Leading the Way – 9×12 Oil on Gessoed Canvas Board
“Leading the Way” 9×12 Oil Painting by Winifred Whitfield
I don’t often paint street scenes, but I thoroughly enjoyed painting this one. I enjoy the interaction of the two. I love the expressions, the vintage car, the old bus and virtually empty street on this bright sunny day. I hope to paint more.
Yellow Flowers – 9×12 Oil on Gessoed Board
Yellow Flowers with Vine Oil Painting by Winifred
I had a different painting in mind when I started – the sketch below makes that pretty clear. The change was even more radical than is apparent. I set up a vase of flowers which had two yellow, three red and three deep purple flowers in it!
After I completed my sketch, I ruffed in the shadows, and began extending the energetic brushstrokes to the edges. I decided it looked like foliage and kept it.
I added highlights and shadows using dancing brushstrokes to the lower background and foreground. It started to come together. Some how, I didn’t want all the colors in the vase. I decided on yellow flowers only. I added my yellow flower along with a bit of hue changes in the same brushstroke style I’d been using throughout. I then began to focus these strokes to giving abstract definition of flower structure.
I liked the painting at this point and could have left it but I wanted a greater sense of dimension which I would only get by affecting the hues and tones of shadows and highlights. Below, I have added purple, and muted dark blue glazes to various areas along with impasto to pop the highlights and a twining vine. With that, I could call it good. I will know after I look at it over time. I can always make some changes if necessary. Hope you enjoy! Winifred
Yellow Flowers Oil Painting by Winifred
9×12 Oil Painting “Portrait of Girl in Sweater”
Initial sketch and blocking in values.
Selecting colors and developing background.
Adding detains to – hair, background and hands
For your convenience, below is final image, with final adjustments to facial features and other details /aspects of the painting – the hardest part – even altering the angle of the back of the chair. I’ve made an attempt to paint this person before but did not find it satisfactory. It was too small to manage facial features properly. Hope you enjoy. W
Sunflowers in Bouquet – 9×12 Oil on Gessoed Board
Sunflowers in Bouquet – Oil Painting by Winifred
You can see the beginning of this process below – the still life set up next to my easel. The painting developed and ultimately I had it trimmed with a saw, narrower than the nearly square beginning.
The Beginning – still life set up in shadow box.
Loose first transparent layer.
Deepening shadows and color.
Almost final.
Bunch of Grapes – 8×6 Oil Painting on Canvas Panel
I can almost taste them. One bunch was not enough – referring to last weeks post of “grapes in a silver gravy bowl”. I had this vision and it turned out pretty much accordingly. Love it when that happens. There is no painting sequence for this painting – I just did it. In the next post there will be a long sequence for the painting’s development. I hope you like this one.
Oil Painting – Bunch of Grapes – 8×6 Canvas Board – by Winifred
Grapes in Gravy Bowl – 8×8 Oil Painting on Gessoed Panel
Oil painting – grapes in silver gravy bowl by Winifred
Below is the initial sketch and transparent color layer. It is so loose, luminous and rich in color.
Grapes Tonal Sketch
Substantial development of forms and detail have occurred below prior to adding highlights and other touches of color.
Grapes form development
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Jeweled Tone Bouquet – 8×8 Oil Painting on Gessoed Board
Jeweled Tone Bouquet – Oil Painting by Winifred
I’m enjoying kicking up the color and texture. 8×10 Oil on Canvas Board
The Hydrangea flower head below is one of my best hydrangea flower heads. I find abstracting the flower petals challenging. I wiped my board clean of oil on this one – once again. In the end, I felt it had too many “tree” looking characteristics – the shape of my vase. I could have repainted the vase, but I’ll just paint it again!
Blue Hydrangea Oil Painting by Winifred Whitfield
10×8 Oil Painting on Canvas Board
Ménage à Trois – YAMS! Oil Painting by Winifred
Early in June, I set up and photographed many still lifes, I would later reference to paint. I even photographed three large yams on a rich velvet background. Since that time, whenever I’ve scrolled through that collection of images, I would stop at the yams thinking “they looked so very weird”! I thought I would never paint “that one”. Wrong again. I came to like the fact that the photo was so unusual, so organic with the rich complementary colors and interesting shapes. It brings a smile. So, here it is!!
Below, I initially created an oil sketch and a light grid to be sure to get accurate placement, referencing the photo. I then chose my background color and painted loosely around the yam sketch.
Oil sketch with grid visible.
Below, I create my mid-tones, highlights and shadows.
Blocking in values as underpainting.
As usual, I like the brushstroke looseness of the stage above.
By the way, I wiped down and cleaned off my Hydrangea oil sketches from last week. I will paint it pretty soon and of course show it to you when I do. Til then, Winifred Whitfield
Blue Hydrangea – 8×10 Oil on Canvas – Preliminary Oil Painting Sketches
Hydrangeas – Preliminary – Progression
This is my first effort to develop a hydrangea painting. I explored a progression of considerations. I could have painted clusters of perfect little petal flowers and a lovely blended background, or there are many other pretty styles. I know how to do that, but I would not find it interesting. In fact, I created many versions of this painting – more than you see here. They became less and less spontaneous. All paintings are not going to work, but if I am not pushing the creative envelop, experimenting with color and texture, detail or lack there of, I’m not moving forward. There are aspects of each image I like or don’t like. I will leave it up to you to wonder through the images. I will create a final painting in the future starting with a blank canvas. At that time, because of this efforts, I will better know how I want to develop it. Thank you and Bye for now. Winifred
Oil Painting On Canvas 8×8
I set up these still lifes in my studio. Could any bouquets of flowers be more different in painting style? I love loose painter strokes, but I also found it interesting to try my hand at some basic “one stroke” brush techniques in the image below. Both were certainly very interesting to paint.
I found myself buried in details the painting below, but the results on this black canvas were vibrant and enjoyable to create.
