Apricots and Blue Mug

I've been working progressively larger and today I painted on a 12 x 12 in. canvas board.  The only thing challenging or so I had assumed was how to fill the space. I painted the objects life-sized and allowed a 1/4" border for framing and that solved the problem.
Happy Father's Day.

Oakroom Artists

 

The Oakroom Artists Gallery

painting . sculpture . fiber art . printmaking
54 Years: 1956-2010

The Oakroom Artists Gallery is the only membership-by-invitation art association in the Albany area. Membership is limited to 24 artists in order to allow each artist the opportunity of a solo exhibit every two years. Solo exhibits are held at our Home Gallery at the First Unitarian Society of Schenectady. Group shows are also organized at area colleges and museums.

I'm pleased to announce my nomination and election to the Oakroom Artists.

A Well Balanced Lunch

It took some doing but this sandwich was actually a balancing act of all the ingredients, not to mention a healthy lunch. My previous post was of a similar study done in pastels from a photo and now I did this in oils from life. Although the compositions are different, can you tell the difference in the amount of information given in these two paintings? I prefer the direct observation way of painting from life. I think it's the light and details that help me decide what it is I want to paint.

Lunch

I've been hoping to practice my plein air painting with pastels once a week but this week was rainy so I worked on this still life instead.  I used an old photo that at the time just didn't work out. Today I bought all the items again and am planning to paint from life with oils.

Blue Pitcher and Lemons

This is a several day painting as opposed to a daily painting. I'm pleased with the way it turned out and am enjoying using these larger 8 x 8 inch panels.

Below is a panel holder I constructed using an older one I purchased from Carol Marine. Other materials include a paint mixing stick, 12" piece of 3/4" molding and two binder clips.  I used the back side of the panel holder and glued then tacked the molding to the bottom of the panel.  I cut the paint mixing stick to 12" and held it in place with the binder clips. This holder works like a charm for 8" and 10" flat panels and they are held tightly by adjusting the stick downward.

Lemons

This painting was inspired by the works of Richard Diebenkorn. I thought it would be interesting to place lemons in a non-representational space.

White Mug and Orange Slices

 

Here is something that I almost never do, rework a painting. I never do it because it usually doesn't work out. But today before I started a new painting I decided to fool around with this one. And it happened I loved the way the oranges were turning out so I kept going. In its previous incarnation, the orange slices were in a bowl.

Olana Pastel

I spent the day at Olana State Historic Site in Hudson NY with the Mohawk Valley Region Plein Air Painters. I've been teaching myself how to work with pastels for the past several months in preparation of painting outdoors this summer. I've made the decision to work in oils in my studio and pastels outdoors. It was a beautiful day and great to be outdoors.

Big Bok Choy

This bok choy was so big it deserved to be painted on an 8 x 8 panel and I used the red napkin to help create a long perspective. I worked on this painting over several days and I wasn't sure if it was going to work out but it did, and I'm happy with the results.

Violin and Piano Sonata

You may be asking why am I posting this piece of music? Well it isn't just a piece of music; it's  Beethoven's tenth, and last, violin and piano sonata. I took this image at The Morgan Library & Museum in NYC. This grounds me and helps me feel connected. That I'm not alone in all my revisions and scratch offs. Beethoven was a genius but he struggled to get it right.

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Cubanelle Peppers and Apple Slice

Let me apologize for the rain drizzled image of my painting. It's been raining a lot but I wanted to post. I'll take another picture on a nicer day to replace this one. I'm feeling liberated by painting larger, by this I mean 8 x 8 inches.  I'm not dabbing in small little places but using bigger brushes and brushstrokes. I've finally finished all my major outdoor projects so there are excuses not to paint.
Happy Memorial Day Weekend.

Spring Flowers in Vase

Every year with the blooming of my lilacs, I start to paint my garden's flowers. I paint lilacs, then daisies, cone flowers and finally Rose of Sharon. I paint them as light, shape and color. My goal is to paint their impression not likeness. I knew from the start of this painting I needed to work bigger, maybe that's a spring thing too.

Ducks

This was one of many images recently taken at Congress Park in Saratoga Springs provided by Trudi Smith. These resident ducks are a attraction with visitors and locals. I especially enjoy the duckling families waddling around during the summer months.

