"Half Pint" SOLD

 "Half Pint"

8 x 8in original oil on museum quality panel

$400

Okay, so I confess.  I have a bit of an "addiction" problem with blue Ball jars.

Luckily, I have found a 12 step program for this.

In Italy of all places.

Part of the process for getting the blue ball jar issue under control involves painting arches, terra cotta, and 1000 year old buildings.

I have been told that a diet high in carbs is helpful as well so I will have to eat lots of pasta, breads, gelatos and the like.

I am willing to do whatever is necessary to kick the habit.

I am not sure what the success rate of this program is, but if I am not cured on this first trip, I am already committed to going back.

Wow.

I feel so much better getting this off my chest:)))

P.S.  Stay in touch, it's almost time for all the photos, original watercolor postcard giveaways, and paintings from Italy to start!

To Subscribe to Dreama's Art , Click Here:))

Art, Humor and Inspiration--In Your Inbox!

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"A Room With a View" SOLD

"A Room With a View"

12 x 12in oil on museum quality panel

$600

"Tell me

 what is it you plan to do 

with your one wild and precious life?"

~Mary Oliver

To Subscribe to Dreama's Art , Click Here:))

Art, Humor and Inspiration--In Your Inbox!

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"Heaven S(c)ent" SOLD

"Heaven S(c)ent"

8 x 8in oil on museum quality panel

$350

As much as I kvetch about the little guy, truth is....when he strikes a pose like this...he kind of squeezes my heart:))

We RELISH so many of the same things--

a good nap 

sunshine 

and the absolutely DIVINE scent of real, old fashioned roses.  

The scent of a rose plus one furry gentleman named Eddie, both, on a day like to day, are s(c)ent from heaven:)!

In Other News:

With angels at my window

And a great place to sit and think

it becomes pretty apparent that it's going to be a great workshop in Cary, NC:))

Cary, NC Oil Painting Workshop begins Monday at  Chambers Arts!

I'll keep you posted on the details of meeting 18 wonderful artists Mon-Wed and then a second set of 18 amazing painters Fri-Sun.  A wonderful week of art in the making!!

P.S. For obvious reasons, please do not share this post with Eddie. 

A little power in the in the wrong paws can be a dangerous thing.  

Selah.

(pause and calmly think on that:)

2013 Workshop Schedule/Click Here

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"Cherry Kisses and Postcard Skies" SOLD

"Cherry Kisses"

8 x 8in oil on museum quality panel

$350

Transparent colors, women from Denver to Louisiana, Virginia to Venice, sunshine, umbrella shaded lunches, 18 fresh and vibrant paintings--and many, many smiles.

First Day of the Marco Island Workshop went by way too fast!!

Photos to follow tomorrow...stay tuned:))  They created some beautiful pieces today!

Post Card Skies 

Confessions.  

I have slept on the couch every night since arrival, with the patio doors open wide, 

 (the better to hear the ocean's sweet music)

The sky has been more than kind

dropping a couple of stars on the first night

An extravagant starry postcard last eve, framed in my doorway

And this evening

A tiny sliver of moon hanging out with a gorgeous evening star.

What a show is put on for us each and every day

All we have to do

is

Look Up:))

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"Rosie Days Ahead in France"

 "Rosie Days Ahead in France"

12 x 12in oil on museum quality panel

$550

Couldn't have said it better myself:))) 
Wishing you a  r o s i l i c i o u s  kind of day!

Now it's time for your sing-a-long!!

If you can't see video here/ click this link to go!

Lots of my favorite art goodies in my art store.  Click to go:)

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"Be Open" SOLD

"Be Open"

8 x 8in oil on museum quality panel

$350

"Above all, watch with glittering eyes,

the whole world around you,

because the greatest secrets are always hidden

in the most unlikely places"

                                                                                                               ~Roald Dahl

Open window in France = An eyeful of roses

Be open.

it's a good thing:))

 

In Other News:

• More Eddie and Phyllis headed your way.  Stay tuned:))
• If you haven't had a chance to check out the workshops for next year, here's your chance:))  click here.
• All the Catalicious series of paintings are now in one place on my website for your viewing enjoyment:))  click here  and all of Eddie and Phyllis series are now in one place as well...click here

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"For the Love of Color" SOLD

 

"For the Love of Color"
8 x 8in oil on museum quality panel

$350

I have long suspected that, if it were measured, my heart skips a beat when it encounters color.

