Mesa Verde, Colorado

Original Painting - Acrylic on Canvas 12x16

Searching for stray cattle, two cowboys discovered these magnificent ruins in 1888. Abandoned by the cliff dwellers in the 13th century, and now a national park, they inspire awe in visitors today just as they did hundreds of years ago. Available from the artist for $800.00.

Ta Prohm Cambodia

Original Painting - Acrylic on canvas 16x12

This is another in my "Bucket List" paintings and is loosely based on the Temple of Ta Prohm. This ancient ruin was also used as a location in the film "Tomb Raider". I added the Buddhist monks in their saffron robes for a touch of color. Available from the artist for $800.00.

Allen Bradley Clock Tower - Milwaukee

Original Painting - Acrylic on canvas 12x9

Another Milwaukee landmark, this was listed in Guinness World Records as the world's largest four-faced clock. It's also been called the Polish Moon referring to the historically Polish neighborhood where it is located. I think that the "three moons" make for an interesting contrast between man-made and natural illumination. Available from the artist for $500.00 city scene canvas prints

The Treasury of Petra

Original Painting - Acrylic on canvas 16x12

This famous location was featured in the movie "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade", as a secret temple. That is actually what it was when rediscovered by Swiss explorer Johan Ludwig Burkhardt in 1812. It is located near Jordan and is carved into the sandstone cliffs and is also called the Rose Red City. This is another place on my Bucket List! Available from the artist for $800.00

Christmas Tree Delivery

Original Painting - Acrylic on canvas 20x16

This farmer's old truck is lumbering down a snow covered dirt road delivering a Christmas tree to his family in 1940's rural Wisconsin. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all of you and thanks for your support and encouragement throughout the year! $640.00

Snow for Christmas!

Original Painting - Acrylic on canvas 12x16

I started this painting last night as the snow piled up outside the gallery and finished it this afternoon to the sound of snowblowers. This is a typical winter evening in Wisconsin ...what's all that about global warming? winter scene canvas prints

A Special Gift

Original Painting - Acrylic on canvas 16x12

I just realized that with mini lites, LED bulbs, and battery powered flicker lights, this is really a nostalgic painting with an old fashioned screw-in light bulb! Christmas is approaching fast but hopefully there's still time to find that special gift (probably jewelry, right?). Available from the artist for $500.00.

Coastal Waves

Original Painting - Acrylic on stretched canvas 12x16

This painting is based on a fabulous trip to San Diego, California to visit my cousin Jackie Ann and her husband Bill. We traveled north through Los Angeles and then along the coast on highway 101 past Big Sur and all the way to Monterey. We also visited Hearst's Castle in San Simeon and took the tour. I guess all our recent snow and frigid weather has got me thinking nostalgiclly about warmer places. Available from the artist for $800.00

Christmas Morning

Original Painting - Acrylic on canvas 16x20

I wanted to show the dawn of winter morning with the warm yellow sunlight breaking through the snow covered trees and lighting up a secluded forest stream. I titled it "Christmas Morning" because the best gift of all is a new day. Available from the artist for $950.00.

October at Holy Hill

Original Painting - Acrylic on canvas 16x20

Although I painted this last year, somehow I forgot to post it. I have painted this subject many times and I hope to paint it many more. The church looks like a fairy tale castle when seen from a distance against the sky. My Dad and I were on a drive to enjoy the fall colors when I stopped to take a few reference photos of this view. Available from the artist for $950.00, prints also available.

Beachcombers

Original painting - Acrylic on canvas 9x12

Got our first Wisconsin snow today so naturally I thought about warmer destinations. Here's a couple walking the beach at some tropical locale. SOLD

Snowfall in Cathedral Square - Milwaukee

Original Painting - Acrylic on canvas 20x16

The Cathedral of Saint John is a Milwaukee landmark and just east of the small city park. In the summer Jazz in the Park is held here and in the winter it's decorated with lights and holiday displays. We like to take a ride downtown to see the lights during the holiday season. Available from the artist for $950.00

Moonscape

Original painting - Acrylic on canvas 12x16

This painting almost painted itself. I was in the zone, music playing and my brush just danced across the surface of the canvas until it was finished. I think I heard the frigid winds howling over the snow covered mountain while the baleful moon glowed above. I'm glad this wasn't a Plein Air painting. Available from the artist for $800.00

Dusk

Original painting - Acrylic on canvas 9x12

This small study was painted to capture that fleeting moment just before the sun sinks below the horizon and night begins. I wanted to soften and blur the edges to show that dreamlike stillness before darkness decends. SOLD

Cobblestone Cat

Original Painting - Acrylic on canvas 12x16

When I tried to take this guy's photo he was not very cooperative. He turned his back on me and stalked away. I followed him snapping pictures as he ignored me and made his escape. I like the composition and the odd shadow on the stone pavers. Available from the artist for $800.00

Milwaukee City Hall

Original painting - Acrylic on canvas 24x20

Milwaukee's City Hall is an impressive architectural achievement and it has been recently renovated. This scene reminds me of leaving the Performance Arts Center on a rainy night after enjoying a play. That's me in the white minivan. Gallery wrapped 1.5" canvas, no frame required. Available from the artist for $1200.00.

