Oil on hardboard panel 7″x5″
I love painting figures and enjoy taking them out of the traditional context of figure study sessions. In my work I like to paint people enjoying simple pleasures…sunlight, the beach, a soak in a deep tub, and in this painting, a sauna. It’s a wonderfully sensual respite from winter. I wanted to convey the relaxing heat and the dark coziness of the cedar wood paneling.
Oil on hardboard panel 7″x5″
The Blizzard of 2016 made me want to flee back to summer. So I went back to the beach in oil paint which is the only way possible at the moment. I enjoyed the challenge of painting ocean waves and splashing water and shiny wet skin. This painting provides a nice break from snow and cold…what could be better than a walk at the beach?
Oil on Hardboard Panel 7″x5″
This figure painting is a study in back lighting and reflected light. I love the dramatic highlight effects of back lighting while the subtle reflected light from the surrounding curtains helps define the figure. I enjoyed the challenge of painting the contrasts of light and shadow on both the nude and the interior scene.
Oil on Canvas 8″x10″
This painting was inspired by the lovely paintings of bathers by Degas and Bonnard. When I look at paintings of bathers in art history I’m reminded that bathing was something of a luxury in past times. These days a bath is no longer a luxury but a deep tub and the time to spend soaking might be. This study is also about contrasts, warm and cool tones, thin glazes with impasto highlights.
Oil on Canvas, 8″x10″
Focusing on small moments is one of the joys of painting. Capturing the light falling across a face, enhancing the feeling of a scene with well chosen brushstrokes. A photo can freeze a point in time but painting breathes a special kind of life into it. Or at least that’s the goal…you can also paint something to death. Finding that delicate balance where I’ve achieved my vision without pushing over the edge into a labored abyss is sweet.
Oil on Gallery Wrap Canvas, 10″x8″
I believe in learning from the best and John Singer Sargent is one of the great masters of portrait and figurative work. This is a study with a twist; the original portrait was a drawing but I used oil on canvas based on what I imagined a Sargent oil study of this model would look like. A fun exercise and it really made me think about Sargent’s flesh palette and brushwork.
pat kelley art 