Remembering Snow, exercise, 6 x 6"

 

We've been getting so much snow here, just north of Boston. The piles outside are at least 4 feet high! This is a memory painting of sorts...remembering the snow, but taking liberties with the landscape. Much more on the way...snow, I meant. But I could do more paintings of it. Why not?  : ) 

Keep On Truckin' 2, 9 x 12", cropped

Why, you ask? Why another truck with eggs? Because, I'm learning!

I think the drawing here is more accurate and perhaps the composition feels more comfortable than my original 12 x 12" painting (still to come in it's finished state). I was more aggressive in the colors I used—there's more contrast in the lights and darks of the eggs and the blue background is more saturated. I'm not saying it's better overall, just stating what's different. Do stay tuned, if you dare, to see the final 12 x 12" painting. I'll post new paintings after this, for a change of subject. Whew.

Keep On Truckin', 12 x 12"

Here’s the second of my truck paintings and once again, I feel something's not quite right—aside from my photo being a little soft-focused. I may need to adjust the “whites” of my eggs. I'll let this painting sit a bit so I can regain my strength and determination! I’d love to achieve the subtle effects I envision, but this is the best I can do right now. Gotta keep on truckin’!

Bird, Bottle, Egg, Round Two, 6x6"

It's time for me to move on. I've learned that this bird has a tricky face to paint, when I look directly at it. I've learned that "white" and I don't get along just yet. But, I'm about to embark on a color adventure, with play and discovery through exercises my main goal. Color charts? Maybe not yet!

I discovered Kathryn Townsend, www.kathryntownsend.blogspot.com, who's been creating wonderful paintings using a limited palette, based on Peggy Kroll Roberts' dvds: http://www.krollroberts.com/index.html. Kathryn's observations about what she's learning are also interesting. I love that I'll be able to paint still lifes while learning about color in a more systematic way. If you have ideas on how to learn more about color, feel free to share. I hope the links I've included here work!

Truck and Pear, 12 x 12"

Well, what can I say? This subject matter is a bit of a departure for me, perhaps, although an earlier still life that included a toy truck has gone the way of other "learning" paintings and was collected by a different kind of truck some time ago!

One thing that links this painting to others is my interest in the subtleties within colors, whether they are the whites of garlic, the reds of a truck, or the yellows of a pear. I experimented a bit with the application of the paint, to reflect the rough and tough qualities of the truck and suggest the wood of the table and some reflections. I was also very interested in capturing the quality of light on the passenger pear. I'm realizing I need to draw more often; it was a challenge to get the truck drawn just so!