Purple Iris--following the color wheel around

I am one of those people who need a project or deadline to work to. Other wise I just think about what I want to do and never really get to it.  That is why I have created a  project for myself to paint flowers around the color wheel.

This week I have been working on purple--a really purple iris. I have always wanted to paint one of these  beautiful flowers but have been intimidated by their complex structure. I think I have this one under control. Painted from a summer photo that I enlarged and cropped really tight. I  have tried to have lots of lost and soft edges in the back ground and kept the harder edges in the focal point.

 I used ultramarine purple and blue and quin red for the petals. I found that using cad red I could grey the purple down for the softer passages. Cad red has the orange that is the complement of purple that quin red does not it also makes an interesting black. I am learning or should I say finally absorbing  and applying what I have read about color in my art books though the years.  A great side effect of this little project of mine.

This photo is an earlier work in progress (WIP) photo of the iris. Yesterday I got the colors much deeper and completed the bottom petals with the little fuzzy bits that iris has on the big lower petals.

I will get another photo today so you can see the difference. 

Thought you would like to see what I do to check my paintings while I am working on them. I have mirror on one wall that I use to look at my paintings in reverse. The mirror image really shows  where the painting needs improvement, changes, completion, color changes--anything at all. 

The Iris on my easel and a pretty good selection of my paintings on the walls. The old enamel topped table is my pallet. I taped old posters down to the table top that have been laminated. I can really spread out on the table and make a mess.If it gets too bad, I can strip the laminated paper off the top and tape a clean one down. The plastic can be cleaned up just like a regular palette as long as I keep ahead of the drying paint. I use copal drying medium with my paints, when they dry on the plastic they are there forever.

y way.....................

My mirror with the Iris painting reflected in it.  I do have to say that I love my studio space. I really thank my husband for suggesting that I get this space when I retired.  He was inspired. Thanks Sweetie!

And a photo of my other sweetie--Big Bear soaking up the winter sunshine.

I wish I could say that Bear is my cat but he has really adopted Dan as his Man. He will not sit on my lap like our other cats have. But he will perch on Dan's long thigh and will let Dan hold him in a nice tight hug. He is a man's cat, Big Black Bear

I really ran on today.....Sorry about that.

Fifteen minutes of fame

I think it was Andy Worhol who said that we all get fifteen minutes of fame in our lives. I have had mine at the Foot in the Door show at the Minnesota Institute of Arts. Dan and I picked up my painting on Thursday. It had hung there in the Institute for two months! That is more than 15 minutes isn't it?

This is Bear--our big old black cat. His portrait was my choice to hang in the show. Actually, this was the only painting that was one foot or less square. So he won by default. I guess I could have painted another but I also thought that I could find this painting easily since his eyes stand out so much. My mistake! If you click on the link for the Foot in the Door show, you will see that finding any painting in the exhibition is a frustrating experience. It was an easy job picking up the painting and Michelle's little vase. They were well organized and we were in and out in a half hour. It was fun seeing the walls again and as was true for each time I viewed the show, saw new paintings that I had not seen the last time. What wonderful talent we have in Minnesota. I just hope that I am around next time they offer this experience. I will surely enter a painting again. Then I will have had 30 minutes of fame.

Now if the weather can moderate a bit so I can get out to paint without getting rained on. I will try some more plein airs while we have summer.