Paintings, Notecards, and Handmade Lights

Me, Mary Rush, yesterday
at the Saturday Art Market event.

Yesterday, I exhibited my art during the Saturday Art Market in Camp Verde, Arizona. It's a weekly event that I created for our local artists group, Camp Verde Artists Group. 

Traffic was slow but I was delighted that I sold one of my newly hand-painted notecards.

If you're in Camp Verde, please stop by and visit us between 10: 00 AM and 2:00 PM, the lobby at Wingfield Plaza, 564 S. Main Street, Camp Verde, AZ 86332.

More photos of what I exhibited.

5 x 7 inch paintings by Mary Rush

Hand painted, handmade lights by Mary Rush

Notecards both printed and hand painted,
and mini original paintings.

Original paintings by Mary Rush
All are 11 x 14 inches
Oil on Canvas

Check out the art available on my art website, WildfeatherFineArt.com.

I'd love to hear from you. Leave a comment and say hi and tell me what you love about my art.

Hot Off the Wall - New Painting - Color Colossal - 14 x 22 Collage

Color Colossal
Collage - Acrylic and Paper on Paper

22 x 14 inches

 I just finished this painting today that I've worked on for weeks. It's a large collage painting using a new collage technique I discovered one day while experimenting. I've done smaller 8.5 x 11 inch collages and wanted to try a larger size. I did a previous larger one and it is quite different than the small ones. The larger size is more challenging. I'm happy with the way this one turned out. I never think I'll be successful at pulling all the pieces together into one cohesive whole. Somehow I manage to do it.

The colors are different with purple, orange, and bright green with yellow accents. The shapes look like vases or vessels. But, overall when I look at it, I see color as the main element so I called it Color Colossal thinking of it as big color. What would you title it?

What it might look like framed.

Color Colossal
Collage - Acrylic and Paper on Paper

22 x 14 inches

Thoughts?

Please leave a comment

Now Showing at the Sedona Center for Harmony & Enrichment

Paintings by Mary Rush Artist
Now Showing at
Sedona Center for Harmony & Enrichment
431 AZ-179 Suite A6, Sedona, AZ 86336

Beginning July 1, 2024, a selection of my small landscape paintings are showing at the Sedona Center for Harmony & Enrichment. The center is in the HOZHO building at 431 AZ-179 Suite A6, Sedona, AZ 86336. Three 11 x 14 and six 5 x 7 paintings are on exhibition.

I attended the First Friday Sedona Art Walk event at the Sedona Center for Harmony & Enrichment this past Friday, July 5. It was a fun event where I met some other exhibiting artists. It was the first time I was an exhibiting artist, so I didn’t venture to any other galleries.

You can read more about the Sedona First Friday Art Walks via these links.

1. Access the event calendar - First Friday Gallery Event Calendar. 

2. Maps of the galleries in Sedona for a walking tour are available - Sedona Gallery Walking Tour Maps.

Mary Rush Artist at the recent

Sedona First Friday Art Walk event

Sedona Center for Harmony & Enrichment

Paintings by Mary Rush Artist
now showing at the
Sedona Center for Harmony & Enrichment
See below for a list of the paintings on exhibit.

Top to Bottom 11 x 14s:

Into the Center of Illumination
11 x 14 x 0.5 inches, Oil on Canvas
Link to purchase Into the Center of Illumination


Sedona Joy
11 x 14 x 0.75 inches, Oil on Canvas
Link to purchase Sedona Joy


Prayer Vigil
14 x 11 x 0.75 inches, Oil on Canvas
Link to purchase Prayer Vigil

Top to Bottom Left 5 x 7s

River's Dance

5 x 7 x 0.5 inches, Oil on Canvas

Link to purchase River's Dance

Presence - Cathedral Rock Sedona

5 x 7 x 0.5 inches, Acrylic on Canvas

Link to purchase Presence - Cathedral Rock Sedona

Sherbet Sunset

5 x 7 x 0.5 inches, Oil on Canvas

Link to purchase Sherbet Sunset

Longview from Courthouse Butte Loop Trail Sedona

5 x 7 x 0.5 inches, Oil on Canvas

Link to purchase Longview from Courthouse Butte Loop Trail Sedona

Top to Bottom Right 5 x 7s

Lovely Day

5 x 7 x 0.5 inches, Oil on Canvas

Link to purchase Lovely Day

View from Creekside Coffee Shop Sedona

5 x 7 x 0.5 inches, Oil on Canvas

Link to purchase View from Creekside Coffee Shop Sedona

I hope you can visit my art soon at the Sedona Center for Harmony & Enrichment. You may purchase the paintings now showing there from the gallery when you visit by following the links provided above.

