Tag Archives: original painting

February’s Art Production

Posted on March 1, 2020 | Comments Off

February’s Art Production. The Food We Eat Series. Acrylic on canvas. Kit Miracle

I thought I’d do another post about a month’s art production. I created ten food paintings for the series The Food We Eat. I love the bright colors. Most of the meals were at home but a few were while I was away. I really don’t eat out that often except when traveling. Guess we like our own cooking best.

For those who may be interested, I am using my own photos for the paintings. The pictures cover a span of over ten years so I have a good amount of inspiration. They are not projected on the canvas but are drawn free-hand. Dang, those circles and ellipses on the plates and glasses! What a challenge! And they’re all either 16 x 16 or 16 x 20 on canvas of 1.5 deep.

In addition to the food paintings, I did more tree drawings but they’re not shown here.

March will probably see some more food paintings but I think I’ll take a break. I have other ideas rolling around.

The titles that you see here – reading top to bottom, left to right are:

Ahi Tuna
Raspberries and Oatmeal
Texas Tacos
Breakfast with Oranges
Lunch in Santa Fe
Leah’s Lunch
Good Lunch, Bad Lunch
Pie!
Hot Soup on a Cold Day
Holiday Meal

Each meal has a story which is on my website. Kitmiracle.com You can click on the individual photos to see closeups of each painting.

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Posted in art, contemporary impressionism

Tagged acrylic, art, contemporary impressionist, food, kit miracle, original painting

Yearning for Spring

Posted on March 10, 2019 | 2 comments

Yearning for Spring, framed, 16 x 20, acrylic on canvas, Kit Miracle, contemporary impressionist

I am just so ready for spring. Living here in southern Indiana, the winters are usually rather mild, at least compared to my years in Michigan. We will often get a little snow but not much to worry about. I think winter here is really like a long fall.

However, this year Mother Nature seems to have taken a fit. Warm one week just enough to tease the early bulbs out of the ground. Then the next week, temperatures diving for the bottom of the thermometer. Last week we saw lows of 10 degrees which meant our wood furnace (The Beast) was doing its best to keep up. Yesterday we saw a high of 62 with some 70s predicted for next week. Last evening the peepers could be heard in chorus in the bottoms. Did I mention that I am really ready for spring?

I felt an irresistible urge to paint some spring flowers. With few early flowers out yet except a couple of bedraggled crocuses and some hardy daffodils, I turned to my photos of some spring bouquets. And to step outside my usual style. Same old, same old, gets boring in my opinion.

Yearning for Spring, acrylic on canvas, 16 x 20, contemporary impressionist, Kit Miracle

The first bouquet consists of forsythia, double fancy daffodils and some branches of flowering quince. I like the subtle colors here and aimed at coordinating the background to the flowers but to subjugate it to the foreground.

Dancing Tulips, acrylic on canvas, 16 x 20, contemporary impressionist, Kit Miracle

The second flower painting took me in a different direction. I aimed for bold colors and lively strokes. This painting certainly accomplished that. It almost looks as if the tulips are dancing. To see the step by step for this painting, click here or go the Artworks tab and click on Dancing Tulips.

With the warming temps coming this week, my real tulips might be blooming. They’re already up several inches and it will just need old Sol to entice them out. I’m ready!

Of course, both paintings are for sale at my Etsy shop.

Thanks for stopping by.

Spring is Nature’s way of saying, “Let’s Party!” Robin Williams

Yearning for Spring, detail 1

Yearning for Spring, detail 2

Dancing Tulips, detail 1, Kit Miracle

Dancing Tulips, framed, acrylic on canvas, 16 x 20, Kit Miracle

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Posted in contemporary impressionism, garden, painting instruction, Uncategorized

Tagged acrylic, bright colors, daffodils, flowers, kit miracle, original painting, spring, spring flowers, toned canvas, tulips

Afternoon Shadows – another painting beyond the photograph

Posted on March 3, 2019 | Comments Off

Afternoon Shadows, acrylic, original painting, 14 x 18, contemporary impressionism, Kit Miracle

I thought I’d post another painting created from a photograph for my class. This photo was taken of our patio and arbor with the fire pit on sunny autumn afternoon. I like outdoor scenes with a human element. This will often include at least some kind of man-made item whether a building, fence post, road or path. In this case, the setting gives the feeling of comfort and ease. The chairs, the smoke from the fire, the dappled sun and shade all contribute to the atmosphere. The turtle sandbox adds a touch of whimsy.

When using a photo as inspiration for a painting, it’s important to remember that it is a tool and a road map. Take inspiration but don’t be afraid to change things.

Afternoon Shadows, detail 1. Click and enlarge the photos to see the brush strokes. Notice the background tree is just painted with a few strokes. And the smoke is just a glaze on top of the background. See the indication of the sun and shadows on the chair.

In this painting, I was trying to capture the feel of the afternoon sun. The smoke and fire indicates that there could be a chill in the air with a slight breeze. The location and setting are inviting; it looks as if someone has just left the area.

Afternoon Shadows, detail 2. Zoom in on the vines and leaves to see just how loosely they were painted. The sandbox turtle adds a note of whimsy.

My style is not photo-realist but contemporary impressionist which works well for conveying the feeling of this scene. The chairs beckon the viewer to sit in the sun or warm themselves by the fire. Will a child come walking into the area to play in the sandbox? I love paintings that tell a story.

Afternoon shadows, detail 3. Zoom in on the posts and the background trees to see the brushstrokes.

As you can see by the detail images, I use loose strokes to indicate the branches and leaves. From a distance, the painting appears to be much more detailed than it actually is. It takes some practice and confidence to make just the right stroke to indicate a branch. Or, if you make a mistake, just scrape it off and try again.

Afternoon Shadows, original photo. If you compare this photo to the painting, you can see areas that I have emphasized, changed or deemphasized.

Normally I would have painted a scene like this in plein air but I was busy that afternoon and only had time to capture the view with my camera. That is one of the benefits of using photographs as inspiration.

Afternoon Shadows for sale