Looking ahead!

Wrapped,  9 x 12" colored pencil on black paper
©2010, Helen Read 

Just a few weeks from now, we will be in the midst of the Christmas Holidays. 

Wishing you a season of peace and joy as you

prepare for the season,  remembering the Reason for the season! 

I'll be posting more soon! 

Morning Fog

Morning Fog,  5.5x6" Watercolor on paper

©2012, Helen Read

This is something I am doing for another project, but its been suggested that this needs to be made
into something larger.  So, perhaps that will be coming.
This is what I woke up to the other morning from my back window - quite ethereal and

mysterious!   It made a nice little study. 

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Bird and Berries ~ Featured Painting for the Holidays!

Bird and Berries, 7x5" Oil on canvas

© Helen Read 

SOLD

 
What a busy season it has been.  After returning from a cross-country trip for my son's wedding,
it has taken me just a bit to get back into stride with studio work and
my regular daily work teaching.  So, this little painting has taken a little time, but I'm posting it now.  What a great time to get a gift for yourself or for someone else at an exceptional value!  

 

The Edge of Shadow

The Edge of Shadow, 9x12" colored pencil on black paper

© Helen Read 

 

 

 

Barely There

Barely There, 10x8" Oil on Canvas
© Helen Read

 

Reposting a fall painting from a couple years back.  This is just what it looks like around here at this time of year.  The very few clinging leaves are paper thin and dried, rustling as the wind blows. 

A little stark - but beautiful in its time and season.

 

November Gathering

November Gathering,  8x8" Oil on canvas

©Helen Read 

 

This is a repost of a "November painting" a few years ago.  
The colors are in a complementary color scheme - and very true to the kinds of colors we find this time of year. 

Still one of my favorites! 

  

Leeks in November!

Leeks in November!  7x6" colored pencil on gray drawing paper 

©2012, Helen Read 

Yesterday, in early November, I pulled a few leeks from my garden.  I don't have much that is still growing - a few leeks, cabbages, kale, and lettuce.   As I washed the roots, I had to laugh! 

Such a wild array of protrusions!   And, I thought them worthy of a picture with exaggerated color.  

A little celebration, I guess, of line and shape ~ and a Creator's sense of humor!  

Fall Harvest

Apples on Damask,  6 x 12" Oil on canvas 

© Helen Read 

 

Posting another painting from a couple Novembers ago.  This still life was one in which I was challenged to create a damask setting with its reflected light on the fabric, the pattern in the weave and shadows.  Also, of course, I wanted to get the deep reds and green of the apples with their reflected light. 

I used a very traditional approach - starting with a grisaille painting. 

It would be the perfect addition to a dining room or kitchen!  I'd love to package it up and send it to you!

November has come!

November Tree, 8x6" oil pastel on paper

© Helen Read 

 

I've just returned from a week in California for my son's wedding, so I'm a bit behind with studio work.  Until I post November's featured painting, here is something reminiscent of the past and which bespeaks the month of November. 

Hard to believe our autumn is about half done. 

A Gift from my Daughter!

After Georgia O'Keeffe, approx. 20x22" Oil on paper
painted by Wendolyn Nelson  2012 

I was given a gift!   My daughter, who is in her final year of college (art major), is studying Georgia O'Keeffe for one of her classes.  Knowing how much I enjoy the beauty of O'Keeffe's work, she gave me a study of one of her paintings which she completed in class this semester!    What a great gift! 

Thank you Wendy!   I'm excited to frame it and hang it!    The shapes and spaces are quite lovely!  Once again, I'm reminded of why I love O'Keeffe's work!   And why I'm thankful for a daughter who speaks my language of visual art!   

  

Withered beauty

Withered Beauty - sunflower, 15 x 15" Watercolor/mixed media on paper

© Helen Read 

 

Finally finished, this watercolor (with ink and acrylic touches) is finished.  I was attracted to the beauty of this sunflower bloom as it withered and dried.  What lovely shapes and angles; and quite interesting colors as well.  This one is much larger than some of the watercolors I've posted lately.  It would grace a larger space with its eye catching color and subject matter. 

  

Continuing progress

It's been a very busy week with evening obligations at work - but with small bursts of time here and there, I'm continuing to work on this painting of a dried sunflower head. More is yet needed! More is coming soon!

A work in progress

Though I'm still making my way through a very busy fall, I am continuing studio work! Here's what I'm working on now - in it's earliest stages!

This is a dried and shriveling sunflower head. It's very sculptural, and its papery thinness is visually intriguing. It reminds me of a ring of fire! This is a larger work - 15x15". At the moment I'm working in watercolor on #140 arches watercolor paper.

I'll continue to post my progress! Hopefully more in a few days!