Summer Reflections - Daily Painting
“Summer Reflections” - 8 x 10 oil on canvas - $200
I’m using this painting, done over the weekend, for the Illustration Friday theme “Missing.” If you look closely, you’ll see that one of the foreground cherries is missing in action. Perhaps the reflection in the copper bowl is merely the ghost of a cherry that was spirited away for a snack. Is the bowl enchanted? Can it reveal other things that were gone, yet whose reflections still remain in some sort of looking-glass world? Perhaps we’ll never know.
As I’ve mentioned a few times here, summer is the perfect time for garage sales in our area. Closets and sheds fly open and yards are filled with all sorts of pots and ceramics and other items that lend themselves to still life setups. This copper bowl caught my eye immediately and the tarnished surface gives the reflection a slightly softer, faraway look.
I set up this assembly of items my my living room window as a challenge to working with both glossy surfaces (the cherries) as well as shiny reflective ones. I learned a lot from the process about reflected light and the placement of specular highlights.
What do you think? Like it? Prefer the more impressionistic look? I’m keeping my options open at the moment and exploring a lot of different styles and subject matter.
Here’s a detail of the painting. Actual size of this cherry is about 1 3/4″ across. Click to enlarge.
You paint beautifully. I love cherries!
Yummm I love cherries! I think you have the right amount of brushwork and details here and it’s an interesting composition by being fairly close up.
w.
exquisite cherries! Very nicely done…so rich!
I think this is lovely…love your more impressionistic ones too, but this seem just right for your subject.
Fabulous! I love the warm rich colors of this - such a nice change from the blue you always seem to see paired with cherries. And your paint handling is perfect for the subject - the thick over thin gives it an added dimension that is really nice.
(I apologize is this posts more than once - it doesn’t seem to be submitting, but then you know how that works! Later I’ll find out it posted 12 times!)
Aha! Brilliant. The details are amazing. Gosh this is good.
Beautiful work, Karen! You did such a wonderful job capturing the refelction in the copper surface. And what a wonderful find at the garage sale!
lush, yummy cherries!
Hi Karen
I’m getting back from a long break and wow you sure have grown in your art leaps and bounds. I’m amazed at your oils. They look like you are enjoying them. Beautiful copper reflections.
This is wonderful, Karen, the reflections in the bowl are amazing and the missing cherry idea is superb!
I would see a tarnished copper bowl. An artist sees potential. It’s lovely.
As for the missing cherry, perhaps the speed of light is not as fast as we think. A naughty little boy stole the cherry before its reflection could be caught in the bowl!
You always do spectacular work, Karen. This is no exception. What a great idea for the IF theme! And the painting itself is simply gorgeous!