Marsha Hamby Savage

This painting is from a photo I took on Anna Maria Island, FL. I loved all the spots of color and it did not matter whether they were people, balloons, rafts, umbrellas, or birds. It wasn't about the objects as much as it was about how colorful it all was.

This painting was worked on over a few months. I fell in love with the waterfall more than anything. As it progressed, I was enjoying trying to create from a few photos and my memories of scenes where the hill was in shadow, and the rocks going down the ledges would have just bit of light. It has been sitting and I think I am done, so it is waiting to be framed and taken to a gallery at this time.

I painted this from a couple of photographs taken somewhere in North Georgia and North Carolina. I try to come up with my own feeling about the elements I see in the photographs instead of copying what is there. I enjoy using only one or two colors at times and this was one of those. It is mostly a blue painting with other accents used in various places ... like the rocks, and the background trees.

I love watching the people coming down the Toccoa River in Blue Ridge, GA. There are many different ways they are floating ... inner tubes, kayaks or canoes ... and the occasional boat with fishermen! I have started painting a series of these recreational adventures on the river. The colors are usually very bright and cheery! You can hear them laughing at each other also. It is a fun way to spend the day!

This abandoned older farm is located somewhere in North Georgia. I take so many photos, I might not remember the exact location. It has so much character for a painting with rusty tin roof that has peeled up and all the golden grasses surrounding it. Creating just enough interest in those grasses was hard because I did not want you to focus on them, but on the porch and roof!

I was fortunate to paint at the Monastery of the Holy Spirit near Conyers GA several different years for plein air events. I took many photos as well since we were allowed into places that the normal visitors were not. The Abbey is open to the public as far as I know. But I painted a few studies inside and a few years later decided to do this larger piece. I love the simplicity of the view and the painting. It is a place of peace. I hope that comes through to you, the viewer, in my painting.

Waterfalls always catch my imagination. This one is located in the Northwestern part of Georgia, in Cloudland Canyon. I believe the name of this particular falls is “Hemlock Falls.” It is located in Dade County, GA. There are several falls in North Georgia and finding the names of them can be a problem many times. But, if you’ve ever hiked to a falls, and hear the water making the fall, you know how spectacular and special they are when you get there. That is why I named this one “Magic of a Waterfall.” It truly is magical!

I know Mimosa trees are sometimes considered a nuisance type of tree. But they have beautiful limbs growing in all kinds of directions... and those fluffy pink flowers at some point during the season. I grew up climbing in one near my home in Smyrna, so I have always had a special place for them in my heart. This one was along the bank of Lake Lanier in Northern Georgia. I love the different type of green it has in the leaves against the other green in the background of what probably was an oak tree!

Sometimes we create a painting that just is not working. I use those to experiment with different techniques and colors. This painting was a traditionally colored scene, but I decided to cover it with a glaze of red paint. I loved it so I kept going, enhancing the reds with a little orange, and the lighter areas and sky with a bit of peach added to the glaze. There it sat when several people told me not to do anything more to it that it was beautiful and different!

Painting on location (plein air) is the best time almost always. We call them a study until they become worthy of a frame. This was the last one of the day in Blue Ridge, GA at Mercier Orchard... and we were way up in the orchard where the "old apple house" is located. I turned around and this pine tree was begging me to paint it. I am always thinking there is someone up above guiding my thoughts that has said ... "yep, this is the one!" It is a current favorite of mine!

This painting is a combination of one photo showing a tree and pasture scene in North Georgia, and a few of my memories of buildings you can see in the distance through trees. I thoroughly enjoy painting pine trees with all the interesting “air holes” you can see through to the background. I love the mystery of thinking about who worked in those farm buildings I added and how long ago it may have been. It has to have a story!

I love painting trees, rocks and water so it is always fun to see if I can create my own scene. This painting has not actual location because it is a figment of my imagination. I see many creeks and rivers with this type of flowing water around the rocks. And, I paint the mountains of North Georgia, and all the trees that are on the hills and mountains. I enjoyed creating this one, and it really does “restore my soul” to find all this in my memories.

The Toccoa River in North Georgia is a source of inspiration at all times of the year for me. I paint in several locations along the river near our cabin, and at the cabins of several of our friends. I thoroughly enjoy being out early to catch the morning sun just hitting some of the trees on the edge, and the rocks in the water. This particular day was great fun and I was able to paint this one and a few smaller ones! My only dilemma is whether to use my soft pastels or my oil paints.

This pastel painting was done in the studio from several different photos I have taken over the past few years. The trees and upper cliff area from one, creek from another, and my memories of the rocks at various creeks ... and imagination of grasses and some little brush type trees midway up the! It was a lot of fun, and I think it looks like it could be a real place!

I passed this rose bush and the haphazard split rail fence many times before I decided I needed a photo to paint it! There is so much green in our area of Georgia that it becomes a challenge to make the painting look believable on the canvas. I don't want it to look like the photo, so I take a lot of liberties with the colors and the arrangement of the trees and bushes. It is frustrating, but also loads of fun.

The scene is from somewhere near Blue Ridge, GA. I am always taking photos of creeks running through pasture. There is something there that draws me in. This piece was a failed painting from a few years ago. I decided to “glaze” over the scene with yellows in 2022! I worked on various parts bringing out the elements without losing that “yellowness” of the artwork. That is what inspired the name because it does look like hot summer sunlight to me.

I painted on location at this beautiful old home place probably about 15 or more years ago and took loads of photos to use in the future. I have always remembered those beautiful crepe myrtle flowers growing along side the old shed, and hoped I could do it justice in this painting. Enhancing other aspects of the yard was fun and moving the sunflowers to the overgrown flower spot you see here. It makes me wonder what happened to the owners that gave us permission to paint on their property.

I painted at the Cartecay River near Ellijay GA this past spring and saw this scene. But I did this painting in the studio from several different reference photos. My memories always play a part in my composition too! The location is in a private community and not accessible except through friends that have a second home there. I was blessed to be able to paint there, and to photograph for possible paintings I might create in my home studio!

This painting was done from several resource photographs that I took. The scene is not a real one, but created from my imagination with elements from those photos. It is always fun to experiment with colors and atmosphere. The idea was to have a last bit of light which is usually warm coming from behind trees. I hope you have seen something like this in real life, and can mentally transport yourself to walk into this painting!

In the early part of this month, Sept. 2023, I painted in the Quick Paint in Blue Ridge GA. We were there for the World Wide Paint Out sponsored by the International Plein Air Painters (IPAP) and the Blue Ridge Mountains Arts Association (BRMAA). We were painting at a golf resort on the Toccoa River for this event. I had to park on a gravel drive and when I turned around I saw this huge stand of bright yellow flowers. I said, "I'm going to paint those!" I did so, and won the "Honorable Mention" in this event ... they only gave two awards, First Place and this Honorable Mention. It was an honor. Plein air pieces many times during a quick paint do not make wonderful and frame-worthy pieces. It was great fun and good fellowship with my artist friends and new friends!