Floral Paintings in Varied Media

I'm tired tonight and can't think of a topic to talk about so I'll post a few paintings and maybe a poem.

Above left is a small, wooden, heart box with a sliding lid. I covered the top of the box with a piece of wallpaper cut to fit. It was the same wallpaper I used to have on the diningroom wall. The painting was done in acrylics and is a typical Folk Art rose.

Top right is my watercolor Hibiscus. I now have it matted and mounted in a frame. It hangs in one of the bedrooms with other florals. I love the way watercolor fades and runs together, finding it's own path and eventually forming a hazy backdrop. It has a dreamy quality and tends to peak your imagination.

Just below the Hibiscus is a floral done in acrylic washes. Washes being more water than paint making them more transparent. These types of paintings are usually done on a light background, the shading is painted in first using a Blackgreen color. The painting dries well and is misted with Krylon Matte spray before the washes of color are applied. The transparency of the color washes permits the shading to show through. This can be a challenge.

Last is my painting of flowers in a glass vase, one of my favorites, done in oils. The picture doesn't include the frame that was simply 1 inch quarter round, mitered and glued to the surface of the board. The board was sanded and painted a blackgreen, gold leafed on the outside of the oval, the painting was completed, dried and varnished and then the mitered quarter round was painted and glued on the edges of the board with the rouded edge facing the picture and one of the flat edges flush with the outside edges of the board.

This has been an exceptionally full month for me. Working every spare minute to complete the project I started of creating a home office has been exhausting but well worth it. Too many late nights, midnight and 1 a.m. don't make for a relaxed fun work day.

As I type this I am enjoying the peace and serenity of my long awaited and greatly desired work space. Everything I need is close by and organized. The colors are restful and very European.

I have also managed to work my way through years of teaching files and a lot of unused art supplies, with one thing in mind - toss or donate! My husband has been cleaning out our home and business files, the drawers actually roll out smoothly, unimpeded by bulging files and untamed collections of paperwork. There is space - space - between the file folders....whew!!!

Still have a large mirror to hang and a couple of shelves and under-shelf halogen light bar but for the most part the room is finished and I LOVE IT. Will post a few pics when I have them.

I just purchased some books from one of the vendors that displays them where I work. They will be gifts for some of my grandchildren this Christmas. The vendors that bring books and other gift items to sell are very nice people, interesting and have good products. We had a bad experience with one several years ago that prompted me to write a poem. I hope his attitude has changed since then, I would hate going through life the way he was.

THE AMERICAN BOOKMAN
By Carol Glitschka, 3/99

Delivering books he
Stomps through the door
Drops the big load
With a ‘BOOM’ on the floor.

His attitude shows
With each line on his face.
His mouth curved downward
Pulls it all out of place.

He's a cloud of gloom
wherever he goes
The American Bookman
Full of sorrow and woes.

We don't want him here
We don't want his books
We don't like his style
And we don't like his looks.

We don't like to order
From a list we can't read
He's disgusting and ornery
And he acts out of greed.

The look on his face
When books don't sell
He's angry and difficult
He has one foot in hell!

There's a chip on his shoulder
A chip on his head
A curse on his business
that soon will be dead.

he throws books around
He's rude in his talk
The American Bookman
Can just “TAKE A WALK!”

Goodnight!! I'm going to finish my glass of Gewurztraminer (wine) and head to bed!