"Pears Hugging"

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"Hugging Pears"

8 x 10 in

Oil on Canvas Panel

Happy Holidays everyone!  I've created the last painting of the pear series.  Painting these guys has been fun and challenging.  Their skin texture is pretty unique, it has smooth areas as well as rough spots.  It challenges you how to render with the paints with each area.  Pears also bruise easily and start getting spotty with time.  It definitely has a lot of translucent layers which make it more of a challenge to paint.  Overall its challenging but that's painting in general, if we don't push ourselves outside our comfort zone then it becomes harder to grow as an artist.  

I started with the usual drawing approach as I do with all my other paintings, no mediums just a bit of raw umber on the brush.  Once the drawing is established I laid in the background with cerulean blue, naples yellow, and titanium white.

Then I started on the first pear just laying all the colors in at once, this is to get a general feel where all the colors should be.  The palette I used was viridian deep, cobalt blue, cad. yellow, raw umber, ivory black, and titanium white.

After stating all the colors at once I then go back to the darker and middle values and take them to a finish.  I do the same with the lighter values and highlights when the darker values are done.  I'm going back and forth seeing what needs to shift when one area is completed.  

I repeat the same process with the second pear using a different pallet, I used cad. red light, cad. orange, raw umber, ivory black, cad. yellow, and titanium white.  

Once I've taken the lighter values to a finish with the pear, I start to add the cast shadows on the wooden base.  I'm also stating the middle to darker values at the same time, the palette I use is ivory black, burnt sienna, cerulean blue, and titanium white.  

Then I stated the darker values on the bottom side of the base by using ivory black, cad. orange, burnt sienna, and titanium white.  This is the finished photo of the painting, it was fun to continue and experiment with my technique.  As stated before it's interesting to see how the colors absorb with one another, the greens absorbs more of the reds rather than the reds absorbing the greens.  I was also seeing with this painting how quick I can finish it as I was racing against the light.  Its winter time and the light only stays up for so long.  Especially now when we have more grey days than sunny days because of the snow.  I don't mind it, it's a good challenge to see how much I can get done before a certain time.  Thanks agin for stopping by, I hope you enjoyed this one and Happy Holidays!

"Leaning Pears"

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"Leaning Pears"

8 x 10 in

Oil on Canvas Panel

This is another painting of pears I've done, again experimenting with my technique to see how much I can push myself.  It was a lot of fun creating the textures on these pears and playing with smooth and rough textures.  It really teaches you a lot how to render in different levels.  I also love the play of red and green in this painting, of course coinciding with this holiday season.  It's interesting playing with these two colors since they are compliments.  I've noticed the green pear reflects the color from the red pear but the red pear absorbs the color of the green pear.   Really interesting to say the least.  

I started with the usual dry brush approach using no mediums, using just raw umber.  Once the drawing is established I stated the background using cerulean blue, naples yellow, burnt sienna and titanium white.  

I then start on the first pear stating all the color notes, I used viridian deep, cobalt blue, cad. yellow, ivory black, and titanium white.  I state all the colors first to get a gestural feel where all the colors need to lay in.  Think of it as your doing a gesture of a figure and you get the pose in the initial drawing, from there you start honing down your drawing because you have the essence of the pose already drawn out.  I think of it in the same lines but with color.  I'm also careful not to get too thick with the colors in the beginning stages, I always want to maintain control through the painting.

Once the colors all stated I then go back to the shadows and middle values, and take it to a finish.  I do the same when that area is done and start with the lighter values and highlights.  My goal is not to make it look like a photograph, I want the viewer to get a feel that its a painting.    

Then I start with the second pear applying the same technique as I did with the first.  The colors I used are cad. red light, raw umber, burnt sienna, ivory black, cad. orange, cad. yellow, and titanium white.  

When applying all the colors at once its easy to keep working around the whole painting and never take it to a finish.  It's important that I go from stating all the colors to taking each section to a finish, this expedites the process and allows me to fully concentrate on each section.  After the second pear is done I  start on the base stating the middle and darker values.  The colors I used were ivory black, burnt sienna, raw umber, cerulean, cad. orange, and titanium white. 

