Pointed Toes

"Pointed Toes"

8 x 13 inches, oil on Masterpiece Hardcore Pro Panel

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I adore the texture of these shoes - and they're purple! My favorite color. 

I've been hosting a painting-a-day week on Instagram, and there's been some great work posted, both by my online students, and by other friends. Visit the hashtag #sarahsedwickseveninseven to enjoy the visual feast!

Orange and Cream

"Orange and Cream"

10 x 10 inches, oil on panel

$350

Click to buy

I've been hosting a week of daily painting on Instagram, and this was my effort for Day 4! Check out the hashtag #sarahsedwickseveninseven to see what others have been up to. Great stuff!

Three In, Three Out

 

 "Three In, Three Out"

10 x 10 inches, oil on canvas

I loved noticing all those blues of the bowl reflecting onto the apples - and the green reflections in the plate! Lots of opportunities for chunky color spots. Satisfying!

 

Sluiced

"Sluiced"

8 x 10 inches, oil on canvas

$250

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This was day five of my seven paintings in seven days. After two days of painting tulips, my thought was, "I'm going to keep it simple today." You can see how that worked out for me!

Rapunzel

 "Rapunzel"

10 x 10 inches, oil on canvas

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 I am doing a painting a day this week with my Online Art Mentorship group - and anyone else who wants to participate - over on Instagram. Just seven days, not the more typical 30-day challenge, with a goal of creating some spring studio momentum! 

I love the way I feel when I paint every day. There's a time for being ambitious about painting - working larger, more carefully - and for being more precious about the outcome. It can be a relief to step away from that, and say 'Tomorrow is a new day....and a new painting!' 

What will you create today?

Long Shadows

 "Long Shadows"

8 x 8 inches, oil on canvas

$250

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The 30 in 30 painting challenge I'm doing this month is already giving me a lot of food for thought - and not just because I'm painting apples and oranges! 

I wanted to revisit daily painting because it's how I got my start with this blog - ten years ago this month. The concept was incredibly freeing to me, that every painting didn't have to be a precious investment of time and materials, that tomorrow could be a new day. 

I'm hugely grateful to artists like Carol Marine and Duane Keiser, who inspired me early on - and continue to. Before I discovered daily painting, I had been out of art school for almost seven years, and was starting to believe that I might never actually get back into painting. Today, I plan to paint for the rest of my life. Maybe not EVERY day, but on the good ones!

Here's my setup and sketch:

A lot of people on Instagram have been curious about these black-and-white sketches. They are made with ballpoint pen (mine's from the Marriott, fancy), black sharpie, and white Pitt Pen, which is a permanent India ink marker made by Faber Castell. The sketchbook is Strathmore Toned Tan, 6x8 inches. You can check out some of my favorite materials here. 

And, as always, thank you for reading!

Avocado and Lemon - and My Very First Newsletter!

 "Avocado and Lemon" 

8 x 8 inches, oil on canvas

$250

Click to buy

This is my painting for day two of the 30 in 30 February challenge. It's yesterday's painting. I'm not going to be blogging every single day's painting, because I anticipate that some of them will be less impressive than others, but for now, here ya go! 

...And speaking of impressive! After procrastinating for almost ten years, I just published my very first email newsletter. Check it out here, and click subscribe to be entered into my Blog Anniversary Giveaway. Because, yes, my blog will be TEN YEARS OLD in just a couple of weeks! That feels awesome.

Just subscribe to my email newsletter to be entered to win! It's a teeny tiny pool right now - so share with a friend! Your chances are excellent.

Golden Ring (Ace of Pentacles) and #30in30!

 "Golden Ring (Ace of Pentacles)"

7 x 11 inches, oil on Arches oil paper

$250

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Here's how this one came together. I can't believe how long these little oranges have lasted in my studio. It must be cold in there or something.....! Spring is on the way, though - I saw Camellias on my favorite camellia-stealing bush yesterday, so, good things ahead! 

And speaking of things ahead - I've decided to try my hand at a 30 in 30 day painting challenge. Gulp! Anyone else doing this one?

Peaceful Pears, Primary Palette!

 "Peaceful Pears"

8 x 8 inches, oil on canvas

$150

Available here

I painted these peaceful pears alongside a private student of mine, in her tranquil, sunny home studio. 

We both worked from a limited palette of three primary colors, plus white. For my three primaries, I picked cadmium yellow, azo coral, and ultramarine blue. 

 

 Working with a palette like this has so many benefits - like simplifying your color mixing, and creating nearly automatic color harmony in your finished piece. If you'd like to learn more about this method of painting, I've got a workshop coming April 23-24th, in Eugene. Click here for all the details!

