Magnolia, Herald of Spring

I think I’ve missed the beautiful Star Magnolia this spring, but yesterday I managed to catch these luscious saucer sized pink Magnolia. They always say SPRING to me in capital letters. This is the third spring I’ve lived in this complex but the first time I’ve seen these trees in bloom. They are near my garage studio, which is almost warm enough to work in now. I spent a happy hour tinkering in there at midday.

Feel free to use the images for inspiration. I would love to see what you create.

Spring has sprung

THE SUN STILL SHINES by Sea Dean

Somehow in all the confusion and life changing events of CoVid 19, the start of spring has gone whistling by. I didn't ever hear any of the reporters mention it. Apparently the start of spring in the northern hemisphere is March 1st and the Astronomical start was Thursday, March 19, 11:50 am Eastern Daylight time. That would be 2:50pm where I live and according to my schedule I was busy working on an emergency phone list if I succumb.

However I discovered it was spring when a group of Canada Geese flew in for a quick dip in my creek. They make an almighty racket so its hard to miss them. Some of the noises really do sound like the honking of an 18 wheeler horn. 

Stay home, Stay safe

DAY 25 of 30 - SPRING GOLDFINCH

SPRING GOLDFINCH 8 x 10 inch 

Almost the final version. I see some datk patches in upper right to eliminate and he needs a whiter dot in his eye. I should get to that today and then he will be posted for sale on ARTFINDER

30DCG2020  and ODP

DAY 21 of 30 - NESTING CIRCLE (final version)

NESTING CIRCLE (final) by Sea Dean 

WIP

As I thought yesterday, the slight triangulation of the nest lying on a fork in the tree really helped the composition. It gave the eye something to settle on and understand, taking it from absstract and fantasy to reality.

The particular green that I’ve added to the leaves, Grumbacher Thalo Yellow Green, also gives the painting more depth. It seems garish when you’re using it and you have to have the courage to let it dry and settle, but it was a great tip learned from an artist and friend I much admire, Daniel Dearborn.  I like the softer green in the first WIP, but the final version is much more me.

30DCG2020  and ODP

Quiet to quieter

I know I’ve been quiet on my blog lately, but family matters have overshadowed my work. After an extremely intense couple of weeks, I have rented a summer home for Mum and exchanged my forest and stream for a full on spectacular lake view. I’m hoping that this beautiful location will be a healing place for Mum and I as spring turns to summer and the lake warms up. I know that water has always been a great healer for both of us in the past. 

I anticipate many amazing images over the summer and intend to dig out my higher definition digital camera and a small collection of oil paints to capture the beauty of this spot. 

The Color of Spring - Search for the Richest Indigo

The clocks spring forward tonight and in 10 days Spring officially arrives. Spring is popping up all over. With a couple of weeks till Easter, a quick foray to the shops has uncovered a bevy of fresh colors to offset the gloom of winter.

In this Pantone collection for Spring 2018 the colors seem super crisp and fresh this year. The three lower rows mainly reflect trending fashion colors, with the top row being recommendations for home decor, but as always there is some overlap if you’re craving bright new throw pillows or drapes.

As artists, it’s always a good idea to keep one eye on home decor trends so we provide art that works with the latest fashions. IKEA is always a good one to watch because they cater to the mass market and those who are refreshing their homes. This year their advertising exhibits the usual neutrals, sticking to the grey, rather than the beige side of things, and their brights are pink, red, turquiose and yellow, with a smattering of orange and a contrast of rich indigo.

A leopard can’t change it’s spots, so I will be boring with my usual choices of “Little Boy Blue” and “Lime Punch” AKA Liquitex Light Blue Violet and Light Cadmium Yellow mixed with a teeny tiny hint of Phthalo Blue. I’m also craving some super deep “Sailor Blue” to use in the large paintings I will create for my new home. I’m not sure I’m happy with any of the acrylic blues out there and may need to finish with a transparent oil paint. If you can help me find the best luminous deep indigo in acrylic or oil please let me know. Possibly a high flow or ink?

Which colors of the above selection most appeal most to you?

Birch Mountain

BIRCH MOUNTAIN
4" approx. Birch Slice
Archival Seal
Use with small easel or hanger attached
$49 + Shipping




Or Click here to purchase

Sister painting to Birch View. I enjoyed painting Birch View so much that I quickly painted this in the same style before I lost the flow. I'm happy to ship as a pair to save you $.

It must be Spring!

