Playing the blues

I had started working on this a few days ago and waited too long before I got back to it. The under lying paint was too dry and I almost had to start over fresh. I played around with the background a lot before deciding to go with what I have now. I also decided not to put in much detail on the models face. 

Budapest

I spent a lot of time trying to complete this painting. Funnily enough, the most appealing part to me is the shadow of the main tower! Transparent red oxide is quickly growing to be my favorite color to have on the palette. The Chain Bridge is what I remember most from the trip to Budapest. We lived on the other side, across from the Parliament Building and we probably walked this bridge a million times before we discovered the convenience of using the metro. Duh! Budapest is beautiful during the day, breathtaking by night, historically significant and home to a great cuisine. Whats not to love? 

Marooned

From a private sojourn at a small secluded beach on a Langkawi island, where we had stopped to have lunch. The dense greenery in the background took most of the work. I massed in the darks and worked upwards, dabbing in the shapes with the more saturated colors and added a few hints of red flowers to break the monotony and to add balance.

A progress pic with a perspective!

Used the bigger brush for the foliage and the smaller one to punch in the dark holes. 

Tried to stay true to the reference and put the brushes away before I overworked it. 

Icy Pinks

Cancelled plans to visit LA last weekend, lead instead to drive to Pacific Grove; and the stunning views made up for it. A change of subject was in order and I couldn't have picked a better scene. I was quite tempted to go back this weekend with my gear for plein air painting! This one is special; was done with some directions from dad and comments from mom :)
Landscape to me is a tough subject to paint. Getting the colors to be muted yet chromatic in a realistic way is quite the challenge. What I have here is a little more than a lay-in. Hopefully with some more work, I would have done justice to the juxtaposition of the icy pinks and the bright blue hues! 

The Golden Light

Julie and Jan taking a quick stroll out of the park to grab a mid-day meal during the weekend at Redwood City. The dry grass was reflecting the afternoon sun in bright golden hues - The light in the park was quite apt I would think for a workshop with Kim! This is done on an 8x16 canvas panel, a format that I am beginning to like and want to experiment more with. I think they would make interesting compositions.