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

Three Apples

Scrumptious apples on gallery wrapped canvas...

"Three Apples"
Oil on Gallery Wrapped Canvas
8"x8"
Available for Sale Here

Pear Trio

This painting is being presented to you thanks to my husband... I was ready to send it to the trash after several failed attempts at fixing the background. Paolo insisted I keep it until I had time to think, then the next day voila! this cutie appeared after a sudden surge of inspiration. I wished you could see it in person, the colors look a lot better!


"Pear Trio"
19.5"x22"
Pastel on La Carte Paper
Available for Sale Here

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 Live Demo & Other Good News

 
I came home today full of inspiration. I discovered some pieces of Canson paper in my studio and my husband cut them in nice little squares. I knew I wanted to use pastels. I used my smart phone to take pictures of the process and proceeded to post my process on Instagram as it happened. I was quite happy to see that people were looking at my "live demo!" It is sooo exciting to receive that instant gratification that only social media allows you to have. Anyhow, I could not leave my blog followers out of the loop, so here are the pictures for your enjoyment.

By the way, I have two good news:
#1 - I was picked as "judge's choice" in the November Daily Paintworks contest!
#2 - "Daring Bromeliad" was accepted to an exhibition at the Limner Gallery in Hudson, NY next February!!!

Yay me!!!

"Bowl of Apples"
Pastel on Paper
10"X10"
You can purchase it here...

Apples and Honey

Just a quick study with pastel that I did to get some color in my life after all that charcoal/graphite activity...

"Apples and Honey"
9"x12"
Available for Sale Here

Hot! Hot! Hot!

After painting this same subject on pastels, I decided to give it a try in oils and on a big scale. I really enjoy painting this type of compositions. I have noticed it is "my thing" to paint big, simple and colorful arrangements of the same element rather than a lot of different things on the same canvas.

I will try to get a better photograph of this one soon... I got home only an hour ago and there was not enough light. I was away with my hubby during the July 4th weekend visiting Savannah, GA and Charleston, SC. Beautiful towns!!! By the way, if you are ever is Savannah, you MUST go to dinner at the Olde Pink House, and please don't forget to stop by for a drink at the wine cellar/tavern on the basement...

God bless America!!!

"Double as Spicy"
Oil on Gallery Wrapped Canvas
24"x48"
Available for Sale Here

Spicy!

 

I took the reference picture for this piece years ago... I was drinking milkshakes with two of my friends in one of the markets they have next to Krome Avenue.
If you are heading towards Homestead on this road, you will see lots of places where they sell fresh fruit, animals and plants. They call the area the Redlands and it seemed like a good place to drift back to during this rainy Sunday afternoon...

"Little Hotties"
8"x10"
Pastel on Board
Available for Sale Here

Study

Being an artist is difficult. Especially when having a full time job and other little projects going on in your daily life... But there are only a handful of other things that give me as much joy as sitting in front of the easel and "playing" with color.
This time, inspired by Qiang Huang (one of the artists I follow) I wanted to create a composition with really bright colors and see if I could pull it off. I got to use many of the sennelier sticks that usually sit there waiting to shine when given an opportunity to be part of the light or highlight of a composition. I also tried painting eggs which by the way are HARD!!!! But I want to keep painting them!!!

P.S. The third muse is already underway...

"Apples and Eggs"
8"x10"
Pastel on Board
Available for sale here

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

Amapolas

I just finished this painting I had started a couple of months ago...

I am now happily married and finally organized in our new apartment. Married life is busy busy busy!!! But I feel even better now that I "took over" the dining room and transformed it into my studio.

I can't wait to keep painting!!!

"Amapolas Zapotes"

18"x36"

Oil on Canvas

I'm alive!!!

Here is a painting I have been working on for quite some time... I have been dealing with life lately... the latest news is that I'll be getting married next January (:D) and so all the paperwork and the respective courses at the Church have been taking up most of my attention. However, I squeezed in a little bit of painting and I am FINALLY able to reveal this one...