I had a strange animal day today. It started off when I took my mother to Dairy Queen for an ice cream and as we were about to exit a large duck flew into the glass door. This DQ is a few blocks from any water, but our lake is at record highs so perhaps their usual spot was flooded. It turned out that this duck was being chased by two drakes and one of them had his way with her right on the sidewalk in front of me. I took a wide berth because they can be snappy when agitated and she wasnt at all happy.

Next, I was on the phone to a friend and a very large Magpie flew through a small gap between my heat blocking blinds and proceeded to dig up my freshly planted Geraniums and bury a peanut in the pot. I suppose he was already stocking up for winter.

As I opened the screen door to get a better look at what the Magpie had buried, a huge bumble bee flew in through the door looking for flowers. I have never seen such a large bee. I think his body and head must have been about 1.5 inches long and he was very fluffy, so he looked like a flying sugar plum. As fast as he arrived he turned around and flew out the open door again, for which I was grateful because I didn't want to spend an hour chasing him around my home.

These events were all so startling that I only managed one fuzzy shot of the Magpie. You have to admire those wildlife photographers.


PS I'm not really sure, but after a bit of internet research I think tge bee may have been a hairy footed flower bee. Apparently they can grow up to 3cm which is about right. They like to burrow in old dry wood of which there is plenty in this building. We've also had a lot of wasps around so it must be the right conditions for them.

Magnolia Tree

This beautiful tree is just a few steps from where I live. It blooms for a very short time and I've never managed to photograph it in all it's glory. If we get a cold snap or rain all those lovely blooms will be gone. 

This time I screeched to a halt in the middle of errands and knocked on the door to ask if the owner minded me taking a few shots. No answer! So given the short blooming season I made an executive decision to take a few snaps as I walked back to my car. I'm so glad I did.

I think it may be a pink star Magnolia, but that was another question I was going to ask if the owner answered the door. I remember my father trying to grow a white star, but a late frost got it before it grew hardy enough. It looks like this one is doing just fine.

I would love to paint this tree in bloom, but I think it would be pretty difficult.

First fly of spring

Everyone around here is complaining about the late spring weather, so today I was thrilled to see the first house fly this year in my kitchen. Sadly he decided to commit suicide in a bowl of water a couple of hours later. Nevertheless he added a little joy to a dull day, so he didn't die in vain.

Rutland Plumcot tweak - Changes afoot

RUTLAND PLUMCOT
24" x 24" Deep Gallery Wrap
Currently on display at Ritchcraft Gallery, Kelowna, B.C. Canada
$349
If you love it contact me to purchase.

I usually study analytics on my art in the early part of the year, but this year has been more organic. Everything is shifting for me with regards to emphasis and importance. For a long time now, my art has been a major focus for my life. I work long hours and take on many varied projects, but my personal life has been left by the wayside. That would be OK if it didn't bother me, but it does, so, this year I'm going to shift my focus to myself, and enjoy a more varied existence. I'm not getting any younger, so I need to start crossing things off my bucket list.

That having been said, I am not going to stop creating, but the focus will shift from trying to satisfy all the different factions in my art world, to satisfying myself. The shot gun approach has served me well, and made me a very versatile artist, but as I near retirement age I want to work on projects that have been on my personal list for many years.

During the past five years I have mainly been a daily painter, producing or tweaking a painting a day and selling them through various channels to cover expenses. I have created over 1,000 paintings, which was beyond my wildest dreams when I plunged back into the art world in 2010. I have blogged almost every day since January 2013 and taken on many challenges including nine rounds of 30 paintings in 30 days, experimenting in oil, acrylic, watercolor, ink, drawing, digital art, sculpture, mixed media and digital photography. I've entered and won many juried competitions and gained some prestigious feathers in my cap, such as creating a public sculpture for my local town and becoming one of only 10 non First Nation artists to exhibit at our airport. It's been a blast.

As my art and my lifestyle is changing so will my blog. I'm not going to disappear, but you may only see one blog or newsletter a week, or month, or you may see several posts in one day addressing various aspects of my life, who knows! Blogging every day for over 3 years has kept me focused and on track, but it has also been too structured for my creative process. I need room to breathe, experiment and play, so no more boxes. I am going to let it all flow freely.

In the spirit of change, this painting has changed as well. Painted in 2015 for the Rutland Centennary, the call was for paintings showing parts of local history. This painting celebrated the founding father's brilliant entrepreneurship when he started to irrigate and plant fruit trees, to the extent that he had a Plumcot named after him. Originally the painting also included a pot of jam and a bowl of ripe Plumcots, but in a couple of tweaks I removed them and replaced them with more blossom. For this tweak I also changed the background from green to a more generic grey.

