Potato Art: Potatini

This potato theme is continuing - and as much as it amuses me, it is for my sons, and there is a story behind that.

Potato Art: Potato Day

Whoops, he/she/it saw a shadow...it was sunny here today. Well, I am getting fanciful....this is the potato that sort of looked like a groundhog............in my reality.

Potato Art: Have We Met?

Today I painted potatoes. They are an interesting item to paint because of their odd shapes and sizes. The markings on one of them looked like the face of a baby seal or a groundhog or some such weasel. I got rather fanciful and the imagination started to enter other realms.

Lemons

This is an assignment exercise from a virtual course I am following. The idea was to paint with a very big brush, except for a few finishing touches, thereby avoiding too much detail - so it was fast!

Clay Vase

This clay vase has a very rough outside texture. I was not pleased with the painted results so tried the palette knife and quite enjoyed that process. I think it looks more like the real thing.

Pink Carnation

The shadow was really strange and awkward to capture. First I had it really dark, then lightened it. Light was shining through the glass bottle. The background is a cloth with a chinese type of pattern. But the flower turned out.

Bowl of Grapes

Some work is still required on this one. Have been practising ellipses, but in this case I could avoid the issue by having the grapes sit on the edge.
Reposted - light and shadows added on wine bottle.

Winter Squash

My friend Dawn gave me this squash today, one of the many that she grew this summer on our horses' formidable manure pile - can't get more organic than that! The intention was to make soup out of it, but I love its shape and the splash of orange on its side, so first it was painted and then baked.

Ode to the Orchid

Last summer, I put my orchids outside and forgot them - and of course, they were not happy and within one day, got a sunburn and went limp. I felt guilty and tried to nurture them back to health to no avail. So this week, I bought new ones, and with great reverance to this delicate flower, painted them. Their stems are longer but I thought the leaves balance out the empty corner.

Dots

Something different for today - just for fun.

Yes, it is an albino pear - pure white - and is plastic!

Shapes

Mary and I focused today again on shapes and ellipses - and we struggled with them again. One side seems good and the other side is lower, wider, crooked, shorter or something. To get the right shape is such a test of the drawing skills. So I am going to spend some time drawing.

Squeezed

Well this was a challenge - the peppers are so curvaceous and shiny and very red. They are long peppers from Spain that I found at Costco this week. From a distance, they seem to look like carrots.

A Copy

I just read that it is a great learning tool to copy others, so I promptly copied one of Carol Marine's recent paintings. She paints with such big, confident, no fuss strokes and has the most interesting compositions. I just had to try it. It was done quickly and on a canvas that is 2 inches wider than hers, hence one extra slice. It was fascinating to get into the thinking process of how this goes.

ps have done some adjustments to "Red Rules"

The Three Wise Ones

From too many hard edges, I now have nearly too many soft edges. And it seems like I have seen this composition before but these are my Bosc pears on a glass surface.

Red Rules

Here is an update after some adjustments. Have had some helpful input.
The background has been darkened which brings out the apples stronger, the reflections toned down, and added some texture to the bowl, since it is a beautiful bird's-eye maple bowl that my brother-in-law made.

So I was playing with edges and greying and such interesting things. Now that I look at it, the reflections seem a bit too strong. It is a glass surface. And an edge on the middle apple's shadow might be too pronounced. Will post for now.

Hot Toddy

Mary and I painted today. We set up this still life and then got into discussion about drawing ellipses - which were evading us slightly. One millimeter can make such a difference in whether it looks right or so very off. And I used a palette knife for some of the very straight lines - works well.
The mug and lemons reminded me of making hot toddies on a cold winter's night.

Marcio's Porch

Have been away today and so decided to post something from this summer.

Practice Quadrants

Today I was reading about edges and tried out some ideas from others. Spent more time watching the Inauguration than painting - was well worth it.

January Moon

Full Moon in Cancer during Capricorn - female/male and subjective/objective harmony and balance. And it was crisp, clear and COLD. I saw this at 6:00 am when the moon was very high in the sky and therefore the scene was quite expansive. That made it hard to fit it on such a small canvas. It is the driveway that I have painted before, from further back, minus one tree for those who know. Can you feel the cold?

The One Mug

Mary came to paint today, and it is always such an enriching experience to share the process. We discussed our way through the highlights and the mistakes. There seems to be a bit of a tilt, amazing how that happens! I am increasingly aware of how important it is to have good drawing basics.

Birthday Bouquet

Getting flowers in January is such a pleasure! My intent was to capture the essence of the assortment without getting too detailed. And I finally figured out a simpler way to photograph and size, therefore re-posted "The Driveway in Winter".

The Driveway in Winter

Plein air has its limitations. It is a bitter -19 celsius degrees today with the wind chill, so I painted indoors this afternoon from the window. When I finished, the snow turned orange with light of the setting sun.

Snowman Sugarpot

A crazy little sugar pot that has been around for many winters. Maybe it needs a darker background..... updated.... darker yet?

Ahoy!

