Work in Progress by Carmen Beecher

I am working on a commission, doing a larger painting of my small work The Kayakers, and I thought I would post the beginning of the painting. When Grandma Moses was asked about her process and how she painted, she responded "I paint down. I start at the top and paint down." As for me, sometimes I sort of "paint down" if it's a landscape, but in this case I started with the principal subject and I'm painting out. 

Since I have painted this subject before, I know what I am aiming for and I know the colors, values and so on, so I concentrated my energy on the most important part of the painting first. Below is the 6x6-inch original small painting of the happy kayakers. It's a square format, but the large one will be a rectangular format and, of course, more detailed.

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Sunglow, 8x6 OIl Painting on Canvas

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Some sunrises are "quieter" than others. This one was very soft, but that's because I just didn't get there in time for the bright reds of early morning. I like the softer side of sunrise too.

"If you want to be reminded of the love of the Lord, just watch the sunrise."

That quotation is from Jeanette Walls, who wrote Glass Castles. Every whiny, demanding child should be made to read Glass Castles, about Ms Walls' childhood, to make them see how good they have it. It's a terrific book and one of those that sticks in my memory. With my memory lately, it takes a really good book to to linger in there for long.

Mary Warnick Exhibit

Ballard Park

The Palm Bay Library is showing paintings by Mary Warnick during the month of April.  The Library is off of Port Malabar Blvd., on Santiago Ave. It is next to the Turtle Creek Santuary, in a lovely wooded section. The Library is open on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from 9 am to 5 pm, and Wednesdays from 9 am to 8 pm.