Friday, October 31, 2014

Float On!

"Float On"
12 x 9 inches, oil on canvas
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These glass floats are an Oregon coast antique shop staple. I didn't head to my Toledo residency with these in mind to paint - in fact, I thought I'd be painting fish all week - but that was not in the cards, as I'll tell you much more about tomorrow.


Here's how this painting developed. I sketched in the underpainting with a mix of Cadmium yellow and red, dulled with a tiny bit of Ultramarine blue. I like the warmth peeking through, even though the dominant colors of the piece are cool coastal blues and greens. 

Thursday, October 30, 2014

Floats and Tea: An Oregon Coast Still Life

 "Floats and Tea"
8 x 8 inches, oil on canvas
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I'm posting a series of still lives this week, painted on the Oregon coast in the amazing studio owned by Michael Gibbons. Click on the home tab above and scroll down to see more of them!

Here's an in-progress shot of this one:


Wednesday, October 29, 2014

Another Coast Still Life, and Excitement in the Mail!

 "Stone, Shell, Glass, Metal"
8 x 8 inches, oil on canvas
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Conveying various textures is something I talk about a lot in my workshops. The trick to differentiating a rough rock from a smooth blown-glass ball is all in the transitions between values, which sounds ridiculously simple, but it isn't. Really, it's all about observing. The transition from a highlight to a midtone is what shows our eyes whether they're looking at a piece of velvet or a shiny metal pot. Is it a smooth, gradual transition, or a sharp juxtaposition of bright light next to dark? 

Speaking of painting tips....I just cracked open a very exciting envelope from Random House: my friend Carol Marine's new book!


 I was lucky enough to receive my copy early because I'm included in the book! Carol used this funny picture from last year's Bad Art Destruction Party:


Plus, she included one of my paintings as an example of using perspective in a still life.


What an honor! Really, if you paint, or know someone who does, this book is a must-own. Go buy it!

Tuesday, October 28, 2014

Beachy Still Life

 "Sand Dollars and Floats"
8 x 8 inches, oil on canvas
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I went to Toledo last week planning to paint still life, but I decided to take nothing with me. No props. Ok, yes, I took some of my favorite backdrop papers, but I wanted to paint whatever came my way. There was nothing at the studio, though! It was a blank canvas. 

Luckily, there's a bustling antique and beach-mobilia industry at the coast, and I was able to get my hands on some beautiful, simple stuff. Sand Dollars and floats.

Here's a progression for this piece:

Monday, October 27, 2014

A Coastal Retreat

 "The Last Raspberries"
12 x 24 inches, oil on canvas
$500

Honest, I did not intend to be out of touch for the past week! But what a glorious week it was....

I rented a studio in Toledo, Oregon, and painted up a storm. It was a perfect little place: a renovated, historic building from the 1880's, which used to house the Justice of the Peace for this tiny coastal town. It's owned by Michael Gibbons, an artist who paints amazing Northwest landscapes. The light in the studio is sublime, and I think you'll see the evidence in all my work from the week!

Here's my block-in for this piece:


 And here's the approach to the studio:


Skylights, north-facing windows, peace and quiet. Lack of wifi kept me from blogging, but really, isn't an enforced internet break what we all need sometimes?


The weather was typical Oregon coast October: windy, windier, rainy, and chilly. I was perfectly satisfied to stay inside and focus on still life, painting my beach-walk finds and some antique store treasures. Stay tuned for much much more!

Thursday, October 16, 2014

Workshop, Way Down South!

 "Demo at Shreveport no. 1"
8 x 8 inches, oil on canvas

Wow, what a weekend! And, yes, I do know it's Thursday and already almost another weekend. I'm talking about last weekend, which I spent in Louisiana teaching! It's taken me this long to get this blog post together - I had loads of great photos to go through, and yes, a wee bit of flying trouble which delayed me a day getting home.
But I'm here now, and ready to take you back in time...

Shreveport is beautiful, just look at this!


The workshop was hosted by one of the students, whose lakefront property and amazing studio were perfect for the class - and more than luxurious for me. I'm so grateful to have gotten to spend time painting there!

Here's how we set up the space before everyone arrived:

 

 Here are my artists, getting busy:

 They were a talented - and motivated - group, who came well-prepared to do some serious painting.
As you can see, I'm not kidding about the talent:



In fact, I got so jealous watching them paint that I had to do a little painting of my own after class on Saturday night - the teacher's homework!
 
 
 "Demo at Shreveport no. 2"
8 x 8 inches, oil on canvas

For our final day of class, I broke some eggs. They make a good change of pace after two days of fruit.

Here's my demo, which I painted after lunch, you know, just in case anyone was tired. Were they tired? I couldn't tell! They were the most enthusiastic cheerleaders ever.

I don't know how many times I used the phrase, 'Can I just take you all home with me?!'

"Demo at Shreveport no. 3"
10 x 8 inches, oil on canvas

Thanks so much, ladies, for a great workshop! 
 

Five Exciting Lemons

"Five Lemons"
8 x 8 inches, oil on canvas
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Hey all! I'm blogging to you from (the vastly inferior method of) my phone on the shore of a gorgeous lake outside of Shreveprt, Louisiana! Tomorrow I begin a still life workshop with a group of enthusiastic ladies and I don't know how I'll ever sleep tonight. Excited! More soon!

Saturday, October 4, 2014

Plein Afterthoughts

"Purple Morning Shadows"
10 x 8 inches, oil on canvas

This one snuck home with me from Hillsboro, a little warmup from around 7 in the morning, near downtown. The storefront is a barbershop, and the owner was kind enough to let me charge my phone inside while I painted outside!

Friday, October 3, 2014

From Palette to Painting

 "Blue Shadow"
8 x 8 inches, oil on canvas
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I've been doing a LOT of limited palette lately, so it felt good to wallow around in my normal array again. My palette got more complex, but my subject is nice and simple: a contiguous color scheme (yellow-green-blue), and an old standby, lemons!

Here's my palette:


And here's how the painting came together:


Thanks for looking!

Wednesday, October 1, 2014

A Figurative Sketch, a One Dollar Auction, and a Calendar!

 
 "The Red Wrap"
16 x 12 inches, oil on paper
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Well, folks, there are still some places where one can work from the nude here in Eugene (Go here to read all about our recent local arts-scandal), and I am proud to be a part of one! This was painted last night at Maude Kerns Art Center's weekly open studio session. All media are welcome, though Tuesday nights' attendees are mostly oil painters.

This was completed in three 45 minute sittings, using (what else?) a Zorn palette.
In other news, my 2015 Calendar is out! All still life, no nudes - so totally suitable for offices, cubicles, kitchens, your mother-in-law's Christmas stocking, etc......Check it out!