Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Humpty Hump Day

Yes, it's Wednesday. Hump Day. Middle of the week. What ever you want to call it, Wednesday seems to be here before you know it. Wednesdays make me think...hmmm, what have I done this week? Did I talk to my sister? Have I been to get groceries? Are all my chores done? Where can the week be going? What do I have to show for it? Do you do this? Think that every moment has to be accounted for, has to have been worth something, has to mean something? I try to get past that nagging little voice in my head (or that little character on my shoulder, like in cartoons) and enjoy life. My family, my life (with what talents I have) are gifts from God and I plan on enjoying them to the fullest. With that in mind, may I now present my latest works of art.

This first piece is done on an 8 x 10 watercolor canvas. The reference photo that I used is comprised from two Kodak Instamatic snapshots taped together.



My brother-in-law was stationed in Colorado in 1980 and took these shots and graciously gave them to me years ago. Using my imagination for the missing areas and eliminating the hood of the car, I came up with this...

Not all of my painting are "successes" by any means, but I can always pick out portions of each one that I really like. The following still life is one of those. Keeping up with a family tradition of asking "what can I draw?", I turned to my mentor (it's so nice to have an artist in the family) and one of the things suggested was a still life with fruit coming out of a cornucopia type basket. Well, I always have lots of fruit and I have a Longaberger basket, given to me by our Realtor when we became homeowners.

After several attempts I came up with a still life and photographed it and did my pastel from the photo. Right now I'm working better from photos than the actual item, but that's another story. Anyway here is the result...

Perhaps all this fabric draping was too much of an undertaking for a novice painter, but I persevered and got it to this point. As I said earlier, sometimes I don't consider the entire painting a success, but I love certain parts of it. On this one, I'm really pleased with the basket. I tend to want to draw in details and I have to remind myself that this is not a real basket of fruit, it's just the illusion of one. Looking at it, I don't really need to see each detail, to realize that it is a recognizable representation of a basket of fruit, a napkin and a candle. How romantic, imagine gathering up these items and stepping out on your deck at dusk and having a snack with that special someone. Right... then slapping mosquitoes and knocking over the tea and dropping the napkin...well, you get the picture.

Well, that's it for me today. I'll be back soon with more art, insight and laughter.

6 comments:

Rebecca Ramsey said...

Wow, your work looks great!
I especially love the basket itself. It looks like you could just reach into the painting and grab it!

kathyj333 said...

So nice.

Nezzy (Cow Patty Surprise) said...

Love those mountains, beautiful work sweetie!

Today I mowed my acre, sprayed the edging and paths, sprayed the carport to detour flies, finished laundry and I'm just gettin' ready to organize supper so I can go take a dip in the pool. This is me...takin' it easy..heeehehehe!

Have a wonderfully blessed Wednesday my friend!

Tina said...

I am blown away by this still life. This pastel journey seems to be a joyful place for you. I know it's bringing me joy to see what you are creating. Inspired.
T

Peri said...

Really nicely done! The landscape is very pleasing and actually makes me want to go driving, so I consider it a success. The still life is also pleasant..only issue for me would be the top of the candle indicates that the candle is tipped toward the viewer...if that was not intentional then you need to modify that oval and flatten it a bit. The drapery is nicely dealt with and overall I am proud of both pieces. You are really becoming good at this medium.
I makes me happy to check out your blog and see all the new pretties! Way to go!
By the way, I am having difficulty with your word verification -it isn't showing up until after I sign in and then there is always an issue with some processing error. What's up with that?

David Carroll said...

The colors. Wow. Red had me at first glimpse. Very nice.