Striped Sock Monster!
January 8, 2014
Attack of the striped Sock Monster on a cold winter day!
Striped Sock Monster 6×6 #2014_01_07
Found: 1 lonely sock in our laundry with no mate. It is all alone.
Stripe Socks! What better inspiration for painting today?
I really did have fun just playing with the patterns and shapes for this one. I am still trying to focus on looser play between shapes and shadows. The colors were a bit challenging to get the warm colors I wanted. I love the contrast of the stripes playing against the bright and cheery backgrounds.
I already have a few other ideas kicking around for the next painting. 🙂
Fresh Beets!
January 6, 2014
Fresh Beets!
Fresh Beets! 6×6 2014_01_06
Best way to get your daily vegetables – paint them!
Today, I focused on simplifying my brush strokes to get more expressive paint movements. I set up a cool shadow warm light sequence. I pushed in loose lights with pure yellows to establish the brightness. Then loosely worked in my shape zones.
No I did not count every brush stroke. I did focus on effective color harmonies and working with my larger 1/2 filbert brush.
I absolutely love this painting! It feels so fresh and lush.
Airplane Gardens
October 30, 2013
Airplane Garden 6×6 2013_10_29
Click to Bid here.
My recent adventures yielded a new Airplane plant with lots of happy baby shoots. I have the perfect balcony niche for it to drape over.
I noticed it nestled into the evening shadows after sunset. The low light offered a nice opportunity to play with lost shapes and edges as well as colors. So I moved my Easy-L out on to the landing and started painting. I enjoyed pushing paint and working out color shifts. I love defining the shapes of wisps and floating tendrils with playful brushwork.
It was a fun stretch for daily painting.
Today’s Maters.
August 26, 2013
Today’s Maters. 6″x6″ ID#
Available soon! – Click here to Bid!
Today’s Maters are today’s paintings.
This trio of tomatoes offer another chance to explore complimentary balance of cobalt and cadmium. Though the ellipses and lighting tones of the plate proved a bit of more tricky.
Glad to have time to work through paintings again.
Need to acquire more produce to fill my bowls for new paint inspirations.
Summer Tomatoes!
August 25, 2013
Summer Tomatoes. 6″x6″ oil on panel. ID#2013.08.25
Click to Bid here!
Got to love the local farmers markets. You never know what you can find. Daily dose of vegetables leads to daily painting. 🙂 I have been waiting to paint these summer tomatoes since yesterday morning! I love the subtle under tones of cadmium and thought it would be a fun contrast against my favorite blue bowls.
So after a few sketches and wipe offs, I settled into this birds-eye composition. I focused on simplifying the shapes and layers to build up the depth. While playing with the balance of the complimentary color scheme. Turned out nicely.
Complimentary Quarters
August 12, 2013
Yay!! I started and finished a new daily painting yesterday!!! Yay!
Complimentary Quarters.
6×6. oil on panel.
It has been nearly 3 months since I have had dedicated time for painting.
I can hardly believe 3 months summer vacation has flown by with home and studio projects here. But all the labor is painting off with a studio that is starting to come together. I still have plenty of work to do in there, but I have dedicated work space, dedicated lights, and room enough (I hope) . Space enough to open up my small Easy-L easel and get some fresh painting mixed on a small study. A chance to renew dedicated paint space and times. Yay!!!
Moments later… my six-year-old wants to share and paint with mommy – the real paint, too. Hmph.
My son declared this past week that my studio was too small and had no room for him to paint. So yesterday’s morning started out slow reconfiguring still life and joint paint space for the two of us. In the pinch, I resorted to using a set stool for his easel set up.
Painting and teaching my six-year-old at the same time, not so much. Left brain/ bright brain…Teach or paint, not both in same space / time. I can demo sketching and roughing in the painting for him. So I set to instruct him in minors ways and come back to try painting later in the evening. Accurate paint mixing requires a dedicated right brain activity, to which does not respond well to the chatter.
After bath time routine, I did manage to sneak away to my studio. I wiped off the panel, sketched a fresh composition, and set to mixing fresh clean paint. These are what I managed, sketches, painting… etc.
Happy start on daily painting here… second start for the day to end the day.
Cascarones for Annie! ~more Colorful Fun!
April 10, 2012
Today’s left overs – Cascarones!
Well what’s left from our weekend adventures. My backyard is littered with a menagerie of colorful confetti. At least I will have color back there when the sunflowers fade for the summer.
But it does make for fun painting.
So here is tonight’s play in paint and color.
Cascarones for Annie! 5x7 #2012.04.10
The confetti eggs are very vibrant but the challenge in painting them is figuring out a composition to feature the confetti inside. I intentionally featured the traditional cardboard egg crate too. Good thing I got pictures because I expect the last dozen will be cracked open tomorrow after school.
The Figgy Truth
July 7, 2011
Figgy Truth. 5x7. 2011.07.07
Today is the Figgy Truth.
This a 5″x7″ study worked with a focus on warm light cool shadows. A fig may not appear much on the outside but the inside that makes it all worth it. Cut it in half and you get to see the complex core of what makes it a summer sweet in the south or a nice addition to study.
This one will be ready to go to its new home as soon as it dries in a few days.
Sun Lit Box Turtle.
June 21, 2011
Sometimes, you get to second guessing what you see and how to paint what you feel. This is one of those pieces.
Box Turtle. 6x6. 2011_06_21. updated*
After a brief rummage in the toy box, this is what I found to paint today! Happy Turtle is a subtle play of compliments between yellow and violet. When I mix the two I end up with a neutral green shade that worked well for the turtle so I went with it. This one will be ready to go in a few days for a sweet little deal of $60 + shipping.
Starting Fresh
June 21, 2011
Here it is!
My long awaited blog is here featuring daily paintings, adventures and research. My subjects vary from the playful still life to intriguing city scape exploring the balance of light and dark within each painting.
The goal is to create 5 new paintings a week. I have completed 5 paintings in 7 days! Woot. Sorry, I had 2 days of non-painting, and 2 crash & burners, thrown in there for emergency family needs. I will continue to post a new painting each day so long as life allows.
Blue Kitty 2. 5x7 2011.06.18
Orange / Blue spit compliment study. To purchase please click here.
Ren's Garden Strawberrys. 8x10. 2011.06.15
Green / Red split compliment study. To Purchase please click here.
Blue Kitty. 11x14. 2011.06.14.
Limited Blues study. To purchase please click here.
Reds & Yellows. 9x12. 2011.06.13
Dramatic Light, playful subjects. To purchase please click here.
Feel free to browse and comment on these. Sales links are attached. Future posts will be daily inspirations and creations.
amccarthyart 