Baltimore Orioles Balancing Act

Baltimore Orioles Balancing Act, 2019, Oil on Board, 8"x8"

I have laid a transparent coating of Prussian blue over the ground.  The value is consistently dark across both grounds.  The surface is very flat and I am considering leaving it and only oiling out the birds and oranges.  

We still await the arrival of the Orioles.  The feeder is out and filled in anticipation of the arrival.  I know they are here by the sound of their call rather than the visual display of their plumage.  Follow this link to hear the distinct sound.  https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Baltimore_Oriole/sounds

Baltimore Orioles Balancing Act

Baltimore Orioles, Oil on Board, 8"x8"

The act of indirect painting as indicated by the name, slows my progress.  But, the reveal of one color choice over another is a learning experience.  I've yet to learn how to use the technique throughout the entire painting beyond the ground.  The use of values to compose both the light source and the forms cheats with the indirect method.  Later that method will be ignored as I begin to directly paint into the oranges and Orioles.  

A Prickly Situation

                      

                              Goldfinch with Thistle,  Oil on Board, 10"x8"

As part of the series that places the bird with its food source, I placed this American Goldfinch with a thistle.  Initially, the composition as seen on the left had a single thistle hanging as to be dried.  My in-house critic found this unintelligible.  Questions arose: does the space need to be identifiable?, should the depth of the space be clear?, is this surrealism? realism?  My decision was to add more thistle.  The image on the right shows the beginnings of this approach.  

Thistle is the common name of a group of flowering plants with sharp prickles all over the plant.  The prickles are an adaptation that protects the plants from herbivores. The varieties are vast, some considered beneficial for pollinators. The thistle is the national emblem of Scotland, land of my maternal heritage. According to a legend, an invading Norse Army was attempting to sneak up at night upon a Scottish army's encampment. During the attempt one barefoot N0rseman stepped upon a thistle, cried out in pain, thus alerting the Scots. The spear thistle, presented here with the Goldfinch, is considered the likely thistle the Norseman stepped on.  

Fertility, Pomegranate

Pomegranate, 2019, Oil on Board, 10"x10"

The uncertainty in this piece lies in the scale of the pomegranate.  They are in fact larger than life size.  This alone would not seem problematic except for the small scale of the overall piece.  As such, the pomegranate seems out of scale or too large for its environment.  Also, the left half wants to float rather than sit.  

"There is no must in art because art is free." Wassily Kandinsky

Synchronized Swimming Carolina Wren, 2019

Synchronized Swimming Carolina Wren, 2019, Oil on Board, 12"x24"

Toward the end the challenge here was to have reflections that did not compete with the line of wrens above the water yet offered a balance and realism to the idea. This was the first time I worked with indigo blue, now my new favorite go to color. Indigofera tinctorial, also called true indigo, is the plant from which indigo dye comes.  It is the dye used in denim for blue jeans.  The dye is not light fast, which is one of the plusses of use in jeans.  The Winsor paint however is a synthetic pigment and will not fade. In 1997 when the Shakespeare Globe theatre was reconstructed in London, Indigo was used to paint the heavens of the theatre. 

Fertility a Work in Progress

Pomegranate, 2019, Oil on Board, 8"x10"

I've reconsidered the leathery skin color of the pomegranate halves.  There is still at least one more session on the skins.  Reds can be difficult to work with. When tinting they can become opaque and pink rather than a bright light red.  

Hera, 2014, Oil on Board, 24"x18"

Hera, the Greek Goddess and wife of Zeus, shares the pomegranate symbol with Persephone. Ancient images of Hera sometimes depict her with the pomegranate.  The ample and deep red seeds associate the pomegranate with fertility and blood.

Fertility a Work in Progress

Pomegranate, 2019, Oil on Board, 8"x10"

Initially I considered the pomegranate as a prop for a bird in much the same way I used the orange and Baltimore Orioles together.  Since, I wanted a natural relationship, my research found only parrots or the Arizona Verdin.  Neither appealed to me.  So, as it stands now I will give the pomegranate a solo performance.  

Throughout history pomegranates have been a symbol of prosperity and abundance.  Most notably in Greek mythology it symbolizes Persephone's time in hades. Images of Persephone show her holding 7 pomegranate seeds symbolizing her 7 months in hades and the northern hemisphere's 7 months of winter.