Ben's Hydrangeas

Party's Over

Painting shoes is so much fun - they are really little sculptured pieces of art, which I believe is partly why women love them so much!

I really liked the way the turquoise cloth reflected into the silver leather of the shoes and that brilliant turquoise glow in the folds of the cloth.

Gala Apple with Pear

Granny Smith Apple

Pear with Pottery

Lightbulb on Green: 5x7, oil on panel

The blobs of paint that form the screw-in part of the bulb make me happy because I resisted my impulse to spell out everything, yet it works. Also, I think the glass spiral has a more translucent feel than the more solid plastic.

Art Supplies - 5x7, oil on panel

Here is a quick sketch I did some time ago in natural, north light.

Pink Peonies - 18x14, oil on canvas

White Tulips - 16x12, oil on panel

This painting is not yet complete. I started with a monochromatic wash-in to establish the composition. This is the second layer of paint and establishes most of the elements. Next, once this is dry, I will add highlights to indicate the brilliance of the metal tin on the left side and adjust the values if necessary.

Candle - 7x5, oil on panel

This little exercise illustrates why you cannot always paint white objects white. In order to get the effect of brilliance that a flame produces, you need to mute everything else.

Candle flames are much brighter than white paint, which is the lightest value a painter has at his or her disposal. Therefore, this candle is more of a middle tone than a light tone.

The "white" tulip is also a middle value. It probably would have been even more effective if I had used a darker background and an even darker value for the candle, but since I wanted to use this color for the background, I had to compromise a bit.

Martini With Lemon - 12x9, oil on panel

Personally, once in awhile I like an extra dry vodka martini with about 8 olives, but I needed the lemon for the compostion.

Flopsy Bunny - 16x12, oil on canvas

Way too cutesy, I know, I know - all modern painters should be producing edgy, disturbing or even downright disgusting images to be considered relevant, but my friend Isabella gave birth to a little girl (at present nameless) and this painting is part of my gift to her.

Echinacea in Vase - 16x12, oil on canvas

With my garden currently overrun with Echinacea, I thought I'd stick a few of these gorgeous fuschia flowers in my recently acquired Czech bud vase and do a study, indoors, under north light with a dark background.

White Roses - 12x9, oil on panel

Stem Tomatoes - 5x7, oil on panel

Limes - 5x7, oil on panel

Paris Flower Shop #3 - 16x12, oil on canvas

Paris Flower Shop #1 - 36x24, oil on canvas

Pear - 8x6, oil on panel

Painted from life with a palette knife.

Apple - 8x6, Oil on Panel

Painted from life with a palette knife.