June Virtual Paintout - New Zealand

When I arrived at my son's college graduation a few weeks ago, I realized that I had forgotten my little point and shoot camera. So in a moment of largesse, brought on not only by the great pride of this second child finishing a degree but also by the happy conclusion of more than 23 years of paying tuition, my husband drove us straight to Best Buy where we purchased a much fancier camera than we either could afford or could figure out how to use! With a quick glance over the start up pages of the handbook, I managed to have it up and running in time for the ceremony and the family gatherings but now that I am back in my studio trying to take accurate photos of my paintings I am totally lost. This is the best image I could manage of this painting which is my submission to the June Virtual Paintout blog. What you see is way more vivid than the Google street view it is based on and only slightly more colorful than the actual painting. Next post, I hope to do better!

Virtual Paintout March 2011

The Virtual Paintout location for this month is Cape Town South Africa. There were a lot of rather spectacular seascapes and mountain views, but I was moved by a rather blurry photo of three children sitting on their steps in a shabby neighborhood. In the actual photo you can't make out the features on their faces, but the positions they are in speak of curiosity and enthusiasm as the Google camera car passes by. The details in the photo were indistinct, but the shape, colors and sweetness of the kids intrigued me, so I made a painting that looks somewhat like a poster study. It is 5" x 5" in oil on a linen covered panel.