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

Dailypainters.com
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My DPW Gallery
Brushstrokes@comcast.net

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

Dailypainters.com
Dailypaintworks.com
My DPW Gallery
Brushstrokes@comcast.net


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 


Dailypaintworks.com
Dailypainters.com
My DPW Gallery
Brushstrokes@comcast.net

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

Dailypainters.com
Dailypaintworks.com
My DPW Gallery
Brushstrokes@comcast.net

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

Dailypaintworks.com
Dailypainters.com
My DPW Gallery
Brushstrokes@comcast.net

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

Dailypainters.com
Dailypainworks.com
My DPW Gallery
Brushstrokes@comcast.net

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

Dailypaintworks.com
Dailypainters.com
My DPW Gallery
Brushstrokes@comcast.net

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

Dailypaintworks.com
Dailypainters.com
My DPW Gallery
Brushstrokes@comcast.net