Getting the Painting "Right"

In the Brightness, 2016. Original oil on stretched canvas, 6"x6"
SOLD

Today's post of a yellow lily was begun over three months ago. So why are you just seeing it today? Well...

I painted the lily, and then the greenery—but I didn't like the way it turned out. So I repainted the lily, and then the greenery. 

Then I tackled the background, first with a deep turquoise color; then a purplish hue; then a deep blue; and finally the rosy pink. (Yes, I am talking about those 17 little bits of color behind the flower and the leaves.)

Yes, it took three months to finally get it "right"—at least, I think it's "right."

Of course, I have been working on other paintings in the meantime—which I'll be sharing with you...just as soon as they are "right", too.

Thanks for taking a moment to read this post. Have a great week!

–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

Image and text © 2016 Carol L Adamec. All rights reserved.

Summer is Here...

Sunshine Garden, 2014. Original digital drawing printed on ricepaper.

I have been revising my "Garden Varieties" series of digital drawings that I did on a Boogie Board Tablet awhile back—this time, adding lots of luscious color using Adobe Photoshop. Fun!

This print on rice paper matted for an 8x10" frame can be purchased via my shop on ETSY.com.

Thanks for taking a look. Enjoy your day!

_________________________________

©2014 Carol L. Adamec. All rights reserved.

First Colors

Morning Daffodils (WIP)

by Carol Adamec
Oil, alkyd on stretched canvas
10" x 8"

As explained in last Thursday's post, I am sharing the day-to-day stages of my working process, from the underpainting to the finished painting, of a new piece "Morning Daffodils."

Today's post shows the first colors I've applied to the light areas, while maintaining the values (the light and dark areas) of the overall image. These first colors are loosely painted into the appropriate shapes...no details or defining hard edges yet. Since I am working from a photographed image, I have also done some re-drawing of the composition.

One lesson to be learned from translating a photographic image into a painting is that the viewer will accept, without question, the "truth" of a photograph and will compensate for any distortion created by the camera lens or angles. At the same time, the viewer is far more critical of the "reality" presented in a painted image, even if the painting is a faithful rendering of the photograph; i.e., it's the artist's fault if it doesn't look "right."

With this awareness, the painter must frequently adjust a painting's composition (and other elements) to resolve those visual distortions in the photographic image. Otherwise, the painter is simply rendering the photograph rather than recreating the reality of what was actually seen at the moment of inspiration.

Well, that's your art lesson for today! Check in on Thursday for Stage 3. See you then.
________________________________________________
Artwork and text ©2009 Carol L Adamec. All rights reserved.

Introducing...David Kontra

David Kontra
"Hunting High & Low"
Original acrylic on canvas
8" x 10"
Collection of Carol Adamec

David Kontra is a self-taught artist with whom I became acquainted while working for Spiva Center for the Arts in Joplin. Originally from Cleveland, Ohio, David now resides outside of Hartville in rural Missouri.

Many of David's paintings and titles are inspired by the lyrics of pop music or deal with current events from the media. David calls himself a "contemporary expressionism artist" and confesses that, "I paint what I see, what I think, and what I feel at the moment, and it’s not always pretty."

Although colorful in rendering, the paintings can be dark in tone, often with figures placed in an urban setting. “I painting all kinds of people because there are so many kinds of people out there,” David notes.

Perhaps the most incredible thing about David's powerful imagery is that he is legally blind. His condition is due to a degenerative eye disease called retinitis pigmentosa. Currently he has less than 5 percent vision in one eye and only light perception in the other. He paints with his face just an inch or two from the canvas surface.

"Hunting High & Low" shown in today's post was one of David's many artworks included in Spiva's 2007 exhibit, In the Company of Outsiders. The painting now resides in my studio, a constant reminder to me that "where there's a will, there is a way" to create.

If you would like to see more of David's paintings, visit his website: www.DavidKontra.com.

Many thanks to those who left a comment/sent an email about Friday's "Detail: California Calla." I appreciate your kind comments. And thanks for taking a moment to read today's post.

See you Wednesday. ———————————————————————————————————————————
Image ©David Kontra, text ©Carol Adamec 2008. All rights reserved.

Exhibit Glimpse 4

Sondra Diepen

"Shadow Weavers"
Original archival digital print
25" x 19" framed • $350 + S&H

Today's post features the work of Sondra Diepen, who is originally from California but relocated to New Mexico in 1974. Sondra majored in art at University of California-Davis, where she befriended Louise Pryor, Ellen Van Fleet, and Joanne Kamiya—artists whom you've met in this blog over the past few weeks as exhibitors in the "Be Leaf It or Not" exhibit at the Harwood.