And, even better, I already began the next one!!!! You will see it soon, I have a good feeling about it...

"Bromeliad Trifecta"

30"x40"

Oil on Canvas

Mission Accomplished!

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Here is the completed painting commission that I got all the way from my homeland: Cali, Colombia!!! It was sent to its new home last Monday. Hopefully I will get a picture of it framed in its final destination so I can share it with you...

I love the colors and the composition. You can see a picture of it in process in the previous post.



"Hide and Seek"
40"x50"
Oil on Canvas
-SOLD-
Private Collection

New Surface

I present to you: the newest addition to my bromeliad series. This time I experimented a little bit and used pastelbord as my surface. I thought I was not going to find anything better for pastels than Sennelier's La Carte Paper, but I am happy to announce that I was wrong!!! :)
I'm looking forward to using this wonderful board many, many times in the future!

"Blushing Bromeliad"
11"x14"
35.5x28 cm
Pastel on Board
-SOLD-

Gotta please your mom!

Since my parents bought their first house at the end of last year, my mom asked me for a painting for the dining room. She wanted a colorful fruit. I don't know what it is about pears. Maybe I identify with them a little bit because of their shape (LOL), so that is what we chose. This painting took several sessions, even though I thought it was going to be really easy, but I am really happy with the end result. I will try to post the final "look" once we get it framed and on our wall. Apparently she is very pleased, but now she wants me to paint a triptic for the living room...
You may have also noticed that this is the first time I am using the new watermark (my logo) in the blog...



"Pera Multicolor"
40"x30"
Oil on Canvas
Private Collection

Ivan

I loved working on this piece! It just flowed!!! This is my friend Ivan who is into Poker and has a mischievous personality. I decided keep the mood of the painting a little mysterious by lighting him from the bottom up and asking him to assume that intriguing pose...
"Poker Face"
36"x24"
Oil on Canvas

Finally... the grapes

I decided to be bold and overcome my issues with this painting (mostly because the portrait I came up with today did not work... again!). I am posting them here just as they were. I see that they were not that bad after all, but I definitely want to try this challenge again!

By the way... I made it to the top ten in the daily painter contest!!!! Thank you all for your support! But now I need a LOT more votes to be among the top 5. This round of voting will continue until June 8. Please let your family and friends know. Thank you....
http://www.dailypainters.com/blog/contest


"Red Grapes"
8"x10"
20.3cm x 20.3cm
Oil on Canvas

Cherries

I had begun a small portrait today but it came out horrible so I wiped it off...
Thankfully, my mom brought these cherries from the supermarket and suggested I painted them. She saved the day!

"Cherrylicious"
Oil on Canvas
8"x10"
20.3cm x 20.3cm
Available for Sale Here

More Produce... -SOLD-

I went to my local supermarket to take some more pictures for this fruits/vegetables series and I got kicked out... lol!!! I explained I was an artist and I just needed some harmless pictures of their produce section and they refuted saying that it was company policy. Oh well!!! At least I got to take a few snapshots, including this illegal shot of juicy tomatoes...

"Juicy Tomatoes"
8"x8"
20.3cm x 20.3cm
Oil on Gallery Wrapped Canvas
-SOLD-

P.S. Just a reminder that I am participating on a contest to see who becomes the next featured artist on the daily painters gallery. If you would like to vote for me just go to this website: http://dailypainters.com/blog/contest
and click on the stars on top of my name. Thank you!!!

Madder Bromeliad - SOLD-

Posting a little late today. I had to go pick up my boyfriend from the airport... I am sooo happy to see him. He spent two weeks in Colombia visiting his family. This bromeliad is actually from his father's front yard...
Loving the colors here... The name of the painting comes from one of my favorite hues in my palette: Madder Lake Deep.

"Madder Bromeliad" -SOLD-
8"x10"
Oil on Canvas
Private Collection