Sunset Ridge

"Sunset Ridge"
20" x 16"
Oil on hardboard




















The splendor in the sky that evening filled my window from top to bottom instead of puddling only around the sill.  I decided to present it as I had experienced it—vertically.  Fortunately. There were so many changes as I worked my way down the panel that I was happy to have the extra space to move from one color and texture to the next.  

 I hope you enjoy this larger size and format from what I've been painting recently.  I found a stack of these panels under my drawing board, so I'll be making more of them in the weeks to come.

Carol

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Walk Around the Pond

"Walk Around the Pond"
6" x 6"
Oil on hardboard 
The leaves are turning and tumbling in Chicago's Morton Arboretum, near where I live. They are bright in the sunlight, and washed clean from the rain we had earlier in the week. A nippy breeze made the pond sparkle as I walked around the perimeter with lots of other people. 

Carol

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Last Rose of Summer

"Last Rose of Summer"
24" x 24"
Oil on wrapped canvas
As the last of the white roses bloomed along the picket fence, I waited two days for this one to reach the perfect stage of burgeoning.  Then the sun cooperated by gracing the tips of her petals.  She's a large and lovely addition to my gallery of roses. 

 I started this painting several weeks ago, but just couldn't figure out how to finish her. I forced myself to do it tonight, though. And I'm pretty happy with the results.

Carol

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Still Hanging

"Still Hanging"
6" x 6"
Oil on hardboard
The sun dangled over the farm in those final moments before day faded to night. It posed between silo and pine like a bowling ball about to roll between a bedpost split. 

I'm not a bowler, but I do like the picturesque terminology presented above.  The 7-10 split is also called a goalpost split, which may appeal to some more than others.

Carol

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Flat Bottoms

"Flat Bottoms"
6" x 6"
Oil on hardboard
The clouds in my zip code are trying on the garments of the next season. They are darker and heavier than the billowy summer frocks of the last quarter.  Soon that dark will be too heavy to carry and it'll be tumbling toward the ground in six-pointed crystals. I can't even type the word. Not on the first of October. Nope. I can't do it. 

Carol

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Flower Fields

"Flower Fields"
12" x 16"
Acrylic on canvas panel
My heart is back at the flower fields again tonight. I didn't put away my acrylics, and I had a panel gessoed, ready to go, so here's a sunnier take on what I posted on Friday.  I think I'd like to visit a place where something other than soybeans and grain grow in the fields.  Care to join me?  Let's...  

Some friends have asked why I paint this style in acrylic. It's a knife painting, so I smear color pretty thick to begin with. Then when it's dry the next layer, usually a variation of the first layer, is applied over the texture, like buttering a toasted English muffin.  I like to paint the crusty ridges.  Oil paint takes too long to dry. I would end up blending the colors instead of applying them one on top of the other. I'm also still trying to use up my acrylic paints from when I was a mural painter. It may take a while.  A long while. I was well-stocked.  

Carol 


Little Puffs of Steam

"Little Puffs of Steam"
6" x 6"
Oil on hardboard
They weren't serious cumulonimbi drifting across the plains, but more like little puffs of steam, the kind that sputter from a too-full tea kettle before it boils onto the stove. Or the steam iron that spits angrily the second you hold it over the blouse you simply have to wear that day.

I'm working on a large rose painting that is requiring more of my attention than usual, but she'll be worth the effort.

Carol

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Full Blown

"Full Blown"
6" x 6"
Oil on canvas panel
The roses along the picket fence are nearly finished with their outrageous display for the season. Where there were hundreds a few weeks ago, now only a dozen remain. There are no buds. Every one is full blown; open to her fullest extent without dropping her petals... just yet.
Love to you, my followers,
Carol

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Hugs...

"Hugs..."
6" x 6"
Oil on hardboard
I painted this sky with great care, noting the proper placement of the ultramarine, cobalt and cerulean blues as I graded them down the panel.  I left the areas for clouds white, then I softened some edges and crisped others. I treated the edges with care in the narrow strip of land at the bottom, too.  It wasn't until the piece was loaded, ready to post, that I noticed the large X of blue sky in the puffy clouds.  It may mean something special to someone, like part of a gigantic xo, hugs and kisses.

Carol

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Mango Maze

"Mango Maze"
6" x 6"
Oil on canvas panel
Mangoes were two for $5 when I was at Whole Foods at noon on Tuesday.  They were the largest ones I had ever seen. I bought two.  I went home and photographed them both and painted this one from life. Then I ate one.  The next morning I went back to buy as many as I could, since cherries are now out of season. The produce man remembered me, and was astounded that I was already back for more.  That's when I found out that mangoes are now out of season, too.

Carol

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Impressions

"Impressions"
8" x 10"
Oil on hardboard
A photo of these leaves was sent to me by a friend who knows I like color, nature, and a challenge.  These WERE challenging. Someone suggested I use "puff paint" to tackle all the little bumps on the surface of the leaves. 

It's a very impressionistic rendering of the subject.  To do this justice I should have spent a week painting it... but I barely have an evening!  

Thank you my friend for letting me use your lovely photo of leaves.

Carol

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Kiss Me!

"Kiss Me! "
12" x 12"
Oil on wrapped canvas
Along the picket fence, where the white roses I like to paint grow, is a bush of pink roses.  They have sweet nubs of petals in their centers that linger, puckered for a kiss, before becoming full blown. I happened upon this one this week. 

It's been a while since I've painted a rose, but I had a request to, so here she is. I also have several new ones auditioning. The crop along the picket fence has been splendid in the past few weeks, so I've taken lots of photos.

Carol

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