Grimannsfell Late Spring

Grimannsfell Late Spring

Twenty minutes north from Reykjavik, Iceland on the way to Thingvellir east of Mosfellsbaer alongside Route 36 near the Halldor Laxness Museum, painted  on June 3, 2026 from a photo I took May 4, 2026,  14" x 11" (w x h), using Daniel Smith, Schmincke Horadam, and Winsor & Newton watercolors, all selected for light fastness and permanence, using wax resist on 140 lbs. Fabriano Artistico cold press rough 100% cotton extra white watercolor paper, framed.
$600

New Art From Iceland... Jakobina Vilhelmsdottir

 New Art from Iceland

Hanging in the Bruce Collection

Blue on Yellow for Washing Dishes
Jakobína Vilhelmsdóttir (1955- ), Icelandic
Cotton yarn, 10" x 10", 2026

Knitted as a dish washcloth, Jakobína Vilhelmsdóttir's artist's eyes for color distinguishes this as a work of art. The artist from northern Iceland, lived on Vestmannaeyjar before moving to Reykjavik. She worked as a nurse for many years, now retired and pursuing the art of knitting.

Yellow on Blue for Washing Dishes
Jakobína Vilhelmsdóttir (1955- ), Icelandic
Cotton yarn, 10" x 10", 2026

Blue and Yellow Abstract Visual Essay

 Blue and Yellow

in Art as an Abstract Visual Essay
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Blue and Yellow
Ellsworth Kelly (1923-2015), American
Lithograph in colors, on watermarked Arches paper, 19" x 26" (w x h), 1965
Christie's 2014 British auction sold GBP 3,500 / $4,700 USD

Source: Wiki, edited
Ellsworth Kelly (1923-2015) was an American painter, sculptor, and printmaker associated with hard-edge painting, Color field painting and minimalism. His works demonstrate unassuming techniques emphasizing line, color and form. Kelly often employed bright colors. During World War II, he served with other artists and designers in the Ghost Army, a United States Army deception unit. He lived and worked in Spencertown, New York.

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2
Untitled (Blue & Yellow)
Carmen Herrera (1915-2022) Cuban Born American
Acrylic and graphite on paper, 28" x 39" (w x h), 2012
Christie's 2014 American auction sold $75,600 USD

Source: Wiki, edited
Carmen Herrera (1915-2022) was a Cuban-born American abstract, minimalist visual artist and painter. She was born in Havana and lived in New York City from the mid-1950s. The key to understanding Herrera's style is remembering that, before she left Cuba, she was trained as an architect. According to Herrera, her optical and minimalist approach to form illustrated her "quest ... for the simplest of pictorial resolutions." She remarked that it's the "beauty of the straight line" that kept her going." Herrera's abstract works brought her international recognition late in life. Herrera's work can be found in collections of major institutions around the world, such as the National Gallery of Art, Washington; the Tate Modern, London; the Museum of Modern Art, New York; and the Perez Art Museum Miami, among many others.

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3
Soft Saxophone (Blue, Yellow, Red)
Claes Oldenburg (1929-2022) Swedish born American
Lithograph in colors, 14/40, on Somerset Satin paper, 44" x 35", 1992
Christie's 2013 American auction sold $2,750 USD

Source: Wiki, edited
Claes Oldenburg (1929-2022) was a Swedish-born American sculptor best known for his public art installations, typically featuring large replicas of everyday objects. His first one-man show was in New York in 1959 of figurative drawings and papier-mache sculptures. Many of his works were made in collaboration with his wife, Coosje van Bruggen, who died in 2009; they had been married for 32 years. In 2002, the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York held a retrospective of the drawings of Oldenburg and van Bruggen; the same year, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York exhibited a selection of their sculptures on the roof of the museum. Oldenburg lived and worked in New York City.

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4
Yellow and Blue Stress
Kenneth Noland (1924-2010), American
Acrylic on shaped canvas, 21" x 97" (w x h), 1981
Christie's 2014 American auction sold $106,250 USD

Source: Wiki, edited
Kenneth Noland (1924 - 2010) was an American painter, one of the best-known American color field painters, although in the 1950s he was thought of as an abstract expressionist and in the early 1960s as a minimalist painter. Noland helped establish the Washington Color School movement. In 2006, Noland's Stripe Paintings were exhibited at the Tate in London. He spent his final years painting in Port Clyde, Maine.

