One-A-Day-SOLD

oil on canvas panel 8x8 inches
sold
One year ago today I launched my blog. Carol Marine is responsible for getting me started, so I owe her a big big THANK YOU! I feel SO grateful to be part of a large supportive community of daily painters. Thank you, thank you, thank you... to everyone who visits my blog. I appreciate your comments so much...and your purchases...well, it helps me buy more paint! I hope you enjoy the above celebratory painting...the apple is for Carol Marine.

Head Study

oil on canvas panel 12x9 inches
Our model for last Tuesday night's figure painting class had a beautiful jawline. If I had had another hour I would have worked more on the hair and painted her left shoulder. I'm very happy with how the eyes came out.
In other news, I'm so happy to announce that Monday will be the one year anniversary of launching my blog! I can't believe I made it and can't believe how much I love painting daily and blogging! I have no intention to let up! Today our local paper, the Chino Champion ran a very nice article about my daily painting. Thanks, Melodie for the interview and great article! On Monday I'll post a recent painting I did just to celebrate the act of painting daily...stay tuned!

Fruit & Freesia -sold

oil on canvas panel 6x6 inches
Here are some of my favorite objects to paint, all on one canvas. Lately I really enjoy using the clean white surface and background...makes all the color look so bright and crisp.

Pink Daisy, Little Bottle

oil on canvas panel 6x6 inches
Spring is here in Southern California. In spite of the recent colder temps some of my bulbs are blooming and the calla lilies too. Must...paint...flower!

Quality Edge

oil on canvas panel 6x6 inches
The next in my series of practicing whites. While painting I consider my edge quality, hard or soft, and this is one of my Cutco knives...so the title plays with both those ideas. I liked the crisp contrast of whites with the dark handle and shadows. This painting is available at Vander Molen Fine Art, Arcadia, CA

The Big Apple -sold

oil on canvas panel 6x6 inches
Sorry I went off the radar for a few days... I was running Camp Gramma for three of my adorable grandchildren. I hope to get back to painting today. Above is the first painting in my series on whites done a few weeks ago.

Band-Aid Box-SOLD

oil on canvas panel 6x6 inches

This is an 85th annual collector's edition Band-Aid box. Lots of band-aids from this box went onto the skinned knees of my former first-graders and kindergartners. I've intended to paint it for a long time, and now it fit right in with my practice of white things. With the addition of glass and Q-Tips I tortured myself further! Well, maybe for a while, but then it started coming together. (Whew!) Leaving some of the burnt umber ground was like magic in making it look old and beat up. Every time I paint text on something I think of my dad, a sign painter who did beautiful hand lettering. I love doing text.

Golden Hours, Yellow Flowers

oil on canvas panel 8x8 inches

Lately I've been working on my whites. White is so cold out of the tube, so I wanted to work on warm whites and near whites so that any pure white highlights added at the end really sparkle. In the near future I'll post some of my other recent paintings with white surfaces and objects. I find it easier to paint glass than white objects...nothing is really pure white except the sparkle on extremely shiny surfaces...and even those are often influenced by the light temperature and color of the object. Anyway, I'm really proud of this painting with it's variety of whites, the dappled light on the clock, the pattern of foliage and negative shapes.

Head Study

oil on linen panel 12x9 inches

Here is what I did in my figure painting class last night. As you can see the model had strong features, golden brown skin and a beautiful head of curly hair--all making it so much fun to paint her. Perhaps my drawing is not as sound as it should be, but I'm pleased with the color and temperature shifts in the skin tones. While I was painting I had my doubts, but I can see progress in the semi-finished study. By focusing on progress rather than product I can avoid becoming discouraged...a good strategy for learning anything.

Magnolia Blossoms III -sold

oil on canvas panel 8x8 inches
SOLD
Well this is the last and my favorite of the magnolia blossom paintings. The mauve surface gave it the look I was after. For the most part I was able to put down a stroke and leave it. For that reason alone it really pays off to paint the same object over and over...especially for us "noodlers". I have to admit, I was relieved when they started shriveling up...I was ready to move on to something else!

