Patio Art

Well so today am in a quandary over which painting is better in the patio.


 Here's the orange abstract that has been hanging there...

















And here is the "new" painting that I did over the old, cracked and faded oil painting that has been in the patio for years.










Jack likes the Palm leaf painting better in this particular spot.  I think I'll keep it out there for a while.

Now for the orange abstract.  It needs to go...so what will it become?

Colorful Palm Fronds and Mai-Tais

So I had a painting of limes hanging on our outside patio wall.  It's a 36x36" canvas which has become worn and cracked since it's been in the elements for about 5 years.  I decided to do a new painting on top of the old splits and globs of oil paint that remained:

I took this from a magazine article showing hotel landscaping from which I picked out these palm fronds and their wonderful changes of color with the sun upon them.  Background is too plain for me and at first thought of placing in items that are helping to cause the shadows, however I just like the story being simple and of this one living plant with its coat of many colors so...

I am in the process of adding a border of green and yellow which goes around the canvas to the back.  Once I am done, I'll post an image showing the sides of the canvas.

I dunno if this will go back on the back yard wall.  I have already replaced it with an abstract I did a few months ago which I like out there, this would lend a tropical touch though and then we could have a mai-tai party...oh yay!

Works in Progress

Poppies

 So today I am sharing images of what I have been working on since last week.  I am still not done with this smaller version of "Poppies."  I think i need more color values in the poppies themselves.

Kauai Flora

Worked on this painting to get the colors more clear and not so "dirty" as one woman described it at the art show.  It was a very frank comment and I appreciated her input because I was aware it was not one of my best works however didn't really see the dirt until she said it out loud.  This is why one needs a critique group on an ongoing basis.

Vineyard

Lastly, here is "Vineyard" and I think it's done.  There was a lot of background noise which needed to go away and I think I finally accomplished that.  This may work as a larger painting, this partiular piece is small, 16x20".  If I do a large rendition though, I am planning on it being very fractured and abstract with the sky being a fairly smooth surface leaving off texture in that 1/3 top of the painting.

I am off to Oak Park today for painting in the street with other on location artists at their annual festival event.  Yay!

Van Gogh vs. Kondos Methods

Began sketching again, almost everyday at my window.  Pepper trees are difficult when one decides to outline every leaf instead of seeing the shape of each cluster of leaves, aka the Kondos way.

First sketch is doing each individual leaf and being very specific, second is Kondos' simple way of sketching.  To me, the completed simple composition is so much more pleasing.  The mad, small shapes which are suppose to eventually create a large shape just kinda makes me feel nervous and in a hurry.  The simple composition just sorta slows my mind down to enjoy the scene without that mad dash to see all the little pieces and put them back together to discover the scene.

Gotta get in my art room now and find a canvas that I can paint on.

Yay, breathing deeply and completely this mornin'.

Liberating Sunshine

Took this photo of our house from across the street to capture the Redbuds in bloom with the beautiful whispery clouds.  We are beginning beautiful Spring, warm and happy times outside tending gardens,  healthy bike rides, long day car rides to the beaches and mountains, bbqs in the backyard with friends and family, etc. etc.

In my art room I am readying myself to get outside with pallete and paint.  This is my year to grow within myself incorporating all the knowledge I gained last year in attending numerous workshops and classes with Masters of art in their own right, i.e Gregory Kondos, Michael Siegal.

The sunshine is liberating for me, a chance to wear sandals on my feet without being chilly and of
course that means all of the things that go with sandals:  shorts, tank tops, sun dresses, hats, pools, bathing suits, playing children, the light hitting flowers, the shadowy parts of the flowers, trees in green and in blossom, trees singing  with the wind's song, sun's heat on my arm, driving Peawee with canvas and easel poking out the top of the passenger seat, feelings of all things nature all over my body, lol, and happy smiles all over the Universe.

Okay Universe hear my plea for some sunshine today...just enough for time at the flea market and then whatever else anybody else needs with the weather is fine.