Oil Painting of a Rose in Cut Glass Vase

"Red Rose in Cut Glass"

9" x 12", Oil on Linen Panel

Time for a little alla prima piece. While polished realist pieces offer a challenge in terms of bringing a painting to convincing finish, alla prima painting (painting in one sitting), offers a freshness and immediacy that's hard to accomplish over several sittings. I try to keep my hand in alla prima painting because I learn more about color and paint handling by doing them. It also allows me to complete more paintings in a given amount of time, thereby increasing my practice. While viewing my two kinds of work may be sometimes confusing to a patron, I think that my personal handwriting manages to show through in both. What can I say. I have Gemini on my midhaven. 

Painting of Three Pears, 6" x 8"

"Conquering Hero", Oil on Linen, 6" x 8"

Pears always make a good painting. There's something about their shape and the variety of colors that they come in. I painted these cute little fruits in a more layered technique than usual, using glazes and a bit of scumbling. I generally paint small pieces as alla prima works, or works done in a single sitting for Daily Paintworks, but my sessions kept being interrupted by one thing or another and so it evolved into a longer painting with more passes. The title came to me in a heartbeat when I put them on the cloth, turned around for a second and then turned back to arrange them and they had arranged themselves. Cute huh?  

Oil Painting of Green Teapot and Mandarin Oranges

"Tea and Mandarins"Oil on Linen mounted on Board, 8" x 6"

SOLD

I've been doing some small alla prima paintings to post on Daily Paintworks and this little piece is my latest. The crystalline glaze teapot was a gift many years ago and has remained my favorite over the years. I love it's shape and the way it holds light very softly. I've painted it in a dozen different ways in both alla prima and a very polished high realism.

Practice and all that Jazz

Here's a little portrait I did for practice the other day. Her name is Bridgette. She's a friend and former student and has perfect bone structure. I enjoy doing these little portraits because I can get them done quickly. I took a break from a very large project I've been working on for five months. Haven't gotten much else done but I'm almost finished and it will be good to get back to smaller projects that are more speedily completed.

"Bridgette"