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5
Aquatic Gardens
Alma Thomas (1891-1978), American
Acrylic on canvas, 52" x 73" (w x h), 1973
Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington, DC

Source: Vintage and Iconic African American Everything, edited
Alma Woodsey Thomas (1891-1978) became famous for her art after she retired from teaching at 69-years-old as a public-school art teacher in Washington, D.C. After retiring she created the art she is best known for. In 1972, she became the first Black woman to have a solo exhibition at the Whitney Museum of American Art. Her paintings now hang in major museums, and in 2015, her work entered the White House permanent collection. Her art is studied for its rhythm, color, and quiet confidence. The Smithsonian American Art Museum holds the largest public collection of Thomas's works in the world.

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6
Blauwdoorgeel / (Blue through Yellow)
Bram Bogart (1921-2012), Belgian
Painted mixed media relief on wood, 40" x 41" (w x h), 1966
Christie's 2023 European auction sold EUR 50,400 / $58,000 USD

Source: Wiki, edited
Bram Bogart (1921-2012) was born in the Netherlands, spoke Dutch and moved around before 1961, when he and his later-to-be-wife Leni permanently relocated to Belgium. In 1969 he became a Belgian citizen. Here he experimented with a mix of mortar, siccative, powdered chalk, varnish, and raw pigment, applied to large, heavy wooden backing structures. In 1971 he represented Belgium at the Venice Biennale.

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7
Blue, Yellow Medium
Leon Polk Smith (1906-1996), American
Oil on canvas, 30" x 72" (w x h), 1968
Christie's 2018 British auction sold GBP 102,250 / $136,432 USD

Source: Wiki, edited
Leon Polk Smith (1906-1996) was an American painter, a follower of the hard-edge school. His geometrically oriented abstract paintings were influenced by Piet Mondrian. His best-known paintings feature reduced forms, characterized by only two colors on a canvas meeting in a sharply delineated edge, often on an unframed canvas of unusual shape. His work is represented in many museums in the United States, Europe, and South America. Thanks to a generous bequest from the artist, the Brooklyn Museum owns a number of his works.

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8
Composition with Blue and Yellow
Piet Mondrian (1872-1944) Dutch
Oil on canvas, 13" x 16" (w x h), 1932
Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philadelphia, PA

Source: Philadelphia Museum of Art
Piet Mondrian (1872-1944) painted Composition with Blue and Yellow during a phase in the early 1930s when he sought relative symmetry and equilibrium in his signature "New Form" style. Invented in 1920, this style eliminated any subject matter related to the natural world. Instead, Mondrian turned his focus to the relationships among just a few structural elements: horizontal and vertical lines of different lengths and thicknesses and rectilinear planes of color (restricted to the primary colors red, yellow, and blue) juxtaposed with planes of what Mondrian called "non-color" (white, gray, and black). In this work, bisecting lines cross the entire composition in the upper-right region, and a shorter but wider black bar subdivides the right-hand vertical margin. The resulting irregular grid creates five planes-two of color and three in white-whose sizes, proportions, and shapes are never repeated but still balanced.

Bjarneyjar Sheep - Icelandic Watercolor Society Demo

Bjarneyjar Sheep

Icelandic Watercolor Society Demo painted before the group on April 30, 2026, from a photo I took while living solo on the Icelandic island of Bjarneyjar, 14" x 11" (w x h), using Daniel Smith, Schmincke Horadam, and Winsor & Newton watercolors, all selected for light fastness and permanence, and Uniball waterproof fade proof ink on 140 lbs. Fabriano Artistico cold press rough 100% cotton extra white watercolor paper, framed.
$500
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
My Icelandic Watercolor Society Demo -
See and listen to it online using the ling below at #10. But first...

​2
I was pleased to present to the IWS how I paint watercolors.

3
I painted from a photo I'd taken years ago of sheep on Bjarneyjar
while living there solo for five weeks.

​4
I use all flat brushes and showed them my technique.

5
I also layer my colors on the paper, sometimes wet on dry, and sometimes wet on wet, while they watched on the projector behind me.


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6
They saw how I painted yellow, then various blues to get the resulting greens.

​7
It was an enthusiastic group. I enjoyed them as much as they, apparently, enjoyed me.


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8
After I finished my painting, they picked one of the ten photos of the island for them to paint from, projected on the screen.

9
And I got to interact with them while they painted, answering questions and making positive observations.

10
See and hear the painting demo video online on my website (1:05:00). The video is not quite focused in part but it's there and the audio is fine and tells the story. See and listen to it on YouTube HERE.

