Sunday, May 7, 2017

Bloedel Reserve

Near the Sheep Shed
4x6 Oil on Canvas

Through the Birch Garden
4x6 Oil on Canvas

Last week I had the pleasure of an invitation to visit Bloedel Reserve on Bainbridge Island in Washington State. What a treat! I took hundreds of photos and enjoyed every beautiful moment of the adventure. Above are a couple of little oil studies I completed after returning home. I created several others, but the paint is still wet and difficult to photograph. These studies will serve well as notes for creating some larger paintings in the future. Can't wait! I better order some more canvases.

Friday, May 5, 2017

The Value of a Cup

This week I've been practicing mixing paint from a limited palette to create a full range of values. A cup from my kitchen was a great subject for this practice. I used Cadmium Yellow Light, Ultramarine Blue, and a tiny bit of Alizarin Crimson, and a tiny bit of white. A great little exercise to do inside when the weather is spitting rain and lying about springtime.