The power of red

Well, I survived the Rose City Yarn Crawl this last weekend in good form and relatively inexpensively. There was the purple “Birds of a Feather” purchase. Then seven skeins of a red linen yarn I hope to turn into a tank top. Then two skeins of discounted mohair I got for a steal. Great job and restraint!

Example skein of the red linen yarn resting on the Rose City Yarn Crawl bag.
Example skein of the red linen yarn resting on the Rose City Yarn Crawl bag.

This evening I attended painting class and finished two paintings (such a great feeling)! I’ll post about the second one next, but one of the paintings was a little different for me.

Each year I make noises about entering the Oregon Society of Artists Rose Festival Show. And then I don’t do it.

When Angie suggested a project where we used layers of masking to create a painting, I thought about doing a rose and getting a jump on the deadline.

I don’t do a lot of flowers. I like flowers, I just typically get distracted by something else. But I decided to go for it… and for once do it how Angie suggested.

IMG_5699Of course, that doesn’t mean I can’t make it my own. I fooled around quiet a big with the layout of my original photo to get something more dynamic and interesting. And I decided to not use red because that would be too obvious for a rose painting.

Step 1: Masking has been applied, and the first layer of magenta has been applied.
Step 1: Masking has been applied, and the first layer of magenta has been applied.

I kept my colors pretty traditional for the first level. For the second level, I masked over the light pink and left just the ends where I applied a dark purple.

Next I removed the masking and applied the inner shadows in a neutral wash.

It was at this point I had to make a decision. The painting was good, but not great. It was pleasant but not the eye candy I had envisioned.

So… I added red.

"Double Delight" - Final version without signature.
“Double Delight” – Final version without signature.

I will look at this for a few days and if nothing else occurs, I’ll sign and frame it. Done in good time for the June show!

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