It's all about the Clear Glass Bowl!

20"x 20" Gallery wrap stretched canvas

I'm still undecided about a title for this work.  .....could be "which one is not the same"  -  "Snack time". ...or the one I chose for this post.

I sometimes divide a canvas into sections, then work on either a similar subject in each space or choose to use different limited palette combinations to create  the same image.  It's a  fun exercise that can take on several different design elements .

This particular idea came from challenging myself with filling a glass bowl.  My hubby suggested painting a kitten laying in the bowl....I think There's no limit to what could be done.....hmmmmmm...only limitation is the size of my bowl.  For some reason, I have chocolate on my mind.  I may have to paint this bowl filled with Hershey Kisses.

"Late Summer Color"

11"x14"   Soft Pastel on U Art paper

I had started this work on location during the "Fresh Paint" plein air competition in Amana, IA last year.  When I dug it out from a pile of pastel papers a few days ago, I thought....hmmm....love the sky but HATE the foreground. 

What I love about the pastel medium is how easy it can be to "change" something if you don't like a certain look.  I had painted in a wooden fence that dominated the front lower right of this work.  It was competing with the large tree in the middle plane, which made the entire painting seem busy, busy, busy........no place for the mind to understand what drew me to this spot in the first place.

Taking a piece of pipe insulation I had cut to be around an inch & a half long, I rubbed out as much pastel as possible from the area.  Because this work is on slightly sanded (rough textured) surface, there was enough "tooth" ,as pastelists call it, left that i was able to emphasize  the prairie grass growing in the foreground by adding stroke after stroke of fresh color.

If you look close enough, you'll notice the "RED" underpainting too.  I love using a rust color as a first layer of color in a landscape.  The warm undertone always makes cool greens & blues look rich in hue.