I probably exhibit tell tell signs of a run away pulse as well.

And potentially don't breathe as deeply as I should--holding my breath

In breathless anticipation

All for the love of color.

Like a lovesick teenager, I would surely pine to my grave were the world to suddenly go black and white.

For today

Why not let yourself fall in love again?

The exact amazing beauty of the flushed cheeks on a child's face.

The one of kind color that blankets the sky at the magical moment of sunrise.

Every bloom, each bird, a thousand leaves on a tree--just waiting for your eyes to light upon them

for their beauty rests in your eyes,

the Beholder.

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"Bonjour!" SOLD

"Bonjour!"

6 x 6in oil on museum quality panel

$200

Bonjour!
Just a simple hello on the signboard sounds so beautiful in French.  And who could resist old iron gates and roses or  the thoughts of  fine wine and fresh bread inside?
Just between you and me..
they had me at bonjour:))

In Other News:
You are stranded on a deserted island (hopefully Tahiti or some such place:) and can have only one ART book--what is it and why??
Send your info to me and it will be part of our upcoming show for the best art books according to the listeners of Artists Helping Artists blog radio show!  To listen to past shows, click here.

 Just a reminder, if you would  like to know what colors I use on my palette and what my favorite brush is (among other things), the info is always listed on my blog under "Favorite Things" Read more...

And last but not least...when you purchase a painting (behind the scenes details:))  Read more...

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"Rose Steps of Italy" SOLD

"Rose Steps of Italy"

6 x 6in oil on museum quality panel

$200

A good set of stairs to sit and write the story of your life.  Surrounded by roses and a glass of ice tea nearby, start with how you came to be in Italy!

Gratitude Mission

#30Thanks Day 27 --Thanks for belief, for hope--it makes all the difference.

When the world seems flat, don't believe it.  Just because the roundness can't be seen from where you stand....it doesn't  mean a thing.  Absence of belief in its roundness does not make it flat..:))  A few years back there were two schools of thought on just that very thing.  The world did not flatten because some believed it to be so.  It stayed, fully shaped, waiting....for someone like you, with lots of hope, to set sail towards their dreams with vision, with faith, and with hope.  Anything is possible when we believe. 

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"A Brush with France" SOLD

"A Brush with France"

6 x 6in oil on museum quality panel

$200

Thoughtful brushstrokes, bits of color, stack up like real life.  Choose the things, one by one, that 

make your life a thing of joy to behold...:))


Please Note:  The entire amount from the sale of this painting will go to the "Artwalk for Annie" .  Artist and mother of 4, Annie Salness suffered a stroke mid October. Fellow artists, friends, and just good people (that's you!) are doing what they can to help offset the medical expenses for Annie and her family.   To learn more ways you can help, click here.


Gratitude Mission, Day 17: Thank someone who encourages you

#30Thanks  Day 17

Words are magical.  There is always someone behind them.  Words spoken from the heart, unfiltered and unpostured, absent of agenda...and best of all...outsourced from love--this is that someone that encourages me.  They may be words penned years ago, or words just arriving by mail today.  The common thread is the truth contained within them.  Words, whether written or spoken, have such tremendous power to inspire and encourage.  I am thankful for all the good words that have come to me in my lifetime by too many people to begin singling them out here.  As always, you know who you are.  You are the someone who ushers in encouragement with your very presence.  Thank you. This post was meant for you. 

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"Mur Français de Jardin" (French Garden Wall) SOLD

 "Mur Français de Jardin" (French Garden Wall)

6 x 6in oil on museum quality panel

$200

One hand on cool, damp stone, the other gently easing the door open to allow you access to the garden.  The timeless quiet that envelopes your senses eases away the tension.  All that exists in this moment is the scent of musty earth, velvety softness of rose petals and the hum of life that says..

it's gonna be alright. 

