Dear Suzy, 14x11" (Sold)

This beautiful woodland creature befriended my neighbors, Pat and Rosemarie, and became a constant visitor and diner at their home.  Wild animals are a source of great fascination in our neighborhood, since we bump up next to a forest.  Our book club chats are frequently centered around who saw whom, where and when, and how everyone out there is faring.  Do we sound just a bit eccentric?  We wouldn't have it any other way!

A Place I Remember, 16x8" (Sold)

This painting was such fun to create.  Starting with paint and lots of turpenoid, I let the paint run all over the canvas.  On top of this, I used a palette knife to lay in the major shapes, and finished off with a brush to soften some edges. What I like best about this technique is that abstract forms are created, allowing us to use our imaginations to fill in the blanks.  

Mexican Woman, 9x12"

This week I've been thinking a lot about the artists that I admire.  Today, I decided to try to paint a woman in the style of Jeffrey Watts.  Bold, simple strokes with loads of paint are what sets him apart from many portrait painters.  I had to stop myself from going back in and putting in more detail many times-- it goes against my nature, but I'll put my brushes down now and let it be.

To bid on this painting, click on Ann Feldman Mexican Woman.

Tarts for Thiebaud, 10x8"

Tarts for Thiebaud, Ann Feldman

I can never just walk by a painting by Wayne Thiebaud.  I find myself stopping and staring at his paintings of pastries, all lined up like a row of soldiers, and I ask myself, what is it about this painting that I find so intriguing?  The pastries are displayed like icons, and they are imposing without being threatening.  They are tilted toward us invitingly.  The shapes and shadows are painted simply, but with extremely complex color shifts.  Thiebaud is pop art, contemporary art, impressionism, and realism all rolled into one.  He can't be defined, and perhaps that's why I find him so mesmerizing.

To bid on this painting, please click on Ann Feldman Tarts for Thiebaud.

Wayne Thiebaud, Four Cupcakes, 1971

Das Kaffeehaus, 6x6"

This is a little cafe street scene in Germany, painted mostly with a palette knife to keep the figures very loose and open to the viewer's interpretation.  I haven't been to Germany, but I can imagine that this place creates quite a clatter!

To purchase this painting, please send me an email.

Toastie, 6x6" (Sold)

This week's challenge for Daily Paintworks is to paint your toaster.  Easier said than done.  Every time I'd get my setup together, someone would sneak up to my studio and steal it to toast something downstairs!  I hadn't realized 'til now that this appliance was so vital to our daily living around here.  I'll never take you for granted again, Toastie!

To bid on this painting, please click on Ann Feldman Toastie.

Richard the Second

Richard came in to sit for us again last week, and I developed his portrait a bit further.  I'm glad that I took the time to put more thought and detail into his face.  In the first sitting, I covered large areas of his face with broad brushstrokes of color.  The second week, I went into these areas and broke them up with shorter strokes of new color.  I think it gave him more dimension and a more lifelike appearance.

The Good Dog, 8x8" (Sold)

I saw this modern-day cowboy out fixing fences in Colorado a while back.  What really impressed me (besides his fancy red horse with wheels) was his really good dog perched on the back of his bumpy vehicle.  He was more than ready to jump down and give some cows a little instruction!

To bid on this painting, click on Ann Feldman The Good Dog.

It Must Be Monday, 6x6"

Nearly every Monday is Sushi day at the Feldman house!

To bid on this painting, please click on Ann Feldman It Must Be Monday.

Self Portrait

Hello Friends: Yes, I know that this portrait doesn't look a whole lot like me-- I'm serious and I've got my mouth closed (!), but as you can see, it's what I would call "experimental".  I can do this with a self portrait, because I know that the client won't mind. I used a loaded palette knife to apply the paint, so the likeness got away from me a bit. But I'm happy with the push that I gave myself in a new direction, so I won't sweat the details.

And Now For A Teachable Moment:  Several of my portrait students have asked that I jot down some of my teachable thoughts on my blog, and I have a couple of them today. In class, I stress the importance of finding the light and shadowed areas on the head, face, and neck and sticking to those areas throughout the painting process. In this portrait, after I found the light and shadow areas, I was free to apply any color I wanted, as long as I stayed true to my original "map". Notice the huge green area on the shoulder. Since it's in the right value, it reads right. This allows me to push my colors into completely new and unexpected areas. Having a plan is actually very freeing!

