Getting Back To It

AUTUMN COLLECTION #2

Here is another little still life of more favorite autumn things.  I don't carve pumpkins anymore, but still enjoy having them around to bring color to both the indoor and outdoor setting.  I love how this little pumpkin still had part of the stem and vine attached to it.  When painting this still life, I noticed just how much of the orange from the pumpkin was reflected onto the white background. This still life is title "Autumn Collection #2.  Enjoy

All Travel, No Painting

AUTUMN COLLECTION #1

Autumn is my absolute favorite time of the year.  The days are usually sunny and dry and the leaves turn the most beautiful colors.  This October, I was fortunate enough to travel over half of the month. Unfortunately, most of that traveling did not involve any painting.  I did get lots of photo references for future paintings, but to someone who likes to paint everyday, it was almost painful not to get that paintbrush in my hand.

This painting is from what I tend to gather at this time of year.  I love collecting leaves and anything with an autumn feel.  Acorns are another favorite and I always marvel at how many of them fall every year only to be destroyed or eaten by wildlife.

This painting is titled "Autumn Collection #1".  Hope you enjoy.

GOOD MEMORIES

Memories of Zinnias

 This painting is an attempt to catch the beauty of one of my favorite late summer flowers, the Zinnia.  

It is painted on a board that has received many coats of gesso, leaving it textured.  I like how some of the strokes are rough in places, echoing the sturdiness of the flower.

These flowers were the backbone of my mother's vegetable garden.  She always planted them around the edges of the garden and they created a lovely border.  I remember helping her plant the seeds and was always delighted by the shape of them, long and pointed, not what you would imagine. The flowers were always multicolored and very sturdy,  making them perfect to bring indoors.

ENJOY!!

GOING LARGE

LAZY RIVER

This painting is my first attempt at painting in a larger format.  For years, I have painted pretty small, usually nothing over 18" x 24".  For this piece, I challenged myself to go a little larger, so I went up to 30" x 30".  I liked painting larger, and had to discipline myself to use the largest brush I had.  Much of the sky and most of the water was painted using a palette knife, which really speeded up the process.

This painting is from another one of the trips we made this summer when my husband was competing in aerobatic competitions. It is another view of the Saginaw River just south of Bay City, MI. It was a beautiful evening and a beautiful river. I have several other photos of this river, so you might see more of it in my future works.

Enjoy!!

FAMILIAR

CRUNCH FOR LUNCH

6" x 6" oil on gessoboard

I painted this today thinking of all those kids who are going back to school.  I'ts finally getting a little cooler here and this kind of weather always makes me think of fall and getting those delicious apple from the market.  Is there anything better than biting into a crunchy tart apple? I've packed lots of kids lunches over the years, and apples have always been a favorite in their bag.

Enjoy!! 

REFLECTIONS

Three into Six

For this painting, I set up the still life, placing the apples on a piece of glass and lighting it from the left.  The board has been stained with cadmium red, allowed to sit for awhile while I sketched some ideas, and then wiped off to leave the undertone you see in the final painting. I'm very happy with the results, and plan to do some more reflective paintings.

ENJOY!!

Study, Study, Study

 Storm Brewing, pencil sketch

Storm Brewing, color Study

Here are two photos showing my thought process behind the development of a painting.  I love stormy skies, and the photo I used for my reference was very dark.  I began with a rough sketch, making notes about values.  The little painting is a quickie, getting the color and values of the various elements.  I like most of the painting, but might add more buildings as shown in the sketch.  I might also make this a vertical piece since I'd like to add more of that stormy sky. This may or may not become a finished painting, but the ideas and values are there if and when I decide to paint it.