Snow Shadows

Original Painting - Acrylic on canvas 20x16

A crisp winter morning with the sun just rising over a snow covered park. Available from the artist for $950.00.

Juneau Park Milwaukee

Original Painting - Acrylic on canvas 9x12

This statue of Milwaukee pioneer, Solomon Juneau, stands vigil in a snow covered park overlooking Lake Michigan in downtown Milwaukee. Available for $600.00

Thin Ice

Original Painting - Acrylic on Canvas 20x16

This is Wisconsin in November where winter seems to come early and leave late. This painting could be of an early thaw or an early freeze. There is a cold dampness in the misty air that seems to settle in your bones and makes you long for warmth and sunshine, but there's also a quiet and somber beauty. Available from the artist for $950.00

Technicolor Afternoon

Original Painting Acrylic on stretched canvas 20x16

I experimented with Primary Blue in this painting instead of my usual more subdued Ultramarine blue. It's a strong pigment but I think it was perfect for this tranquil nature scene. Available from the artist for $600.00

The Red Witch

Original Acrylic Painting 24x20 on Canvas

This is a favorite of mine! With Halloween just around the corner, this lady and her familiar are ready to put a spell on you. halloween prints

Stone Garden Angel

Original Painting - Acrylic on stretched canvas 16x20

This stone angel was standing outside a weathered barn at Northwind Perrenial Farms near Lake Geneva, Wisconsin. Available from the artist for $950.00

Cincinnati Skyline

Original Painting - Acrylic on Canvas 16x20

I lived in Cincinnati, Ohio for 4 years from 1984 to 1988. This is a view of Riverfront Stadium and the bridge across the Ohio river to Kentucky. It's a great city and I have many fond memories of our friends that we met while there and the beautiful scenery along the river. Available from the artist for $950.00.

The Pumpkin Tree

Original Painting 24x20 Acrylic on Canvas

As the sun sets, black cats and glowing jack-o-lanterns prepare for Halloween night! This is my favorite spooky painting commemorating one of my favorite times of the year. Original in collection of the artist, but prints and Giclees' are available in 4 sizes. Click here for prints

Original available for $1200.00

Stone Bridge

Original Painting - Acrylic on stretched canvas 16x20

Available for purchase $950.00

The old stone bridge almost leans against the trees in this autumn landscape. Kinda looks like the bridge Ichabod Crane rode across pursued by the headless horseman, doesn't it?

Wood Nymph

Original Acrylic Painting on stretched canvas 16x20

Available for purchase $950.00

The light values of this painting are very thick impasto, much more textured than I usually paint. I wanted to invoke the sylvan feeling of a wilderness forest stream and the innocent nude woman preparing to enter the water.

Mississippi Dawn

Original Acrylic Painting on panel 18x24

I love the nostalgic feel of this painting. The majestic riverboat in the morning mist was loosely based on the paddlewheeler in the movie musical, Showboat. Makes me want to hum "Old Man River". NFS (artists' collection)

City Rain

Original Painting - Acrylic on stretched canvas 24x20

I love a rainy day! The reflections on wet pavement, the scurrying crowds, and the swish of tires as traffic splashes through the puddles and the softened edges of the city itself.cities photos

Window Table

Original Painting - 9x12 Acrylic on Canvas panel

This is a small quick study of my own kitchen table. I especially liked the morning light reflecting off the surfaces of the floor and glass topped table. $600.00 includes shipping

The Chicken Strut

Original Painting - Acrylic on stretched Canvas 16x20

It was fun painting my fine feathered friends. This is a departure from my usual subject matter, but I'm happy with the results. SOLD

Seascape with Lighthouse, "The Beacon"

Original Acrylic on canvas panel 9x12

This small study was completed to demonstrate the power of dramatic contrasts in landscape and seascape paintings. SOLD

Somewhere Over the Rainbow

The life of a professional artist without celebrity status or international fame, is as mundane as anyone else’s life … Shopping for groceries, gassing up the mini-van, cutting the lawn, and watching TV. What is different is this crazy urge we artists have to produce images using dabs of colored paint and brushes. We labor endlessly trying to create a masterpiece, or at the very least, an acceptable painting that someone else may like enough to purchase. We fret about things like color contrast, perspective, values and subject matter. No one, or very few, even care about our work - but it doesn’t seem to matter. I can no more quit painting than I can quit breathing. It’s something I must do. It may not be the most lucrative profession, but it is a true calling and every once in awhile I am transported to another place of dazzling color and light where every brushstroke is perfect and where the image in my mind is also on my canvas. No one gets to live in this perfect world, but artists get to visit and sometimes they can take others there too. - Keep Painting and Keep Smiling. - Tom Shropshire

"Art is the only way to run away without leaving home." ~Twyla Tharp

Chicago Skyline

Original Painting - Acrylic on Canvas 16x20

The man made cliffs of steel against a backdrop of clouds with glittering city lights, is a subject that I always return to. city lights canvas prints

