margieguyot

"Honeycrisps #2"

2012-01-24T10:49:00.000-08:00

"Honeycrisps #2" -- oil on canvas 24x24" -- Margie Guyot

This is my favorite variety of apple! It tastes like its name: sweet and crisp. Lately I've been on a pumpkin/gourd/apple kick. The most recent painting, "Granny Smiths", featured green apples on a red and white tablecloth. I'm a huge fan of paintings done in contrasting colors, so I had to follow that painting with red apples on a green tablecloth.

This tablecloth was an antique store find. When I pulled it out, I hesitated because of the gold. But the longer I looked at the honeycrisps, the more yellow and gold I saw in them. So I think it was a good match.

My studio is in NW Michigan, along the coastline of Lake Michigan. It's winter here and the skies are overcast about 98% of the time. Summers are a joy, but winters are pretty gloomy. So it's a rare thing to see strong, bright sunlight and shadow patterns in my still lifes -- unless I invent them.

Years ago when I was visiting galleries out West, I was very impressed with the paintings of the American Impressionists and master painters of the Old West. They were so good at painting cloth! I'd stand right up to the paintings, studying how they painted fabric folds. More than once I set off an alarm by standing too close. But at least I got a good look at how they did it.

I always love challenging myself, so I never shy away from painting wrinkled, mussed-up tablecloths! Some people take photos and then project and trace, but I work from life. I do use a little viewfinder to help compose the painting. There are generally a lot of wipe-outs when I'm laying in the design, but I'm used to that, so I don't panic. Heck, it's more fun that shoveling out the chicken coop!

I must admit, though, the pattern of this tablecloth was about to drive me mad!

"Granny Smiths"

2012-01-16T03:54:00.000-08:00

"Granny Smiths" -- oil on canvas 24x24" -- Margie Guyot

I had the urge to paint another apple still life. This time I wanted to do something with Granny Smith apples, since I'd painted quite a few Honeycrisps lately. I love the green! If you've been following my blog at all, you may have noticed I love painting vintage tablecloths as well. And I don't shy away from painting folds and wrinkles, either. What else is there to do, anyway? Iron sheets? Wash walls? No, I'd sooner be figuring out how to paint things!

Often I'll decide on the color scheme before I set up a still life. Years ago I was in a gallery out West when I realized that the paintings that seemed to jump off the wall were done in contrasting colors: red and green. Orange and blue. Lavender and yellow. I love bright colors and a "this one's jumping off the wall!" type feeling, so much of the time I will consciously decide on contrasting colors before I set things up.

I've used this red and white tablecloth in several other paintings. I snagged it in an antique store in Traverse City a year or two ago.

The apples -- I'd planned on buying a bag of them, but the bagged ones all looked too green. Like they weren't ripe yet. Super-green, gill-grabbers! So I had to pick out individual ones, going for the more pale ones at Meijer's. A couple had faint tinges of red (all the better!).

And it was such a crazy week to try to paint! A 6" snowfall, 2 rehearsals (I'm in 3 different musical groups), plus I taught 2 art classes and had art show opening at the Dennos Museum in Traverse City. There were constant interruptions, but sometimes that's good, too. It can be helpful to step away from one's painting, then come back to it to "see it with a fresh eye".

What's next? A red apple with green tablecloth? Possibly!

"Ford Flex in Snow"

2012-01-16T03:37:00.000-08:00

"Flex in Snow" -- plein air field study -- 8x10" oil on birch panel -- Margie Guyot

Setup for "Flex in Snow", January 13, 2012

This has been the strangest winter. Up until January 13th, we'd only had 1" of snow. Many days were 40 degrees (or more). I was hoping we would get some snowfall so I could do some paintings of cedar trees in the snow, ideally on a bright, sunny day, so there would be blue shadows. I haven't seen this combination yet, but it could still happen.

So last Friday I woke up to 6" of snow. It was still snowing here and I was so excited, I wanted to paint it. From past experience, I've learned it's next to impossible to paint when the snow is falling. It ends up on your palette, mixing in with the oil paints. Just an icky mess!

The whole front side of my house has a porch with an overhanging roof, so I set up my Soltek easel and painted this view of my Ford Flex. Keep your fingers crossed for a sunny day + snow!

Oh -- I get asked this all the time: how is your Flex in the snow? Great! This one's got AWD and I've never had a problem. I managed to get out of my long driveway, through the pileup at the end that the snowplow leaves, and out onto the highway. And there's lots of cargo room for transporting big paintings.

"Lettuce and Tomatoes"

2012-01-16T03:22:00.000-08:00

"Lettuce and Tomatoes" -- oil on canvas 16x20" -- Margie Guyot

This is the first painting I did after the holidays, right when everybody's thinking about diets and salads! I'd just finished a still life recently that had this same green bowl in it. It was such a "hoot" to do, I had to do another one. Don't you love the greenish shadow it casts? I'm fascinated by glass (although this bowl was really plastic!) and how it distorts shapes. Why scrub floors when you can paint glass?

We rarely get sunny days in winter up here, so there is hardly ever a true, strong sense of shadow shapes -- only a fuzzy suggestion.

Another thing that's captured my fascination lately has been the colors of the shadows. It seems the local color of an object (such as the carrots) affects its shadow. Notice the faint tinge of orange next to the carrots? And the faint tinge of red next to the red pepper? The cold and winter snows help eliminate distractions up here in the north so we artists can notice things we might otherwise miss.

"Honeycrisp"

2012-01-04T04:26:00.000-08:00

"Honeycrisp" -- oil on canvas 18x24" -- Margie Guyot

My favorite apple variety, the Honeycrisp! With the wind howling and snow blowing, it seemed to be the perfect way to spend a few days, holing up in my studio, painting apples. That's a resale shop glass bowl. I'd used it in a a painting right before this. It's fun to paint -- I like the way it distorts.

Honeycrisp apples may not be the prettiest apples out there, but they're the tastiest. They always sell out before any of the other varieties.