This is the finished picture, I stated the darkest and lightest values and brought it to a finish.  Again these paintings are a lot of fun to paint when experimenting with different techniques.  Excited to keep experimenting and pushing myself further with this adventure.  Thanks for stopping by and viewing, hope you enjoyed!

"Pears"

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"Pears"

8 x 10 in

Oil on Canvas Panel

Hi everyone, I'm revisiting these pears to try out a new approach to painting.  Painting pears is always a challenge, their skin has so much complexity to them.  The subtle values from one area to the other varies greatly in each area of the pear.  Their colors also are a lot of fun to paint, the middle values always contain so much chroma.  Overall it's a challenge but a joy to paint these guys, I'm excited to get back to them

I started with the traditional drawing approach using no mediums just a bit of raw umber on the brush.  Then I painted the background in using cerulean blue, naples yellow and titanium white.  I also then proceeded and painted the wooden base.  I started with the darker values first using ivory black, cad. orange, and raw umber.

Then I stated the middle and lighter values of the base by using titanium white, cerulean blue, and burnt sienna.  When the wooden base was completed I moved onto the darkest area of the cast shadows, and also started on the right pear.  

As you can see with the last pic and this first one on the left I am stating all the colors first on the pear.  I'm basically putting all the notes in the correct spots, then I start moving them around by blending them or dabbing them to soften the edges so the form can turn.  By stating all the colors down first its easier for me to see what needs to go brighter or darker.  Just because I've stated all the colors  doesn't mean I'm going thicker with the paints, I'm still pretty thin at this stage so I can still have control of the paints.  By keeping thin at this stage this allows me to create more texture if I need to go thicker, and also it doesn't get muddy so quickly.  Once all the colors are stated and its looking good at that stage, I go back to the shadows and refine it to a finish.  

Once the shadows where complete I move onto the lighter areas of the pear and do the same.  The colors I used for the pears where ivory black, viridian deep, cad. yellow, naples yellow, and cad. orange, and titanium white.  Then I started on the pear to the left, I started the same way I did with the last pear.  I stated all the colors down first making sure the form was turning as well.  I used cad. red light, cad. orange, cad. yellow, raw umber and ivory black.

Once all the colors where stated I went back to the shadows and refined it to a finish.  I did the same with the lighter areas once the shadows where complete.  I really enjoyed painting this one, I learned a lot with my technique by approaching it in a different way.  It wasn't easy but it was good to get out of my comfort zone and try new ways.  Thanks for stopping by and viewing,  I hope you enjoyed this one as much as I did!

"Berries on top"

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"Berries on top"

5 x 7 in

Oil on Canvas

These berries can say so much with just the simplest composition.  I think I can paint berries for a full year and not use the same composition.  These guys are just to much fun to paint.  Aside from painting these berries, this past weekend we went through a really bad blizzard!  It was interesting to go through a weather phenomenon like that.  I'm used to hurricanes and bad storms in florida, but this was definitely a category of its own.  The storm dumped 20 inches of snow on us, and truthfully it looks amazing! It's a pain in the butt to drive through, but to see four foot snow mounds all over the place is pretty surreal.  This type of weather is perfect to stay in and paint, can't ask for anything better.    

I started with the traditional dry brush approach to the drawing stage of the painting, using a bit of raw umber.  Then I covered the background with cerulean blue, naples yellow, burnt sienna, and titanium white.  

Then I added the wooden base after stating the background.  I started with ivory black, burnt sienna, and raw umber.  I used this palette for the darker values of the base which I started first.  Then I added the lighter values of the base using titanium white, cerulean blue, and raw umber.  I also indicate where the cast shadows are placed to start indicating the berries.  

When the wooden base is completed I then start with the berries.  I lay in the local color to all the berries at the same time.  I used ivory black,  cad. red light, and raw umber.  Then I add the lighter values just using titanium white to all the berries.  What I'm essentially doing in these stages is placing the correct color in the right spot and dabbing it to the right look.  What I've noticed with this method it makes the painting look fresh in some ways.  

