Things Get Tedious Again

No wonder I needed an extended break from painting recently; look at how crazy the detail is on the chocolate mousse painting. What was I thinking? When the waiter puts the dessert down in front of me, I'm so delighted by the beauty of the thing that I don't have the sense to ask myself, "Do I really want to paint a couple hundred chocolate sprinkles?"

These two are side by side on the easel because they utilize a similar palette. But I'm taking a break now.

Chocolate Mousse,  and Six Layer Indulgence, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

The Swimmer

Back to work on this; mostly highlights and darkest darks.

Coming Of Age In The Year 2018, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Meanwhile...

I went back to this one. It is a real struggle, and I don't know if I'll ever finish it.

A Quiet Evening In Cambridge, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

And I used a t-square to check the vertical lines on the right side of this one this morning; despite my having measured them carefully the other day and painting them exactly an inch+ from the right side edge, they are still  NOT vertical. Which means the corner is not square. Dangit; I'll have to take it apart and re-stretch again at some point. BTW, the distortion from the camera lens only adds to the perception of it being wonky.

The Gauntlet, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

13 Out Of 13

 In the last four or five weeks, I've worked on every one of the dessert paintings at least once. This morning I tackled the Crème Brûlée, finding a nice way to get that shadow-on-white color by mixing the new tube of Raw Umber (green shade) with Cobalt Blue and Titanium White. I've been thinking the series should stop at 15 paintings, but maybe 13 is enough?

There's a nice blue haze coming from the window on the left side of the reference photo, and I really need to include it though I'm not sure how to achieve that faint veil of blue over the table surface. That will be a problem for another day. The blue light accounts for the blueness on the plate and the actual sky reflection in the spoon.

Crème Brûlée, Guilty Pleasures Series, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

 

 

Resurrecting An Oldie

I put this one away months ago because I couldn't handle the skin tones. I was working from a less-than-perfect grab shot, and a couple of the figures were either poorly lit or somewhat obscured. Since the portrait workshop, I've been pulling out from the stack some paintings that I'd abandoned or stopped working on; now I'm approaching them with (hopefully) a better sense of how to proceed.

I tentatively reworked a few of the faces here, though there's till more to do. Looks like the young woman on the left needs darker shadows, for example.

The Chair, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Sharpening Up Some Small Areas

Have been trying to make some places a little easier to read, mostly in the upper part of the group.

Choose One, Guilty Pleasures Series, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Darker

After cleaning up the window frames— making them lighter in spots and darker in others; carefully blending, etc.— I moved on to the face, making it darker and more dramatic.

The Promise Of Evening, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

A Little Work On The Face

...and some on the right side of the building, too. Wondering if the face should be lighter.

The Gauntlet, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

The Monday Morning Sundae

I'm finding both the structure and the color of the cone to be tricky. The color ranges from a golden tan to a pinkish beige, with lighter lines and darker shadows. And the ice cream and whipped cream are tricky as well, both leaning toward a yellowish grey. But here's this morning's work:

Hot Fudge Sundae II, Guilty Pleasures Series, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Sneaking In Some Saturday Work

Feeling guilty for having taken yesterday afternoon off, even though it included a trip to the art supply store. Worked mostly on the spoon, and added more incremental markings on the tablecloth to be used as guidelines for the tablecloth's texture.

 Pot de Crème, Guilty Pleasures Series, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Painting For Fun

Decided to take the day off from the tedious work, at least, and just put in an hour on this one. Instead of making it as precise as I'd originally planned, I'm cutting loose and making it splashy and brushy. If I could find the little palette knife I bought a few months ago, it would be even more adventurous.

Spring Flowers In A Blue Vase, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Moving Forward

Again; more pleased with the way the face is shaping up than at any time in the past. That workshop was worth every penny. Also sharpened up the blouse.

Tuesday, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

 

And some dessert. Here I worked on the marbled table top and deepened and evened out the color of the dish.

 

Banana Cream Pie, Guilty Pleasures Series, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

 

This Looks More Like Him

The face is still going to need one more pass to soften the transitions, and the eye on the viewer left is too far over; still, progress.

Daniel, America Series, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Three For Today

First, reworking the skin tones on Katie. This is one of several pieces that I'd hoped I could improve post-workshop, and so far that has held true. Messed up the mouth at the last minute; will redo it next sitting, but at least I know when to quit.

Katie, America Series, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

 

Next, tackled the faces and arms/hands of the two women in this one:

 

Selfies, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

 

...but there are so many areas in it that need work.

 

Finally: the luscious

 

Île Flottante, Guilty Pleasures Series, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

 

 Must redraw that bowl...

Russian Bots

What do they want? I doubt I really had 114 fans in Russia looking at my blog today.

