Two Miniatures: Field of Poppies II, and Bluebell Forest III

I completed two 4 x 6 inch miniature paintings today. This super-small size is new for me and I find it charming!
Both paintings are SOLD!

Bluebell Forest III is based on a photo by Herry Lawford found on flickr.com. Original photo found here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/herry/3476179510/
Used under a creative commons license.

Salt Fork River Art Festival: Recap

I had a booth at the Salt Fork River Art Festival this past weekend. This time it was a two day event. Saturday turned out to be a perfect fall day--sunny and cool. I sold four paintings Saturday! Sunday was quite chilly and fewer people came out to see the art, however I sold one additional painting. I've still had no success selling my giclee prints, which is a bit disappointing. I think people really want to have something to take home with them instead of having to bother with placing an order. For future events I will probably just sell whatever prints I have instead of trying to take orders.
Olive came Sunday and we kept each other warm!

Commission: Bear, the yellow lab (2010), 16 x 20"

Yesterday I finished work on a commission--a portrait of a yellow Labrador. This painting was fun to work on since I don't frequently paint animals. I tackled this subject a little differently than I do my landscapes. I spent a large amount of time graphing and sketching this painting. Since this is a portrait and not just a painting of a random dog, it was important to get the proportions as close to the original photo as possible. I was especially careful to match the colors of the fur. The most tedious part of this painting turned out to be the bed of impatients behind the dog. It took a long time to place all the little flowers and leaves (and mix like ten different shades of green paint) in a way that looks natural.

Interested in commissioning a pet portrait of your own? Contact me with any ideas at audraziegel@gmail.com

Article Feature

One of my paintings is featured in an article about autumn on the blog www.indiesmiles.com.
The article can be found here:
http://www.indiesmiles.com/a-luscious-splash-of-autumns-rainbow/

Thanks to LindaGJ for including my painting!

Salt Fork River Art Festival at Sleepy Creek Vineyards

I'm getting ready for my next art festival! I have eight new paintings to show (they're all posted on the blog). It will take place at Sleepy Creek Vineyards in Fairmount, IL, about a half hour drive from Urbana. Here are the dates and times:

Sept. 25, Saturday
10am-7pm

Sept. 26, Sunday
11am-4pm

Address:
Sleepy Creek Vineyards
8254 E 1425 North Road
Fairmount, IL 61841
(here are some directions)

Hope to see you there!

Facebook page!

Become a fan of Audra's Oil Paintings on Facebook! Click the "like" button on the right hand side of this page, or visit my facebook page.

http://www.facebook.com/audrasoilpaintings

Pink Rose II (2010), 9 x 12"

Based on how popular my other pink rose painting was at the Downtown Festival of the Arts, I decided to paint another smaller (i.e. more affordable) pink rose. Seems as though roses are becoming somewhat of a specialty for me. They are not my favorite subject to paint, but I love how 3-dimensional they look on the canvas. My rose paintings are some of my best, I think.

I also think it is interesting to compare this recent painting with my very first rose painting. My technique has developed quite a bit; the petals are now more distinct--the whole image is more "in focus"-- and the brush strokes better convey depth in the painting.

SOLD.

This painting is based on a photo found on flickr.com and used under a Creative Commons Licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/). The photographer audreyjm529 has an entire album of amazing rose photos here.

Bluebell Forest II (2010), 6 x 12"

SOLD!

Available as a gicleé print--visit my etsy page.

This painting is based on a photo by Hardo Muller found on flickr.com. The original photo can be found here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardo/3484789416/
Used under a creative commons license.

Mountainside in Autumn (2010), 8 x 10"

SOLD!