Painting No. 169: Mark's Plant Portrait

Painting No. 169, oil on board, 6x6in
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I'm not kidding you, this is my favorite painting I've done this year! I just LOVE the looseness of the strokes, and the adorable little subject (our plant named 'Mark'). Shortly after the new year, my husband made a still life stage for me, it's a really neat contraption for artists who like to paint still lifes. I can be in total control of lighting and shadows...I even have different types of bulbs and a blue filter where I can move things around until I fit what stikes me. It's very 'dorky cool' I guess, but just a wonderful tool for me and it's given my still life paintings a real boost! :) I'm so thankful for my cousin Joe who gifted this lil' plant to me for Christmas....'Mark' has inspired several paintings out of me, so be looking for more Mark portraits in the paintings ahead! :)

Here's my reference photo. Love the interesting shadow shapes! The still life stage takes up a lot of space, so it's in our basement. I typically paint during my kids' nap time, so what's worked best for me so far is to use my stage in the basement, and take photos with my 'nice camera', edit them slightly on my computer, then use my tablet when I'm painting upstairs. My little studio space next to the kitchen has great light and plus I can hear if the kiddos need me. Plus, who wants to paint in a dark creepy basement? Not me! ;)