Rose and Berries

Rose and Berries - 6 x 6 Oil on Gesso Board

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Occasionally, while out doing my grocery shopping,  I'll buy a rose and berry bouquet that is on sale for $3.99, and once in a great while I will actually paint it.  I think the thing is that it takes more time and more patience to paint... two things I could use more of :)

Calico Kitten

Calico Kitten - 6 x 6 Oil on Gesso Board

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Well, calico tiger kitten to be more precise.  This is a painting from an old photo of our cat Belleza, when she was a baby.  My husband found her out back of his office building, hiding in a hole in the ground.  We already had two cats at the time, and said "NO more"... famous last words.  She was just too cute.

I also wanted to mention that I have the honor of being the Daily Paintworks Spotlight Artist of the week this week!   You can read my interview and have the chance to win one of my paintings here: http://dpwnews.blogspot.com/

Thank you, as always, for your interest in my work!

Tea with Cream and Honey

Tea with Cream and Honey - 6 x 6 Oil on Gesso Board

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Here's a good way to handle painting labels (referring to my last post): obscure them with a cup handle so you don't have to paint the lettering :)   Luckily, positioning the cup and the honey like this just happened to work out compositionally.   I've had this honey bear hanging out in my studio for quite some time, waiting to get painted, so here he is finally.  I like him.  I think he may make another appearance down the road...

Pear & Raspberry Jam

Pear & Raspberry Jam - 6 x 6 Oil on Gesso Board

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I wasn't quite sure how to handle the label on this jar of raspberry jam.  I don't like doing the lettering, but it needed something there.  And I really like the homemade 'look' of this jar (even though I bought it at the local grocery chain store.)  Reminds me of the homemade strawberry jam my mom used to make after we went strawberry picking with the whole family.  Ahh, the good old days :)

Pear & Pomegranate

Pear & Pomegranate - 6 x 6 Oil on Gesso Board

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I'm fascinated by the pomegranates—the beautiful color and interesting shapes— but have yet to eat one.  I've been hearing all the buzz about their health benefits, so I should probably dig in and try it at least.   I'm not even sure if I should eat the berries raw, or if it's better to prepare them somehow??

Three Quarters

Three Quarters - 6 x 6 Oil on Gesso Board

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It doesn't show as much in the photo, but these orange pieces are really bright.  I almost called the painting "Dayglow Oranges".  But I didn't use dayglow colors!  I used Cadmium Orange instead of Cad Red mixed with Cad Yellow, because I felt that I couldn't quite get that bright color of the inside of an orange, especially with light shining on and through it.  I may have pushed the intensity a bit too far, but I like it.  I'm not going for photo realism anyway, more like impressionism.  And the brightness of the orange, to me, echos the zing you get when you first bite into one... mmm :)

Lazy Daisies

Lazy Daisies - 6 x 6 Oil on Gesso Board

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Another semi-quick study from a photo of some daisies I had a while ago.  I liked how they were just laying on my work surface, so snapped some photos for future reference.  These last few paintings are done on gesso board instead of canvas board (they're a bit more affordable than the Raymar canvas boards I'd been using).  It takes some getting used to, but I'm getting there.   I ordered a whole bunch, so I'll be working on it for a while, but the jury is still out as far as my favorite painting surface.  After this bunch is used up... ??