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!

One Plus Three

"One Plus Three"

8 x 10 x 1.5 inches, oil on canvas

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Keeping it simple! Still lifes of a few simple objects with their cast shadows and a colorful background are a great way to focus on loose, painterly brushwork and edges - and taking some risks with color too! 

Simple, but not easy. There's no satisfaction in easy - and this one was very satisfying to paint!

Thanks for reading.

-Sarah

The Letter

 "The Letter"

12 x 16 inches, oil on canvas

$500

Grapes are so much fun to paint. Every time I try it, I wonder why I don't do it more often. 

Here's a work-in-progress for this one, with its black-and-white oil study. 

Thanks for looking!

Simple is Best

"A Small Bowl of Oranges"

8 x 8 inches, oil on canvas

$250

Click to buy

This little painting makes me happy. Sometimes simple is best.

Purple Coil

 

"Purple Coil"

12 x 12 inches, oil on canvas

$400

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When I posted this color scheme on Instagram, a friend in Louisiana shouted, "Mardi Gras!" I'm fascinated by the psychology of color - especially color combinations, and why some appeal to us and others don't. Purple and green is one of my favorite combos - and orange completes the triad of secondary colors.  

 💜💚🧡

Fun fact: did you know that in ancient Rome, purple dye was made from snails? 

 

Sketch for "Purple Coil"

oil paint on Arches oil paper

approx. 8 x 8 inches, unframed

$100

"Knife and Nectarine," And, of course, the Eclipse!

"Knife and Nectarine"

9 x 12 inches, oil on canvas

$250

Click to buy

My latest piece from Still Life Open Studio. Our next session will be September 7th, at Whiteaker Printmakers in Eugene. All are welcome! 

In today's news, I just watched the eclipse! We had 99% totality here in Eugene, and it was pretty cool. And now I can't stop seeing the ring of light around this dark purple plate as the 1% sliver of sunlight peeking around the shadow of the moon. Art does change the way we see the world - and vice versa!

All That Glitters

"All That Glitters"

10 x 10 inches, oil on canvas

$250

Click to buy

This painting makes me really happy. Hope it brightens your day! 

Here's a time-lapse video of me painting it. If you're an email subscriber, you may need to click on this link to check it out.

Circle Of Light

"Circle of Light"

8 x 8 inches, oil on canvas

$200

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One fun thing about painting Christmas balls: there's a tiny self-portrait inside each one of them! You can see it especially in the dark purple one. 

I could make a list (and check it twice): there are probably a dozen things I love about painting ornaments. This has been kind of a big year for them already, considering that I only painted ONE last year.....

I can feel it coming on, the annual stock-taking that accompanies this season. It's like a holiday for my inner statistician. How many paintings did I make this year? How many blog posts did I write? How many new Instagram followers? Blog subscribers?

Depending on how you feel about statistics, comparison, and self-judgement, either something to look forward to, or a situation requiring immediate distraction. I suggest shopping! Specifically, at the WhitPrint Holiday Show and Sale - next weekend, December 10-11th. I will be there, showing my newest (as in November's) paintings, and with a huge table covered in bargain basement holiday deals.

Plum Parade - Now It's a Series!

 "Plum Parade"

approx. 8 x 11 inches, oil on Arches oil paper

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Here it is, the one that made it a series. And my third one-dollar auction of the week! You can see the first two here and here.

All three plum paintings, in chronological order. Which is your favorite?

Left to right: "The Red Snake," "The Red Knife," and "Plum Parade," each approx. 8x11 inches.

The Red Knife - Another One-Dollar Auction!

"The Red Knife"

approx 8 x 11 inches, oil on Arches oil paper

One-Dollar Auction!
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Here is the second in my plums-and-strawberries series. It officially went from a "thing I'm doing" to a "series" when I painted the third installment this morning. Hopefully you'll be seeing that one soon - it still needs its highlights touched up.

Plum Line

 

 "Plum Line"

9 x 12 inches, oil on canvas

$200

Available here

I painted this at Still Life Open Studios - a new project of mine, which is exactly what it sounds like: a drop-in studio session dedicated to my beloved subject, the not-your-momma's still life!

There was a LOT to choose from this week: melons, flowers, strawberries....but I seem to be on a plum kick lately, and I loved using a combination of Ivory black and Alizarin crimson to push those luscious purples as dark as could be.

Just a note: I've got a coupon code for FREE SHIPPING in my Etsy shop this month. It's AUGUST. Go figure!

My Favorite Pair of Complements

 "Lemons on Purple"

8 x 8" oil on canvas

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One of my favorite workshop exercises is painting an all-white still life using NO white paint. Instead, we mix a chromatic scale from yellow to purple and paint with that. It works! And it's amazing how much you can do, in a painting, with how little white paint.

I'll be doing that exercise again soon, during my "Mindful Mixing" workshop, here in Eugene, February 20th and 21st. Spaces are still available, and all the info is here.

