Finished WIP--Yellow Roses

[JamieWG]

Editing to post my finish up here....Save you all the scrolling.
http://www.wetcanvas.com/Community/images/03-Jan-2006/13766-Yellow_Roses_Pastel_done_450.jpg

************************************8
And the wip:
I'm only an hour and a half into this one, not quite half done I'd say, but I thought I'd post my WIP to help spur myself along. Of course, I could end up tossing it in the trash before I finish. :D

9x12, pastel on rust-colored Art Spectrum
http://www.wetcanvas.com/Community/images/01-Jan-2006/13766-Yellow_Roses_Pastel_wip1_450.jpg

My setup:
http://www.wetcanvas.com/Community/images/01-Jan-2006/13766-Yellow_Roses_Pastel_setup2_500.jpg

A closer view with the drawing:
http://www.wetcanvas.com/Community/images/01-Jan-2006/13766-Yellow_Roses_Pastel_setup1_500.jpg

C&C welcome. Nothing in the piece is finished yet, and some parts are barely started. I'm learning that yellow roses are REALLY HARD. :evil: I asked my husband to buy me one while he was out doing errands so I could practice, and he came home with two dozen. I guess I'll have lots of practice! LOL :D The little still life painting in the setup is one I did two days ago in oils---the day he came home with the roses.

Cross-posted to the Artwork from Life forum.

Jamie

[Kathryn Wilson]

Before you toss it in the trash, think again - this is lovely.

[John B]

You have used the paper so well; it gives the painting a painterly feel to it.

John

[HarvestMoon]

Jamie- the roses are STUNNING.... of course, they remind me of the song 'Yellow Rose of Texas' so I have wanted to see someone do yellow for ages.... your studio is drop-dead gorgeous.... I am drooling- so beautifully arranged- I always end up with a cluttered mess that I can no longer fit in... and so impressed that you are painting real flowers- I would not dare- they would be long dead by the time I got the hang of it LOL- thanks so much- not just for your beautiful painting, but all the super cool photos of the studio and setup as well!!! Hint- there is an old thread somewhere of studio pics that everyone would love to see them posted in as well!!!
cheers,
Linda

[dlake]

I loooooooove yellow roses. There are many yellow rose shrubs in my garden so, I get misty seeing your lovely painting in winter. Wonderful

[artpaint]

Dont toss it its so pretty. Makes me long for spring
Betty

[Paula Ford]

Jamie, LOVE your studio! You are so organized in your pastel box. WOW

This still life is really lovely. I know when I'm first starting a painting (and this is NOT how yours looks by any means) it's first stages are really ugly, but somehow it just transforms into something that looks much better.

It is a beauty already. You just don't see it yet. Please don't trash it (like I did with one yesterday :D )

Paula
(Hey, what's that big painting in the background? The one with the sail boat. Is that pastel??)

[prettytulips]

Jaime,

Is that a copper kusha kusi in front of vase? It looks like a ritual item found in india that is made of copper. It's the exact same shape...

Kelly

[K Taylor-Green]

I think they will worth the trouble, Jaime. Stick with it. I just love yellow roses!

[JamieWG]

Oh, my! I'm overwhelmed. Thank you all so much......

Before you toss it in the trash, think again - this is lovely.

(((Kat))), thank you. Every painting I do passes through that "ugly duckling" stage when I wonder if I can really save it. From there it either goes downhill or uphill. I've done a little more work on it this morning and it's starting to climb out of the trash now...slowly. LOL :D

You have used the paper so well; it gives the painting a painterly feel to it.

John

John, thank you for your kind remark. I looooove using colored paper. This was my first go on the Art Spectrum rust. I wanted the warm undertone to balance the blues and greens. So glad you like it.

Jamie- the roses are STUNNING.... of course, they remind me of the song 'Yellow Rose of Texas' so I have wanted to see someone do yellow for ages.... your studio is drop-dead gorgeous.... I am drooling- so beautifully arranged- I always end up with a cluttered mess that I can no longer fit in... and so impressed that you are painting real flowers- I would not dare- they would be long dead by the time I got the hang of it LOL- thanks so much- not just for your beautiful painting, but all the super cool photos of the studio and setup as well!!! Hint- there is an old thread somewhere of studio pics that everyone would love to see them posted in as well!!!
cheers,
Linda
Linda, you're so sweet. Thank you. My studio is usually the Great Outdoors, but winter, bad weather, and open studio figure drawing bring me inside. This is my third studio in five years, so I'm getting used to what makes a studio work! LOL I think they are all posted on that thread you speak of, or somewhere in the STudio Tips forum. I'll give you a lil studio tour....

