I've been painting small lately. My studio is under construction so I've set up my easel in the kitchen. Sometimes the kitchen is like Grand Central Station, but usually I can find a corner, set up a still life and paint for a while. Last night I painted the two pears you see above, it's an on a 5"x7" linen panel in oil.
I think anytime I paint anything, it's good practice. It's practice at mixing colors, at seeing colors, at seeing shapes, there really is so much to be gained from every painting. I am having a show at our church in January so some of these small paintings will come in handy for the show . . . . especially with our current economy.
I've also sent in my application for a big show the first week of March 2010. I was invited to fill out an application for the show by a woman who received some of my notecards as a gift, and happens to be on the selection committee. So, if I'm going to do that show, I think having a number of small paintings available will be a good idea. I find it easier to sell small rather than large paintings at shows. The excitement of making any kind of sale keeps me going when a show goes on for hours and hours and hours!
And now for the studio. We've had the structural, electrical and insulation inspections. Today the sheetrockers will come and put up sheetrock. Yay! It'll start looking like a studio again. I did take some photos of a darling 4 year old for a portrait last weekend. Yes, in that room. I just swept the floor and moved in my lights and a backdrop and it worked. She's 4 so the construction didn't even phase her, and her grandmother was very understanding and didn't mind at all. I'm very excited about this portrait!
Last night I stayed up til 11:00 p.m. working on this painting! I set my easel up next to our dining room, which is where my son studies in the evenings. With all that red the painting gets lost but you can see it in the lower right hand corner on my easel. It's almost finished, I'll work on it some more today. It's 9"x12" oil on linen canvas. The last interior scene I did was 8"x10" and I tried to push this one just a little bigger. Next time maybe 11"x14".
Since I can't get into my studio and paint . . . . I'm painting things outside the studio. Here is a quick sketch of my son at our dining room table studying. This is where he likes to study in the evenings. I sketched him last night. I'll transfer this to a 9"x12" canvas and paint it.
Ten days ago a client brought over her grandchild for a portrait. While the grandmother was getting the little girl ready for the portrait in our kitchen, I snapped a couple of photos. When I saw this one I just had to paint it. This is one of the few interior scenes I've painted and I had so much fun, now I'm anxious to paint more. The painting is 8"x10" oil on linen. Below is a close up of the little girl, the focal point of the painting and the most fun!
Well, I wish I had a painting to go with this post, but I don't. I don't know what happened to the week, the sheetrockers have been here all week and I've been . . . . I guess there have been errands associated with the remodel for me to run. Picking out paint, wood trim molding for the interior, lights. But the good news is we're nearing the end of this project! It's Saturday morning and as I write this, the sheetrockers are in there working away. Yay! And with sheetrock up, it looks like a studio and not a construction project!
This is a tiny painting, 4"x5", something I was experimenting with over the weekend. I did have a little vase full of orange flowers and I had a little bit of time to paint. My large easel is set up in the kitchen now, which is not ideal, there is a lot of traffic going through the kitchen, but it works.
In this second painting I was thinking "more blue, more orange!" so I filled up more of the tiny canvas. I think it's a totally different feeling. The first painting is a little more delicate whereas this one is bolder. Which do you like?