Red Rose-Daily Paintworks Challenge -sold

oil on canvas panel 6x4 inches

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Happy Valentine's Day everybody! The daily paintworks challenge came from master painter Qiang Huang. If you haven't seen his fabulous work, click on the link in my blog list. I used his photo on my laptop as reference. It was a good challenge! I need more practice!

Magnolia Blossom II -sold

oil on canvas panel 8x8 inches
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Though it takes me a while to paint these blossoms, I've arrived at a process that works. I start from the center and work outward painting each petal one at a time. This allows me to overlap my strokes where I need soft transitions. Then painting the next petal behind, I can cut into and shape the edge of the previous petal. With mostly alizarin and some cad red light I've been able to approximate the pinks, but at the end I added some quinacrodone magenta, which I don't normally use.

Magnolia Blossom

oil on canvas panel 6x6 inches
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The Chinese Magnolia trees are in full bloom and they are spectacular! For a long time I've wanted to paint some of these blossoms. A friend with a tree gave me permission to snip some branches. Thanks, Otha! Sorry for the glare in the photo, but this shot has the closest color match. Painting the large blossom felt similar to doing roses. I wiped it out and my second try worked out better. I'm going to keep practicing as long as my subject holds up!

Vino Berries SOLD

oil on canvas panel 6x6 inches

I was on a roll after taking yesterday's challenge, so with an empty bottle of vino I just kept painting. The strawberries were fresh from a field nearby so their green thingies were perky, not wilted and half-dried like you get in the stores. Love that red and green combo, so they are the perfect fruit for color pop. It seems shadows on white are not as dark...maybe because the white is reflecting light all around. I set the timer for these strawberries too...each one taking right around 10 minutes...I bent the rules a bit!

It's The Berries- DP Challenge

oil on canvas panel 8x16 inches
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Today I took the challenge from Carol Marine and Daily Paintworks. Each little painting was done in exactly ten minutes using a #8 Silver Bristlon flat. I started at top left and finished bottom right. I played by the rules and had a blast! My poor little ferocious Malti-poo is now trying to sleep off the trauma of a very loud timer going off every ten minutes! She jumped up each time growling and running for the front door! Poor thing. Be sure to visit the Challenge site to see all the great entries.

Valentine Wishes -sold

oil on canvas panel 6x6 inches

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The pink and brown continues with the addition of lace. I knew it would be difficult and it was. Simplifying the lace didn't seem to be an option because it's the fine details that make lace pretty in the first place. So I tried to stay loose and approximate. The initial drawing on canvas (just truffles and lace) seemed to lack something. Right away I knew all the round shapes needed contrasting straights, so I added the card. Perhaps the whites are a bit too yellow, but it kinda gives it a vintage look that I like.

Three Truffles-sold

oil on canvas panel 4x6 inches

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It's a wonder these lasted long enough for me to paint them. The red one is gone now. My warm spotlight reduced it to a soft creamy luscious blob, so I had to eat it.

Old Master Portrait Study -sold

oil on linen panel 6x6 inches
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Thursdays are very busy days for me. I managed to paint in little snippets of time, but didn't finish until 1 am this morning! This is a study done from Jean Baptiste Greuze's "Girl With a Blue Ribbon". I didn't get a good likeness, but I do like the color. I hope it was an exercise that will help me with my figure painting.

Grapes, Apple, Tangerines -sold

oil on canvas panel 6x6 inches
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More fun with fruit. If I ate as much fruit as I paint, I'd be healthier. It's all about color...that's why fruit is so a-peeling. (Sorry, I couldn't resist a little pun.)

Mug With Grapes -sold

oil on canvas panel 6x6 inches

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My intent here was to use a more subdued green surface with the same holiday grapes. This mug, created by Claremont ceramic artist Crispin Gonzales has several colors of glaze that went with the grapes very nicely. I'm quite happy with the color scheme and loose brushwork.