Large Pear Paintings~

Big August Pear
18" x 24"
Acrylic on Gallery Wrapped Canvas
~Sold~

Really Big Red Pear
18" x 24"
Acrylic on Gallery Wrapped Canvas
~Sold~

This is what I have been working on lately. Two large pear paintings were commissioned by a collector who wanted two more pear paintings to go with the one she purchased earlier this year. They will be shipped out as soon as the varnish dries.

Up Next~

Painting for fun~

I am painting a cat for the Daily Paintworks Challenge "The Whole Cat and Caboodle Challenge." I may not be a "cat" person but I do love painting them. This painting will be available or purchase when it is finished.

There is a new series in the works......

"Chapel Hill"

I still can't decide if it will be a watercolor series, or maybe a little bit of everything - pastel, watercolor, and acrylic. Check back again soon for more updates.

Thank for stopping by~

Torrie

Painting, painting, painting~

The Pear Chronicles 012
4" x 6"
Acrylic on Gallery Wrapped Canvas

Tornado II
6" x 6"
Acrylic on Gallery Wrapped Canvas
~Sold~

The Pear Chronicles 013
4" x 6"
Acrylic on Gallery Wrapped Canvas
~Sold~

Back to painting~ I have been completing commissions and painted a few new small paintings for the online stores. I have neglected painting pears lately, I have missed them. There will be more pears to come.

I have enjoyed painting the tornado paintings. Swirling the paint and making clouds is so much fun. There will be more "weather related" paintings to come. We have had so many storms lately, I have a wonderful collection of storm reference photos to use.

The show at the TV studio will be over soon and I will be listing the paintings in my online stores. These paintings will be available beginning Memorial Day weekend.

Well, off to paint! I have two large pear commissioned paintings to finish.

Check back again soon!

Torrie

May ~ WSOC-TV Studio

May at WSOC-TV Studio

The show at the WSOC-TV studio is hung~ I left WSOC yesterday evening, came home and fell asleep. I have been working several months to get everything ready and I guess it was just time to get some rest. My paintings will be shown until the end of the month. There are 23 paintings some new and a few that are in my collection.

I have two commissions to finish and I will be finally adding new small paintings to my online stores. Of course there will be pears, I have neglected painting pears lately and I have missed them.

If you would like to see the complete list of paintings in the show, please visit my Facebook Page.

Now, off to play~

Thanks for stopping by~

Torrie

Tornado! ~

Tornado!
18" x 24"
Acrylic on Gallery Wrapped Canvas

I have been wanting to paint a tornado for a while and when I was given the opportunity to show my work at WSOC-TV in Charlotte, I immediately thought of doing a weather related painting. I finally put the tornado in my dreams on canvas.....you know what I mean, the recurrent tornado dream......I am so pleased the way it turned out, this will be a series! There will be tornadoes in all sizes and colors, after all, I do have those peaky dreams for reference.....HA!!!

Tornado was painted using professional artist grade acrylic paint on museum quality gallery wrapped canvas with painted sides to allow for hanging without a frame. Painting was finished with a light coat of varnish.

This painting was created for my upcoming show in May at the ABC affiliate TV station WSOC-TV in Charlotte, North Carolina.

This painting will be available for purchase online after the show beginning in June 2011.

This will probably be the last painting created specifically for the show in Charlotte. It is time now for framing and finishing touches for the show.

UP NEXT!

Break~ I have a very full calendar in May, spending time with children and babysitting Audrey Grace. They have all been very nice about my constant painting the last few months. I have two pear commissions to finish and then back to painting for the stores.

I will be posting all the paintings included in the show in Charlotte in the days to come.

Thank you so much for stopping by~

Torrie

New Painting~ Three Figs

Three Figs
8" x 10"
Acrylic on Canvas Panel
~Sold~

When time permits, I like to participate in the various challenge painting blogs hosted by several different artists and groups. I sometimes don't get finished before the submission time, but trying different compositions out of my "routine" is a wonderful learning experience. This composition is from Paint and Draw Together.

