Gathering Safely In

 

Click Here to Bid - 6x6in. - oil on panel

This is the last of the orange slices for now. The title is a line from a song I like. 10 points if you can guess it without looking it up online. : )

Orange Pals

 

Click Here to Bid - 6x6in. - oil on panel

I've been thinking a lot about friends lately, old and new, and specifically friend groups, and all their dynamics. I think I subconsciously pour my feelings about these kinds of things into my paintings. You can see it in all the groupings of objects. Some get along better than others.

Guarding Plates

 

Click Here to Bid - 6x6in. - oil on panel

I found this purple-ish glass recently at the thrift store. It was quite a challenge to make the colors read right since you can see through to the white plates and the green background in different places. And then of course the glass gets thicker and thinner, and add reflections on top of that! Whew.

A Loose Line

 

Click Here to Bid - 6x6in. - oil on panel

I used my smaller, zoomable light for this one, and focused it in on the larger cup and a few of the orange slices, like a spotlight. This made it much more challenging as I had to capture the subtle differences between each slice as they moved away from the light. Not to mention the rest of the scene. But man I just revel in this kind of challenge!

Organized Orange

 

Click Here to Bid - 8x8in. - oil on panel

I got an email today from a gal who says that she "struggles with the middle values." And I can honestly say - me too! Recently I added a new thing to my studio that has helped. I painted a simple little value scale (with acrylic paint) that I put under my palette so that the values peek out along the bottom.

When I'm having trouble, I mix colors with corresponding values right above each value. This helps especially with all the white cups and plates I paint. I also think to myself, when I'm looking at the plate, for example, what like value can I find? Is there a value in the cup that is similar? And every time I mix a new color, I look for like values to compare it too (as opposed to looking at only the colors right next to the thing). I might even put a little dab (on my palette) of the new color next to a color with a similar value just to compare.

I will try and post a photo with paint on the palette to show more of what I mean. Hopefully this all makes sense, but feel free to email me with questions!

Midnight Snack

 

Click Here to Bid - 6x6in. - oil on panel

These cookies jumped out at me at the grocery store - literally grabbed my arm. Rude I say, but of course I bought them anyway, and set up this little scene. I used my softer, zoomable light to give it a sort of middle of the night indulgent kind of feel. I won't tell you what happened to the cookies afterwards.

Tomatoes Go with Fish

 

Click Here to Bid - 6x6in. - oil on panel

Whenever I go out, I always keep my eyes peeled for objects that might go well in a still life. But when I find something, I never know if they are destined be a rock star or not. This green fish has turned out to be a favorite. I have other things in my collection that I've never painted, even though I try them out in scenes. They just don't work. Although of course they might later. It takes a while for me to give up hope. And then of course there are a handful of things I keep right next to me - this simple plate and gorgeous fork are among those. They are my quiet rock stars.

The Red and Green Team

 

Click Here to Bid - 6x6in. - oil on panel

I've been asking AI for title suggestions, but haven't used any yet. Not that my titles are so great or anything, but I guess that's one area where I'd rather be myself.

My son is 20 and in college and has a lot of thoughts about AI. Mine are still evolving, as is AI I guess. If they ever make a robot that can paint natural media, I'm done for. Or will there always be a demand for human-made art?

Egg Order

Click Here to Bid - 6x6in. - oil on panel

Here's something a bit different for me. ; )

Orderly Breakfast

 

Click Here to Bid - 6x6in. - oil on panel

These eggs were surprisingly bright orange! And they weren't even the super expensive ones. I thought they paired quite well with the yellow teapot. : )

Not for Consumption

 

Click Here to Bid - 6x6in. - oil on panel

In case you missed it, I recently released a new online tutorial (ArtByte) that is all about painting glass! The idea behind the ArtBytes is they are bite-size and affordable. If you have seen it, please email me with feedback, or leave a review. Thanks!

Apple Sniffer

 

Click Here to Bid - 8x8in. - oil on panel

He takes his job very seriously. I mean someone has to make sure the apples smell ok.

Too Much Cantaloupe

 

Click Here to Bid - 12x12in. - oil on panel

I did this one as a study for a larger piece. It was difficult because the canteloupe kept trying to wander off. I don't often paint canteloupe, and now I remember why. They need to go to obedience school I guess.

Orange You Bottles?

 

Click Here to Bid - 8x8in. - oil on panel

Titles are hard to come up with. That's all I got today.

Patient Peaches

 

Click Here to Purchase - $200 - 6x6in. - oil on panel

When I went to the store to buy peaches, I found they were much bigger than I remembered! Are all fruit getting bigger? Bigger and sweeter. It's very interesting.

Thinking About Dishes

 

Click Here to Purchase - $200 - 6x6in. - oil on panel

I went through my thousands of small paintings and picked out some that I think might serve as studies for larger paintings. I am now revisiting the compositions and setting them up again, considering edits. (Here's the original.) Instead of jumping into a larger canvas, I decided to do more studies first. I painted this one, but also did a couple of versions on my ipad just to work out some issues. Soon I'll post the whole slew of versions so you can see, including the large one, which I think I might hang up in my own kitchen. : )

New Green Bottle

 

Click Here to Purchase - $200 - 6x6in. - oil on panel

I got this green bottle recently at our very cool, 4-story, antique mall. I painted it here, above, trying to make friends with all the other props. And then I got a bug to paint the whole thing again, on a black gessoed panel (below). Two different looks. I'm posting them both because I couldn't decide if I liked one over the other.

Click Here to Purchase - $200 - 6x6in. - oil on panel

Considering Apples

Click Here to Purchase - $800 - 18x18in. - oil on panel

Here's a larger one that I completed before my sewing obsession kicked into high gear (yes, still at it). Maybe it was buying fabric for my still lifes that was the gateway drug. At any rate, dots and stripes abound in this one. And glass, and of course, dots through the glass, which is my favorite part.

Glass Gathering

 

Click Here to Purchase - $700 - 16x16in. - oil on panel

Here's another large painting that was quite challenging. Trying to get all the shapes right and everything leaning in the right directions (perspective) AND the value and color relationships ... but I like how it turned out in the end.

Pondering the Deep Down

 

Click Here to Purchase - $200 - 6x6in. - oil on panel

You might not know it, but when pears spend any amount of time in an art studio, they start asking all sorts of questions. Like, "What's at the bottom of that bowl?," and "What does it all mean?" It can be very distracting.