fall foliage freedom tour

“Portland Head Lighthouse” Palette Knife Painting by Niki Gulley

November 18, 2024

“Portland Head Lighthouse”

SOLD • 9″ x 12″ textured acrylic painting on canvas panel

After we left Acadia on our Fall Foliage Freedom Tour, we stopped in Portland, Maine to visit friends and Portland Head Lighthouse. The setting is so idyllic as it’s perched on a rocky cliff surrounded by the ocean. I thought I was setting up in an out of the way spot, but I ended up having quite the audience and an endless stream of photographers composing the scene!Even with the distractions, I still thoroughly enjoyed the afternoon and hope you feel the beauty of this spot, too.

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For more information on my textured palette knife paintings, please e-mail me at Niki Gulley.

Or, please visit my website at NikiGulley.com to see more of my contemporary landscape paintings.

“Reflecting Fall” Palette Knife Painting by Niki Gulley

November 7, 2024

9″ x 12″ textured acrylic painting on panel

We are loving the peaceful surroundings of Old Orchard Beach, Maine. We booked this picturesque campsite where we have our own dock and lake view. This morning we woke up to this serene scene, and of course, I just had to paint it! Golden light illuminating the beginnings of fall with a gentle ripple causing the reflections to meld into a beautiful symphony of colors.

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For more information on my textured palette knife paintings, please e-mail me at Niki Gulley.

Or, please visit my website at NikiGulley.com to see more of my contemporary landscape paintings.

“Fall’s Arrival” in Maine – Palette Knife Painting by Niki Gulley

November 6, 2024

9″ x 12″ textured acrylic painting on canvas panel

Oh Maine! Such rugged beauty! In this piece I painted just outside of Bar Harbor, you can see the beginnings of fall hues. Birch trees are starting to vibrate with color, foreground grasses and wildflowers are bursting with joy and views over the vast ocean show glimpses of Bar Island nestled in Frenchman Bay.

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For more information on my textured palette knife paintings, please e-mail me at Niki Gulley.

Or, please visit my website at NikiGulley.com to see more of my contemporary landscape paintings.

Textured Birch Trees Painting by Palette Knife Artist Niki Gulley

November 5, 2024

Can you really get enough birch trees??? I love their white peeling bark and vivid changing leaves. Hugging the shoreline of this peaceful lake, may these vertical beauties lift your spirits and bring some joyful color to your day!

And, it turns out this was my last time to paint in Acadia National Park due to a truck hitting and destroying our side mirror (which led us down a several hour repair mission.) Luckily Scott cobbled something together and we’re all set for the next part of our Fall Foliage Freedom Tour. Stay tuned…

“Toes in the Water”

24″ x 12″ textured acrylic painting on 1.5″ canvas with the painting continuing around the edges

Availabe at the Good Art Company Gallery

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For more information on my textured palette knife paintings, please e-mail me at Niki Gulley.

Or, please visit my website at NikiGulley.com to see more of my contemporary landscape paintings.

Palette Knife Artist Niki Gulley Paints New England’s Fall Foliage

November 1, 2024

9″ x 12″ textured acrylic painting on canvas panel

Just outside of Stowe, VT, we chose a campsite on beautiful Lake Elmore. When we got there, the sky was blue and the surroundings were stunning. So, I had my heart set on painting the lake the next day, but Mother Nature had other ideas. Temperatures dropped 30 degrees overnight and rain, rain and more rain was predicted, so I set up my easel hoping to capture this serene view of the house nestled into the fall foliage. I was ahead of the rain but 30 mph side winds were making it very challenging to paint, so here is my progress and I will finish the rest up in my studio when I’m not shivering so much nor trying to draw straight lines in such blustery conditions!

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For more information on my textured palette knife paintings, please e-mail me at Niki Gulley.

Or, please visit my website at NikiGulley.com to see more of my contemporary landscape paintings.

