Red and gold is a fantastic color combination for the festive Christmas season! I thought it would be great to have a good show this year since the summer was slow. It feels the bad years are over, and I can start fresh. much better, at much higher level, much more efficient and more skillful. That is not hard to do when my health has returned.
Late with posting on blog
I have been very busy creating the show paintings, I promise to post articles and poems more often when I get over Christmas. The theme of this year is red and gold for Christmas as I mentioned. Red is such a warm and energizing color, we need it in winter. We need it especially when it’s cold and nasty outside. I was spending the day trying to get pictures for my show. The light was bad, but I tried, tried and tried until it worked.
Small bird paintings
Red cardinal and golden robin paintings make a very beautiful gift. I also invite everybody to join the art classes and paint some gifts on your own, red and golden birds or a festive holiday scene. That can be painted in a comparatively short time when using primed canvas. Primed canvas has a coat already on it, therefore, painting is easier.
Red and gold colors increase the festive mood
Red and gold, and red is as in poinsettia, Poinsettia painting measures 20 x 16 in or 51 x 41 cm
Red and gold as in burning candles, this is Christmas still life, 20 x 16 in or 51 x 41 cm
Red and gold, and gold as in sparkling decorations
Red and golden colors make any space festive and elegant.
If you prefer to paint your own art, join the art classes.
I hope you are not overdoing with gifts, but choosing soul-warming, mood-lifting and energy-giving things, like a painting. Why not? If you would love to see what deals are on, please check out and follow my Facebook page which is about this art studio, my art, art sales and art classes:
Still life has been my most favorite subject ever since I can remember myself. I love setting up some fruit and arrange some leaves, flowers and jars, so that it looks exactly as I like. Still life allows capturing everything that is important in a painting: proportions, values, direction of light and shadows and contrast. Still life is essence of art.
Time constraints
Time is rushing us so badly that it sometimes feels I just wake up and go back to sleep. At least, I got this feeling recently. Along with doctor’s appointments, household stuff, daily meals, cleaning, laundry, classes, preparation of new images and painting steps, preparation of hand-out materials, advertising, social media posts, two huge medical writing jobs: that meant there was no time to paint. Although, my show is coming up and this is a gift season for which I should have been preparing. Well, I am trying to do my best.
I put up a few decorations yesterday, and I had to give a class later, and that was it. The day just disappeared again. Anyway, I’m posting a watercolor still life which was done about 3 weeks ago,
Daily duties and art
I hope my duties will somewhat balance out during the upcoming weeks and I can get to things which I really want to do: i simply would love to paint more. I love just setting up a still life, drawing and painting it.
Starting painting for a class is not quite the same: I have to take into account all distinctive levels of skill, and we often have absolute beginners, so that painting is just an illustration for what I am saying while teaching.
Showing is definitely better than only telling about it. It is very helpful also that I can see and correct things which are usually problematic for students: very little paint, too much water, completely dry brush, dirty brush, putting too much pressure on brush and similar basic issues which frequently arise when starting to paint.
Common beginners’ mistakes
One thing which is always wrong when painting in any medium and using any subject is trying to paint with tiny bits of paint or not having paint on a brush. We have to be generous!
I think, generous people also have much better results when creating art, they simply are not that much afraid of wasting anything. That certainly helps!
About this particular painting
I had started it while traveling to Latvia. I had two apples and some beautiful leaves. I created a composition which felt like I needed to add something more to it. Since I didn’t have pears and grapes, I simply drew them in. I just got the first layer, and didn’t get back to this painting until I arrived back in Canada. It looked quite terrible as first rough layers only.
So, Thought what can I do about this painting because it looked promising and I loved the composition. I added background, quite a few layers, but don’t have any pictures, and after a few layers of extra washes, it came to life and started looking great.
Autumn fruit still life, 16 x 12 in or 41 x 30.5 cm
Feel your subject
For me, painting a still life means to become my subject and to feel its energy. I feel like the apple in this still life, or like the pear, or even the leaf. I love soothing and warm colors. That is best achieved when using not a photo, but real things. I will also not stop painting until the still life feels right to me.
Painting takes time. You should be ready to spend on a painting at least a few hours here and there, so that disturbances, interruptions or other activities are not a problem. I just didn’t get this chance recently, but I’m looking hopefully to the future.