Most of the time it's overcast in winter up this way (northern Michigan). But one day the sun peeked out for about 5 minutes, and I saw small bits of sunlight hitting the table, filtering through the row of geraniums on the windowsill. I thought the little spots of sunlight added a bit of charm.

About 99% of this painting was done with just one brush: a #6 Silverbrush flat. It's a great brush. Holds its knife-edge, allowing me to make long, thin strokes. I'm not very fond of cleaning brushes, so that's probably why I will paint all day long with one brush. OK, I did have to use one more, a Windsor-Newton Series 7 Kolinsky sable, only to sign my name.

Some artists are very careful about cleaning brushes. One friend gently wipes them with walnut oil, never turpentine, certainly never soap or detergent. I guess I'm horribly brutal: I douse them with Dawn dish soap and scrub them mercilessly until they come clean. And sometimes I add a drop of soap to the bristles and re-shape them, allowing them to dry that way. I don't know who's right about this, but I guess the brush manufacturers like to sell me more brushes!

Apples and Gourds

2011-12-26T14:16:00.000-08:00

"Apples and Gourds" -- oil on canvas 30x30" -- Margie Guyot

As soon as I began disassembling "Pumpkins and Gourds" (the most recent painting), I stopped and thought why not use most of the same objects, only re-arranged? You probably have guessed by now that I'm fascinated by gourds! I had a bag of honeycrisp apples in the refrigerator. Glad I pulled them out, too. Two of them were starting to spoil. So the chickens got those. And I can't remember where I got the hand-woven grass mat. Either it was the one I bought in the jungle in Panama or else it's a garage-sale find (one somebody else bought in a jungle somewhere). And what would one of my still lifes be without good-old turkey feathers?

I just loved the way the glass bowl distorted things! Not much going on up here, TV-wise, and house-cleaning is so boring, I'd much rather be trying to figure out how to paint distortions! And it being winter, I have no distractions from gardening chores. Although the chickens and rabbits (and cats!) do require a certain amount of attention each day.

I wasn't entirely sure I could do a satisfactory rendition of that grass mat! Thank goodness I didn't allow myself to go into a panic. Just about anything can be figured out if you stay calm!

One thing that surprised me was the beautiful green shadow that the green "glass" bowl cast, in the upper right. It may not show up well in this photo, but it is noticeable in person. And another surprise to me was the faint reddish tones in the shadows cast by the red apples. This painting was done under natural light, next to a south-facing window. It was overcast the entire time I painted; no strong sunlight/shadow patterns. Maybe the reddish tones only showed up because of the softer light. Maybe they would have disappeared in strong sunlight.

"Kitty and Pumpkins"

2011-12-21T06:06:00.000-08:00

"Kitty and Pumpkins" -- oil on canvas 36x36" -- Margie Guyot

Here it is, several days before Christmas, and I'm still painting pumpkins! Well, this year I happened to find a very interesting assortment of pumpkins (and gourds). I really hope to paint as many of them as I can before they rot.

And what would a still life painting be without a wrinkled tablecloth and some type of glass? I love painting both and have quite a collection. Turkey feathers, too. I use them often in paintings. I love their ziggy-zaggy design -- and they're harder to paint than you'd think.

This year I did quite a number of small, 6x6" paintings, as they seemed more affordable. They were good practice, but for me, it's frustrating. I love doing very complex, difficult paintings -- and 6x6" is too small of an area for that. So every once in a while I have to haul out a larger canvas to satisfy my need for "challenging projects". My friend, Todd Warner, said that it's good to paint a large one at least once in a while to show people that we still can do it!

I never paint from photographs. I always use a viewfinder and draw the composition in, using a thin mix of a soft gray paint. Sometimes there are a lot of wipe-outs, but generally it takes me about a day to draw a painting in. Then I dive in to painting the darks, moving gradually to the medium tones and finally the very lightest tones.

For this painting I deviated slightly. The toughest thing for me was the distortions in the glass bowl. Distortions in glass are very addictive for me and after having painted a few hundred little 6x6" apples and cupcakes, etc., I just had to slug away on this bowl first thing!

Making a successful painting is learning how to control your panic! Unlike plein air landscapes, the wonderful thing about still lifes is that they pretty much hold still. The distortions stay still. So that is a comfort. I have learned to just calmly look at the shapes and paint them. Painting shapes is all there is to it.

Yesterday morning I'd pretty much painted in the whole thing except for the gap in the lower right. The table edge left an empty gap. What to put there to stop the viewer's eye from falling off into the abyss? I was sitting here at the computer, mulling it over when Picasso, my studio cat, nudged my leg. Aha! I grabbed my camera and snapped his face. Cats may be wonderful, but none of mine have ever cared to hold still. So I did have to refer to a photograph for his portrait.

The title: If I'd called this "Picasso and Pumpkins" it might have sent viewers into a wild goose chase, looking for "THE" Picasso, hidden somewhere.

Blue

2011-12-04T06:29:00.000-08:00

"Blue" -- oil on canvas 16x20" -- Margie Guyot

Last weekend my friend Ann stopped in my studio to show me her new handblown Christmas ornaments. She suggested I use them in a painting, paired with an old blue Carnival glass bowl I had. I'm always careful to return borrowed items as quickly as possible, so when we had a sunny day here this past Friday, I painted like a fiend! This painting would have been impossible to do without bright sunlight flooding in.

If I had the nerve, I would have titled this "Ann's Blue Balls"....

Antique Christmas Ornaments

2011-12-04T06:23:00.000-08:00

"Antique Ornaments" -- oil on canvas 18x24"

Until I'd painted "White Poinsettias" (see previous post), I'd never attempted painting Christmas ornaments INSIDE their boxes. It was rather challenging, but a lot of fun. So I wanted to do another one, only with more boxes! I'd thought of doing a very large canvas, but considering the economy, kept this one relatively small.