This painting now fulfills my latest goal of working in a painting until it becomes something I would love to hang in my own home.

SOLD - YUKON by Sea Dean

Yukon
8" x 10" canvas panel
16" x 20" wide white wooden frame
SOLD

This is another painting that sold during the Lake Country Coffee House solo exhibition. It has a long and varied history which I will share with you.

Back in 2011 I was staying with friends on Vancouver Island. One morning they showed me a photo in a newspaper of an indistinct and linear range of mountains in pastel shades of blue. When I had time, I painted this scene from memory, but I was never happy with the result. I don't think pastel shades work well with acrylics and at that time I hadn't discovered molding paste or gel. I put the painting aside.

A year or two later I found the painting and thought I would work on improving it, with my new skills. I added a fair amount of color and added a creek and water, but held back from changing the composition, because that was my initial inspiration. I thought it would spoil the simplicity and I also have a horror of what I call "chocolate box" compositions. I let the painting rest.

A few days later I realized that the painting was missing a foreground and decided to place a tree in the sweet spot. Suddenly it was infinitely more interesting and inviting. I still wasn't super happy, but I posted in my online shop. It didn't sell.

When curating my solo exhibition I found my favorite frame, a very wide, plain white wooden frame and I knew I wanted to use it on a particular wall. I took out all my 8" x 10" paintings and tried them in the frame one by one. As soon as I popped YUKON into the frame I knew I had a winner. All that time there was nothing wrong with the painting, it just needed a powerful frame.

I have started adding pictures to my shop of how an unframed painting would look either matted or framed and now I know why. Most paintings look good on a deep gallery wrap canvas, or with a simple frame, but others need a bit of pizzaz.


http://paintamasterpiece.blogspot.ca/2016/04/yukon.html

SPRING BLOSSOM ACEO by Sea Dean

SPRING BLOSSOM ACEO
3.5" X 2.5" Canvas Card
Mounted in 8" x 10" soft white mat



Spring is on it's way. My thoughts turn to Cherries. Yay! Come on July.

FOREST, EARLY SPRING ACEO

FOREST, EARLY SPRING ACEO
2.5" x 3.5" Canvas Card



I've always liked this Monet-like ACEO and now it is in a beautiful soft white mat and packaged in an archival bag, it looks stunning. These make wonderful house-warming or hostess gifts and are perfectly priced to give to teachers as well. Who wouldn't love to receive a pretty little miniature painting.

You are saved the worry of framing because the mat is a standard frame size available almost anywhere in many colors and styles. That way the person receiving the gift can purchase one which suits their decor right off the rack.

BEFORE THE WIND - Spring sailing

BEFORE THE WIND
By Sea Dean
4" x 4" Canvas Panel
$70

View my online Gallery of originals here DAILY PAINTWORKS
Shop for Limited Edition ACEO here
Art Cards $5 and Art Postcards $3 here

With spring in the air my thoughts always turn to sailing. Spring breezes make for great sailing; crisp air, fresh wind on the skin and a feeling of blowing out the cobwebs from your whole being. Of course there is always the refreshment afterwards hot chocolate or Irish coffee ... your choice.

To my eye this image seems a bit dark, but the painting certainly isn't. I think Blogger may be up to it's tricks again.


REF 3278 Before the Wind

15 APRIL 1874 - IMPRESSIONISM IS BORN - La Salon des Refusée - FREE SHIPPING

GIVERNY 1900
By Sea Dean after Claude Monet
8" x 10" Wrap Canvas

$90
FREE SHIPPING TILL MAY 1st, 2015

View my online Gallery of originals here DAILY PAINTWORKS
Shop for Limited Edition ACEO here
Art Cards $5 and Art Postcards $3 here

Reblogged from "Birth of Impressionism and the Musee Marmottan, Monet in Paris" Kim Miniciello

Posted on April 15, 2014

Impression:Sunrise, Oil in Canvas, Claude Monet, 1872, Musée Marmottan, Paris

Ahhhh April in Paris!  What a better month to hold an art exhibition. That is just what happened on this day one hundred and forty one years ago. It was an exhibition that changed the art world forever.
On April 15, 1874 a small group of artists arranged a small independent art show to buck the establishment. They called themselves the Anonymous Society of Painters, Sculptures, etc. The exhibition included artists Claude Monet, Edgar Degas, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Camille Pissarro, Berthe Morisot and others. 

