Abstracted Sunflower (New Painting in Pastel)
After painting sunflowers on Monhegan, I wanted to try my hand at abstracting some.
Flowers
Monhegan Sunflowers (New Painting in Pastel)
These cheery sentinels greeted us each day in the gardens on Monhegan, and it was delightful to have the opportunity to paint them in plein air there on a beautiful day. This painting is 18″x24″ and done in pastel. You can see the entire image above and close up details of it below. Click here … Read more
Monhegan Butterfly Garden (New Floral Painting in Pastel)
There were lots of monarchs and other butterflies on Monhegan and it was delightful to spend a beautiful day with them painting them, watching them flit around and gulp down nectar for their migration from the lovely gardens there.
Beauty Right out My Front Door (New Poem by Polly Castor)
Beauty is an abstract concept found the world over, but it is especially present on one’s home turf if you only will pay attention.
Limelight Hydrangeas (Poem by Polly Castor)
The superabundant greenish white blooms of the limelight hydrangeas languidly reach over the fence in the hazy sun, yearning to cheer you on in your day.
August Flowers
The vibrancy of the colors, the countless varieties– there are so many ways to feel the joy of the season.
Hike Photos from Huntington (Midsummer 2026)
Enjoy the berries coming on, the milkweed, the vines, the Canada geese, the fields, tree, and lakes, the reflections and bark, the complexity of composition, the flowers.
Hydrangea Resilience (New Poem by Polly Castor)
At the beginning of July, the ultramarine blue hydrangeas were like a finale of bursting fireworks their blooms reaching on strong stems, noble and uplifted, splashing their joy all over the scene.
Photos of our Peonies with links to Peony Poetry
Loving our peonies!
Check out these new photos of them from our yard, as well as these peony poems
A Bouquet for You (New Large Floral in Pastel)
I love the exuberance and cheer of this piece. I made this for the PSME Monthly challenge for May to paint “a bouquet of flowers.”
Flowers in our Yard Right Now (Photos)
This is the best time of year in our little third of an acre. It is bursting out in bloom right now, with many iris, peonies, baptista, allium, virbernum, quince, azalea, poppy, and even lemons.
Gardens at Hill Stead Museum (Photos)
In this post, you can follow along and appreciate with me all this cultivated beauty.
Spring Pointillism (New Poem by Polly Castor with Photos)
Dotted buds, tight fisted but yielding; scattered pecks of blossoms on trees; efflorescent dabs of white or blush pink done with a vigorous, percussive hand
Secular Easter Photos 2026
Everyone enjoyed being together so much that we sat at that brunch table for five hours, but it felt like only two. So grateful.
Still Life with Pattern (New Painting in Pastel)
The March the challenge was to paint a still life with a pattern in it. In this post you can see the one I did that was shared yesterday. It is 19″x25″ and done in pastel. I had fun doing it– especially the technical background
Amaryllis Photos (with Growing Instructions)
If you have a bare bulb, plant it in a pot that is at least twice its diameter. Make sure there is a drainage hole in the pot. You may plant more than one bulb in a bigger pot if desired