Every year I yearn for those 4" pots of poinsettias. Love them! Alas, the stores never get them here until well past Thanksgiving. But I wanted to include some type of holiday plant. So I brought one of my many Christmas cactii down to the studio. I'd never attempted to paint one -- they seem like such a wild snarl! But nothing ventured, nothing gained. I always love a good challenge. And it was sunny! I love sunny days with the strong shadow patterns.

Keep tuned for a future painting with those elusive poinsettias....

More Pumpkins 12x12"

2011-12-04T06:12:00.000-08:00

"Cheese Pumpkin" -- oil on canvas 12x12" -- Margie Guyot

"Baby Boo" -- oil on canvas 12x12" -- Margie Guyot

Once again I've fallen behind on my posts! Life is FULL. The weather here along the NW coastline of Michigan has been balmy, compared to previous years. We've even had a few sunny days, which I've used to squeeze in a few more plein air paintings of the pumpkins. I wish I could say I had grown all of them, but the deer population here would never allow it. No, these are "store-bought" pumpkins from a farmstand in Traverse City. I never cease to be amazed at the varieties! All they had when I was growing up were the big jack-o-lantern types.

To paint pumpkins, I've been plopping them in the grass in front of my studio, setting up the Soltek easel and Bestbrella and sitting in my lawnchair. Usually I stand when painting, but maybe I felt lazy. And I always, always use a little viewfinder to see my compositions.

Most of the time it would be sunny when I'd begin; often the clouds would roll in at some point and I'd lose my strong sunshine/shadow patterns. And the temperature would drop very quickly. Good thing I paint fast!

White Poinsettias

2011-11-12T05:21:00.000-08:00

"White Poinsettias" -- oil on canvas 36x36" -- Margie Guyot

I love painting poinsettias! Every year about this time, I yearn to find them for sale again. I live in a rural area in NW Michigan and about the only place you can find them is in the grocery store. Last year when they had poinsettias "3 for $10", I snapped some up. Red, white, pink -- I love them all! For fun, I thought it would be an interesting challenge to paint white poinsettias on a white tablecloth. Which I did last year. But there was something that troubled me about the painting. It looked too blah!

So I set it up on the easel last week and every time I'd walk by, I'd look at it, trying to imagine how to "fix" it. Finally I got the inspiration to darken the background and paint in a box of antique ornaments. I have lots of old ornaments (of course you'd know I love old, weird things!). I liked the way the ornaments looked IN the box, so I painted the whole thing, as-is. Hard? Of yes, of course it was hard! But it was a cold, rainy, dreary week and it was that or clean closets.

I really like the look of the box of ornaments. I think I'll be doing another big still life with several boxes of ornaments, maybe a couple small poinsettias, a plate of cookies -- and.....?

Lemon Meringue Pies

2011-11-12T05:13:00.000-08:00

"Lemon Meringue #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Lemon Meringue #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Lemon Meringue #3" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Lemon Meringue #4" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Lemon Meringue #5" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

Lemon meringue pies are SO much fun to paint! But the ones I've seen in the grocery stores around here look so nasty. I baked this one a couple days ago. Alas, I think lemon pie wants to be eaten the same day it is made: it deteriorates so quickly! In reality, this slice of pie looked nothing like my paintings. At two days old, the meringue was shrinking and the crust was soggy and falling apart. Had to use my artistic license to "pretty it up" a little.

The first painting I did showed the slice on a green Depression glass plate. I kind of liked the colors, but thought I probably should do the rest on a plain, white background.

I enjoy painting one view (and I always use a little viewfinder at the start), then turning it slightly for the next painting. One thing I found rather amazing was how intensely yellow-orange the lemon filling was in spots on the shadow side. And the meringue was quite dark when in shadow. I just have such a blast, painting lemon pie! Thinking of doing a few more.

And what about eating it? I doubt it. It really is quite a pitiful, soggy mess! This might be something the chickens will savor.

Blue & Orange Striped Pumpkin

2011-11-06T04:17:00.000-08:00

"Blue & Orange Striped Pumpkin" -- plein air field study -- oil on canvas 12x12" -- Margie Guyot

This was another great find in Traverse City, at the pumpkin stand last week. All pumpkins were marked down to $1 each. Such a deal! It was raining cats & dogs, but I thoroughly enjoyed wandering around, picking out such fantastical pumpkins! Where were these beauties when I was a kid?

We had another sunny day here yesterday -- an amazing thing for NW Michigan in November -- so I set up the trusty lawn chair in the yard, my Soltek, the BestBrella (to shade the back of my canvas) and got to work. The 4 cats came by to check on me now and then. Miss America (who is really a "he") jumped up onto my lap at one point. He's the one who's broken so many of my glass vases. At least he didn't jump up onto the wet palette.

The temperature dropped dramatically as the winds picked up at 3:30 (as they usually do), giving me me a final urgency to finish.

Big Blue Pumpkin

2011-11-03T15:31:00.000-07:00

"Big Blue Pumpkin" -- plein air field study -- oil on canvas 12x12" -- Margie Guyot

I love all the unusual pumpkins they're coming out with these days! When I was a kid, they only had orange. Big ones & little ones. So I've been going nuts, painting all the different ones I can find around here. This one is so cool -- I love the blue tones!

We had a rare sunny day today, so I set my lawn chair out by the studio, plopped this pumpkin down and painted away. Long about 3:30, the winds picked up and the temperature must have dropped a good ten degrees all of a sudden. It helped "hurry up" my painting process!

Lumpy Blue Pumpkin

2011-11-01T13:32:00.000-07:00

"Lumpy Blue Pumpkin" -- plein air field study -- oil on canvas 12x12" -- Margie Guyot

Isn't this the coolest pumpkin? I found it at a roadside stand by Traverse City a couple weeks ago. To me, it looks a bit on the blue side. And the lumps just made it even more amazing!

At first I set it down in the green grass, where I'd painted my other pumpkins. But since it's rather blue-ish, I thought it might look better in warmer rust tones -- dry grass and fallen leaves.

