Meat & Veggies

Meat & Veggies

oil on canvas 5x7

Sarah Sedwick of Daily Paintworks challenged artist to paint raw meat. I found this subject very challenging at first. Once I figured out the colors for raw meat I found it quite enjoyable to paint. Thanks for this great challenge, Sarah!

Eskie on White

Eskie on White

oil on gessoed panel
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This painting is part of the Daily Paintworks "White on White Challenge" posted by Ann Feldman. I wanted to focus on painting dogs plus work on my values this week, so this weeks challenge was perfect timing for me. I painted this little Eskie (American Eskimo) in the past and thought his soft white fur would be a great way to study color and value in light and shadow.

Thanks Ann for this great challenge on finding color in white subjects.

Road Closed

"Road Closed"

© 2012 Carol Horzempa

6x8oil on canvas
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This painting is part of the "Wheel Challenge" posted by Carol Carmichael on Daily Paintworks. For inspiration I used a photo I took several years ago of a flooded street in Pewaukee Village. Carol challenged artist to paint something with wheels and the freedom they give us. These two boys seem to be looking for a little adventure on just two wheels!

Old Sailor

"Old Sailor"

oil on canas

Carol Horzempa

Last year my husband and I met this old sailor while vacationing along the Florida Gulf Coast. He was on his way down to Sarasota in his sail boat and was kind enough to let me photograph him. I always wanted to paint this pose but was afraid it was too difficult. Now I have found I really enjoy painting the human figure, even hands and feet! This painting has been entered in this weeks Seated Figure Challenge on Daily Paintworks.

Shawna in Tangerine Sky

"Shawna in Tangerine Sky"

6x8 oil on canvas 
Carol Horzempa

NFS

Last Summer I took a photo of Shawna sitting on the shore of Lake Superior at sunset. The sky and water were ablaze with colors of Tangerine and red.  I decided to use the photo for inspiration in the "Color of the Year Challenge" on Daily Paintworks. Kathy Weber challenged fellow artists to do a painting based around the Pantone color "Tangerine Tango." Thank you Kathy for this great challenge!

Waiting

"Waiting"

oil on canvas 8x8
 Carol Horzempa

My Gordon Setter Shawna, waits every day for her favorite people to put on their boots and take her for a walk. She is 12 years old, gray in the muzzle and a little arthritic but still acts like a bird dog out in the woods. This is the third time I have done a painting of Shawna laying next to boots. This time I spent more time trying to capture her special look while waiting to go for a walk.

Polly Madel of Daily Paintworks challenged artists to paint "mans best friend" and their favorite thing. Shawna knows when my husband and I put on our hiking boots that means she gets to do her favorite thing! 

Kurt

"Kurt"
(in the style of Vincent van Gogh)

6x8 oil on canvas
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Gloria Zukaro of Daily Paintworks challenged artists to paint in the style of an artist they admire.  I always wanted to do a portrait of my son-in law in the style of Vincent van Gogh. Kurt, who looks like Vincent's better looking twin is a song-writer and musician.

For reference, I used one of van Gogh's last self-portraits painted in 1889 a year before his untimely death. I'm afraid I got a little carried away with lines and swirls, but at the same time I found myself admiring the passion and genius of this prolific painter.

"This is my ambition, which is, in spite of everything, founded less on anger than on love, more on serenity than on passion. It is true that I am often in the greatest misery, but still there is a calm pure harmony and music inside me..."  

Vincent van Gogh

Waiting For Toast

"Waiting For Toast"

6x6 oil on canvas

Carol Horzempa

Shelly Ross on DailyPaintworks challenged artists to paint their toaster in this weeks challenge. This was an opportunity for me to work on reflections and paint some more tomatos. Even though I got a little carried away with detail, I'm pleased that my toaster looks shinny. Thanks Shelly, this was a fun challenge. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

These Boots Are Made For Walking

"These Boots Are Made For Walking"

6x6 oil on canvas
Carol Horzempa

Nancy Sinatra's song was running through my head while painting this one. Walking my dog in the woods is something I do twice a day while wearing my favorite hiking boots. I tried to capture what I see along the leaf covered path on a fall day. This painting is part of the Shoe Challenge posted by Cheri Homaee on Daily Paintworks.

