Painting #66 - A Cacti of a Different Color

Let me explain how this painting evolved.

I wanted to do something different for Cactus Monday and thought I would a sketch a few cacti and paint them different colors.

After I did that I didn't like it so I put the rectangles in the background.

And still didn't like it.

I wondered if there was something I could do to save it, then I saw Laure's post about word design.  So I tried something similiar and like it better.

What I like is the strong graphic feel to it.  Still not what was in my mind but happy I didn't have to throw it out.

Great learning experience.

Painting #26 Potted Cactus

This potted cactus sits outside the new Ritz Carlton near Tucson with Dove Mountain in the background.  We went to their open house several weeks ago and I took this photo and used it as an inspiration for the painting.  This is the same place where a golf tournament took place this weekend.  

I am trying to do more landscapes and each one seems to get just a tad easier and now I am thinking 'background' for each painting whether it is a landscape or not.  Before taking on this challenge I rarely gave the background a thought.

Painting # 10 - Snow On The Mountain

We had stormy weather last week that dropped a few feet of snow on our mountains.   This is a view from the valley and a half block from our house.  The Saguaro cactus grows in front of the house and it did stick up against the mountain view.  And the bit of blue was really there.

Again I used wet-in-wet for the sky.  I'm not really stuck on skies but they are so beautiful in Arizona I keep wanting to paint them and am getting quite comfortable doing it.  

I was very happy with the way this turned out.  It is much more impressionistic than I normally paint but I love the play of light and contrast.

Of course I used this for my Cactus Monday post also.

Painting Number 7 - Arizona Skies - Teri

I have been practicing painting skies on 5x6 inch Strathmore cold press 140# paper.  I made a mess on one side of a big piece so I cut it into pieces to practice on.

I used wet-in-wet to get the sky effect and decided to add the cactus for a focal point (and wala, I have Cactus Monday done this week).   The early morning and sunset skies in Arizona are just spectacular and the Saguaro cactus towering high in the sky adds to the beauty.  They just make you want to paint them.

I have not done many skies before so I thought it was a good jumping off place to move into landscapes.

Painting Number 6 - Cactus Shadows

I found a photo reference in my tons of cacti photos and thought the shadows would be interesting to paint.  I was also fascinated with the cactus bloom growing out of the prickly pear pad, something I don't see very often.

This is painted on Lama li paper which has a LOT of texture and is frequently my choice when painting cacti.  I used yellow as the undercoat and sap green for the pads.