It wasn’t until French art critic Louis Leroy wrote a scathing critique entitled “Exhibition of Impressionists”  (coined from an exhibit "Impression Sunrise" by Claude Monet, that the group would become “Impressionists.”  

Kim writes "When I lived in Paris I was fortunate to see this painting many times as well as other works by Monet, Renoir and Morisot at the Musée Mormottan Monet, which is in the 16th arrondissement only a few blocks from where I lived. Originally a hunting lodge on the edge of the Bois de Boulogne, it is a gem of a museum. It has many beautiful works of art most notably a bequest in 1966, of Michel Monet’s collection of works by his father.

What I love about Monet’s collection here is that there are works that seem to be works in progress and those done during his later years when he was afflicted with cataracts. With these one can get a sense of his painting process. And the color palette from the cataract years is much warmer with golds and yellows, not typically Monet but gorgeous.

Today on the birthday of this major art movement I wanted to pay homage to the “Artists Independent” who later became known as “Impressionists,”  the painting that coined the term, and the Museum where it currently resides!"

A side note, Impression: Sunrise was stolen from the Musée Marmottan Monet in 1985, recovered in 1990 and has been back on display since 1991.

LIST OF FIRST IMPRESSIONIST EXHIBITION ARTISTS
By Sea Dean

These are the artists that participated in the first Impressionist Exhibition: It wasn’t until the third exhibition that they officially called themselves “Impressionists.” Each artist has links some of which are in French because as yet there is no English translation. I have to admit that until I researched I was unfamiliar with many of these artists and it appears they were quite obscure. Some are so obscure that there are no links at all.

• Zacharie Astruc (1833 - 1907) French (see Note Peter James Field)
• Antoine-Ferdinand Attendu (before 1870 - after 1898) French
• Édouard Béliard (1832 - 1912) French
• Eugène Boudin (1824 - 1898) French
• Félix Braquemond (1833 - 1914) French (see Note Peter James Field)
• Jaques-Emilie-Édouard Brandon (1831 - 1897) French?
• Pierre-Isidore Bureau (1827 - 1876) French
• Adolphe-Félix Cals (1810 - 1880) French
• Paul Cézanne (1839 - 1906) French - BLOGGED
• Gustave Henri Colin (1828 - 1910) French
• Louis Debras (1820 - 1899) French
• Edgar Degas (1834 - 1917) French
• Jean-Baptiste Armand Guillaumin (1841 - 1927) French (see Note Peter James Field)
• Louis LaTouche ? Can't find anything

• Ludovic-Napoléon Lepic (1839 - 1889) French (see Note Peter James Field)
• Stanislas Lepine (1835 - 1892) French
• Jean-Baptiste-Léopold Levert (1828 - after 1880) French
• Alfred Meyer ? (1872 - ?) German
• Auguste De Molins (1821 - 1890) French
• Claude Monet (1840 - 1926) French - BLOGGED
• Mademoiselle Berthe Morisot (1841 - 1895) French - BLOGGED
• Emillien Mulot-Durivage (1838 - 1920) French
• Joseph (Guiseppi) DeNittis (1846 - 1884) Italian
• Auguste-Louis-Marie Ottin (1811 - 1890) French (see Note Peter James Field)
• Léon-Auguste Ottin (1836 -? ) French (see Note Peter James Field)
• Camille Pissarro (1830 - 1903) French
• Pierre-Auguste Renoir (1841 - 1919) French
• Stanislas-Henri Rouart (Henri Rouart) (1833 - 1912) French
• Léopold Robert (18 - ) ? (There was an artist of this name but he died in 1835)


THE BIRTH OF IMPRESSIONISM Kim Minichiello
THE LOST IMPRESSIONISTS by Peter James Field
Kathleen Adler’s ‘Unknown Impressionists’ PHAIDON
Research by Sea Dean


REF 2084 GIVERNY 1900 by Sea Dean

DAWN FOREST - 30 Paintings in 30 Days ART PARTY - Day 18

DAWN FOREST Detail

DAWN FOREST
By Sea Dean
12" x 6" Wrap Canvas
Ready to frame

To view my online Gallery of originals please visit Daily Paintworks
Shop for Limited Edition ACEO here
More from my fellow intrepid and brave artists attempting the 30 paintings in 30 days here

HEAVENLY SUNBEAMS Progress

This painting was a brilliant red tree when I entered the studio and it came out blue. That sounds like one of those old jokes "What went upstairs black and white and came down red", but that's the magic of being an artist, you can create and change worlds at the touch of a brush.