The sun struggled to come out this afternoon. And it was pretty chilly. I had to wear my down winter coat to paint this. The wind was pretty steady, blowing my hat off a couple times. But at least there were no mosquitoes!

Right after I finished painting, the light rain started. Great timing!

Warty Pumpkin #2

2011-10-31T05:16:00.000-07:00

"Warty Pumpkin #2" -- plein air field study -- oil on canvas 12x12" -- Margie Guyot

Setup for "Warty Pumpkin #2"

I guess you could say I love pumpkins. When I was a kid there only seemed to be one or two types: the big, jack-o-lanterns and the little pie pumpkins. My sister and I just loved picking out pumpkins! Some years my dad would drive us around to several pumpkin stands to find "just the right ones".

Now that more and more interesting-looking varieties are coming onto the market, I get excited each October, looking to see what the growers have come up with. If the cold and snow can hold off a little longer, I still have another pumpkin or two to paint. This is the first year I've tried painting them in this setting.

While the Northeast was busy digging out from their early snowstorm yesterday, I was sitting on my front lawn, wearing my down coat, and trying to paint this second type of "warty" pumpkin. Sorry, I don't know the name of the variety. And I'd gotten a rather late start (3:30) and not only was the sun going down, but the rain was moving in. Had to use my #8 flat brush and work fast! The raindrops began just as I was putting on the finishing touches.

Splotchy Pumpkin

2011-10-29T04:37:00.000-07:00

Setup for painting "Splotchy Pumpkin" -- 10/28/11

"Splotchy Pumpkin" -- oil on canvas 18x24" -- Margie Guyot

We had 2 bouts of sleet in the morning. It was very gloomy and wet. Then all of a sudden the clouds moved out about noon and voila -- dazzling sunshine! Hallelujah! I knew what I wanted to paint....

Last month I found this wonderful pumpkin in the Garden Center at Home Depot. It was $8 -- highway robbery! -- but it was just too cool to pass up. I'd seen other big "Cinderella" type pumpkins before, but none with these green splotches. It's a big one, too. Heavy. I knew it would be a great subject to paint.

As with "Warty Pumpkin" (see previous post), I knew it would be more challenging to set it out on the front lawn to paint, as opposed to setting it on a white cloth. But the green grass and colored leaves are just too marvelous to leave out! I guess this would qualify as a "plein air still life".

Normally I try to limit my canvas sizes in plein air to small, such as 8x10". But this big pumpkin just had to be painted on a larger format! Scrounging around in the back room, I managed to find a nice 18x24" blank, gallery-wrapped canvas.

All of us "up north" artists are hoping for sales in this wretched economy, but I've decided to just paint what I just LOVE. I don't know how many people would want to buy a painting of a pumpkin, but I just know that someday people will be fighting over them!

Warty Pumpkin

2011-10-29T04:23:00.000-07:00

setup for painting "Warty Pumpkin" 10/27/11

"Warty Pumpkin" -- oil on canvas 12x12" -- Margie Guyot

After about a week of gloomy, rainy, chilly days, the sun came out. It was such a dazzlingly, glorious day! Big, puffy clouds flying over. I wanted to take my easel to the beach and do a bunch of cloud studies. But then the phone rang. Good news and bad news. A friend met a friend who knows a rich art buyer who spends moolah dollars on car paintings. My friend knows I have scads of them sitting, collecting dust in my studio. The bad news: I had to re-photograph them ALL and resize into both 72 and 300 dpi. It took about 3 1/2 hours. Definitely NOT my favorite thing to do, especially when the sky was so spectacular-looking!

But I did it. Sent all the 72 dpi images to my friend so she can make a presentation to the potential buyer. Alas --- by then it was 3:30. Clouds had all gone. Clear blue sky. And I was kind of exhausted from having to use so much left-brain energy. What to do, what to do?

Instead of wasting time driving around, I decided to paint a picture of one of the odd-looking pumpkins I've collected this fall. Setting it on a plain, white background would have been the easiest, but I really loved the colors of the green grass and fallen leaves. So I plopped the little, warty pumpkin down on my front lawn, set up the Soltek and Best Brella and got out a lawn chair. May as well get comfortable!

Normally I stand while painting, but I knew if I sat, I'd be closer to the pumpkin and I liked the angle, the view that I saw while sitting. OK, OK -- I also was kind of tired, so the lawn chair was the way to go.

I haven't done a whole lot of "in the grass" closeup paintings. I wasn't entirely sure I could pull it off. And it was kind of late in the afternoon when I got started, so I was under-the-gun, time-wise, as well. So yes, I used my trusty #6 flat bristle brush to do the whole painting. I love this particular brand because it holds a nice, crisp edge. I can paint finer lines with it (if I want) than if I use a smaller brush. Generally speaking, that is. Signatures always require a small Kolinsky sable.

Besides the late-day pressure, the temperature became an issue as well. Around 4, 4:15 there was a noticeable temperature drop. It's usually around this time of day when the wind direction changes and it gets a good 10 degrees cooler. Feeling the chill, I thought feets, don't fail me now! Painted as fast as I could.

This was so much fun, I really want to paint more! If only the weather holds out....!

More Apples

2011-10-27T06:26:00.000-07:00

"Granny Smith #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Granny Smith #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Granny Smith #3" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Granny Smith #4" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Honeycrisp #4" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Honeycrisp #5" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Honeycrisp #6" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Zestar #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Antique #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

The weather's turned foul lately, so instead of going out plein air landscape painting, I'm hunkered down in the studio, painting some of our new crop of apples. This area is known for its fruit production and the apples are the best! My favorites are the honeycrisp and sweet tangoes. To paint them, I set a cardboard box on the studio table, cover it with a while paper towel and paint it from life.

Cornstalks

2011-10-13T05:04:00.000-07:00

"Cornstalks" -- plein air field study -- oil on birch panel 8x10"

The other day my friend Al Maciag and I were driving south on 31 when we spied this field of old-fashioned cornstalks. Wow! What an idea for a painting! So yesterday morning we stopped at the farmer's house to try to get permission to be in his field. I rang the doorbell and pounded on the door, but nobody was home. We decided to just tresspass. What the heck. Live large.

