Persimmons & Grapes

oil on canvas panel 6x6 inches

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The purple, orange and red were SOOO luscious together! This painting looks SOOOO much better in person! I say that a lot, but really it does.

Persimmons & Pussywillows

oil on canvas panel 6x6 inches

not for sale

This painting was done before the Thanksgiving holiday (hope you had a good one), but I've been unable to post because we lost internet service for four days! The arrangement is particularly pleasing to me because it has the elements I've mentioned before in my blog: areas, dots and lines.

Old Stapler

oil on canvas panel 6x6 inches
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Why are so many of us fascinated with old stuff? I don't know. This old stapler came home a long time ago from my husband's office having been replaced by sleek shiny ones that I bet don't work as well. Anyway, I love the texture of the metal filled with dust and yellowed somehow. I love the still shiny black smasher thingy. I added the mail for an interesting small object (stamp) with the same yellow ochre. When it was almost finished, it needed that paper scrap for balance. I really like how this one turned out.

Three Little Bottles SOLD

oil on canvas panel 6x6 inches

Glass is appealing to me as a subject because of it's obvious sparkle and shine. In this set up I also liked the way the bottles infuenced each other's color....and then there's the light coming from behind between them. Fun to paint.

African Violets II

oil on canvas panel 6x8 inches
sold
Our recent rainstorms have prevented me from photographing and posting, but not from painting. I was glady holed-up inside over the weekend with my bookworm hubby, my fluffy assistant and my paints. These kitchen violets were painted on a pink ground to complement the greens and retain the clean blossom color. A lavender background gives it an airy feel.

Farm House, Chino Hills-sold

oil on canvas panel 9x12 inches

My new plein air buddy and I met at one of the few farms left in the area. She painted the horse and barn and I painted the house. I liked the way the morning sun filtered through the trees and shone on the windows. We had a great time!

Hummingbird & Lantana

oil on canvas panel 8x8 inches

sold

The hummingbird commission is done after just some very minor finishing touches: correct the shape of the beak, add darks and lights in the greenery. This is somebody's Christmas present. Hope it gives them a sunny feeling in their cold, snowy winter.

Hummingbird Commission

oil on canvas panel 8x8 inches
sold but not quite finished
I prefer to paint from life, but a few months ago I cut back my gigantic lantana bush until it looked like locust had come. So with no fresh lantana, I used my two little paintings of lantana as reference. Couldn't get the hummingbird to hold still, so I used a teeny tiny calendar picture. I'll post the finished version tomorrow.

Pear In Silver-sold

oil on canvas panel 6x6 inches
click here to bid
This was a tricky one, but lots of fun. The silver mirrored just about everything in the immediate vicinity, including light coming through windowblinds, me and the back of my easel. Simplifying the reflections into large shapes helped maintain the pear as the focal point.

Bloomin' Babytoes -sold

oil on canvas panel 6x6 inches
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One of my favorite cactuses surprised me yesterday with blooms! Yes, the common name for this variety is "Babytoes". Looks a lot like those delicious little piggies!
In other news, I recently EBay listed "Untitled Floral" as "Sunflowers With Red" (scroll down to see). Thanks for all your great comments. I took your advice and called it finished. I appreciate your feedback so much!

Prado Study

Here's the follow-up to yesterday's post. Wondering how my landscape would improve if I took a more academic approach, the next day at home


I did several value studies on paper with markers. #3 was my favorite.


Next, I did a 6x8 block in referring to my #3 value study and painting (posted yesterday).

This is the completed 6x8 study. It was a great excercise for me, but I think yesterday's work was more successful when I was just havin' fun outdoors painting what I see!

Prado Plein Air

oil on canvas panel 9x12 inches
Our weather has been beautiful lately, so yesterday I ventured over to Prado Regional Park just a mile or two from home. Standing in the middle of a huge grassy field, I looked out beyond the park's borders to this scene. The alternating rows of road and bush was what interested me most. I'm happy with the feeling of light, but I have numerous criticisms. Instead of sleeping, at 2:00 am I was asking these questions: What if I changed the green? What if I had...toned the canvas...left out more trees...done thumbnails...a value study...blocked in like you're "supposed to"...paid more attention to values??? What if I had stayed home and done a still life? Answers tomorrow. :-)

Sunflower In Blue-sold

oil on canvas panel 6x6 inches
sold
This indigo blue cup is one of my favorites for staging reflections. The orangy-yellow flower and deep blue made a strong complementary color scheme. A bit of impasto helps convey the light on flower petals. When I photographed the painting, I ended up with little shadows where the paint is thick.

Sunflowers With Red SOLD

oil on canvas panel 9x12 inches

Here's my demo from last night at Family Fun Night, Fontana. The event was a great evening of music and art. The best part for me was meeting a fellow painter, Lisa, who lives just a couple of miles from me. She's a fabulous plein air painter, and we look forward to painting outdoors together in our neck of the woods---a painting partner...YAY!

Salt & Pepper--and Fontana Show-sold

oil on canvas panel 6x6 inches
click here to bid
I'm having a lot of fun working with these grays. Below is the flyer for my show in Fontana in the Steelworkers' Auditorium. Tonight I'll be demonstrating at the Fontana Art Depot Gallery. Got to go pack up!

click on the flyer for more info

Salt & Light-sold

oil on canvas panel 6x6 inches
click here to bid
Painting glass in my last few paintings inspired me to try one that is mostly about the light on glass. This was a great excercise in values. The yellow reflections are from something in the immediate surroundings...maybe my EasyL easel. Inspired by another Fresh Paint blogger who recently forced herself to use bigger brushes, I did this one with a #8 Silver Bristlon Flat.

Tomorrow night, November 5th I'll demonstrate at Fontana's Family Fun Night at the Art Depot Gallery. It's free and open to the public. Some of my paintings are on display until Nov. 26th in Fontana's Steelworkers' Auditorium. For more information, click here.

Yellow Roses SOLD

oil on canvas panel 6x8 inches

Those little buds from yesterday popped open and were even prettier...and much much harder to paint, let me tell you! Floribunda roses grow on short stems in clusters with a very different petal pattern than regular roses. I haven't painted roses much. It figures I'd start with the hardest ones...duh!

Yellow Rosebuds

oil on canvas panel 6x8 inches
click here to bid
A simple painting of a not-so-simple flower. These are small roses in my favorite thrift store square glass thingy.