#96 - 38th & Chicago Ave. S.

#96 - 38th & Chicago Ave. S. 24"x36" oil on canvas
I cut loose with the thick and juicy paint this time.

We had quite a winter here in the Twin Cities.
This alley seemed like a good representative.

#94 - East 31st Street Near Portland Avenue South

#94 - East 31st Street Near Portland Avenue South
20"x24" oil on canvas
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It was nice to get back to these. I didn't force myself to try anything unusual, or add any restrictions, so it was enjoyable to just art for the enjoyment. And yep, that's a dinosaur head on the back of that truck. I drove past this in the early fall and had to make a run around the block so I could snap some pictures. The garage and truck are equally interesting. I have a feeling some creative types live there.

#93 - E. 19th St. Near Stevens Ave.

#93 - E. 19th St. Near Stevens Ave.
24x24 Oil On Canvas

Here we are at number 93. This is another one from the Stevens Square neighborhood.
There are so many good ones over there!
Again, I'm pushing color and contrast while simplifying shapes.
I was very tempted to go full abstract with this. I did a few color thumbnails to make
some color choices and really liked them, but decided to try and find a middle ground.

#92 - 57th St. E. & 40th Ave. S.

#92 - 57th St. E. & 40th Ave. S.
11x14 oil on panel

One from the far Southeast corner of Minneapolis.
This alley had a nice shady, cool feeling and I used
an all cool, limited color palette to push that even more.

#88 - East 36th St. & Snelling Ave.

#88 - East 36th St. & Snelling Ave. S.
3x5 AcrylaGoauche on paper

I wasn't going to post this one because it seemed too loose and sketchy, but then that's what changed my mind. I found an old pocket Moleskine sketchbook full of alley sketches and paintings on a shelf and it had a page prepped for another small alley, so I did one. After a few years away from doing them that way, I realized my approach to these has changed a lot. And I'm happy that it has.
So, here's a recent little winter scene from Southeast Minneapolis.

#83 - 12th Ave. S. & Powderhorn Terrace

#83 - 12th Ave. S. & Powderhorn Terrace
14x11 oil on panel
The shadows here were amazing. There a few short streets at the North end (I think) of Powderhorn Park that I hadn't seen before. I was over there taking a look at the park with the idea of coming back to paint the Midtown Market building tower that rises above the trees in the park. The lighted sign looks pretty great at twilight. But....I often get distracted by the alleys in any neighborhood that I'm in and then this happens.

#81 - East 57th Street & Elliot Avenue South

#81 - East 57th Street & Elliot Avenue South
8"x6" oil on panel
(sold)
This alley was commissioned by the family member of a friend as a gift to his sister.
I was asked in late March or early April, but I wanted to wait a few weeks until the trees started greening up. I was really hoping for some sun, but those weeks were cold, grey, and rainy. There were *finally* a few sunny days in early May and after all that rain the trees were green enough that I was able to get what I had in mind.

#80 - Portland & S. 9th St.

#80 - Portland & S. 9th St.
12"x16" oil on panel (sold)

This March and April seemed endlessly cold and grey.  I've been looking forward to getting outside again. This one was from last fall while looking for interesting alleys. I started it then, but set it aside and finally finished it last month. Sometimes I run into complications that take time to resolve. Sometimes they never do. I'm glad this one did.
Apologies for the glare. I didn't notice until I went through the photos. This painting is currently hanging at Butter Bakery Cafe for the months of May & June. If I get a chance, I'll take a new photo of it later.

#79 - Minnehaha & East 34th Street

#79 - Minnehaha & East 34th St.
6x8-oil on panel
(sold)
This was from the snow fall we had here in Minneapolis a few weeks back.
It's looking like that will have been the last snow of the 2016/17 winter.

#77 - East Lake St. & 30th Ave. S.

#77 - East Lake St. & 30th Ave. S.
8"x10" oil on panel
(sold)
A warm late afternoon/early evening in Southeast Minneapolis.
We are in the middle of a winter deep freeze as I post this.
Needless to say, I'm looking forward to warmer days.

#76 - E. 42nd St. & 38th Ave. S.

#76 - E. 42nd St. & 38th Ave. S. 8"x10" oil on panel

We did have a nice extended fall season here ....when it was dry.

#70 - 44th and Grand Ave. South

#70 - 44th and Grand Ave. South
8x10, oil on panel.  (sold)

Friends Chris and Jen own the place at the front right end of this alley. There was a baby shower there for our daughters when we were expecting. We spent a lot of fun evenings in the back yard to the right of that garage...bbqs, playing music, etc. 

#68 - East 32nd & Columbus Avenue South

#68 - East 32nd & Columbus Avenue South
5" x 7" oil on panel.(sold)

This is a great, colorful alley on 32nd St. East. The green fence is the back end of the parking lot for Modern Times Cafe on the Chicago end of the block. It's a vegetarian restaurant that I'm surprised I haven't ever been to.