Let me hear from you!

I'd love to hear from you. What are your thoughts on this article? Which painting is your favorite?

My Art Notes Blog by Mary Rush Artist

My Creativity Loves to Cook and Bake - Scones Recipe Included

One thing I love to do, besides painting, is to cook, concoct, and fine-tune recipes to my liking. I find this fun, and it exercises my creativity differently. Today, I share my scone recipe with you. It’s easy to make. It’s agreeable to substitutions. I rarely have every ingredient for any recipe, so 99% of the time, I substitute what I have available. Also, I eat a vegan diet, substituting vegan ingredients when the recipe is not vegan. I have presented my latest scone, triple berry, in one of my favorite handmade ceramic saucers I hand-built years ago. I’ve marked it with my personalized “Mary” stamp to distinguish it from other student potters.

Rye Wholemeal Scones

7/8 C flour of your choice *

5 tsp Baking Powder *

3 Tbsp Brown Sugar *

3 Tbsp Oil *

5/8 C Milk *

1. Mix the dry ingredients and add the wet until it forms a dough ball.

2. Turn the dough ball onto a pan with floured parchment paper.

3. Press the dough ball until you get about a 1-1/4 inch in height disc.

4. Cut the disc into 3 or 4 slices.

5. Bake at 425 degrees for 15-18 minutes.

6. Cool slightly. Enjoy with jam, pure maple syrup, or glazed icing.

* Notes

Flour

- I rarely use Rye flour, as you’ll see on the back of the recipe. But rye scones are yummy, too. I’ve gone gluten-free; rye is not gluten-free.

- I like gluten-free (GF) oat flour. I also mix the GF oat flour with brown rice flour, quick-cook GF oats, and/or millet flour. Lately, I’ve used all three in one mix.

Baking Powder

- I use 4 tsp instead of 5 tsp or 1/2 tsp baking soda

Oil

- I use coconut oil. Sometimes, I use olive oil. But lately, I’m going oil free, so I use 3 Tbsp of almond flour as a substitute. You could also try applesauce or mashed banana.

Brown Sugar

- My favorite healthier sugar option is coconut sugar. Sometimes, I use turbinado sugar (raw sugar). Regular sugar is not vegan. To qualify as vegan, the sugar needs to be organic or raw. Coconut sugar and other fruit sugars are vegan.

Milk

- I use almond, cashew, or coconut milk. Or I add 2-3 Tbsp extra almond flour and use water instead of milk. The almond flour serves as an almond milk base in the water.

I want to hear from you!

Let me know what you think in the comments below!

Recipes

I've included the back of my recipe page where I make notes of my substitutions and versions of the recipe. Most times, I comment whether it worked or not. The clay heart was made by a friend.

The Passion of Place

• Mixed Media on Canvas
• 11 x 14 x 0.5 in

The abstract background of red, yellow, bronze, and gold shows through the landscape with boldness and passion.

I painted plein air at the abandoned salt mine in Camp Verde, Arizona. I left my paintbrushes at home. So, I added the paint directly from the tube onto the canvas, providing a highly saturated color and thick texture.

I worked quickly to capture the essence of the energy of the place. The passion of the working salt mine from years prior came through in the process. The salt mine was also a ritual site for local Hopi Indians. I'm sure that energy is here too.

The Passion of Place

• Mixed Media on Canvas
• 11 x 14 x 0.5 in
• $400
• Mary Rush, Artist shown here with her painting

Purchase this painting

Thoughts?

Tell me what you think about this painting in the comments below. I'd love to hear from you!