The cart that the pastels are on, and the kitchen-style cart, are both on wheels so that they can be easily moved around. I rearrange a couple of times a year, but I seem to be settling into this U-shaped work area. I have three easels around the U, with oil paints and brushes on one side and pastels on the other. It can all be easily reconfigured to work from life or from photos directly off the computer screen, and this configuration enables me to walk backwards away from the large easel to see my work without tripping over anything. :) Here's a different angle so you can see the other side of the U also. There's another easel to the right, out of the picture zone:
http://www.wetcanvas.com/Community/images/02-Jan-2006/13766-Studio_120805wde.jpg

The other side of the studio has a seating area. Usually my doggie is sleeping on the sofa, and occasionally I have a model there.
http://www.wetcanvas.com/Community/images/02-Jan-2006/13766-sofa_550.jpg

That last photo was actually taken a couple of years ago. The studio is NOWHERE near that clean right now. LOL And no, I didn't do that huge, gorgeous portrait. In fact, I've taken it out of my studio cause it makes my work look bad. :evil: (It was done by Alan Reingold)

Linda, painting real flowers is way fun! You should give it a try sometime. It's worth it just to be able to stand there admiring them for so long....such a thrill.

Dlake and Betty, thanks so much for stopping in and commenting!

.........
This still life is really lovely. I know when I'm first starting a painting (and this is NOT how yours looks by any means) it's first stages are really ugly, but somehow it just transforms into something that looks much better............
(Hey, what's that big painting in the background? The one with the sail boat. Is that pastel??)

Paula, when I read your comments in your post yesterday, I cracked up. I go through that all the time, literally every time I paint. Once I'm finished, it takes me a day or two before I can even decide if I like the piece or not. I've learned never to throw something out for at least a week! I've also discovered that sometimes I'll realize a year later exactly what the painting needed, and be able to do the fix.

The painting in the background is an oil painting that I started several years ago, but never finished. I decided that I really hate that shed; it's too large and overwhelms the painting. I'm gradually reaching the point when I'll take it off the stretchers and toss it. Unfortunately, I don't think there's a fix to be had for that painting. It has "issues". LOL

Jaime,

Is that a copper kusha kusi in front of vase? It looks like a ritual item found in india that is made of copper. It's the exact same shape...

Kelly

Gee, Kelly, I don't know what it is. All I know is that it's brassy-colored and I bought it at Target for $3.99. I'm always looking for interesting horizontal objects to balance out vases, tall statues, and glass bottles.

Jamie

[DMcGowan]

Don't you dare toss it in the trash! it's pretty now, so it's only going to get better! Hey! I enjoyed peeking into your studio just as much as I did looking at the painting! So colorful! Your pastels are so neat and organized, too. And I liked looking at the art on the walls, too. Thanks and let us see how the roses turn out.

[talisman]

Great start on your yellow roses. Nice still life arrangement also. Thanks for the great peaks at your studio, it is beautiful and fascinating to see how you work. I’m looking forward to the finished painting.

[Karen Margulis]

I agree with everyone else. The roses are coming along great! I hope you finish and show us the results!
Karen

[Bringer]

Hi,

This can be a fine painting. Keep working it wiselly.
I also like your painting with the windsurf board.
Do you use that mastick gun for cake decorating :-)

Regards,

José

[JamieWG]

Donna, Dianna, Karen, Jose, thank you so very much. I'll keep working it tomorrow and hopefully post the finish then.

Jose, those caulking guns are filled with oil paints! :D

Jamie

[Bringer]

Hi again,

Your husband is quite smart. Have you imagined how long it will take you to paint all those roses while your husband can quietly see the sports on TV ?

Regards,

José

[KJSCL]

Wow, I love your studio... I mean your painting!:D

The roses are turning out really well. I hope you feel better about them now. I just finished 6 huge roses in acrylics so it will be some time before I even think about doing a flower again but I will definitely have to try them from a still life set up. I'd love to have room in my studio to set up a still life and leave it up. Actually, I'd just love to have your studio :envy: :evil:

[CindyW]

Jamie, the texture is gorgeous here and you've done a beautiful job so far with these very hard yellow roses. LOVE the looseness!! No tossing here!
(and that is indeed a beautiful portrait by Alan Reingold to have in your home.)
Cindy

[Mike_Beeman]

Wow!!! your so organized..your studio is clean and all those great colors in your pastel box. When your finised with your roses they're going to be just fine...I just know it!! Now I have to go and clean my studio...

