Art by Mary Rochelle Burnham

Atop Schnebly Hill, 6x8, oil SOLD I love going up Schnebly Hill and enjoying the many gorgeous views, but it is about the worst road in the country! I guess it's to keep tourists away unless they are taking one of the many jeep tours that go up there.

Path to Higher Ground , 9x12, oil,  Available  I liked how the cool shadows played off of the warm light on the parched grass.

Red Pepper On Plate , 5x7, oil,  Available I used a photo of my previously sold painting, ' Red Pepper Salute ', to make a new and improved version.

His Love , 7x5", oil SOLD My portrait workshop is just a few weeks away in Pensacola, FL. I thought I'd switch gears and do some portraits. I am getting excited about teaching a class, again. I have been doing some private teaching since I have been in Arizona, but I miss all of my many students back in Michigan.

White Cup, Blue Plate , oil, 6.25 x 4.25",  Available This little study was done in my studio on a sample from SourceTek of their Claessens #13 Oil Primed Linen Fine Weave Panel mounted to Baltic Birch. It's an interesting surface and quite different than I usually work on. You can find them at  https://www.canvaspanels.com .

By The Roadside , oil, 6x8",  Available  Old tree by the roadside in northern California.

Clouds Over Sedona, oil, 6x8",  Available Afternoon clouds building up for a rain. It's monsoon season and we have been getting plenty of rain.

Swans , oil, 5x7", SOLD Thought I do the Daily Paintworks Challenge , today. I took the original morgue file photo and altered it considerably in Photoshop. I can view photos from a flash drive on my TV because it has an USB port. Then, I just work from the monitor and never have to print out my reference. This is my new way of working, if I need to work from a photo. I love it. My TV screen is a 43" and I can zoom in on a photo, too. Sometimes, I just love technology.

Backyard Trees, oil, 5x7",  Available These trees are in a neighbor's yard that I see from my studio window. I enjoy how the evening light dances upon them. It's the best of both worlds, when I can paint an outdoor scene from life, in the comfort of my studio.

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.

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...

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.

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.

Morning Storm Clouds,  Oil, 9x12",  a vailable This is a plein air that I did yesterday morning. The sky was pretty stormy and I wasn't sure if I would catch any heavy rain or wind. Luckily, I did not encounter much, to speak of. As you can see in the photo below of my set up, it was clearing up nicely by the time I was wrapping up my gear. I like using my Guerrilla Painter® 9x12 Pochade Box out in the field even though it's a bit heavy. Actually, that bit of weight keeps it pretty stable when the wind kicks up a bit. I use my Best Brella religiously to keep the sun off of me and my artwork. It gets hot out in the sun and if you ever painted with the bright sun on your surface, you know your painting will look too dark inside. Best decision I made was to get my jeep. She gets me places even our truck can't get to.

Oak Creek , oil, 6x8",  a vailable I set up my gear on shore and had this far off view from me, where the creek took a bend. I liked that it was distant enough that I wouldn't get caught up in details. It was a most pleasant day and although I had a couple of minor mishaps when the wind picked up before I could get my umbrella down, it was still a most enjoyable experience. I did this study in about two hours on sight.