I love the way this painting turned out.
Three Figs was painted using professional grade acrylic paint on a museum quality canvas panel.

This painting has sold.

Up Next~
I have been painting like a crazy person and running out of time. I will have to finish all the paintings by the weekend to allow them to dry and be varnished in time or the show in May. I will be posting pictures of all the show paintings soon.
Thank you so much for stopping by~
Torrie

Orange Bell Pepper by Torrie Smiley

Orange Bell Pepper
6" x 6"
Acrylic on Gallery Wrapped Canvas
~Sold~

I have been painting like crazy trying to get ready for the upcoming show. In between the large paintings for the show, I have been creating a few smaller paintings for the online stores. Kevin was cooking the other day with the most beautiful bell peppers. I grabbed this one and took a few reference photos before we ate it..... I am very pleased with the way this little painting turned out.

Orange Bell Pepper was painted using professional artist grade acrylic paint on a gallery wrapped canvas with painted sides to allow for display without a frame. Painting was finished with a light coat of varnish.

This painting has sold.

Now, back to painting!

Thanks for stopping by,

Torrie

Interview~ The Etsy Times

California Poppies
30" x 40"
Collection of the Artist

I was honored and thrilled when I was approached to do an interview for The Etsy Times. It was nice to share a bit of my life and painting history. I am very fortunate to be able to finally have the opportunity to do something I have always loved. I love painting and look forward to playing with paint and canvas. My big dream is to one day be a full-time daily painter~until then, I am painting as fast as I can to put all the paintings that are floating around in my head on canvas before the inspiration passes!

Thank you to everyone who follows and purchases my work. I love it when my little creations go off into the world for someone to enjoy and share with their friends and family.

Now, off to paint~

Torrie

Painting, painting, Painting!

Robin's Three Eggs III
6" x 6"
Acrylic on Gallery Wrapped Canvas
~Sold~

A small bird nest with three bright blue robin eggs and a soft painterly background.

I have painted this several times before, but I am about to paint a large one for the upcoming show, so I thought I would practice a bit before I went BIG!

Robin's Three Eggs III was painted using professional artist grade acrylic paint on a gallery wrapped canvas with painted sides to allow for display without a frame. Painting was finished with a light coat of varnish.

This painting has sold.

Harvest Moon
6" x 6"
Acrylic on Gallery Wrapped Canvas
~Sold~

I have been painting still life works for so long, I think I have been neglecting landscapes. I thought I would paint a few for a while.

Harvest Moon was painted using professional artist grade acrylic paint on a gallery wrapped canvas with painted sides to allow for display without a frame. Painting was finished with a light coat of varnish.

UP NEXT~

Painting like crazy!

I am currently working on large versions of two bird's nest paintings, both 18" x 24". I am also doing a large coffee cup painting 12" x 24". These will be for the show in May. I will be posting pictures as soon as they are finished.

I am posting and painting as fast as I can, still playing catch up~

Thanks for stopping by,

Torrie

Tar Heel Born, Tar Heel Bred V ~ New Painting

Tar Heel Born, Tar Heel Bred V
6" x 6"
Acrylic on Gallery Wrapped Canvas
~Sold~

"I'm a Tar Heel born, I'm a Tar Heel bred. And when I die, I'm a Tar Heel dead."

It's that time of year again~ March Madness, Basketball, and Tar Heels. It was a fun season and I can't wait until next year.

Yes, I am originally from West Texas and will always be a Texan, but these past few years I have become a Tar Heel. The baby girl will finish at UNC Chapel Hill this next year and is employed at the Daily Tar Heel~ so, needless to say, I am a Tar Heel Mom!

Tar Heel Born, Tar Heel Bred V was painted using professional artist grade acrylic paint on a gallery wrapped canvas with painted sides to allow for display without a frame. Painting was finished with a light coat of varnish.

This painting has sold. To see more paintings currently available for purchase, please visit my Website gallery or my Etsy.com store.

Up next~

New small bird's nest painting, and a small landscape painting will be finished and posted this week. The rest of the time will be spent working on larger paintings for the upcoming show in May.

