Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Andrea's Shoe, 6 x 6 "

My friend Andrea gave me a bag of wonderful, vintage sample shoes that I plan to explore in my still life paintings. I couldn't resist pairing this with tissue paper that caught the light and reflected colors of this amazing fabric.

You may have wondered, as my loyal art supporter and critic John has, why my subject matter is all over the place. I'm sure there's a thread of me tying it all together; right now I guess my paintings reveal that I'm drawn to a variety of subjects. My internal voice says, "Ooh! look at that! Ooh! did you see those colors? Can I do that?"

I expect I'll settle down soon. This shoe, for instance, deserves a few drawings and paintings. Let's see where it takes me. If another landscape or person pops in here and there, don't be surprised. I'm drawing people a lot behind the scenes and outdoor scenes appeal to me, too! ; )

8 comments:

Sunny West said...

Dear Pam, You need not apologize for the variety in your painting subjects...you are exploring, adventuring and learning. I love seeing the challenges you take on and the growth in your work! Bravo!

Linda Popple said...

This is wonderful and looks like it was fun to paint. I like that you paint many subjects. Why not? :-)

Libby Fife said...

Is it really so bad to paint many different subjects? Seems to me that the experience would be very valuable.

In the meantime, I love that shoe and the shape created by the addition of the tissue paper. It made me take a second look to see what was going on:)

Pam Perras said...

Thank you all for your comments! I see the value of both sides.

Painting all different subjects is fun, and I'm sure I learn a lot from doing that, but...

If I paint a series or several paintings of the same genre, I can focus more on HOW to paint, because I'll be very familiar with the subject and not have to figure that out as well. I think that COULD help! Does this make sense?

(I'm kind of tired...working on a graphic design project, which required a late night!)

Judy Hartman said...

I love this Pam! So elegant yet whimsical. I think it's great that you explore all kinds of subjects - why not??
It was great seeing you today!

Claudia Hammer a Painting a day said...

The painting of this shoe is wonderful, the warm highlights and cool shadows make it come alive. The tissue paper adds a wonderful visual element that mimics a where the leg would be and the added color in the tissue is fabulous! Nice job!

Robin said...

Hi Pam,

I have been following your blog - keep up the hard work! Love the lighting in this painting...the glow! Are you taking the Cameron Bennett workshop?

Pam Perras said...

Hi Robin,

Yes, I'm taking a 12-week class with Cameron Bennett. I've only been drawing there so far. Cameron has been using Loomis examples for me to draw from to learn proportions for portraits. What I love about his approach is he's encouraging me and others to slow down and focus on "seeing" and drawing (or painting) accurately. For some reason, I've often felt I have to hurry when I paint. (Could be the plein air challenge to capture a scene before the light changes!) Anyway, I plan to paint plein air again, soon, but in the meantime, I'm enjoying looking and understanding more what I see and do.