These mandarin oranges came from the supermarket with their leaves still intact. I loved how the leathery leaves look next to the bright orange of the fruit. The addition of the blue bottle helped balance the otherwise warm tone of the painting. This is painted on gessoboard that has been underpainted in black.
Because I love autumn so much, orange is one of my favorite colors. It has a very long history. It was generally thought to have started by using madder, which most painters recognize as a bright pink. But if the madder root is pounded, dried, then put in a dye bath with alum, it turns wool to a vibrant orange, like the hair of a redhead. The Turks figured this out back in the 13th century!!
ENJOY!!
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