I really loved the design of the cornstalks and the cool morning light! It would have been fun to stay and do another painting, but we felt we were pushing our luck. The farmer could come out with a shotgun. So we vamoosed on down the road.

Full Moon

2011-10-13T04:58:00.000-07:00

"Full Moon -- Rex Beach" -- plein air field study -- oil on birch panel 8x10"

"Full Moon and Cloud" -- plein air field study -- oil on birch panel 8x10"

"Full Moon -- Scott Road" -- plein air field study -- oil on birch panel 8x10"

The other night the full moon was glorious! I tend to hit the sheets pretty early, but I was just WIRED! How could I possibly sleep when it was so beautiful outside?? I'd never painted en plein air during a full moon, but nothing was going to stop me.

Since you see only 3 values during a full moon, the darkest dark, a medium sky tone and the bright moon, painting is relatively easy. I pre-mixed a dark-dark and a medium tone in the studio before I ventured out. Once out on location, I only had to turn on my flashlight a relatively few times to see what I was doing.

First stop was my favorite hang-out, Rex Beach. You can drive right down to the water. As usual, I had the entire park -- hell! the entire coastline! -- to myself. Normally I park back in the parking lot, but I felt daring enough to park on the sand. Sometimes people get stuck there, so I very carefully cruised through in low gear. It was SO wonderful to be down at the water's edge, painting! All I could hear was gentle waves and once in a while a coyote yipping. Still, I did look around once in a while for any approaching cougars.

A big cloud moved over the sky and as it passed under the moon, I was amazed to see the rusty tones and hints of ochre! Very bizarre.

I only had 3 panels with me, so the last painting was done on my road: Scott Road. I could have painted ALL NIGHT. Really a blast! Maybe this winter I'll try doing it in the snow.

Country Road - Leelanau County

2011-10-10T15:10:00.000-07:00

"Country Road - Leelanau County" -- plein air field study -- oil on birch panel 8x10"

Love those cool shadows across the gravel roads! While painting this one, I turned to my friend Al Maciag (who was painting a few feet away) and said, "This looks like a pile of gumballs!" But I stuck with it and managed to get a decent painting. Sometimes a few bold, straight (more or less!) strokes can make clarity out of chaos!

Cornfield in Leelanau County

2011-10-10T14:58:00.000-07:00

"Cornfield -- Leelanau County" -- plein air field study -- oil on birch panel 8x10"

I loved seeing the corn rows and just had to try painting them! NW Michigan is in its full autumn splendor this week. The farmers are hurridly bringing in crops and the sounds of tractors and heavy machinery is everywhere. As I painted, there was a wonderful smell -- rather like a hickory wood fire was burning somewhere. Thin, high clouds were moving in from the west. In a few more days rain will be moving in.

Ferry Road

2011-10-10T04:16:00.000-07:00

"Ferry Road - October" -- plein air field study -- oil on birch panel 8x10"

This is the second painting I did yesterday, as part of the plein air paint-out, sponsored by the Charlevoix Circle of Arts. My friend Al Maciag and I headed out on Ferry Road, south of Charlevoix, as it's one of our favorite areas to paint. We love the views along the gravel road. This is a big farming area, with lots of orchards and dairy farms. I'm a real sucker for painting along roads!

In the distance, on the right, is the edge of a cornfield. The farmers are working hard this week, harvesting corn, as rain is moving in later in the week. Several tractors and other big machinery passed by us as we painted along the road. I'd pulled my car completely off the road, as it's not a good idea to be in a farmer's way! We were serenaded by the roar of farm machinery the whole afternoon.

Fisherman's Island

2011-10-10T04:01:00.000-07:00

"Fisherman's Island Park - Morning" -- plein air field study -- oil on birch panel 8x10"

This was the first painting of the day, done on the road at Fisherman's Island State Park, just south of Charlevoix, Michigan. The trees are in full glory now, loaded in golds and reds. A glimpse of Lake Michigan showing on the right, with Fisherman's Island in the distance. The lake is low and you can walk on dry land all the way over to the island.

I love painting shadows falling across the road (as if you didn't know that by now). As I painted at the side of the road, big RVs rattled past, kicking up clouds of dust. Fortunately, the wind was blowing steadily from the west, so I wasn't covered in it. That's not always the case!

APPLES!

2011-10-03T11:25:00.000-07:00

"Antique #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Honeycrisp #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Honeycrisp #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Honeycrisp #3" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Zestar #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Zestar #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Sweet Tango" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

I hadn't painted an apple since about 1997. Then about a week ago one of my friends, Caesar Citraro, asked if I'd give a short painting demonstration at a class he was teaching. It was a cold, rainy week, so the demo painting would have to be inside. What to paint?

Then I realized that the Charlevoix Apple Fest was coming up fast (October 14 - 16). Aha! Why not paint apples?

Compared to cupcakes, apples are a lot easier. No pleated, paper cups, no intricate frosting swirls. In short, apples are a JOY to paint! I love their bright colors and shininess.

During the painting demo, another friend, Karen Kimmel, gave me a Sweet Tango apple to paint. After the painting was done she cut it up for people to taste. This is the first year for sweet tangoes around here. Wow! That's one crispy, juicy apple! Given the choice between having $5 worth of dark chocolate and $5 worth of sweet tangoes, the apples win!

So with the arrival of new, juicier apples (such as honeycrisp, zestar and sweet tango), some of the older varieties are falling out of favor, it seems. Another friend close by has acres of old apple trees. They haven't been pruned or sprayed in years. Still, they manage to produce apples. And there are 4 apple trees on my property. I haven't a clue what variety they are. I don't spray them and they are covered in scabs, but once peeled, they still make a good pie. Apples I don't know the names of I'm calling "Antique". Stay tuned!

