I’ll be at 172 Old Macedonia Road, Alexander on 8/17 - 8/18, 10 - 5. Come on by!
“Many Glaciers Mid Afternoon” - watercolor, 10 X 14” on Arches Archival paper
Glacier National Park Paintings by Catherine Twomey
I just returned from a couple of weeks visit to Glacier National Park in Montana. It was a bucket-list trip, and so worth the effort. Daily hikes and painting sessions made the trip memorable. Only ran into one grizzly bear (one is enough….) and saw lots of mountain goats. This painting was from the front of Many Glacier Lodge, where lots of glaciers still exist and are so beautifully clean and reflective.
"Orchard Pass" Original by Catherine Twomey
Early spring venture up to a mountain pass orchard near my home. Painted plein air, in a field next to the apple trees. I was struck by the white blossoms of the apple trees against the receding mountains. This is an original painting on archival Crescent board, and is ready for framing.
Now available at this link: https://www.catherinetwomey.com/available/orchard-pass-watercolor-7-x-10
"The Secret Forest" Work In Progress by C. Twomey
WIP of the secret forest. The intriguing thing about the distant light is that’s a wall of falling water that feeds the creek. Where bears roam. 18 x 24” oil on linen panel.
Oil, 18 X 24”, the forest below the dam. Where bears roam.
Studio Sale on etsy.com (catherinetwomeyart.etsy.com) Now!
Lots of "Thank you's (or youse)" lately to the wonderful people who support my artistic efforts and purchase my prints and/or original artwork. You're inspirational, motivational and downright kind! Grateful - more so than you can imagine. Etsy: catherinetwomeyart.etsy.com
Orbis: Improving Eyesight In South Africa
The people who may be interested in this post understand why I’m posting it.
For about a decade, when I was working full-time as a medical illustrator, I had a client that believed in working for good causes that coincided with my beliefs. As an independent contractor part of their team, I worked at a significantly reduced rate for a charity in New York, https://www.orbis.org/en. To better understand their mission:
“Imagine losing your sight in one of the poorest regions in the world. Where would you turn for help? With few quality eye doctors, hospitals or clinics, your chances of getting the right kind of care are small. As your sight gets worse, your chances of getting an education or earning a steady income begin to fade away…With your help and the support of our amazing volunteers, we can not only give people their sight back today, but help change the quality of ophthalmologists and build a lasting legacy of quality eye care that will ensure no one goes needlessly blind tomorrow.”
As a part of this effort, I created a large number of medical illustrations showing eye pathologies, including the ones shown here, which were distributed throughout clinics in South Africa. On my own dime, I few to South Africa to visit clinics to understand whether or not the work I was doing was being effective. The poverty and need I saw was overwhelming.
This is called giving back. It is most definitely not racism. I haven’t written about this until now, but now it needs to be heard. Thank you for your interest, and if you have the means, this is a very worthwhile charity.
"Blue Ridge Clouds Sheep No. 2" SOLD!
"Blue Ridge Clouds Sheep" has been SOLD to a buyer from New Jersey! Thank you so much. This original 22" X 28" oil painting on a stretched canvas frame is shipping out today. For additional originals and prints, visit my Etsy site here: https://www.etsy.com/listing/1462408022/studio-sale-original-oil-painting?click_key=a1770be114ec0bc46f2e6c4906799988f8f406c7%3A1462408022&click_sum=8ea4385e&ref=shop_home_active_15&pro=1
“Blue Ridge Clouds Sheep No. 2” Sold, by Catherine Twomey
Catherine Twomey Contributes to a PAPA PBS Documentary
As a member of Preserving A Picturesque America (https://preservationthroughart.org/) yesterday I joined three other plein air painters at the Biltmore Estate on the Wisteria Terrace. As we painted we were filmed and then interviewed about our work and PAPA for an upcoming PBS Documentary. It was a most spectacular day, fortunately, and although I have almost no memory of what I said in the interview, I hope I did PAPA proud - I know they make me proud.
Painting, getting filmed and interviewed for a PBS documentary this morning at Biltmore. Four plein air painters for Preserving a Picturesque America hard at work.
Jeff the cameraman from LA, preparing to shoot with his 30# camera.
The wisteria that captured my heart and eye; along with Mt. Pisgah.
Almost finished, always one more thing to do....9 X 12" oil on Artefex canvas over aluminum panel with Michael Harding oils.
"Island Edge" by Catherine Twomey Sold!
THANK YOU to Blend Gallery at 67 Biltmore Ave (Asheville) for the sale of "Island Edge." This original oil was painted plein air at Bass Lake in Blowing Rock, NC - obviously a beautiful, serene place filled with happy walkers as storms came and went.
