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 Commissioned Dogs

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 Commissioned Dogs

 Click the icon at right to see a Demonstration of Animal Portraiture

 

 Click the icon at right to see my Wildlife Artwork

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 Click the icon at right to see my Landscapes

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 Click the icon at right to see my Waterscapes

 

 Click the icon at right to see Still Lifes and Flower Studies

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Portraits of Animals logo

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My Cats

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 Commissioned Cats

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 Commissioned Dogs

 Click the icon at right to see a Demonstration of Animal Portraiture

 

 Click the icon at right to see my Wildlife Artwork

 Wild Things

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 Some People

 Click the icon at right to see my Landscapes

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 Click the icon at right to see my Waterscapes

 

 Click the icon at right to see Still Lifes and Flower Studies

 Still Lifes and Flowers

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To order notecards or small prints, click the icon at right to go to my Notecard Order Form  
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Portraits of Animals logo

 Click the icon at right to meet
My Cats

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 Click the icon at right to see my Commissioned Cats

 Commissioned Cats

 Click the icon at right to see my Commissioned Dogs

 Commissioned Dogs

 Click the icon at right to see a Demonstration of Animal Portraiture

 

 Click the icon at right to see my Wildlife Artwork

 Wild Things

 Click the icon at right to see My People

 Some People

 Click the icon at right to see my Landscapes

 Land and Waterscapes

 Click the icon at right to see my Waterscapes

 

 Click the icon at right to see Still Lifes and Flower Studies

 Still Lifes and Flowers

 Click the icon at right to see some Other Works such as house renderings and urban scenes...

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To order notecards or small prints, click the icon at right to go to my Notecard Order Form  
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Portraits of Animals logo

 Click the icon at right to meet
My Cats

 My Cats

 Click the icon at right to see my Commissioned Cats

 Commissioned Cats

 Click the icon at right to see my Commissioned Dogs

 Commissioned Dogs

 Click the icon at right to see a Demonstration of Animal Portraiture

 

 Click the icon at right to see my Wildlife Artwork

 Wild Things

 Click the icon at right to see My People

 Some People

 Click the icon at right to see my Landscapes

 Land and Waterscapes

 Click the icon at right to see my Waterscapes

 

 Click the icon at right to see Still Lifes and Flower Studies

 Still Lifes and Flowers

 Click the icon at right to see some Other Works such as house renderings and urban scenes...

 Everything Else

 Click the icon at right to see a variety of Cards and Prints and other merchandise available

 Notes and Prints
To order notecards or small prints, click the icon at right to go to my Notecard Order Form  
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The landscape of Western Pennsylvania is a constant inspiration to me. Many of these works were done "en plein air", although trying to catch the right place at the right time with weather conditions and daily work can be a real trick, so a fair number were done from photographs. I am so influenced by the changing seasons that I saw fit to arrange the artwork on this page in order of seasonal subject or influence.

I work most often in pastel, especially in the field, although I occasionally work in watercolor from photographs. In addition, I work in pencil and charcoal, working in extreme detail when at home with photographs, and just doing quick "daily sketches". Please click the links or browse to the bottom of the page for these.

For art inspired by winter, visit "WinterWhite", my virtual show featuring small field sketches of winter views.


Dusk in the Woods

click on the image for large version

MEDIUM: pastel, IMAGE SIZE: 32" x 34", February 2006
Original: $2,000; Giclee prints: full size-$300, half size-$150 (ask about framing)

A painting I've had in mind for a couple of years, depicting a scene near me on conservation land in the woods near Robinson Run in Collier Township, "Dusk in the Woods" can't be displayed adequately on the computer. It's roughly 36" x 30", and the subtleties of color are difficult to capture. It's that last moment of dusk before the human eye loses its ability to focus, that moment of intense blue that happens only between the atumnal and vernal equinoxes. The sun has nearly set behind the trees, and the woods will be completely still. I had been waiting for snow for two years so that I could at least begin this en plein air, but no luck this winter or last, and the painting could wait no longer.

