Barbara's Flowers

 

Here is Barbara's floral painting. I like the energy and color of her flowers.

Here is Barbara's photo. I like the way the flowers fan out from the narrow mouth and the way the dark leaves reach beyond them.

 

I have a few notes based on the photo.

1. The principal thing I might consider is to lighten the background and reduce the value contrast.

2. Barbara has made an interesting choice to make her vase wider and rounder than the vase in the photo. 

3. I like the spaces between the flowers. Look for the negative spaces to get the relationships right. One can of course make these relationships how you want them. I like the openness of the spaces between the flowers in the photo. I feel that it makes the flowers feel lighter.

4. Notice that with the flowers backlit, the flowers are a bit darker than represented in the painted. I suggest make them a little darker and lightening the background.

5. Even with a simplified table top, I like having the graphic of the round place mat.

I suggest that pushing the background back and darkening the flowers a little, Barbara's flowers will pop a great deal more.

I look forward to seeing the next iteration.

Here is Bev's quite accomplished and complimentary portrait of a good pup.

I don't want to make any assumptions about what Bev plans for the next steps on her painting but I'll make an assumption anyway that the legs will be finished. However, I don't know is what is intended for the background. In some ways I like the warm, simple shape here. The dog really stands out against it.

In the photo below there is a green grass background. The advantage of this in my opinion is that it allows Bev to highlight a unique feature of the dog, which is it's large, pink somewhat translucent ears. The contrast of the pink ears gets lost against a background so close to the color and value of the ears. The green color and the varied values helps set the dog apart from the environment but not removed from it. 

My suggestions are to:

1. Accentuate the pink ears by going with a simplified version of the green background of the photo. Also look to the photo for the color of the ears.

2. Consider subduing the value of the white fur in areas away from where you want to emphasize the focus which will usually be around the head. Also, the transitions between light and dark areas of fur provide an opportunity to show the texture of the fur.

3. This is a note, again about perhaps changing the color of the background.

4. I noticed in the photo that the back leg rides a bit lower on the body as indicated in this Photoshop sketch.

5. I might consider knocking down the highlight in the eyes a bit.

Bev has done a fantastic job on this portrait and these few suggested changes my be taken or not as I think that either way it will be successful when it's finished.

 

 

Lonna's Seascape

 Here is Lonna's lovely seascape featuring some dynamic waves. Lonna's pastel technique is getting really accomplished and the colors in this painting are very nice.

I like how Lonna changed the image in the photo to include some beach. It makes the painting a great deal more interesting. I see that the space has been compressed in the painting as well. The waves appear much closer in the painting due to their scale which makes them even more the stars of the show. I think that the handling of the shadows on the sand and water is very nicely done.

 

 

As you can see in Lonna's photo, she has pushed the rock formation on the right to the edge of the painting and opened the space between the rocks which I think was a good decision.

As successful as this painting is, I do have a few suggestions:

1. Be aware of the repetition of intervals.

2. I would consider taking the value of the highlights in the rock down a bit. You'll see from this suggestion and #5 that to accentuate the waves even further, taking down the contrast a little in other areas is helpful.

3. Again, be careful to not repeat size, shape and spacial relationships too much. You'll see a quick suggestion of how to vary these a little below.

4. I like the angle in the photo of this line of a breaking wave.

5. Though I think that the color of the sky on the horizon here is beautiful, I feel that the contrast in value and color pulls our eye up there and away from the waves and rocks below. Just a little less contrast helps.

Here's a quick Photoshop sketch to show a few of the ideas from above.

Remember to accentuate the curl of the wave and that you can illustrate contour of the surface of waves and other undulating shapes by showing the patterns on the surface of the shapes.

I can further explain this next time we're together live or on a zoom in the future. 

A very nice painting that can get to the next level with some relatively easy changes. Great job Lonna.

12/20/20 Marilyn's Flowers and Fruit on a Table

Here is Marilyn's lovely painting of Flowers and Fruit on a Table. I really like the flowers and the bowl of fruit in particular and I think that the overall yellow and orange palette overall is very nice. The white candles stand out nicely against the orange trees in the background.

 I do have a few notes for Marilyn to consider.

1. I think that the edge of the chair on the right creates tension that may be unintended by right on the edge of the picture. In the quick Photoshop example below I've moved it to the left a bit to relieve that tension.

2. These strawberries feel kind of trapped within the confines of of the chair shape. I think that the composition might benefit from the integration and overlapping of objects.

3. By moving the chair to the left, the large red fruit is less isolated by crossing behind the back of the chair.

4. Here, I think that I might open the blue up a bit and create a shape that creates a space for the top of the flowers to be showcased.

5. The pears here are beautifully painted but the scale seems a bit too large for the picture.

Here you'll notice the chair moved to the left and the fruit on the surface of the table is not confined by the shape of the back of the chair.

