Sunday, January 31, 2010

Bed of roses

Sunday post: where I take the day off and post something from my website.
This is an experimental painting. I painted from my head without any planning, rough sketch etc... just went at it. I was really into Klimt at the time and you can see his influences. Actually, I'm still into him : ) Loved his sense of pattern and design.
24" x 30" / acrylic on canvas

Saturday, January 30, 2010

Pucker up!

The citrus scent was delicious when I sliced this juicy lemon. Truly I just wanted to sink my teeth into it even though I knew it would make me pucker up something awful. A good shot of vitamin C. As for the painting itself, I'm kind of fond of the wedge on the right : ) I got the glow I was chasing.
6" x 6" / oil on panel / $75

Friday, January 29, 2010

Magic in a vase - SOLD

I love painting flowers. I think of them like a bunch of miracles. Just think of what a seed looks like - a little speck of brown - or think of a bulb buried in the icy, frozen soil. And every spring, tender green shoots emerge and buds pop up and flourish into these intricate, luscious, delicate blooms (that showcase impressive patterns and intricate designs). Yes, I know I'm stating the obvious but sometimes I just think it's all magic : )
6" x 6" / oil on panel / $75

Thursday, January 28, 2010

Orange row - SOLD

Perhaps I'm dreaming of summer, wanting to paint oranges and lemons. They are a nice shock of colour. Wondering if I added enough darks to the oranges? Maybe not 3-D enough. I thought about this while I was painting but then stopped myself from going further. I was conscious of wanting to keep it light and bright - but not sure if they now are reading too flat. Will have to experiment with that.
6" x 6" / oil on panel / $75

Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Silver, green and gold - SOLD

Or perhaps "Surfaces from hell" lol. But I feel pretty good. I know in summer this would have been a complete nightmare for me. So - yay! - you do learn over time : ) The vessel to the left was silver, and the green candle lantern is ribbed glass, and then there is the flower.
6" x 6" / oil on panel / $75 / SOLD

Monday, January 25, 2010

That 70s star - SOLD

But really - doesn't it look like a sassy little number with her hand on her hip on the yellow carpet? I recently picked up this copper creamer - very 70s-looking - at a thrift shop. Who knew it would make a good gown?! I hear "Staying Alive" pumping in the background...
6" x 6" / oil on panel / SOLD

Sunday, January 24, 2010

Yellow tulips

Sunday post: where I take the day off and post something from my website. Today I thought a bright painting was in order. It's been awfully gray and rainy the past 24 hours so here's a shot of spring for all those under the same conditions :)
acrylic / 12" x 16"

Saturday, January 23, 2010

Fragments

This is that beautiful, faux depression glass bowl that I bought for a buck ;-) I think what I love about it so much is the colour. When I shone the light on it, shards of robins egg blue and turquoise sparkled. I threw the lemon and cherries in there for a bit of bounce.
6" x 6" / oil on panel / $75 / SOLD

Friday, January 22, 2010

Tumbling cherries - SOLD

I keep painting these cherries while they last. Yeah...I like to buy local and all that - and definitely purchase it whenever it is an option - but I couldn't resist these cherries from Chile. First of all, I had a craving to paint them after seeing Carol Marine's, and secondly - they really do taste great. I know - it's hard to believe after coming all that way - but they taste like the ones down the road!
6" x 6" / oil on panel / $75 / SOLD

Thursday, January 21, 2010

Hide & seek

I really like painting bowls and plates from a birds-eye view. Love the circles. I had a lot fun with the shapes and colour on this one.
6" x 6" / oil on panel / $75

Wednesday, January 20, 2010

7 cherries - SOLD

Seven delicious cherries. Firm and sweet. Ahhh...makes me daydream of July...
6" x 6" / oil on panel / $75

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Good morning

This is for Carol who asked when I was going to do orange. Orange it is : ) I finally went out thrift store shopping today and picked up a couple of items. I found a couple of nice things - I'll see what I can do with them tomorrow!
6" x 6" / oil on panel / n/a

Monday, January 18, 2010

Neutrals

I hadn't planned ahead today and as a result didn't have much for a set-up so I did a bunch of glass and neutrals. A challenge for sure. I'll have to go back to this again. And I really need to go still-life hunting : )
6" x 6" / oil on panel / n/a

Sunday, January 17, 2010

Red herring

Sunday post (where I post something from my website): Red Herring
The past couple of days I've picked a colour and set-up a still life around it. It seems fitting to show a collage from a series I did in 2008, that was based on colour in language. For each piece I explored terms of speech incorporating colours, and tried to portray the literal and figurative meaning in the collage. With this piece I didn't depict the figurative meaning (a bit tough) but you will find a herring coloured red, a penny (red cent), a red hand (caught red-handed) as well as red tape (and who's not familiar with that!).
22.5" x 30" / collage on watercolour paper