Enjoy the coming week~

Torrie

Busy Painting~

Tulip Row
12" x 24"
Acrylic on Gallery Wrapped Canvas
~Sold~

This painting was so much fun! This is a departure for me, more flowing brush strokes and soft edges. This is very much the way I see things without corrective lenses! I am very pleased with the way it turned out. I may have to do more paintings like this, although it is getting mixed reviews around the house with an even split in the voting........the dogs have yet to vote, but they will side with me, I give them biscuits.

Fancy Pears on Red
8" x 10"
~Sold~

Miranda helped me with this one, she told me when it was finished, that is often the very hardest part about painting, knowing when to stop.

I have purchased a very ornate heavy dark antique gold frame for this painting.

Both of these paintings will be included in the show in May at the WSOC-TV studio in Charlotte, North Carolina. They will be on display until the end of the month. They will be available for purchase in the online stores the first of June.

Well, off to painting again,

Torrie

For Japan~ Carolina Poppies

Carolina Poppies
8" x 10"
Acrylic on Gallery Wrapped Canvas
Currently on Auction

The Daily Paintworks Painting Challenge for Japan

I am pleased to participate in the DPW Painting Challenge for Japan. Using the link above, you can visit the blog and see a variety of paintings by participating artists up for auction with the proceeds being donated to Japan. The theme that was requested was "Home". This weeks challenge is hosted by Keiko Tanabe, a gifted watercolor artist who was born and raised in Japan and currently resides in California.

I have lived many places, and currently reside in North Carolina. The North Carolina highway department plants poppies along the roads that bloom in June. This was painted from a reference photo of the poppy fields along Highway 74 between Shelby and Kings Mountain, North Carolina.

Carolina Poppies was painted using professional artist grade acrylic paint on a gallery wrapped canvas with painted sides to allow for display without a frame. Painting was finished with a light coat of varnish.

Please visit the auction and view the unique and beautiful paintings being donated.

Thank you for stopping by~

Torrie

Zippo Lighter Challenge Painting

Zippo Lighter
6" x 6"
Acrylic on Gallery Wrapped Canvas
~Sold~

Zippo Lighter is my submission to the Zippo Challenge at Daily Paintworks Challenges.

I am fascinated with the painting challenges and seeing what artists do with the same reference photo and instructions. This was much harder to do than I expected. I am pleased with the way it turned out~

Zippo Lighter was painted using professional artist grade acrylic paint on a gallery wrapped canvas with painted sides to allow for display without a frame. Painting was finished with a light coat of varnish.

This painting is available for purchase using the PayPal button above or in my Etsy.com Store or my Website Gallery.

UP NEXT~

I am finally feeling back to my old self, but I am soooo far behind! I have to finish paintings and get ready for the show in May. I will be concentrating on large pieces for the show, but I will post paintings as I complete them so you can see everything. I am very excited about painting bigger~

Thanks for stopping by~

Torrie

The Pear Chronicles 011 ~ The Series Continues!

The Pear Chronicles 011
4" x 6"
Acrylic on Gallery Wrapped Canvas
~Sold~

Continuing with the Pear Chronicles, this is a gold pear with a red background.

The Pear Chronicles 011 was painted using professional artist grade acrylic paint on a gallery wrapped museum quality canvas with painted sides to allow for hanging without a frame. Painting was finished with a light coat of varnish.

Whenever I am away from painting for a while, I like to get back into the swing of things by painting a pear. It is like catching up with an old friend and getting back on track. I painted this pear with loose "mosaic-type" strokes to enter into the DPW Challenge. I am fascinated with the painting challenges and seeing what artists do with the same reference photo. This is my first time to participate and plan on continuing whenever time permits. I am currently working on the Zippo lighter and will post that entry when it is completed.

This painting has sold.

Well, off to paint, so much to do....so little time!

Thanks so much for stopping by~

Torrie

Glass of Red Wine II ~ Finally back to painting!

