Several new paintings were in the works in December 2018 (see below):

This first one is called "Escapees."

Escapees, 7x5 oil on linen

Cranberry Sauce in Mason Jar, 7x5 oil on linen

Gang of Five Button Chrysanthemums, 7x5 oil on linen

Sacrifice, 5x7 oil on linen

Three Sisters, 5x7 oil on linen

Wayland Depot 9x12 oil on linen:
As mentioned previously, Wayland Depot was built in 1881, to service the Central Massachusetts Railroad. Its wooden braces and roof beams showing under the extended eaves, are both decorative and structural.

Architectural notes:

It appears that this structure includes some Queen Anne and Stick features; including flared eaves, exposed rafters, patterned wood  (“board and batten") walls, diagonal porch support braces and a raised foundation (see _Field Guide to American Houses_ by Virginia Savage McAlester, 213 ed., pages xvii-xviii, 317, and 334-335). .  According to a neighbor, the Wayland Depot is in the Stick architectural style. 
 I returned over several sessions to work on the below 9x12 sized painting.

 

Update January 31, 2018

The painting is now finished and dried. 

 

Wayland Depot, 5x7 oil on linen:
The Wayland Depot building, built in 1881 for trains on the Central Massachusetts Railroad, is a gem of architectural detail located at One Cochituate Road.  The depot is now a gift shop run by volunteers (source: http://thewaylanddepot.com/about-us/history/).

On a rainy day in gathering darkness, I nearly completed the below 5x7oil.

This barn on Whitman Road in Stow, formerly belonged to Fruit Farm, one of the larger agricultural endeavors in Stow in the 1940s, on land and in a family dating back to the early 1800s (source:  http://www.mistletoechristmastreefarm.com/history-of-the-property-at-mistletoe-christmas-tree-farm). 

Currently the barn is part of the Mistletoe Christmas Tree Farm property.
After sketching its beautiful architecture a few times, I set up an easel one summer day in the early morning sun.  Over eight or nine days in two hour shifts, I completed the oil painting.  Here are are some stages in reverse chronological order:

Final, September 1

Intermediate Stage, August 24

 Early stage July 20:

There is a farmhouse with a magnificent tree in front of it near Wattaquadock Hill Road in Bolton. It seems to be Prospect Farm (see Bolton Reconnaissance Report quoted below).
Driving by, I parked and drew the house (below) in charcoal on tan paper, 9x12 inches.

I scaled up the drawing with the help of a photo, to a large size canvas:

 and spent several sessions at the site:

According to page 26 the Bolton Reconnaissance Report (https://www.mass.gov/files/documents/2016/08/ua/bolton.pdf) this farm is a historic property:
"Prospect Farm, 22-58 W. Berlin Road.  Also known as Taylor Farm and Philbin Farm East slope of Wattaquadock Hill. Includes the ca. 1800 Pollard House, the S.C. Pollard House of ca. 1805/1847, and Capt. Curtis Pollard barns and outbuildings. Pollard was farmer and wheelwright. Congressman Philip Philbin, who had dairy farm here, owned property from 1942-1971."

Now that the weather has turned cold I am not sure if I will get out there again.  The painting is unfinished. 
Note January 12, 2019  I'm still working on the painting indoors; now it is at the stage below:

Maple Leaf Watercolor Cards

The autumn maples have started dropping leaves that are very beautiful so I picked a few up to attempt to copy the color patterns.  On the leaves,  some colors blend but others have sharp edges.  Light value veins stand out. 

Here is my first attempt:

The first attempt has leaf edges off the page - a good thing, according to the compositional rule; and the finished card has interesting negative shapes.  Later cards used smaller leaves, so the leaf was surrounded by the paper background:

My method for preserving the leaf veins as white paper using a burnishing tool was not as effective as I wanted:  the ball point of the tool imprinted lines on the paper which then absorbed more watercolor not less: the opposite of what I wanted.

So I tried using white wax candle to outline the veins instead of waxed paper and burnishing tool:

Which do you prefer?

The Hudson Public Library stands right next to a wide bend in the Assabet River.  This bend looks like a lake when viewed from shore.  The water's edge has beautiful plants such as cattails and  grasses.  One foggy July morning, clouds were approaching from the west, and reflections in the water were clear.  I set up my easel and made a "premier coup" (one-strike) oil painting at the site.  I used a limited palette: cobalt blue, cadmium yellow, alizarin crimson, burnt umber and titanium white,  with a linen-covered 12x18 panel.  

Foggy Day on the Assabet River in Hudson, MA