Thursday, August 31, 2017

Pieces of Eight Challenge #5 RED



Red has been called the most difficult color to master.  Click here to read the history of red.





6x8" Oil on Panel

Carol Schiff
www.CarolSchiffStudio.etsy.com


Geraniums have long been a garden favorite.  Their bright red color, against the dark green leaves,  are hard to resist.

My goal was to keep it red......not pink, but still get some depth in the image.



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Marilyn
14x18 Oil on Panel


This is what came to mind with the challenge "Red." There aren't too many faces more iconic than Marilyn Monroe's. I always enjoy painting her.

Carmen Beecher



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I bought a Cardinal Vine because I loved the tiny, bright RED, trumpet-like flowers and fern-like leaves.  I planted it along a fence in my back yard. Soon after it had a male cardinal visiting it!
The inspiration made for a fun watercolor!


Kathy Garvey
See more of my whimsical bird watercolors at: etsy.com/shop/snailflower

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This is a close up of a painting I did of apples.  Apples may seem simple but round and red can be difficult.  The strokes used to shape  the apples gave the painting so much more depth and definition.

 



donnavinesart.blogspot.com


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This 9x12 watercolor painting was inspired by Scottish poet Robert Burns famous poem, "My Love is Like a Red, Red Rose".
The tartan is from the Mitchell clan from which I am descended.  The rose was a part of a bouquet my husband gave me.

Mary Warnick

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You’ve Got to Have Heart! after Matisse’s Dance 1
8x10 fabric and paper collage

Dance I, a large oil on canvas at the Modern Museum of Art in New York City, is one of my favorite paintings. I have stood spellbound before it on more than on occasion trying to figure out exactly how Matisse was able to made the mood so joyful with such simplicity of line and color.

When I began to think of what I wanted to do for my creation in red, I thought of this painting and its ebullience brought to mind the dancing dress in the iconic pin used to represent heart disease, the number one killer of women. Immediately, I fused the two together in my mind. I hope this collage conveys the sense of camaraderie, determination and joy women feel when they join together to fight the effects of serious illness or tragedy.
 Fay Picardi


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A Bunch of Radishes
Watercolor, 6" x6"
by Jean Thomas

This is a little study of radishes using the wet in wet technique. Just wet the area of the round part of the radish with plain water. Then, mix up some red and just touch the wet part and let it play. Fun effects just by letting the color play in the water. Then, fill in the green parts and add some line!
JT


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Bud to Blossom



This beautiful oil painting by Denette got lost in cyberspace and didn't make it into the original post for our "Red" challenge. Isn't it amazing? No one does absolutely realistic color like Denette Schweikert.

Carmen

Sunday, August 27, 2017

Acrylic Abstract Pouring, Daily Painting, Gicee Print on Canvas

I am still enjoying my experiments with acrylic pourings.  It is either the most fascinating or the most frustrating activity ever!




I am quite pleased with the color on this one and also with the movement and cell formation.

We used to say, watching paint dry was too boring, but I have a hard time pulling myself away these days.  Manipulating the paint, by moving the support is always interesting, even more so when you return an hour later and find a whole new painting.

If you are interested in this process, I suggest going to You Tube, where you will find  a ton of  tutorial videos.

I am offering this, as well as others, as giclee prints on canvas, in numerous sizes, on my Etsy site.

Thanks for stopping by today.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY BEAUTIFUL DAUGHTER SHELLY!


Saturday, August 26, 2017

Statue of Liberty, "Mother of Exiles," Pencil Drawing on Bristol Board, 9x9 by Carmen Beecher


The plaque on the wall of the Statue of Liberty reads, in part:

“Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed, to me:
I lift my lamp beside the golden door.”

The poem also refers to the statue, representing America, as the Mother of Exiles. In view of recent events, my drawing speaks for itself. 

Carmen

Tuesday, August 22, 2017

Fall Landscape Painting, Daily Painting, Small Oil Painting, Autumn Trees, 6x8" Oil on Canvas

How did this happen!  How could it possibly be almost autumn?  Time seems to go faster and faster each year.

purchase here





We have just returned from time in the mountains, rushing home to monitor hurricane season in Florida.  When we return to the mountains, this will be a typical scene.

It is so easy to overdue autumn colors.  Your eye tells you the intense colors are what you are seeing, but when you put it on canvas, it is not believable.  Time to tone it down a touch.  Nature is maybe not quite that bright.

Carol Schiff

Thursday, August 17, 2017

Palette Knife Art, "A Thistle Day" by Carol Schiff, 8x10" Oil ,SOLD

Who said weeds are not pretty???  I found these thistles on top of Grandfather Mountain outside of Boone, NC last month.

