Radiance

18 x 24" original oil

commission

This is an alstromeria lily. When I was little, we had a big (like 30x30" in my memory) framed lily painting in our foyer. I remember sitting on the cool slate tile and looking up at that painting and trying to figure out the order of each brush stroke and how the artist was able to make the background flowers look out of focus the but center of the lily crisp and in focus where it looked like it was coming off the canvas. My dad was mesmerized by this lily painting. My mom enjoyed it too, but I mostly remember how much my dad loved it. I think this early experience with a flower painting was a big influence on my current career path. 

Enjoy looking through the photographs below. Now you can be a fly on my studio wall as I work. My friend DC (who is also the one who commissioned this painting) came over and took a bunch of photographs of her painting coming to life. Thanks for the commission DC and I really enjoyed how this one turned out.

If you are interested in commissioning your own painting, contact me by clicking here or you can also contact any of my galleries. Thanks! 

(The color temperature in the below photographs is not balanced due to my bright work light so close the the canvas, so the lily looks browner than it really is, FYI)

I love seeing the brushwork in the glare.

This zoom-in of the petal reminded DC of The Wave, a red-rock formation in Utah that is popular with hikers.

I mix and hold the new color to the reference photo to decide if it's too warm, cold, dark or light, or my favorite, just right.

DC liked how I had some quick notations written onto my table. When Pandora is on and I want to remember a track to buy later, I take notes.

This one stripe had three colors. It went from yellow-orange to a darker pink to a pinkish-green. The trick is to work into wet paint and change color, but make the line look unbroken.

The Chaco shot: best shoe ever.

This droplet was the hardest because it was the biggest one I was unable to use my pinky for leverage with (since the surrounding paint was all wet).

Again, I love the brushwork shown by the glare. Fi-yah!