Yellow Pepper on Floral Cloth

This painting is definitely a feminine take on a daily painting. I'm moved by the wonderful weather we're having and I feel renewed.

Happy Birthday

I painted this for my friend's 76th birthday. 

Happy Birthday Larry.

Three Strawberries

I'm trying to stay loose and not get too fussy. If one area doesn't work I wipe it off and start again. There are places painted over but that's to define the shape. Maybe when I've completed 500 small paintings I'll have mastered this technique. For now I'm almost half way there.

Choked Up

Artichokes are very sculptural and detailed. I tried to simplify them and keep my painting loose.  This painting, far from a masterpiece, is a confidence boost. I'm starting to think I can tackle a more complex design and in the future will think about creating more interesting compositions.

Peeled Orange

I wanted to say something about the other day's movie post but blogger was acting quirky. It happened that I started taking images of the monkey while deciding on a pose for my painting. I was having so much fun and he was hanging around my studio for so long that the movie sort of happened by itself.  Anyway, I'm happy with this painting and trying to stay loose.

Monkeying Around

Wooden Bowl

This bowl was a gift. It's made from Acacia Hardwood and was beautifully carved by someone somewhere in the Pacific. I'm happy with the way I painted it and the daffodils, two items I have little experience painting but rewarding. Funny, but the plum was the challenge today since it went on streaky every time I repainted it.

Red Grapes

I paint for myself and the pleasure it brings me. It's because I like getting down and dirty and thick and smudgy and having fun with color. It's like spring when you take your jacket off for the first time and not much stands between you and the feel of the air on your skin. I spoke with someone who said when you're stuck, take some time off.  I think I just did. Hopefully I can work my way back to daily painting and start making the right choices.

Monkeying Around

I've been monkeying around a lot lately and not getting much done or so it seems. My gallery show will be closing soon and a customer  requested a monkey toy painting. This monkey seems quite confident with his two thumbs up position, telling the viewer it will be okay.

Dipper on the Deck

This is my second Dipper painting and I like it so much more than the first one. Maybe I just needed to work it out in my head.

Little Dipper

Last week Dipper, a one year old Corgi, stayed with us while his family was away.  I took this opportunity to take lots of images. In this painting, I captured his friendly personality but not his true colors. His coat is more reddish brown. This guy was all play.

Two Green Apples

My goal in this painting was to surround the apples with the primary colors that created them.  I think it makes for a harmonious painting. I'm pleased with how it turned out. I cropped the image for posting and it looks like the apples barely fit on the canvas but in fact they do. Just.

Still Lifes: Everyday Paintings

I'm pleased to announce my show at Mimosa Gallery in Saratoga Springs, NY. 

On view are both large and small works through April 28th.

Egg on Blue Plate

Hope every one of you has a nice and peaceful weekend.

Green Color Charts

I was thinking of titling this post Compulsion but I don't want to be any harder on myself than how I felt after working on these charts. I was inspired by Richard Schmid's charts in his book Alla Prima and I made my green charts in anticipation of painting outdoors. The first chart is of greens right out of the tube and lightened with titanium white. Many of them I forgot I owned and were in a box in my basement. The second chart is the interesting one where I mixed different blues with yellows and toned them down with different reds. The part with the reds is not complete and if it was I would have had to make 180 squares! I did have some Aha moments though. I discovered I really like naples yellow with all the blues, yellow ochre and blues make nice dark greens, and cad yellow deep and blues have an orange cast. From the top chart chrome green deep is a nice cool blue green.
After all this my favorite mixtures of greens haven't changed much but I see I have more options when choosing colors.

Red Apple on Stacked Plates

I sometimes think painting is an intellectual exercise. I decided on this composition for the opportunity to paint stacked plates, objects I haven't tried before. This is one way I choose my still lifes, the other way is based on color combinations. These plates required a steady hand and in the end were not as difficult as I imagined.

Double Challenge

I painted this green cabbage for The Monochromatic Challenge on DPW. That was before I read the instructions closely that stated to paint in shades of black and white. This also fits into this week's challenge of The What's In Your Fridge. I think it fits both but I'll go with the first since that was my intention.  This is a monochromatic painting in green and it was a good skill builder.