 

Into the Woods

MEDIUM: Pastel; IMAGE SIZE: 10" x 7"; 1999, Sold This is a place I visited to hike and explore called Frankfort Springs, near Imperial, PA. It had once been a popular mineral springs which people visited for health reasons, but all that is left is the old spring house, all overgrown with small trees. It's a protected place, and the site of many wildflower and birding hikes. The brilliant spring sunlight on the grassy path leading farther into the woods stayed in my mind long after I had visited that magical spot, silent except for the whispering leaves and multitude of birds. Click here or on the artwork for an enlarged view of the artwork.

 

Summer Field

Summer FieldMEDIUM: Pastel; IMAGE SIZE: 12" x 9.5"; 1998, $300.00 matted and framed A quick little en plein air sketch in the middle of a hot afternoon, I wanted to capture the heat of early summer and the movement of a summer afternoon breeze, complete with the sun moving across the field, keeping the shapes and colors loose, avoiding the strictness of detail. Click here or on the artwork for an enlarged view of the image. I am unduly inspired by fields of grass. Click here for a poem entitled "Field of Grass".

 

High Noon

High NoonMEDIUM: Pastel; IMAGE SIZE: 7" x 17"; 1996, sold The tall grasses sporting nearly-ripe seed heads silhouetted against the depth of shadow in the trees at the time when the sun is directly overhead was just breathtaking. The puffy white clouds were so perfect, they almost looked fake. What could any artist do? Those lustrous amber grasses demanded the definition of detail. Click here or on the artwork for an enlarged view of the image.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Color Study: Barn

Color Study: BarnMEDIUM: Pastel; IMAGE SIZE: 12" x 12"; 1998, $200.00 matted and framed An en plein air sketch in the early evening of a summer day, I wanted to capture that moment when the shadows begin to color with the angle of the sun. I watched as the shadow on the white barn went from a very plain, realistic kind of gray to bluish to purple, and the white glare on the trees changed to a warmer, lime and gold tone, then sketched as quickly as I could. Click here or on the artwork for an enlarged view of the image.

 

 

The Apple Trees on a Windy Day

The Apple Trees on a Windy DayMEDIUM: Pastel; IMAGE SIZE: 18" x 22"; 1994, $350.00 matted and framed Another breezy summer day with fast-moving clouds and shadows, the apple trees took center stage in the middle of a field of ripening grass. I endeavored to capture the movement of the leaves and grasses in the capricious breeze with sketchy, impatient lines. Click here or on the artwork for an enlarged view of the image.

 

 

 

Cloud Study

Could StudyMEDIUM: Pastel; IMAGE SIZE: 5" x 7"; 2000, $200.00 matted and framed Instead of sitting and watching the clouds build and change and keeping the details in mind to use in another work, I decided to draw the clouds themselves en plein air, capturing the glare on the top edge of this one cloud as quickly as I could before it changed shape and position. Click here or on the artwork for an enlarged view of the image. And because I've studied so many clouds, I was moved to write a poem about them entitled, of all things, "Clouds".

 

The Last Bale

The Last BaleMEDIUM: Pastel; IMAGE SIZE: 16" x 9"; 1996, $400.00 matted and framed This piece was intended to be a bright, warm rendering of an autumn field, except that by the time I got my easel set up a pretty heavy cloud cover had moved in and showed no signs of leaving too soon. I decided to make the best of the time I had set aside to draw en plein air. There's something touching about a quietly rustling field in the dim light of that heavy overcast, the leaves mostly gone, no sounds of birds or bugs, peaceful yet sad, waiting for the finality of winter. That last bale left behind just did it for me, and I was glad to have captured this moment of quietude and rest. Click here or on the artwork for an enlarged view of the image.

Harvest of Color

Harvest of ColorMEDIUM: Pastel; IMAGE SIZE: 21" x 13"; 1996, $500.00 matted and framed This scene on a back road near my house is just so colorful every autumn, and the sunlight was perfect to enhance the leaves and grasses as well as the goldenrod and asters in the field. Those deep and definite shadows on the road and wispy clouds in the faded blue sky define a crisp and sparkling autumn afternoon. Luckily for me, the weather obliged when I had the time to spend a few hours in the field. Click here or on the artwork for an enlarged view of the image.

 

Deserted Cottages

Deserted CottagesMEDIUM: Pastel; IMAGE SIZE: 17" x 8.5"; 1999, $400.00 matted and framed Drawn en plein air in a spot near North East, PA, on Lake Erie, this had once been a campsite, but the lakeside cottages were boarded up and much of the place was overgrown. Still, the peaceful spot with only the sounds of rustling leaves, waves and shorebirds was entrancing. Click here or on the artwork for an enlarged view of the image.