Smoking Scection

"Smoking Section"

6x6 oil on masonite panel

Carol Horzempa

Carol Marine posted a photo on Daily Paintworks challenging artists to paint a crowd scene.  This was a lot of fun but next time I will use a larger format...very challenging! 

Mini Pumpkins on Red

Mini Pumpkin on Red

6x6 oil on canvas

Carol Horzempa

For several weeks these two mini pumpkins were sitting in my studio waiting to be painted. I decided to set them on a red background and see if I could get them to stand out and be noticed. I found painting these little guys a real challenge but a lot of fun! This is part of the DPW Paint Your Pumpkin Challenge hosted by Carol Marine. Thanks Carol!

Camping Trip

Bear Lake Campground

I have been away from my studio for the past two weeks enjoying the Rocky Mountains, traveling through New Mexico, Texas and finally down to Covington, LA where my husband and I spent some time visiting our son. Now after a lot of gas miles, hundreds of photos of fantastic scenery, I'm happy to be back in Wisconsin and looking forward to getting back to my studio.

Nature Study

"Nature Study"

oil on gessoed panel  6x6

Carol Horzempa

Ann Feldman posted a Fall Challenge on Daily Paintworks last week challenging artist to paint something pertaining to nature with a fall theme and using bright colors.

In this challenge I painted on a gessoed panel with a bright orange undertone and used Manganese Blue Hue for the background. Ann suggest turquoise for one of the colors so this is the brightest blue I could find in my studio. I hardly ever use this blue, made by Winsor &  Newton but with this challenge I discovered a wonderful intense blue and plan to use it more often. 

I really love this time of year! My studio is getting cluttered with acorns, leaves and other fall gatherings. Unfortunately this season goes way too quickly.

Early Girl

"Early Girl"

4x5.5 oil on gessoed panel 

Carol Horzempa

Another tomato painting, this time all by herself. I'm really starting to enjoy painting tomatoes and hope the frost doesn't get them before I can paint a few more. 

No Makeup Please!

No Makeup Please!

oil on canvas 6x4.5

© 2011 Carol Horzempa

I painted my makeup (which I rarely use) for the Limited Stroke Challenge in Daily Paintworks. We were challenged to plan our painting by counting the number of strokes we would need to paint each color shape. I tried to stick to 32 strokes but lost count after I reached 40. I had fun with this challenge though and will try again. 

Turning Red

"Turning Red"

6x6 oil on canvas

© 2011 Carol Horzempa

The larger tomato was literally turning red while I was painting. That is how slow I was with this painting. I kept changing the colors which was not a smart thing to do. Hopefully I will speed up on my next tomato painting.  

Tomato Studies

"Tomato Studies"

6x6 oil on canvas

©2011 Carol Horzempa

Instead of 10 minute studies, I took my time and focused on trying to make these tomatoes look round and heavy like they are. The stems started drying under the light but I liked how they curled up. This year I have a lot of tomatoes growing in my garden and hope to paint more before the frost. 

Garden Study

"Garden Study"

6x8 oil on canvas
Carol Horzempa

In late summer there is only a short span of time where I have sun in my garden. My Impatiens don't seem to mind though. I did manage to finish most of my painting before returning to the studio.

My garden is growing a bit wild, almost covering the watering can but I find it more interesting than a manicured garden.

Bay Furnace III

"Bay Furnace"

oil on canvas 6x8
Carol Horzempa

This is my 3rd painting of this bay on Lake Superior in the Hiawatha National Forest, Michigan's Upper Peninsula. Every year on our annual family camping trip I bring my paints and plan to do some plein air painting at Bay Furnace Campground. Instead of painting I always ended up taking pictures and painting from photos in my studio. This year I finally pushed myself to make an attempt at painting on the beach under a shade tree and found it was actually fun!

Sanctuary

"Sanctuary"

6x8 oil on canvas
Carol Horzempa
NFS

Yesterday I decided to go out to my backyard to see what I could paint. I love how the evening sun creates dramatic light and shadows across my yard. My hosta plant always stands out with it's bright yellow-green leaves at this time of day. I almost didn't paint the bench swing since I wasn't sure how to paint it. I found it was easier to paint as long as I didn't focus on details. I started losing my sun so I finished this painting from memory in my studio.

I used a limited palette of cad. yellow medium, cad. red light, ultramarine blue plus white.