Wine & Poppies

All-righty then, I have finished "American River Poppies" for now.

It's a very striking piece since it is a massive depiction of a very small plant.

I have also been getting ready for the Ironstone Winery show which happens this weekend.  I will have a 5x6' panel to hang my paintings on so I have decided already which 6 canvasses I will take based on my design done on graph paper.

My friend Connie will be participating in this show and posted her arrangement on her blog, so I am copying her example.  That green blob painting on the right, lower side is just a place holder for a painting I am taking of the Magic Circle Theatre in Roseville.  I won an award for that one so I thought it might be nice to have it with me.  I am also taking a small triptych of a dragon which I plan on placing on a small table I will have in my area.

"Poppies, poppies will make them sleep."

So here's "American River Poppies" now.  I enhanced the darks, the flowers and placed the buds on the stems.  I wish my critique group could help with this because I'm at a loss for what comes next.  Maybe I should just stop for a while and set it aside.

It'll hang at the Sun City Roseville art show on March 23rd and 24th, and then I plan on entering it in the American River Parkway show at the Sacramento Art Center in April.

Ok, so I am hanging this in the living room for a while to determine if I need to tweek it at all before the SCR art show.  That gives me some time to work on my portfolio and postcards for the Ironstone Show this upcoming weekend.  I love these busy times immersed in music and art with my door closed and incense burning.  I just wish I could smoke...not really, lol, breathing is better.

More Layers on Poppies

So I have been working layer by layer on American River Poppies and this is where I am now:

This is a large piece on a canvas that is 36x36" and so the poppies are humongous and I like, I like very much.  At this point, I am going in with some darker green for the middle of the plant where the sun does not hit, also going to make a few shorter stems with the spikey ends some dark and some lighter green.  I also think I need some specific green lines in the lighter background as in the photo there is something that color and pink growing which is lightening it up along with the sun hitting.  At that point I will be ready to go back over the poppies with a couple more layers for value.

Ok, so to work I go with a paint brush in my hand, one in my teeth and a song in my heart, a smile on my mouth...and in between I am breathing, breathing deeply, 1, 2, 3, breathing deeply, 1, 2, 3...