Re-Visiting

   Subtle Surprise, 10 x 10 (2011)

Or, maybe this post should be called "Re-Gifting!"  I have painted light flowing across beribboned boxes for several years now (especially at Christmas); trying different approaches keeps me interested -- and/or frustrated!  

This was the set-up

One of the first takes I did on a box tied with satin ribbon was three years ago, below:

Don't Tell, 10 x 10  (2008)

This one is more Christmas-y, with high value contrast.  I like the freshness here, and feel that I did a better job on the satin ribbon...maybe the first time's the charm!  

Les Petites Oeuvres and Other Fun

Ooh La La, 6 x 6

Well, here is a little MacKenzie - Childs vase that I just HAD to buy, as I loved the jauntiness of it! Since it is "small works" season at Huff Harrington and all around, I get to do what I really enjoy -- painting in the small format. As I often preach, little studies invite immediate response and loose brushwork, which are goals of mine in all of my paintings.  I guess that these little ones reduce my investment in the outcome -- which usually results in a better outcome!

And a few more:

Radish Dance, 6 x 6

BFF's, 6 x 6

Before and After

Solitaire,   30 x 30,  Original Version

Solitaire, 30 x 30,  New Version ( colors are closer to the actual in this photo )

Well, I'm not sure if I improved matters, but I saw the original version at Huff Harrington a few weeks ago, and thought it looked too flat, as though someone had been sitting on the roses.   So I brought the painting home and added the upper rose on the left, intending to play the angles.  Now it looks to me like I glued the new rose onto the painting (maybe I need to warm it?)  Yikes, I hate going back into a painting ... but the desire to "improve things" is always there, tempting me to tinker --  I have a feeling that it's not done yet! 

OK, Here They Are

Well, I am posting some very cool paintings done at last Sunday's "Fall Tune Up" workshop at Huff Harrington.  Wish I had taken some shots of the set-ups, and the people, but at workshops I start running around and forget to take photos.  Luckily, my painting friends sent me some!

Photo of my hand (!) during a speedy demo on warm-up paintings.  

Meanwhile, look at the good radish paintings created by participants that day:

Elizabeth Lines, strong design, soft touch

Ilene Baker, bold and free

Jean Dortch - loose and colorful

Daly Smith - shimmery and warm

Margaret Hutchinson - dynamic and expressive

And look at the paintings of my old French confit pot:

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Kathy Cousart, simple and strong

Jean Dortch, done with a paper towel, no less!

Now, on to irises, which I warned people not to do -- too complicated, etc. --  and they made a liar of me:

 

Daly Smith, soft and sophisticated

Regina Holderness,  dynamic design and complimentary color

That's me again - another swift demo before I set them loose! Whew, these dynamos put me to shame...

I

Positive Vibes

Rose Meditation, 6 x 6

Yesterday, I taught a one-day workshop at Huff Harrington, with THE nicest group of painters, many of whom are friends from past classes, along with some new and fun additions!  It was a high-energy, fast-paced practice session, using a limited palette, doing 3 - 6 studies from simple set-ups of fruit, crockery, flowers.  One gal did SIX paintings, working in between 3 brief demos and lunch : )

We talked about the importance of shorthand -- i.e. less strokes, more paint, shape rather than detail. We tried to remember to look more, paint less.  We talked about giving up our investment in each painting "turning out." Maybe because of that, so many paintings done yesterday were strong, colorful and free-- I'll post some images next time!  

Sketches

Christine, 12 x 12

Yvonne, a painter and friend, sometimes hires a model and invites several others on consecutive Mondays for a few hours.  I went two weeks ago, and didn't get a painting I liked, but I did do this brief sketch that evokes a bit of the elegant pose.  Life studies of all subject matter are SO important, as I quickly realized after about a year away from live models...I am going again next Monday, and look forward to seeing what develops!!