Pre-Slaw

"Pre-Slaw"  20" x 24"  Oil on wrapped canvas

When I was a preschooler I called all the leafy greens in my mother's garden lettuce—until the lesson.  She had me compare the colors, rub their leaves, smell them, listen to them squeak against themselves and finally taste that stinky pre-slaw taste of raw cabbage.  I learned the difference.

This was my first sponged painting of something other than a flower.  What fun to use a variety of reds and greens where I normally would have glazed oranges and yellows.  

This painting is listed with, and for sale through a Daily Paintworks Auction.  

Please also be aware, that my hosts on Daily Paintworks, Carol and David Marine, have lost their home and Carol's studio to a wildfire this past week in a suburb of Austin, Texas.  Keep them in your good thoughts as they struggle to recover from this tragic event. 

Carol  

Siblings

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

The day was cooler than we had grown accustomed to. The sun shone, but was dotted with intermittent clouds. Two blooms clung to one another like siblings about to be tucked into separate beds. 

I hadn't considered painting these two together, but they seemed to fit in my composition, so here it is. I used my handmade Rosemary & Co. brushes instead of sponges to brush on the color. It was thrilling to do it in the traditionally, but I still glazed on the luminous colors with my sponge.  And just you wait to see what new tool I've incorporated into creating my new series!

This painting is listed with, and for sale through a Daily Paintworks Auction. 

Thanks for stopping by,
Carol

Ooh-La-La

"Ooh-La-La" 12" x 12" Oil on wrapped canvas

In the bouquet she didn't seem any more special than her vase-mates. But when I isolated her, she perked up and strutted her stuff. 


It was a treat to paint this little beauty.  I sponged the entire canvas with a cool lemon yellow, then added the details that made her so unique with a brush.  I loved losing the edges of her dark petals to the background.

This painting can be seen with a lot of other fab paintings on DailyPaintworks.  And she's for sale on an auction on that site, too.

Thanks for visiting!
Carol

Joe's Coat Rose

"Joe's Coat Rose" 24" x 36" Oil on wrapped canvas

Back when "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat" was performing in Chicago, some Keene cousins were production carpenters and electricians. They referred to it as "Joe's Coat."  Since this white rose is everything BUT, I gave it, what seemed, an appropriate title.  

"Joe's Coat" was executed with a half dozen sponges loaded in a variety of cool reds. Then warmed in the end with some cadmium yellows and oranges.  

This painting is listed with, and for sale through a Daily Paintworks auction.  Check out my gallery on that site. 

Thank you for visiting.

Carol 

Pink Hibiscus

"Pink Hibiscus" 18" x 18" Oil on wrapped canvas

She faced straight into the camera with a headlong glance, more like a formal portrait than my casual intent. She posed. I clicked. It worked. 

Various shades of pink and green were swirled across this canvas with cubes of sponge; one for each color of red, each color of green, to keep the glazed colors from getting muddy.

This painting is listed with, and for sale through Dailypaintworks.com

Thank you for visiting,
Carol

Cherries on a Platter

"Cherries on a Platter" 16" x 20" Oil on wrapped canvas

They rolled around on my old crystal platter until they came to rest against the fluted edge. What made the turquoise reflections?  Bright turquoise daisies in a vase just out of sight.  They were the original subject of my photo shoot, but these three cherries stole the show with their crescent-shaped highlights repeating the markings on the platter.

It was a joyful moment when I realized I'd be covering a lot of the surface of this piece with cadmium red light. I had only used it a few times prior to this and loved the way it responded to glazing with my sponge.

This painting is listed with, and for sale through Dailypaintworks.com

Thank you for visiting,
Carol

Party Peony

"Party Peony" 24" x 36" Oil on wrapped canvas

She cupped the stamens in the hollow of her bowl, like confetti about to be tossed.

Once the darks were established in the corners, I sponged layer upon layer of color toward the center of this full-blown peony.  I connected the petals without regard to the interior goings on.  Then once the architecture was correct, I began brushing one stroke at a time to create the "celebration."  The addition of Radiant Turquoise on the stamen tips added life to the party.

