Painting in Reno

I'm settling into Reno.  I've been working on my book, but also doing a lot of painting. Above are three more paintings for my collection.  I now have ten paintings that I started 10 months ago in Tucson.  Some still need a little more work (like the one above), but they are mostly done.  Below is a pine armoire from the 1930's that I painted for the Morris Burner Hotel in downtown Reno. My theme was goddesses.  They have invited artists from Reno to volunteer their services and I decided it would be fun to do something.  I got to meet lots of people.

Quan Yin, Brigid, Nut, Indian, Roman and Paleolithic goddesses cover the whole piece.

Below is Jungle Jim, the owner of the hotel, inspecting the armoire.  He liked it.

Brigid

Artist, Carol Ann Ricketts, was the only other artist who followed a goddess theme.  She did an entire room with it.  An admirer enjoys the room.

Since my book is about bartering, I have to keep my hand in so I proposed a barter to get my old computer fixed with Justin, the owner of Reno Computer Fix and he agreed.  Below is the portrait I painted of him - he liked it and my computer is fixed.  It was fun, especially when it turned out looking just like him.

Below is Vision, the manager at the Morris Burner Hotel.

Below, Mary, stopping on the trail in the foothills of Mount Rose.  I met Mary at my first High Sierra Writers meeting and we've been doing things together ever since.  She's great to go hiking with and receptive to discussing writing ideas.  She got me to volunteer at the Mission where she volunteers one night a week.  Across the street was the Morris Burner Hotel and I eventually volunteered there instead.

 Below is Bob and his new wife Debbie.  Bob is my landlord, the one who traded rent with me to wash 500 sheets from the Burning Man event (used by the massage people and healers.)

Just a few feet from my deck, a pair of doves have been building a nest.  I've left out all sorts of things for them - straw and moss - but they prefer what they know, sticks.

Mount Peavine, below.  I like to hike in the desert that surrounds the house.  As you can see I live in a valley surrounded by mountains.  On the other side of some of the mountains is Lake Tahoe.

I mostly just photograph the cloud formations here.  It is tremendously windy so they are very beautiful.  I'm not inspired to photograph the desert here.  It's very brown but it's supposed to get better in the spring.