Blue Bowl with Pears

Oil on Canvas 8"x24" --------clickable image
This piece is a study for a larger version. I am trying out lighter backgrounds to see how the subject matter stands out. Also, I chose to underpaint a full black and white version as a way to establish the tones and get a handle on the shapes. Normally, I use a wash of burnt umber, and allow the white of the canvas to portray the light areas. A fully rendered black and white underpainting takes longer, and I have to wait for it to dry, but I think the final result has more authority.
This month I created two other paintings that I didn't like and won't bother posting them. My day job has increased time wise and is getting close to being full time, consequently, my posts will continue to be slow. Such is life.

Wild Bunch

Oil on Canvas 40"x30"
This piece, that I'm still working on, is a commission from my brother, Ralph, a landscape architect from Toronto, who owns Symmetry Design. He saw a grape painting I did two years ago, and decided he wanted one, bless his heart.
When you hold grapes up to the light, they actually look this colorful. It is a bit of an "eye candy" piece, where I want the grapes to pop out of the background with a bit of a wow factor. I am not sure if my brother is going to like this one, no matter though, he was kind enough to contact some Toronto galleries who have expressed interest, so if the painting isn't what he had in mind, I am quite happy to show it in a Toronto gallery.
I have recieved a lot of comments and I want to thank people for writing such kind words. Many folks are phenomenal artists themselves and the comments are very welcome and helpful.

Edwardian Garden

This is an example of my brother's work. He designs and builds gardens like this, where he transforms an ordinary urban or suburban back yard into a fabulous space that invites imaginative fantasies.

Unfolding

Oil on Canvas 40"x30"
This piece isn't done yet but I thought I may as well post. I am facinated by folds in cloth, and decided to focus on cloth as a subject. I have always found white objects to be particularly challenging, and this was no exception. The subleties in white are elusive, to put it mildly, and I wasn't interested in doing it monochromatically, which would look dead. Anyway, I think the piece has a life to it and works fairly well.

My Docs

Oil on Canvas 36"x30"
There's still lots I could do on this, but I don't think it would improve all that much, so I am posting it as is. I think it works fairly well.. the interest for me was to portray the reflective surface of the shoe leather and to express the character of the style of boot as well as having been worn.
I have contracted to do a children's book so the paintings will go on the back burner for a while. I will see if it is possible to still put out paintings while meeting the book deadlines.

Tableau#1

Oil on Canvas 22"x28"
The play of light over the pear and apple on the right is what interested my eye in this piece. I also chose to crop the grouping to give it more impact..plus it meant I had less stripes to do. Deciding how dark to make the shadows is always an issue..almost a mood thing. The photo tended to overstate the shadows a bit..but I did make them fairly contrasty. The other thing that got me going on this painting is the sort of "Fruit on Parade" aspect. I like the theatrical appearance, whithout too much contrivance. This piece is headed for the Ian Tan Gallery in Vancouver, which so far, is proving to be a good gallery for me to show.

Blue Plate #3

Oil on Canvas 22"x28"
I chose a closer perspective on this piece, trying to emphasize the contrast in size between the similar round shapes. The highlighted plumb in the middle became the focal point, and I didn't want to overwork it. I kept it loose while retaining the complex detail and I think it worked well. One of the challenges in closeup is creating the right amount of texture. The lemon in the foreground has a certain amount, whithout looking like it has acne, which it did for a while. I had to de-emphasize the dimples and yet still give it some of that suggestion.