Orange Slices

Oil on linen on panel, 6 x 6 inches -- 

I originally had a half orange on the plate beside these slices. But I didn't like the overwhelming amount of orange facing into the light. So I removed it, and repainted the plate. I also moved the left wall closer toward the light to increase the shade over the upper portion of canvas. I even used brush strokes to create lost edges because I wanted to obscure the shapes so close to the edge of canvas.

Two Gala Apples

Oil on linen on panel, 6 x 6 inches -- Click Here to Buy

Gala apples are my favorite apples for eating, but also for painting. I originally painted this without the horizontal line in the back. It felt as if  it were missing something in the back of the scene. So I added a horizontal line that suggests a wall behind the apples, to break up the plane and add more three-dimensionality.

For a limited time only, this comes with a contemporary black wooden frame. The frame has 7/8" face, with a crisp clean line and it is 1.5" deep. It is ready to hang or stand alone on a counter top. 

Green Apple

Oil on linen on panel, 6 x 6 inches -- Click Here to Buy

This is a quick study of a green apple. In this painting, I emphasized a "carving" technique to work from the inside toward the outside of a subject. After drawing a basic outline, I painted the green apple, going over the outline on purpose. Then I carved the apple shape by painting the outside  background color, including the cast shadow. I added details around the stem at the end.

Apple and Wine Glasses

Oil on canvas panel, 6x6 inches -- Click Here to Buy

This is another still-life painting with an apple, but I experimented with a new painting style. I painted this with a combination of palette knife and brushes by the window with natural lighting. I love collecting autumn foliage, and store it in a box so that I can use it for my still life stage. If you pick up the leaves at the right time, the color and shape will be preserved for a while. There's snow outside the window, and it's reflected on the wine glasses.

Yellow Apple and Silver Pitcher

Oil on linen on panel, 6 x 6 in -- Click Here to Buy

This yellow apple is also from the WSU fruit orchard shop in Pullman, WA. I love the nice big leaf with a long stem. Since their apples are not coated with wax like store-bought ones, you don't see many glossy highlights on them. I experimented on this painting by putting a piece of sky-blue craft paper on the right wall to create bluish reflective light. So the shadow has a little bit of blue tint, contrasting with the warm light source from the left.

For a limited time only, this comes with a contemporary black wooden frame. The frame has 7/8" face, with a crisp clean line and it is 1.5" deep. It is ready to hang or stand alone on a counter top.

Artist's Table No. 3

Oil on canvas on panel, 6 x 6 in --

I painted this at my friend's house near Seattle where my husband and I were visiting for the last couple of days. It's been very rainy in Washington these days. Due to the heavy rain storm, the power went out for the most of the afternoon. That's part of why I painted it by the window with natural light, because we had no light. My friend and my husband was out for the most of the time, and had no idea about the situation. Anyway, I'm happy with how this painting turned out. I experimented to push the the saturation and value, as well as the thickness of paint for this piece.

Red Apple with a Leaf

Oil on linen on panel, 6 x 6 in. -- SOLD

I found beautiful red apple with a leaf at the WSU fruit store in Pullman, WA, on Saturday. I knew immediately that I had to get it for my still life painting. What a great way to spend a snowy weekend.

Dancing Pears

6 x 6 in, oil on linen on panel -- SOLD

The other day, I got these pears from the WSU fruit orchard, in Pullman, WA. I like painting fruits from there because of the wide variety of colors and shapes I can choose from. The problem is that some of them have the bottoms in odd shapes, and have to sit in a particular way. Then I don't always like the way the stems are pointing at. This makes the still life setup even more challenging. So before I settled down with this composition, these pears dances all over the little stage for a while.

A Pear Meets a Pear

Oil on canvas on panel, 6 x 6 in. -- Click here to bid

This is my second painting of the pears this week. Before today's painting session, I had this great idea about how to arrange the pears, and I thought it would be so easy to start painting. After spending some time arranging the pears over and over, however, I ended up with something else. A little green pear meets another pear of a different kind. Then, the lovely couple had a happy ending in my breakfast.

A Pair of Pears

Oil on canvas on panel, 6 x 6 -- $150 -- Click here to buy

These pears are from the WSU orchard in Pullman, WA. I love these pears that come with a nice stem and a leave.

Two Pears & Reflections

Oil on canvas on panel, 6" x 6" -- Click here to bid

Lately, I've been trying to push the color intensity and value in my painting. This was a great exercise.

Penguin Pears

Oil on canvas on panel, 6" x 6"

I painted this last night, but didn't have time to post it. These are the pears for my breakfast today. We bought these pears from the WSU fruit orchard in Pullman, WA. I just love those colors and shapes. Since I love birds and painting them, I thought they looked like three colorful penguins, having a breakfast meeting. In order to show verticality in the composition, I used a coffee mug, and a small bowl to help the pears stand still.

Green-Red Apples with Silver Pot

Oil on canvas panel, 6" x 6" -- Buy it at Daily Paintworks Gallery

Painting silverware is fun, but it is challenging! I used this silver pot to break up the plain background. I really like how it works here. I thought these apples were more greenish when I picked them for my models. But  they appear to be more yellowish now. I know these apples will be my next breakfast.

Rainier Cherries & Silver Cup

Oil on linen on panel, 6" x 6" -- SOLD

This is a piece I did earlier when the cherries were available. I can't wait for summer, to start painting various seasonal fruits and landscapes. I found painting metallic objects very fascinating and challenging. Maybe I'll do a short series of these. 

Pear Triplet

Oil on linen on panel, 6" x 6" --SOLD
This is a study of pears on a white background. I've been using a BlueMax CFL for lighting still-lifes, and I like it. It seems to show color pretty well. I've been experimenting with different ways to make a white background more interesting. For this one, I placed a sheet of colored paper on the opposing wall to give a variation in the reflective light.

Apple & Bottle

Oil on linen on panel, 6 x 6 in -- SOLD

This is another cute little apple from the WSU orchard in Pullman, WA. I saw a very interesting article about apples in The New Yorker recently. I didn't know that the orchard of WSU is one of three major apple orchards in the US which develop superior varieties of apples for eating. For example, Fuji is one of my favorite, but I didn't know that there is so much variation in taste and quality among orchards. The Fuji from WSU is smaller and less reddish, but the best kind of Fuji I've had so far. We've been buying apples and other fruits from the WSU fruit market. Those fruits have been my main still-life models and breakfast lately.

Two Apples in Purple

Oil on linen on panel, 6" x 6" -- SOLD

We gave a nice holiday present for our pet chickens today. We totally cleaned up the loft in the chicken coop where they sleep, and replaced the bedding floor cover with fresh straw. Then we put additional curtains as partitions between them. Sometimes they peck at younger ones on the perch without sufficient partitions. Our chicks are big girls now, and they like to have more privacy at night. ;-)

Yellow Pear & Reflection

Oil on canvas on panel, 6" x 6" -- SOLD

This is a study of a pear and its reflection with a white background.

Apple & Teacup

Oil on linen on panel, 6" x 6" - Buy it at my gallery

Another cute apple from the orchard of Central Washington University in Pullman, WA. They grow all kinds of apples, and I love shopping the apples at the fruit market every Fall for still life painting. It's like visiting a candy shop. Instead of using shadow box, I painted this by the window to suggest more mood.

Green Apples & Reflections

Oil on canvas panel, 6" x 6" -- SOLD

I spent extra time working on the stems with a fine sable brush to accentuate the composition, and I love the result. It's a Richeson #6 Pure Red Sable brush, and I normally use it just for signing my name.