Fruit & Bottles

 

Fruit & Bottles  oil 8x10 inches

Purchase info here.

Here are some of my favorite items for painting arranged in my favorite design: cruciform.  This design form goes off all four edges of the picture space, to create interesting negative shapes (empty spaces). 

Bird, Bottle & Blooms

 

Bird, Bottle & Blooms  oil 10x8 inches

Purchase info here.

I enjoyed painting the horizontal version of this subject so much that I thought it would work as a vertical as well.  The image is a bit blurry, but the painting in person is crisp where it needs to be.  If you purchase one of my paintings, your satisfaction is guaranteed.  

IN OTHER NEWS:  I have two openings in my 2day in-person workshop scheduled for April 22-23. Location: Upland, CA.  Email me for more information.  karenwernerart@gmail.com

Wine For One

 

Wine For One  oil 12x12

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You would think I'm a big wine drinker, but no.  I love painting wine bottles.  Here's a hunk of fisherman's bread from Crab Cooker.  It's about 7 or 8 years old.  Age doesn't matter when you're posing for a painting.  I do enjoy a good dense piece of bread with a nice glass of Cabernet.  

Cherry In The Gap

 

Cherry In The Gap  oil 10x10 inches

Purchase info here.

What is it about backlighting that adds so much interest?  It could be the shadow shapes that get bigger as they come toward the viewer.  This painting was a lot of fun.  It's a strong design that I might use again with other objects.  

                                                                                     

Abundance And Other Stuff

oil 11x11 Available at Square i Gallery in Claremont, CA. Call 909-625-2533 to inquire. After I finished the 30 Day Challenge in September, November continued to be a great month of painting. I completed four pieces for Square i Gallery's 11x11 Show for December. It was my first year entering this odd-sized show. This piece is painted on a wood panel 1/2 inch deep and stained on the sides. I prepped the panel with muslin and gesso, which made a great light toothed surface. It is ready to hang, but would also look great in a simple floater frame of your liking. Below you'll see my conglomerate photo of the September paintings (one missing) laid out on my studio floor. Also below, a dog portrait commission for a fellow artist. I loved painting Bounder! The client gave me a great photo to work from. It's 14x11 and was a gift for her husband. I love being part of surprising someone with a heart-felt gift! To commission a dog portrait, email me at karenwernerart@gmail.com

A Fruity Wine

oil 10x10 Purchase info here. You might wonder why I include wine bottles in my still life so often. They provide a strong vertical anchor to the design, taking the scene up and breaking up the top horizontal edge of the picture plane. The labels often echo the colors in fruit, creating unity and color harmony. The green bottles are often very very dark so they add value contrast. Wine is festive, and adds to the upbeat feel of the work. There you have it! IN OTHER NEWS: I'm really looking forward to demonstrating in Huntington Beach on Wednesday! For more info, see my December 30th post.

Loose Fruit

oil 8x8 inches Purchase info here.

Bottle & Glass

oil 12x9 inches Purchase info here. A painting from May. Some of my favorite subjects are here; wine bottles and glass. The small white flowers are fun too. When I paint small flowers, I know it's futile (and not at all fun) to try and paint each petal. Instead, I squint way down to see each blossom as just a basic shape. I usually paint the greens first, leaving the blossom shapes unpainted. I then paint the shadow side of the blossoms the right shape, value and color. Last, I paint the light side of the blossoms the right shape, value and color. I also focus on varying the size, shape, and placement of each blossom. A random look gives flowers a natural appearance.

Fruit & Wine

oil 8x8 inches. Purchase info here. In these small still life paintings I like to have objects (or their shadows) go off the edges. This divides the negative space nicely resulting in different sizes and shapes. Often, I use a wine bottle to take the scene off the top. You might think I drink a lot of wine! No, I just find the bottles useful and pretty. Here's a painting that has a variety of fresh color and high value contrast. I'm quite happy with this one. I hope you like it.

Camellias & Bordeaux

oil 12x12 inches The camellia bush outside my studio window was blooming it's heart out when a kind workshop student gifted me this bottle of Bordeaux as he departed. Thus, Camellias & Bordeaux! Even more exciting than these two lovely events lining up, is the news that the American Impressionist Society as accepted this piece into its Third Annual AIS Impressions Small Works Showcase Juried Exhibition! The exhibition will be held at the Crooked Tree Arts Center in Petoskey, Michigan. June 8 through August 31. I'll be shipping it out soon. Unfortunately I won't be able to attend the show, so if you're reading this and you're near Petoskey Michigan, I would love it if you could take some photos of it hanging. I'll gift you with a small painting in return! Anybody out there in Petoskey???? IN OTHER NEWS: This Wednesday, May 8, I'll demonstrate for Associated Artists of the Inland Empire. Lewis Center, corner of Milliken and Baseline in Rancho Cucamonga. 9 am. $5. Refreshments. Open to the public.

Joyful

oil 11x14 inches Purchase info here. Last month I participated in "Art Uncorked" in Chino. While folks sipped wine and sampled local foods, I busied myself painting this. Music, food and friendly folks made for a pleasant painting atmosphere. I think that feeling came through in the painting. I want to sincerely thank Jane who added to her collection of my works with the purchase of two new paintings. Below are some other shots related to the event.

Apples & Wine

oil 12x12 inches For a closer look and purchase info, click here. It's October already! I decided to jump forward and post my most recent Fall-ish paintings. Do you love the colors and feel of Fall? I do.

Wine & Roses -a still life painting in oil SOLD

oil 12x12 inches magnify/purchase I approached this piece with some specific considerations: reduce the number of objects compared to my last few paintings, and allow more breathing room within the picture space. And as far as my progress in painting roses, the lower rose is my favorite so far. It has the freshness I'm after. Below are a few progress shots. The bottom shot is closer to the actual colors in the painting.

Sill Life With Lemons and Orchids

oil 12x12 inches magnify/purchase My friend Audrey gave me these very paintable and delicious lemons from her tree. I had a great time with this painting. Like 99% of my work, this was painted alla prima (all at once, or at least while the paint is still wet.) I'll share a couple of tricks I've learned from other painters for keeping your paint wet a bit longer. Before you begin, apply a VERY thin coat of linseed oil to your canvas. Just enough to make it a tiny bit slick. You can do this with a brush, then spread with paper towel. Facilitates the application of paint too. To keep the paint blobs on your pallette wet a bit longer, add a drop of pure clove oil and mix with palette knife. Waste less paint this way, and your painting dries slower. Caution! Bees will love you if you use clove oil in your paint outdoors! HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!

IN OTHER NEWS: I'm pleased to announce that Flower Happy (above,8x8 inches) will be included in HOLIDAY TREASURES at the Debra Huse Gallery on Balboa Island. This "Small Gems" Salon includes 100 works from artists across the country. The show runs from Dec. 4- Jan 4. For more info, click here.