'Seeing Stars' Block in

There seems to be no end to the fun I can have with Starfruits. I bought a basket of 4 at the flea market for only $2. Since they go for $2 apiece at Publix, I was thrilled. This block in took me a few hours to get the drawing right. In doing so, I lost some of the punchy darks I need for the forms but I'm happy with the color. I'm also heartened by my diligence in getting it this far, although my brain was bent after several hours and I wanted to get up and run away. It takes patience to really see. You can tell I'm going for a Jennifer Bellinger here. I love her fruit still lifes and so admire her ability to paint stripes. She has patience. Meanwhile, I've been busy matting about a dozen small watercolors, getting a print framed, delivering all of it to the Art Boutique at Tin City, going to a family birthday party on Saturday and the Naples National Art Show on Sunday. Tomorrow Tommy and Anne arrive with Ryan-5 and Colin-3 for a week. Today I washed all the mini blinds and all the bedroom windows inside and out ;) etc..etc.. I'll be back.

Star of the Day 6x6

"Star of the day", was the song that was sung to the Winner on the original (in the Boston area) reality talent show, 'Community Auditions'. It aired Sunday mornings live, and showcased an array of baton twirling, tap dancing and musical offerings. Yes, someone at Channel 5 thought of it first ;) Today I honed my skills on the star fruit but didn't get a photo during the daylight so I'm posting this shot of my setup with the painting. You can see some of the cool props I have waiting for me to paint. I also put a few finishing touches on "Star Burst", and another painting which I will post later. I find that once I'm warmed up, that's the time to pull a painting to finish. Since I usually use the same colors, they are already mixed on my palette and I can figure out what the painting needs and go right into it. It was fun.

Star Burst 6x6

Finally, I cut the star fruit up and added the glass bowl and the knife. You can see how inspiring it is to paint the same subject over and over again. You get a feel for the structure and you've mixed the colors over and over. This is close to being finished after about 2 and a half hours getting the shapes and values right. Needs a bit more 'detail' (color spots) in the fruit and on the reflections in the bowl which is all but invisible in the set up. Today, I picked up a blue and white Oriental (fake) vase at the Flamingo Isle Flea Market in Bonita. It works beautifully with this set up. More to come.

My Stars 6x6

I wiped some of this second painting of the star fruit, but will stay with it because I like the basic structure of the painting and the drawing is good. Luckily, the "Florida" room I paint in has been like a refrigerator since I arrived in Naples, FL last week, which is helpful to my set ups. I am happily dressed in fleece and moccasins painting away in my little bubble ;) I did two paintings yesterday but I wanted to post the star fruit in order so I'm holding them back. I had a really good day so come back tomorrow and see. Better yet, click on that subscribe link and you can see it, then delete it, with no danger of blog lingering ;) Thanks to my followers, too.

Star Search 6x6

One of my neighbors gave me this beautiful Star Fruit. I think he thought I was going to eat it, but as soon as I saw it I thought "painting prop". I have another of these sketched out. Yours for $60 plus shipping if you email me.