Once the colors are placed in the right areas, I then start with the first berry on the left and take it to a finish.  Since I have all the information stated on the canvas I can easily sculpt it to the way I want it to look, of course staying true to the subject matter.  I find this method works well painting raspberries and black berries.

Then I finish the middle raspberries and then do the same with the black berry on the right.  I've had a lot of fun painting these berries, as stated before in previous posts, I truly find new things to see within the berries every time I paint them.  I also enjoy each time eating these delicious treats after the painting is complete.  Thanks for stopping by and viewing, hope you enjoyed!

"Trail of Berries"

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"Trail of Berries"

7 x 5 in

Oil on Canvas Panel

Hi everyone, this painting was so much fun to do.  I wanted to have an interesting composition with these berries and I think I've achieved it with this painting.  I kept the background white to enhance the limited colors used.  The more I paint these berries the more I can see how intricate they are within, from their colors to their shapes. 

I started with the usual dry brush approach for the drawing stage, using just a bit of raw umber on the brush.  Then I added the local colors to all the berries, I used cad. red light, and ivory black.

Then I went into the raspberries and added the darker to middle values, I used raw umber and ivory black.  Then when the form is starting to turn I then applied the lighter values using just titanium white.  As you can see I'm working on all the berries at once, this is just to get a general feel of the light source.  I'm essentially doing a gestural sketch with the paints, then when everything is looking just right I start taking each section to a finish.  Of course at times I will have to revisit certain sections to adjust the value or chroma, but those are minor changes.

At this time I started taking each section to a finish, starting with the raspberry and black berry.  Since I have all my information stated I just have to sculpt it into what I want it to look like, of course staying true to the subject matter.  Then I start on the upper half of the berries and do the same take them to a finish.

I then go back into the cast shadows and add a bit of titanium white to soften the edges.  Doing this allows me to push certain berries further back to have more of a focus in the foreground.  As you may have noticed I didn't add anything to the background, its just the white of the canvas.  It was neat just leaving it like that and working around it.  I don't think I've ever done that before with these alla prima paintings.  I hope you enjoyed this one as much as I did, thanks for stopping by and viewing!  

"Berries"

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"Berries"

5 x 7 in

Oil on Canvas Panel

After painting the radishes I decided to go smaller with these raspberries.  I really love the way the reds glow within the raspberry and also how light reflects from the black berries.  With this painting I also wanted to tackle a different wooden base and its textures.  It was definitely challenging in many ways, the wood reminded me of "seneca" the painting I did back in Florence.  It had similar textures in the wooden base which was neat to revisit after such a long time.  The berries themselves where also fun to paint and even better to eat!  

I started with the usual approach to the drawing stage, no mediums just a bit of raw umber on the brush.  Then I filled in the background with cerulean blue, naples yellow, burnt sienna and titanium white.

I then covered the base as well using burnt sienna, raw umber, cerulean and titanium white.  The texture to this wood is different than the regular wood I usually paint.  It was pretty challenging, but I really liked the soft textures it has.

Then I started on the first raspberry just stating the local color, I just used cad. red light.  Then I started forming the shape with raw umber and ivory black.  I'm also constantly thinking of the smaller forms when stating the larger ones, always making sure the form is turning in the respected areas.

I then start adding the middle and lighter values using titanium white, and cerulean blue.  I then go back to the gaps within the raspberry and just add cad. red light to give that glow effect.  I'm constantly going back and forth from values to get the right look, you have to just dab the colors in the right area until it looks right.  Then I added the black berries just stating the local color first, I just used ivory black for the initial lay in.

Then I used titanium white to dab where the lights where gonna be placed and just shifted them as I went.  I was also adding reflected colors on the black berries, especially the one right next to the red raspberry.  

I then added more details to the wooden base and finishing touches to the raspberries themselves, and called it a day.  It was neat painting these guys, they seem simple but they have their own intricate qualities that make it somewhat challenging.  I hope you enjoyed this one, thanks for stopping by and viewing!  

"Radishes"

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"Radishes"

8 x 10 in

Oil on Canvas Panel

 I'm done with the tangerine series for now and glad to move onto these radishes.  I've done these radishes before and find it really challenging to paint the leaves, that's why I wanted to paint them again.  It was fun experimenting with the paints to get the right feel for the leaves.  Also playing with the two complimentary colors red and green was a neat idea to incorporate.  

