Still Life Studies

It has been awhile since my last post.  I have been keeping busy doing still life studies.  That is mainly because it is either to cold to go outside or the mountain cedar pollen season here in Central Texas is rearing its ugly head.  I think still life is a great way to study color harmony, light, and just observation skills.  Of course some are more successful than others.  I love color and still life painting is a great way to get away with using luscious color.  The other aspect of doing these little paintings (8x8) is getting to try out different formats.  I have used the square format quite a bit in landscape painting and I'm also liking it in still life painting.  The hardest part about still life painting for me is deciding what to include in the painting to create an interesting arrangement of shapes that fill the canvas and are pleasing to the eye.  Another aspect about these setups was the subtle reflections in the surface.  Well maybe not so subtle in the apple set up.  I'm not sure it really qualifies as pleasing to the eye either, but I love red so it allows me the opportunity to play with it.

Asian Tranquility

Asian Box and Lily

Apple Trio

Asian Harmony

White Vase with fruit is another experiment with the new shadow box.  It is so much easier to see what you are painting, but my lighting is still too strong. You might need to wear sunglasses with the white vase.

Lemon and Cherries on Glassine is an experiment using my new shadow box.  I liked the abstract reflections in the surface. I need to experiment with lighting.  The shadow box makes it easier to control, but I need to investigate different lights.

Breakfast Prep is my entry in the DPW Challenge for the week.  The point is to do a cool/warm painting where either cool predominates or warm.  I have also been trying to paint looser and use more paint.

Glass Vases is a study in shapes, color, reflections and shadows.

Presto Egg is another study in color harmony.  I am also trying out ampersand clayboard.  It is really hard to paint on it using oil paint, but I  like the result.  It grabs the paint and appears to dry almost immediately.  I discovered if I use more medium it worked better.

Unfurled Iris is another study in color harmony.  I found this lone iris in my garden and decided to bring it in and paint it day- by- day and to watch it unfurl. 

Liquid Refreshment is the first painting in a week.  We are settled in New Mexico for the summer and I finally have my paints unpacked.  It is too cold and windy to go outside so will do some studio paintings in the meantime. I was curious to see if I could paint ice cubes.  I put in lots of ice and as they melted the colors kept getting richer. Click here to bid at auction at Daily Paintworks

Lemon Slices is another study in color harmony and reflections. Just when I think I have exhausted a subject, something else pops into my head.  This time it is the floating lemon and the lemon peeking through the glass.

The Last Bud to Open is the end of the red lilies.  I decided to paint them in a warm light to compare to the cool light of my other lily paintings.  I think I like the cool light better.

Many Lilies is my first attempt at doing the entire bouquet of red lilies.  They amaze me as they are so vibrant, fresh and cheerful. Click to bid.

Red Lily is another study in color harmony.  I bought some for my Easter decoration and was going to try to paint the bouquet. Since I'd never painted a lily I decided I had better do one first before attempting the bouquet.  Click here to purchase at auction.

Study in Green and Lavender is another study in color harmony.  You may not know this but lavender class is what happens when a glass bottle is exposed to the elements over decades.  Back in the days before trash pickup, farmers and ranchers would have their own trash pile.  The bottles would age in the sun to a beautiful lavender.  Those not used for target practice have made it to the antique stores.  I love the patina.

May be purchased at auction from Daily Paintworks.

Study in Blue is a response to a challenge I saw on Daily Paintworks in 2012.  You were supposed to do a painting entirely in blue and not use orange or red in the painting.  So here it is.

Pottery and Orange is another study in color harmony and a nice change from glass.

May be purchased at auction at Daily Paintworks.

Backlit Bottles and Lemon is another color harmony study.  I am fascinated with the abstractions created by the curve of glass next to another glass object.

May be purchased at auction at Daily Paintworks.

Orange Slices is still pursuing a study of color harmony and a nice break from green. It makes me think of "Go Broncos" since I used to live in Colorado.  I put the orange slices on a glass plate with silver decoration. 

May be purchased at auction at Daily Paintworks.

Ode to Green was more of the color harmony series.  It is so much fun just pushing the paint around.

Orange wedges is another study in color harmony and reflections.  My intent was to keep it loose, but it just gets tighter as I attempt to correct just one more thing.

Green Apples and Mason Jar is another color harmony exercise with green and lavender.