"A Day at the Beach" 8x10 Oil on board

work in progress....

Above: Work in progress.... Below:  The finished painting

I had started this painting a few weeks ago, when the weather was still sunny and warm.  I lost interest in it, when the weather turned colder and rainy.   Recently Daily Paintworks began a new fund raising auction for "Every Mother Counts".   This is an aid organization dedicated to improving maternal health around the world.  You can read more about it here.
This fundraiser's theme is "mom", and as I was wondering what I could paint for this challenge, I remembered the one I had started.. it pictures an expectant mom and her girls out for a walk on the beach.  It was the perfect thing to inspire me to finish the painting, and put it up for auction, all proceeds will go to the "Every Mother Counts" charity.

"Sliced Acorn Squash" Oil on 5x7 board

This squash was fun to paint, I loved the yellow/orange color of the inside, especially in the light.

"Apple and Cloth" oil on 6x6 inch board

Here is my finished apple.  I had a hard time photographing it because all of the different shades of red would just come out one bright shade of red.  This one is pretty close though.  The cloth was fun to paint, I think I'll try using it more often.

work in progress... Apple and Cloth 6x6

I feel like I've been having trouble painting lately. So, I just thought I'd share what I've been doing...  I've noticed I haven't been taking the time I should in really thinking through what color I am mixing, and using and why. I start a painting and rush ahead, wanting to get it finished.  I make too many mistakes and wind up correcting and getting too much paint on the surface.  I scrape it off and go at it again.  It's like I'm just guessing at what color to put down and hoping it looks right. And when it's not right, I get disappointed! Well, duh!!  So,  I wanted to slow down, and start from scratch.   I thought an apple and cloth might be a good, uncomplicated subject to start with.  I started with a sort of value study.  There had been a "value" painting challenge on Daily Paintworks a few weeks ago, that was to do a painting using 4 values, black, white, light gray and dark gray.  I kept my attention on doing that, and took my time. 
When I decided to start using color, I really slowed myself down, and used only the tiniest bit of paint.  Just a whisper of color.. and then I'd sit and think about where to go next. 
Instead of staring and squinting at a certain area in the subject to judge the color or value,  I have started to only glance for a moment,  not aiming my gaze at a certain point, but just getting a sense of the area peripherally. And instead of squinting, I found that just relaxing my eyelids and tipping my chin up a bit to see is easier on my eyes.  It seems the longer I stare, the more time my eyes have to focus on what I'm looking at, and to adjust to the brightness, then my sight is dulled to the true contrasts and colors.  I went on to finish this painting, just haven't taken a picture of it yet.  I like how it came out, and I had a nice painting experience.  I remembered how pleasant and relaxing painting can be, and should be... I can't wait to try again tomorrow :-)

"White Acorn Squash and Tomatoes" Oil on 8x8 board

I really enjoyed painting this squash, I love the colors of it, and the reds of the tomatoes are a nice compliment to the dark green stripes.  I think the tomatoes are a San Marzano variety.

Work in progress.... Acorn Squash 8x8

I thought I would post a picture of my progress on this squash painting. If I would have thought of it sooner in the painting process, I could have shown how I started, which was on a dry toned board, sketching shapes lightly in with a small dry bristle brush and a small amount of burnt umber paint.  I think the type of squash is a white acorn squash.  The tomatoes are from a friends garden, they are "heirloom" tomatoes and have different shades of orange and red, and have a long shape.  I have a few small details to finish on it, like the little tendrils on the stem end of the tomatoes.  I hope I can get it finished and get a good picture of it today, tomorrow it will be raining, and I like to take my pictures outside in natural light.  We'll see how it goes.   Thanks for stopping by!

"Red Pear and Lemon" Oil on 6x8 Linen panel

Available on Etsy


I had started this painting a few days ago, and had trouble finishing it. But, I finally had a chance to get back to it and I finished it up today.  I also started a new one of acorn squash, and tomatoes, which I hope to finish tomorrow.

"Lemon and Water" Oil on 5x7 board

"Ripe Peaches" Oil on 5x7 board