The Throne of God - Oil Painting Now Dry and For Sale

 

The Throne of God at the Salt Mine
Acrylic and Oil on Canvas
14 x 11 x 0.5 inches

The Throne of God

• Mixed media on Canvas
• 14 x 11 x 0.5 in

A land formation at the salt mine conjures my imagination of being an enormously large chair where God sits. I always feel I am at God’s feet when I encounter it. He sits on his throne and watches over me as I hike and paint.

It’s always a thrill to hit the hiking trail with paints and an easel over my shoulder. As much as I love painting abstract, I love being in nature too. The new process marries both the abstract and the landscape. I have the best of both worlds now. It feels great.

The white, beige, metallic gold, and metallic silver color palette is subtle except for the highly contrasting lines.

Is This Painting for You?

The Throne of God

• Mixed media on Canvas
• 14 x 11 x 0.5 in
• $400 + $50 shipping

Artist Mary Rush with her painting The Throne of God at the Salt Mine.

Purchase this Painting

Your Thoughts?

Please leave a comment on what you think about this painting. I'd love to hear from you.

Ancestral Communication - Oil Painting Now Ready for Its Forever Home

Ancestral Communication

• Oil and Acrylic on Canvas
• 11 x 14 x 0.5 in
• $400
• Mary Rush

Since I painted the previous Plein air painting in monochrome hues of silver, bronze, gold, and beige, it was time to add color to the next painting.

I decided on a blue, purple, and green color scheme. The new process of painting an abstract underpainting is so exciting to me. It adds a spring to my step, and I can’t wait to begin the process.

Giddy with joy, immersed in the Southwest Arizona desert landscape, I was prepared to paint. This painting took the shape of the landscape naturally without trying. When I had the painting in front of me on the land, the mountains lined up with what I had randomly painted abstractly. Woo hoo! So much fun!

I grabbed the palette knife and mixed the paint to the sandy color of the desert floor. Slabs of the creamy beige appeared on top of the colorful abstract below it. I laid the paint down, following the formations of the mountains. I let the color show through in places to add surprise and wonder to the landscape scene. Two gold dots peek out boldly.

I love the shimmer of the metallic colors of bronze, gold, and silver in this color palette of blue, purple, green, and yellow.

When I look at the final painting, I hear drums beating in the distance as in ancestral communication.

Me, Mary Rush, with my painting, Ancestral Communication

Purchase link

I'd love to hear your thoughts about this painting. Please comment below. Thanks!

3 Red Paintings

 

Flora
Vibrant swaths of red, purple, and gold dominate the scene, with what appears to be a chaotic and expressive application of paint. Dabs of green and sporadic gold circles add contrast to the bold colors, suggesting an abstract and dynamic composition.
Purchase the print.

Bold Move
Vivid colors and dynamic brush strokes create an abstract composition that is energetic and chaotic. Dark purple and black areas contrast with bright red, green, and gold hues, while splatters and dabs of paint add to the sense of movement.
Purchase the print.

Spring Shoots
A red and bronze abstract painting with gold burst and bright green accents. Dark green shoots sprout up through the bright green mounds.
Purchase the print.

What do you think?

Let me know in the comments.

Salt Mine in Red, Orange, and Yellow - New Plein Air Painting

 

Salt Mine in Red, Orange, and Yellow
11 x 14 x 0.5 inches
Acrylic and Oil on Canvas

Passionate red, orange, and yellow warm up this canvas and set the dull desert landscape aglow.

Using my new process of painting a colorful abstract base coat, these colors are warm as opposed to the cool colors of the previous painting.

I was so excited and jazzed to get outside and paint, I forgot to pack my palette paper. So, for this painting, the paint was squeezed directly from the tube onto the canvas. I mixed it as I painted. The result is a higher saturated color.

The dark blue mountains add high contrast to the undulating sandy hills and mountains in front of it. The heat of red and orange seem to blaze through the neutral colors of the landscape. Yellow suggests sunny skies.

Let me know what you think of this painting in the comments below. Thank you for reading this far.

Me, Mary Rush, with my painting.