I've had several sittings with this painting and was never satisfied when the paint dried and darkened. Today I decided to return most areas to Titanium white, but retain the general composition. I intended going green, but the painting had different ideas.

As for my 30 paintings in 30 days goal of playing with textures and mediums, here I used almost everything in my paint box over the many versions. The final layer is liquid acrylic, heavy body acrylic and acrylic ink but there is a great deal of gel and modeling paste under the surface.

30 PAINTINGS IN 30 DAYS - Day 18

WELCOME

POSTING
As a special gift to fellow artists I am allowing you to post on my blog during the 30 in 30 Challenge. I'm using the same type of system as Leslie Saeta, so if you're participating it will be easy. Please post  with YOUR NAME ONLY (not the painting's name or your business name) and a link to your web presence. 

VOTING
Posting ends at midnight each day and voting begins. Voting is open on all the previous days blogs from January 1st until January 31st. Three votes for each person every day. Voting opens when posting closes and continues till 31st January 2015. At close of voting the three most popular paintings rise to the top and remain there forever.

SHARING
All I ask in return is to spread the word and offer your buddies a chance to win prizes. If you blog, link to your entry on it. Share to Twitter, FB, Pinterest etc. with an easy hover on the thumbnail and click. To visit the artist and tell them how much you love their work click on their thumbnail.

Prizes given to the most active artists and voters that participate throughout the month. Posts, Votes, Comments, Shares etc.
Good Luck everyone.
Thank you for visiting my blog

An InLinkz Link-up

P.S.  Post your painting on the current day and vote on all the previous blogs from January 1st for the best chance to win. You have 3 votes each day and voting is open on all pages till January 31st. To vote click on the grey heart on the painting you like.

If you're lost click on each of these links.

January 1st - VOTE
January 2nd - VOTE
January 3rd - VOTE
January 4th - VOTE
January 5th - VOTE
January 6th - VOTE
January 7th - VOTE
January 8th - VOTE
January 9th - VOTE
January 10th - VOTE
January 11th - VOTE
January 12th - VOTE 
January 13th - VOTE
January 14th - VOTE
January 15th - VOTE
January 16th - VOTE  
January 17th - VOTE

Posted on Leslie Saeta as # 8

EMERALD RIVER - 30 PAINTINGS IN 30 DAYS - Day 9

EMERALD RIVER
By Sea Dean
5" x 7" Canvas Panel

View my online Gallery of originals please visit DAILY PAINTWORKS
Shop for Limited Edition ACEO here

This painting is using the same photo from yesterday, but I wanted to use a different palette with green and red. I started painting quite late and when I went to photograph the painting my camera battery died. I managed to get this very poor image so I had something to post, but I will post a better one when I've charged my camera. Sadly you can't see the amazing green in the river which looks like top quality emeralds.

30 PAINTINGS IN 30 DAYS - Day 9

WELCOME

POSTING
As a special gift to fellow artists participating in the Leslie Saeta 30 paintings in 30 days Challenge. I am allowing artists to post their entries on my blog as well. I'm using the same type of system to make it easy. Add YOUR NAME ONLY (not the painting's name or your business name) and a link to your web presence. 

VOTING
Posting ends at midnight each day and voting begins. Voting is open on all the previous days blogs from January 1st until January 31st. Three votes for each person. Each day voting opens the when posting closes and continues till 31st January 2015. At close of voting the top three rise to the top and remain on my blog forever.

SHARING
All I ask in return is to spread the word and give your buddies a chance to win prizes too. If you blog, link to your entry on it. Share to Twitter, FB, Pinterest etc. with an easy hover and click. Click on the thumbnails to visit the artists and tell them how much you love their work.

Prizes given to the most active artists and voters that participate throughout the month. Posts, Votes, Comments, Shares etc.

Good Luck everyone.
Thank you for visiting my blog

P.S. Remember to post your painting on the current day and vote on all the previous blogs from January 1st to 31st for the most chance at prizes. You have 3 votes each day and voting is open on all pages till January 31st. To vote click on the grey heart on each painting you like. If you're lost click on each of these links.