Purchase here
SOLD
Their delicate color and beautiful form was all it took for me to know I had to paint them.  However, it was 50ish, 30 MPH winds and in a very inconvenient spot, so no painting took place at that time.



Fortunately, I had my trusty traveling companion, my camera, hung around my neck and was able to capture this image.

I think that one of the most wonderful things about being an artist is that it has given me the ability to see beauty in unexpected places.   I am so thankful for that gift.

www.CarolSchiffStudio.blogspot.com
www.CarolschiffStudio.etsy.com

Saturday, August 12, 2017

Seascapes and Hawii Five O, Seascape Oil Painting, Ocean Painting

Over the years, I have painted many seascapes, both impressionistic and abstract.  It is part of my environment, living on the coast of Florida, and sometimes seascapes showed up almost without my intention.

On the beach


 The paintings always sold very well and I have featured a few of them as giclee prints.  Can you image my escitement when two of my prints were sold for set design on the CBS show "Hawaii Five O?

A Call From Mother

Yes, it's true!  I still can not believe it! This was one of my favorite shows in the 70's and I love the currant version too.  I will be checking out every episode in the upcoming season, trying to get a quick glimpse of my art.  Unfortunately, I have no information about when this will happen.

The good news is, you can own them too.  Both prints are available in the sizes of your choice at the links below the images.

Book em, Dan-o!

Carol Schiff



Tuesday, August 8, 2017

Home From Vietnam, 9x12 Graphite Drawing, Portrait


This was absolutely a labor of love. Our dear friend Ben was terminally ill, and his daughter Debbie posted this photo from her childhood, taken when he had just returned from Vietnam. I loved everything about the photo and just had to draw it for her. The week I finished, Ben left us. I'm so glad I could portray this happy moment in the life of this wonderful man.

Carmen

Monday, August 7, 2017

Small Floral Still Life. Daily Painting, Small Oil Painting, Flower Painting, 9x12x.75" Oil

Still playing catch up!  In retrospect, it was probably not a good idea to be out of state three months, attend a 4 day workshop and accept almost 20 commissions just weeks before the holidays.

So although I was painting every day, I struggled to find new works that I could show on my blog at that time.

I did manage to do this one:

purchase here
185 + shipping
 I really enjoyed painting something that I wanted to paint, and I think it shows.  Free and easy strokes and a touch of whimsy.

Time to take a deep breath and decide just what is important and what it not.

Thanks for reading my blog today.

www.CarolSchiffStudio.blogspot.com

Saturday, August 5, 2017

Wallace Nutting

Most people don't know who Wallace Nutting is.  Unless you are exposed to his photographs or love historical furniture his name is not well known.  I came across his unique art form when I was thumbing through a box of old photographs and postcards. They were quite old, before the era of color photography yet they were so colorful, they almost looked otherworldly.  Most were just blank but a few had the signature Wallace Nutting on them. After doing a little research I discovered that he was a pioneer of hand colored photography.
He was a minister who retired in his early 40's because of ill health.  He had two hobbies, photography and bicycling.  He combined the two, taking many photographs of the New England countryside.  He hand colored them to make them more interesting using oil paints, solvents, small brushes and solvents.  They became so popular at his peak he had 200 "colorists" working for him.
I used his method to do some hand colored photos on my own.  It is a long time consuming process but the end result can be really special.
This is one of my favorites.  If you zoom in you can see where the color is applied.
Below is Sunset in Rockport NFS and Pretty Things, which is a necklace and shells.


Pretty Things


donnavinesart@Etsy.com
donnavinesart.blogspot.com



Wednesday, August 2, 2017

Abstract Giclee Print, Acrylic Abstract Pour Painting, Daily Painting, Small Abstract Painting

A few years ago, I experimented with poured acrylic painting.  I tried it for a few weeks, and then put it aside.  Recently, I have found a renewed interest in this work.

order print here


The past few weeks, I have been doing a lot of research, and I began to get a renewed interest in this form of art. 

After several tries, I have come up with a few that meet my standards.  It is almost impossible to do this without making a huge mess on the back, so at the moment, I am offering them only as giclee prints.

This is one of my favorites.  The process includes paints, mediums and a pretty precise recipe, and sometimes fire!  The fascination is that there is not much control over the process and you never know what you will end up with.  It is also impossible to duplicate a piece.  You can do two in exactly the same way and get very different pieces.

Thanks for viewing my blog today.

Carol Schiff
www.CarolSchiffStudio.etsy.com
www.CarolSchiffStudio.blogspot.com

Ballard Park, Original Oil on Canvas

  I had not painted outside in two years, so this was quite a challenge. It was one of those paintings I had to improve upon in the studio. ...