Golden Star

"Golden Star"
5" x 7"
Acrylic on canvas board
I attended a plein air event in Cataract, Wisconsin over the weekend. We could paint three pieces in the two day event. I painted this one first. It's a mosaic star at the Wegner Grotto. I painted three other pieces and eliminated this star. Wrong choice. The judge told everyone that my star would have won first place had it not been swapped out for a begonia piece I finished five minutes before the end of the competition.  I did not win, but I could have. Broke my heart. 

Carol

Brushstrokes@comcast.net
Carolkeene.com
Dailypaintworks.com
Dailypainters.com  


Potted

"Potted"
7" x 5"
Acrylic on canvas panel
I'm so drawn to colorful potted plants and flowers this summer.  I haven't seen many roses so I'm making do with what's available.  

I found a tool to scrape the canvas to "fracture" the paint as I apply it.  It's the Princeton Catalyst Silicone Wedge No. 1. I couldn't find the kind of scraper Julie Ford Oliver recommended, then remembered the ones by my friends at Princeton Brushes.  I'm using the dark gray one and I love the way it feels to hold it and the way it pushes away the paint… but also reapplies it where needed.

Carol

Brushstrokes@comcast.net
Carolkeene.com
Dailypaintworks.com
Dailypainters.com

Hot Pink Hollyhocks

"Hot Pink Hollyhocks"
7" x 5"
Acrylic on canvas panel
I photographed this part of a public garden in Fish Creek, as you come into town. It delighted me in the dark, so I photographed it the night we arrived in town. Come morning it was in deep shadow, but by afternoon, when I had already painted and turned in my canvas for the competition, the sun shone on these gorgeous flowers.  You'll see more of them in days to come. 

Carol

Brushstrokes@comcst.net
Carolkeene.com
Dailypaintworks.com
Dailypainters.com

White Hollyhocks

"White Hollyhocks"
7" x 5"
Acrylic on canvas panel
When the sun rose, I was able to see the color of the pale hollyhocks I had found the night before — white. They were in full bloom and luscious, ripe for painting.  

I'm preparing for another competition. This one is for small art, either 4"x 6" or 5"x 7" postcard size.  I'm excited to be going up to Wisconsin again, this time to a plein air competition sponsored by the Kohler foundation.  We'll see how it goes!

Carol

Brushstrokes@comcast.net
Carolkeene.com
Dailypaintworks.com
Dailypainters.com