Tidal Flow

ink and oil painting looking down at the flowing tide with rocks, seaweed and purple starfish — Tidal Flow (16″x 20″ ink and oil on raised panel)

I have painted a few tidal pools but they usually had still water. This view was inspired by a scene on Cortes Island last summer. The tide was rushing through a narrows moving the seaweed while the purple starfish clung on. Such a sense of energy and movement!

Pink on Blue

oil painting of mostly pink flowers against a pale blue background — Pink on Blue (8″x 10″ oil on panel)

I was “warming up my brushes” after a couple of weeks away from painting so I grabbed a panel that I had painted on previously but wasn’t so happy with. So there was no pressure as I started in very loosely using a large brush to define these mostly pink flowers. I carved around the petals, creating the negative shapes with a soft blue tone and then used the end of the brush to define some of the flower shapes a bit more. Sometimes it’s the quick ones that have the most joie de vivre. 🙂

Summer Laundry

Oil painting of laundry on a line in the sunshine. — Summer Laundry (8″x 10″ oil on panel)

On a delightful day this summer, a friend let me know she had laundry out on the line. How pleasant to paint in her garden catching light and shade moving in the breeze!

Bumble on Blue

ink and oil painting of a bumblebee on a blue blossom cluster of California lilac — Bumble on Blue (4″x 4″ ink and oil on raised panel)

Another mini inspired by the bumblebees in the garden. This one (and many more) were buzzing around collecting all the pollen from the blue flower clusters of the California lilac shrub. So busily bumbling with adorable pollen-packed leggings.

Lavender Bee Mini

ink and oil mini painting with one bumblebee on some lavender — Lavender Bee Mini (4″x 4″ ink and oil on raised panel)

I enjoyed painting the larger lavender and bumblebee painting so much that I decided to paint a mini version.

Feverfew Hoverfly

ink and oil painting of close up of feverfew flowers with a tiny hoverfly on one bloom — Feverfew Hoverfly (4″x 4″ ink and oil on raised panel)

I went around the garden looking for inspiration for a couple of new minis. These small white blooms don’t seem to attract the big guys (bumblebees) but I did see some tiny hoverflies. They can have different looks – some mimicking bee stripes – but they also get some pollinating done so I decided to celebrate this little one.

(C) 2025 Hilary Farmer

Red Roses

I bought this gorgeous bunch of old-fashioned red roses at the local market knowing that I would want to paint them – such a good excuse to buy flowers 😉 – and set them up outside on a cloth with the forest in the background. Gotta love those ruffled petals!

Lavender Bees

ink and oil painting of bumblebees on purple lavender — Lavender Bees (ink and oil on 9″ x 12″ raised panel)

The sweet lavender has been just humming with bumblebees. This apparently is the French or Spanish lavender which has delightful tufts of petals on top. I enjoyed putting some of the bees’ energy into this piece. 🙂

Night Heron

ink and oil painting of a great blue heron in shades of blue. The heron stalks along the shoreline. — “Night Heron” (12″x 16″ ink and oil on raised panel)

Another in my recent heron series. This time the heron stalks quietly through the calm water. I used a palette completely from the blue side of the colour wheel to give that night time feeling. Just to be clear, this is a great blue heron at night, not a “night heron” which I didn’t know existed until I was preparing this post! Maybe I should change the title…

Inquisitive Quails

Oil painting of two quails surrounded by daisies. — Inquisitive Quails (4″x 4″ ink and oil on raised panel)

I was inspired a couple of months ago to paint a pair of quails and the person who bought that mini wanted another painting to go with it …a pair of pairs. 🙂 I like how the female is the braver in this view, leaning out to see what’s around the bend. Daisies are all along the sides of the roads now so I had fun adding those. These very cute birds are a native species here but are getting a bit pushed out of their habitat by the local feral turkeys.

Green Tea Doodles

take some time for tea and check out my doodles