Eye Dazzlers in Nature

Autumn Leaf #8 (Turquoise Sky), 2014. Oil on carton panel, 4" x 6".
SOLD

"Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower."

—Albert Camus

Another red leaf, with a turquoise sky in the background! 

Thanks for taking a look. Enjoy a wonderful week.

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Image and text ©Carol L Adamec, 2014. All rights reserved.

Red Leaf

Autumn Leaf #6 (Red Leaf), 2014. Original oil on gessoed panel, 6"x6".
SOLD

"And all the lives we ever lived 

and all the lives to be 

are full of trees and changing leaves..." 

— from Charles Elton's poem, "Luriana Lurilee" 

Our lovely New Mexico autumn continues...

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Image & text ©Carol L Adamec, 2014. All rights reserved.

Sunny Autumn Days

Autumn Leaf # 2 (Leaf Stem), 2014. Oil on cartonboard, mounted on panel. 4"x6"
Private Collection

We are enjoying such warm sunny days this week, it hardly feels like fall. The bright colors of this leaf stem seem to capture the brightness and warmth of these languid days.
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Text & image ©2014 Carol L. Adamec. All rights reserved.

Nature's Handiwork

Autumn Leaf #1, 2014. Oil on cartonboard, mounted on panel. 4"x6"
Available for purchase on Daily Paintworks

In the same way no two snowflakes are the same, neither are the changing leaves of autumn. Each leaf has its own pattern of color transformation. The handiwork of Nature is amazing!

Thank you for taking a look at my newest artwork. Have a wonderful day!
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Text and image ©2014 Carol L. Adamec. All rights reserved.

A New Leaf...

Autumn Leaf #4, 2014.  Original oil painting on gessoed panel. 6"x6"
Click to Purchase

It's autumn in New Mexico! I contintue to enjoy painting the changing fall colors and fascinating patterns, shapes, and textures as the leaves go from summer to winter.

Thanks for taking a look. Enjoy your day.

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Text and image ©2014 Carol L. Adamec. All rights reserved.

Fall Colors...even purple!

Autumn Leaf #3 (Purple), 2014. Mixed media mounted on panel, 4"x6"

Available for purchase at Daily Paintworks.

About a week after my "Dried Leaf" post in September, a package from my sister arrived in the mail.

What a delightful surprise! Inside were 27 autumn leaves, in a variety of colors and sizes, beautifully pressed, with each leaf packaged in its own handmade waxed paper envelope. My sister lives out East and expresses her creativity by making exquisite handmade cards and books for friends and family. She had collected these leaves almost two years ago while on hike in the Appalachian Mountains, pressed them, used some for a project, and stored the rest away. While cleaning out a closet, she came across them and was surprised that the color was still so bright. She mailed them off to New Mexico.

I was thrilled to receive them! Even though I love the autumn in New Mexico, there are not a lot of hardwood trees here with leaves that turn bright red or orange–or purple, like the one I painted and posted for today.

Thank you, April! And thank you, Dear Readers, for taking a moment to visit my blog.
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Text and image ©2014 Carol L. Adamec. All rights reserved.

Another Reminder of Autumn

Dried Leaf #2, 2014. Original painting, mixed media on carton board, 4x6"
Available for purchase on Daily Paintworks

I love autumn — cool days, clear nights, and the change of seasons taking place in Nature.

This is the second painting in my new mixed media series, "Dried Leaves." To create the image I used oil, acrylic, and color pencil. To get all the nuances of the brittle edge of the leaf, I used a toothpick! As has been said, "Necessity is the mother of invention."

The painting is mounted flush on a stiff 3/16" panel for support and the edges painted, ready to be displayed on a small easel or hung without a frame.

Thanks for taking a look. Enjoy your day!

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Text and image ©2014 Carol L. Adamec. All rights reserved.

Almost There

Sitting on the Fence
Original Painting
Oil & Alkyd on Panel
6" x 8" unframed
SOLD

Thanks to a quick and helpful critique from my artist friend Sondra Diepen, this little painting is finally coming along.

