The Christopher Queen Gallery loves to make themes for all of their shows. This time it's all things water.
This was a new subject for me but it was super fun! It was based off of a trip I took to the Georgia Aquarium last year. Painting this was a little tricky. I started with a blue tone to the canvas and slowly but surely pulled out the lights. I should have added light the rays before the fish. So I had to repaint the fish in some areas but that's ok. Lesson learned! This piece really came together once I added the fish but I had a pretty strong foundation even before I put them in.
I can never get enough of painting into the sun. The effect of light is so magical... Add some ocean mist to the air and it's irresistible! The key to getting that effect is adding warm transitions between the blue of the water and "white" of the surf (actually it's light yellow, influenced by the color of the evening light). Also, making the shadows warmer and warmer as you get closer to the light source (and vice versa, the shadows get relatively cooler as you go away from the light) will strengthen that effect.
As much as I love the colors of the superbloom, the creek is the star of the show here! Actually it's the sky. The richly saturated colors of the reflected sky in the water is what I wanted to depict here. I enjoyed leaving the energetic brushwork intact to give a sense of extra energy. It's important to impart your sense of the area as you lived it in the moment. If the clouds are moving, paint them as though there is motion. If the water is moving, make sure your brushwork shows that in some way.
This is a painting that I reworked and cropped a bit to fit a new frame. My gallery (Christopher Queen) and its clients love gold frames. It may surprise you to know that there is a very popular color of frame that just does not do well with sales - silver! For whatever reason, that frame color doesn't seem to sell well at the gallery. I think there are a lot of galleries and collectors who do prefer silver frames.
ARTISTS: Have you found some unexpected barrier to selling art that helped you sell more after changing it? I'd love to know.
COLLECTORS: Do you have a preferred color and/or frame style? And do you deviate from it often or do you typically stay within your range of taste?
PS. This painting will be on display at said gallery (Christopher Queen) this coming Sunday... Come sip champagne and eat cake with me at the opening reception! 1-3pm in Duncan's Mills CA.