Painting 39

Not sure why I stopped blogging because I was doing good for awhile. Must keep going! This painting was another painting I donated to a cause. Why do I keep donating paintings? The setting in Roaton, Honduras, circa 1990 or somewhere around that time. I was visiting my friend in the Peace Corp and we took a little getaway to the most beautiful island. That trip inspired Painting 20, and it inspired this painting as well. This little church along the beach was so charming and quaint, much like the entire island. The place was just paradise at that time and it was a lazy wonderful few days that have remained clear in my mind as though I just returned a few days ago. As I look at this painting, I'm pleased overall. I had a lesson from Donna in shadows, with cast shadow, and the difference with things in shadows, and warms and cools and I can't even begin to explain it. I tried my best with what I learned, but it's difficult when you paint from an old photo and not real life. Those subtle color differences just aren't apparent. The color differences in the shadows do add nice dimension and interest, and as I look at the palm trees, I wish I had added some variety to those as well. Perhaps the ones in the background should have been lighter and less vibrant. It's too much the same across the horizon and doesn't offer much for the perspective and depth. I would love to step inside the painting and enter that church and say a little prayer and maybe meditate as I gaze across the water. Then stumbling a few feet to the bar and down a few Margaritas. Ahhh! I wish every day was a day in paradise!

Painting 20

I discovered these long canvases and wanted to explore the size again. This painting is from a photo from a trip long ago to Roaton, an island off the coast of Honduras. It was a magical place free of tourist and long on relaxation, empty beaches and cheap seafood. I have heard of tales that coconuts from these beautiful palms have actually killed people as they fall to the ground. I became as paranoid of that as I have been of driving with my window down for fear of something flying into the car and hitting my temple, causing instant death. I'm not sure if I was actually having this thought as I rested on this picture perfect beach when a coconut happen to fall from the tree I was lounging under and landed inches from my head. I'm not making this up. Those coconuts actually are deadly! I'm lucky to be alive. Honduras could have killed me for so many reasons, the coconut was just one. But I digress. The painting is nicely composed, but where is the light source, the shadow? What makes an interested painting. Variation of color, stroke, play of light. Play of light? What light? It's sunny cause we can see the sky, but we certainly can't tell where the sun is. I do think the main palm turned out nice. The painting is sentimental to me, and not horrible, but I question why I have it on the studio website cause I don't think it represents my best. Although it does look better on that site than it does here. But it will be coming done soon. By the way, now that I have 20 paintings, this brings me back to my instructor when she said, you get about 1 good painting for every 20. Which one is the good painting?