I really do enjoy painting sunflowers. They are now all gone from my favorite haunts, like Dierberg's floral shop, and Whole Foods, so I guess I will have to wait now til next summer or fall. This grouping I painted as my demo at a local gallery. I set up my still life and lots of my friends and family came to watch. They had wine and cheese at the gallery. They have an "Open House" once a month.... Fun !
I'll admit it.... Garage sales, and yard sales get my heart thumpin'... Just can't help it, I'm addicted. I used to have antique mall booths with my sister, and that gave me a perfect excuse to shop. Now I've given that up, because it took soooo very much time, but I still have to get out there every Sat. morning, in case there is some treasure that might get by me ! ha
I found this darling little tiny triangular vase, along with a couple of other little guys that had some unusual shapes, and I was so anxious to try painting them. Here's the first one.... It doesn't take much to make me happy, I guess. ha ha
The original variety of sunflower, with the dark center, is hard to beat..... I never knew there were so many kinds until I started painting them.....
Hope everyone had a Happy Halloween. I didn't paint a pumpkin this year (yet, anyway), and didn't carve one either.... too busy painting sunflowers, I guess.
Here's a different version of my sunflower... love the vase. So fun to paint...
These have turned into a series, without me even trying. HA !
I had the setup, so I decided to do another version, with the square format. I really do enjoy these flowers... (can you tell? ha ha)
I thought I'd try a darker background today. Hopefully I got enough contrast of values... Here's the progress during the process.
I DID forgo the polka-dots for the sake of simplicity... ha !
Funny, how changing the light on the same subject can alter the look sooo dramatically. So many different ways of looking at something ! LOVE IT ! (my daughter and I just had this conversation 5 minutes ago on the phone, how her photography, and my painting are similar in that respect)
I painted another version, and posted that one, too...
These had yellow centers, unlike the dark ones I'm used to. They have an interesting green to the center, with a texture, too. This one is a little one, measuring 6 x 6...
The owner of a local gallery asked if I'd demonstrate my painting for their monthly gathering. I enjoyed having my friends come and watch me and talk to all of them about my art. One friend sat right by me from the start, and had so many questions. It was a fun time. Here's the finished painting.
These are lasting awhile, so I'm gonna take advantage... On this one I really liked the limegreen underpainting, and decided it worked !
There are SO MANY different varieties of sunflowers !! I was never aware of that, until I started painting them. I still really love the traditional one the best because of the fantastic contrast in values. I've finally gotten a new bouquet so I can tackle them a few more times..... so fun !
Tried the larger brush again, and found it to be MOST challenging. I'm gonna keep at it, til I figure it out ! Tenacious or just Stubborn, I don't know, ha ha !
Trying for more SHAPE, and less LINE this morning. Trying to get in the groove with these beautiful specimens ! I had to stick cut-off hanger wires into the stems to get them to stand up.... after one day they are soooooo droopy !
Using bigger brushes.... gotta keep trying this... it should help me get softer edges.....and NOT BE so tight ! ha !
Here's a 50 minute study.... Trying to use larger brushes, hard to get detail..... maybe that's the key ??
The last batch of sunflowers 'expired' before I had a chance to paint them.... how sad. These are from the Tower Grove farmer's market yesterday, and I was bound and determined to get them onto the canvas (gessobord, really) before they bit the dust. The market has incredible community support. It offers music by a local radio station, who provides a band. Load of interested people with their dogs, children, and a total eclectic flavor... as well as wonderful local produce, specially made meats, free-range eggs, and lots of great stuff !