[JamieWG]

Jose (again!), Kathy, Cindy and Mike, thanks so very much for your support. (I love this forum. :D ) I had a disaster today...Went down to my studio and all the roses had already wilted. Fortunately, I'd worked on a few of them yesterday. I picked a couple of fresher-looking ones out of a different vase and switched with ones I hadn't painted yet. Whew. I'll have to wrap this up tonight or scrap it....but I think I'll be able to finish. This has been an important lesson to me not to start a complex piece with flowers on a holiday weekend followed by a snowstorm that keeps both the kids at home. *groan* Hopefully I'll be able to update this thread with a finished painting later tonight. No way will these keep until tomorrow.

Cindy, that portrait by Alan Reingold is about 30x40" and was done from a live model, using just black acrylic paint and water, on an old piece of foamcore, with no pencil drawing underneath, in about 15 minutes. :eek: Truly amazing.

Mike, I always wait for my studio to become totally unmanageable, then go on a cleaning binge. :D No point in wasting time cleaning when we could be painting, right? After I clean it, I take pics to remember what it was like when it was clean. LOL

Jose, your comment about painting while my husband watches sports cracked me up. That's actually how I get him to model for me. If I hand him a remote, he'll sit still for the longest time! :D

Kathy, I think I'm starting to understand how you're feeling about flowers. I think it's going to be awhile before I paint another rose...at least a week!

Jamie

[JamieWG]

Finished at last:

http://www.wetcanvas.com/Community/images/03-Jan-2006/13766-Yellow_Roses_Pastel_done_450.jpg

The roses are wilted now, so this is the end of the line for this piece!

Jamie

[RUNEMASTER]

Nice work.Very painterly indeed.You are blessed with a great studio.

[DMcGowan]

This is a great painting. And it is meaningful. You will always remember that your husband came home with the roses. It's meaningful to us because we remember seeing the still life setup and the real roses and how you had your light and watching your progress. And coming into your studio. And looking around your studio. Next time we come in we will all be looking around the walls real carefully wondering if we can find that painting of the roses...thanks for showing us!

[Shari]

Jamie,

This turned out so beautiful, I am glad you didn't toss it. I used to toss my bad stuff - which is quite a lot - but I learned to save it. If it's really useless, I can use pieces of a painting in a collage, so nothing goes to waste. Your studio is to die for!!! Did your MV's come today? Where are you going to put them? I am jealous, I just have a tiny little room in my house and I need a bigger studio!!!!!

[artc]

Hello Jamie.....a VERY,VERY beautiful and inspiring painting...BRAVO....I find flowers like these very difficult to paint.....I also enjoyed the pictures of your beautiful studio. Thank you for posting your work and giving me the inspiration to keep trying.....Art

[Nicoclaus]

They're gorgeous! Well done;)

[JamieWG]

Runemaster, Donna, Shari, Artie and Nicoclaus, thank you so much for sticking around and applauding my finish.

Donna, what a sweet post. I find that paintings done from life always have a story behind them regardless of the subject. That's what the "hook" is for me in artwork, so although I occasionally work from photos, I never feel the same attachment to the piece, nor the intimacy that comes with working from life.

Shari, if you keep splitting full sets of pastels with me, you will surely need a bigger studio. roflol....The MVs are due to arrive tomorrow. I'm looking forward to that!

Artie, yes, yellow roses are indeed difficult. I think they're the hardest flowers I've done. But now that I've done seven or eight of them this week, I am finding a 'process' for myself that's working better with each one. I think I'll do some more next week. :)

Jamie

[Karen Margulis]

Beautiful finish! Thanks for sharing!
Karen

[scall0way]

What a great piece, and I love the complementary colors of the warm orange and the cool blue.

[bjcpaints]

Just gorgeous Jamie! Thanks for showing us your studio too!

[JamieWG]

Karen, Debbie, and bjc...Thank you so much for following along and commenting. I thought I wouldn't want to paint more yellow roses for awhile after that little oil painting and this pastel, but I'm missing them already. I think I might buy more tonight! LOL I want to paint one with a little Louise King "mud pony" sculpture and call it Run for the Roses. :D

Debbie, although I too like the blue/orange, I'm thinking that perhaps I should have worked off a violet/purple ground instead. I think the roses get a little lost against the orangy background. I'd like to do another rose painting and try it against violets instead.

Jamie

[Khadres]

Lovely! I find roses totally daunting. You seen to excel at them!

[Mike_Beeman]

Beautiful!!

[JamieWG]

Sooz and Mike, thank you for your remarks. Roses in pastel could be addicting....and my full set of MVs just arrived. Heeheehee.... :D

Jamie