Monday, May 31, 2010

Plein Air At Mt. Baldy


"Lean On Me"
oil on canvas panel 12x9 inches
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Mt. Baldy was crowded with hikers today, enjoying another beautiful spring day. I was thankful to find this out-of-the-way rocky service road. Only six people came by, one of whom suggested the title. The sunlit and shadowed road made a path through my painting, and the rocks pushing the tree gave it an interesting surprise. I love that "skyhole" it creates. Below is a photo of the scene taken before I started painting.



Saturday, May 29, 2010

Haystack Rock SOLD


oil on canvas panel 8x16 inches

In 2005 we visited Cannon Beach, Oregon, the location of this often painted and photographed rock. It was a misty morning after a rainy night (we enjoyed inside our tent!). I thought it would be a great painting if I could capture the subtle grays and reflections. Painting atmosphere is a blast. The painting is best viewed in person.

Thursday, May 27, 2010

Prickly In Pink


watercolor on paper 8 1/2 x 10 1/2 inches

Working again from the Joshua Tree NP photo reference, I wanted to try more layers of maskit and paint, and also pure colors as opposed to the muted hues in the previous "prickly". The dimensions make it suitable for a ready made frame.

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Just Cherries


oil on canvas panel 8x6 inches
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This painting is about diagonal line and playful shadows. Not just cherries!

Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Freesia And Cherries


oil on canvas panel 8x6 inches
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This is a black depression glass sugar bowl I found at a junk mart. It turned out to be quite powerful in the painting despite the cherries and flowers. Looking at it now, it could be a teacher, hands on hips telling all those little scattered cherries to "Line up!"

Monday, May 24, 2010

Cherries And Cream -sold


oil on linen panel 8x6 inches
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Cherry season is here---Hooray! I've been waiting. Adding them to my paintings gives both deep color and a linear element. Here I've used the stems to move the eye through the painting. This composition a strong one, as is the black, white and red color scheme. The little bits of red tone peeking through unifies it all.

Friday, May 21, 2010

Salad Stuff


oil on canvas panel 6x6 inches
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I picked up this little squarish plate at a thrift store. The complementary colors of tomatos and cucumbers seemed so fresh and vibrant on the white plate. The green onion was added to put some straight lines in amid all the curves and to lead the eye right in. This painting is available at Vander Molen Fine Art, Arcadia, CA

Thursday, May 20, 2010

Head Study


oil on canvas panel (partial) 9x12 inches

Our model for last night's figure painting class gave me a new challenge with this reclining position. I kept trying to look at my panel sideways to see if I had the facial features lined up! She had beautifully toned and shiny skin, which I think I captured well. The ear really was prominent and catching the light. The unfinished areas help to maintain the importance of the face. Three more classes left.



Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Shelly's Flowers-sold


oil on linen panel 8x8 inches
SOLD
Recently my beautiful daughter, granddaughter and I attended a belated Mothers' Day event at her church. My daughter won this simple little centerpiece which she gave to me so I could paint it. I'm quite happy with the color scheme, the bold red daisy, and the way the light is coming through the water. I also like the looseness, which I attribute to having a pretty bad headache...I think the headache helped!

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Plein Air At Hofer Ranch


oil on canvas panel 8x6 inches-sold-

Today a small group of plein air painters and I were fortunate enough to have been granted limited access to Hofer Ranch. Located just south of the Ontario Airport, this is a privately owned working ranch dating back to 1880, and not open to the public. With a small canvas and huge subject, I purposely limited my view to part of the building. I finished the painting at the scene, and am pleased with the feeling of diffused light...the sun trying to come out.


This photo of my subject was taken later in the day... just one of the many historical structures on the property. The scenery takes you back to a simpler era, but along with the birds chirping, the trucks rumble past on Haven Avenue, and planes take off very nearby. It's amazing the place still exists as it was. The family has done a wonderful job of holding tight to their historical gem.

Monday, May 17, 2010

Fujicolor SOLD


oil on canvas panel 6x6 inches

Here's a simple subject. The image reflected in the bowl gives the painting added interest and the apple more solidity.

Friday, May 14, 2010

Head Study


oil on linen panel 12x9 inches

Here is my latest study from the sixth session of my figure painting class. My main goal was to concentrate on the face and get both eyes the same size! In the two previous studies I had painted one eye larger (easy to do!) and had to correct as best I could. I worked up the facial features all at the same time as Joseph suggested, and it worked well for me. I'm very happy with the flesh tones, likeness, and psychological feel. Overall, I'm making progress.

