Up and Down and All Around

Another one, painted yesterday...dry today! I'm fairly giddy! Thanks for sharing your experiences with Liquin. The colors of fruit and vegetables are so amazing, aren't they?  * sigh *

Oil on panel, 6" x 6", $100 (with free display easel) + shipping

or contact brenda@brendaferguson.com

On Its Axis and Mini Workshop

I began this orange during a pastel workshop demo this morning and finished up later. I like the lightness of the pastel barely catching the surface of the sanded paper rather than saturating it. It sort of sparkles.

Soft pastel, 10" x 10" (matted/framed dimensions)
Donation

What an enjoyable group this morning in our mini pastel workshop session.

 

We had fun... worked hard...and snuggled the cat.

Look at all we accomplished in 2 hours!

We shared our masterpieces...and some laughs.

I See the Light

Wow, wow, WOW! Forgive me while I get REALLY excited! I painted this piece yesterday ...and it was dry today! I had previously been using a mixture of stand oil, linseed oil, and mineral spirits as a medium, but tried Winsor & Newton's Liquin for the first time yesterday. I didn't notice any difference, in terms of difficulties, while I was painting...it allowed the paint to spread nicely without diluting it ...but WOW (have I said that before?) does it ever decrease the drying time of oils! I may no longer have to wait nearly two weeks to scan. This is definitely a good thing. Have any of you had experience with Liquin? I welcome your thoughts.

Oil on panel, 6" x 6", $100 + $10 domestic shipping

Follow the Leader

This line up amused me. They looked like they were all waddling into place behind the lead pear. I was really trying to get the 3-dimensional depth on a flat surface. Don't know if I succeeded, but I had fun trying.

Oil on panel, 6" x 6", $100 (with free display easel) + shipping

or contact brenda@brendafegruson.com

His and Hers

Sometimes when it's snowing...I just feel like painting flowers.

Oil on panel, 6" x 6", $100 (with free display easel) + shipping

or contact brenda@brendaferguson.com

Repose

I really love the drama of strong contrast. It excites me!

Oil on panel, 6" x 6", $100 (with free display easel) + shipping

or contact brenda@brendaferguson.com

Where Have You Been?

More polka dots! At first I thought of calling this Arm in Arm...a nice gentle title. Maybe it's the perspective or the sort of dramatic lighting, but the more I looked at it, I couldn't help but see two parents looming large over their errant teen, hands on hips, asking, "Where have you been?"

Oil on panel, 6" x 6", $100 (with free display easel) + shipping

Spot and Dot

I love polka dots! On my clothes, on my cups and bowls and dishes. I have lots more of them to paint...

Oil on panel, 6" x 6", $100 (with free display easel) + shipping

or contact brenda@brendaferguson.com

Is He Okay?

Is he okay? Don't worry...you can't keep a good pear down! 

Oil on panel, 6" x 6", $100 (with free display easel) + shipping

or contact brenda@brendaferguson.com

Unbalanced

The composition for this one came about quite by accident. I was looking through images for reference photos. There was a glitch in one section of my camera chip. I lost many photos and the last image was 'cut' in half. I was about to hit delete, but realized I liked the stack of objects piled up and peeking in from the side with all that empty space...so decided to paint it exactly that way.

Oil on linen panel, 8" x 6", $100 (with free display easel) + shipping

or contact brenda@brendaferguson.com

Feather Our Nest

I painted this during a pastel painting workshop I conducted in my home this morning. I offer 2 hour mini workshops to give folks a chance to try out the medium/materials without having to invest in them first. 

It was a lot of fun and Sue and Joanie worked diligently this morning. Didn't we accomplish a lot?

Pastel on sanded paper, 12" x12" (framed dimensions), $100 + shipping

or contact brenda@brendaferguson.com

Until Proven Guilty

This is our wonderful spirited pup, Rocksie. I thought she was a chocolate lab...until I painted her. She's not. She's tutti fruiti. I smiled the entire time I painted this. Is that a face a mother could love? My husband thinks I should call this one Devil Dog. Though that's fairly accurate, it isn't very nice. So I'm giving her the benefit of the doubt. 

