Saturday, March 26, 2011

Cocktail Hour 6" by 6"



Here are two of my recent "rainy day" paintings. (I've noticed that it's healthier to spend time painting this kind of set up than it is to consume it -and this kind of activity sure doesn't have the side effects one suffers the "next day" either!) "Gin and Tonic for Two" will be displayed and offered for sale at the Randy Higbee Gallery for his "6" Squared Exhibit".
102 Kalmus Dr
Costa Mesa, CA 9262A
Gala Artists' Reception will be held Saturday, April 16th. 5:00pm-9:00pm
The show will run through May 6th.

http://www.randyhigbeegallery.com/Randy_Higbee_Gallery/EVENTS.html

Contact me for "Tequila and Lime"

Both paintings will be framed in similar "premium" Randy Higbee "water guilded silver box" frames and will look great together in your kitchen or family room!

Monday, March 14, 2011

Southbound Getaway



Lately, trying to stretch, I've been painting larger studies outside. Here is one of my most recent, "Southbound Getaway" 11"h x 14"w on a canvas panel. In the past, it has been so easy to "see" the whole composition on a small panel (6" x 8" or even an 8" x 10"), that it was "more comfortable" for me to paint "smaller". However, when I would bring the painting back to my studio to create a "larger piece", this would sometimes pose a problem for me since much of the "loose brushwork" and "passion" of a quickly done plein air painting is lost on a bigger canvas. Thanks to my good friend and studio partner, Scott W. Prior, (who has been challenging me to "paint bigger") I feel like I've finally figured it out: If I use a BIGGER brush, and practice painting outside from life on bigger canvases, my translated strokes will be more "natural" and make the transition to "larger studio piece" more easily! For this particular plein air piece, I resisted the urge to grab my smaller brushes for ANY detail-and amazingly it seems to have worked!