The shadow on the fence has been restored, but not nearly as dark as the original version, providing more drama and contrast to the entire piece. Then, too, I deepened and refined the greens of the leaves. You can check back to my posts on December 4 and 11 for the first and second versions.

Sometimes it just takes me awhile to pull it together. Just a few more minor corrections, that is one will be "there."

Thanks for following along. Have a fun weekend getting ready for the holidays. See you Monday.
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Text and image ©Carol Adamec 2008. All rights reserved.

Up Close...Detail

Carol Adamec
"California Calla Close Up"
Original oil, alkyd on gessoed panel
Private Collection

Back in September, I posted the calla lily painting, measuring 12" x 12", that I had painted for Spiva Center for the Arts (9/24: "Art for a Good Cause").

Today's painting is a detail...a cropped segment from the first version, measuring 6" x 6" that I started awhile back, and completed yesterday. That's just the way it goes, sometimes.

Thanks for taking a moment to read this entry. If you would like to share a comment about my painting, please do so by clicking the COMMENTS link below. Or you can email me. Either way I look forward to hearing from you.

I hope you enjoy an easy weekend. See you Monday. ———————————————————————————————
Image and 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.

Exhibit Glimpse I

Artist: Louise Pryor

Left: Names of Women Artists Meditation Robe

Right: The Farmer Says Goodbye to the Farm

This is the last day of our Harwood Art Center exhibit, "Be Leaf It or Not"; and I have finally taken time to photograph the work in the show. I thought I would share these photos to give you some idea of the artists' intentions and sensibilities that have been on display for the past month.

The two artworks featured today are by Louise Pryor, one of the artists from California. Louise grew up in California, on land owned by her family for over 150 years. For many years she was a serious Zen student of Buddhist teachings.

Louise has chosen fabric as her medium. As stated in her Artist's Statement, "I explore ideas with cloth...Because my way to the universal is through the deeply personal, I choose clothing shapes from my life experience. I wore Zen meditation robes and Sacramento Valley farmers clothing for many years....The transparent and radiant cloth mirrors our transparent and radiant existence."

Both artworks are lifesize and exquisitely crafted. The Meditation Robe has individual canvas leaves sewn onto a kimono-style robe made of sheer metallic silk in a light color. Each leaf bears the name (or signature) of a women artist—some famous and many who work and create outside the mainstream of contemporary art. Nevertheless, on Louise's Robe, all are equally honored.

The Farmer's suit is constructed of the same material in a rich earth color, except the leaves are sewn within the interior of the shirt and pants. For me, this piece speaks to the physical and spiritual connection of mankind to the land which provides for all of earth's creatures.

If you would like to comment on Louise's work, you may do so by clicking the "COMMENTS" link below (Louise reads this blog, too!) Or drop me an email and I'll forward your response to her.

Thanks for taking a moment to read today's entry. Have a great weekend, and I'll see you on Monday.

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Images ©Louise Pryor, text ©Carol Adamec. All rights reserved.

A Bit of Green....Done!

Leaf Bouquet, 2008
Original painting, oil on canvas panel
8" x 6" unframed
Private Collection
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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!
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Text, images, and artwork ©Carol L Adamec. All rights reserved.

A Bit of Green

A Bit of Green
Oil on canvas panel
8" x 6"
In progress.
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I began this painting on Wednesday but didn't finish it in time for today's post. So, here's how it looks thus far.

Once again, I started with a burnt sienna & umber underpainting (which means, I covered the entire surface with an even coat of that reddish brown color that you see mostly in the background.)

Then I wiped out the underpainting to provide light areas for the leaves, the tabletop and the inside of the glass. I tried out a green or two on the leaves and added a few details to define the glass, the waterline and reflections. You'll get to see the finished painting next week.

Today my sister and I are going to St. Petersburg, FL to visit the Dali Museum. The exhibit is "Women: Dali's View" featuring 90 artworks created throughout Dali's career, beginning with paintings from his student days. I'm looking forward to our little "road trip" to The Gulf side and will share some details with you about our art adventure on Monday.

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