Paul

11" x 14"
Oil on Panel
NFS

For a while, I have been wanting to do a series of figures at work, using their hands and heart to create. It seemed only natural to me that I begin with a scene from a restaurant. I grew up in the restaurant business, my dad was a chef and owned a restaurant for several years. My brother's and I chose different career paths, but my cousin Paul found his way into the business. Last March, I was lucky enough to visit his restaurant and take photos of him and his staff busy at work. This painting was a huge challenge for me as I am not comfortable with portraiture, and I don't spend a lot of time doing figure work. The background was also a challenge, I tried keeping the values close in range, and simplified the colors, with little spots of the warmer oranges to pull your eye through the painting. I could keep going back into this one, but I think I am going to call it finished.

If you are ever in the Bay Shore area of Long Island, you should stop by Mulberry Street Restaurant and try the meatballs - the pizza is pretty awesome too!

Plate of Persimmons

6" x 6"
Oil on Panel

This one makes me happy and might turn into a series. 

All of these current, smaller paintings will be for sale at a local Christmas Home Tour on Sunday, December 8th. I will be posting the details of this event in the next few days on my blog and Facebook. 

Pomegranate with Blue pot

Oil on Panel
6"x 6"

I have always been fascinated by the inside of a Pomegranate; the seeds look like little gems. In addition to being a beautiful fruit, they are the most powerful anti-oxidant of all fruits. If you have never tried one, they are delicious, but can be time consuming to eat if you don't know how to properly peel it. However, I just came across a YouTube video that shows the correct way to peel and eat a pomegranate. There are too many powerful health benefits to pass on eating them, with their ability to lower cholesterol, blood pressure, and other cardiac risk factors. I'll be eating many more now that I know how to peel them. This one was so much fun paint, I'll be painting them more too.

Tomatoes and Olive Oil

12"x16'
Oil on Linen
$225.00
Click Here to Purchase

Here is another one for my upcoming show in December at the Clayton Center Gallery.
Sometimes it's nice to get back to our comfort zone....I just love painting still life. In this one, I wanted to capture the glow of the olive oil and the fleshiness of the cut tomato. Now, all I need is a crunchy loaf of Italian bread and I have the start to a great meal.

Serendipity

16" x 20"
Oil on Panel
$500.00
Click Here for Purchase

Here is the final on the cupcake shop. Unfortunately, the image is not a good representation of the glowing colors in the original; there has got to be a setting on my camera that will do a better job of capturing bright color, I just don't know what that is. By the way, I did not have my camera with me to take this shot for reference, I used my iphone, it is a very discreet way to shoot photos in public.
This painting came about quite by accident, as my daughter and I were spending a Saturday morning out and about together, I suggested going to this shop since it is only a few doors down from a great art store. I just love the decor of this place, it is very inviting, not to mention all the wonderful cupcake flavors to choose from. The wonderful antique register is just for show, the girl rung up our purchase on a tablet.

#18 - "R" is for Radishes

6" x 6"
Oil on Panel
SOLD

At this point in the 30 Day Challenge, "r" could be for rushing! I am feeling rushed each day to complete a painting to post, and sometimes not always putting my best foot forward. However, I am learning so much from this challenge and still having fun doing it. I am looking forward to February, and painting at a pace that will be best for me. Click here to see some of the other artists participating in this challenge.

Day 6 -"F" is for Fluff

6" x 6"
Oil on Panel
$60.00
Click Here to Purchase

Wish I could take credit for choosing the props on this one, but my daughter came up with the idea.
It is a simple equation:
               2 Tbs. fluff + 1 Tbs. peanut butter + 2 slices of soft white bread = Awesome Sandwich!

Day 5 - "E" is for Eggs

6"x6"
Oil on Canvas
$60.00
Click here to purchase

I was up late finishing this one, but managed to get it done. The most challenging part of painting in this smaller format is leaving enough space around the objects. I tried using a viewfinder (made of a mat board and a piece of acrylic) to help with the composition. See the illustration below.
On to the letter "F"......
I have 25 more paintings to practice getting it right.

still life photo          viewfinder drawing         underpainting

                                          

Donut Day

12"x12"
Oil on Hardboard
Click Here to Purchase
$225.00

Some days are just donut days......

Last week, Kelly MacDonald posted "The Donut Challenge" for DPW's weekly challenge; I couldn't resist gettng in on the fun. Click here to see the selection of donut paintings.