Light Through Old Bottles

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I have a great collection of old bottles for my still life arrangements. Some I purchased on eBay, others I bought at yard sales and a few I dug up in my own backyard. Yup. I live in Sag Harbor, NY which was established in the early 1700s. Buried household trash from over 300 years ago is buried treasure for me! This painting features four of my dug-up finds: the green bottle in the back right, the amber bottle on the left, the whisky bottle in the front and the tiny blue glass jar in the foreground.

Lilies by the Window

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My new studio space in Sag Harbor has two beautiful French doors. I decided to make use of them in this still life setup. Being able to "see" out the window past the jug of lilies increases the perception of depth in the painting. Needless to say, I will be featuring the doors in future compositions.

Sunflowers in Sunlight

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I love setting up a still life in direct sunlight and then, having a go at it. What a challenge! Perfect, however, for keeping me loose and painterly. Sunflowers are key to this plein aire adventure... they don't wilt in the sun and you usually can get a few days of painting out of one bouquet!

Sunburst Through Bottle

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I love when the sun bursts through glass. I love when the sun bursts through anything for that matter. So when it happened that the sun burst through the window just behind the still life I was in the middle of painting, I worked frantically to catch it. I abandoned the idea of the set up in a cool north light as I had been working it, and quickly added in the long blue shadows brought about by the sun. I stroked more yellow into the bottle and the sunlit top of the pears. Then, almost as fast as it came, the sun blast left. In spite of how rapidly I had worked, the painting was not finished. What to do? Like a patient wild game hunter, I decided to lay in wait at the same time the next day. With my paint brush in hand, I was ready when the sudden sunburst returned. It remained just long enough to capture its effect. Ahhh.