"Gem Plums" --- SOLD
5/31/07 |
Labels:
6"x8" - oil on canvas
It seems counterintuitive to make things glow by making the background lighter right around them. Because that's not what we see...is it? Or is that just my brain playing tricks on me again. I wonder if we just filter out the glow and see a sharp line in our heads. But that's what seems to work (the glowing), especially when you have a really dark background like this one. Greg Kreutz is big on this and teaches it in his books. I think it has to be one of those things that is easily over-done. Anyway, that's just me rambling...
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"4 Tiny Plums" --- SOLD
5/30/07 |
Labels:
6"x8" - oil on canvas
I took some process photos of this one. The light isn't great, and I don't know how (yet) to make them into a fancy movie ... but here they are.
"Mini Plum" --- SOLD
5/29/07 |
Labels:
6"x8" - oil on canvas
I found this cool cup at the thrift store, and this miniature plum at Central Market. I put the light right next to the setup because when I did it made the plum glow. I got several of these little plums, so expect to see them again. They came in all kinds of shades from green to orange to red. I love finding produce I've never seen before.
"Fungus For Dinner" --- SOLD
5/28/07 |
Labels:
6"x8" - oil on canvas
Yuck. I'm sorry, but while mushrooms are beautiful to look at (sometimes), they are really disgusting to eat. I know, you mushroom lovers out there are already unbookmarking my site...so for you I apologize. Let's pretend this never happened.
Again lots of green in this painting (my favorite color). I tried to at least mix it up with some blues. Speaking of color...I came across a wonderful artist (colorist) in a magazine this weekend. Her name is Camille Przewodek (argh, how DO you pronounce that?). She does some crazy things with color, all very interesting.
"Secret Merge" --- SOLD
5/27/07 |
Labels:
6"x8" - oil on canvas
I love the way things go nutty behind glass. In this one the lemon and cup appeared to be merging behind the jar, hence the title. A little silly, yes, but that's what occurred to me.
Someone asked me the other day about the medium I use to paint with. My medium recipe is maybe the one useful thing I got out of my college art classes. I mix 2 parts linseed oil : 1 part stand oil : and 1 part turp (or mineral spirits). I don't really measure these things (think of the cleanup!) but rather eyeball it. If I mix my medium pretty consistently with my paint, at least the top layer, I get a kind of sheen to the finished piece and then I don't have to varnish it. I hate varnish - it stinks.
"Mushrooms" --- SOLD
5/26/07 |
Labels:
6"x8" - oil on canvas
I worked all day on a large painting (20"x50") - a commission - and am sooo tired. I did these mushrooms yesterday because I had a little extra time. The cool thing about my new brush, I am finding, is that for some reason it gives me the courage to put totally different colors RIGHT next to each other, where before I felt like they all had to blend together. So in these mushrooms for instance, which were mostly shades of gray, I tried to accentuate the subtle colors that were really there, and I think it worked pretty well.
"Lemon Dots" --- SOLD
5/25/07 |
Labels:
6"x8" - oil on canvas
Still playing around with my new brush. I'm trying to find a way to combine brushes so that I get soft edges in some places, and hard in others, but still maintain consistency.
I think I've mentioned that I have a young son (2 yrs old now). When we first brought him home I was really worried about the toxicity of all my painting paraphenalia, so my husband and I brain-stormed about how we could make it more safe, for the baby and for me. I use Gamsol by Gamblin, which is supposed to be a pretty safe spirits, and I'm a fairly clean painter - don't get paint all over myself when I work. We figured the biggest thing to worry about was the fumes, since I paint inside with no ventilation. So after researching and discovering that paint/spirits fumes are heavy and sink, my handy husband built a "trough" at the bottom of my easel that catches the fumes and transports them, through a large tube, out through the window (using a fan). I have posted some pictures of this. It seems to work great - not going crazy - haven't seen any pink elephants lately...
"Citrus Bowl" --- SOLD
5/24/07 |
Labels:
6"x8" - oil on canvas
Carol's New Magic Paintbrush.
So, I went down to Jerry's Artarama yesterday to get some stretcher bars for a large commission, and decided to look at brushes. I've been frustrated lately with how my flat brushes get all funny (fluffy and/or curved) after I wash them and have been trying to find a solution. My friend, Jill Carver, a wonderful artist, suggested clamping a folded piece of cardboard over them (with the flat edge in the fold) after washing and letting them dry that way. That worked pretty well, but I still wasn't satisfied.