Morning Snow I and II

Morning Snow IMorning Snow IIMEDIUM: Pastel;
IMAGE SIZE: 8" x 8"; 1998, $350.00 matted and framed, $600.00 both
We only get heavy snows every few winters here in Western Pennsylvania, so being able to revel in the sparkling beauty of a winter morning after a heavy snowfall provided much inspiration. These two scenes are actually in my suburban backyard. I was fascinated at the multitude of colors in the early morning sunlight as it reflected on the snow, and in the colors in the shadows. Click here or on the artwork for an enlarged view of Morning Snow I and Morning Snow II.

For more art inspired by winter, visit "WinterWhite" my show featuring small field sketches of winter views.


Tracings

TracingsMEDIUM: Watercolor; IMAGE SIZE: 4" x 6"; 2000, $150.00 matted and framed A view out of my back door in winter, I am always fascinated at how the bare branches of the trees silhouetted against the eastern sky can turn into many visual effects. Click here or on the artwork for an enlarged view of the image.

 

 

The Fallen Branch

The Fallen BranchMEDIUM: Watercolor; IMAGE SIZE: 4" x 6"; 2000, $150.00 matted and framed We had enough snow this past winter to cover the grass with a nice smooth blanket. The morning sun cast long, rambling shadows on the snow in my backyard, and that branch that had fallen last summer provided plenty of inspiration for me as well as a perch for many birds and the local squirrels. The next two pieces were from the same series of days as well, when the shadows reached across the yard.Unfortunately, these pieces were difficult to scan and so the colors are a little inaccurate. Click here or on the artwork for an enlarged view of the image.

 

 

Colorful Shadows

Colorful ShadowsMEDIUM: Watercolor; IMAGE SIZE: 6" x 3"; 2000, $125.00 matted and framed My scan doesn't capture the colors I saw in the snow and shadows—purple, blue, red, green in the tree shadows and yellow, green and pink in the snow. The more I looked at it, the more colors there were! Click here or on the artwork for an enlarged view of the image.

 

Gentle Shadows

Gentle ShadowsMEDIUM: Watercolor; IMAGE SIZE: 5" x 6"; 2000, $125.00 matted and framed As the sun moved over the sky and the shadows shortened, a slight hazy cloud cover moved in and the shadows grew less defined and less colorful, but began to resemble gentle ripples, like water in a pool. Click here or on the artwork for an enlarged view of the image.

 

 

 

For art inspired by winter, visit "WinterWhite", my show featuring small field sketches of winter views.


WORKS IN PENCIL

Acid Rain

Acid RainMEDIUM: Pencil on paper; IMAGE SIZE: 16" x 12"; 1993, $300.00 matted and framed This piece is called "Acid Rain" because it illustrates the effects of such on the higher elevations along the Appalachian Trail in Eastern Pennsylvania. It looked as if a fire had moved through, leaving bare trunks and bent and broken trees behind. I wanted to capture the stark feeling of desolation in one small scene. Click here or on the artwork for an enlarged view of the image.

To the Library

To the LibraryMEDIUM: Pencil on board; IMAGE SIZE: 20" x 16"; 1993, Sold In exploring the capabilities of pencil on board, I rendered this piece in all-out detail, drawing almost each leaf in the late-afternoon autumn sunlight. The two figures are little girls heading for Andrew Carnegie Free Library in Carnegie, PA, where I live, and they're headed there after school. At this level of detail (which, unfortunately, my scan does not show), this piece took me about a year, off and on, to complete. Click here or on the artwork for an enlarged view of the image.



DAILY SKETCHES

The SentinelHow do you get to Carnegie Hall? Practice…
It works the same for artists, although it might not seem like much to ask to fit in just a few minutes of “artwork” every day. If I’m not actively working on a piece, I will often go for days and not touch a medium to paper. This “between” time is not the time for performance, but for practice—to experiment with new media, to work with a different subject, and just to loosen up.

