Burning Bush

“Burning Bush” 9x12 oil on panel

I painted outdoors on one of the last warm days and was struck by the light shining through the foliage of this flaming orange bush, against the dark background. I knew I had to take it on! It was a struggle to “make” something out of the area around the bush, which was actually a stone wall, but I figured it out using temperature and color.  I had only to create some shadow areas with a grayed down mid range dark. I toned the canvas orange which preserved the glow of the bush.

Naples and Von Liebig Classes

My Demo

nfs

(because it's on a larger canvas board and can't be cut down)

After a long drive we arrived in Naples on Thursday, January 12th. 

I had a full blown sinus cold but, was happy to see familiar faces in class the next day. Although I felt a bit out of line for exposing everyone to my germs, I passed out the Clorox wipes and everyone was happy that I didn't cancel. Thank you for your warm welcome!

If you've been trying to sign up for my classes through the Von Liebig website and had trouble finding my classes, the website is undergoing a redo and it's unreliable.

Here is the schedule and you can call the front desk at 

239-262-6517 to register. 

Class Title:  A Painting A Day - 

Instructor Mary Sheehan Winn

Date: 1/13, 1/20, 1/27, 2/10, 3/3, 3/10, 3/17, 3/24, 3/31, 4/7

Day/Time:  Friday, 9am-12pm

Member Price: $35

Class Title:  Color Mixing Workshop

Instructor Mary Sheehan Winn

Date: 2/17

Day/Time:  9am-4pm with a break for lunch

Member Price: $75

Edge of the Marsh

Click to bid

I spent yesterday painting at Taylor Bray Farm in Yarmouth. This fabulous little farm is open to the public and has a collection of farm animals including goats, sheep, two of the sweetest little donkeys, chickens, and a couple of Scottish Highlander cows named Scotty and Fiona. I painted two views of this tree and had a great time with my friends. Kelley and I stayed late and had the thrill of seeing a red tailed hawk up close as he hunted for his supper.

Wipe Out

I had so much paint left on my palette that I tried to get a little floral painting done. Not. Values are not right and it could be drawn better. So I wiped it, but, there's a lesson in each one. I like the highlights around the daisies and some of the tones in the flowers. Charles Sovek said "don't make anything too precious." He was right.

Onion Shadows

I was trying to for a tonal effect here, but the color found its way in anyway. Neutral seems to elude me. Next vegetable on the model stand..... come back and see.

Mystic River Bridge WIP

This is a 12x12 I plan to include in my November Show at Tishman Speyer Properties. I don't always draw the image onto the board but for something as complicated as the bridge, I gridded my photo and my board. I will also use a print out of this stage to work out the trusses as they need a bit more work, but not TOO much. For now, I'm going to the beach at the end of my street because the SUN is out here!

Twins

I picked up these little glass cube candle holders at the Flea Market while Don was otherwise occupied ;) He has a 6th sense about my shopping for 'props' and tries to head off some of my purchases with, "do you really need that?". The answer? "Of course, I do."

Spider Mums and Tomato study

I picked up some fresh mums at Publix this week. These flowers are especially hard to portray. Having already done one of these, I thought it would come together better. Not. I photographed it in gray scale at an earlier stage in the painting to assess the values. I'm not done with this subject matter, yet. This week was more of a learning curve with the paintings. The beach was wonderful, though;)

Ibises

These beautiful white Ibises are regular morning visitors. Usually there are a dozen or so at a time and they roam slowly along the streets and yards pecking at the ground. I'm trying here, to get a sense of the white birds against the dark marshy background. My husband thinks I should stop but I see some areas of the design that aren't strong enough and the birds need a few more light strokes. In case you wonder, I've been lying around the pool for the past several days. I know I can't really get a tan in Massachusetts so I'd better get one while I can ;)

Carol Marine's Jacksonville Workshop

The first time I saw Carol Marine's paintings, I was floored by the energy and movement in them and they still affect me the same way today. Thus, I have been eagerly looking forward to this workshop she's teaching at Eileen Corse Gallery and Atelier in Jacksonville, FL. Here are three value studies I did in class today. The lesson is to create a dominent value pattern using dark, middle and light values. The first study was 30 minutes, the second was 15 minutes and the third was 5 minutes. It really makes you work fast and think about placement. Everyone did really well and we had a wonderful day! Here's Carol working on her beautiful orange slices.

Rock On

I bought this wooden rocking horse at Christmas Tree Shops for less than $5. This New England based chain of shops are a minefield of tchotchkes (dust collectors) from the sublime to the cheaply ridiculous, as well as a legit place to shop for a myriad of household/kitchen/picture frames/candles and similar items. Mostly though, you don't need to go there. Invariably, when I meet people who have visited the Boston/Cape Cod neck of the woods, what do you think they rave about? The History? The dunes on the Cape? Nope. They go on and on about what they bought at the Christmas Tree Shop. Don't you just love a bargain ; ) Stay tuned here, I have been tagged by Vicki Shuck, a versatile painter from the Pacific Northwest and I have some interesting new blogs to link. Check her out.