It Feels Like—Home

"It Feels Like-Home"
12" x 12"
Oil on wrapped canvas

I've been thinking about water lilies, but my thoughts have migrated to the under-side of the pad. What goes on under there? Is there a small universe, a microcosm to which we dry folks are not privy?  Does it feel like—home to creatures we never see? 


I've wanted to paint from this photo for a while, but hadn't chosen a blue or a palette of greens.  Prussian, Viridian and cadmium yellows did the trick. Oh, and I sponged on the blue.

Thanks for visiting today.
Carol

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Last Rose

"Morning Rose"
6" x 6"
Oil on hardboard

The humidity was dense, everything was wilting in the heat during Indian Summer that year. She was one of the last ones on the bush, a survivor, and obviously the last rose of summer. 

This was another fifteen minute painting done for the pure joy of putting paint on a square of hardboard. Sometimes I like to fly through a piece, other times I like to paint meticulously.

Thanks for looking.
Carol

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There Are No Minor Miracles

"There Are No Minor Miracles"

detail of original

8" x 12"

Oil on canvas panel

When for whatever reason success seems unlikely, we occasionally witness a miracle nevertheless. I referred to my most recent one as a minor miracle, but was corrected. "There is no such thing as a minor miracle. A miracle is a ... miracle."  I have to agree. To assign degrees to miracles is wrong.  I'm thankful and thrilled to have been a part of a lovely ... miracle! 

You are seeing only part of today's painting. The photo, when scaled to the same size I've used for nearly three hundred posts had such a moire pattern across it, that it looked like I pained on burlap. The original is horizontal and there is more image to the right.  I'll scan it instead, when the paint is dry, and post it again.  

Thank you for contributing to my joy by looking at my art. 

Carol 

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Windy Peninsula

"Windy Peninsula"
8" x 10"
Oil on hardboard

The wind that afternoon floated me to interesting places without much effort. I sped past a bed of water lilies in full bloom, rendering their photos a blurred mess. But as I was ready to round this peninsula wind from two directions stopped me here in front of this narrow strip of land. 

I have a favorite brush for painting pine trees.  It's not particularly expensive, or of high quality like my British Rosemary & Co. brushes. Nor is it as inexpensive as my cut-up sponge pieces, yet it paints the limbs on pines with a finesse that I've sought for years.  

Thank you for drifting by today. 

Carol

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What's In A Name

"What's In A Name"
5" x 5"
Oil on hardboard

Zenith, crescendo, succeed, frenzy, achieve, conclude, and ecstasy. I was asked recently to paint what it feels like when I finish a significant painting—then name it something obscure. 


This is a study for what could possibly become a much larger and more intense painting.  It reminds me of my "fractal wannabe" paintings that I've yet to post in this space.  I will though... but not this month.

Thank you for your patience while I experiment.
Carol

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Flowering Crab

"Flowering Crab"
16" x 20"
Oil on wrapped canvas

The Flowering Crab Apples have just finished strutting their stuff here in my part of Illinois. Their petals are blowing, snow globe-style across my neighborhood.  My spirit soars when I realize that the petals are NOT flakes of snow.  

This is another painting I started, oh, about a year ago. It seemed hopeless until I tackled it with my snippets of sponge. I evened out the color, gave it more depth and brightened the drab flowers.

Thanks for stopping to smell the flowers today.
Carol

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Begonias

"Begonias"
20" x 16"
Oil on wrapped canvas

I wandered through the greenhouse with my camera, looking for flowers I didn't grow myself. I had shot succulents the last visit, so I was looking for color.  Begonias delighted my eyes as I turned the corner. 

I began this painting two years ago, but didn't finish it until this morning. She leaned against a wall in my studio waiting for me to decide if she was worth the effort. She was.

That you visit me regularly... well, it delights me.
Carol

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Wiggle Water

"Wiggle Water"
6" x 12"
Oil on hardboard panel

A breeze tickled the surface of the water, wiggling the reflected reeds surrounding Miss Lily. She liked the vertical stripes.  Thought they made her look—slender. 


Surprisingly, I like the composition of this piece, despite the fact that the lily is dead center.  It forces a tension that only breaking the rules can create.

I appreciate your visits. I really do.
Carol

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Awakening

"Awakening"
20" x 16"
Oil on wrapped canvas

Her parts squeaked one against another as yesterday's dense bud split into a profusion of delicate petals.  Fragrance befitting royalty filled the air the morning of her... Awakening.

This is my large version of "Chasity" that I posted on Wednesday.  I cocked her head differently and left the blue sky reflections on my palette. This is the more accurate rendering of the photo I took at the Chicago Botanic Gardens. And I painted it entirely with sponges! I had been yearning to use them again.

Thank you for taking the time to look in on me today.
Carol

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Pink Zinnia

"Pink Zinnia"
8" x 8"
Oil on hardboard

She was one of the few in the garden that the bugs hadn't munched. She was full-blown and receptive to pollination, yet tiny—about the size of a ping pong ball—obviously the end of the season runt, yet she still had what it took! 