Painting Covered Bridges in New England with Niki Gulley

October 31, 2024

9″ x 12″ textured acrylic painting on canvas panel

The rain definitely visited Vermont today, but it turns out one of the great things about traveling in an RV is I can still paint out the window and stay dry, even in the wet weather! So on our route from Stowe to Woodstock, we visited one of our favorite covered bridges in Northfield and I painted right from our dining room table. The old red bridge just popped against all of the fall foliage, and I enjoyed capturing its unique architecture.

Painting from inside our RV

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For more information on my textured palette knife paintings, please e-mail me at Niki Gulley.

Or, please visit my website at NikiGulley.com to see more of my contemporary landscape paintings.

“Tall Trees” Contemporary Landscape Painting by Niki Gulley

October 30, 2024

24″ x 18″ textured acrylic painting on canvas panel

A break in the drizzle in Woodstock, Vermont! And, a chance to paint again. Unfortunately, the rain and wind took their toll on the fall foliage. But, I loved these tall pine trees and the few autumn leaves hanging on. So, I bundled up and set out to capture their height and majesty in this vertical treetop view. I hope they lift your spirits, too, and bring back fun memories of childhood cloud gazing. Now, I hope I can talk Scott into a back rub after craning my neck to paint this one!

To see a video of me painting this one, check out https://www.instagram.com/p/CyVrv3iOAu9/.

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For more information on my textured palette knife paintings, please e-mail me at Niki Gulley.

Or, please visit my website at NikiGulley.com to see more of my contemporary landscape paintings.

Palette Knife Waterfall Painting by Impressionist Niki Gulley

October 29, 2024

24″ x 18″ textured acrylic painting on canvas panel

So many waterfalls. So little time! Since this one is a shorter hike – just 100 steps down and then we merely had to climb over and balance on some slippery rocks, this was my painting spot! Listen to the cathartic rhythm of those rushing falls. Enjoy your escape with us to the mountains.

If you’d like to see a video and hear the rushing sounds of Looking Glass Falls, visit https://www.instagram.com/p/Cy56cAKufbJ/.

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For more information on my textured palette knife paintings, please e-mail me at Niki Gulley.

Or, please visit my website at NikiGulley.com to see more of my contemporary landscape paintings.

History Lessons While Painting Gettysburg Bridge with Artist Niki Gulley

October 25, 2024

9″ x 12″ textured acrylic painting on canvas panel

Next up on our Fall Foliage Freedom Tour, we left the Northeast and started heading south. Our next destination was Washington, D.C. to visit with friends and family, but we were looking for a place to stop along the way. Low and behold, directly on our route was Gettysburg, so we had to stop in for a history lesson. And, I have a love and fascination with covered bridges, so we found Sachs Bridge and I set up my easel to capture its story.

And, boy did I get a story! Some civil war re-enactors (who also acted in the movie Glory) stopped by to chat with me and tell me all about the bridge. It was used by both Union and Confederate Troops and people claim that it is haunted at night by confederate soldiers. While I was painting, a couple in Halloween wedding clothes were getting their portraits taken, fascinated with its haunted tales. My quiet little painting spot turned out to be quite the exciting site!

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For more information on my textured palette knife paintings, please e-mail me at Niki Gulley.

Or, please visit my website at NikiGulley.com to see more of my contemporary landscape paintings.

Fall Foliage in the Smoky Mountains by Palette Knife Painter Niki Gulley

October 24, 2024

24″ x 30″ textured acrylic painting on canvas

Here is Asheville, NC in all of its peak autumn glory the last week of October. Of course, one of the challenges of plein-air painting is you never know what is going to change in the scene you are capturing. For instance, our neighbors at our campsite chose to park their black sedan right here in the middle of our picturesque view. Oh, well! The scenery beyond was still beautiful and I was able to take some photos on my camera to finish this one up at home. It also gave us a good excuse to take a scooter ride on that beautiful 70 degree day and check out the picturesque nature trails in the North Carolina Arboretum. Not a bad way to finish up our immersive autumn trip!

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For more information on my textured palette knife paintings, please e-mail me at Niki Gulley.

Or, please visit my website at NikiGulley.com to see more of my contemporary landscape paintings.