Day 10 of my Holiday Painting Spree - "White & Black"

"If everything isn't black and white, I say Why the Hell Not?" - John Wayne

What does that mean? I am not quite sure, but it made me laugh.  Today's painting is 10th in line of my Holiday Painting Spree paintings.  An upcoming show I will be hanging in is themed "Black and White". As a painter, you come to realize that there isn't ever true black or white in an object or scene.  This is because surfaces are always reflecting their surroundings and the ambient light.  So, a white car may actually have shadows that are purple and reflections that could be any color of the rainbow.  So, maybe this is an answer to Mr. Wayne's question above... Because Mr. Wayne, as the impressionists found out a long time ago, black and white do not truly exist in nature..... Without further ado, here is today's painting, "White & Black".  Had to paint another VW beetle... just one of my favorite subjects to paint... :) 

White & Black, oil on panel
to purchase this painting, please click here

Day 30 - Rowan and the Bug

Its the last day of the 30 in 30 and uh.... I can believe it!  Well, sort of not, but, when I look back to the first painting I did, and all the ones in between, I definitely feel like I painted for the e n t i r e month.  Of course there is a sense of relief and, pride I guess, that I am finished and I did it... But, I am always sad when the 30 in 30 ends too.  The sense of forced urgency to produce a painting every day seems to fuel creativity differently than at calmer times.  And posting everyday is a very beneficial for any artist.  I always hope to keep it up.  I will definitely try to be better about posting more often.  To be honest, I only painted 26 paintings this month.  Me getting sick and then Rowan staying home sick from school yesterday threw off my groove so, there are several lost days. 

Anyway... today's painting

Rowan came home from school last week very excited to tell me that his bus passed by "this awesome VW beetle!  It would make a great painting, Mom!"  His enthusiasm and happiness about finding a painting subject for me put a healthy dose of joy in my heart. :)  So, we drove there the next day and I took a bunch of pics. I told him he had to pose for me, though, since the theme I chose for this 30 in 30 is figurative and I definitely wanted to paint this in the challenge. I thought this picture was the cutest of the bunch!

By the way, as always I will make a collage of all the paintings I created and post it here tomorrow.  Have a great night and thanks everyone for reading my blog and following me through the challenge!  From the looks of my people counter I had over 750 people read my blog this month.  Peanuts for some, but awesome for me!

Rowan and the Bug, oil on panel, 6"x6"
NFS

I haven't posted a progress pic for awhile.  If you are interested, this is the painting early on...

The Process of Art

I have the good fortune to be hanging my work in the Double Tree hotel in Reading during July and August. The body of work I created for this show is representative of everything I have been considering in my painting in recent months.  I have found that I am generally what is called a process artist, meaning simply that I appreciate and study the process of making art above all else in my artwork. To further explain, this quote from Helen Van Wyck sums it up for me right now... "It doesn't matter what you paint, it's how you paint it". I love color, the paint itself, elements and principles, brushwork, simply put, the language of art... These 5 paintings represent my latest in my endeavor to convey my own personal language in the art of oil painting.  I chose these subject matter because I am drawn to the lines, colors and form of 'things' from the 1950's and 60's.  If manufacturers started using the aesthetic of this time I would rejoice and probably... buy everything! So, I ask you to enjoy and please look closely at these paintings...  I love the abstract quality my paintings take on when viewing closely.  I revel in texture, edges, brush stroke, color and the juiciness of oil paint!  If you are interested in purchasing these paintings, please contact me at karelyn1772@gmail.com     Thank you!

Blue Chuck Taylors, 24"x36", oil, $1050

Green Metallica, 24:x36",oil, $1050

It's Not a Bug, 24:x36",oil, $1050

Rotary Dial, 24:x36",oil, $1050

Schwinn Phantom, 24:x36",oil, $1050

Days 24 and 25 - "Cad Red" and "Vintage Thunderbird"

I just couldn't make it to my studio yesterday due to the immense amount of snow that I had to help deal with in my area of the world.  But, I made up for it today and painted 2 paintings!  The first one is in response to the last one I did, "Utrect Blue".  This one is titled "Cad. Red." Just look how that thin line of Cadmium red is screaming when it is juxtaposed next to Utrect Blue!

Cad Red, acrylic on panel, 4"x4"
to purchase, please click here

This Vintage Thunderbird is today's entry in the 30 in 30.. I was lovin how the red played off of the 2 different blues (ultramarine blue and this funky blue I have called "Utrect" blue) in my previous two little stripeys and decided to play with those colors using a representational subject...

Vintage cars are a theme I return to from time to time as I love their lines, shapes and details.  And I love painting chrome and headlights.  Go figure.  So, this experiment of painting my subjects on stripey backgrounds is proving to be a lot of fun for me.  I am loving being able to pick a finite number of colors for the background that will "talk" to the subject. 

Vintage Thunderbird, oil and acrylic on panel, 6"x6"
to purchase please click here

Day 21 - "Red Fiat"

I am a sucker for cute cars... and classic, little Fiats are just about the cutest car there is.  I am wondering, is this the car that was featured in one of the Pink Panther movies with a gorilla driving it around and around?  Anyway, I think there will be (at least) one more red car in my painting future... can't seem to get enough...

Red Fiat, oil on panel, 6" x 6",
to purchase, please click here

Day 10 of the 30 in 30 - Little Red Car

Well, life keeps marching on, whether you are determined to paint a painting a day or not... And I just have to say, I am damn lucky to have an understanding and hardworking husband who will cook dinner for the family, take the daughter to work and feed the dogs after delivering beer all day to thirsty Americans...  Thank you Kevin..

So, I posted earlier on facebook that todays painting was going to have to be a quick one... but in reality, I spent a normal amount of time on this one (I'd say about 4 hours total..) but it was just broken up.  I had to do my planning and sketching at the gallery, as well as mix my paints (I was working there today)... then, family things took precedent for a few hours. But around 5:30 I was able to make it up to the studio to start laying the paint in... I know...it looks like a VW beetle in a way, but it isn't!   I am not sure what kind of car it is, but I think it might be French...  Anyway, here is today's painting... Little Red Car, for lack of a better title..
If you think you know what kind of car this is, let me know!

Little Red Buggy, oil on panel, 6" x 6", to purchase, please click here

Day 15 of th 30 in 30 - Yellow Bug

If someone offered me an old VW Beetle... I wouldn't turn it down.  I am sure that by today's standards it would be pretty uncomfortable and, well, not very safe.  But I think they are one of the best looking cars ever made.  So, yeah.  I'd drive it...here and there.  :)

Yellow Bug, oil on panel, 6" x 6"
to purchase, please click here

I love to paint impasto (really thick paint).. The secret is in the brush... 

Yellow Bug Juice