This painting used six different reds mixed with white. I would have enjoyed painting her even more had her actual color been more varied.

Thanks for looking.
Carol

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Late Afternoon

"Late Afternoon"
5" x 5"
Oil on hardboard

Late in the afternoon when the wind begins to tuck herself in for the night, a calm settles on the serpentine river. Shadows run from the sun as she bids adieu to another day.  


This is a pretty small painting. It's on the smallest panel my art supply store stocks.  On the other hand, I've begun a large rose painting!  She may not be as pink as I thought, but she's large enough for me to paint with my beloved sponges. I'm enjoying a neurobiological high—getting "blissed out" over the process, as Robert Genn says.

Thank you for joining me here on the banks of this river today.
Carol

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Turning

"Turning"
5" x 5"
Oil on hardboard

Along the bank of this stream was a bed of weeds that shone with such a vibrant red orange that I had to stop to photograph them. They were NOT indigenous to our locale.  Had someone planted them to amuse, bewilder, astound? 


I put the deep red weeds in the foreground of this traditional piece to give it life. And because of it, I tucked a bush in the background of the same color.  It had to be there.

Thanks for stopping by today.
Carol

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Chastity

"Chastity"
6"x 6"
Oil on hardboard

Chastity is new in the bed.  Fresh as the morning.  Innocence exudes from every scented petal.  Come.  Inhale her.  Delight in her youth.


One virgin rose
white 'stead of red
Extends to him
her maiden's head. 
--Anonymous--

This quick sketch of Chastity whetted my appetite for this bloom. I want to paint her large with more pink.  I'd like to make her at least two feet by two feet.

Thank you for peeking in to see her.
Carol

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Moose

"Moose"
6" x 6"
Oil on hardboard

A moose took up residence with me in Studio B a few years ago. He's my fantasy friend, my confidante, model, and sacred animal totem.  He stands watch over me as I paint, helps choose subject matter, and reminds me to clean my brushes... with soap!  Aren't I the lucky one?  Who needs a muse when you've got a moose—with such a sweet face?

Moose, here, is plastic; nine inches tall at the tip of his rack and twelve inches nose to tail.  I'll be painting other oddities from my studio this week.  Moose gets the honor of being first in the series.

Thanks for visiting with me and moose today.
Carol

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Hydrangea Haze

"Hydrangea Haze"
6" x 6"
Oil on gessoed hardboard

The blue violet of hydrangeas has intrigued me since I saw my first ones, as an adult, in upstate New York.  I love the way the color varies from petal to petal within the same cluster.  

The out of focus effect is not a camera issue.  I painted, then ran my mop across the whole piece to soften the edges. When it was to my liking I used a liner to bring up a few hard edges.  

Thank you for taking the time to look at and read my blog today.

Carol

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Frosted Bananas

"Frosted Bananas"
6" x 6"
Oil on gessoed hardboard

They sat cuddled in this cluster fresh from the produce department; without bruises, blemishes, brown spots or stickers. Every one was a different color, in a different position, yet the same.  I couldn't resist.  


Amazingly, to me at least, this was about a fifteen minute painting.  I managed to get the shadows in, the shapes painted and the background colors down using very few strokes.
Then I took my mop brush and softened the whole thing. My signature is the only hard edged thing on the board.  Right—wrong?  Who knows?  It's an exercise and I enjoyed doing it.

Thanks for bearing with me.
Carol

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Divide in the Distance

"Divide in the Distance"
6" x 6"
Oil on hardboard

Late summer on the Continental Divide was a tapestry of color and textures my Midwestern senses were unaccustomed to.  Everything was different, interesting, passionate. It was good to be in a place where passion ran as wild as a... moose.  


I've painted this little pond before, but I try to capture a different view of the Divide when I do.  I loved this quiet place that reflected the sky so beautifully.

Thank you for being here.
Carol

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Breaking the Silence

"Breaking the Silence"
8" x  8"
Oil on gessoed hardboard

Late in the summer, when the chlorophyll-makers peter out, it's nice to observe the subtleties in nature's quiet places.  Morning whispers her sweet words to break the silence of night.


This is my third small reflective water piece.  I'm not sure if it's out of my system yet, or not.  We'll see when I waken tomorrow!

Thank you for joining me here today.
Carol

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Mirror, Mirror Off the Wall

"Mirror, Mirror Off the Wall"
6" x 6"
Oil on gessoed hardboard

The view as I look across this small, but deep lake is nearly always mirror-like. Wind disrupts the reflection in some spots, but not many, for its size.  Most of the time the sky reflects perfectly on it. I love to stop and gaze at this, the largest mirror in my world.

Lily Lake is another of my quiet places. I take comfort in the memories of how it felt to stand in her presence.