Late September Sunsets

2011-10-03T10:23:00.000-07:00

"Sunset #1: Rex Beach, 9/28/11" -- oil on birch panel 8x10" -- Margie Guyot

"Sunset #2: Rex Beach, 9/28/11" -- oil on birch panel 8x16" -- Margie Guyot

Running behind on my blog posts again! Towards sunset there was an interesting bank of clouds moving toward the west. I threw all my gear into the car and headed down to my favorite spot, Rex Beach, south of Charlevoix. That's the Leelanau Peninsula in the background.

It's amazing how quickly the sky changes! I painted as quickly as possible to finish the first one, then walked it back to the car. Sitting finished, wet oil paintings on the sand, I discovered to my chagrin, is a no-no! Although it might seem to be calm, there is always a little breeze going on down at sand-level. I have a beach painting that's covered with a fine layer of sand. And contrary to what people say, it does NOT brush off once the painting is dry! Same goes for bugs, too. They are attracted to wet paint and by golly -- they die there. I end up having to paint over them later.

By the time I got back down to the easel everything had changed. The sun had actually dipped below the horizon, but there was still plenty enough light to see to paint. I liked the clouds, how they appeared "dotty" at the top.

9/23/11 Sunset at Rex Beach

2011-09-25T05:14:00.000-07:00

"9/23/11 Rex Beach at Sunset" -- plein air field study -- oil on birch panel 8x10"

It had been an absolutely gorgeous September afternoon, with clear, blue skies. That morning I'd butchered one of the rabbits (quite a job -- I was new to the procedure!). And it seemed like I'd labored most of the afternoon, making rabbit stew. Which was an adventure in itself.

As evening approached, a large cloud bank came out of the East, promising for an interesting sunset. It appeared my long-awaited rabbit stew was finally ready. Ah, the dilemma: paint or eat? But the clouds looked so wonderous, I just had to shut off the stove, cover the pot, throw my Soltek easel into the car and head down to Rex Beach. All I'd eaten all afternoon was the rabbit liver (which was delicious!), but eating could wait!

Good thing I'd put on a polartec jacket AND a windbreaker: it was getting a bit nippy! I set up on my favorite spot, next to a couple relatively flat large rocks, with a view across Grand Traverse Bay towards Northport. As usual, I had the entire coastline to myself. Sunsets change SO rapidly, there's no time to chitchat or dither. It's a race to finish! Ten, fifteen minutes and the show's over. Darkness descends.

As I was packing up, a minivan pulled up into the boat launch area and parked. It was driven by a young woman nurse who had taken her patient, a quadriplegic older man, for a view of the sunset. They were both friendly. We talked briefly as she exercised her patient's legs. Like many of us up here, she'd moved up from one of the Detroit suburbs. The man seemed in good spirits. I could see he was in good hands.

So it was another experience reminding me of the importance of making the most of every day. Everything is a choice: do we want to lay on the couch, watching TV -- or do we want to go paint a sunset? The rabbit stew? It was just perfect! Oh, and I only had 2 bugs stuck in my paint at the end.

Rex Beach 9-15-11

2011-09-16T06:06:00.000-07:00

"Rex Beach - 9/15/11" -- plein air field study -- oil on canvas 8x16"

setup at Rex Beach 9/15/11

All day long the clouds were SO fantastic! I waited until late in the day, then drove to my favorite spot, Rex Beach. Glad I'd dressed in layers -- that wind was howing the whole time and it was pretty chilly. Here I'm looking over Grand Traverse Bay to the Leelanau Peninsula. Parts of the peninsula were getting rain squalls.

Up until this summer, I'd not tried painting in this type of format: long and narrow. It's kind of fun to do, as I get to show more of the dramatic skies.

And yes, that's a Soltek easel. After having to get the legs repaired a couple times, I've finally learned to keep the leg tips enclosed in plastic. Once sand gets inside, the legs go kaflooey! Other than that, it's been a good easel.

As usual, I had the entire beach to myself. This little park is only 3.5 miles from my house and I can drive very close to the beach. There is a turnaround at water's edge, designed for boat drop-offs, but I've seen many people get stuck there. Which is why I always park in the designated parking lot.

Although it was still light enough to paint another, I thought it would be pushing my luck. The rain squall might just hit in the middle of another painting. I packed up and stashed everything into the car, then returned for a walk along the beach. Found 2 small Petoskey stones (fossilized coral, originally formed along the coastline of Chile). Beach visits always revive me!

Sometimes it's almost dark when I walk back to my car, carrying all my equipment. That is when I think about packs of rabid coyotes, hungry bears, mountain lions on the prowl.

Green Cabbage #2

2011-09-16T05:43:00.000-07:00

"Green Cabbage #2" -- plein air field study -- oil on canvas 18x24"

My neighbors, Sue & Shirley, have 3 giant, organic vegetable gardens they call Verdant Ground. Their cabbages are always so beautiful, I love painting them! Alas, this summer I had such a busy schedule, it wasn't until mid-September before I took the time to bring my easel over to paint anything. And I wore long pants, shoes and socks! Last summer I had a bumblebee crawl up my capri pants and sting in back of my knee. OWWWW!

The late-afternoon sun hits the leaves at an angle, making the veins seem to glow. Love that!

Normally I do plein air paintings in a smaller format, such as 8x10", but because these cabbages are so huge, it seems a shame to restrict them to such a small painting. And I'd done 2 similarly-sized cabbage paintings here last year. So I thought it would be good to do them all the same size. And that means using big brushes and painting as fast as possible!

Demitasse and Orchid

2011-09-11T06:33:00.000-07:00

"Demitasse and Orchid" -- oil on canvas 36x48" -- Margie Guyot

Running WAY behind on my posts! Trying to catch up. This painting I did a few years ago. Right now it's hanging in Gallery 50, in Traverse City, in their "Art of Food & Wine Show". They had a chef judging the artwork this time and he awarded mine "this is so intense" award. Which I take as a compliment! I'd be horrified if it got a "this is so trite" award. Or a "Thomas Kincade Wannabe" award.