And now a thought on using the palette knife. Applying paint with a palette knife is a lot like riding a wild horse with really loose reins-- you're not really in control and unexpected things happen at every turn! I maintain just a bit of control by having very large mixtures of paint on my palette in light, middle, and dark values, and I "average" the color in each puddle to what I see in the large areas of my portrait. As long as my values are kept separate, I can add colors and apply them liberally without as much fear as I normally would have. Let's look at that shoulder area again. I started with a very light mixture of paint for the skin in the light, then added light green and light blue to my mixture with the knife. These colors didn't blend entirely on the palette, so tiny streaks show up in the painting. I love this effect. Every time I reloaded my knife, I picked up a bit more color from somewhere on my palette and put it into my mix. This keeps the area alive and gives a feeling of movement.

So stick to your plan, and push your color! You might find new experimental horizons of your own!

Nesting Time Again, 8x10" (Sold)

If this painting looks familiar, I painted one very similar a few months ago, and was asked to paint it again!  I rearranged the order and tilted them the opposite way, but I still found it pretty difficult to paint another painting so closely related to one I had done before.  This one took about twice the time the first one did, and I think it's because I lost the freedom I had with the first one-- I had to match all the decisions I had made before, and it was a completely different process.  I enjoyed it nonetheless, because I'm intrigued with shiny objects and bright colors (I guess it's the magpie in me).

Sunday Morning, Cambridge 8x8"

It's hard to beat Cambridge Massachusetts on a Sunday morning in the fall.  The architecture, the boutiques, the Harvard bells tolling in the distance.  Emily and I were lucky to catch what was probably the last great autumn weekend of the year!

To bid on this painting, click on Ann Feldman Sunday Morning, Cambridge.

Portrait of Inna, 10x14"

Inna is a student at Mainstreet who came in to model for us the other day.  After laying in a thin wash of paint with my brush, I took my palette knife to it to punch up the difference in my values and to lend the painting more of an impressionistic feel.  For the background, I brushed on a bright orange color and followed it up with mixtures of white, blue, and green applied with my palette knife.  This technique of layering complementary colors over a bright background allows the color to "sit behind" the model, which is always desirable!

Head of the Charles Regatta, 8x8" (Sold)

Here is another small painting of the Regatta in Boston this last weekend.

If you would like to bid on this painting, click on Ann Feldman Head of the Charles Regatta.

Regatta on the Charles, 8x8" (Sold)

This past weekend I visited my daughter Emily in Cambridge, and it just so happened that the Head of the Charles Regatta took place at the same time.  What a carnival!  Streets in Boston were closed to make room for the hordes of race watchers, food stalls, and rides.  The weather was perfect-- crisp and sunny.  It was the perfect New England spectacle!

A Sunny Day, 6x6"

This tiny portrait of a little girl in the sunlight was my entry into this week's Daily Paintworks Challenge.  I tried to keep this one very loose and impressionistic.  I often find this type of portrait more intriguing than a very detailed one.

Aspens in the Snow, 8x10" (Sold)

This past weekend was Parents' Weekend at both boys' schools in Colorado, so I left a few days early to paint in the Oil Painters of America's Paint Out in Woodland Park, near Pikes Peak.  The Aspens were in full color, and I was in heaven.  This being my first "away" paint out, I wasn't very well prepared!  I sat on my suitcase and balanced my painting on my knees while the wind whipped all around me.  The landscape moved me so much that I lost myself in my painting and didn't realize that I came pretty close to hypothermia one blustery morning...

Next time, I'll be ready!  Fingerless gloves are a must-- as is my easel.  I can't wait to go again!

To bid on this painting, click on Ann Feldman Aspens in the Snow.

Lovely (To Be) Back, 6x6" (Sold)

This is my entry for the Daily Paintworks composition challenge.

Sun Over Mt Sopris, 8x8" (Sold)

This is the last of my Mt Sopris "miniseries".  The area is so beautiful, I couldn't paint just one!

This painting will be up for auction at the Colorado Rocky Mountain School fundraiser on October 15.

John and Anne's Truck, 8x8" (Sold)

The founders of the Colorado Rocky Mountain School drove a truck from Vermont in 1953 to settle and set up their school near Carbondale.  The truck still sits in a place of honor on the campus!

This painting will be up for auction at the CRMS fundraiser on October 15.

Mt Sopris, Late Summer, 8x8" (Sold)

Our youngest son Jordan is finishing high school in Colorado.  He loves it there.  For art class, he elected to take blacksmithing.  His school sport is mountain biking-- a bit of a departure from life here in Illinois! Campus is in the shadow of Mt Sopris, which I couldn't resist painting last time we were there.

