PB and J

"Peanut Butter & Jelly"
original oil painting on canvas board, 5x6 inch
copyright 2009 MaryAnn Cleary

This is a small painting that I did to get my eyes and hands back into the groove of painting. Painting PB&J sandwiches are always fun. With this one I tried to concentrate on hard, soft, and lost edges. I also used a prismatic palette (primary colors), but it definitely was tempting to grab a tube of yellow ochre. Fun practice and good eating.

A Landscape Study......

"Landscape Study"
original oil 8x10 inch
copyright 2009 MaryAnn Cleary

This small study is of a lake near where I live. This month I am working on a pet portrait commission and one of the requests from my client is to have a background with a lake. This may be what I use for the background area.

This past month has been a crazy one - a trip to Montana, installing tile and a new wood stove, and a couple of writing classes.

Time to get back into painting everyday and focusing on what I love!

Hard, Soft, Lost and Firm Edges

Study for Edges in Painting
5x6 inch
copyright MaryAnn Cleary

Before setting up a full setup for a still life painting, I wanted to practice some and do a little study for edges. Doing a painting is all about how one sees things. Everything does not have a hard, steel edge to it so when doing a painting, it is important to make sure a person paints what they see. Photographs show everything. They do not show things how a person actually sees things. There will be a place where our eyes focus, but the rest of the stuff will be out of focus. The edges will be softer.

When painting it is important to move our eyes over the surface constantly scanning it. It is also important to squint and only paint what is important. Today was my day to try and get my eyes, paintbrush and painting focused on edges. Sharp ones where there is high contrast, lost ones where it is difficult to see where the edge is, soft ones where a plane turns slightly and ones that are not hard, but firm, like the rim of the vase in some areas.

Edges are fun....now to practice more.

Another River Study

River Study on August 11, 2009
oil , 8 x 10 inch

Here is another river study. It is fun seeing these little paintings come together and see the different views and light. This one was done in the late morning.

A Cloudy Day for a Back Yard Study

"My Back Yard Aug. 5, 2009"
oil on canvas, 8 x 10 inch
copyright MaryAnn Cleary

What fun to paint!! This is another series in the "back yard" paintings. I am doing this to study the effects of light at different times and seasons. It has been a couple of weeks since I have done one so it was about time that I got back at it.

This evening was cloudy so without having a strong light constrast, it is much more difficult. The values are similar so one needs to play with the warm and cool tones. I did enjoy this one and I would like to do it again when a sunny morning or evening.

While painting this sweet little painting, a family of turkeys did pass through. Sometimes I forget why I love it here so much. Watching a turkey family or a bald eagle fly along the river is truly a great pleasure.

Enjoy the painting~

Hydrangeas, Sunflowers in a RumRill Vase

"Hydrangeas & Sunflowers in a RumRill Vase"
oil on linen on hardboard, 16 x 12 inch
copyright MaryAnn Cleary

What an interesting still life! Especially trying to put this one together. I have hydrangeas in my yard, but with my bum knee it is difficult spending too much time standing outside to paint. For this little gem, I opted to cut some of the hydrangeas and put them in a vase...one of my RumRill vases called Dutch Blue and made by Red Wing in the 1930s.

One difficulty with this still life is that hydrangeas do not make very good cut flowers! Thank goodness I did take a photo of the flowers. Between my laptop and the setup of the still life, I managed to keep the essences of the initial setup.

My favorite way of painting is from life. The main reason is that colors and the subtelties are often lost with a photograph. This was difficult for me, but I managed to restrain myself and hopefully capture the essence of the hydrangeas. One thing that I am realizing is "less is definitedly more" and I really tried to keep my colors clean with this painting....that is, making every brush stroke count. This painting actually took me longer than I thought....but I sure was not in a rush.

Enjoy!

Gladiolas

"Gladiolas"

oil painting on canvas board, 10 x 8 inch
copyright 2009 MaryAnn Cleary

This is a still life that I just finished up this afternoon. It feels good to have it done. I love summer time and flowers. However, where I live every time I try to plant bulbs of some kind, there are little critters that love to much on them. They seem to think that they are a treat for them. I do not know how many times I have planted bulbs in the fall expecting wonderful blooms in the spring only to find not a one. I may try planting things in the spring so that they have a bit of time to become established.

