Playing the blues

untitled blue 6x6 oil, copyright 2012

A week or so ago I found myself very frustrated with a pastel - it wasn't (and really still isn't) working out and I needed a break from it.  There are a few of this little gallery wrap canvases lying around, so I decided to attack one with blue paint and a palette knife.  The original plan, such as it was, was to paint the sky with a few clouds.  That notion disappeared as the paint got thicker and took a life of its own.   If you squint a little bit, it almost looks like a landscape, maybe water rushing around hills or mountains.    Or not.  

I haven't decided if I will keep or paint over it, but it was therapeutic to not have to worry about the end result.  And of course I do love my blues!

Glimpses

              Edge of Spring 7x5 pastel, copyright 2012   

                                                                   Towards Evening 7x5 pastel, copyright 2012


This weekend I played a bit with the smaller format for pastel while trying to work from memory.  These two views were glimpsed from the freeway on the way home after a soccer game Saturday evening.  There is definitely a learning curve involved in capturing a barely seen image on a small piece of paper.  Creating a sense of depth and getting the proportions right are probably the most challenging things.  Hopefully by summer I'll have a good grasp of it.











                                                 

Background drama

Zinnia with Bud Vase, 6x6 oil, copyright 2011

We've had several hard frosts this week, killing all my flowers with the exception of these little ones that I'm pretty sure are zinnias.  Zinnias are normally sensitive to harsh weather so I'm not sure how they've managed to hang on so long, but they offer a nice bright splash of color to what is becoming a rather dull landscape.  This composition came to me when I first picked them, but I ignored it and instead attempted to paint three of them in a clear glass jar.  That one wasn't working - and ended up getting wiped -  so I went with my original idea and found that I should have followed my instincts to begin with.

The flower and vase seemed to be working quite well at first, but somehow it still was a bit boring.  I turned to other artists to see how they handled still life and realized that the background made a huge difference.  At first this one was almost a solid pale blue, which is what I used for the set up in the studio.   But looking at the works of David Cheifetz in particular I realized that a dramatic backdrop can push the subjects forward and make them far more interesting.  I've been playing a bit with light and shadows, but seeing the difference in the before and after on this one (wish I'd taken photos!) really hit home - I will definitely keep it in mind for future reference.

It's funny though, the hardest part was know when to stop.  I kept seeing little things that needed to be corrected - a bit of white here, a splash of yellow there.  Hopefully my taking a photo will encourage me to stop messing with it.  The saying comes to mind, "It takes two people to make a painting: the artists to paint it, and another to stop him before he ruins it."  I think I stopped in time...