Thank a Caregiver

#30Thanks Day 16

I have always envied those people who knew what they wanted to be from a young age.  That sense of destiny and purpose that never has them wondering if they picked the right path.  I was seven at the time and I can still remember the family drama that ensued when my sister announced she wanted to become a nurse.  She was the first born of our family and  my Dad would not hear of her taking a job whose duties included "carrying bed pans"!  Well, if there was one person more determined than Dad it was my sister Vicki.  Barely five feet tall, what she lacked in height she made up for in cuteness and the ability to "talk back" and in the late summer of '67 she headed out for--you guessed it--nursing school.  Vicki retired last year from 40 years of nursing.  I was always and still am proud of the kind of nurse she was.  When working in the pediatrics ward, she would buy clothes out of her then meagre student nursing money for the less fortunate babies.  She was the nurse who would slip out an extra blanket to a family member slumped over a chair on a night vigil with their loved one.  She carried worries home with her--sad over young adults diagnosed with brain cancer, taking extra time with elderly couples when one was slipping away while the other helplessly watched.  In the latter years of her nursing she gave hope and encouragement, dispensed out like miracle medicine, by working with pulmonary and cardiac rehab patients (those recovering from heart attacks, lung ailments, trying to get back their life and afraid it might never come).  She has attended funerals, sent cards, and just simply been the kind of nurse everyone hopes to have when its needed.  We lost our Dad two years ago this past September.  He was a non-smoker, but ended up with of all things, a lung ailment.  Vicki's specialty had been working with pulmonary (lung) patients.  Guess who Dad wanted most by his side?  Funny how life works.  Thanks dear sister of mine for being a caregiver extraordinaire all these years.  You have made me proud so many more times than you will ever know. You are, without a doubt, simply AMAZING!!

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"France and Colorful Addictions" SOLD

"France and Colorful Addictions"

©Dreama Tolle Perry

6 x 6in oil on museum quality panel

$200

The study of color.  I know as it relates to art, their are volumes written on just that.  Well, I guess I may as well come clean here on the color thing as applied to my paintings.  Color theory is not what drives my wagon.  I am just not a complicated person.  Color makes me happy.  And particular combinations of colors only make it worse (or better, depending on how you look at it..:)  It's that simple. 

Which brings me to this combination.  Blue shutters (with touches of Caribbean blue, magenta and  radiant blue) nestled up against a crush of boisterously pink flowers ( with hints of transparent red, permanent rose, and indian yellow) all on a building in France.   Well, it's just nearly more than a fellar can take.

And that's my excuse (and Lord knows I need one) for being fixated on color. 

Wishing you an exceedingly color filled day!!

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"Present" for P.A.W.S.

"Present"

20 x 20 Framed Reproduction

Animals by nature live in the present moment.  No angsting over yesterdays' missed opportunities, no worrying over tomorrow's bad weather forecast. 

As a result, they notice everything. 

 No butterfly,

 no sun-warmed rose,

 no greeting,

no touch,

Escapes their ever present awareness. And surely that is where true bliss is to be found.  Yesterdays and tomorrows live only in our mind. 

The only real thing we have is this very present moment.

Eddie and I have donated the above framed print to P.A.W.S --our local animal shelter--for their annual fundraiser.  Eddie himself was a California pound kitty and loves the idea of helping his fur bearing friends  find good homes!

Note:  If you would like to know more about my prints, click here. 

In Other News: 

•  We have a terrific guest for this week's Artists Helping Artists radio show.  Cory Huff, the man behind The Abundant Artist website, who is doing his best to wipe out the "starving artists" myth, will be shedding some light on writing a killer artist's statement--you don't want to miss this!  Go to our blog for details and links to the show.  Click Here
• For all you artists, get your thinking caps on and brushes in hand for the monthly painting challenge on the Artists Helping Artists Blog.  I already have my idea in mind--what's yours going to be?
• I have a few spots remaining in the 3 Day painting workshop with Leslie Saeta in CA (Sept 23-25).  This could be the sign you were waiting for...:))  To find out more you can go to www.DreamaTollePerry.com/workshops

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"Overflowing"

"Overflowing"

30 x 40, oil on museum quality panel

Click Here for More Information and To Purchase

I hope you have so much abundance in your life today that it overflows onto everything around you!!