These wonderful glads were actually purchased at the grocery store. I would love to have a yard of flowers and perennials. I have a few. I may actually try preparing a place and add some more. I am always willing to give it another try. There is something about summer and flowers.

My Back Yard

Light Along the Rum River
8 x 10 inch

This is something that I painted yesterday evening from my studio window as the sun was setting. The light was hitting the leaves on some of the trees and the a grassy area along the river. I hope to try one of these at least once a week to learn about how the light will change the overall view of the subject.

Paintings from a Workshop

Morning Bliss on the St. Croix
oil painting, 8x10 inch
day 2

Afternoon Sunlight on the St. Croix
oil painting, 8x10 inch
Day 1

This past week, I attended a workshop given by Kami Polzin of Stillwater, MN. What a wonderful three days! Kami is an excellent teacher and her enthusiasm and love of painting is very apparent.

I have always found landscape painting a bit intimidating, but with Kami's help, I now look at the color temperatures, values, and light of doing a landscape with complete enthusiasm. The above paintings are examples of what I accomplished during the workshop.

What a delight!!

Lilacs from my Yard

"Lilacs from the Yard"
original oil on panel board, 14 x 11 inches, unframed
$200 plus shipping
copyright 2009 MaryAnn Cleary

It seems like ages since I posted anything. The past week I have been catching up from my trip to Montana to see my new grand daughter and big brother. As usual, I had planned on painting, but I forgot how time consuming wee ones can be. My main reason for going to Montana was to help the new Mom with the little ones. I enjoyed each precious moment that I was there immensely.

Once home, I started this painting plus some new things with making pendants. More on those later. I just finished up this painting of the lilacs this morning and it was a joy to do. I am going to leave it sit for a day or two, but for now here it is.

Bud ~ Virtual Sketch Date Challenge

"Bud"
oil painting on canvas board, 8 x 8 inch, unframed
virtual sketch date challenge for April
copyright 2009 MaryAnn Cleary

Here is my completed challenge for the virtual sketch date. I almost forgot to do it, so this evening I made a dash for the studio and attempted to do it. Check out the other interpretations at Virtual Sketch Date blog.

Oranges from a Workshop

Workshop Still Life ~ Citrus
oil painting on canvas board, 11 x 14 inch
copyright 2009 MaryAnn Cleary

This past week on Thursday and Friday, I made a trip to Stillwater, MN to attend a workshop given by Kami Polzin. She is a very talented artist and an excellent teacher. Color seems to terrify me, but after this workshop I feel that I have gained confidence and the knowledge for a new approach to overcoming my fears. Basic drawing skills are imperative. Kami is a wonderful teacher. I hope to try out my new knowledge with a few still life setups. Seeing color and how it relates to what surrounds it is key. It sounds so simple, but our mind tends to get in the way and complicate things.

Waiting for Playtime

"Waiting to Play"
conte/charcoal on Rives paper, 8 x 12.5 inch
copyright 2009 MaryAnn Cleary

This dog portrait is complete for today. I will put it aside for a week or two and if something pops out at me, I will make some slight adjustments. However, for now I plan on just leaving it as is.

Work in Progress ~ Conan Day 2

Update on the latest art work ~ Conan

I thought that I would post a quick update on the charcoal/conte drawing. Still a ways to go, but here is what it looks like today.....

Another Work In Progress

Work in Progress ~ "Conan"
charcoal and conte, 8 x 12 inch
copyright 2009 MaryAnn Cleary

Here is the latest drawing that I am working on. It is of a huge mastiff named Conan. He is a sweet and VERY large dog that lives in Arizona with my son and his family. I hope to finish the drawing in the next couple of days. This is another drawing created on Rives BFK using charcoal and conte. I hope to have a series of these completed the next couple of months as I really enjoy working with this medium! It is great for portraiture.