Roses, Short Glass Jar SOLD

Another painting of my favorite roses.  The glass jar is almost as wide as it is tall, but it makes a nice shaped container for these short-stemmed roses.  When I set up a still life, I position the light to get the maximum drama; that means light from the side or from the back, and not from the front which flattens things out.  The side light filters through the petals and leaves, and there is just a bit of highlight on the rim of the petals.   Painted from a still life I set up in my studio. 

Pink Rose, Square Jar, Light and Dark Green SOLD

This rose is a favorite to paint; it has single roses of a beautiful pale pink color.  It is actually the rootstock of a grafted rose; the grafted rose is on the wane but the vigorous rootstock is sending out lots of canes.  I've posed the flower against a green background and enjoy how the cool dark blue green background and lighter yellow green leaves complement the pinks.   Painted from a still life I set up in my studio. 

Sweet Cherries and Gold Background

I like this simple compositions, it presents plenty of challenges for me.  I especially like the color of the reflections in the cherries.  I mixed white into the dark cherry color to get a lovely purple tone which my brain interprets as a white reflection.  I like the poses of the stems, they seem conversational.  Painted from a still life I set up in my studio. 

Three Cherries on Gray with Reflections SOLD

Three cherries lined up in a row, but with a little bit of variation; a wider space on the right, a taller stem on the left.  I like the soft edges where the reflections on the cherries are close to the values in the background.  I deliberately lost and painted out parts of the stems so that they would disappear into the background.  It makes the stems look like they are curved toward the viewer.  The cherries cast a shadow to the right, but reflected vertically.  Where the reflection and the shadow intersect is the darkest area beneath the cherries. 

White Cup Stack and Five Cherries

Sweet dark cherries are in the store now and I have to paint them while they are in season.  I really enjoy their shiny surfaces. The color of the reflection in the cherries is actually rather dark; a mix of the local color of the cherry (dark red), the additional darkness from the shadow, and a bit cool white from the tabletop.  

White Cup and Three Dark Cherries

It's cherry season again.  These are early sweet cherries - so dark they're almost black, so I paired them with white and gray for strong color harmony and threw in just a touch of red and gold in the lightest areas of the stems and fruit.  Although the cup is white and is sitting on a clear piece of glass that is on a white tabletop, the painting is mostly gray, so that only the few highlights are actually white.  I like the little bits of red in the cherries, they seem to glow.