Fruits and Vegetables
Apples and Book
When a neighbor delivered a brown grocery bag full of very red apples she thought I was going to make applesauce. Well, not really. First the apples had a few days lounging on a white cloth in my workroom. Then came the applesauce.
Apples in Bucket
Apples on Oval Dish
These apples are an almost extinct variety grown by a friend in Oakland I think I know why this variety still exists. My setup is still sitting in the studio after two months and only one shows serious signs of deterioration. The others seem to be drying in place. They were all a brilliant red.
Bag of Fruit
A few plums and apricots tumbled from a brown paper bag onto the table. I knew it was time to paint.
Five Garlic
Five Pears
Five beautiful pears in a friendly grouping were a bigger challenge to paint than I had expected. It was a place to try my new large Filbert brush.
Four Figs
Three plump figs, fresh from the local Farmers Market were a new subject for me and I enjoyed the journey. I hope you like them.
Five Onions
Onions are such considerate vegetables! I threw this bunch onto a newspaper and began painting. Their slow deterioration allowed me to paint several days without refreshing the setup.
Lemons and Grapes
The lemons from our tree, the grapes from some unknown place far away - they met on my art table.
Pears and Flower Pot
A clean clay pot and yellow pears seemed like a friendly combination.
Garlic and Cake Form
Elephant garlic bulbs are huge with lovely white tissue-paper skins. .. and fun to paint.
Peppers and Terra Cotta Bottle
The painting has been finished a couple months now and the green peppers have lost that nice plump lime color and are a puckery ed and spicy hot. With proper timing, I frequently eat many of my still life setups.
Persimmons on Oval Dish
Persimmons in Mustard Box
My neighbor, Linda, appeared at my door with a box of persimmons. When she placed them on the kitchen table we both acknowledged the Grey Poupon blue box she used for delivery was the perfect container for this colorful fruit. I went to work while the fruit was fresh as this variety ripens much more quickly than the little round flat persimmons.
Persimmons
Every fall one welcomes the small flat persimmons to the Farmer's Market. Not only beautiful, their firmness assures a long-lasting painting setup. Size 10 x 20 inches.
Pixelated Pears
Pears, pears, pears! I like to paint them when they are standing, horizontal, frontwards and backwards. .. so why not try a pixel-like version? Here it is. Size 16 x 20 inches.
Pixelated Red Pears
More fun with the pixel-like strokes of my paintbrush. Such a pleasure to lay on those colors. Oil painting on canvas 18 x 24 inches.
Red Onions
These fat red onions were a cooperative setup on the table in my studio. They didn't move, shrivel or change color during the couple weeks they were in place. They did manage to shed some of their skins, and this was just added to the painting
Red Peppers
Solo Pear
Three Garlic
Three Pears on Barrel
A few plump Danjou pears from Oregon placed on a small old wine barrel caught the light in the corner of the kitchen. It was time to take an opportunity to paint.
Three Peas in Blue Dish
Three Pixelated Red Pears
Three Sacks of Oranges
These bags of oranges were lined up like little soldiers in the Produce Section at the local Safeway Store. The problem was they were lined up too perfectly, so I quickly turned one forward, took a fast photograph and returned the fruit to its original display. No one saw me do it. I had to do my sketches from the photograph on this one.
Three Red Pears on Drum Head
I couldn't pass up the glorious red of these fresh pears from Oregon.