This painting is from my latest collection, "Let There Be Love..."  If you click on the link in blue, it will let you see it in a larger format.  It's just a wee bit bigger than the paintings I normally put here on my blog.  Like maybe 40 times bigger....:))  Overflowing.  That's how we like it!
(This painting has the words peace, love, joy and beauty scripted into it.  Can you see them?)

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"French Countryside Laundry" and Girls in Paris..:) SOLD

"French Countryside Laundry"

6 x 6in oil on museum quality panel

$200

Natural beauty--fresh laundry mingled in with the gardens.  It's great to escape the heat of Paris in July and head for our summer house.  Don't  waste any time.  Just sling your things in the suitcase and catch the next flight here.  I've got your room ready, and if you're nice, I'll let you help gather in the laundry..:))

"Girls Gone Wild in Paris"

Well, as promised, here's the complete group!  Sarah, Asher, Susan, Brenda, Barbara, Barbara, Pris, Kay, Judith, Ann, Mary Louise, Ann, Becky, and Ann (Yep, 3 Ann's, 2 Barbara's, a Becky and a Brenda--testing my ability to paint and get the names right...but they were all uniquely wonderful ladies, so it was easy!) A supremely wonderful workshop--now, only two months until I head for California to team up with Leslie Saeta for our workshop...I am bristling with excitement.  Kind of like a Jack Russell Terrier......only with two legs and no collar.

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"Light Hearted in France" SOLD

"Light Hearted in France"

6 x 6in oil on museum quality panel

$200

Hmmm....talk about heart healthy..a stress free jaunt in France...that should do it!  If it looks like one of the roses is missing here, it's because you just cut one to tuck  behind your ear (after first having buried nose in said rose and inhaling deeply)  before you headed off to class--it helps when you're local to speak the language...:)--no one said it hurt if the teacher happened to be cute as well.

Of course, listening to Stacey Kent's Raconte Moi helps put you in the mood....to learn the language of course. 

And in other news:

• 
  
  Carol Marine, one of the most well known of the daily painters and a super artist and lady will be our guest this Thursday, July 1st, 12 noon EST,  on Artists Helping Artists blog radio show.  We have lots to talk with Carol about and will be opening the phone lines for all your great questions and comments!  Check sidebar on my blog for details on calling in.  Remember--the shows are recorded as well for later listening.  Please help spread the word to your fellow artists about the show--Thanks!
• 
  
  Leslie Saeta and I have been having some awesome discussions via phone on how to make our September workshop an unforgettable, extreme learning experience.  I am learning things from Leslie about color and how to make your work have it's own signature look--and that's just with talking to her--just think of getting to see how she lays the paint down with the knife!  Stay tuned as we are each going to have a video addition on our sites to give you more information on what we plan to cover in this workshop set.  Click here for more info
• 
  
  And another thing--a bit of an unusual request.  But no one as ever accused me of being...usual.  Romiley Jack took my women's artist retreat back in the spring.  Romiley is an artist without brushes....she's an actress!  She has sent in her audition tape to "host your own show" that Oprah is sponsoring.  We can vote on our favorite.  Romiley is one of us--a generous, talented, lovely human being---and who doesn't like to see good girls win??  Here is the link to see her video audition and to vote.   Let's be part of pushing her to the top! (hint, you can vote more than once..:)
• 
  
  And, the pressure is building --- people are wanting to see paintings of Eddie.  I am hoping these are genuine requests and not something Eddie has engineered....so if he agrees to model, I will be adding a painting or two of Ed to the mix.  Just a heads up in case you are a fan of Eddie's.  He tells me has fans.  He also says he doesn't shed.....

