Soul Search

Nectarines & Shells, 2005
Original, color pencil on paper
Framed size: 16" x 18"
To purchase, contact the
Rose Gallery of Fine Art , 417.782.7177

A couple of weeks ago when I posted the "Practice Palm" painting, an Albuquerque friend emailed me: "So, what did you learn from the exercise other than that trying something new doesn't always work out?" Her question made me stop and review my intentions for doing those palm tree paintings.

1) Use a palette knife rather than brushes to put the paint on.
2) Brighten the colors to create a sunny feeling.
3) Paint greens that felt "real" and natural.
4) Capture the essence of a palm tree.

I was inspired to set forth these goals by North Carolina plein air painter Mike Rooney. I came across his blog and several YouTube videos where he demonstrates some of his techniques and methods. He paints bright and sunny seashore scenes, beach houses, seaside towns, often with palm trees, and using a palette knife. He makes painting color and light look easy and seems to have a lot of fun doing so!

After spending almost two weeks trying out some of Mike's painting approaches on my palm tree paintings, I must admit I was discouraged. I just wasn't getting the results I wanted. And I was frustrated...I mean, how hard can it be to paint a palm tree and some grass? Evidently, harder than than I thought; and I certainly wasn't having any fun!

Just as I was about to sand the paint off those canvas panels, I decided to give it all another try. So, my three palm tree paintings are back in the studio being reworked. (By the way, if you'd like to check out Mike Rooney's artwork, here's the link to his blog: http://mikerooneystudios.blogspot.com)

In the meantime, here's the second color pencil drawing I shipped off to the Rose Gallery. I did this piece in Joplin, too, while working on the lilies in Sunlit Moment. Ironically, everyone thinks that the lace doily was hard to do. Actually it was the easiest part. Getting the nectarines to sit on the tabletop (getting the shadow right) took more effort.

Thanks for taking a look. Have a great day.

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Text and image ©2010 Carol Adamec. All rights reserved.