Floral Oil Painting of Hydrangias and Silver Pitcher, 9" x 12"

“Tea and Hydrangias”
SOLD

It’s been awhile since I painted anything reflective so I decided to do this 9″ x 12″ painting of Hydrangias and a Silver Pitcher for today. It was a pleasant change but I sure do get tired of polishing silver! I chose this close cropped composition so that the focus would be on the lemon and it’s reflection in the silver. The colors may be a bit different depending on your monitor.

Old Master Paintings with an Expressionist feel by Susan Martin Spar who creates original oil paintings every day. These daily paintings consist of still life, figure art, and landscape art.

Oil Floral Painting of Silver Cup,Magnolias and Nectarines, 12" x 24" Gallery Wrap Canvas

“Sweet Magnolia Wine”
SOLD.

This 12″ x 24″ painting is one of a series I’m doing on magnolias. It’s on gallery wrapped canvas 3/4″ deep with painted sides so there’s no need to frame it. Just hang it as it is!

This unusually shaped and interesting canvas has been hanging around the studio for awhile so I thought I’d put it to good use. The long shape challenged me to create a composition that would be pleasing to the eye. The piece draws your eyes initially to the silver chalice and then, because we read from left to right (at least here in the states), your eyes are drawn to the right where the large magnolia sits. However, the stronger brushwork and the draw of the silver chalice and bright fruit once again bring your eyes to the left. See the detail picture below.

Old Master Paintings with an Expressionist feel by Susan Martin Spar who creates original oil paintings every day. These daily paintings consist of still life, figure art, and landscape art.

Oil Painting of Magnolias and Ginger Jar, 28" x 38"

“Sleeping Magnolias”

Here’s a little preview of a large 28″ x 38″ piece I’ll be showing at The Blue Whole Gallery in my March show. Collectors in this area are not strong on Still Life so it’s possible this may be available for sale on Ebay in April. The flowers are brighter than they appear here. I’m curious to know what my collectors out there think of this larger work, so feedback is welcome. Click on the e-mail link here on the blog or e-mail me at pinehillart@msn.com.

Old Master Paintings with an Expressionist feel by Susan Martin Spar who creates original oil paintings every day. These daily paintings consist of still life, figure art, and landscape art.

Painting of White Magnolias and Nectarines, 11" x 14"

“Poetry”
SOLD

This 11″ x 14″ painting white magnolias and tangerines is now part of a series I’m doing on magnolias. I love them. Their sweet fragrance is heady and light has a way of dancing around them like no other flower. I’m considering doing a number of these as very large paintings – maybe two feet by three feet. There’s lots of great brush work in this piece. Take a look at the detail below.

Old Master Paintings with an Expressionist feel by Susan Martin Spar who creates original oil paintings every day. These daily paintings consist of still life, figure art, and landscape art.

Large Contemporary Oil Still Life, 24" x 48"

“Fire and Ice”

Here’s a little preview of one of the pieces that will be showcased at The Blue Whole Gallery in Sequim, WA on March 2nd. This piece is quite large, measuring two feel by four feet. As you can see, I needed to break out of my usual small format for awhile. Phew! That felt good! It isn’t for sale yet but may be posted to Ebay in April depending on the gallery sales. I’ll keep you all posted.

Old Master Paintings with an Expressionist feel by Susan Martin Spar who creates original oil paintings every day. These daily paintings consist of still life, figure art, and landscape art.

Floral Oil Painting of Pink Bush Magnolias

“Bush Magnolias”
SOLD.

This 12″ x 16″ painting of pink bush magnolias is painted with loose brush work and generous paint. I’m attracted to magnolias and find them challenging to paint. The panel was primed with a gold gesso which shines through the paint layers providing a rich feel and lovely under tones.
I’ve been preparing for a gallery show at the end of this month and so have been experimenting with new textures and flirting with a semi-abstract feel. This painting is similar in style to some of the ones I’ll be showing. While I will probably never really lose my love of realism and the feel of the “old masters”, I am striving to incorporate a contemporary feel into my work.

Old Master Paintings with an Expressionist feel by Susan Martin Spar who creates original oil paintings every day. These daily paintings consist of still life, figure art, and landscape art.

Oil Painting of White Magnolias in a blue glass vase, 9" x 12"

“Laughing Magnolias”
SOLD.

Happy Valentines Day! Here’s some flowers for you. The nice thing about flowers, unlike chocolate, is that they don’t add weight to your hips. This 9″ x 12″ piece, like all my others, is about light. Here the concept is simple. Contrast. I merely wanted to show intense light working its magic on some magnolias and setting them off by contrast. There’s some good brush work here with some heavy paint layered on the magnolia which sits on the left sweet spot of the painting.

I haven’t been posting as frequently the last two weeks as I’m getting ready for a show at the Blue Whole Gallery in Sequim, WA. You can take a peek by visiting http://www.bluewholegallery.com/. I’ll also be posting some of the pieces here. They won’t be available, however, on Ebay until after the show closes at the end of March.

Old Master Paintings with an Expressionist feel by Susan Martin Spar who creates original oil paintings every day. These daily paintings consist of still life, figure art, and landscape art.

Oil Painting of Orchids and Lemons

“Dancing Orchids”
SOLD

This floral still life of orchids and lemons was based on a concept of shimmering light. I wanted to portray the chief player, the flower on the right as I saw it, shimmering with light. The rest of the objects – the lemons and green glass jar are merely supporting cast. There’s lots of beautiful brush work and lush paint. See the detail of the main player below.

Old Master Paintings with an Expressionist feel by Susan Martin Spar who creates original oil paintings every day. These daily paintings consist of still life, figure art, and landscape art.

Oil Painting of a Buddha with Nectarines, 9" x 12"

“Offerings”
SOLD

About 8th in a series of concept paintings, this beautiful 9″ x 12″ piece has a great glow to it. The light pools around the fruit and bounces off of the Buddha, bringing to the painting a feeling as if the fruit is being bathed in a glow from the icon. The reflections are so bright, they bounce off the polished table below. Lots of lush paint and brushwork in this piece.
My scanner is back on line, so depending on your monitor, it should read right. Enjoy.

Old Master Paintings with an Expressionist feel by Susan Martin Spar who creates original oil paintings every day. These daily paintings consist of still life, figure art, and landscape art.

Japanese Ginger Jar with Flowers and Grapes

“The Ginger Jar”
SOLD

This 9″ x 12″ Painting of a Ginger Jar with flowers and grapes is perhaps the 8th in a collection of new paintings done within the framework of a concept. The concept here was, of course, color. The Jar itself has very little color as it’s background but has wonderful color and detail in its decoration. I placed a pink cloth to accent the peacock on the jar and then placed some flower in the jar itself. The challenge here was to keep the jar as a central player while not losing it to the background in the painting which is nearly the same color as the background of the jar. While it appears at first that there is an outline on the left hand side of the jar, this is only a branch which is part of the jar decoration. If you look closely (picture allowing), you’ll see that the edge of the jar actually extends beyond this branch and is lost to the shadows beyond. This is more evident on the painting when viewing it in person.

Old Master Paintings with an Expressionist feel by Susan Martin Spar who creates original oil paintings every day. These daily paintings consist of still life, figure art, and landscape art.