Friday, March 18, 2016

Late Afternoon

 Late Afternoon - SOLD
5" x 7"  oil on panel

"All afternoon in the deck chair, I try to describe to my notebook the colors of the water and sky. How to translate sunlight into words?"
Author: Frances Mayes
 
Dusk and dawn are the artist's most prized times of day because light is beautiful then.  The sun is low in the sky, casting long shadows and tinging the landscape with amber light.  Those moments just prior to dawn or before dark when light is barely there adds more mystery.  Shapes are indistinct and colours muted.

Watching the light and choosing the right moment to paint or capture the light with a camera opens up a world of beauty.

Sunday, March 13, 2016

Cloudy with a chance of rain

 Cloudy With a Chance of Rain
6" x 6"  oil on panel

Clouds are so forgiving to paint and the colours that can be found in them make them interesting subjects.  Like all subjects, looking for the overall shape, noting values and hues and where they change is vital to make a cloud look like, well, a cloud!   Clouds such as this stratocumulus have wispy edges where some of the sky can be seen, while the body of the cloud has a denser look and the form is achieved through colour and value change.

Living on an island in the Atlantic, there's no shortage of clouds and "cloudy with a chance of rain" (or flurries) is pretty common in the forecast, so models are never far away.

Save 25% on all small paintings over $50 in my Etsy shop until March 31st.  Enter BIRTHDAY25 on checkout to receive your discount.  Have a peek and chose your favourite!