11
It was featured on the back page of the biggest newspaper in Iceland, Morgunbladid, Reykjavik, Iceland, May 9, 2006
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
The Unpredictability and Mystery of Watercolors
By Dora Osk Halldsorsdottir

"It's been very popular to have short courses in watercolor painting. We've often had foreign artists join us," says Derek Mundell, founder and chairman of the Icelandic Watercolor Society.

"Most recently, the American and Iceland connected Bruce McMillan was with us for a course. He is a children's book author, but in recent years he has been a strong watercolorist and is a member of the Society. He has a distinct style, where he paints and lets it dry and then paints over it again, achieving a different color than you often see in watercolors," says Derek.

........

While Dreaming of Dawn's Realization...

While Dreaming of Dawn's Realization 
Pushing through the Night

Inspired by Georgia O'Keeffe's art approach when she painted in Maine in the 1920s, painted March 25, 2025 and June 3, 2026, 10" x 8" (w x h), using Daniel Smith, Schmincke Horadam, and Winsor & Newton watercolors selected for light fastness on 140 lbs. Fabriano Artistico cold press rough 100% cotton extra white watercolor paper, framed.

$625

Reykjavik's Tjornin Pond's Edge to Esja Study 1

Reykjavik's Tjornin

Pond's Edge to Esja Study 1

painted plein air alongside Tjornin in Reykjavik on May 1, 2026, 10 x 8 (w x h), using Daniel Smith, Schmincke Horadam, and Winsor & Newton watercolors, all selected for light fastness and permanence, 140 lbs. Fabriano Artistico cold press rough 100% cotton extra white watercolor paper, framed.
$300

My plein air setup in Reykjavik alongside the pond,

Tjornin, in the late afternoon to evening setting sunlight.

Reykjavik's Tjornin Pond's Edge to Esja Study 3

Reykjavik's Tjornin
Pond's Edge to Esja Study 3

painted plein air alongside Tjornin in Reykjavik on May 1, 2026, 14 x 11 (w x h), using Daniel Smith, Schmincke Horadam, and Winsor & Newton watercolors, all selected for light fastness and permanence, 140 lbs. Fabriano Artistico cold press rough 100% cotton extra white watercolor paper, framed.
$600

My plein air setup in Reykjavik alongside the pond,
Tjornin, in the late afternoon to evening setting sunlight.

Thing with Feathers - Bruce Art Collection

New Art in the Bruce Collection

Thing with Feathers

Norma Johnsen

Acrylic, 8" x 8", 2026

An Ekphrastic Poem is a literary description of or commentary on a visual work of art. I wrote the following Ekphrastic poem about Thing with Two Feathers. I selected it from the show because I am attracted to blocks of color. And I recalled from the Adam's Family that Thing can be a character. I wrote the poem for a May 23, 2026 poetry reading where this painting was on display at the Oak Street Lofts Gallery, 72 Oak Street, Portland, Maine 04102. It a a fine time.

Thing with Feathers

by Bruce McMillan

Thing, is that you, in your crimson red dress, 

holding a bird with violet feathers?

Yet, wing flapping gives it a new color, 

Violent Violet. No tethers, 

your chin is getting in the way, tilting 

back, eh? Looking up. Yet you hold on tight, 

while Blue Man looks on. He finds it jilting, 

wondering where this is going? Will Thing 

release her violet violent bird?

Does this sunny yellow bright day beckon 

its release, its freedom. Does Blue Man see 

Violet's future? What does he reckon?

The answer, easy to see, will it fly?

Dear viewer, it's at the center. Look at 

Violent Violet straight in the eye 

for this bird will fly. Determined. Look.

Rhyming Scheme

A

B *

C

B *

D **

E

D **

F

G

H ***

I

H ***

J ****

K

J ****

L

Meter Scheme

8 beats / line

Sunny Mt. Esja Spring Snow

Sunny Mt. Esja Spring Snow

painted Plain air on April 24, 2026, 7" x 5" (w x h), using Daniel Smith, Schmincke Horadam, and Winsor & Newton watercolors, all selected for light fastness and permanence, and Uniball waterproof fade proof ink on 140 lbs. Fabriano Artistico cold press rough 100% cotton extra white watercolor paper, framed.
$150

My plein air watercolor set-up beside the lighthouse in Reykjavik, Iceland on April 24, 2026

Hvalfjörður í apríl / Whale Fjord in April

Hvalfjörður í apríl /
Whale Fjord in April

painted plein air in Iceland on Sunday, April 26, 2026, 7" x 5" (w x h), using Daniel Smith, Schmincke Horadam, and Winsor & Newton watercolors, all selected for light fastness and permanence on 140 lbs. Fabriano Artistico cold press rough 100% cotton extra white watercolor paper, framed.
$150

My plein air setup overlooking the fjord
and my Suzuki hybrid rental.