I do this by carrying a little 5” x 8” sketchbook plus various pens and pencils whenever I walk or ride my bike. The size is easy to carry and limits me to a small area for rendering, therefore precluding me starting on a masterpiece when I’m freezing my feet in the snow in the woods. I customarily work in color—in pastel or watercolor—and I come to rely on their soft qualities and the color itself. The black and white media makes me use a different part of my brain.

In addition, I work largely from photographs for my portraits and even landscapes, and I have the time to study the image for days or weeks before I decide which details are most important andhow to deal with certain other details, and those details in the photograph don’t move. This little drawing session affords me the opportunity to draw from lifeand forces me to make moment-by-moment decisions about what I see, and deal with movement and changes in light (not to mention the weather), thereby strengthening my visual process.

And even though these are just little practice sessions, there’s a special one now and then.

The Path of the Elves

The Path of the ElvesMEDIUM: Charcoal pencil; IMAGE SIZE: 5" x 8"; 1999, sold These trees stand on the ground of the Andrew Carnegie Free Library in Carnegie, PA, most of them planted about the time the library was built in 1898. They seemed to describe a little pathway around the outside edge of the grounds, and who better to walk there but the elves? Click here or on the artwork for an enlarged view of the image.

 

 

 

 

Beechwood Farms Pond

Beechwood Farms PondMEDIUM: Charcoal pencil; IMAGE SIZE: 8" x 5"; 1999, $150.00 matted and framed Beechwood Farms is a local nature reserve known, housing the offices of the Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania. The grounds are open for hiking, and this little pond with reflections of dried cattails lent itself to a quick sketch. Click here or on the artwork for an enlarged view of the image.

 

Light Woods

Light WoodsMEDIUM: Pen and ink; IMAGE SIZE: 8" x 5"; 2000, sold Oh, the stark deliberation of bare tree trunks in the snow...it's fascinating that the woods, so complicated with saplings and underbrush in the spring, summer and fall, can be reduced to a simplicity of line in winter snowfall. Click here or on the artwork for an enlarged view of the image.

 

The Sentinel

The SentinelMEDIUM: Charcoal pencil; IMAGE SIZE: 5" x 8"; 1999, sold One lone tree catching the last of winter's daylight, clinging to the side of a hill caught my eye. But even though alone on the hill, the roots firnly held the ground, spread like fingers, and the tree was straight, unbent by wind or the rigors of holding itself on a hill. Click here or on the artwork for an enlarged view of the image.

 

 

 

 

The Sparrows in the Spruce

MEDIUM: Charcoal; IMAGE SIZE: 5" x 8"; 2000, Sold I was snowed in one day, but determined to do at least a little sketch. I keep several feeders around my house, and this old spruce is the waiting room for sparrows in line for the feeder outside my front window. It's a familiar scene, just outside of my studio, in direct view when I look up from my computer. Click here or on the artwork for an enlarged view of the image.

 

 

 

 

Tree Study

Tree StudyMEDIUM: Pencil; IMAGE SIZE: 4" x 6"; 2000, sold Rained in another day, I decided to render the tree branch that hangs closest to the side window in my studio. It was most interesting that day because the rain enhanced the shapes of the branches and created highlights where there would not normally have been any. Click here or on the artwork for an enlarged view of the image.

 

 

 

 

Ross Colonial Cemetery

Ross Colonial CemeteryMEDIUM: Pencil; IMAGE SIZE: 6" x 4"; 2000, sold This cemetery in Carnegie, PA, atop a hill which was a longtime lookout over the Chartiers Valley for both Native Americans and early settlers, dates back to at least the Revolutionary War. The sunlight is brilliant up there, and stark against the weathered grave markers. Click here or on the artwork for an enlarged view of the image.

 

 

For art inspired by winter, visit "WinterWhite", my show featuring small field sketches of winter views.

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All artwork on this page is copyright Bernadette E. Kazmarski and cannot be used or reproduced in any way without my written permission.
This page is owned and maintained by the artist.

I update the artwork on this page as I create new works. While trying to view this page in as many browsers and on as many monitors as possible, plus trying to keep my artwork clear but not so big that it takes all day to download, I have found that each picture changes with each variation. I hope that what you see here is clear and inviting.

Send your comments, stories or requests for information to: Bernadette Kazmarski or bernadette@bernadette-k.com if my link isn't working.
The URL of this page is www.bernadette-k.com