This painting will be auctioned at the Colorado Rocky Mountain School fundraiser on October 15.

Illinois Sunflowers, 5x5"

Sunflowers are everywhere in our area right now-- profusions of them!  During a walk in a field, I came upon a huge branch of them hanging over my path.  I could look up into them at the sky above.  I toned a board with hot pink (pthalo red rose) and layered color on top with a palette knife. Sometimes starting a painting with an unexpected color can give a painting extra vibrancy.

If you would like to bid on this painting, please click on Ann Feldman Illinois Sunflowers.

Rain in the Woods, 8x8" (Sold)

This is the other plein air painting I completed in the rain at the Crabtree Paint Out.  A week later now, and my gear is just about dried out from the excursion!  Sure, there was some hardship involved that day, but I'm so glad that I didn't miss out on the beauty of that quiet spot.

If you would like to purchase this painting, please click on Ann Feldman Rain in the Woods.

Edge of the Prairie, 8x8" (Sold)

Can you tell that this little painting was created in a downpour?  Last Sunday's Crabtree Forest Paint Out was nearly washed out by rain, but a surprising number of hearty souls braved the weather with good cheer, and it turned out to be a fantastic day.  Dear husband John stuck with me the whole day-- we resembled a couple of whalers from Nantucket in our rain gear!  We trekked way out to the prairie where the adverse weather toned the grass and wildflowers into glowing fall color.  It was worth the trip!

To bid on this painting, please click on Ann Feldman Edge of the Prairie.

Mainstreet Instructors Show

"Timeless", 18x24"

Did you know that the instructors from Mainstreet have a show going on now at the Elmhurst Art Museum in Elmhurst, Illinois?  It will be up until October 21-- plenty of time to get there!  And we'll have a reception on Friday October 7, at 7pm, and I would LOVE to see you there.

In the meantime, if you'd like to see the art that I have there, please click on Ann Feldman's Virtual Gallery.   Thank you!

Tall Grass Study, Crabtree Forest Preserve, 5x5" (Sold)

The Crabtree Forest Paint Out is tomorrow, so this is the last of my studies before the big event.  I'm looking over my studies today, deciding which type of painting I should paint on site.  So far, I've gotten votes for the thistle study and the tree.  If you have any thoughts to share with me, please do so!  I love your input -- but time is limited! I'm packing up tomorrow morning!

These little studies (and a couple of extras) will be on sale at Crabtree tomorrow.  I've decided to price them at $40 a piece.  If you'd like me to put one aside for you, please let me know.  And thanks!

Wildflower Study, Crabtree Forest, 5x5"

This is another tiny plein air study I did in preparation for the Art in Nature event at Crabtree Forest Preserve this Sunday.  These studies will be for sale at the event, but if you'd like me to reserve one for you, just let me know!

Tree Study, Crabtree Forest 5x5" (Sold)

This is a little tree study that I painted in preparation for the Art in Nature event at Crabtree Forest this weekend.  All of these tiny studies will be for sale at the event-- if you would like me to reserve one for you, please let me know!

I'm trying to arrive at a final painting idea for the event, and I'd love to have your vote!  I'll post a couple more, so please stay tuned.

Thistle Study II, 5x5"

Here is the finished study in color.  While I was outside and in front of my subject, I mixed some of the colors that I was observing and made little swatches of these colors on a toned board.  When I came inside, I had my swatches, my three value study, and a photo or two to guide me. Taking the monochrome study from my previous post, I layered color on top.  I tried to keep to the lights and darks that I had mapped out, and I adjusted some problem compositional areas as I painted along.

I may decide to use this study to paint an actual painting, but sometimes I like the spontaneity of little studies like this one!

My plein air studies will be on sale this Sunday at the Crabtree Forest Paint Out-- come visit me!  The Preserve is on Palatine Road, near the intersection with Barrington Road.  I'll be there from 11-4.

Thistle Study I, 5x5"

I'm getting ready for the great Crabtree Forest Preserve Paint Out this weekend. Whenever I paint outdoors, I have a hard time getting color right, so I paint monochromatic studies like this one to get me started.  For this one, I took a new canvas and covered it with wet purple paint mixed with some Gamsol.  To find the light parts, I used a clean brush or paper towel to wipe away the paint.  Then I went in with a brush loaded with thick paint to find the dark areas.

Now that my composition is figured out and my lights and darks are defined, all I have to do is match my color with what's already happening.  Sounds easy, right?  Well, as I looked again at my composition, I decided to tweak it a bit and move things around as I painted.  I'll post the finished product so you can see the difference.