ELO and her Cello

 My granddaughter got to choose an instrument to play when she was in 4th grade.SHe pondered the choice for some time, explored her options and finally settled on the cello. The day she got her cello, she sat on her bed just hugging it. It was cello love.

I like to paint special moments in her life and have been trying to do one each year. This painting is her 2024 version.

I strayed from my usual style somewhat creating an abstract background and a splash of blue on the cello where the rflection was to lead the eye connecting her to the cello. I pushed the warmth of the cello and the shirt color to harmonize with the blues. I like the tilt of the instrument tying together the angles of her arms and legs as they encompassed her new love. I learned that painting a head tilted at an angle is much more difficult than one that is upright. She was delighted when I gave her the painting.

"Cheers-How do you like your Bookers?"

It was a commission conundrum.

 My former brother-in-law's request to paint a Christmas present for his son left me free to choose the subject matter. I was baffled as to what to pick. I hadn't seen him since he was 2 years old. What I knew, I learned from my daughter and Facebook. I knew he had bartended and worked in the liquor industry. 

         When thinking about what to paint for him, I flashed back to my daughter's  3rd birthday: there he was scooping the frosting off her cake before we even lit the candles. She was a little perplexed and the rest of us were cracking up laughing. 

I figured he loved a party then and from what I could tell that hadn’t changed-so “Cheers-how do you like your Bookers?” is my painting for him. 

      I was figuring out my set up to paint with one of our go to favorites-Bookers**, when my son suggested I use the  Mad Men glasses. I agreed they were more fun than the cut glass I had originally put there, so the idea was a bit of a collaboration. The orange is in case you'd like  a Manhattan, but also to create a bit of color harmony.

      I hope he enjoys his painting.

An unusual commission

Usually when people commission me to do a painting, they have a specific idea of what they want. When my former brother in law requested I paint 3 paintings for each of his grown children for a Christmas present, he told me to decide what to paint. He gave me a budget and a time frame. It was freeing, but at the same time daunting. I had only kept in touch through facebook since my divorce almost 50 years earlier.  I had spent a lot of time with them when they were little at Cape Cod. This seemed like the obvious choice for me as it connected us with memories at their grandparents summer home in Brewster.

When I was trying to decide what to paint, I wanted to have two paintings that were  completely different but definitely and completely connected, because that is how I always think of the twins. 

My thoughts of times shared at the Brewster house seemed the perfect choice. The place is so beautiful (like the two of them) and offered great memories as well as many choices for subject matter.

So here are my paintings  of the Brewster beach. This was one of those rare times that low tide coincides with sunset and the flats reflect the light in all it's glory. 

It is a cosmic experience-same night, same beach, two different views. My daughter suggested they could trade the paintings back and forth or even take turns hanging them together.  I hope that they bring joy for years to come.

 

Filoli Rose

On a recent trip to CA, my daughter took us to Filoli. in Woodside, CA. (https://filoli.org/ ) The place was incredible. The history and the formal gardens were captivating.  I knew immediately that I had to paint something to commemorate the experience. My own roses always end up with japenese beetles. The roses here were perfection. SO the decision was an easy one.

I choose to paint looking into the rose itself with it's varying shades of pinks and peach hues and it's highlights and shadows. I cropped it to focus on that particular aspect rather than the shape of the entire rose itself. It was challenging to try and capture the feeling of depth and the curling petals. In the end, it was rewarding to have a little bit of Filoli on  my canvas.

 

My Hollyhock obsession

 This 12x36 canvas seemed to call out to me to paint more hollyhocks. It was during Covid and most of my painting was plein air in my yard or working from photos. These gorgeous flowers growing right by the back door were a no brainer. Because the yard sloped down in back, the hollyhocks stood out against the clear blue sky. Having only a few feet between my subject and my canvas gives an intimate view into the flowers themselves.  I liked the immediacy of the experience, the multiple views of the flowers themselves as they rotated around the stalks and the various stages of development from buds to full blooms. The pink and red flowers allowed for mixing a range of values with a very limited palette. I intentionally let the lower section begin to dissolve into an abstarct area to keep the viewer in the scene. This painting won first place at the Patriot Place  Gallery show. I  am keeping this one  for myself.

Painting Plein Air in the back yard

Painting plein air in my own backyard provides me with multiple possibilities, a convenient setting for taking breaks, and an opportunity to revisit the same spot on multiple days with the assurance that it will remain unchanged. This 18x24 painting, "Standing Tall" was done over several days.  Being able to look into the flowers and see the subtle variations in color is something that can't be done using a photo reference. These particular flowers grow along the edge of my vegetable garden. The woods that are behind provide a deep dark backdrop to the scene. The rhythmic pattern of the leaves and flowers creates a  pleasing path moving the viewer through the painting. The vertical repetition gives a sense of regal importance to these beauties as they rise up tall and impressive along the fence. The reds and greens create a natural color harmony and a warmth to the sunlit flowers. 

 

These Martha Washington peonies grow outside my back door. Peonies are one of my favorite flowers and over the years I have added different varities to my gardens. To me, this variety is one of the most bautiful. During Covid most of my painting was done outside in my yard. This is one of those paintings. The beautiful centers contrasting with the pink petals is part of what I love about these flowers; so I decided to focus on them close up and detailed rather than in a big bunch. The rich red green color harmony and the beautiful texture of the petals stand out against the neutral negative spaces. This painting was recently selected for the Norwood Art association cover photo for their facebook page. The painting sold immediately after I painted it. I set up some paintings on easels in my yard for one of my collectors who was missing coming to the gallery while we were closed for Covid. She immediately picked out this one. She told me my paintings brought her happiness.