I do love painting abstract landscapes and I’LL TAKE MANHATTAN  is the largest (16” X 40”) I’ve done.  

Working with such a large canvas, I was able to make many layers of transparent colors, using paper towels and palette knives. I don’t think I even touched a paint brush for this one.  It would look great over a sofa or bed

I started and finished it during a four-week class, Abstract Focal Points, at the Hilton Head Art League. Art Cornell was the instructor. He is a terrific teacher and very active on the Hilton Head art scene.  He currently has a show at the Karis Gallery, a lovely boutique gallery featuring a half dozen artists.

Magazine profiles Donna Barnako

 Pines, the luscious new magazine on island, has tapped Donna Barnako as its Artist in Residence.

Working from her studio in the Club Course area, Donna creates in two media - collage and acrylic. The magazine article explains, “The appeal of abstract is that Donna can experiment with not only paint pigments but also with a plethora of tools and techniques.” In her collage creations, she’s able to mix collectibles with papers, paints, and even feathers.

The magazine’s writer, Justin Smith, said Donna “knew beauty when she saw (Sea Pines) and relocated to get away from real winters and real traffic.”

Click to read the article

New work #1

Storm Warning!

Dark greys, blues and a hint of lavender on this 12” x 36” seascape of a turbulent ocean.  As I painted this in many layers of overlapping translucent  colors, I kept thinking of the very old TV program “Victory at Sea”.  The three foot length of this piece lends itself nicely as a focal point above a sofa.

 

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New work #2

Room With a View 

A major stumbling block that many artists face, or at least gets talked about a lot, is “getting stuck”.  For me that usually happens when I am halfway done with a painting and I’ve become particularly enamored of a certain area and don’t know how to move ahead.  

I recently finished a three-day mentoring workshop with a wonderful artist named Bruce Holler.  ROOM WITH A VIEW is a product of that workshop. It is my new fave.

What do I like about this one?  It has mystery, it changes each time I look at it.  It has many layers of color and is subject to the interpretation of the viewer.  As I painted it, I kept switching the orientation of the canvas until it spoke to me.  I hope it speaks to you, too! 24” x 36”.

 

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New work #3

 Adrift

 

My new seascape painting is “Inspiration”, courtesy of Hurricane Irma.  The hurricane's storm surge flooded the ground floor of our new Hilton Head home.  

 

An empty boat ADRIFT in a stormy white capped sea.  24” x 24” in lovely tones of greys and buff with blue accents.

 

Click here for a full size image.