After nearly a year of working on a large-scale corporate commission (which I'll post about once it's delivered and unveiled!), plus another year of working for a nonprofit in Boston, I am back to painting full time. I'm thrilled about it---not least because I get to share a studio/office space with my husband Joseph, who works in sales. He keeps me on point and gives great feedback on works in progress. He hasn't had any formal art training, but he spent years honing an eye for detail as a Division I linebacker, and it shows! My paintings are better for it.

It's a joy to jump back into painting just as summer begins in Boston. Summer is a magical time here, perhaps because winters are long and so everyone in the city relishes the warmth that much more. I got my first chance to complete an oil painting on the streets of Boston a few weeks ago during the Copley Society's annual Fresh Paint Day. (I became a member of the society in 2010, but this was my first time doing Fresh Paint.) I set up on the corner of State Street and Kilby and did a picture of the Old State House. The image below is a little warped and glare-filled, but the painting was the product of six nonstop hours of focus. (I set up at 9:30am and wrapped up around 3:40pm.) Having a 4pm deadline was helpful---I needed to work fast to capture the light well! My mother's visit from Kentucky happened to coincide with that weekend, too, so she was a patient observer during the paint day and helped greatly by tracking down anything (papers, bags...) from my setup that got picked up by the wind gusting up State Street.