Green House

Green House, oil on gessobord, 7x5"

So many angles. So many straight lines.  I think this will be the final architectural piece for a little while to give my honing skills a break.  Despite the fact that they are small, they require more attentiveness and attention to detail then I'm accustomed to.  I have produced nine works all together

 and am extremely proud of myself for sticking with it even though it wasn't easy. Here they are in the order they were painted in starting from bottom left (sorry for poor photo). I'm also happy with the variety of the painting and content.  Now back to broad landscape until the next series idea strikes me.

Plain Garage

Plain Garage, oil on gessobord, 7x5"

This little garage reminded me of a little old lady.  The residents that originally and proudly purchased the homes in my 1920's era neighborhood are long gone, but their souls are hanging on in the form of sweet nostalgic architecture. One of the things that constantly flows through my head as I take my daily walks is the possible lives of the folks who moved in when the neighborhood was brand, spankin' new.  Who were they? what did they do for a living, and most importantly, how were their lives compared to our rushed, frantic, mad world of today. 
Looks can be deceiving....the neighborhood face is still calm, sweet and definitely charming. But the cars rushing down my street breaking the speed limit, and the parents hurriedly cramming their children into cars and returning at night with carry-out, tells a different story.

Purple Plant

"Purple Plant", oil on gessobord, 7x5"

This house had a streak of light dancing across it when I took it's photo. It was also framed in green, which often happens in my neighborhood which thankfully contains old-growth trees.  I had to rework this one a couple times to get angles right and lines un-crooked.  It was such a sweet little house, I wanted to do it justice.

Red Shutters

"Red Shutters", oil on gessobord, 7x5"

I have been making the rounds lately in my neighborhood, searching for subject matter for the latest series "Local Architectural Color and Elements". This is a cute little bungalow around the corner from me. I see it daily and take in the sweet factor of it, and its age (nearly 100!). The red shutters first caught my eye years ago, and now with subsequent passings-by.

Red Row

Red Row, oil on gessobord, 7x5"

Here is the second painting in the series "Local Architectural

Color and Elements". I felt like I got the perspective mostly right with this painting.  The details are hard, I have to admit. 

But it's only #2 so hopefully progression will show itself. 

Alley Shape

"Alley Shape", oil on gessobord, 7x5"

So I passed on the 30/30 challenge I had been considering, not because I didn't want to do it, but because I got behind at the end of August with non-painting life stuff, and September started before I could put my hands on a paintbrush. I am still going forward with a series I had decided upon before September began, but just not as many paintings in the end. I am calling it "Local Architectural Color and Elements". The first one is above. I have been out roaming my neighborhood in Louisville, and the alleys as well (where I tend to find more interesting subject matter all the way around). My goal is to "slow down" and concentrate on getting the perspective correct, the highlights where they need to be, the angles un-wonkey, etc. You get the picture. I haven't done an architectural series in a while, and I"m feeling the need.

Neighboring

Neighboring, oil on gessobord, 12x9"

I wanted to paint early and quickly this morning. I got the early part right but the quickly didn't work. This painting was supposed to be a 20 minute sketch but turned into an hour painting, because my greens kept getting muddy. At one point I almost scrapped the whole thing but didn't. If nothing else I enjoyed sitting and painting outside, which I am hoping to do more of soon.