Among the Hedgerows and Hydrangeas (WIP)

I’ve started work on a new commission this week which I’m calling Among the Hedgerows and Hydrangeas.  My challenge here will be to blend my realist style with a softer nod to impressionism. I must learn to make sure what I see doesn’t interfere with my creative license!

Initial oil sketch – note the water fountain / urn that will soon disappear….

…Gone….

…..in favor of a garden sprite! It’s loose but not lovely…yet….

It’s starting to get that turn of the century feel I’m after but too loose for my taste, I like a painting, especially of this size (16 x 20″), to hold up to closer inspection.

I think I’m starting to head down that realism path …. no worries….it’s only paint!

 

 

When More is More

Nilofer Merchant, author, speaker and a Silicon Valley dynamo purchased a little assemblage painting from me last year. Bliss has hung in her office across from her desk as a reminder that happiness is not all rainbows and kittens but has an edge to it too, and maybe in the end it means more if you have to work for it. But she spoke more eloquently about this when she blogged about it in  Are You Experiencing Bliss?

Nilofer Merchant & Mug photo Marie Cameron 2012

I’ve known that she is quite the Wonder Woman for some time so when Good Housekeeping approached her for some photos of her inspirational mug (which ran in the Dec 2012 issue) I was only too happy to help out. It was then that we began sharing our other Wonder Woman bits and bobs. She had a box full of postcards depicting early WW comics and I had a little cropped photo I’d kept taken of a some street art in San Francisco from the late ’90s.

WW Mug Shot- Marie Cameron 2012   ww postcards - Marie Cameron 2013   Wonder Woman peeking through - photo MarieCameron 2012

This was the seed of a fun, collaborative process that would lead to the commission of four new works based on the idea of owning one’s onlyness and the acquisition of three earlier works that fit into Nilofer’s vision. The result was a portrait of sorts, one in which individual pieces not only say their piece but come together and spark a conversation. It takes a vision and a curatorial eye, but surely this is an instance when more is more!

Twinkle in the eye - Marie Cameron 2013

One of the first stars to echo the one on Wonder Woman’s tiara was the twinkle I placed in her eye.

Do It - side view - Marie Cameron 2013

Do It was inspired by those vintage Japanese match boxes from the deco period. I loved how the registration line was off either intentionally or by accident, either way, the black shadow line for the lips looks like a Nike symbol – hence “do it”, as if the ruby red lipstick wasn’t enough encouragement to kiss!

Speak - Marie Cameron 2012 - side

I love how the text balloons hover empty while the blacked out speak seems to implore one to break the silence. Pretty appropriate for a speaker!

Kapow - Side  Marie Cameron2013

The canvas edge doesn’t show a lot when these pieces are hung together but it makes for a great space to reinforce the playful graphics of the work.  Kapow! was inspired by artist Harry G. Peter who’s original was for issue # 27, 1948. I fixed some metalic rope that was unearthed in a dig from Latvia and some Soviet military stars to reference the cold war sentiment behind much of the Wonder Woman comics – rebelling against the “evil power structure”.

Nilofer interviewed me about my process for this series and my thoughts on onlyness and how it relates to this project to art and to life. You can check out the interview on her blog post Unanswered Questions to Ponder.

Onlyness Series - Marie Cameron 2012- 2013

Three Pond Lilies in France

A group of paintings is always a great idea!

So is protecting the environment!

Here are the three little pond lilies that were commissioned by a client in France for her husband for Christmas this year! They were painted from beautiful photographs she had taken at Desert Lake in Kingston, Ontario where her husband’s family had a cottage. The land in now protected as it has been donated in a generous gesture to the Nature Conservancy of Canada. Did you know water lilies mean purity of heart in the Victorian lexicon of flowers? I hope these little water lilies will stir fond memories!

Marie Cameron Desert Lake Pond Lily I 2012 oil on canvas 6x6 commission


Desert Lake Pond Lily I 2012 oil on canvas 6×6 by commission.

Marie Cameron Desert Lake Pond Lily II 2012 oil on canvas 6x6 commission


Desert Lake Pond Lily II 2012 oil on canvas 6×6 by commission.

Marie Cameron Desert Lake Pond Lily III 2012 oil on canvas 6x6 commission


Desert Lake Pond Lily III 2012 oil on canvas 6×6 by commission.

 

Monterey Cypress Completed

Each painting takes its own path. Some paintings effortlessly appear as you draw your paint across the canvas with your brush.  Not so often. More frequently you need to do more than just show up.  Usually it’s a process of really looking, laying down what you think you see and then really looking again. Sometimes you need to rethink your approach and paint over or scrape off or even toss out and start again. Mostly you need to be brave enough to push yourself and patient enough to let it all unfold.

Marie Cameron Monterey Cypress, Point Lobos oil on canvas 2012


Marie Cameron’s Monterey Cypress, Point Lobos commission oil on canvas 2012