Thursday, May 13, 2010

Pretty Prickly -sold


watercolor on Arches watercolor paper 8 1/2 x 9 1/4 inches

A photo taken at Joshua Tree National Park was my reference for this painting. The needles were painted using alternating layers of mask and washes, a technique I had been wanting to try with cactus for quite some time. Just finally got around to it! It turned out beautiful...and as always, is more vibrant in person. I may do some more of these--just too much fun!

Wednesday, May 12, 2010

Old Pitcher With Fruit-sold


oil on canvas panel 6x6 inches
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Another difficult subject because of the glass, but I loved the reflections of grapes and lemon on the side of the pitcher. As in another recent painting, the "red" grapes were so many colors...lots of fun to paint.

Tuesday, May 11, 2010

Green Tea With Lemon-sold


oil on canvas panel 6x6 inches
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It seems that difficult subjects attract me. I had planned to paint something simple, but I couldn't resist this transparent green glass. It was a tough one, but the soggy teabag is my favorite part.

Monday, May 10, 2010

Old Treasures -sold


oil on canvas panel 8x8 inches
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Here is the finished painting posted yesterday. The striped cloth proved to be too distracting, so I carried the burgundy all the way across. The books have a very solid feel, and I especially like the tear on the cover. I may add some more bright yellow to the sunflowers. It's amazing how colorful they were even though they were dry.

Saturday, May 8, 2010

In Process


With this painting, I'm using a more classical realistic approach which I think is well suited to painting old stuff. The books and copper pitcher I picked up recently at an antique mall. Chosen just because they looked old, the books turned out to be quite interesting when I got them home. They are primary grade text books published in 1934, language and math. The young girl who used them did a lot of coloring, and some drawing throughout. This with the wear suggests that perhaps she was the last student to use them. On a back page there is a drawing of planes, bombs and tanks--her world in the early forties?


Here you can see my setup and start. I really like the color scheme and dried flowers. I know the striped drapery will be a challenge, but I like the colors.

Friday, May 7, 2010

Head Study


oil on canvas panel 12x9 (portion)

Here is what I did at my figure painting class this week. I love working from the live model. The painting actually includes the figure down to the waist. I'm very pleased with how the entire painting came out. She had a confident, relaxed attitude, which I was able to capture. It looks like her and feels like her.

Thursday, May 6, 2010

"I Wub You" SOLD


oil on linen panel 8x6 inches

Immediately upon entering the jar, Mr. Goldfish planted a fish kiss on Butterfly. I documented the event on canvas, and now it's all over the internet :-).


Wednesday, May 5, 2010

Tough Beauty


watercolor on Arches watercolor paper 8x81/2 inches
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Cactus are fascinating to me: a tough, dangerous plant that grows in a harsh environment, yet produces large striking blossoms. The yellow-orange and violets are great complements.

Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Lantana SOLD


oil on linen panel 8x6 inches
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We have a huge lantana bush in a corner of our yard that migrated from the neighbor's yard. It attracts butterflies and hummingbirds, and the delicate multicolored blossoms are full of one of my favorite color combinations: pink and orange. It was a good challenge to suggest the structure of the blossoms without overworking. I hope this jar full conveys a sunny, happy feeling.

Monday, May 3, 2010

Oranges and Grapes


oil on canvas panel 6x6 inches
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I plucked these oranges from a tree at the La Verne Heritage foundation a few days ago, and they still look good enough to paint. I paired them with the grapes because I noticed how translucent and multi-colored the "red" grapes were, so I could use some of the same oranges in the grapes for unity. The complementary blue gives it some extra punch.

Saturday, May 1, 2010

Sunshine Fruit And Flowers SOLD


oil on canvas panel 16x8 inches

What a great day to be outside at the Chino Arts Festival! The weather was perfect. My friend Laura Barnes and I enjoyed the festive atmosphere, chatting and doing our art together. I brought the sunflowers and orange to paint. Knowing it might get windy, I weighted the vase with rocks...well, nice idea, but....we had that strong Chino afternoon wind. It blew the vase over and drenched most of my table! Not to worry, my daily paintings stayed dry. Water all gone, and wind still threatening, I finished the painting from memory as best I could.

I love painting out in public. I met one very kind gentleman (about 30-ish) who said he had never seen anyone paint before. Proof again that we visual artists need to get out more often!
It was a great day. And, oh! I sold three paintings!!! Hooray!