Vegetation Portraits on Oil Cloth?

Cyclamen on Oil Cloth - 16 x 12" Oil on canvasboard
 by Tracy Feldman

     This is another in the series that I am painting of objects on the wonderful oilcloth I bought for my kitchen table.  I had been calling the series, "Vegetable Portraits on Oil Cloth", but I think I'm going to need to change the name to "Vegetation on Oil Cloth" because as the growing season is coming to an end locally, I am going to need to look further afield for my portrait models.  What do you think?

     This one is of a lovely plant that a friend brought me and suggested would be a great subject for a portrait.  It's called a cyclamen.  Several varieties grow here in Ireland.  Some, like this one, are hardy enough to over-winter here (at least in mild winters).  Others go dormant over winter but return in very early spring (February) to brighten the forest floor.  Their vivid hues are very welcome during Ireland's particularly gray months.

 Cyclamen underpainting

      As you can see on the right, I used the under-painting technique I learned this fall from Dreama Toll Perry.  But because I could not finish the piece in one sitting, I used my painting medium when completing the painting.

           I chose to show the plant from over head because that point of view made the cyclamen appear to be growing out of the tablecloth  -- and that appeals to my "reality with a twist" sensibilities.  I also took several portraits of the plant from the side. I'm also going to paint one of those because I loved the way the perspective changed how the "leaves" look on the oil cloth.  So keep your eyes peeled for that, and for a persimmon and cranberry portrait that is also in the works!

Revisiting Paintings

Redone picture of geraniums.

Sometimes when I walk past a painting day after day, elements of it start to bother me. If  I get bothered enough, I'll just go in and change the painting to make it better for me. 

This is one of those pieces.

Original version.

 I didn't like that lack of vibrancy of the geraniums. I got more and more bothered by the thickness of the wood between the window panes. And, the very bottom of the painting bothered me too.

I more pleased town and I hope you are too.

Finding Autumn (Fall) color in this area of "rocky beauty" -- as it is called in the tourist literature -- what I loved about living in Galway during This Week

Last week, we went walking in some unusual woods with old trees in County Galway: The Barna Woods (in the Galway suburbs) and Coole Park -- the grounds of Lady Gregory's estate in southern County Galway.  Lady Gregory was WB Yeats' patron and confidant as well as a writer in her own right, and a founder of Dublin's Abbey Theatre.  It was wonderful seeing the color and smelling the scent of fallen leaves.  Enjoy -- we certainly did!

Coole Park Pictures:

Barna Woods Pictures

 

What I loved about Living in Galway during Halloween Week 2016

Macnas 2016 Parade - music, costumes, giant puppets,
folk on stilts, acting, dancing -- what Craic!

 Macnas's 30th Anniversary Parade for Halloween! 

They say in Galway that the Halloween celebrations started in Ireland.  It spread to the States with the people escaping from the potato famine.  Like so many things,  American Halloween celebrations -- through the influence of TV, films, and folk returning to Ireland --  have come back to influence how the event is celebrated in the 21st century.  For instance, we first lived in Ireland for the year in 1999/2000 , and tThen the majority of children who came to our place were dressed as ghosts and ghouls. This Halloween, the costumes are closer to the ones we'd see back home:  more superheroes,   Disney characters, princesses, rock guys and gals, etc. than we saw in 1999.  Also, like at home, kids are much less likely now to trick or treat on their own, without a parental chaperone.  

One thing that makes Galway, Galway, is how much Galwegians enjoy "the Craic" -- pronounced "the crack".  It refers to fun-loving people  getting together to have a good time with friends, perhaps at a special event.  That is why a wonderful, community-based puppet/parade company has thrived here for the last 30 years. This Galway-based, non-profit street theater group puts on huge, elaborate parades that incorporate music, drumming, dance, and giant, human-powered puppets. Its parades are so wonderful that the group (Macnas)  has been invited to perform in many places in the world.  The Halloween-themed Macnas parade celebrating its 30th anniversary was a truly wonderful spectacle.  But the spectacle did not stop with the Macnas performers.   Many of the individuals and families who packed the streets to watch the parade also dressed in wonderful, elaborate costumes of their own.  Craic indeed.  And even though we were only visitors (and not dressed for the occasion), we loved  it.