Glass of Red Wine II
6" x 6"
Acrylic on Gallery Wrapped Canvas
~Sold~

I was commissioned to paint a glass of wine. I had so much fun, I painted a second one for the store. This is a glass of red wine with a very loosely painted background. I just might have to paint more wine!

Glass of Red Wine II was painted using professional artist grade acrylic paint on a gallery wrapped canvas with painted sides to allow for display without a frame. Painting was finished with a light coat of varnish.

This painting has sold.

I'm BACK!

It has been a long few weeks, but I am getting back into the swing of things. This painting was finished just before the sinus-allergy-cold thing decided to move on to bronchitis/pneumonia. It is amazing how tired you are when you can't breathe. I have gone back to work full time and back to painting~

I am now really behind on getting ready for the show in May, but I have had time to plan out all of the new work.

I will be participating in challenge blogs this month and trying to fill the online stores with new smaller works. Wish me luck in getting everything on the list done~

I have finished a new pear painting for the Pear Chronicles that will be uploaded later today or in the morning. In the mean time, Happy Monday!

Thanks for stopping by~

Torrie

The Old Red Boat 2011 by Torrie Smiley

The Old Red Boat 2011
18" x 24
Acrylic on Gallery Wrapped Canvas

I have painted this subject many times before, but this is the largest to date. I am getting ready for a show at the local ABC affiliate television station and a much larger version of this painting will be included in the show.

The Old Red Boat 2011 was painted using professional artist grade acrylic paint on a gallery wrapped museum quality canvas with painted sides. Painting was finished with a light coat of varnish.

This painting is currently available for purchase in my Etsy.com store.

I am painting daily to get ready for the event in May. In between working on the large paintings, I am doing smaller ones to make available in my stores.

Check back again soon to see more pear paintings and a new beer painting.

Thanks for stopping by~

Torrie

A new fun painting~ Canadian Beer

Canadian Beer
6" x 6"
Acrylic on Gallery Wrapped Canvas
~Sold~

This was such a fun painting to do! I will have to paint more beer! I am currently finishing commissions, but after that there will be more beer bottle paintings.

Canadian Beer was painted using professional artist grade acrylic paint on a gallery wrapped museum quality canvas with painted sides to allow for hanging without a frame. Painting was finished with a light coat of varnish.

I have been painting on a large scale for the upcoming show in May. It was nice to do a small painting for a change.

Thanks for stopping by~

Torrie

Three Persimmons ~

Three Persimmons
6" x 6"
Acrylic on Gallery Wrapped Canvas
~Sold~

I took a small break from painting the large paintings and commissions and painted something for fun.

A collector suggested I paint persimmons. These were so fun, I will have to paint more when time permits~

Three Persimmons was painted using professional artist grade acrylic paint on a gallery wrapped museum quality canvas with painted sides to allow for hanging without a frame. Painting was finished with a light coat of varnish.

This painting has sold. To see more paintings currently available for purchase, please visit my my Website Gallery and my Etsy.com store.

Well, now back to work. I am painting a new version of my Red Boat paintings and finishing a couple of commissions. Lots of work to do.

Thanks for stopping by~

Torrie

New ~ The Pear Chronicles 010

The Pear Chronicles 010
4" x 6"
Acrylic on Gallery Wrapped Canvas
~Sold~

Continuing with the Pear Chronicles, this is a predominantly green pear with red highlights on a soft light blue background. I am really enjoying the small pear paintings, they will continue~

The Pear Chronicles 010 was painted using professional artist grade acrylic paint on a gallery wrapped museum quality canvas with painted sides to allow for hanging without a frame. Painting was finished with a light coat of varnish.

This painting has sold.

It has been a long day of painting, I have finished the large Pear commissioned painting and I will be posting a picture tomorrow. This painting is a recreation of my August Pear.

Well, time to clean up and get some sleep, check back again soon,

Torrie

New Year, New Paintings~

The Pear Chronicles 009
4" x 6"
Acrylic on Gallery Wrapped Canvas
~Sold~

Continuing with my little pear series in 2011, this is The Pear Chronicles 009, a single very blue pear with turquoise highlights. This is a one of my favorites!