"Center For Humans and Nature" Awarded Artworks by C. Twomey
Thank you to the Center for Humans and Nature (https://humansandnature.org/) for the unexpected award for six of my works to be published in 2023! What a terrific way to start the New Year! Citation: A version of ‘Accelerating’ first appeared in a
publication of the Center for Humans and Nature Press and is revised and
reprinted here with permission of the Center for Humans and Nature Press.
"First Baptist" and "Earlysville General" Sold!
THANK YOU to the collector from Earlysville, VA for your purchase of these two prints. I love that people still have nostalgia for the way things used to be. For additional work, please look under “Landscapes” when you visit: https://fineartamerica.com/profiles/catherine-twomey?
"The Island" by Catherine Twomey
"The Island" is a plein air oil, 16" X 16" in Blowing Rock, NC. It was a blustery, sometimes rainy day, but there is nothing like capturing the light on site. Thank you to the collector from Hewitt, NJ for their purchase!
"Sea Leveling" by Catherine Twomey Through ERA Contemporary Gallery
Thank you to ERA Contemporary Gallery in Philadelphia, PA for featuring my painting: "Sea Leveling" - now on offer. Check it out: https://www.instagram.com/p/ClWfQJcMZKh/
Maple Ridge Craggy Gardens Named To Collection!
The international gallery, Singulart, has named my work “Maple Ridge Craggy Gardens” to their Fall Harvest Collection! This piece is in oil on an archival panel, and is professionally framed and ready to hang. For additional information, please visit:
“The Marked Tree”, 12” X 16” on panel
"The Marked Tree" Vineyards by Catherine Twomey
A memory, a feeling, a brief moment of life - this was painted at Marked Tree Vineyards, where I was surrounded by the most beautiful scenery, happy somewhat inebriated people, a good panter friends. I was so drawn to the way the vines pointed at the namesake tree - and the colors, the rich colors of the countryside on a gorgeous summer day.
The Last Hydrangea
Finishing up this oil of one of the last hydrangeas in the garden. It’s going to be 90 today, and everything is looking a bit tired and too hot (me too!). The garden colors are shifting to more subtlety, which is quite lovely and peaceful. May you stay cool, healthy and happy.
"Serenity Stream" by Catherine Twomey On Offer
It was a hike through the Botanical Gardens in Asheville to get down to this stream. It was so worth the effort, however - look at those reflections! and those shadows! Exquisite. I wouldn't have thought this would happen, but once other hikers saw us, they too clamoured down the banks to talk and watch. Sometimes that's annoying, but this day was so perfect; so peaceful - that I welcomed their happy presence and delighted in their kind support. Watercolor on archival board.Just added "Serenity Stream" to my Singulart gallery here: https://www.singulart.com/en/artworks/catherine-twomey-serenity-stream-1670035
“Sequenced”, 24” X 36” pigments, iridescents, metallics on aluminum panel, framed.
"Sequenced" Original Painting by Catherine Twomey On Offer
The luminous sky and mountains at over 6,000 feet can overwhelm. Couple that with the late spring blooms of the rhododendrons, and there is a sense of floating high above the clouds as the sun descends. I'm inspired by the mountains and sky, of course - but the flow of the pigments themselves is so freeing; so abstract. It's like it helps makes sense of all of the complex layers and diffuse light spreading through the clouds. Each layer is constructed
separately using pigments, tools, an airbrush and gravity. Although the end result appears realistic, on closer inspection it's made up of pours, ridges and glowing pigment. This 24" X 36" original painting will infuse your room settings with good taste and luminescence. It is framed in a lovely copper and black floating frame.
"Island Edge" Oil by Catherine Twomey
Oil, 8” X 16” on archival panel.
There is a definite wonder in going to the trouble of painting outside. Everything about the experience is fresher, cleaner (unless you step on your solvent jar, which I just did) and the colors are unmatched. Yes, the weather was somewhat dangerous with thunderstorms all around this lake. However, knowing that, I felt highly charged to choose my painting spot, quickly decide on the composition and squint for optimal color matching. The sun poked in and out; lots of people walking by wanted to talk - but I had to focus and get it down instinctively and purely. And so it goes.
"Between Storms" Plein Air by Catherine Twomey
“Between Storms” is an 8” X 16” oil on archival panel.
The weather is so incredibly variable in the mountains, and this day was no exception. I made my way around a lake, Bass Lake, in Blowing Rock, NC - Blue Ridge mountains. Surrounded by threatening cumulous clouds, I quickly set up and immediately planned out the composition. Suddenly, sunlight flooded the island in the lake's middle, and I knew I had my painting. The flashes of light green and blue highlighted the dark pines against the mountainside. The light fell on a downed log, prompting a highlight that finished the piece. As dozens of people made their way past and around the lake path, it felt like we were all in it together - a race against the lightning in an electric moment.