Vase Full of Color

I just got back from a 4 day workshop with artist Carlo Russo on Whidbey Island near Seattle. The workshop was on painting flowers. I love Carlo's work and wanted to learn his oil painting process. He asked us to buy a set of round pointed sable brushes which are never used by most of the artists I've taken classes and workshops from. Turns out Carlo is a true renegade. He was told by an art teacher in the university he attended that he would end up painting in antique shops if he continued using those brushes. He's now in some top galleries and making a good living selling his art. He also paints on very smooth double primed linen canvas to get the look he wants. He starts by using very thin paint to block in the picture. Then he lets that dry and next uses thicker paint not mixed with medium. The most important thing I learned was that I shouldn't clean my brush by swishing it around in solvent when I'm painting. Too much solvent makes the brush more likely to pick up the paint I'm trying to cover. He wipes off most of the paint on a paper towel after one dip in the solvent. I painted the above painting in the workshop. It's a 9 x 12 inch oil on a linen panel available in my Etsy shop. Below are some photos of the workshop demos done by Carlo. To see his work, check out his website. 

Hiding

I have developed a fascination with jackrabbits since living on the prairie. This painting isn't finished yet but I'm happy with the progress. I decided to start with the eye — the most important part of this painting — and move on from there. Jackrabbits flatten their ears and hold very still when they see you approaching trying to hide even though they are in plain sight. I have a great camera lens that lets me stay far enough away so they don't bolt. This is an 8 x 8 inch oil.

Sunset Drama - SOLD

This is a 5 x 10 inch painting inspired by the views I see from our front porch at sunset. It's available framed or unframed. You can see this and my other paintings/prints available on my Etsy site

Bison Bull - SOLD

I tried something different with this painting. I used red acrylic paint as an underpainting and let it dry. That made the colors I used tend to be brighter and shift to the primaries (red, yellow and blue). Just experimenting. This is a 12 x 16 gallery wrapped canvas available on my website.

Cat Bliss - SOLD

This is a larger version of a painting I did last year. It's 14 x 14 inches on gallery wrap canvas which means it doesn't need to be framed. I fell in love with this cat’s face. I smile whenever I look at this painting. Thanks to Ariane Kraemer at pmp-art.com for allowing me to use her photo to paint from. You can see this painting and others I have available in my Etsy shop.

Kingbird in Aspen

This Western Kingbird was perched in an aspen tree at sunset. The light made its yellow belly even more bright and the aspen bark glowed. I used a gold metallic oil paint on parts of the feathers to show the glow. This is a 5 x 7 inch oil painting on a linen canvas panel. It's available in my Etsy shop.

Sunset Moon - SOLD

One night last summer the moon was rising as the sun was setting. The clouds below the moon turned orange and looked like they were on fire. But the clouds above the moon were dark blue silhouettes. It was a magical scene — almost unreal. This is an unframed 18 x 18 inch oil painting on stretched linen canvas. It's available in my Etsy shop.