Blueberries and Strawberries!

The images shown are of a painting I did earlier this year. The title of this painting is "Blueberries and Strawberries" and was sold to Dr. Bascom!
This painting spanned a 4 month time period and is one my all-time favorites!

In the beginning I do a contour sketch of the objects to help get my placement right.

Then I start laying out glazes in very thin layers to help build up color and depth.

I don't drop a a lot of paint into my paintings I like to use thin layers because each coat helps to compliment the other giving a lot of depth and value to each object. Also I do not use black in any of my paintings because nothing is completely black and the method I use gives the objects a greater sense of depth.

To the right you'll see that I am also holding a photograph. The photograph is one that I took and I feel very strongly about that - to me art has to be something that you did and if you choose to work from a photo then it should be your photo.

Also the fruit by the time I was done would be rotted! LOL! So anyhow I will setup the composition and then take a photograph to capture the positioning of the fruit. Afterwards I then use the photos as well as actual fruit for color reference.

Keep in mind, that sometimes these photo sessions will take a long time and even as many as 200 photos will be taken before a final composition is settled on.

So after the many layers of paint and value building I set out to add in the final details. Details are funny - everyone thinks that is the first thing! When really it is the last thing to worry about.

After hanging in two juried shows and being published in the Bluestone Review, this painting has sold and here is a pic of me with the final piece and the customer - Dr. Cindy Bascom!