Saturday, January 16, 2010

Awash in blue

Yesterday was reds, today I gathered up everything I could find in my studio that was blue. So there is my new blue glass bowl, a pot of metallic ink, a favourite teacup, a spool of thread (back from when I was sewing things onto this collage) and an empty tin of Gypsy Tea (that my friend Dawn introduced me to). It is all sitting quite comfortably on a scrap of batik fabric from my sister-in-law.
6" x 6" / oil on panel / $75 /

Friday, January 15, 2010

Study in red - SOLD

I tried to play around with my still life set-up a bit more today. I tossed a couple of apples in my new red glass dollar store vase, and then laid the amaryllis bloom in front. I'm realizing that it really helps to have a number of objects right at hand in my studio, so that I don't have to "settle" with a set-up I'm not very excited about. This will mean hunting for some more items at thrift shops, and then getting a shelf to properly store said objects. Right now I have about five. Boy - if you could see my studio now...well, let's just say I've got my work cut out for me. P.S. If anyone has tips on how to title paintings a bit more creatively, I'm all ears : )
6" x 6" / oil on panel / $75

Thursday, January 14, 2010

Winter greenery - SOLD

Another view out my studio window. A typical January scene.
6" x 6" / oil on panel / $75

Wednesday, January 13, 2010

Amaryllis - SOLD

This morning over (very good) coffee my friend introduced me to an inspiring artist named Bobbie Burgers. Wow. Good thing I saw her work before I did my daily. I zipped to the dollar store and found some heavy glass vases, plucked the amaryllis bloom that opened up yesterday, and drove to the studio.
6" x 6" / oil on panel / $75

Tuesday, January 12, 2010

Tools of the trade - SOLD

Well, actually these are the kids' paintbrushes. But I saw the jar under the sink and they looked pretty interesting. And this reminds me of one of my pet peeves: crummy paintbrushes in grade schools. I mean, really! They're wiry, plastic-y bristles with cruddy points and they don't hold paint well. How can a kid get inspired with that? (And yep - there is one of those offensive brushes on the left. I didn't buy it!) Do kids use paper protractors? Compasses made of thin bendy rubber? I think not! You need proper tools for the job. Enough said.
6" x 6" / oil on panel / $65

Monday, January 11, 2010

Cheers - SOLD

A bit of cognac. One of my favourite people celebrated a birthday on the weekend. This was one of his gifts. The light shining through the cognac looked so lovely, I knew it would have to be Monday's painting subject.
6" x 6" / oil on panel / $65

Sunday, January 10, 2010

Fall jewel

Sunday post from my website: Fall Jewel
Since I painted the winter landscape yesterday, I thought I'd show this one today. Painted in a similarly abstract fashion, I think it conveys the rich colours and textures a good October day brings.
acrylic on canvas

Saturday, January 9, 2010

January hues

I was fighting with a teacup (3 wipe-offs!) when my nephew said "Why don't you just paint that?" (pointing out my studio window). Thanks Trav!
6" x 6" / oil on panel / $65

Friday, January 8, 2010

Morning calls - SOLD

Okay - this is more like it. After all of yesterday's careful studying, this just seemed to flow. It feels good. This is one of life's simple pleasures, no?
6" x 6" / oil on panel / $65

Thursday, January 7, 2010

January clementines

This morning I met up with Patti Harris, assemblage and collage artist extraordinaire! I was picking up Pearl's Light and Pearl rocks! I just have to find her a place. Anyway, after that I went back to the studio and painted these oranges. Much, much tighter than I usually work...hmmm. I think I was trying to get my ellipses right and then had trouble painting loose strokes for fear of them getting wonky. Always more to learn : )
6" x 6" / oil on panel / $65 /

Wednesday, January 6, 2010

Hot Joe


A hot cup of coffee on a cold day. A couple little peppers thrown in for some extra spice.
6" x 6" / oil on panel / $75

Tuesday, January 5, 2010

Better than Shreddies - SOLD

This one goes out to Shari's daughter in Texas who apparently shares my fondness for marbles : )
6" x 6" / oil on panel / $65

Monday, January 4, 2010

Sunday, January 3, 2010

Spring Thaw

Sundays I take the day off and post a painting from my website. This painting is Spring Thaw. The sky and snow reminded me of today, although it is definitely nowhere near thawing temperatures out there! Brr!
acrylic on canvas / 15" x 18"

Friday, January 1, 2010

Marbles - SOLD

I was going to make some crack about "losing my marbles" but on only the first day of a new year, things are not yet too crazy! This painting was a lot of fun. I may try some variations on the subject tomorrow.
6" x 6" / oil on canvas