Apples & Greens

Apples & Greens - 6 x 6 Oil on Canvas Board

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Not much to say about this one... it's apples and greens.  Well... ok... admission time: I took an earlier painting and reworked it.  I left the apples alone but changed the background entirely.  It wasn't working for me as it was, but I really liked the apples, so I put it back on the easel and came up with something different.  I like it better :)

Memorial Day Quilting

Memorial Day Quilting - 6 x 6 Oil on Canvas Board

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This painting was done for the current DPW challenge "polka dots".  I wanted to incorporate something to do with Memorial Day, since it was painted today, which is Memorial Day.  And working with fabrics, you have a lot of leeway as far as pattern and color.  I did keep the colors pretty much the same as the actual fabrics, but changed the patterns a bit.  I probably should have gone with red and white stripes, and blue and white dots, but I didn't want it to look like I'd been cutting up an American flag! :)

Main Coon

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This was painted from a photograph of one of our cats, Bonita, whom we like to call Bobo.  It's way easier painting from a photo: your subject doesn't move, if you move slightly it doesn't throw off the whole composition, etc. etc.  Of course I took a million photos of her before I found one I liked: one of her sitting in the sun with that look that says "Ok, now is it time to eat??"

Playtime

Playtime 

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Today is the first time I have ever used gesso board.  It takes some getting used to--it was soaking up a lot of paint at first.  But that just made me mix more paint, which is a good thing.  I do like the smooth, velvety quality of the finished painting.   'Fuzz' is the beanie baby, which we found at a garage sale the other day for 50 cents.  I remember when I saw these for the first time like 10 or so years ago, and I thought they were so cute (still do).  How time flies!

Cherries Soufflé

Cherries Soufflé - 6 x 6 Oil on Canvas Board

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A Hull brown ceramic soufflé bowl, filled with cherries, that is.   I have to say, I was so happy to see cherries in the grocery store when I went a few days ago, because I've been wanting to paint AND eat them.  Mostly eat them... fresh, covered in chocolate, put in a pie... any or all of the above.  Love 'em!!

Generations

Generations - 6 x 6 Oil on Canvas Board

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This one was done for the weekly DPW challenge: "Yellow".  I have thread from my husband's grandmother, from my mom and some that I bought, so I have a collection of just about every color ever made, as well as from three generations.  I like the contrast between old and new spools, and I love the big old wooden ones.  This was a great exercise in not only getting the shades of yellow right, but also in getting the highlights, reflections and shadows of the thread to look somewhat accurate.

Vitamin C

Vitamin C - 6 x 6 Oil on Canvas Panel

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Wow, this is a lot of color for me!  Well it's kind of fun.  It reminds me of lifesaver colors, but a bit more healthy.  I actually started this out as an entry for the DPW weekly challenge "Yellow", with a lemon, but the lemon got nixed, and the cherries took it's place.  I have so much fruit in my kitchen right now!!!  I actually got two paintings done today and the other one managed to get some yellow in it for the challenge.  I'll post it tomorrow.

Apples & Pitcher

Apples & Pitcher - 6 x 6 Oil on Canvas Board

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I love these red delicious apples because they have all the values built right in, especially when lit right.  Usually when I think a painting is not working, it's because the values aren't there.   So throwing a couple apples into the composition will always take care of the problem :)

Mom's Mouse

Mom's Mouse - 6 x 6 Oil on Canvas Board

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Shifting gears today and going with something other than food—partly because I haven't gone to the grocery store yet.  But I am also doing this in honor of Mother's day (a day late).  This is my mom's old well-used pin cushion.  I cleaned it up a bit, you almost couldn't see the mouse for all the pins, needles and thread covering it :)

And here is Zora trying to get in the picture again...

Zora, trying to tell me something.

Strawberries & Wine

Strawberries & Wine - 6 x 6 Oil on Canvas Board

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Yet another wine bottle...  I liked the way the red against the dark background turned black and made a nice reflection.  On another note, I'm teaching some friends how to make sculptural ceramic tiles out of my garage on Saturday mornings—tomorrow is another get-together to do tile-making.  So I may not get to the easel for a few days, but we'll be having fun.  If I ever finish my tiles, I'll post one or two.

Fruit & Flower

Fruit & Flower - 6 x 6 Oil on Canvas Board

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The daisy was part of a bunch of flowers that my husband bought me for my birthday, which was a week ago.  These flowers are lasting a good long time.  He must have gone somewhere other than the grocery store, which is where I usually go, get what's on sale, and wonder why the flowers only lasted 2 days...  I got a good guy :)

Clementines

Clementines - 6 x 6 Oil on Canvas Board

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Tangerines... one of my favorite fruits :)  I am really liking my new brush too.  It's amazing what a different tool will do.  Since I am challenged mixing colors sometimes, I also started using a 'color testing card'.  I got a small scrap of mount board and coated it with gesso.  When I start my paintings and put down the ground color, I put that same ground color on my scrap piece, then when I'm painting and not sure I've got a color right, I test it on my little scrap board first.  That way the painting can stay a little more fresh looking.  I figure color mixing will become easier as I go along, but for now, this helps.

Tres Deliciosos

Tres Deliciosos - 6 x 6 Oil on Canvas Board

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I went back to the basics today after doing some experimenting, and I'm happier.  When in doubt, simplify!  I also got a bigger brush, and that is working for me too.
I thought I'd also post a picture of my little helper... the newest member of the Brancik household, Zora.  She wanted so much to get in the picture.  I promise I'll paint you too some day soon, Zora.  (Note also the fancy shmancy still life box behind her... a cardboard box with holes cut in it :)

Zora, future model

Becca

Becca - 16 x 12 Oil on Canvas

This is another piece I did during our Tuesday figure session: Becca, another of our lovely models.  I just got it back from the annual Michigan Fine Arts Exhibition at the Birmingham Bloomfield Art Center where it was on display for the month of April.

Wine Bottle 3

Wine Bottle 3 - 6 x 6 Oil on Canvas Board

Here is the third installment of wine bottle paintings.  I did the red and yellow ones already, so here's the green—or Chenin Blanc if you are a wine person (which I'm not).  I threw some different colors in the background experimentally—I'm not quite sure yet, I think I like it, but the jury is still out...

Italian Tonight

Italian Tonight - 6 x 6 Oil on Canvas Board

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Well, we didn't really have Italian tonight because my sweetie took me out to Cinco Lagos, our local Mexican restaurant, and it was delicious :D  For some reason the reds wanted to blend together when photographing this one, so it's not exact, but it's close.  I'll give it another try tomorrow.

Dianne in Kimono

Dianne in Kimono - 6 x 6 Oil on Canvas Board

I thought I would post one of my figure studies that I do on Tuesdays with a group of artist friends.  This one I did today--it's a quick (fairly) figure study of beautiful Dianne, one of our regular models.  Unfortunately I could have used another hour or so, but isn't that always the case...