'on news stands near you' NOW...
Plein Air Magazine February/March 2022 issue... Check it out! Here's a preview... But if you want to see some of my work and thoughts ‘in...


What an experience for an artist!
An experience I need to share with you… I had the opportunity to visit Rosa Bonheur’s Chateau in the Loire Valley of France - her past...


1 Weekend, 2 Seasons, 3 Moose & 999 Bison
This weekend, I got to paint autumn on Saturday - and SNOW on Sunday! AND the wildlife were particularly cooperative. I had a HUGE line...


A BIG Surprise!
I paint a lot outside. You could argue that I may be 'addicted' and I may agree. What began as a way to learn painting in a deeper way...


"Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working."
I agree. A wise quote from Pablo Picasso. From my experience, I find inspiration in the doing not in the sitting around and waiting for...


Shine Your Light
Shine Your Light plein air oil 9" x 12" by Shirl Ireland My ‘light' has always been creative and artistic. No doubt about it. At...


My pep talk - for me as much as you!
It has sure been a wild ride for so many of us lately, in so many different ways. I can feel a collective weariness that seeps into just...


"First" Western Plein Air Female Artist
Abby and her children at their camp in Yellowstone c. 1905 Well depending on your criteria, "the first" could be argued, but in that...


Bold & Baroque
Artemisia Gentileschi (1593 - 1653) Self-Portrait as Saint Catherine of Alexandria by Artmesia Gentileschi c. 1616 Oil (The...


Our first modern day professional Artist & Mother...
Lavinia Fontana Born August 24, 1552 in Bologna Italy - Died August 11, 1614 in Rome Self-Portrait in the Studiolo by Lavinia Fontana c....
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