        We got a lot of fantastic images of the event, and I might paint something this year based on what we saw.  Periodically check on this blog or my website for the work I produce this year.

Second in my "Vegetables on Oilcloth" Series

Can't Beet Them - 16 x 12" oil on Canvas.

 This is the second in a series of vegetable portraits that I've started since arriving in the Galway (Ireland) area. The series was inspired by a wonderful oilcloth I bought here, and Ireland’s beautiful vegetables.

I adore the oilcloth's graphic quality contrasted against the natural shapes and intense hues of the beets.   Galway has a thriving farmer's market, and a number of Fruit and Vegetable shops in the area at which I can buy beautiful, fresh veg (as they say here) that still have their greens attached to them.  Including them reminds me that they come from the earth - which I love.

Hope you enjoy!  I haven't figured out how to sell these pieces on-line yet -- because I don't know how to handle the shipping, etc. from here.  But, I'm working on trying to put together a show here, and if I still have them when I return home, I'm going to ship them home in a bike box. Then,  I'll make them available for sale. 

Note: to return my home page.

Grateful for Beauty -- Wherever I Find It

Gift Bag in Oil, 10 x 8", Oil on Canvas, by Tracy Feldman

       Beauty sometimes comes in unexpected placed.  For instance, we had friends over for Valentines Day, and friends brought us some kit to use for dipping bread in olive oil.  It came in a beautiful bag. And while it probably was not intended to be a work of art, it was so lovely that I knew I'd wanted to paint it as soon as I saw it.  

       As you can see from this post, I did just that TWICE: first in watercolors and then in oils.  I  like the feel of the oil painting better than the sketch, but I've included it so you can compare them.

Gift Bag in W/C, Watercolor on Paper

      Notice that I changed the setting and the cloth on which I placed that bag, and I think I think those choices also make it more interesting than the sketch.  I ever paint it again, I'll center it a little more. But even so, I had a great time painting it and like how it turned out.  I hope you do too.

      As is usual with the small oils I paint (this one is 10 X 8"), it available for auction in my gallery on dailypaintworks.com.  Check it out if it interests you.

Watercolor Sketching and Oil Painting

Arny Relaxing With A Good E-Book, watercolor on paper by Tracy Feldman

 As part of my effort to keep growing as an artist, a while ago I joined a daily sketching group.  I am not as faithful as some people are about doing and posting work each day.  But, seeing other's work inspires me to do more and stretch in ways that I might not otherwise.  For instance, lots of people often work al la prima, while I am more used to working from photo references.

The sketch to the left was inspired by those brave souls. I call it, "Arny Relaxing With a Good E-Book.  I did it yesterday from life. Arny is my husband, and he was such a good sport posing for me. Like any good model, he had to stop in the middle when his feet fell asleep. I painted it because he looked so relaxed (and cute) while nestled in all those pillows. 

His response was, "I look so much like my dad", and, basically, he is right. True ... he is taller, has somewhat more hair, and has a mellower personality, but otherwise, he's the spitting image of his dad.
Unless someone specifically asks me, I won't put this piece up for sale.

 The other piece I'm featuring today is a piece I am making available on auction in my dailypaintworks.com gallery.  The painting is called, Snowy Day at F&M 1.

    It is of a clock on the campus of Franklin and Marshall College during the huge snow storm we had a A couple of weeks ago. Arny was on the campus for part of it because he is a mathematics professor there, and he used his iPhone to take a number of beautiful photos of the campus in the falling snow. 

I particularly loved this one, so I painted small (10 x 8") version of in oils.  I am putting the painting up for auction in my Daily Paintworks Gallery. I call it "Snowy Day at F&M 1" because I might paint some other of the images he captured that day. Check it out there if you want.