There was a stack of four plates, and somehow I missed one along the way. Just happy to have managed a painting today.

A Pair of Pears

Today Mary came by for a visit and gave me some very helpful critiques. It always is fun to share the journey. We talked about cropping - what, when, where, why - and afterwards I painted these pears, and cropped the plate.

Snuggled

Must admit, I prefer painting colourfully - and would think it necessary in our overcast wintery north country.

Mexican Jug

A colourful start on a gray and cold January day - thoughts of Mexico! This was a lot of fun to paint and because the handpainted creamer is slightly irregular, it was also less stress!

Simplicity

Happy New Year! Wishing everyone a fantastic 2009. My desire was to start off the new year with something to post - and this candle represents simplicity and yet light, warmth, life and fullness. May we all stay focused on our intentions!

Lime Lineup

Had to get the brushes going again, and limes were available.

Sunlit Corner (completed)

Last finishing touches of deepening the darks in the distance and defining the clump of trees in the middle. Painting seems like such a recurring theme of lights and darks.

Last pomengranate

Today I finally decided on a convenient still life area and set up my supplies and a proper structure for it. So much better! My friend Mary came over and we energized it by painting. Problem - in the initial enthusiasm, I didn't do a preliminary sketch and therefore the neck of the bottle is cut off. Lesson learned. But I am happy with the pomengranate!

Sunlit Corner (update)

Last posted on Nov 27, this painting is still in process as I am getting great feedback and critique from Ian.

Escape

Was in Toronto for the past 10 days - had just finished these tomatoes before I left, and was really looking forward to paint each day. Seems that my concept of a "painting a day" is being very stretched!

Pomengranates

After several duds, I finally decided to do some still life. Promengranates are in season now, and so I bought a case of them. Such interesting fruit to paint - round yet angular. The basket is woven sweetgrass that I brought back from Charleston.

Sunlit corner

Ian showed me this sweet spot at the edge of the house, of lights and darks, horizontals and verticals. The morning sun changed so fast, that it became confusing and was difficult to finish on location. I did take a good photo and completed it at home.
This completes the South Carolina workshop pieces.

Roadway by Blue Heron Pond

The roadway was backlit by the afternoon sun, and the feathery type of bushes looked magical.

The Marsh at Kiawah

We were looking at the different hues in the marsh grasses in the autumn, and how yellow ochre unifies the big mass of the marsh. I added the puddle of water afterwards, to anchor the mass. Next day at high tide, only strips of grass were showing.

Kiawah Island

We were painting masses and shapes that were interesting, and in this case, were overlapping too. The flat golden plane is the marsh.

The Dove Field

Back to Mullet Hall, South Carolina - this is the dove hunting field - the doves sit on the wires. There was back lighting, and the little corn shoots were lit up like fairy lights. Ian muted my yellow dabs - too distracting.

November in Ontario

Painted in a workshop today with my group. We were shown the effects of priming the canvas with a strong colour. Mine was primed with burnt sienna, cad orange, alizarin crimson and some black for this fall scene. Makes the scene very warm - quite the opposite of the frigid weather here today.

Reflections

Last Friday, we went to paint at Mullet Hall, a private hunting lodge near Kiawah Island. Along the way, we did see alligators resting in the water. This composition is all about using the water and reflections as shapes.

Eagle Point

This is the afternoon painting of the same site, the tip of Kiawah Island, as yesterday's posting. The tide was receding and little crabs were scurrying around in places. I choose this view for the overlay of shapes - from layers of grasses to trees to the still foggy distance.

Foggy Morning at the Marsh

The full moon brought high tide, and so the path on the marshes was slightly flooded. It was a beautiful foggy morning that changed rapidly as we set up. I was working on seeing the many different colours in the marsh grass.

Alligator Pond

South Carolina was magnificent, the plein air workshop with Ian Roberts tremendous, and the whole reunion joyful. The suitcase with most of the paintings has not arrived yet, so I am posting what I have. This was a compositional quick study. Maybe it was quick because it did sit in the back of my mind that alligators have been seen here in the past.

Katie's Teapot

Katie brought me this teapot from South Africa and this is my first attempt at painting of it. I love its shape and vibrant colour.
Tomorrow I leave for South Carolina for a reunion and plein air painting workshop. Will have lots to post on my return.

Behind the Barn

This is actually the back corner of a riding arena, that was sunny and warm on a chilly fall day.

Sumac patch by country road

Early autumn, my sister Francesca and I were in the Kingston area on an equestrian clinic, and at breaks would walk down this delightful little county road. I made a sketch of this vivid spot in nature. It is said that a tea made from the fruit of the sumac has all the nutrients needed to sustain a person for many days, should they be lost in the forest.

Laurentian Foothills

Dec 12 - have added some shrubs to break up the big green field.

Behind us are our mini mountains, the Laurentian foothills that run along the Ottawa River. They go through the most interesting colours - from deep purples, intense cobalt blue to faded out greys. In the crisp morning air today, they are very blue. Maybe I painted them a little too dominant and the eye gets stuck there. Opinions?