The pears are smaller and more in scale with the other fruit.

The slight bit of blue sky in the background gives us a shape that helps highlight the flowers.

As always, take these suggestions just my opinion. It's a very nice painting. I look forward to seeing the next iteration.

Silala's latest paintings

Leah's white flowers.

A very nice abstraction.

                                      Lisa's squirrel

Super fun. Lisa has captured the feeling perfectly.

Georgia's recent paintings.

Three recent beautiful, still life paintings

I love the glow in this one. Nicely done.

Lonna's lake with bright light.

I really like the clouds and the receding hills in this reworking of this piece. Lonna has added a great deal of depth and interest.

I've added just a few notes in Photoshop.

1. The light ray will impose on the clouds and hills behind it.

2. These clouds are really beautifully done.

3. Reflect the colors in the sky on the water.

4. Also, reflect the land forms near the surface of the lake.

The foreground is looking good and sets the stage nicely.

Lonna has made a much better painting than her photographis inspiration. Nice.

Lisa's Ssssplakoon

Lisa's super fun poster child for these stay at home times. I love how it looks like the first martini has started to take effect and how she is gripping her glass.

Below I've indicated the way that the liquid in the glass would work. The plane of the top of the drink tips up towards the back rim as the glass is tilted back. Notice also that the lower jaw is inside the back rim of the glass. I like the cool light on the nose and the reflected light in the eyes. I've added a highlight to the nose and eyes. Lisa, will you be adding whiskers?

1. Lisa and I had discussed having a warm side and a cool side of the raccoons head. The warm side may have gotten a little pink. I might use a subtle raw sienna-ish white. The color doesn't have to be dramatic. The value might be a little lighter in a few places on the warm side.

2. This indicates the plane of the liquid in the glass.

3. This shows the tilt of the glass.

Notice also that I've indicated a highlight on the rim of the glass and a slightly less intense one running down the glass on the dominant light side.

A super fun, charming painting.

Georgia's white flowers in a dark vase

Here is Georgia's beautiful still life with white flowers and a black vase. I love the barest indication of the vase. This and the leaves fading into the darkness pull us into the painting and create a sense of intimacy. The dark stage creates a dramatic setting for the white flowers. It's interesting in a piece with few very subtle colors to see how three small shapes of red can have an out-sized impact. Georgia has done a masterful job of using these red shapes to direct our eye around the picture. Notice the arc of the four flowers and the subtle counter angles the leaves take. This kind of a picture could easily be over rendered but Georgia relies more on studied indication over labored rendering to keep her painting fresh.

Georgia's photo reference and my few suggestions are below.

1. Though it's personal preference thing, I like the warm color of the wooden table in the photo. I think it adds warmth and I don't think it undermines the subtle red in the flowers that is so successful. It could even be a step darker than in the photo to be a little more subtle. I also like the angle of the shape in the photo on the table top and the way that a hint of the warm color of the table in seen to the right of the bottom flower.

2. I might just give the silhouette of the top of this flower a bit more character.

As I said, this is just a suggestion and Georgia's painting is fantastic either way.

Lonna's painting of a lake in bright light.

Here is Lonna's painting of a very difficult subject. I think that she's done a good job and with a few changes can get her piece to a place that can stay loose while adding depth and selling the lighting condition. She is working from a photo that is difficult to read. These kind of scenes can evoke emotional responses when viewed live but they are difficult to capture in a photograph let alone paint.

I like how Lonna has accentuated the shape of the hill seen faintly in the center of the photo. This light reflected on the water like this typically occurs with high clouds on a a bright day. This already blows things out a little and when the sun blasts through an opening in the clouds it creates an intense bright spot on the scene. I think that the edges of the transition from intense light to the surrounding areas where we can still se color and form are important to capture. In the photo we can see kind of ripple shapes. Also remember that the surface of the water is a flat plane and we can see the perspective on the surface with a vanishing point/ horizon line about halfway up the photo.

Here is a painting by Rockwell Kent who painted quite a lot in extreme northern latitudes. In this piece he captures a very similar lighting condition to Lonna's photo but gives us more information by not relying exclusively on a photo that has blown out most of the color and nuance. This is how I might approach her scene. Search for as much detail in the mountains and trees as possible and extrapolate. Notice the nice sense of depth Kent achieves by overlapping the mountains and utilizing atmospheric perspective. He has also given the water more color. Though it's not a high cloud day, that hot light would make seeing the color difficult. In plein air, in situations like that, I've found it's a good idea to look away from the lightest area and even to kind of shield your eyes to let them readjust and see color. Without the option of looking live one would have to use their memory and/or other shots of the scene. Notice in Kent's painting the very compressed transition from the colorful areas of the water to the bright light area and how there is still a little color in the bright area at the edges before the lightest bit at the center. Also to sell the effect, there are no other places in the painting where the light is that light.