The Pear Chronicles 009 was painted using professional artist grade acrylic paint on a gallery wrapped museum quality canvas with painted sides to allow for hanging without a frame. Painting was finished with a light coat of varnish.

This painting is available for purchase using the PayPal button above for $30.00 with $8.00 for United States priority shipping. This painting can also be purchase at my Gallery Website or my Etsy.com store.

New Year and back to work~ Last year was a wonderful year full of changes and blessings. I am very fortunate to have a wonderful life and a fabulous family. 2011 can only be better! There will be more paintings and more fun~

These past few weeks I have been busy with commissions that I could not post to prevent the people receiving some of these paintings from seeing them before they were gifted to them. These paintings are recently completed and moved on to their new homes.

Miss Audrey Grace - Year One
8" x 10"
Pastel on Paper

This is my beautiful granddaughter who spent last Christmas as a preemie in the NICU unit at the hospital in Asheville. This year, she is healthy, happy, and my joy! This painting was given to Audrey's other grandmother for Christmas.

The Wright View at High Rock
8" x 10"
Acrylic on Canvas Panel

The Cow III
11" x 14"
Acrylic on Canvas Panel

The Cow II
12" x 12"
Acrylic on Gallery Wrapped Canvas

Up Next~

I am continuing to work on two more commissioned Pear paintings. The Pear Chronicles paintings continue. I am also working on large paintings for the upcoming Heart Gala in Charlotte in February.

Check back again soon to see what I am up to,

Torrie

Tis the Season~

From my house to yours:

Merry Christmas
and
Happy Holidays~

A rare Christmas snow in Charlotte. I have had a wonderful Christmas and now it is time to get back to work,

Check back again soon to see what I have been up to~

Torrie

Pear Commissions Finished~

The Little Red Pear
4" x 6"
Acrylic on Gallery Wrapped Canvas

The Little Olive Pear
4" x 6"
Acrylic on Gallery Wrapped Canvas

The Yellow Pear II Redux Again
4" x 6"
Acrylic on Gallery Wrapped Canvas

I am working on several commissioned paintings getting ready for the Holidays. A collector requested several of my previous paintings to be recreated in the 4" x 6" size. I love painting pears and this was a fun commission.

I am currently working on a cow commission. I don't paint many cows and this collector requested a black and while cow. I have painted two and will be making the final touches on the second cow tomorrow and will post pictures soon.

Next up~

I am working on a Lily pond painting, a landscape, a portrait, and more pear paintings. So much to do, so little time. Hopefully, I can make time to paint a little something new for the Etsy.com store.

Thanks for stopping by~

Torrie

Studio Update~I will be showing my work in Charlotte!

WSOC-TV Charlotte, North Carolina

This is the hallway at WSOC-TV studios in downtown Charlotte. The television station showcases a different artist's work each month of the year. I am very honored and thrilled to fill these walls with my paintings during the month of May 2011.

So much wall space! I normally paint in a smaller format for the Internet stores, now I will be focusing on larger paintings to hang at the television studio. I will be hanging a variety of paintings from landscapes, still life, and portraits. I will post pictures of the paintings as I finish them so you can see then paintings before I take them to the television studio. I am going to try to have approximately 30 to show, wish me luck....I will be painting like crazy!

I will continue to add paintings to my stores online on a regular basis, but probably not as frequently. The small pear series (The Pear Chronicles) will continue. There will also be smaller versions of the paintings that will be included in the May show.

I have closed my eBay store for the time being and closed my shop at Design Style Guide. I am scaling back the online activity a bit, it seems I spend more time updating stores than painting. New paintings can still be purchased from my Etsy.com store, my website, blog, and ebsqart.com.

For now, I am working feverishly to finish six commissions. The holidays are always busy and this year is not an exception. I have to get the paintings for the Heart Gala at the first of the year started soon or they will not be finished in time. So much to do, so little time~ I love it!

Thanks for stopping by, more paintings coming soon!

Torrie