These pictures are from a personal art show in Vancouver, WA, with support of the Mosaic Arts Alliance. Vinnie's Pizza is one of the organization's venues, with a gallery-like exhibition space set a bit apart from the main restaurant.  I was invited to exhibit works in July and August, and was very excited to create the eleven pieces necessary to fill the space. All the paintings were done on oil-primed linen canvas. The technique I used starts with an underpainting that it is done in water-mixable oils. I then proceed working with regular oil paints. I like painting mostly in the alla prima(wet-on-wet) technique, but sometimes I employ a combination of both traditional and the alla prima techniques. All my paintings are varnished upon completion for protection. 

"Reflecting Color and Light" 6"x 6", oil

“In order for the light to shine so brightly, the darkness must be present.” – Sir Francis Bacon 

When I set up this painting, I was interested in a traditional approach while creating a warm atmosphere.I pulled out my warm colors like cadmium red and cadmium yellow and complemented them with ultramarine blue. I also used a low light that brought out the brightness of each of the local color and their reflections.

"Sunflower on White Cloth" 6"x 6", oil"

"Light-enchanted sunflower, thou
Who gazest ever true and tender
On the sun's revolving splendour."
- Pedro Calderon de la Barca

" Sunflower on White Cloth" was painted when my husband brought me a beautiful bouquet of sunflowers. I love their bright color but I didn't want to rival their brilliant yellow orange hue by adding any other strong color. So I kept the palette limited to three main colors: cadmium yellow, cadmium red, ivory black to which I added white. The subdued atmosphere I created has an ambiance that brings the sunflower's rich colors out. The softness of the white cloth contrasts with the sunflower's brilliant hues. 

"Red Begonia with  Lemon"  8 x 8, oil

SOLD
(This piece is in a private collection in Tampa, Florida)

“Aspirin is so good for roses, brandy for sweet peas, and a
squeeze of lemon-juice for the fleshy flowers, like begonias.” 

Gerald Durrell, My Family and Other Animals

I  have been looking for a while at David Leffel's paintings, and have also read his book " Oil Painting Secrets from a Master".

I wanted to apply some of his teachings in "Red Begonia with Lemon". Now, I'm not sure how much of his teachings I was able to apply in this painting, but I am sure that I was able to capture something of the lighting and atmosphere that Leffel emphasizes in his book. 

Glass Bowl with Tangerine, 6 x 6, oil

SOLD
(This piece is in a private collection in Pearland, Texas)

"There is no blue without yellow and without orange."

Vincent Van Gogh

My inspiration for "Glass Bowl with Tangerine" came from a modern-looking bowl I found, and I thought it deserved to be in a painting with a modern color scheme as well. 

The background became a beautiful purple-blue, complementing the vibrant orange of the tangerine in the foreground. Overall I am satisfied with both the brilliant colors and a contemporary look.

Red Flowers With Citrus, 5"x 7", oil

Used throughout a room, orange can become surprisingly neutral 

and yet it can be bright and mood-enhancing. (Jonathan Adler),

"Red Flowers with Citrus" was painted on a linen panel. Whenever I paint on linen, my paintings get a traditional look to them. The low lighting is reminiscent of a chiaroscuro painting. Also, the little  mandarins have an appealing warm glow. There is a mysterious atmosphere that surrounds this warm painting. I almost feel that there should be a candle somewhere in the background.

Crystal Light with Fruit, 8"x 8", oil

SOLD
(This piece is in a private collection in Grass Valley, California.)

“Imagine a Carthage sown with salt, and all the sowers gone, and the seeds
lain however long in the earth, till there rose finally in vegetable profusion
leaves and trees of rime and brine. What flowering would there be in such
a garden? Light would force each salt calyx to open in prisms, and to fruit
heavily with bright globes of water–-peaches and grapes are little more than
that, and where the world was salt there would be greater need of slaking. 

Marilynne Robinson, "Housekeeping"

 Before painting "Crystal Light with Fruit" I wanted to use a light that was coming from the back.of my still life .That kind of lighting made a dramatic change in the way the objects were hit by the light or reflected it. I thought that the original pattern it created on the horizontal  plane was interesting and challenging and worth the effort to paint.