Salt Mine in Blue, Purple, and Green - New Painting

Salt Mine in Blue, Purple, and Green
11 x 14 x 0.5 inches
Acrylic and Oil on Canvas

Since last week's plein air painting in monochrome hues of silver, bronze, gold, and beige, it was time to add color.

I decided on a blue, purple, and green color scheme. The new process of painting an abstract painting as the base coat for my Plein air paintings is so exciting to me. It adds a spring in my step and I can't wait to begin the process.

This one took the shape of the landscape naturally without trying. When I had the painting in front of me on the land, the mountains seems to line up with what I had randomly painted abstractly. Woohoo! So much fun!

I grabbed the palette knife and mixed the paint to the sandy color of the desert floor. Slabs of the creamy beige appeared on top of the colorful abstract below it. I laid the paint down in the direction of the mountains. I let the color show through in strategic places to add surprise and wonder to the landscape scene. Two gold dots peek out boldly.

The salt mine is a wonderful place to paint. I could paint hundreds of paintings there and never tire of it. Remnants of the past salt mine stick out the ground as if they are part of the flora.

Let me know what you think in the comments. Thanks for reading this far.

Me, Mary Rush, with my painting - Salt Mine in Blue, Purple, and Green.

The Throne of God Painting - 11 x 14 - Mixed Media on Canvas

 

The Throne of God painting and me, Mary Rush.

The Throne of God

• Mixed media on Canvas
• 14 x 11 x 0.5 in
• Still wet, will be available in 2-6 months

Now that the weather is warming up, it’s time to hit the painting Plein air trail again. I’m changing up my process. I hope you like the new look of my landscapes.

 

A land formation at the salt mine conjures my imagination of being an enormously large chair where God sits. It is in a direct line with my driveway. So, I always feel like I live at God’s feet. He (yes, my God is he) sits on his throne and watches over me.

 

The photo on the left is a scanned version of the center of the painting. I stand next to the full painting in the photo to the right. The metallic gold and silver, white, and beige color scheme is subtle except for the high contrasting lines.

 

It’s always a thrill to hit the hiking trail with paints and an easel in tow. As much as I love painting abstract, I love being in nature too. The new process marries both the abstract and the landscape. I have the best of both worlds now. It feels great.

Collage Exploration on 9 x 12 Canvas - #4: Village Boardwalk
9 x 12 x 0.5 inches
Acrylic and Paper on Canvas
Buy Now!

 

Collage Exploration on 9 x 12 Canvas #4 - Village Boardwalk

9 x 12 x 0.5 inches

Acrylic and Paper on Canvas

#4 of 4 in the Series: Village Boardwalk

When I walk down the boardwalk, people stop me and say, 'Oh, your house is the one that glows.'–Mary Matalin

This fourth and final piece of this series is similiar to the third in color, design, and composition. The foreground wanted to be a lighter color than #3. But the same oranges, reds, and pinks are also part of the main color story of this painting.

The composition is asymmetrical with curvilinear lines. There is high contrast of darks and lights and warm colors and cool colors. The shapes seem to move to the right. The three triangles in the foreground anchor the composition.

All in all, I think it's a pleasing and colorful image filled with good cheer. What do you think? I'd love to hear, leave a comment below.

It takes a few to make war, but it takes a village and a nation to build peace.

–Abiy Ahmed 

 

Buy Now

Insitu

Back Story on the Series

I have been working on a four-painting series for the past month. All four paintings are now complete. This post features the third in the series.

The Series

This series consists of four small paintings on gallery-wrapped canvas measuring 9 x 12 x 0.5 inches. The media used was acrylic paint and paper. I did two series on 9 x 12 inch paper of three paintings each and wanted to try it with gallery-wrapped canvas.

Process

The first step was to paint a white acrylic base coat on each painting. Then, I adhered colored paper shapes onto each of the four canvases, each receiving a unique approach. I painted all four canvases with the underlayer, which helped determine the design direction of each painting. 

After the initial sessions of working on all four at once, I considered each one and worked consecutively, finishing each piece as I progressed to the next. 

I wanted to make a series of small paintings that would hang well together. After the first painting, the color scheme took a different route. Numbers two, three, and four share a similar color story. Numbers three and four follow an almost identical design style along with the color story. 

