The following are paintings I had more than a class period to work on from Art 241: Oil Painting.
“Still Life with Strange Things.” If I’m going to stare at something for this long, it had better be interesting, right? This assignment was focused on painting three reflective objects, which I did not excel at in this case; and I still don’t know what that triple buckle thing is for. The other object is a horse bridle. Oil on canvas. May 1, 2005.
“Wine by Candlelight.” This piece focused on glass, which is a challenging subject. In the wine bottle you can see the reflection of the corner of the wall behind me; on that wall is a framed painting. To the right of the framed painting is a staircase and skylight. In the stem of the wine glass you can see the reflection of both the candle and the bottle. Oil on sanded and gessoed wood panel. April 11, 2005.
“Bohemian Cinderella.” A single Birkenstock (look-a-like, I believe) in front of a draped bandana with a cloud pattern. I learned that a brown, wooden desk is translated into red in my brain, apparently. Some people see a face in the upper left/center. Oil on sanded and gessoed wood panel. March 6, 2005.
“Curious George Flashlight and Comb Handle on Green Cloth.” This assignment was a focus on warm and cool colors. An art critic who writes for the New York Times asked to buy this painting, but I explained that it already belongs to my supervisor I had as an intern at Harpers Ferry National Historical Park in 2010; he was shocked when I said I wouldn’t ask for it back. Prints of my work can be made available, of course. Oil on sanded and gessoed wood panel. January 31, 2005.
“Front Porch.” A rusty trowel and a chipped pot on its side. The trowel handle might be my favorite part, next to the rust. Oil on sanded and gessoed wood panel. April 4, 2005.
“Guitar on Green Cloth.” The topic for this piece was “7 Objects”, meaning we needed to identify shapes of colors, as opposed to a drawing. For example, I found many more than seven objects in the subject, despite our left brains telling us there are two: a guitar and a cloth. Even though I like the effect now, I learned that I painted the strings on, as opposed to painting what I actually was seeing. Oil on sanded and gessoed wood panel. February 16, 2005.
“Driving.” This was the last assignment and we were told we could do whatever we wanted. I had been told earlier in the semester that we were not allowed to do portraits because they were too difficult. This was not a still life; it was based on a small camera phone photo (back in 2005 it was probably a handful of pixels, relatively). I am no longer with him, but I am happy I have this piece of the father of my child. Oil on canvas. May 3, 2005.
“Snowy Night”. With this at-home painting, I learned how difficult it is to paint marble. I used Imprimatura, or priming the painting with a color; in this case I used blue to give it the feel of a snowy night, despite being indoors. Oil on sanded and gessoed wood panel. Early February 2005.
“View of the Appalachian Trail from Peace Mountain Farm.” This was my first landscape at home. It’s not as detailed as I’d like, but that was part of the lesson: you can’t paint everything, so summarize. My mother’s pet fish love this painting placed at the back of their tank to entertain them. I grew up on a rescue farm, so I’ve learned that animals get bored sometimes, too. And who am I to say they can’t appreciate art? Oil on sanded and gessoed wood panel. April 10, 2005.