My painting process of late has included an oil sketch in black and white - but this time, I broke out my no.2 pencil! I do a lot of pencil sketching, actually. And I started a new Pinterest board to showcase my daily drawings!

Wrapping and Rolling

 

"Wrapping and Rolling"

8 x 8 inches, oil on canvas

Special Christmas Price! 

$100

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Merry Christmas! Wow, I really squeaked this one in under the wire - my one and only ornament painting for 2014! Last year there were two, in 2012 there were four...

You can see a time-lapse video of this painting being created HERE. Enjoy!

And have a great holiday.

Happy Thanksgiving! (Plus, Plots and Plans)

"Persimmon on Purple"

8 x 8 inches, oil on canvas

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Happy Happy Thanksgiving to all of you! I've been TBB (too busy to blog) for weeks - ok, ok, no I haven't, I've been TLB (the L is for Lazy...)

but I shouldn't be so hard on myself! 

...Right?

In fact, I've been busy plotting and planning.... First, a holiday open studio and sale, next weekend, December 6th. It's going to be at my best friend Gabriella's gorgeous studio (if you don't want to catch Studio Envy, consider staying away). We have a diverse group of artists, with ceramics, prints, paintings, handmade books, and even garden art. Snacks, drinks, deals, discounts (hint: on my table, there will be a $20 and under box). You should come. Here are the details.

I've also created - and updated - a new section of this blog: Workshops! Click the workshop tab at the top of the page, or (if you're reading this in your email - and I don't blame ya) just click here to see a list of my upcoming workshops and painting demonstrations.

2015, anyone?!?

Plein Afterthoughts

"Purple Morning Shadows"

10 x 8 inches, oil on canvas

click to bid

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!

I Get A Cooking Lesson

 "Three Turnips"

8 x 8 inches, oil on canvas

Available on Etsy

I bought these out of boredom. Boredom with Broccoli, Brussels Sprouts, and yes, even Cauliflower. Produce section fatigue. I took a chance on these Turnips - and they were delicious - but while battling the intimidation of cooking a new vegetable, I thought I'd warm up to them through paint.

I loved these colors! I had to stop myself from buying more this morning (I have some commissions I need to work on, no time for Turnips!) 

We ate them sliced thinly, in garlicky spinach pesto pasta. I highly recommend!

Spring Pinks: a floral still life oil painting

 

 "Spring Pinks"

9 x 12 inches, oil on canvas

Click to buy

The colors of spring on my street, including a sprig of exuberant purple Azalea. I stayed very loose and suggestive on those purple blossoms - I'll tell you it was my way of keeping the focus inside the composition, but really it was to keep from making myself crazy!

Here's a work-in-progress:

Snowed In

"Christmas Cuties"

10 x 10 x 1.5 inches, oil on cradled birch panel

click to buy

Santa's elves threw up all over my living room over Thanksgiving weekend, and mother nature followed up with a whopper of a Pacific Northwest snow storm in the wee hours of this morning. There must be ten inches out there as I type! Good thing I've got plenty of these little oranges (and toilet paper, don't worry) stockpiled: I don't think I'll be going anywhere for the next day or two!

I grew up in Ohio, where this kind of snow would be just another winter day, ho hum. In Eugene, Oregon it's Armageddon. They don't do snowplows or salt on the roads here, so when the white stuff happens, we just stay home. 

And I'm not complaining! So many gorgeous ornaments to paint. Thank you, little elves!

 

Painting Patterns and Persimmons on Periwinkle. Period.

 

 "Persimmons and Periwinkle"

20 x 16 inches, oil on canvas

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I've been working hard and loving it. The only downside of working on larger, multi-day paintings is that I miss my small still lives (and my #2 round brushes). I still have my preparatory sketches, though! Here's the sketch for this piece: 

"Persimmons and Periwinkle (sketch)"

10 x 8 inches, oil on canvas

As you can see, the blue-on-white patterns look a little more polished on the larger canvas. Sketching them wet-on-wet is fun, but if you have the patience to paint the fabric and let it dry a day or two, patterns go on quite a bit more smoothly!

Preparation Pays Off

 

 "Persimmon Plenty"

20 x 16 inches, oil on canvas

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When I sat down in front of this groaningly overloaded platter of persimmons, I knew I'd better start with a get-comfortable sketch. I wasn't working out the composition as much as familiarizing myself with the interaction and movement of the fruit within the dish. The larger painting just flowed off my brush - I even enjoyed the drapery - which makes me think I may be entering another drapery phase. It's a good way to spend chilly late-fall afternoons, really: cuddled up to my studio space heater, immersed in the details of folds.

This preparatory sketch is the final offering of my One Dollar Auction week, and bidding is open for a couple more days:

"Persimmon Plenty (sketch)"

8.5 x 6 inches, oil on paper

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