By Any Other Name 6" X 8" pastel on Wallis

                                                                               

I was taken with the light on these lovely roses. It created sparkles (reflections) on the glass vase which were fun to try and capture. Roses are complex little things. Sometimes, the artist gets lost in the maze of petals encircling the center. It seems that each individual petal has its own pattern of values which is not repeated by other petals. Therefore, you have to evaluate each one pretty much separately. When you finish you know you've been working hard.

Technical Note:

The background of this painting was done with Maggie Price's pastel set of "Essential Grays." It was the first time I had used them, and what a treat it was! There are six shades of grays - tan, blue, purple, brown, gray and tan. Each color has five different values. The colors are perfect for creating a neutral area to showcase the other areas of color. In the above photo you can see I scumbled a little gold and orange into the mix to carry the colors of the roses throughout the piece.

Thank you to all those that contacted me on my blog or by email regarding my last post about finding ways to lay down oil paint so that it flows smoothly. One response that came in by email suggested to use a small amount of linseed oil to wipe on the surface of the canvas or canvas board  before paint is applied. It makes absolute sense to me since you will be applying oil paint on top of it. Am anxious to try it.