This Looks More Like Her

Mostly I worked on the hair this morning, but then I did a little more detail on the face, and I'm happier with the way it looks— especially the mouth. Stopping for now before I ruin it!

Cheyenne, America Series, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

 

And yesterday's successful session on this one made me want to go back to it to add some highlights on the water spots, and add a little detail to the lower spoon:

 

Two Spoons, Guilty Pleasures Series, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

 

Water Ring

I've been kind of ambivalent about whether or not to include the water ring on the table at upper left; it looks like a lot of work. But I've decided to go ahead with it. Watch it develop over the next couple of weeks. Meanwhile, I also worked on the spoon and some of the fudge sauce.

Two Spoons, Guilty Pleasures Series, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

In The Mood For Dessert

It's high time I moved these little dessert paintings along; this one will feature a lacy paper doily and chocolate sprinkles... eventually...

Chocolate Mousse, Guilty Pleasures Series, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Upping The Contrast

It looks like I haven't worked on this since August. Sometimes a painting gets to a very tedious place, and I just don't want to go there, or I don't have the necessary patience that day to do the hard work. But today I decided to amp up the contrast on the casing, which has been getting kind of banged around in recent months. The lower left corner is darker than it appears here, because there's some glare on the wet paint.

In Case Of Emergency,  © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

 

Also: I put another layer of paint on the marbled tabletop surface below, and lightened the center of the dish.

 

Six Layer Indulgence, Guilty Pleasures Series, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Not Liking The Shingles

The shingles on the window gable are just too harsh; next time around I'll have to brush over them a bit.
Meanwhile, trying to get a sense of the atmosphere, and the purple-y light.

L'Auberge Provençale, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

It Feels Good To Be Painting Again

Over the last several weeks, when there have been breaks in my painting schedule, I've toyed with the idea of just taking an extended sabbatical. I seemed to have run out of steam, and nothing in the studio looked appealing to work on. But over the past few days, I've felt more like it. I look at a piece and think, "Oh, I know what this needs!" and I mix up the paint and go at it. So all is well.

Here are the two I worked on this morning; of course, life has a way of throwing a monkey wrench into my good intentions, and I have to take the afternoon off to pick up any unsold paintings at a show in the country. So this might be it for today.

Coming Of Age In The Year 2018, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

 

Again, the advice from the recent workshop has served well on the skin tones on the back. It's finally coming together.

 

And:

 

The Promise Of Evening, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

 

Back to this one after an extended hiatus. Did a little work on the chin and experimented with light and shadow on the window frames.

 

More Woodwork, and A Little Whipped Cream

I brushed on several different colors over the wood grain, let it sit for several minutes, and then scuffed it up again. And added some super white to the whipped cream highlights. The spoon is starting to sharpen up.

Hot Fudge Sundae I, Guilty Pleasures Series, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Tuesday On Wednesday

Finally, the face is beginning to come together on the waitress. The corner of the mouth makes her look a bit too sad; I'll work on that the next time around. Also firmed up some of the items on the bar.

Tuesday, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Drawn To The Red

It's such fun to try to get the gooey consistency of the syrup. I love blending the reds. Added some grey glazes to the sponge; next time around I'll go back over them with a yellowy color.

Strawberry Shortcake, Guilty Pleasures Series, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Grace

Well, the time away from the easel has allowed my brain to ferment all the information from the workshop, and last night I put it to use on Grace. I'm very pleased with the way the face looks now, and i feel like— finally— I have a method, instead of just stumbling around, in a hit-or-miss fashion.

Grace, America Series, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Owls

One of the things I like most about this painting is the shadowy owls.

  Variations On A Theme #2A, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

 

And I'm evening out the tablecloth here:

 Pot de Crème, Guilty Pleasures Series, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

...And The Smaller Grainer Brush

Apparently, I bought two grainers. This is the smaller one at work; it seems to create just the kind of texture I need for these woody tabletops by using a generous amount of glazing medium along with the pigments.

Mocha Treat, Guilty Pleasures Series, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

The Grainer Brush

Before I left town, I visited the local art supply store and— inspired by the recent workshop— picked up a few brushes I've never tried before. Today I used the "grainer" brush on the wood texture below—it creates a softer line than the painstakingly stroke-by-stroke work I've been doing (see upper left) and it spaces the lines neatly. I'll continue to explore the possibilities.

Cherry Cobbler, Guilty Pleasures Series, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

 

 

Back To The Easel

After an extended out-of-town trip, I find myself back at the easel again. I really want to move on to some new stuff, so the need to get the lines straight on the architectural details on this painting is annoying. Plus, I keep looking at things with a sharper eye. If I follow my instincts to get every detail painted with a sense of atmosphere, I'll never finish anything, so although the flat areas bother me, I'm going to have to let go of them.

This morning's work:

The Gauntlet, © 2019, work in progress (click on image for larger view)