Friday, October 29, 2010

Things are Looking Up


The Penthouse Suite
Oil with a palette knife on canvas
10" x 10"
SOLD

This is my submission for the November show at Custom Art Framing & Gallery 9 entitled "Looking Up". Every artist is given the same size canvas to participate and interpret the theme. I've been obsessed with painting windows lately, so I chose this photo reference looking up at some city buildings. I imagine the view up there in the penthouse is pretty great. Ah-maybe some day-things are looking up!

The paintings should look pretty cool all hung together since they will all be the same size. Stop by for the reception Friday, November 5 from 6-8pm and check out all of the great art.

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Snowman for Dani

My good friend Danielle with her mother Alice after building one incredible snowman.

Saturday, October 23, 2010

A Japanese Tradition

Kyoko

Oil with a palette knife on cradled artist board
8" x 8" x .75"
$150 unframed

It is a tradition in Japan to have professional photos taken in a kimono when you turn 20. My friend Haydi recently brought photos to painting class of her niece, Kyoko, taken for just this occasion. They were such beautiful images that I asked her if I could paint one.

Haydi also painted one of the photos in watercolor which is shown below. Isn't it stunning? We all love the long vertical format of this piece as well as the detail she was captured in the face and and in the kimono. Just wonderful. Make sure to click on the image to see it larger.

And I had to get a shot of the beautiful picture holder that the photos were mailed in. Kyoko's mother made it from milk cartons and Japanese paper. Just perfect. (Oh, and that's Haydi in the background busy working on her next watercolor masterpiece!)

Congratulations Kyoko on your 20th birthday.

Friday, October 22, 2010

Daddy's little girls

This photo was submitted to me by a fellow blogger earlier in the year when I was asking for photo submissions to paint for a show back in June. She recently posted on her blog that it would have been her father's 73rd birthday had he not died of lung cancer at the young age of 47. It made me remember that I had this image of her and her sister sitting on their daddy's lap so I had to add it to my sketchbook.

Thinking of you Autumn Leaves.

Thursday, October 21, 2010

Mom's Dollhouse

I found an old photo of my mother so excited to play with her new dollhouse, even in the dead of a Chicago winter. Her birthday is January 8, so I'm sure this must have been a much desired birthday present. You can even see a tiny CAROL written above the door. Sweet.

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

In their Sunday best

There he is again, little Polito, in his Sunday best, surrounded by women-his 3 sisters and his mother. Looks like a special occasion, or maybe Easter Sunday? I guess it's been all about Polo this week.

All of the drawings I complete will be posted on The Sketchbook Project's website.

Monday, October 18, 2010

A Pinata for Polito

Another from the "young Polo collection"...on his birthday I'm sure, trying to hit the somewhat scary looking pinata in the backyard. (p.s. I can't quite figure out how to get that little tilde over the n in pinata within blogger, so pardon the omission.)

All of the drawings I complete will be posted on The Sketchbook Project's website.

Sunday, October 17, 2010

Posing with Dad

New drawing from a photo of a young little Polito posing along side a photo of his dad. So darn cute. I've been posting all of these drawings to my Picasa Web Album.

Friday, October 15, 2010

Missing Summer

The weather has started turning colder here and it makes me miss summer. This drawing, for my Sketchbook Project, was done from a photo taken in 1936 of my grandfather and mother on the beach and it's helping to warm me up today.

Monday, October 11, 2010

Plein Air on Lake Pearl

Autumn Tree Bouquet
Oil with a palette knife on artist board
8" x 10"
SOLD

We had so much fun yesterday painting plein air at our friend Diane's house that I just had to post a bunch of photos of the day. We arrived in the morning which provided the best light and set up outside her house on beautiful Lake Pearl. Here's a shot of the group. Don't we look like professionals?
Here's Polo working on his masterpiece. He received the prize for the day which was a "trip to paradise" for the best painting. I hope he brings me along!
Here is Frank hard at work on his second painting. Show off.
And here is Cindy in action. Look at those colors!
Haydi is crafting a beautiful rendition of Lake Pearl in watercolor.
We found out a little later that our host Diane, is also a swan whisperer. She lured this family of swans-mom, dad, and 5 babies over to the dock-for us all to get a closer look.
Tashi was our guardian. Ever on the look out from the deck, ready to protect.
And as a finale to our wonderful 10-10-10 day, we saw this fish cloud in the sky. So beautiful and yet so bizarre as these were the only clouds in the entire sky. Do you see the bubbles coming out of his mouth? What does it mean?

Thursday, October 7, 2010

Opera House, Boston


Opera House, Boston
Oil with a palette knife on cradled artist board
12" x 12" x .75"
SOLD

I originally intended for this painting to be more abstract shapes and then found myself getting obsessed with painting the windows again. I took this reference photo looking down the Ave de Lafayette at The Boston Opera House (the white building) on Washington Street. Again, I was attracted to the juxtaposition of old and new Boston all sandwiched together.

We had a discussion in painting class about that triangle roof-I struggled with it's perspective in order to make it believable. What's interesting is that I was googling images of the Opera House this morning and found some earlier photos where this buidling had a different roof. Later photos showed scaffolding around this building so that must have been a recent update. Kind of strange that they added such a modern roof to an otherwise historic looking building. Do you think they were trying to make it blend it better with the brandy new building that popped up behind it?

Monday, October 4, 2010

Pom Pons

The next sketch in my Sketchbook Project.When my friend Kim first posted this photo of her younger self on Facebook, I commented that I liked the Pom Poms on her sweater. This started a discussion that ended with "is it pom pom or pom pon?" Well-technically it is pom pon but "Pom Pon Girls" just doesn't sound right, does it?

Ah well.

All of the drawings I complete will be posted on The Sketchbook Project's website.

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