It's Fall!

I feel less humidity in the air and sometimes if I'm lucky, an afternoon breeze. I can actually go out to my patio and sit there without melting. Two weeks ago while I was grocery shopping, I saw pumpkin and sweet potato pie in the bakery section... Fall has arrived to Miami indeed! (Winterland inhabitants are probably thinking: "somebody shut her up!" hehehe)
My boss brought a couple of pumpkins to work to decorate and I kidnapped them for the weekend so I could paint them. The end result which you can see here, is now available on my Etsy store.

"Three Pumpkins"
4"x4"
Pastel on Paper

Instagram Obsession

Hello World!
Due to ease of access and lack of time I have been posting most of my work and even my process via my Instagram account (@wxstudio). I'm posting some of it here for your enjoyment. The cats and the peonies are available for sale on my Etsy store. I enjoyed the painting process of both thoroughly. It was awesome to re-discover my secret stash of pastel paper! There's no better feeling that the creaminess of a soft pastel sliding over a sexy rough surface like the one I painted these babies in... I hope that wasn't too dirty for you ;)

Strawberries...

Lately life has been crazy. We bought a house (crazy in and out of itself), we moved twice (crazy doesn't begin to describe it), I went to a conference in D.C., and another one in Vermont and took advantage of that opportunity to drive to Canada.
I have also been doing some design related work, both for a couple clients and for my personal enjoyment (which usually ends up on my Etsy store), this usually includes Pin the Tail on the animal games or pattern design, which I have been exploring a lot. Hectic is perhaps the most appropriate word to describe the last months of the author of this blog.
I have not been painting as much as I'd like, but that doesn't mean I have stopped. I finished muse #5 (which I haven't been able to photograph successfully), started muse #6 and also managed to squeeze in this strawberry study, which I enjoyed soooo much!
I shared these process pictures on Instagram as I was painting. I usually tag this type of virtual live demo with #paintingdemo so you can easily find me posting as I work.
I invite you to visit my Instagram feed (@wxstudio), as well as my graphic design blog, and my etsy store. You'll find all kinds of treasures there...

"Strawberry Trio"
8"x10"
Oil on Canvas
Available for Sale Here

Show & Tease

Hello Everyone!

I can't believe January is almost over!!! Weren't we counting the days 'till Christmas just a couple of hours ago? Ugh... Life is passing by and I don't even feel it anymore. Turns out that my mom was right when she told me that life went by faster after you turned 18, and even worse when you turned 25, and now I'm getting dangerously close to 30!!!
For my older readers, beware not! You have lots more wisdom under your belt, and I'm actually not afraid of going to the "third floor," it is just a little bit shocking to see how quickly time passes by... (And yes, I am exaggerating/being a drama queen -it is one of my talents- I'm only turning 28 this April).
Anyhow, I wanted to announce that I will be showing one of  my bromeliads at the Limner Gallery in Hudson, NY. The reception is February 1st at 5:00 PM in case you are around that area.
In other news, I am very close to being done with Muse #5 and I'm also working on a pastel piece with pears as the subject (just to clarify: they are NOT done). This post is just to give you a little teaser...

Hot Pink and the New Year

This is my last bromeliad of 2013!
I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas, may the new year bring you and your loved ones lots of blessings. I will be showing you muse number 5 soon... For now, just enjoy the almost scandalous colors of this beautiful flower!

"Hot Pink Bromeliad"
20"x20"
Oil on Gallery Wrapped Canvas
Available for Sale Here 
You can also purchase it via my Etsy Shop

Instagram Obsession & Shameless Advertising

After much resisting due to time constraints and whatnot, I decided to open my very own Instagram account. I am now addicted since I get instant gratification after each post. I can share my artwork with millions of people around the world in a matter of seconds!!!

Best of all, I get to connect with other incredible artists who enrich the planet with their beautiful creations.  I was star struck for a moment yesterday, when while playing around with the app I posted my charcoal self portrait and tagged one of my favorite contemporary artists: Jeremy Lipking. Although he probably does this with hundreds of people each day (who knows?!), he actually took the time to look and like my post (as evidenced by the picture above). I startled my husband when I screamed out in happiness and glee to find out that the equivalent of a Hollywood celebrity in my mind had taken the time to look at my self-portrait. Take some time to look at his work, he is A.M.A.Z.I.N.G.

I invite you to join me in this new and exhilarating quest!

By the way, did you know I am also a graphic artist? I have a blog where I post some of my creations, in case you haven't visited click here.

Muses

After hours of hard work, struggling, wanting to give up, starting again, learning new things about anatomy, morphology, among other things... I introduce to you the first two muses: Melpomene (tragedy) and Urania (astronomy).
Ancient Greeks believed that inspiration was brought to humans by these female personifications of music, astronomy, dance, poetry and other arts. Moreover, many words in the Western lexicon are derived from these deities' special powers. You hardly think of these things, but ever wonder why a museum is called that? How about music? Or the saying in spanish "se le despertó la musa" (or its variations)?
It is really cool that by studying art you can learn about history, etimology, geometry, anatomy or morphology (among LOTS of other stuff). That is another reason why I am so passionate about pursuing this profession. It is interdisciplinary in nature. As I like to say (basing my concept on my dad's teachings), "Art is like math, you first need to learn the basics to move on to the more complex concepts." And I feel I'm just getting started...

"Melpomene"
36"x30"
Oil on Canvas

"Urania"
36"x30"
Oil on Canvas

Color!!!

I follow several artists that have blogs just like this one; some of them paint in pastel, others in oil.
Pastel-wise I am drawn to (more like in love with) the work of Margaret Dyer (take a look at her paintings here). She paints in a gestural manner and has a wonderful way of handling color. I painted these pears thinking about her creations...

This pastel illustrates how the most important thing to make an object look realistic is the value and the proportion, not necessarily the color. Although you know pears don't necessarily have these hues, they still read as pears and have dimension. I had lots of fun putting lots of "unusual" color down!

"Multicolored Pears"
8"x10"
Pastel on Board
Available for Sale Here

How to paint an egg... -SOLD-

The most important ingredient needed while painting eggs (besides the actual eggs) is PATIENCE. Lots, and lots of it. After that, it is a matter of reviewing some of the basic principles of art and visual phenomena: value, proportion, light, reflected light, shadow, texture, color temperature and edges.
I know, I know, it sounds simpler than it is doing it. But, pardon the cliché: "practice makes perfect."
I think I still have a lot to learn, but I believe this painting looks very nice.

"Cracked Under Pressure"
8"x8"
Oil on Gallery Wrapped Canvas
Sold

Happy Holidays!

I was in the store buying decorations for the first Christmas my husband and I are going to experience as a married couple. Suddenly, I stumbled upon this cute little bird and I knew immediately that he had to be part of our family. I  liked it sooooo much that I named him Timothy and decided to make him the star of this painting.

"Holiday Birdie"
8" x 8"
Oil on Canvas
Available for sale

Art Center in Lincoln Road

Hello everyone!

Just a heads up that I will be showing my work at the Art Center of South Florida in Lincoln Road.
My friend Doris Rodriguez who has a studio there invited my to show next to her in the special event "Artists Exhibiting Artists" during the monthly Studio Crawl. My name even appears on their website :D
I feel honored being chosen for this opportunity. There are many talented artists under one roof.
If you haven't been to the Art Center you will discover it is a really cool place to visit.
I truly hope you can pass by and enjoy an art-filled evening.
Have a nice day!

Invitation

You are all cordially invited!!!