I started with the usual dry brush approach using no mediums, just raw umber on the brush for the drawing stage.  After the drawing is established I stated the background using cerulean blue, naples yellow, burnt sienna, and titanium white.

Then I stated the base instead of going into the radishes at first, I wanted to do this so I can just spend the whole time concentrated on them.  I started with the darkest area of the base using ivory black, cad. orange, and burnt sienna.  Then I stated the top part of the base which is also the lighter and middle values.  I used titanium white, burnt sienna, cerulean blue, and naples yellow.

Then I started on the radishes themselves, working on the darkest values first.  I used ivory black, raw umber, and cad. red light.  Then I put in the middle values using cad. orange, cad. red light.  I'm working on all the radishes at the same time to have an equal feel overall.  I work on each on and finish it to a certain level and move on to the next.

Then I added the lighter values using titanium white, and quinacridone magenta.  I went pretty thick and impasto with the highlights in order to give the feel of light hitting the radishes.  Then I added the stringy things that hang off the radishes which was fun to do.  

After the radishes were completed I started on the leaves, I stated the darker to middle values first.  I used ivory black, viridian deep, and cad. yellow.  Then I stated the middle to lighter values while still figure out the darker value placements.  This helped me get an idea where everything should lay, since this area is so difficult to paint due to its complicated nature.   

I kept sculpting the leaves and getting the feel I wanted to.  I knew painting this area would be challenging because it can't be rendered the same way the radishes where done.  It has to be looser and gestural in order to get the right feel of the leaves, it really tricky but very educational to paint.  I really liked the way it turned out, I learned a lot from painting these leaves and how to handle the paints in different ways.  I hope you enjoyed this one, thanks for stopping by and viewing.  

"Leaf & Tangerine"

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"Leaf & Tangerine"

7 x 5 in

Oil on Canvas Panel

Hi everyone, well this is the third and final painting of the tangerine series.  I've been wanting to paint these tangerines with their leaves for a while and glad I was able to do so.  With this painting I tried something different from my usual approach to rendering.  I wanted to make the painting be more alive rather than seem to polished.  I really liked playing with the looseness of the paints, to capture the lights and sculpt them to a quality I haven't done so in a while was entertaining and challenging.  I'm not saying this painting is completely loose, but it has different characteristic than I usually go for with my technique.  As stated in my other posts I really like trying new approaches with my technique, this allows me to find new avenues I never thought of and ones I hope not to go back too.  As long as ones constantly pushing themselves to reach that next level, there will always be new discoveries along the way.

I started with the usual dry brush approach for the drawing stage, no mediums and just raw umber.  After the drawing was established I stated the darkest values on the leaves and stem.  I used ivory black, viridian and some cad. yellow.  I'm going quick at this stage to capture the gesture of the light, I don't want to get stiff with the paints and make the leaves look dead.  

I keep bouncing around and adding more middle values and some lighter ones as well, I used cad. yellow, cerulean blue, and titanium white.  

Then I start on the tangerine doing the same as I did with the leaves, I don't necessarily start with just the darks.  I  state all the notes at once and sculpt the chroma and value to their respected look.  For the tangerine I used cad. orange, cad. yellow, cad. red light, titanium white, raw umber, ivory black, and cerulean.

I keep refining the chroma and value and start narrowing down to the smaller shapes or details.  Its almost as doing big form modeling first and then going into the smaller forms, instead I am stating the whole information and going from there.  It does take a while to get used to because you're constantly jumping around everywhere making sure things are looking right.  It really depends on what type of painter you are, and the approach you're going for.

I then started on the base with the darker values and working to the middle and lighter values.  I used burnt sienna, cerulean, ivory black, naples yellow, cad. orange, titanium white.  In the final picture I went all around and kept refining certain areas, trying not to overwork the areas and make them look too polished or un natural.  As I said before it was challenging painting this way but I learned a lot and excited to apply it to the next alla prima I do.  Thanks for stopping by, I hope you enjoyed this one and learned as much as I did!