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"Lynda's French Blue Gate" SOLD

"Lynda's French Blue Gate"

6 x 6in oil on museum quality panel

I have a dear friend named Lynda.  Lynda's whole face lights up when she laughs--as she often does.  There is a stuffed camel that hangs out on Lynda's bed, often times sporting a gaily colored scarf.  The last time I saw Lynda out she was wearing the scarf that I had previously seen the camel wearing.  That's how Lynda rolls.  She has a French room that is very ...well,   French.  It is full of unique, interesting, beautiful things--kind of like the lady herself.  Things that have long stories and histories that come with them.  Lynda is a writer and her writing desk is there.  It is a room full of sunshine.  Sometimes it's hard to tell exactly where the light comes from....Lynda, the sun, or a bit of both.  I treasure having her as a friend.  This blue gate is from a photo she sent me last week from her trip to France.  She will see the painting for the first time here, just as you are now.  If it is still around after she sees it, then I will post the price on it tomorrow.  But if I want to keep her as my friend, I figure I best post the painting without a  "buy now" button....:))

If you have a photo laying around from a trip abroad that you would be curious to see turn into a petite painting, you can send it to me.  If I paint it, you will get first dibs on it...nice and easy....that's how we (Eddie and me) roll...:))

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"Color Me French Blue.." SOLD

"Color Me French Blue.."

6 x 6in oil on museum quality panel

$200

Get quiet and the peace comes.  Words don't do it sometimes, not the way the color can.  Take the specific color of blue that adorns so many shuttered windows of southern France.  Blue shutters smothered in sunshine and a crush of roses.....when I close my eyes, I am there....:)))

Lots of things to keep you up on....like.... I am  pleased to announce that I am part of a new daily painting group called Daily Painter Originals. You can visit the new site here.

And
"Artists Helping Artists" blog radio show topic (that I am co-hosting with Leslie Saeta) for this Thursday is   Top 10 Tips for Online Marketing That Every Artist Should Know--which leads me to...

I will be doing the broadcast on my lunch break during the first day of my 3 Day Oil Painting Workshop in Lexington, KY...:)) Never a dull moment I tell ya!

And for all you artists who are thinking about launching into marketing your art, my book, The Artist's Toolbox will be out in a few days.  It is a simple, straight line book , geared for those of you wanting to get started.  I have worked to keep the information narrowed down to what I feel is the most important and have deliberately not tried to cover everything--I didn't want it to be overwhelming.  I have written it like I would to a friend (which you are) telling you what I have done and what I feel is most important.  I want it to be a great service to those just getting started on this part of their artistic dream.  And just because I like you so much....I will be holding a  drawing (from those who comment on my blog) to give away the first copy.  The contest starts today and ends when I get the first copy in my hands with which to mail out to you....This is gonna be so fun!!

And just remember--as my way of saying thanks to those who purchase my daily paintings--a gift with each painting (read on...)

And let me know, by way of words and/or photos--where's your Dreama original in your home?  I have already had some nice responses that I will be sharing in upcoming posts and my newsletter and would love to hear from you..:)! 

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"Dappled French Light" SOLD

"Dappled French Light"

6 x 6 in oil on museum quality panel

$200

The play of early morning light on a colorful French balcony are undeniably pleasant.  You can feel the crispness of the air calling you to come sit with your coffee in hand and listen to the stories the birds are telling.  Let your hair down and truly be yourself---no one here knows you --it's time for the real you to come out and play....:))

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"La France Pour L'ete" (France for the Summer) SOLD

"La France Pour L'ete"

6 x 6 in oil on museum quality panel
$200

Ahhh.....la France pour l'ete'.....France for the summer.  The minute the windows are flung open, all the  memories of past summers come rushing back.  Books to unpack to be read later, a  paint box of watercolors, and lots of pen and paper for writing.  That's about all that's needed.  French countryside provides the rest.  Roses blooming just outside the window, sun shining on weathered walls and endless summer days.

 For now, just lean in the door way and take it all in....the first day of summer in France.  What are you gonna do?

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