Subscribe now to my newsletter. Be the first to know about my new work. 

“Composition is the art of arranging in a decorative manner the diverse elements at the painter’s command to express his feelings.”
–Henri Matisse

Me, Mary Rush, with my painting, Village Boardwalk

 

Collage Exploration Series on 9 x 12 Canvas - Painting #3 of 4 - Fishermans Wharf

Collage Exploration on 9 x 12 Canvas #3 - Fishermans Wharf

9 x 12 x 0.5 inches

Acrylic and Paper on Canvas

I have been working on a four-painting series for the past month. All four paintings are now complete. This post features the third in the series.

The Series

This series consists of four small paintings on gallery-wrapped canvas measuring 9 x 12 x 0.5 inches. The media used was acrylic paint and paper. I did two series on 9 x 12 inch paper of three paintings each and wanted to try it with gallery-wrapped canvas.

Process

The first step was to paint a white acrylic base coat on each painting. Then, I adhered colored paper shapes onto each of the four canvases, each receiving a unique approach. I painted all four canvases with the underlayer, which helped determine the design direction of each painting. 

After the initial sessions of working on all four at once, I considered each one and worked consecutively, finishing each piece as I progressed to the next. 

I wanted to make a series of small paintings that would hang well together. After the first painting, the color scheme took a different route. Numbers two, three, and four share a similar color story. Numbers three and four follow an almost identical design style along with the color story. 

Subscribe now to my newsletter. Be the first to know about my new work. 

Fishermans Wharf - Coming to a wall near you.
Purchase information.

#3 of 4 in the Series: Fishermans Wharf

The third piece took a cue from the previous piece in its color story. It differentiated itself from numbers one and two with its design, shifting the color story to include a dark foreground. The spiral theme did not carry through with this painting.

At one point, the painting looked rather dull. I made a bold move, and grabbed a nearby torn piece of paper and ran a magenta paint stroke over the edge. That was just what it needed to breath life back into it. But, the painting was not done yet. I worked a lot with the mid ground and foreground to add contrast. The upper pink section around the gold circular shape took a bit coaxing to bring itself into form. 

The dark foreground received several different shades of blue-green leaning at times toward blue, then toward green, and in the end somewhere in between.

Summary of #3

All in all, I think it's lively and entertaining image. What do you think? I'd love to hear, leave a comment below.

Purchase information - Buy it Now!

Painting Series of Four Works - Collage Exploration on 9 x 12 Canvas

Slivers of the paintings as I worked on them.

I have been working on a four-painting series and running a contest. I hope you voted to win a set of art notecards or mini posters. Below is information on the series. The schedule for revealing the finished paintings is also below. 

The Series

This series consists of four small paintings on gallery-wrapped canvas measuring 9 x 12 x 0.5 inches. The media used was acrylic paint and paper. 

Process

The first step was to paint a white acrylic base coat on each painting. Then, I adhered colored paper shapes onto each of the four canvases, each receiving a unique approach. I painted all four canvases with the underlayer, which helped determine the design direction of each painting. After the initial sessions of working on all four at once, I considered each one and worked consecutively, finishing each piece as I progressed to the next. I wanted to make a series of small paintings that would hang well together. After the first painting, the color scheme took a different route. Numbers two, three, and four share a similar color story. Numbers three and four follow an almost identical design style along with the color story. 

Paintings Reveal Schedule

 My newsletter subscribers will be the first to see these paintings. They will have the first right to own them. Below is the schedule for revealing the finished paintings: 

Subscribe now to my newsletter to see the paintings first. 

Newsletter Subscribers

Thu, Jan 19: 1st painting 

Fri, Jan 20: 2nd painting 

Sat, Jan 21: 3rd painting 

Sun Jan 22: 4th, the final painting 

Social Media Reveal Schedule

Social media followers of my art will see the paintings two days after my newsletter subscribers. The two-day lag will give subscribers a chance to make their purchases. 

Sat, Jan 21: 1st painting 

Sun, Jan 22: 2nd painting 

Mon, Jan 23: 3rd painting 

Tue, Jan 24: the final painting 

Subscribe now to my newsletter to see the paintings first.