My mind focused while
my good friend Óli Ólafsson focused.

Apple on Earth's Ocean Spaced Out

Apple on Earth's Ocean Spaced Out

painted March 30, 2026, 7" x 5" (w x h), using Daniel Smith, Schmincke Horadam, and Winsor & Newton watercolors, all selected for light fastness and permanence, and Uniball waterproof fade proof ink on 140 lbs. Fabriano Artistico cold press rough 100% cotton extra white watercolor paper, framed.
$150

Ocean Edging Earth

Ocean Edging Earth

painted March 30, 2026, 5" x 4" (w x h), using Daniel Smith, Schmincke Horadam, and Winsor & Newton watercolors, all selected for light fastness and permanence on 140 lbs. Fabriano Artistico cold press rough 100% cotton extra white watercolor paper, framed.
$100

1776 Then 2026 Now

1776 Then 2026 Now 

Red, white and blue with the red apple decrowned painted March 28, 2026, 12" x 9" (w x h), using Daniel Smith, Schmincke Horadam, and Winsor & Newton watercolors, all selected for light fastness and permanence, and Uniball waterproof fade proof ink on 140 lbs. Fabriano Artistico cold press rough 100% cotton extra white watercolor paper, framed.
$400

Sketch for the Art

Pencil on paper, 5" x 3" (w x h), 03/29/2026

After this quick sketch, I flipped the image for the final art, wanting the action to move from left to right, like we read across a page, left to right. I also realized that the crown stuck in the snow was static, no movement. and it looked like it could be a tree stump. So, I moved it to mid-air to give the painting movement.

This plus "Embracing Red, White and Blue" seen HERE have been juried into the Kennebunk, Maine Brick Store Museum Exhibition, "From Many, One: Results of Revolution", celebrating 250 years as a country, on exhibit May-August, 2026.

From the 1773 Boston Tea Party then, leading to dumping the King in 1776 to reclaiming democracy today in 2026, the USA is still throwing the King overboard with the largest demonstration, No King, in the history of the USA. Using an apple, as American as apple pie, personifies the people of then and the people of now, in the simplicity of a "Snow Life" (think winter plein air still life) in red, white and blue, with the yellow king's crown thrown off, 1776 and 2026 are recreated in a patriotic way.

Ladies Night with Pizza by Alex

Ladies Night with Pizza by Alex

painted March 14, 2026, 14" x 11" (w x h), using Daniel Smith, Schmincke Horadam, and Winsor & Newton watercolors, all selected for light fastness and permanence, and Uniball waterproof fade proof ink on 140 lbs. Fabriano Artistico cold press rough 100% cotton extra white watercolor paper.
NFS gifted to Pizza by Alex's Steph Mantis, daughter of Alex and owner of Pizza by Alex to display in her iconic pizza shop.

A mini art show to the end of April 2026
at Pizza by Alex in Biddeford, Maine,
my painting, Snowlife Forelle Pears Chat,
is on the right, online on this website HERE. 
The evening event with talks by artists, 
including me, was sponsored by 
The Heart of Biddeford /
The Art of Biddeford.

This sign at Alex's lists the prices
when I ate pizza here while in
Kennebunk High School.

Embracing Red, White and Blue

Embracing Red, White and Blue

on a snowbank with shadows and an apple heading it up, as a snow life, painted February 2026, 14" x 11" (w x h), using Daniel Smith, Schmincke Horadam, and Winsor & Newton watercolors, all selected for light fastness and permanence on 140 lbs. Fabriano Artistico cold press rough 100% cotton extra white watercolor paper, framed.

$800

This watercolor on display at the Brick Store Museum, 117 Main Street, Kennebunk, ME 04043, May 16, to August 23, 2026, www.brickstoremuseum.org, Hours: Tuesday - Friday: 10 am - 5 pm, Saturday: 10 am - 4 pm, Sunday: 12 pm - 4 pm

To Celebrate USA's 250th 

"From Many, One: Visions of American Patriotism at 250" 

to spark reflection and dialogue about belonging, identity, and the meaning of patriotism in our nation still defining itself.

