Oil Painting of a Native American Woman, 38" x 48"

"Gathering the Day"

Because I'm traveling on family business this week, I'm unable to complete daily paintings, but I have a few images I'd like to share until the 3rd of November when I'll be painting again regularly. This painting was a commission I recently finished for a private collection. The model was a Native American who was referred by a friend. She was perfect for the job and the resulting piece is much loved by it's new owners. I live in the northwest and the scenery is common to our area where sea stacks and broad ocean views inspire all who come to see them. "Gathering the Day" was painted in careful layers with lots of glazing to bring out highlights and shadows. This work is very different from my "ala prima" pieces that I usually publish on this blog...and of course she did not cost $39.00. But both kinds of work have their pluses and my daily paintings contribute to a storehouse of experience and knowledge that translate nicely into these more polished works. When things calm down for me, I'll be starting a teaching blog where I plan to show works like this in progress and discuss my techniques for creating them. Hope you like "Gathering the Day". Comments are welcome.

Oil Painting of Magnolias and Copper Kettle, 11" x 14"

"Sweet Magnolia Tea"
SOLD

By now my collectors know that Magnolias are my favorite blooms. I love to combine them in interesting ways and here I've wrapped them around a warm copper kettle. There are warm golden reflections on the flowers that may or may not show up depending on your monitor.Thanks for looking!

Floral Oil Painting of Peonies and Cut Glass Vase, 11" x 14"

"Floral and Cut Glass"
SOLD

I have a lot of crystal around the house that has come to me one way or another. I love the shape of this vase and always find it a challenge to paint. I used lots of paint in the blooms and feel pretty satisfied with the play of light and shadow. What do you think?

Oil Floral Oil Painting of Hyacinth, 20" x 24"

"Hyacinth"
SOLD

I took a little extra time to complete this one. As I was interupted yesterday to run an errand, I didn't get into the studio again until today to complete it. I really love pinks and purples and it shows here. I'm going to do this set up again sometime, but with a different approach. Again, I'm looking to capture something special in the light.

Oil Painting of a Floral with fruit, 11" x 14"

"Fruit and Flowers"
SOLD

My quest for painting light continues. Here my objective was to get the paint nice and juicy without losing detail. Always a challenge for me. But I think I managed nicely. Take a look at the detail pictures below. When I look at these pictures and then compare to my work just a year ago, I can see such a difference. More painterly and definitely more interpretive of the light. There's a learning curve though. Ala prima is definitely more challenging for me than a layered approach so my layered work looks more finished. But I like this too.

Floral Oil Painting of Peonies and Chinese Vase, 11" x 14"

"Peonies II"
SOLD

I spent the day painting with a friend and these peonies were the end result. I had some fun with the vase but I especially like the airy feeling of atmosphere that this one has. This is too big to put on my scanner so it's hard to show off the thick paint on the flowers but it's so thick it stands up. Note the reflections of the peony on the table top. Yummy.
Thanks for looking!

Oil Landscape Painting of an Autumn Day on a Walking Trail, 11" x 14" on Board

"Autumn on the Discovery Trail"
SOLD

Today I spent the day painting with my art buddy. I really enjoyed having someone to work with. Being an artist can so often be isolating.

I recently took a workshop on color. Color, color color! This painting has plenty of it. This piece has thick passages of paint and great feeling. It's quite a lot like some pastel pieces I have done. I'm really having a lot of fun with this.

Oh...be sure to check out my new Ebay store at http://stores.ebay.com/Art-by-Susan-Martin-Spar.

Oil Painting of Magnolias and Pitcher, 12" x 16" Canvas

"Magnolias with Cherry Pitcher"
SOLD

This past week was spent on Whidbey Island at a workshop on color. While my pastel paintings are generally filled with it, I tend more toward tonalism in my oils. Perhaps because I have to mix rather than just choose color. Here I tried to incorporate some of what I learned this past week. There's lots of rich paint here and the color, although anything but flamboyant, has just the right zing. The canvas is a wrap around so there's no need to frame because the sides are painted.