Don Quixote

Original Painting - Acrylic on canvas panel 12x9

This was a classroom demonstration for a painting from life exercise. This small wood carving of Don Quixote has been in my studio for at least 25 years. Cervantes' Spanish hero was an impractical idealist. Like all artists, I've tilted at my share of windmills over the years. Available from the artist for $600.00

UFO's Scouting Party

UFO's - A Scouting Party

Original Painting - Acrylic on Canvas 20x16

I've never seen a flying saucer but the idea of them intrigues me. I wanted to show three of them mysteriously appearing above a tranquil and serene unpopulated landscape. See more ufo art here; ufo art

Eilean Donan Castle in Scotland

Original Painting - Acrylic on Canvas 9x12

I guess this scene expresses my Scottish ancestry. A beautiful castle located in Scotland. NFS

Joan of Arc Monument, Paris

Joan of Arc Monument

Original Acrylic on Canvas Panel 20x16

This gilded statue at Place Des Pyramides in the heart of Paris is a popular tourist site. Available from the artist for $950.00

Milwaukee Art Museum architect Santiago Calatrava

 High Tide at the Calatrava - Milwaukee Art Museum
Original Painting - Acrylic on Canvas 20x24

The Calatrava design of the Milwaukee Art Museum on Lake Michigan is a spectacular achievement in beauty and engineering. The open "wings" of the Burke Brise Soleil in this view reminded me of the tail fin of a gigantic sea creature diving beneath the waves. The Quadracci Pavilion is used here as an icon of art and civilization being swept away by the forces of nature in a cataclysmic event of epic proportions. I actually painted a similar theme over 30 years ago using the Milwaukee War Memorial as my subject. Perhaps I'll post a photo of the earlier piece at a later date.

Portrait/Character Study - Carnival worker

The Carny

Original Painting - Acrylic on canvas 20x16

I painted this character study quite some time ago. I have it hanging in my studio where I see it every day. The timeworn features and piercing stare tell of a hard life and a less-than-friendly disposition. For now I'm keeping this fellow in my private collection. NFS - Tom Shropshire

Hourglass and Dragon with Chinese Symbol

Time & Justice

Original Painting - Acrylic on Canvas 16x8

The carved wooden Dragon perched on top of the hourglass symbolizes wisdom, the hourglass, time, and the circle contains the Chinese symbol for justice. Gallery wrapped, no frame necessary. Available from the artist for $650.00

Eagle and the Unicorn

Original Painting - Acrylic on Canvas 48x36

I tried to capture the epic feel of Heroic Art which often depicts dramatic battle scenes and features larger than life images. This is a huge painting and it hangs in my home. Luckily the room has a vaulted ceiling and can handle a painting this large. NFS - Tom

"Fishing the Marsh"

Original Acrylic on Canvas 24x20

This scene reminds me of the marshy areas and Cranberry bogs up in northern Wisconsin. Available from the artist for $1200.00

Seascape Painting "Rocky Shore"

Original Painting Acrylic on Canvas 16x20

Chicago at Night

Chicago at Night

Original Acrylic Painting - 16x20 on canvas

Another painting in my "City at Night" series. chicago prints

B.J. Wentkers on a Rainy Night

Original Acrylic on Canvas 12x16 SOLD

This is a painting of B.J. Wentker's Restaurant, in Burlington, Wisconsin, owned and operated by my daughter, Tanya Peterson and husband, Chef Eric Peterson. I may be biased, but many others have said that they had the best meal of their lives in this first class dining venue.Contemporary cuisine in a historic setting, says it all. The original painting is displayed in the dining room of the restaurant, but Canvas Giclees' are available in a limited edition of 25. Image size 16x12 for $150.

Sunset Sky Painting, "Spires in Silhouette"

Spires in Silhouette

Original Acrylic on Canvas 20x16

I love to contrast buildings against the brilliant colors of the sky at sunset or sunrise. Even man's grandest architectural creations seem paltry when shown against the glories of nature. Available from the artist for $950.

Painting Sunset Reflections

Flood Stage on the River

Original Acrylic on Canvas 16x20

This is the finished painting that was begun as a demonstration for "The Gathering", an artist's group in Burlington, Wisconsin. The submerged tree reminded me of the flooding we experienced on the Fox River two years ago. Available from the artist for $950.

City Nocturne

City Nocturne

Original Painting Acrylic on Canvas 16x20

The city lights at night have always held a fascination for me. There is an excitement about the urban landscape cloaked in darkness that feels both compelling and dangerous.cityscape canvas prints

Castle of the Mountain King

Castle of the Mountain King

Original Acrylic on canvas 20x16

"...towering above the frozen wasteland, the castle of the Mountain King caught the last rays of the dying sun." Available from the artist for $950.

Maker's Mark

Happy Hour

Original Acrylic on canvas 12x9

A still life painting of my favorite bourbon. Each bottle is hand-dipped and sealed with melted red wax. The distillery is a designated historic site and I toured it on a trip to Kentucky with my older brother, sister, dad, and my son. We were attending the annual Shropshire family reunion in Paris, Kentucky about 12 years ago. And yes, I drank the shot when the painting was completed. Available from the artist for $225.