What I found at Jerry's was that I had been buying the cheapest brushes available (what - me - cheap? - no!). So without looking at prices, I walked around and checked out the MANY different brush types and picked out what looked like the sturdiest brush. It turned out to be about $16, so I bought just one to try out. In case you're interested, it's a Winsor & Newton Monarch Flat size 10. And it turns out to be magic. It puts down these perfect little blocks of happy color, and I am thrilled with the result! I can't wait to paint with it again tomorrow.
"Tea Closeup" --- SOLD
5/23/07 |
Labels:
6"x8" - oil on canvas
Looking at this again now, I don't think I got the proportions quite right. Heh heh. Oh well. What really drew me to this was the paper tag at the end of the tea string. I hope I captured the delicacy of it. That and the very subtle reflection of it in the cup. Every time I stepped away to look at the whole painting and then stepped back, the paper would flop around in the breeze I created. Luckily it always seemed to land back in the same position.
I think the biggest roadblock on our path to painting what we see is ... our brains. We aren't aware of it, but our brains filter out a TON of information all the time. If it didn't, we'd constantly be overwhelmed by life and probably spend our days in a fetal position in the corner. Our brains also piece together bits of information to make out things we know. So when we see an apple, it goes into the apple category in our brain and we start to paint it like every other apple. But every apple is unique, and not necessarily how you think. A green apple may not have a speck of "pure" green in it. So we've got to use tricks to get past our brain. Squinting is probably the easiest (my favorite). Then using a mirror to look at it backwards, or turning your painting upside down. I'd love to hear more. Please comment if you have a different trick that you'd like to share. Thanks.
"My Tea" --- SOLD
5/22/07 |
Labels:
6"x8" - oil on canvas
I was all prepared to paint oranges and lemons today but on a whim decided to paint my cup of tea instead. It was possibly the hardest painting I've done because I'm used to drinking from it while I paint, but today I had to stifle the urge for the sake of art. I know, you're thinking I could have just made more in another cup. But I was too busy painting...
Several of you have asked to see my setup. My husband built a box for me out of pvc (so it's light) and plywood (on the bottom and back). It sits upon a stand that goes up and down so I can get just about any perspective of my subject. After some experimentation, I ended up with a white sheet over the whole thing, and a black sheet over that. The white lets the light bounce around inside and keeps the shadows from being too dark. The black keeps everything from being too affected by my painting light. Here is a picture (please excuse my messy, dirty studio).
"Nail Polish" --- n/a
5/21/07 |
Labels:
6"x8" - oil on canvas
I'm still experimenting with color here. Unfortunately my photo didn't capture all the subtlety in the "white." One thing I discovered a while back that ya'll might find interesting...sometimes I put 2 lights on my subject. One is a spotlight that is rather yellow (though it's supposed to be daylight), and the other is an expensive daylight light that is REALLY white. I shine the spotlight right on the subject, and turn the daylight light up so that it bounces off the white sheet I've got over my setup box. This creates a nice complementary shadow (there, I've given away my secret), though I think I might have overdone it here. Or something. I'm not sure I'm quite into this enough to sell it. But that's the beauty of daily painting - there's always tomorrow!
"Half Dried" --- SOLD
5/20/07 |
Labels:
6"x8" - oil on canvas
I'm experimenting with color a little bit. I'm trying to see what colors I can put with others and have it still look right, but maybe more interesting. This one's fairly subtle...but then I guess that's what I'm shooting for.
I used a little juice from this lemon earlier in the week to make my pear and apples peices get brown slower. I left it lying around my studio and it starting drying out and closing in on itself. I thought it was pretty cool looking, especially against this kind of green/blue background.
"Skirt Shell" --- n/a
5/19/07 |
Labels:
6"x6" - oil on canvas
My mother picked up this shell for me on her last trip to the beach. I thought it would make an interesting study in grays (is it grEy or grAy?).
I went to the Salon International Show at the Greenhouse Gallery in San Antonio today. I met one of my all-time favorite artists, Kathryn Stats, who judged the show. I said "Oh, I love your work - I'm a big fan!" She looked me up and down and said "you look like a teenager." Apparently I made a good impression. :)
"Pears on Silk" --- SOLD
5/18/07 |
Labels:
6"x8" - oil on canvas
Someone asked me the other day about how I put down a ground. It actually took me a while to figure out a way to do this that worked for me, so I thought I'd share in case any of you reading this are struggling with the same thing.
