Hello! Thanks for all the kind notes inquiring about my general wellbeing and status of upcoming works. I do have some news to reveal, as well as a brief explanation. Sometimes I like to crawl under a rock and have deep thoughts. It’s a rejuvenating retreat. But everyone who knows me knows I’m just too perky to be submerged for too long… and I think re-emergence is imminent.
So, some good news! I have been working on a group of works that no one has yet seen. They’re not really a secret, but at this point they’re too close to my heart to show to anyone else. These paintings are larger, more colorful, more narrative, with veils and veils of imagery and meaning.
I’ll be posting them here and showing them IRL at the Around the Coyote exhibition, Chicago, in October.
Also in October, the November issue of Southwest Art will be coming out, and they’re releasing the list of artists chosen as winners in the annual “21 Over 31″ competition. I’m honored to let you know that I’ve been chosen as a winner.
I hope you’ve all had a wonderful summer!
9 x 6 inches on linen, hydrangea #1
These ideas are becoming more clear now, especially with the flowers. I’d love to share the thoughts behind them but I fear it would be a bunch of artspeak bordering on the blah-blah-blah, so I trust you all to interpret them how you like. 
Hydrangeas are a special challenge – i love blue flowers – they’re so unusual and expressive. Hydrangeas seem so prim and forceful with their delicate individual flowers jostling aroud the ball shape of the whole blossom.
I’ll have some comissions to share in the next few days also.
Roses #6 sketch
9 x 6 inches, three David Austin Roses and an English teacup, painted from life. This sketch is available at auction on my website.
Summer is here… well it was here. LOL everything bloomed and now we’re in an overn trying to bake all the flowers into crispy little corpses. Sigh. Every year, Illinois whine about the weather. Too cold – too hot. We’re never happy.
Roses #5 - sketch
6 x 9 inches, oil on linen, alla prima from life sketch of 3 david austin roses in a spice jar. The variety is “Abraham Darby” and it’s one of the most beautiful roses I’ve ever seen. I’ll probably paint these a lot. Hooray.
This is available at auction. On my site, just look for the widget on the right side.
A few of you have commented on my breakthrough, and thanks! The more I paint something, the looser it gets, and more of my personality shows up in it. Each kind of drip, line, edge, obliteration, and finish (or lack thereof) has a particular meaning in the narrative. In the figure paintings, it’s probably pretty obvious, but in the floral paintings I guess it might not be.
Some people have asked how I know “when it’s done”. Actually, I see these in my head in mostly-done fashion right after the 3-value sketch. So it’s a matter of driving to that vision. “Vision” is sort of a high falutin word, and it reminds me of that character in “Heroes”, but that’s the gist of it. Sometimes there’s some futzing around at the end and staring at it in a mirror, and then getting a sense for what it “needs,” like knowing your stew needs salt.
Dahlia Study
6 x 9 inches, oil on linen, study of dahlias.
I’m working on finishing up a commissioned painting of dahlias, so I did this study to help with the finish of that. I’ve found that with multi-session paintings from photos, doing some paintings from life during the process really makes the paintings from photos feel more life-like.
Cherries and teacup
OK, now we’re getting somewhere. 7 x 5 inches, oil on panel.
Lavender #1
5 x 7 inches, oil on panel. My studio smells so great! I have roses, peonies, pansies, and lavender in here. MMMMM!!
I’m going to offer this one as an auction as well. Check the link on the right side of the web page (on my site only, not in RSS emails or on FB - please click through to the original post thanks).
This is a test, and yet real. I’m trying to incorporate auctions into this site, but the plugin is a little complicated. So this first one is a test. On the right of your screen you can see the widget with the link. –> over there.
Shipping is $10 in the US, and $18 outside. Payment is via Paypal. Should anything go wrong with the auction software during the test, I will make good on the inning bidder’s bid. We will work it out.
I’ve been working longer and harder on the gallery and commission paintings, and so I have quite the collection of collections, studies, and smaller works right now.
Your registration email goes nowhere but here, there’s no scam, there’s no ebay to worry about. Should this work out, I will be pleased as punch. I love the auction thing, but detest ebay. But I love dealing directly with people who like what i paint!
Peony #2 Oil Sketch
Oil on panel, 8 x 8 inches, an alla prima oil sketch of a white peony. I’m working on a larger formal painting of pink ones, and doing the life studies is very helpful, not to mention a lot of fun. Email me at lisagloria@gmail.com if you would like to purchase it.
This is the still life from the still life workshop that ended last weekend. It was over 2 sessions, and the workshop covered realistic multi-layer approaches to still life. Even though it’s a simple composition, we covered lots of useful textures! 9 x 12, oil on canvas.
Olive Oil, Pitcher, Garlic - Workshop demo