Closer look at the central part
Reasons to paint still life
I intend to draw and paint more still life paintings. Why? I cannot frequently get out into the nature, but things to use in a still life setting are always easily available. I believe drawing still life is as good practice as drawing faces or scenes with figures. The main thing is: we teach our eyes and brain to see and perceive.
Art prints and other artistic products are available from Fine Art America
Fall art show is here. Buy art from the artist. It will be original art and it will come at a lot less than buying from a gallery. Studio sale offers plenty of art at great prices. 3 ladies already responded. I am genuinely thankful for their support, and I hope they like their paintings, however, taking into account the large number of items for which I do not have left any wall space and any storage space, I would need much more sales happening. Please, take advantage of very affordable rates and keep shopping.
Perfecting my own style
I work a lot and hard to create my paintings. I know how much easier it is to make abstract art because that takes origin only in one’s imagination. Artists sometimes simply try to comply with market trends also. Unfortunately, I am not in abstracts that much, I prefer more challenge. I have developed my own realism style which is not a copy of photo, but artistically enhanced realism.
Creating art takes time and patience
When we look at a painting, it seems it didn’t take any time or efforts. It is due to the fact, that good art shouldn’t exhibit artistic struggles and technical difficulties, but mood and atmosphere of the painted scene or subject. When we get past such struggles, the genuine creation happens. Some of my paintings took 2 years to bring to a stage when I liked them. In average, each painting takes about 1 week to month to get it to the point when I am satisfied with it. There are smaller watercolors which only take one to two days to accomplish, but any larger work requires much more time because most of my paintings are rather representative than abstract.
Showing groups of paintings
My paintings are usually series of related images. Bright flowers will match the other floral paintings. Soft and tranquil fall colors appear in many paintings of this season. Noteworthy are also tree and birch paintings which work very well together.
Fall art show: a few of pink and white flower paintings
Fine Art America site for art prints and other art products:
Yellow, orange, rusty color and red: leaves say good-bye to their shelter tree and throw themselves into the swirling wind. It is the ancient show of the fall: the last waltz of leaves with the wind as they fall down, down, down …
While the fall is writing a summary about everything that was done during this year, the nature decorates outdoors with all its treasures: colorful leaves, acorns, rowan berries, chestnuts, wild mushrooms, rose hips, late fall blooms, vegetables in the garden and fruits on trees. This is the season of abundance, and this is the most genuine pleasure for our eyes and soul.
Soothing, relaxing and pleasurable
Well, the wind could slow down a bit, and showers could be not that freezing. However, they’re just doing their job whether we like it or not. What can be more soothing and relaxing than creating some paintings in the warm and welcoming fall colors? A cup of herbal tea perhaps, or flavor of chicken soup on the stove? These are useful things for nasty and chilly fall days, too, but they don’t replace the simple pleasure of creation.
Rewarding brushes
If there weren’t these fantastic colors out there, the pain of the summer disappearing behind a dark cloud would be unbearable! I hope everybody can enjoy some hot chicken broth or a cup of tea with homemade pastries at this chilly night in countries where it is getting cold. Other than that: we always have our brushes, pencils and paints. Let us keep painting and drawing, and creating as the fall makes us seek for a shelter indoors! Let us lighten up our inspiration so that we don’t have to blame the darkness and bad weather for our upset moods!
I have attached for illustration some of the autumn nature series paintings.
Summer is a great time to engage in plein-air painting.
I recently painted a garden scene called “Take a Rest” with some flowers and garden tools.
I use real scenes and real set-ups to create my paintings, I somehow cannot paint using photos, I just can’t.
First, I do a freehand drawing. The weather was very good for a while, so, I could paint every day outdoors. I had set up the exact items in my backyard, and it was a double pleasure to paint there.
The other painting is a still life called “Kitchen Symphony”.
I had set up all items in my art studio where I have a good light. For my paintings, daylight is extremely important because of color adjustment. Any artificial light changes color.
I think, both paintings came out quite nicely, however, it was very late when I took a photo of my garden scene, so the light might be not that perfect.
Part of the farmer’s market painting
I would love to also mention the Farmer’s market painting which is as large as the previous paintings – full sheet watercolor, 29 x 22″. All paintings are created using heavy, cold press Arches watercolor paper. The look really impressive when you see them full-size and in person. Well, size matters.
