A Few of My Favorite Things 8 x 10 Oil Painting by Pat Fiorello $300 |
Thursday, August 23, 2018
A Few of My Favorite Things
Monday, August 20, 2018
"Charleston Dreams"
"Charleston Dreams" 16 x 16 Oil Painting by Pat Fiorello
"Charleston Dreams" was inspired by the beautiful bouquet of this new bride who got married in Charleston earlier this year. Often I don't get to meet the brides if they are long distance, but Elyse is right here in Atlanta so she was able to come to my studio to pick up her painting in person today. So nice to see the joy on her face when the painting brought back the memories of her beautiful wedding flowers and her wedding day.
If you know of anyone would like their wedding day commemorated with a beautiful painting, please contact me. You can learn more at bridalbouquetpaintings.com
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Friday, August 17, 2018
My Secret Garden
My Secret Garden 12 x 16 Painting by Pat Fiorello $750 |
Many years ago while on a trip to Italy teaching a painting workshop, I stumbled across a back alleyway in the small town of Pienza. I don't even think it's an official through street, just a way for some of the homeowners to get to their yards and garages.
Close up |
I'm sure others have discovered it too, but I like to think of it as my secret garden. This painting was inspired by my most recent visit there this June.
Wednesday, August 8, 2018
Memories of Sunny Italy
Memories of Sunny Italy 8 x 10 oil painting by Pat Fiorello $300 |
I googled "Why is the Italian flag is red and green?" and this is what I found from a site called the Veeno Company:
"There are a number of theories of why these three colours were used. Some believe that the green represents the country’s plains and the hills; white for the the snowy Alps; and red for the blood spilt in the Wars of Italian Independence. Another more religious interpretation is that the green represents hope, the white represents faith, and the red represents charity."
I prefer to believe it was inspired by the colors of geraniums and their leaves :)
Sunday, August 5, 2018
Hydrangea Burst
Hydrangea Burst 8 x 10 oil painting by Pat Fiorello $300 |
This one was done with palette knives on gessoboard (which is a very slick surface). Between the smoothness of the metal knives, the slipperiness of oil paints and the smooth surface of the gessoboard, things are slipping and sliding very fast. But the energy of that is really fun. I titled this painting "Hydrangea Burst"- it seems to be bursting with the energy and movement it was painted with.
Friday, August 3, 2018
Sunflowers and Irises in Oil
Sunflowers and Irises 12 x 24 Oil Painting by Pat Fiorello $1250 |
I had used it for a commissioned painting earlier this year where the client was looking for a watercolor painting. I loved the composition and wondered what it would look like in oil but hadn't had a chance to get to it yet. I have also been experimenting with palette knife painting lately and thought this might be a great opportunity to finally take on that sunflower painting. the final painting of "Sunflowers and Irises" is shown above. Below is a close up so you can see some of the texture from the knife work.
Here is the watercolor version based on similar inspiration. |
Thursday, August 2, 2018
Classic Sunflowers
Classic Sunflowers 12 x 16 Oil Painting by Pat Fiorello $750 |
It's helpful to orient the flowers facing in different directions, some facing more towards the front views, some with side views, some more in light and some more in shadow. I chose to go with a dark background because I was looking for a more dramatic, classic feel for this painting.
Initially the entire background was dark, but before I finished it felt too dark, so I did a bit of a gradation from dark towards a bit lighter (added some Naples Yellow to my dark mixture) from left to right to give it a little more atmosphere and soften the contrast on the shadow side.
The set up |
The initial block in |
Starting to lay in color |
Wednesday, August 1, 2018
O'Hara Lights
O'Hara Lights 12 x 16 oil painting by Pat Fiorello $750 |
Had set up some O'Hara roses a few weeks back. I initially had them against a light background, but then decided to see how they would look with a darker background for a more classic dramatic look.
So I took my initial photo and in Photoshop Elements put in a darker background. It's is just an approximation since changing one thing, has an impact on everything else, but it gives you an rough idea of the difference the value pattern created by the background might make.