Thank you for wading with me today.
Carol

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Good Night

"Good Night"
6" x 6"
Oil on gessoed hardboard

The end... came as a shock when we'd been having so much fun.  It was daylight one moment, all bright and sunny. Then the clouds moved in, the colors changed and suddenly it was dark.  Too dark to say "Good Night?"  

I painted this thirty-minute painting tonight after a long, difficult day, and before I knew what hit me, it was time to clean my brushes and try... to fall asleep.   

Thank you for staying close.

Carol 

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Serenity Pond

"Serenity Pond"
6" x 6"
Oil on gessoed hardboard

I needed to come to clarity this morning, so I allowed my mind to travel to a place where I had found it easily before.  This little pond knows many of my secrets.   


I painted this with three brushes I've never used before, plus my Colour Shaper.  It seems to have worked.  I'm going to do another while I'm inspired!

Thank you for walking with me today.
Carol

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Riot of Zinnias

"Riot of Zinnias"'
24" x 24"
Oil on wrapped canvas

Late last summer when the flowers were at their most vibrant, and had actually swelled to overabundance, I photographed this "Riot of Zinnias." 

I splashed and dashed on color, yet it didn't look enough like summer. So I took my Colour Shaper thingie and drew over some of the petals. The added texture makes it riotous! 

Thanks for looking.
Carol

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Alleluia Tulip

"Alleluia Tulip"
6" x 6"
Oil on hardboard panel

She was swaying in a chorus of similar warblers; mouths open, singing joyful Alleluias when I happened upon her. 


It's Easter!

Thank you for being here today.
Carol

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Strawberry Jam in the Morning

"Strawberry Jam in the Morning"
6" x 6"
Oil on gessoed hardboard

My favorite way to start the day is with strawberry jam in the morning. So sweet. So thick. So delicious. Strawberry is my flavor of choice. Occasionally I'll have raspberry. Just for the sake of variety. But I find raspberry a little too—tart. And so I return to strawberry.


I found this jar in the refrigerator. It seemed like it wanted to be painted. I brought it down to Studio B—below ground—and painted... something completely different.  


Thanks for coming down to my studio today. 
Carol 


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Simply Pink Dahlia

"Simply Pink Dahlia"
6" x 6"
Oil on hardboard panel

She wasn't one of the great beauties in the garden that summer.  Her whorl wasn't perfectly spaced, her face was plain, and her color was simply... pink.

This was a thirty minute painting.  I try to do one every few weeks. It's hard for a detail person such as myself to slap on paint, blend it with a mop brush, add a few hard edges and define the center of interest.  But here she is

Thank you for stopping by.
Carol

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Super Simon

"Super Simon"
8" x 10"
Oil on canvas panel

"How's Chuck doing?" I asked Judy last week when I saw her.  "They call him Superman at the hospital," she said.  You see, one day not too long ago Chuck wasn't feeling well. He went to the doctor and didn't come home ...from the hospital. Leukemia.  Chuck is living on borrowed blood.  It's the only thing keeping him alive... that and our prayers. 

Prayers for Chuck Simon are in order. He's a dear man, my friend, adoring husband, loving father, and a mensch.

Love,
Carol

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Dahlia Face

"Dahlia Face"
9" x 12"
Oil on hardboard panel 

Late in the summer when every bud has opened, and leaves begin to favor a bronzed version of themselves, the dahlia sends out tendrils to adorn her pretty face.


The whole bed of them looked like this; center petals coiled like snail shells, the kind you might find on a garden path.  I'll move on to a more traditional image next time.

As always, I appreciate when you visit.
Carol

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Star Power

"Star Power"
10" x 10"
Oil on hardboard 

She had the good looks, charm, charisma and pizazz to be a star.  Miss Dahlia here was a contender in the Dahlia Daze Pageant. The lady had Star Power! 


I have some dahlia reference photos I'd like to explore. As I've stated before, I like a whorled arrangement of petals. This one seemed particularly difficult, what with all the hard-edged shadows, so I chose to paint her first.

Thank you, as always, for stopping by.
Carol

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Watery Lily

"Watery Lily"
10" x 10"
Oil on hardboard panel 

She floated on the shallow pool, surrounded by the flotsam du jour:  ripples, her own reflections and the cumulonimbus in the sky above.  


This common lily is from a pool at the Chicago Botanic Gardens.  While her cousins are more exotic in color and line, I happen to like this gal's full-bodied vitality.

Thank you for putting your toes in the water with me today.
Carol

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Cymbidium Repose

"Cymbidium Repose"
6" x 12"
Oil on hardboard panel 

While Miss Cymbidium claimed to be an upstanding kind of gal; quite unaccustomed to lolling, I caught her in a moment of luxurious repose -- about to nibble a bon bon.  

This is the last in my short series of orchid paintings.  I may revisit this subject again, but only after taking more photos.  Enough with the cymbidium, already! Sheesh.

Thank you for checking in today.
Carol

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