This painting is listed with, and for sale through Dailypaintworks.com

Thank you for visiting,

Carol

Old Rose

"Old Rose" 36" x 36"Oil on wrapped canvas

This rose faced my placesetting at a dinner party for my friend.  She was the only full-blown one in the bunch. I commented on the way her petals curled and the host sent me home with the entire bunch. The next morning all of them looked like this! I photographed them and have hundreds of images from which to choose.

I began painting in the corners, swirling burnt umber and mineral violet toward the soft edges of the outermost petals. I worked toward the center with lighter and lighter passes. Then when the values were right I began to add glazes of color until the center was rosey enough to be my focal point.

This painting is listed with, and for sale through Dailypaintworks.com.

Thank you for visiting,

Carol

Jubilant Hibiscus



"Jubilant Hibiscus" 16" x 20" Oil on wrapped canvas


This jubilant hibiscus and eleven more like her had just been offloaded from a truck when I pulled into the garden center.  Snow was still drifted against the greenhouse where she'd remain until all threats of frost were over.  


I painted this with a brush, as I had done most of my paintings until two years ago.  It was a nice painting, but lacked an overall warmth.  When she was totally dry I glazed over parts of her with a touch of cad yellow.  I used a piece of sponge to buff in the essence of sunshine. She's no longer just nice.

Thank you for visiting,
Carol

Morning Rose

Morning Rose 30" x 40" Oil on wrapped canvas

During a rare morning walk through the Chicago Botanic Gardens I discovered sunlight having its way with this rose. She blushed at being discovered, but posed, nonetheless. 

Here's where my style of sponge painting began! This white flower had so many colors in it, I had to figure out a way to paint the petals, yet maintain a believable white. Being self-taught, I was not limited by someone else's ideas, so I sliced off the end of my husband's car wash sponge and swirled a breath of color onto dry titanium white. I repeated the process with yellows and reds and blues until she looked like this!  She sold immediately.

Scarlet Aria

Scarlet Aria Oil on Masonite panel 24" x 24"

It was late in the season for day lilies. But a cluster was still performing on a slope, across the Serpentine Bridge at the Chicago Botanic Gardens.  The green-throated beauties warbled in close proximity to white hibiscus blossoms the size of luncheon plates. 

Once again, I worked my sponge from the outside in, anxious to paint the stamens.  I knew they'd be my final touches—with a scruffy little brush!  I also had to make sure the pistil didn't lead my eye off the right side by paying attention to value and edges.  

Rose #6

"Rose # 6" Oil on wrapped canvas 20" x  20"

The photo for the painting of the rose above was shot at the Chicago Botanic Gardens in Glencoe, a year ago.  It was evening, before a concert on the Esplanade.  The music was as lively as the flounce of her petticoats.  Even with another 154 luscious images in my camera, I knew I would commit her to canvas within a year. 

I first establish my darks, usually around the perimeter, and swirl them with a piece of sponge, (see yesterday's post) mixing a cool green with the warm red I'll use in the center of the rose. I pay attention to the values in the photo on my digital screen, but ignore most of that detail. I'm merely creating a soft foil to tuck behind the main player. 

Thank you for visiting,

Carol

Pansy

"Pansy" Oil on wrapped canvas 36" x 36"

I shot the reference photo for "Pansy" in Winter Park, Colorado last summer when I visited artist, Karen Vance.  There was nothing different between Illinois pansies and Colorado pansies, BUT this one reminded me of Marilyn Monroe's skirt in "The Seven Year Itch."

All of "Pansy" and many of my large, single bloom images have been painted with—a sponge.  Yes, even the tiny, hard-edged veins.  Probably your mind has conjured at least three different kinds of sponge by this time, but I'm not here to tease.  The magical tool is a masonry sponge.  Looks like an orange brick.

To reiterate, I paint with water miscible oils that dry faster than traditional oils, especially when applied thin.  I swirl on color with a snippet of sponge the size of a pack of chewing gum, wait for each layer to dry, and then swirl sheer glazes of color over each dry area.  The darker values of purple and yellow, above, were done in layers, not ala prima. Being a recovering watercolorist and a muralist/faux finisher, the use of non-traditional materials just comes naturally.  And over the next few days, I'll explain even more as you view additional pieces.

Thank you for visiting,
Carol