 

Sickness, Sketches, and a Windfall

 

"Spring Snowballs/ sketch"

6 x 6 inches, oil on canvas

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In the past, I admit, I've been a thief. But these were given to me, wholeheartedly, by a friend who sympathizes with my seasonal-bloom-painting obsession. You know who you are, and thanks! That said, I have had precious little time to do them justice this week, as my daughter has been down with a high fever and so I've been on juice, crackers, and book-reading duty for the past few days. The snuggles are precious, but so is my studio time. Hence, only a sketch, and a windfall for Sedwick collectors everywhere! Bid away....

"On the Studio Table" fine art oil painting of brushes and paint

  

8 x 10"

oil on canvas

click to bid

This is what you paint when the only fruit in your house is one overripe banana and all your houseplants have bedhead.

Was that 140 characters or less?

"Plums and Asian Pears" fruit food art still life oil daily painting and color palette

 

6 x 6"

oil on canvas

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More of the lovely plums, alongside the lovely but basically inedible Asian pears. Below you can see my work-in-progress, about halfway done:

 ...And here is the finished piece with the palette I used right alongside. If you click on the image, you can see it bigger. This my basic go-to set of colors. Sometime I add in some extras - like the Pthalos - to spice it up, but for most subjects, this is it. And yep, that's a disposable paper palette. My fave.

"White Pitcher of Lilacs" floral flower still life daily painting one dollar auction

 

8 x 8"

oil on canvas

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Hoping you all had a great Mother's Day weekend. I went a little crazy on Saturday, competing in a 5 mile mud run and getting ever so slightly banged up. After attempting to minister to my bruises and scrapes all day Sunday, I thoroughly enjoyed (the comparatively civilized act of) painting with my still life workshop students this morning!

"Ready to Poach" still life oil painting wall art kitchen decor brown egg spoon eggshells

 

6 x 6"

oil on canvas

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 I've never actually poached an egg, but I love the scene in "Julie and Julia" where she learns how to do it. Meryl Streep is one of my favorite actresses, and I also love food and cooking, so it's no wonder I love that movie!

"Fresh Eggs" still life food kitchen decor art daily painting brown eggs

 

6 x 6"

oil on canvas

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My neighbors have chickens, and my husband has back trouble. Over the weekend, the menfolk struck up a conversation while they were out doing whatever it is men do around the yard,  and the next thing I know Jesse has gone next door to try out our neighbor's upside-down suspension back therapy thingie. And he came home with a bowl of eggs! Thanks, wonderful neighbors!

"Still Life with Apple and Cheese" daily painting fruit art kitchen decor oil on canvas

 

5 x 7"

oil on canvas

click to buy

Dear Cheese, 

I really can't explain why this is the first time in four years of daily painting that I've chosen you as a subject. I believe that, perhaps, at a very deep level, I want to keep you all to myself.

xo, 

Sarah

Thanksgiving Painting Giveaway!

"Sprouted Onions"

6 x 8"

oil on canvas

Want to win this original oil painting? Simply leave a comment on this post! Tweet or Facebook the giveaway and get an extra entry - just mention that you did in your comment. I will randomly pick the winner a week from today - so that's Sunday November 21st. Please enter, and share with friends!
-Sarah  ❤

"Black and White Christmas" - a winter holiday still life oil painting on canvas

 8 x 10"
oil on 1.5" thick (gallery profile) stretched canvas
click to buy

This is not a "black and white" painting exactly - these were the colors of the still life I set up, believe it or not. I was challenging myself to capture the colors in the whites and grays, but it ended up coming out more like a value study. I LOVE white and silver as a Christmas decorating motif - they look really good together on a tree or wreath.

My Thanksgiving Painting Giveaway details are coming tomorrow!

Purple Tulips

6 x 8"
oil on canvas
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We are having an early spring in this part of the world - and I can prove it right here! Last year, these tulips from my mom's yard weren't up until the first week of April - see them in my painting from April 7th, 2009.

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I've got a $1 auction going on over at Ebay right now, and plenty of free shipping offers in the Etsy shop - so no excuse not to get an early start on your mother's day shopping - or your Easter decorating! And if you know someone who might like to check out my blog, please click on the little envelope icon at the bottom of the post to easily email them a link! Thanks.

Black Eyed Susan Bouquet

5 x 7"
oil on canvas on panel
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It's been dipping into the low 40's every night this week, and the remaining flowers in our garden are leaning over and losing their petals. There won't be many more of these Black Eyed Susans to pick before fall arrives in earnest.