Remember and Inspire.

I usually work smaller, but with the upcoming juried exhibit, this just begged to be bigger; just over life-sized. I still have a long way to go to finish. Thankfully the deadline was extended to allow artists time to finish fresh pieces. Whew!!

I used two photo references taken just minutes apart in the early morning. Although I like to work from life, shadows can change very quickly, giving the still-life a very different mood from one moment to the next. I love to bounce ideas off of Wes over breakfast. He becomes so animated when he loves something and kind but honest when he doesn’t.

I showed him the two best photo references over strong coffee and we immediately agreed that we liked the straight-on angle and how the fabric draped in the first photo and the bright sunlight and strong shadows in the other. I liked the diagonal shadows from the blinds. Wes, not so much at first, but after he saw the combined effect, he warmed up to it. I rarely get the perfect shot, so I often combine appealing elements like this from two or more photo references and then run it by my best friend.

I’m saving the best til last as a reward for the tedious work ahead of me in the cut-glass pedestal bowl. There will be a little baby robin sitting on the book. If you look closely, you may be able to see him penciled in.

There are other paintings in progress as I get my show entries ready. I’m almost finished with the “Jelled.” Just trying to figure out how to include a flitting bird shadow. You know there has to be a bird, right?

I still haven’t decided what the third one will be. I’m stuck between a luscious strawberry fudge sundae in a glass I just acquired for the purpose, or an antique coffee grinder a friend agreed to loan me.

In the midst of all that, I’m also working on two commissioned pieces.

I thrive on busy evidently.

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