Green Pears in Silver Bowl

"You've got to go out on a limb sometimes, because that's where the fruit is." - Will Rogers, American Humorist

Green Pears in Silver Bowl   Click here to purchase - $150

An original oil painting created by using only a palette knife by Joan Terrell

12" x 12" x 3/4" deep. 

Painted on museum-quality panel. Sides painted black. Unframed.

Ready to hang or place on a display easel.

Here's the start. You can see some of the sketch and a beginning of the subject. I'm painting the subject first because later, when the background is painted wet-into-wet, the subject won't look as if it was cut out and glued onto the background. You can see the plan for the shadow on the wall, the tabletop horizon line and silver bowl handles. It was hard not to obsess on those ornate handles. 

What is it about pears and artists? I don't know why they are such a popular subject. Maybe it's because they're not round. 

Maybe it's because pears take on the personality (or shape) of the artist. Adding highlights to a stem here.

Reflections are fun to paint, whether reflections of sailboats in the water or of shiny objects. This is what I call a secondary reflection. It's where the inside of the shiny bowl is saying "backatcha" to the pear's bottom. I love the interplay of light and shadow and how reflections bounce around.

Maybe it's because pears are delicious after you're through painting them. Shocking. 

Follow Me to Burton Gallery

“The role of the artist is to ask questions, not answer them.” - Anton Chekhov 

Why create art and why keep creating art? I honestly don't know, but when I go a week or so without painting, I get really grumpy. Eventually, there has to be an outlet for art and thank goodness for galleries. Gallery owners and those who work in galleries are angels. Like Marlene of Burton Gallery in Clarkesville, Georgia for example. Many of my original oil paintings are now on her gallery walls and hopefully stealing places in hearts, too.

Next time you're heading to Lake Burton or your cabin in the mountains, why not veer off that beautiful winding road and give your eyes and motorcycle muscles a rest. Many of my pieces are sized to fit into a tour pack. Just sayin'. 

Until then, visit online at Burton Gallery or give Marlene a call at 706-947-1351  to hold one aside for you because you're on the way.

Oh, and when the sign on that road says "Dip Ahead" it means it! So slow down and smell the kudzu. 

Let's Sail Away

"Let me sail, let me sail, let the Orinoco flow..." from Orinoco Flow (Sail Away) by Enya

Sail Away was painted entirely by using a palette knife. The thick texture displays the ripples of paint as the sunlight ebbs and flows over the reflections of these colorful sails.

Sail Away by Joan Terrell (sold)

14"w x 11"h x 3/4d  cradled museum quality panel

An original palette knife oil painting

On a clear day with a slight breeze, who wouldn't be tempted to sail away? This painting was inspired by a song by Enya, whose music frequently fills my studio. These are the water soluble oil paints I used and the colors were kept to a minimum. Water soluble seemed like the way to go for a sailboat painting.

I pre-mixed the colors into little piles. I was working from a photo, but am not showing the photo here because I changed it drastically for the painting. Artistic license and all that, you know?

Here's a closer look at my palette. There were three three sizes of palette knives involved, and as you can see, it's handy to keep a pair of pliers around for those pesky, sealed shut, paint tube caps. I scrape the glass palette with a razor blade to clean it and use disposable palette paper on the "wings". It's amazing the amount of paint that can be pre-mixed in a small space. Can you see part of the sketch on the easel/panel?

Then it was just a matter of getting into the groove while listening to Enya and thinking of far away places. The Orinoco river is one of South America’s longest and winds its way through Venezuela and Colombia. I don’t think the Orinoco goes to all the places Enya mentions in her song, but we could certainly picture ourselves in Fiji if we wanted.

There can only be one original painting and many thanks to Jean S. for giving this original oil painting a good home. If you would like to buy a print of Sail Away, please visit my print site at ImageKind.com. There are lots of sizes and options to explore there.

Happy sailing!