Daturas

I worked the far ground more extensively, adding some subtle plants and leaves. Also worked the center datura.

Daturas

I decided I didn't like the far ground area at all. It was amateurish and trite. The straight lines of the boards were also incongruous with the curvilinear aspects of the plant. In place of the house, I will just have a deep space that indicates plants.

Daturas

I feel I'm not a very good blogger. After painting I never feel like putting in the time to write about it. I guess the work must speak for itself. And, if there is some soul that looks at the work beyond me and has questions, fire away.

Daturas

Worked about 4 hours today. Finished up the whelk painting and then went at the lower front datura blossom. Maybe tomorrow it will begin to work as I want.

Daturas

Looking at these images side by side clearly illustrates the problems associated with digital photography and screen images. Color shifts, fuzziness and lost details are some of those problems. I've been occupied with other things this week and only been in the studio for a few minutes at a time. Yesterday we went to see the new Isabella Stewart Gardner wing in Boston. I have some thoughts on the new wing. Don't know if they hold water or not. They are just initial reactions. First, I don't like the strong green copper sheathing and warehouse-like exterior. I would prefer something more victorian era Bostonian. Why not complement the palace rather than contradict it. But, I also understand that this is not Gardner's palace. It is a place for artists, new work, conservation, etc. However, if I was a neighbor I would be very displeased looking at a box. As for the interior, I loved it. In addition to opening the walls with glass to the skyline, the gardens and the palace, it is physically comfortable. The stairs were a perfect pitch and incline for me. The flooring seemed soft although it was slate (?). The colors were so much fun in the cafe, living room and bathrooms. The Calderwood Hall with its small footprint and 3 levels of one row deep balconies is a perfect mirror for the Gardner's atrium. Finally, I wanted to buy everything in the store.

Whelk

It's nice to be working with oranges after all the green of the Daturas. And to have the shell in front of me brings to light the advantage of direct observation rather than photographs that lack the details of forms and true local color.

Whelk

I've worked 3 different sessions on this shell. I actually started it back in November and set it aside while I worked on the Daturas. But I need some work to put in the Klein Gallery for February. I also intend to paint 3 shells together in a long horizontal format. Thinking I may approach them in a biological way, ie, examining the forms more than thinking of them as a still life. This shell I picked up in Provincetown (in a store, not on the beach). I've rarely found a whelk on our beaches, although I know it's native.