My comment:

I embrace our country, from its abundant natural grandeur to the diversity of our citizens to our thoughtful Constitution. Seeing red white in blue in nature as I paint another "Snow Life" (think winter plein air still life), snow shadows on drifting snow with a simple apple led me to see beyond what we think we see. The nuances of our ever-evolving nation are up to each and every one of us to embrace what we have with the same hope as a new immigrant, to always try to sustain and improve our country for the good of all. And to contemplate what we see differently, accentuating the positive, whether we are an artist or not.

Cory's Medal Assured Delivery

Cory's Medal Assured Delivery

Cory Thiesse throwing in the winning 2026 Winter Olympic Medal game in Cortina, versus Italy, painted March 2026, 10" x 8" (w x h), using Daniel Smith, Schmincke Horadam, and Winsor & Newton watercolors, all selected for light fastness and permanence, and Uniball waterproof fade proof ink on 140 lbs. Fabriano Artistico cold press rough 100% cotton extra white watercolor paper.
NFS - Gifted to Cory Thiesse

Cory's Medal Assured Delivery vs Italy

At the 2026 Cortina Milan Olympic Games Mixed Double Team, Cory Thiesse and Korey Dropkin, curling in the first medal game, beating Italy 9-8, assuring them, at the least, of their Olympic Silver Medal. This painting is gifted to Cory Thiesse, continuing my tradition of gifting a watercolor to curling medal winners as I did with Gold Medal winners Team Shuster in 2018. Cory and Korey were masterful with their curling.

Korey's Medal Assured

Korey's Medal Assured

Korey Dropkin sweeping hard in their winning 2026 Winter Olympic Medal game in Cortina, versus Italy, painted March 2026, 8" x 10" (w x h), using Daniel Smith, Schmincke Horadam, and Winsor & Newton watercolors, all selected for light fastness and permanence, and Uniball waterproof fade proof ink on 140 lbs. Fabriano Artistico rough 100% cotton extra white watercolor paper.
NFS - gifted to Korey

Korey's Medal Assured vs Italy Framed

At the 2026 Cortina Milan Olympic Games Mixed Double Team, Cory Thiesse and Korey Dropkin, curling in the first medal game, beating Italy 9-8, assuring them, at the least, of their Olympic Silver Medal. This painting is gifted to Korey Dropkin, continuing my tradition of gifting a watercolor to curling medal winners as I did with Gold Medal winners Team Shuster in 2018. Cory and Korey were masterful with their curling.

Portland Biennial Opening Art Chat

Portland Biennial Opening Art Chat

painted March 8, 2026, 10" x 8" (w x h), using Daniel Smith, Schmincke Horadam, and Winsor & Newton watercolors, all selected for light fastness and permanence, and Uniball waterproof fade proof ink on 140 lbs. Fabriano Artistico cold press rough 100% cotton extra white watercolor paper, framed.
$300

Tabitha's Bronze Heartbreak

Tabitha's Bronze Heartbreak

Team USA Skip Tabitha Peterson at the 2026 Winter Olympics Bronze Medal Game painted February 2026, 12" x 9" (w x h), using Daniel Smith, Schmincke Horadam, and Winsor & Newton watercolors, all selected for light fastness and permanence with Uniball archival ink on 140 lbs. Fabriano Artistico cold press rough 100% cotton extra white watercolor paper, framed.
$400

Tara Brushes Hard

Tara Brushes Hard

Team USA Second Tara Peterson at the 2026 Winter Olympics Bronze Medal Game painted February 2026, 4" x 6" (w x h), using Daniel Smith, Schmincke Horadam, and Winsor & Newton watercolors, all selected for light fastness and permanence with Uniball archival ink on 140 lbs. Fabriano Artistico cold press rough 100% cotton extra white watercolor paper, framed.
$125 

Sweeping Olympic Yellow Team USA

Sweeping
Olympic Yellow Team USA 

Team USA Women at the 2026 Winter Olympics Bronze Medal Game painted February 2026, 5" x 7" (w x h), using Daniel Smith, Schmincke Horadam, and Winsor & Newton watercolors, all selected for light fastness and permanence on 140 lbs. Fabriano Artistico cold press rough 100% cotton extra white watercolor paper, framed.
$150

Tabitha's Final Curling Release

Tabitha's Final
2026 Olympic Curling Release

Team USA Skip Tabitha Peterson at the 2026 Winter Olympics Bronze Medal Game painted February 2026, 6" x 4" (w x h), using Daniel Smith, Schmincke Horadam, and Winsor & Newton watercolors, all selected for light fastness and permanence with Uniball archival ink on 140 lbs. Fabriano Artistico cold press rough 100% cotton extra white watercolor paper, framed.

$125