Art by Mary Rochelle Burnham

Granny Smith , oil, 7x5", SOLD I try to eat an apple a day. Fuji apples are my favorite for eating. Crisp, juicy and sweet. I love the form and color of this granny, especially with the purple drape. I am going to slice her up and eat her on my salad...yum.

Heading Home , oil, 4.25 x 6.25",  Available The view along the side of the road as I am going to my studio.

Number 2 Cow , oil, 6x6",  Available I created this painting from a photo I took in CA. I think she is one of those 'California happy cows'. She sure looks happy enough chewing on that grass that I gave her! Available on Etsy

Orange Maine Coon Cat , oil, 7x5", Sold I love this kitty! I got his photo off of Paint My Photo.

Summer Breeze , oil, 8x6"  Available When I saw this lovely lady's photo I just thought of a summer breeze. I love the way the light plays on her face and the sweet expression of her face. I often listen to music when taking my morning walk, riding my bike or painting. Here's the tune: See the curtains hangin' in the window In the evenin' on a Friday night Little light is shinin' through the window Lets me know everything's alright Summer breeze, makes me feel fine Blowing through the jasmine in my mind Summer breeze, makes me feel fine Blowing through the jasmine in my mind See the paper layin' on the sidewalk A little music from the house next door So I walked on up to the doorstep Through the screen and across the floor Summer breeze, makes me feel fine Blowing through the jasmine in my mind Summer breeze, makes me feel fine Blowing through the jasmine in my mind Sweet days of summer, the jasmine's in bloom July is d...

Number 1 Cow , oil, 6x6", SOLD I have always been fascinated by cows. I used to love to pick tall grass and feed them through the fence as a child and even as an adult. This is my first closeup 'portrait' of a cow and I didn't notice until I was painting her that her tag read '1'. How apropos! She is also so beautiful, that she is number one in my book!

Red Tea Pot, Mug & Apple , oil, 6x8"  Available Thank you,  Jill Rae Martin-Golden for your comment on my cupcake #3 expressing interest in my three color palette for that painting. I replied that I can't really take credit for my palette as it was sort of based on Zorn's, comprised of Ivory Black, Cadmium Red Deep, and Yellow Ochre. Well, that got me to thinking. I have never really tried Anders Zorn's palette for a painting until today. It's pretty easy to focus on the values and play of cools vs warms. Forget about making intense colors, other than red. However, I found it to be a great exercise and I am glad to have done it and learned from it. Click on the link here to see an earlier version of the same subject that was painted with a full palette.

Lyssandra , oil, 14x11", available Today, was an 'All-Day Portrait Studio' at the Granite Reef Community Center sponsored by Portrait Artists of Arizona. Lyssandra was our beautiful young model and she is as sweet as she looks. It was hilarious how the men in the group went ga-ga over her and most were old enough to be her grandfather if not her great grandpa! Nothing inappropriate, as we all appreciate beauty, and had a great time getting together and painting.

Cupcake #3 , oil, 7x5",  $109 I used a limited palette of only three colors plus black and white. They are: titanium white, ivory black, azo yellow, utrecht red and alizarin crimson. The black mixed with white reads blue, and when the alizarin is added, it reads purple. This cupcake almost painted itself, it went so fast!

Water Lily , oil, 5x7", Sold This is from a photo I came across on Paint my Photo . It reminds me of going out in the rowboat to find and pick water lilies to bring home to my mom.

Cupcake #2 , oil, 7x5",  Available I don't know if painting cupcakes is a good idea for me. I almost convinced my husband to buy me some actual cupcakes for reference. I am not to be trusted! All kidding aside, cupcakes are not as easy as I thought they would be to paint. I think they are a great painting exercise for me, because I just focus on the shapes without any emotional attachment as I would have with a portrait or an animal.

Milk Break , oil, 5x7",  $109 I took the reference photos for this painting a few years ago when I lived in the farming community of Manchester, Michigan. It was spring and this little one was adorable!

Portrait of Suzy , oil, 10x8" SOLD   Please say a prayer for Suzy's owner as she is very ill.

This Little Piggy , oil 7x5"  SOLD I loved painting this porker! I used a photo from Paint my Photo . Cool site, cool pig!

Cupcake #1 , oil, 7x5",  Available This is my first painting of a cupcake. Many more to follow. It was fun, but not easy! I worked from a photograph because I dare not have any in the house, or they will be inside me.

Dawn Breaks Over Mt Shasta , oil, 5x7",  $109 I took the reference photos for this painting while on a trip up to Oregon over Thanksgiving week. It was a cold morning and the fog had lifted to this majestic scene.

White Maine Coon Cat, oil,  7x5"  Available I decided to participate in Leslie Saeta's " Thirty Paintings in Thirty Days Challenge ". I had fun painting this cat! I hope each and every piece I create will teach me something new.