Oil on panel, 6" x 6"

SOLD

Gold Lining

Milk weed pods are beautiful in every season...whether they're pale green and full to bursting or empty and lined with satiny gold. With this I was trying to capture the thin filament attached from top to bottom and the shadow it cast on the inside of the pod.

Oil on panel, 6" x 6", $100 (with free display easel) + shipping

or contact brenda@brendaferguson.com

Earth Child

This is our daughter, Sadie, on a hike a year or two ago. She's such a child of nature with her browned skin and sun bleached hair.

Oil on panel, 6" x 6", $100 (with free display easel) + shipping

or contact brenda@brendaferguson.com

Very Merry

Wishing you a year that fuels your passions, fills your heart and feeds your soul.

All my best, Brenda

Oil on panel, 6" x 6"

SOLD

Man's Best Friend

A couple of weeks ago my husband and I (and our pup, Rocksie) took a snowy hike up nearby Dixmont Mountain. At the bottom, the ice lightly coated the trees. By the time we reached the top, every branch and limb was encased in close to an inch of sparkling ice. It was a winter WONDERland! 

 

I liked how my husband's orange sweatshirt was a spot of color amid all the gray.  This painting is a Christmas surprise...shhhhh.

Oil on panel, 6" x 6", NFS

American Art Collector

Fresh Paint Daily Painters will have its first ad in the February issue of American Art Collector. I'm honored to be one of the featured artists in our first ad. I invite you to visit Fresh Paint and enjoy the wondrous variety of talented artists.

Bay Rum-pa-pum-pum

Beginning with my first batch of homemade soap fourteen years ago, I've not purchased 'store bought' soap since. I love the process and just finished making a fresh batch for Christmas gifts. The house is filled with the scent of Bay Rum! I created this painting to use as tags for the soap. Forgive the title, I'm into the spirit... or maybe it's the intoxicating scent of Bay Rum!

Soft pastel and 22k gold leaf on sanded paper, 11" x 14" (matted and framed), $135 + shipping

SOLD

Toe to Toe

I've painted my Converse Chucks previously in pastel and decided to try them in oil. It's a fun subject...I mean, how often do you get to use such an INTENSE pink?!

Oil on panel, 6" x 6", $100 (with free display easel) + shipping

or contact brenda@brendaferguson.com

Have a Ball

Yarn is such a fun subject to paint because of the endless color possibilities and of course all that texture. Yesterday I painted skeins in pastel...so today I wanted to try balls in oil. I had a BLAST with both! 

Oil on panel, 6" x 6", $100 (with free display easel) + shipping

SOLD

Do the Twist

I recently completed several commissioned pieces for my One Hundred Hands project. They are all pastel paintings, so I was back to using this medium for a couple of days. I've been wanting to paint these colorful twisted skeins of yarn again and the soft pastels lend themselves beautifully to this texture, so I continued using the pastels today.

Soft pastel on sanded paper, 14" x 11" (framed dimensions), $165

or contact brenda@brendaferguson.com

Rosy Glow

This painting is a commission. After attending our recent Studio Open House, a guest was hoping to win the  painting give-away. When he didn't win, he talked with me about painting a similar piece for him. Of course I was happy to.

5" x 7", Pastel on sanded paper

SOLD

Open House Celebration

Yesterday we hosted our annual Studio Open House celebration. 

We had a full house, as guests of all ages browsed one hundred oil and pastel paintings both upstairs and down.

We enjoyed refreshments and art conversation.

Congratulations to Glenice Williams, the winner of this year's painting give-away.

A heartfelt thank you to all who came to share this day with us. It is a success because of you. I'm still basking in the glow...

Annual Open House

The culmination of the month's long preparation for our annual Studio Open House is upon us! Tomorrow we will open our home to share the past year's art, enjoy refreshments together and kick off the holiday season. One hundred new paintings, both pastels and oils adorn the walls in every room. It's an exciting time. We welcome you to join us.