1. I might overlap the mountains. Give them a rhythm and reduce the contrast as they recede. As is the shapes of the mountain and clouds both slant down to the right. I think that a few shapes countering this can help keep us in the center of the painting.

2. I like that Lonna has given the clouds a little more body. In this lighting condition with high clouds the clouds tend to be long and not puffy but for the sake of the painting it's nice to have more interesting shapes. As I've quickly drawn here the cloud shape can be used to create an arrow down to the center of the lake.

3. Even if the tree area is a nearly uniform dark color I would consider taking the time to finish the tops as in the photo which indicate that they are fir trees. This provides a sense of scale as well as completeness. As is, the foliage could be bushes which changes the feel of the scale. I like how you've created a pocket for the light area with the foliage shape.

4. Just a note to focus on the areas of transition in the water as mentioned above. Also as the water is reflecting the sky, unless its reflecting the mountains near the shore. I might consider making the sky not so pink. The color in the photo is a tough one to capture. I might just make one up that's in the ball park that I like as long as it harmonizes with the rest of the picture.

In the photo notes below, First notice that I cropped the sky which results in a changed ratio. Dont forget that we always have the power to crop our photos to make the most interesting compositions. I find that just using a couple sheets of bond paper to move the borders is helpful.

1. If you look carefully at the raw photo you can see several layers of hills. I'd play those up.

2. I like that Lonna has given the clouds more shape than seen here. I'd consider making them relatively lighter to create more depth.

3. I might add more of a transition area. Don't forget the broken up edge to show a little chop on the water.

4.I mentioned the color above.

Barbara's red flowers and lemons.

Really nicely done Barbara. I think that you've made your painting stronger than the second iteration below. Notice the lighter green fabric and the more integrated shadow shape. The leaves on the left side of the arrangement are more varied and interesting. Notice also that Barbara painted the vase blue which not only is closer that the original image but separates it from the from the flowers well.

I've made just a few notes below.

1. I might consider breaking up the shadow on the ground plane. Cast shadows are typically darkerright under the object casting the shadow. It then lightens and softens as it gets further for the object casting the shadow. I've quickly illustrated this idea using several smaller shapes to emulate the kind of impressionist brush strokes that Barbara uses in other areas of her painting.

2. The bottom of the vase should be more rounded to sit properly on the table top.

3. I might consider putting a little more color back into the iris with a bit more variation.

Nicely done Barbara. You're diligent work is paying off and you're improving in leaps and bounds. I look forward to seeing what you do next.

Susan's wooded trail with walkers

Susan's painting captures a really nice moment. I like the loose painting and the fact that nothing is over rendered. It has the feel of a memory that we all might have. The set up of the light is really nicely done to highlight the walkers. Notice that the side light illuminates them and the shadow behind them and the very dark shape of the foliage in front of them sets the stage really, really well.

I did a very rough bit in Photoshop to reinforce the set up that Susan has created.  Explained below.

1. I knocked the value down a little further in just a few areas, including the thin tree trunk at the bottom left edge.

2. Here, the light parts of the shadow have been knocked down just a bit to unify the shadow on the path,  which in turn makes the lighted area around the walkers more prominent.

I think that Susan's painting works super well as it is. My few suggestions are only to reinforce what Susan has already.

Leah abstract landscape

Here is Leah's abstracted landscape. I really like the direction Leah is going with her abstract pieces.

Here is Leah's beautiful sunset photo.

1.These shapes might be a little sharp. These are action shapes relative to the more organic shapes in the rest of the painting.

2. Look out for tangents. The end of the tree shape ends at the edge of the yellow cloud shape. This flattens the picture plane. If that's Leah's intention, she would be in good company with Picasso and Braque. Just a note to be aware of the tangents.

3. I feel that these shapes may be a little complex. I might consider having areas of relatively simple shapes to offset the busier ones.

4. I might consider gradating the sky a little more from the warm lower section to up to the top behind the clouds.

Notice the linear quality of clouds. The warm up-lit cloud shapes are long and connected. The darker, rounder parts of the clouds, as pointed out in previous posts, are still lighter than the dark shapes of the objects on the ground plane.

1. Indicates the gradated sky.

2. Maybe a little more attention to the shapes of the mountains and distinctions in value between the cool near ground plane and middle ground hills.

3. These shapes could be broken down further for nuance but look for the big shapes first.

4. Maybe consider some slightly more organic shapes for the foreground tree branches.

Overall, I'd say that Leah is really on to something. I don't want my suggestions to be a distraction to her direction but to support er efforts.

Artist Ed Mell

I'm reviewing Leah's and Lonna's latest work and their paintings have inspired me to search for a few artists who are excellent at abstracting a variety of subject matter. Tonight, Ed Mell, an artist who reminds me of Leah's abstract paintings. I hope you all enjoy.

I hope you all realize that you can click on an image you get a larger view.