Marbles Painting

"Marbles", 6"x 6", Oil on Board
I finally got the chance to finish this painting today but regret not being able to get more paintings completed this month. I definitely lost time fiddling with the other painting for a week and a half and also feel like the class I've been taking is having an impact on my productivity as well. Unfortunately, the next two weeks probably won't be any better because I will be studying for a final exam. I'm going to keep this post short so let me know what you think of this one. I'm off to study!

Turkey Tomorrow and I've Been Tagged Twice

This is the big 24.19 lb. bird that my mother will be cooking for tomorrow's fiest. My mother was unhappy that I had bought such a big turkey but I was really encouraged by my 15 year old son. Cameron, my son, loves the leftovers almost as much as the big day itself. He's been talking about turkey sandwiches, turkey soup and a homemade turkey pie for two weeks now. My question to you is: Do all 15 year old boys love food this much? He's 6'1" tall and weighs around 190 lbs. He's been seeing an orthodonist for 7 years now. His orthodontist won't put braces on him yet because he says Cam's not done growing yet...unreal.

No, my marble painting isn't finished but I've been working on it when I can. It's been kind of a crazy week here with the upcoming holiday, differential fluid spewing out of my jeep and my 8 year old nephew was injured at school and has a hematoma that may require surgery this week.

I've noticed that I've been tagged by a couple of artists here in my comments. I almost wasn't going to go along with the tag because I feel like I don't really have anything interesting to share about myself but here goes: I was tagged by Joanne Giesbrecht, my good friend up north and R. Garriott a talented Denver based artist. Here's my list of (not so) unusual things about myself.
1. I disinfect shopping cart handles when I go shopping (I actually carry the wipes in my large purse and have included a small spray sanitizer for my hands as extra protection).
2. I'm probably the only 42 year old woman who still listens to Tool, Led Zepplin, Alice in Chains etc...(No, I don't party...you might say I reformed after having my son).
3. Favorite concerts: Robert Plant and Paul McCartney at the Seattle Kingdome.
4. My dad is a Maine Baseball Hall of Famer. He played AAA ball and got offers to play pro.
5. I'm a single parent and my teenage son is driving me crazy! (He's a good kid but he's really full of it)
6. I won my first art award in second grade.
7. My companion all day is my overweight, black Chihuahua, Lita. (Lita got into my paint again last Friday...she had Ultramarine Blue and Aliz. Crimson paint all over my studio again...she was looking for food!!!)
Here are the artist I will tag: John Vander Stelt, Todd Ford, Alex Perez, D. Prizzi, Pierre Raby
Ok, that's five...close enough...who's counting!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Sneak Peek Marbles Painting

Here's a sneak peak of what I've been working on. I actually had another painting in the works that I had spent about a week of time on. That painting ended up in my garbage pile! I was having problems with it so I decided to start a new one to put an end to the frustration. I actually have quite a bit of this completed but I've also been doing a lot of homework from a class I've been taking. I'm taking a case management class at a local university. I already have quite a few credits towards a degree in social services and hope by taking additional classes it will lead to a job. I'm looking to get a full-time job in this area and then moonlight as an artist.

The artist reception at the Carver Hill Gallery on Saturday went really well. It really is a beautiful space. I thought my work was hung and lit very well. It's amazing how well paintings look under proper lighting. I use balanced daylight bulbs for painting down in my studio with lighting that is 5000 - 5500 degrees Kelvin which is equivalent to north light. The bulb should also have a CRI as close to 100 as possible. A lot of stores are carrying these bulbs now so they are easy to find. Well, I hope to spend some time painting today so I can get my current painting finished.

Reflections

"Cobalt Bottle and Marble", 6"x6", Oil on Board
I was happy to finish this painting just a few hours ago. Again, I painted my cobalt bottle and threw in an amber color marble. The thing I really like about this piece are the dramatic shadows. I'm also happy with how my marble turned out but wish I had positioned it a little differently because it almost lines up with the horizontal of the back wall, it's too late now. Let me know what you think!