Sondra is a fine painter, a world traveler, and an wonderful photographer. I've spent many an evening enjoying slides of her adventures in New Mexico, Utah, Alaska, Florida, and her off-the-beaten-track trips to Mexico, Peru, Egypt, Turkey, and Nepal, to name a few.

Over the past few years, Sondra has focused mostly on producing photo-based digital prints. As exemplified by "Shadow Weavers" featured in today's post, Sondra has an intuitive sensitivity for color, pattern, and light that is deeply felt. In fact, I have worked up paintings of my own from several of Sondra's photographs that she has given me (along with permission) to use.

As the curator of "Be Leaf It or Not" Sondra's own personal love of Nature was the guiding force for this exhibit. As she states in her Artist Statement, "I love the vast landscape and the delicate detail Nature provides. A leaf edged in sunlight, a reflection captured in a sandstone pool, or light filtering through the rain forest prompts me to get out my camera and see if I can preserve that moment....When I see something extraordinarily beautiful, I have this strong desire to press it into my body. I want it to become a part of me. Photograph and painting are the closest I can get to doing that."

Thanks for taking a moment to read this entry (which I apologize for posting a day late). If you would like to leave a comment about Sondra's work, please do so by clicking the COMMENTS link below. Or you can email me and I'll forward it to her.

I hope you are enjoying a great weekend. See you Monday. ——————————————————————————————————————————— Image ©Sondra Diepen. Text ©Carol Adamec 2008. All rights reserved.

A Bit of Green....Done!

Leaf Bouquet, 2008
Original painting, oil on canvas panel
8" x 6" unframed
Private Collection
__________________________________________

Here's the final version of the painting I started last week. The challenge of doing this painting was working with greens. I found that the trick is to use just "a bit of green" from the tube and to mix it with a variety of other colors, such as cadmium orange, Indian yellow, yellow ochre, cerulean blue, burnt sienna, Naples rose, and alizarin crimson!

I'm trying out some new Italian canvas panels in a 6" x 8" size, which is a format that plein air painters often use. The panel has a very fine weave which I really like, and has a nice proportion to it, too.

Even though this painting has no "flower", I think it still turned out bellissimo, no?

Thanks for taking a moment to read this post and see today's painting. See you Friday!
________________________________________________
Text, images, and artwork ©Carol L Adamec. All rights reserved.

Color Caliente!

Late Siesta, 2008
Oil on canvas panel
10" x 8" unframed
SOLD
__________________________________________

I did this painting in February, based on a photograph taken by my Albuquerque artist-friend, Sondra Diepen. However, the colors just didn't have any "zing." So, over the past 5 months, I've repainted the background (the adobe wall) more times than I care to recall.

Nevertheless, it was rather interesting to see how all the other colors were altered each time I repainted just that one color in the background. That single color change could alter the "temperature" of the painting and the time of day.

Last week I got extreme and really pushed the color, and....viola! That did the trick. All those bright, high key colors felt like the heat of a summer day just beginning to fade and cool into a lovely evening in the great Southwest.

Thanks for taking a moment to read this post and see today's painting. I appreciate all the comments that readers have posted. Thank You!

See you Wednesday!
________________________________________________
Text, images, and artwork ©Carol L Adamec. All rights reserved.

Colorful Crotons

"On Stage" 2008
8" x 10" unframed
Original,

oil on canvas panel
Contact Artist to purchase.
_____________________________________________

My brother-in-law John is an artist and quite the gardener. With a good eye for color, texture, and design, he has created wonderful flower beds around the house, full of very attractive plantings of all kinds. When I am looking for something to take to the studio to paint, I often pinch off a few leaves or clip a few blossoms for the day's studio session.

After doing a few "tonal" paintings recently (Dry Shell; Black Purse, Red Lipstick), I was ready for some color work. These croton leaves were the perfect subject matter for some bright color work. Instead of placing the leaves in a vase, I stood them up and illuminated them with overhead "high noon" lighting. Hence, the title, "On Stage."

Crotons are tropical plants and come in several varieties, dazzling colors, and multiple patterns. There are even a couple with artistic names: The Mona Lisa and The Picasso. You can see several varieties on the Croton Society of Tampa webpage: www.crotons.org.

Crotons are also hearty. Unlike the little one-day rose I showed you Monday, these leaves held up for three days... good for artists like me who take a bit longer to get it on the canvas.

Many thanks for taking the time to look at my artwork and read this post. You are welcome to forward this blog to others, too. Please, do leave a comment!

I hope your week is going well. See you Friday.
_________________________________________
Text, image, and painting ©Carol L Adamec. All rights reserved.