First I choose a color. Usually it's the compliment of the dominant color in the painting. Sometimes I feel like it should be something else...but I can't really explain why, so... In this case I used yellow...mostly because the brightest parts of the pears are yellowish and I didn't want that to get muddy. Then I turp down some of that color and spread it over the panel. Then I take a paper towel and REALLY wipe it off. The color will kind of stain the panel and the paper towel will even it out and take off most of the moisture.
There are 2 reasons I do this: because sometimes it's fun to leave little bits of the undercolor showing, and because getting the panel a little wet helps with the spreading of the thicker paint I put on next. Sometimes I'll have a panel that's had a few bad paintings wiped off, and it's dried so the undercolor is dark and dry. This gives you a kind of fun look with the dark showing through, especially if you're doing a light painting (ex. "fuzzy pears"), or gives you darker darks for a dark painting. You could even put down a dark ground on purpose (imagine that) and let it dry a day for the same effect.
"Spot On" --- SOLD
5/17/07 |
Labels:
6"x8" - oil on canvas
Thanks goes to Debbie Miller who came up with a great title for this peice!
This painting was inspired by my fellow painting a day-er Michael Naples. He does beautiful work, and I especially like his leaves. Check him out if you haven't already.
"Quadruplets" --- SOLD
5/16/07 |
Labels:
6"x8" - oil on canvas
I've always been good at painting/drawing what I see, but it's really hard for me to make up anything, and so I envy people who paint abstract or cartoons or from memory. That said, I like to experiment with putting colors where they aren't really - like the little patch of blue in the bottom right corner of this one. There doesn't seem to be any rule for what those colors should be or how much or where, and so I rely on instinct...when I have it. Susan Ogilvie does this well - I never see her colors when I'm outside.
These apple slices reminded me of babies in a row. Having one myself (now 2 yrs-old) makes me think we should give the people with 2 or more at a time a medal...a really big one. Wow.
"Three-quarters" --- SOLD
5/15/07 |
Labels:
6"x8" - oil on canvas
Pears are great to paint. They have interesting shapes (not just round). They keep for a while (though not as long as apples - they're the best). They're mostly green (my favorite color). And they're yummy when you HAVE to eat them. I wonder, can you deduct the cost of fruit in your taxes if you're going to paint it AND eat it??? I hope the IRS never reads this...
And is an artist allowed to have a favorite color? I suppose I don't like just ANY green. I prefer certain shades of green, and especially when they're next to certain other colors. According to the Munsell color wheel, a redish purple is the complement of green, and purple is the compliment of lime green. I tend to prefer this...I never thought red was a good option...except at Christmas. Any of you other artists have a favorite color? Or am I just weird???
"Fuzzy Pears" --- SOLD
5/14/07 |
Labels:
6"x6" - oil on canvas
The painting I did right before this was also 3 pears, but a different set-up. It had a blue background and was more of a straight on view. I liked it all the way through and then I put it down next to my other daily paintings. It had almost no value contrast - I could have entered it in the most boring painting contest. See it.
I think I have to paint one of these boring paintings every once in a while to remind myself how much value matters. You can have a very dynamic image using some terribly boring colors. I like the old rule of thumb where if you simplify your values into 3 (light, dark, middle) you want to have one that's dominant, a little of another, and a smidge of the last. Of course, with all rules, this one's meant to be broken whenever possible. My favorite quote about painting: there are no rules, just consequences.
"View From Below" --- SOLD
5/13/07 |
Labels:
6"x8" - oil on canvas
I was starting a painting once in my third year of college. It was a portrait of my cousin, Hannah, on a fairly large canvas, with just her face and head filling the frame. I was sketching in the proportions when my professor came by and said "Why are you doing that? You should just start painting and let the image emerge." Ever since then I've felt like that's a goal I should strive towards - not doing any sketching, just starting a painting and letting art happen.
Well, I've changed my mind. I was re-reading my Harley Brown book the other day and one of the first chapters is about how important it is to get the drawing right. It can really make or break a painting. We'll all run into "purists" now and again who feel like it's "cheating" or some such nonsense, but I now think it's fine to draw first. And not be afraid to wipe it off and try again until you get it right. Harley has some great tricks for measuring in his book, Eternal Truths for Every Artist, which I highly recommend. These flowers I've been doing, especially benifit from accurate drawing. I'm finding otherwise they're just big blobs...not cool.
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