Off the Easel

Because glazing requires drying time, I began three pieces all within a day or two of each other.  The other two have already been posted and in all the hoopla of going to Texas, I forgot about posting this one. This painting began with  traditional elements of  grapes, bread, and a bottle of wine.   Although this type of still life has been done many times before by many artists, I felt I could bring a mood to it that spoke of a romantic/intimate ambiance. 

This was a photo of the original set up before I went out and bought real grapes.  The two glasses together bothered me so in the final arrangement I separated the glasses and put one on the left behind the bread.  Didn't like the style of glasses so I changed them to a broader, fatter shape in keeping with red wine.  The space behind the objects needed added interest so I draped one of my scarfs diagonally from top right to bottom left.  The result is a triangular composition that leads the eye to the focal point of the white fabric, to the dark grapes, up the bottle and back down to the bowl.  It's all Good!

Here is the block-in done with raw umber and white making it a closed canvas.  Obviously the glasses aren't added until the very end since glass is basically highlights and reflections.  I got so involved as I went along, I didn't get any images of the process. The diagonal drapery was slowly executed.  First I painted the pattern as accurately as possible and when I finished using a palette knife, I scraped back to the canvas leaving a ghost like shadow of the pattern.  Edges of the design and any scraps were softened with a soft hair brush.  This method really sends the cloth into the background while still retaining the pattern.  Once dry, layers of glaze was added to darken and bring out a richness to the color.  The bottle's glass was created in layers of glaze also.   Here it is framed and ready for sale.

Romantic Evening

16 x 20 oil on linen canvas

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