It was really challenging to paint! The "tablecloth" was fabric from Jo Ann Fabrics. The pale green napkins were from a garage sale. I'd found the red & white striped demitasse cups at a consignment shop. They knocked my socks off, so I HAD to try painting them! Ascending spirals on vertical tubes -- just try painting those! Many wipe-outs.

Other "many wipe-outs" occurred while attempting to paint the wooden stand the orchid is sitting on. I always work from life, never from a projected photograph, so the trouble happens when I stand and look, then step forward to paint, then step back to look -- and by standing in just a fraction of an inch differently, the angles all look different. So it's a struggle.

Because I paint from life, some things rot before the painting is finished. Waste not, want not: I painted the bowl of strawberries quickly as possible, then ate them. And the cookies -- same way. Painted them & ate them. Then it was on to other things.

That orchid was wonderful. It lasted for months. I did 3 or 4 paintings of it before it finally dropped its flowers. It's still alive here, but hasn't bloomed yet this summer. Maybe it's mad at me?

On a Vintage Cloth

2011-08-26T14:39:00.000-07:00

I'm running woefully behind on my blog posts! It's been quite a busy summer. One of my friends shot this photo of me at the opening of my show, "On a Vintage Cloth", on Saturday, August 20th, up at 3 Pines Studio and Gallery, in Cross Village, Michigan.

People ask me what my favorite color is. I'm not sure, but everybody's sure it's orange!

The painting I'm standing in front of is titled "Butterflies and Lemon Pie" (or some such title -- it's all a blur at the moment).

Stay tuned for more show photos! http://www.threepinesstudio.com/guyotshow.html

Kayaks!

2011-08-07T09:34:00.000-07:00

"Kayaks #1" -- plein air field study -- oil on birch panel 8x10"

"Kayaks #2" -- plein air field study -- oil on birch panel 8x10"

Both paintings were done on Saturday morning, August 6, 2011, at the Glen Arbor 3rd Annual Plein-Air Paint-Out. Before I drove over, I had made up my mind to find some colorful boats to paint. I'm rather tired of painting green meadows. Even lakeshore scenes are getting a little ho-hum. It just had to be a strong, bright color -- and something with good lines, a strong composition! I can't paint ho-hum.

Lo and behold: Putt-Putt Golf, on Oak Street, right in downtown Glen Arbor! It was the answer to my prayers. Besides minature golf, they rent out kayaks. There were several stacks of orange and red kayaks that caught my eye.

Hardly anybody was there on Friday night, so I set up my easel for a "test run" painting. Well, what else was there to do in town? Sit in a bar? That doesn't interest me. Before I even had a painting finished, I had a buyer. I knew I'd found my gold mine!

Registration for the paint-out was Saturday morning at 8. That's when all the artists get their blank canvases stamped on the back, then scurry out into the countryside, free to paint until the final deadline. By 4:30, we were to have our 2 (maximum) paintings framed and turned back in.

I went back to good old Putt Putt Golf at about 8:15. And Lordy, Lordy -- the mosquitoes!!!! I knew I'd brought bug repellent but I couldn't bear to leave my easel. So I let them bite away. Tiny little bastards, but blood-thirsty devils. Oh well -- I'd found my subject and nothing was going to stop me! By 11 AM I had my two paintings done and in frames.

What to do the rest of the day? And it was SO hot and humid! I got into my Flex, cranked the air conditioner on high, and toodled around the countryside, enjoying the views. Stopped at a garage sale and ended up doing a painting in their front yard (but that's another post!).

Clematis

2011-07-12T06:05:00.000-07:00

"Clematis" -- oil on canvas 24x24" -- Margie Guyot

My friend Linda Boss surprised me a few days ago, bringing me this clipping of clematis vine. Most of the flower paintings I've been doing this summer have been on 6x6" canvases. But this was so beautiful - I love the way the vine curls around! - that I had to do a larger painting of the whole thing. I've always loved clematis but never had any success in growing them.

Because of two "frisky" studio cats, I had to remove the vase of clematis from my studio every evening.

I used the same gold and lavender silk scarf that I used in an earlier painting, "Lavender and Gold".

If the blossoms will hold out a few more days, I'm going to try and do a few 6x6" closeup paintings.

Striped Petunias

2011-07-08T05:14:00.000-07:00

"Purple Striped Petunia" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Red Striped Petunia" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Yellow and Red Striped Petunia" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

I love petunias! This year I planted the flower beds in front of my porch in dozens of petunias, in every color. The smell is so sweet! And petunias seem to thrive on neglect. Every year it seems the growers come up with new varieties. The top two (shown above) I bought at Pine Hill. The bottom one I picked out of a flower box in front of a store in Charlevoix. And yes, I asked first.

Stay tuned for more petunia paintings!

Siberian Iris

2011-07-08T05:05:00.000-07:00

"Siberian Iris" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

We'd had a cool, late spring this year. When it finally warmed up, all the flowers went nuts, flowering as quickly as possible. I hadn't really painted flowers before. Doing little 6x6" canvases is new to me, too. By the time I finally decided to try painting stuff that pops up in my yard, and by the time I got to thinking, "Hey -- why don't I paint a Siberian iris?", this was the last one left! And it was on its last legs, too.

Ah, well -- there's always next year!

Dark Red Geranium

2011-07-08T05:00:00.000-07:00

"Dark Red Geranium" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

Last year I remembered seeing some very deep red geraniums. All I had here were the brigher, more orange-red varieties. I looked at every plant nursery around before I finally found a plant up in Harbor Springs. I save geraniums from year to year, keeping them in pots on the windowsills in my studio.

I'm enjoying painting geraniums! At first they were rather intimidating. For the first portion of the painting, it looks very discouraging -- just colored blobs! It's the last couple minutes, though, with the little details, that turn it into something that "actually looks like something"!

