Naples Yellow FTW!

"Shenandoah Mountains" 24x36 oil on gallery wrapped canvas (in progress) I worked on mainly the sky for my session yesterday. The sky is a deep clear blue with wispy clouds, yet there's an area of moisture right in the center that needed just the right hue to represent what was going on with the clouds, moisture and sunlight. And Naples Yellow is just the color to bring in there. It has a bit of a peachy tint that works well with your blues for creating atmosphere. I mixed it with ultramarine blue at first, but got it too gray. Mixing with Schveningen Blue (Thalo), which is an Old Holland oil color, brought in more of the turquoise excitement I was looking for. It was a dance of mixes across the canvas as the light changed across the big blue bowl of a sky. It looks really intense against the blocking in of the foreground, but never fear. It'll all come together (she says confidently) in the next few days. I can't wait to get into the purples and russets and golds of the trees, but know that I have to go slowly and with a light hand or I'll end up with a rougher painting than I'd like. That is an issue that plagues me since my primary paint spreading tool is a palette knife, not a paintbrush.

The Atmosphere Is Killing Me!

Shenandoah Mountains 24x36 oil on gallery wrapped canvas (in progress) Started a new painting yesterday, on the suggestion of my daughter, Sami. She's living in Virginia for a year and discovering the delights of mountain hiking. The photo she sent me was of the view in the Shenandoah mountains on her first hiking trip last Fall. There's tons of atmosphere in this view and I just hope I can do it justice. I blocked it in yesterday, and that's what this is a photo of. Today, all I worked on was the sky and the very distant mountains, and am dead now. Phew!!! I will post a photo of it tomorrow because the sun's too low and yellow in the sky now.

Connie Miller's Stream Of Connieciousness: New Paintings

Connie Miller's Stream Of Connieciousness: New Paintings

New Paintings

Azalea 18x24 (in progress) oil on gallery wrapped canvas Iris 2011 CS Miller 24x30 oil on gallery wrapped canvas. Lake House View 2011 CS Miller 36x36 oil on gallery wrapped canvas Finished the "Lake House View" without a great deal of additional work. Started a new painting which was inspired by a video of Spring plants. I love the looseness and color combinations. It's had everybody oohing and ahhing, and I think they are inspired by the colors, too. Or maybe it's just that everybody loves an iris. I sure do. I love their long, long stems and their vibrant colors. And, the fact that they show up in the Spring when we're desperate for some color in our lives makes them a superior flower. Add to that my new painting of an Azalea bush (in progress) and I've had a very satisfactory week or two. Satisfying to me to have had the chance to paint them and stretch my skills, and satisfying to have sold the commission to a very happy owner. I'm always happy to sell my paintings to people who I know will love and appreciate them. That's probably why I've mostly just sold to people I know! That may change if "Iris" or "Berkeley Bird of Paradise" find new homes this week while hanging at Real Gallery downtown. If you're so inclined, art galleries on Congress are having another "I Art Congress" this Thursday, June 9th. Real Gallery is a nice space on the west side of the 900 block of Congress (just a couple doors south of Quiznos). They'll have wine and music 6-9p.m. I hope to be there. I have a very sick doggy right now, so all plans are up in the air regarding leaving the house. She's my heart and soul and this house seems rather empty without her little noises right now.