New Art

The Stones of September

I have to say, that painting rocks is a first for me. I have always admired painters who could paint them, but I have never tried….until today. Daily Paintworks’ challenge for the week is…yes, painting rocks. So, I made myself try it. For the challenge, we could use either a photo reference of our own, a still life set up, or the reference photo they provided.

Here was the reference photo

rockdailypaintworks

I had a 6 x 6 inch Ampersand gessobord that was in my art room, that has transformed into lots of paintings I wasn’t happy with…from landscape, to floral, to abstract. Today, it became a rock painting. 

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Three Stones – a rock painting with layers and layers of texture underneath.

It was not too easy to paint this relatively monochromatic still life. I did eventually back away, and stopped messing with it. I don’t love it…but then again, it was an experiment, and I did learn a lot.

The second painting on the easel, was another rock painting. This one had more color to it, and I have to say, I did have more fun with this one.

RiverStonesFramedRiver Stones – 6 x 6 inch Ampersand gessobord 

I do love the “motion” of this painting…the circles, the swirls, the dark outlines too. I loved splattering paint to get the “dents” in my rocks…always messy, and always fun. There is a lot I love about this one. My quandary with this painting is

should I leave it at the angle that I painted it

OR

turn it and change the angle before signing it?

3RiverStones

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4RiverStones

21RiverStones

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2RiverStones

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Do you have a preference? If so, feel free to leave me a comment. I would love to know what you think!  

Anytime I can paint outside my comfort zone, is a good painting day for me! I learn and grow as an artist and it also gives me the confidence to try new challenges.

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There are so many daily painters out there, trying to get their 30 paintings in 30 days completed. Looking at their work every day, makes me happy. One such artist, Karin, of Simply Painting, was kind enough to tell me that my little Sweden paintings that I posted this week for The Virtual Paintout Blog, really inspired her. It brought back memories of staying in her grandparents house in the country, outside of Stockholm. She painted their house…a sweet memory for her. I love how artists inspire other artists. Check out her “red house” painting on her blog. It’s a wonderful thing to paint memories!

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