Pansy Tea II

July 4, 2014

Pansy Tea I

July 4, 2014

Painting Pansy Tea for Two

June 23, 2014

I couldn’t resist painting another Pansy Teacup and Lesser Goldfinch combo. I decided to keep with the ring theme too. I think it adds to the symbolism of the pansy – “Think of me”.

There will still be pattern in the background but I painted in the base first, after my outline sketch. Notice how the hue is warmer closer to the light source then gets progressively cooler and darker further away.

I painted in in the male Lesser Goldfinch right away – I like to make sure I get my main focal point right before I go too far.

The female Lesser Goldfinch is my secondary focal point. Having more that one focus helps to move the eye around the painting.

Roughing in the flowers and teacup and ring. Throwing caution to the wind with my use of whimsey!

The trick from here on out is to balance refinement with freshness. I had to call it a day here and hope that I don’t wreck it tomorrow!

Painting Pansy Tea

June 4, 2014

Now that I have my reference material all composed, I am able to precede with my Pansy Tea painting.

I like to sketch out my outlines with thinned oils on a white ground. I feel it helps me to maintain a clarity and vibrancy of color.

I begin to block in a bit of color as I feel more confident about the way the drawing is going.

Since the bird is the primary subject, I wanted to concentrate on it first.

The next goal I had was to work the entire canvas (all twelve inches of it).

Here I’ve built up highlights, shadows and details.

I will continue along this path, adding glazes to tone down areas until I feel it has enough depth and presence. Speaking of presence, I see my little finch is looking more like a chubby chick! Taking pictures as you go along is a great way of seeing your work in a new way. Let’s see what I can do about that tomorrow!

Making Pansy Tea

June 3, 2014

Those wild birds simply refuse to join me in the studio but through the miracle that is Photoshop I am able to integrate my birding photos with my still-life set ups. I can use my magic lasso and drag them about with my mouse, scale them up or down and even flip them if so required until they find their place in the composition. So immediate, so satisfying! Here’s a tip though, make sure your light sources are coming from the same direction of you’re going to have to make it up on the painting side.

Now which one to choose?

Female Lesser Goldfinch

The overlapping of the pansies in the foreground help to anchor the bird in the space. I’m going to look at more reference photos for standing feet but this is enough to get me started.

Male and Female Lesser Goldfinch.

Cropping of the subject is a nice modern device and can balance out the male’s tail in the composition.

I love how this one is all stretched out and peering beyond the image but will need some legs though as there is no longer a perch available.

Frozen Thoughts Finished

October 19, 2012

I love the way Frozen Thoughts has turned out! I can imagine an entire wall dotted by these convex paintings in various sizes. I think that this format completely emphasizes the ephemerality of the fragile floral subject matter like bubbles of moments caught in time.

Frozen Thoughts convex painting by Marie Cameron 2012 oil on canvas 16″ x 16″

Frozen Thoughts

October 16, 2012

I have lots of must dos and should dos on my agenda. Too many musts and shoulds can stifle creativity and I really needed to do something just on a whim. On Friday I took out a convex canvas I had kicking about the studio and knew it would be a great match for the heartsease paperweight I had photographed earlier this fall (sometimes you don’t even know you want to paint something until you photograph it). Here’s how it’s coming along.