January 1st WHITE MOUNTAIN II - VOTE
January 2nd WHITE MOUNTAIN I - VOTE
January 3rd WHITE MOUNTAIN III - VOTE
January 4th NORTHERN BEAUTY - VOTE
January 5th CITY LIGHT - VOTE
January 6th HEART AND ROSES - VOTE
January 7th WOODLAND TRAIL - VOTE
January 8th SNOW MELT - VOTE
January 9th EMERALD RIVER - VOTE

An InLinkz Link-up

Posted on Leslie Saeta as # 4

SNOW MELT - 30 PAINTINGS IN 30 DAYS - Day 8 - You're welcome to vote and post

SNOW MELT by Sea Dean

SNOW MELT
By Sea Dean
5" x 7" Canvas Panel

View my online Gallery of originals please visit DAILY PAINTWORKS
Shop for Limited Edition ACEO here

Thick impasto paint imaged while wet so will darken slightly. Will photograph again tomorrow in the light.

I recently took a trip up a local ski mountain, took a sleigh ride and reveled in the beauty of fresh snow. Most of the day was lovely but about 2pm the weather started to close in and it started snowing. We took the ski bus back home and it started to snow in earnest. Seventeen inches later we had our own winter wonderland just outside the door. So I suppose it's inevitable in this challenge that I should keep returning to snowy landscapes.

I find most artists focus too much on the blue spectrum when painting snow scenes, but I've spent a lot of time experiencing it first hand and there is always some warm colour in a snow scene. Actually it's roughly half and half, but you have to search for it. I tell my students to stare at the subject until their eyeballs are about to pop out. The image I had to work from in this barely had any colour and I had to really search to find it. It wasn't until I finished that I realized I had pulled a lot of information from the trip I took up the mountain earlier in the week.

30 PAINTINGS IN 30 DAYS - Day 8

WELCOME

POSTING
As a special gift to fellow artists participating in the Leslie Saeta 30 paintings in 30 days Challenge. I am allowing artists to post their entries on my blog as well. I'm using the same type of system to make it easy. Add YOUR NAME ONLY (not the painting's name or your business name) and a link to your web presence. 

VOTING
Posting ends at midnight each day and voting begins. Voting is open on all the previous days blogs from January 1st until January 31st. Three votes for each person. Each day voting opens the when posting closes and continues till 31st January 2015. At close of voting the top three rise to the top and remain on my blog forever.

SHARING
All I ask in return is to spread the word and give your buddies a chance to win prizes too. If you blog, link to your entry on it. Share to Twitter, FB, Pinterest etc. with an easy hover and click. Click on the thumbnails to visit the artists and tell them how much you love their work.

Prizes given to the most active artists and voters that participate throughout the month. Posts, Votes, Comments, Shares etc.

An InLinkz Link-up

P.S. Remember to post your painting on the current day and vote on all the previous blogs from January 1st to 31st for the most chance at prizes. You have 3 votes each day and voting is open on all pages till January 31st. To vote click on the grey heart on each painting you like. If you're lost click on each of these links.

January 1st WHITE MOUNTAIN II - VOTE
January 2nd WHITE MOUNTAIN I - VOTE
January 3rd WHITE MOUNTAIN III - VOTE
January 4th NORTHERN BEAUTY - VOTE
January 5th CITY LIGHT - VOTE
January 6th HEART AND ROSES - VOTE
January 7th WOODLAND TRAIL - VOTE

Good Luck everyone.
Thank you for visiting my blog

Posted on Leslie Saeta # 4

SPRING ORCHARD II - Light and Shadow Painting

SPRING ORCHARD II by Sea Dean - Final Version

Original Painting

SPRING ORCHARD II 
Original Painting by Sea Dean
8” x 10” Gallery Wrap Canvas
Professional Acrylic with UV Protection

Purchase via Daily Paintworks

It has been interesting watching my view of light change since I studied the impressionists last year. I'm now much bolder with using colour based purely on value. As I've studied more of Edouard Manet's work closeup I've also become bolder with using darks and lights next to each other. Here I tweaked a previous painting focusing on light and shadow.

Intermediate version

Spring Orchard has sold well as an Art Card, but I wanted to add more sunlight. In version II I think I went a bit overboard with the sun and it looked a bit bleached out. In Version III I added a light warm green and replaced some of the fallen petals.

I remember fruit picking in my youth, lugging around the huge ladders and being so high on the top rungs to get the best apples and cherries. Now it must be so much easier. These small fruit trees have become popular and they look odd planted so close together. I'm told they're bred this way to make the fruit easy to pick. It's amazing they produce the quantity of fruit they do compared to the graceful tall and wide trees of the past.


Cat # 140101 Spring Orchard II