Blue Field Iris

2011-07-07T05:58:00.000-07:00

"Blue Field Iris" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

This was the last paintable iris I could find. It's one of the many iris I'd dug up from under the trees and moved out into the sun, along my driveway. After painting some of the newer, fancy varieties, this one seems pretty plain. I wonder where it came from, what it's history is. Did it come from somebody's great grandmother? Next season I'll have to make a search, seeking out some of the older (more subtle) iris growing in backyards.

When I first dug out the many iris (all of this variety), I'd planted a bunch in a big flower bed I'd created in front of my art studio. When they bloomed, it was gorgeous. For about a week. Then the iris bed looked pretty sad all the rest of the season. Last year I dug them all out (such a job!) and relocated them all along my driveway, in among the white daisies. In their place, I planted Russian sage in front of the studio. Hmmmm.... and now I'm considering moving that, too. Planting Annabelle hydrangeas in front of the studio. Flower gardening, to me, is a game of constant movement.....

Deep Purple Iris

2011-07-07T05:49:00.000-07:00

"Deep Purple Iris #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Deep Purple Iris #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Deep Purple Iris #3" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

This iris was growing along my driveway, in among the daisies. When I moved here, the previous owner had planted iris all along the edges of the property. Over the years, trees and shrubs had taken over, shading the iris (and hiding them). The past couple years I spent digging them out and planting them along the driveway. Most of the iris are 2-tone: pale lavender and a deeper blue-ish purple. This one was a surprise.

I was busy and had put off trying to paint iris. Finally I picked this one -- the last one with a decent-looking bloom -- and decided to try painting it. It's almost black. I didn't use black paint, though. I mixed ultramarine, alizarin and a little viridian for the darkest shades. Right at the end I put in a few thin dashes of a paler blue-tone to bring out some of the highlights. It turned out to be one of my most favorite flower paintings!

Corn Poppies

2011-07-07T05:40:00.000-07:00

"Corn Poppy #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Corn Poppy #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Corn Poppy #3" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

I love these poppies! They're not the big Oriental variety -- the naughty little rabbits gnawed all the buds off those. But somehow the rabbits didn't notice these. So I thought they'd be a hoot to paint. I realized that only have 2 shades of red on my palette wasn't enough. Some colors just can't be mixed. I did these using cadmium red light (an orange-red) and alizarin crimson (deep bluish-red). It was challenging! But I did order 5 new shades of red. Stay tuned!

Japanese Tree Peonies

2011-07-07T05:34:00.000-07:00

"Japanese Tree Peony #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Japanese Tree Peony #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

Yikes! Once again I've fallen behind on my blog posts! And my Internet service is running slow this morning. Still, an attempt to catch up a little this morning. It's kind of a miracle I have any Japanese tree peonies at all. I'd bought several plants at a moving sale about 5 years ago. It was in the 90's. From what I'd read about these plants, they should only be moved in early spring, in cool temperatures. Somehow they survived being moved twice: first, to my house in Farmington Hills, and a second time, to my house up in northern Michigan. They're quite beautiful when they bloom, but the blooms only last a couple days.

Iris

2011-06-11T05:42:00.000-07:00

"Iris - Peking Summer" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

"Iris - Honkey Tonk Blues" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

"Iris - Stairway to Heaven #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

"Iris - Good Show #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

"Iris - Stairway to Heaven #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

"Iris - Good Show #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

With the arrival of tourist season up here, we artists have been a flurry of activity, varnishing, framing, schlepping paintings hither and yon to galleries, and I had fallen behind on my blog posts! These are the latest paintings I've done this past week. A friend had called me on Monday, asking if I'd like to join her and a couple other painters at the Iris Farm, west of Traverse City. So glad I went!

It was like stepping into Heaven! Not only was it beautiful -- acres and acres of beautiful flowers in every color, but the smell was wonderful. Sunny and perfect!

Before painting, I took an order form and walked around, picking out varieties I wanted to buy. I ended up with 13, although I'd have loved to have one of everything.

It was pretty hot: about 90. So I only painted 1 little 6x6" there (the "Peking Summer"). I cut stems from the other varieties and brought home to paint in my cool studio. I'd cut 4 but it looks like only 3 would open.

The iris were unlike any I'd seen before: huge and many were very ruffled. I'm so used to seeing older varieties. Iris that somebody's great grandmother brought over, very small and unadorned. So it was pretty exciting!

Yellow Lady Slipper Orchids

2011-06-11T05:28:00.000-07:00

"Yellow Lady Slipper Orchid #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

"Yellow Lady Slipper Orchid #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

"Yellow Lady Slipper Orchid #3" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

It was a wonderful surprise to discover 4 clumps of lady slipper orchids growing right in back of my studio, at the edge of the swamp! This is my first attempt at painting them. Maybe I'll see if my neighbor will let me take a bloom off the pink lady slipper orchid that is on her property. It blooms a week or so later than the yellow variety.

I love the little curly-q "thingies" on the sides! Pardon my ignorance of plant structures.

More Daffodils!

2011-06-11T05:22:00.000-07:00

"Daffodil: Lion's Mane" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

"Narcissus: Pheasant's Eye" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

These were the last 2 daffodils (narcissus?) that I was able to paint before the heat kind of "fried" everything here. I admit it: I stole the Lion's Mane from the neighbor's lawn. They were still in California and I figured they wouldn't mind. I had grown these down at my old house in Farmington Hills, but had problems with them. The blossoms were so huge and full, they were top-heavy and always fell face-down. Better to stick with smaller, more simple varieties!

The little pheasant's eye grows in a clump right next to my studio. It has a very sweet scent.

"Lavender and Gold"

2011-06-11T05:13:00.000-07:00

"Lavender and Gold" -- oil on canvas 40x50"

As soon as I saw this beautiful purple glass bowl and silk scarf in a resale shop in Charlevoix, I knew it would be my next painting. Just fell in love with the colors! It was high time to do another big still life, after months of the little 6x6's.

Those are 2 little pots of petunias that I picked up at my favorite nursery (Pine Hill, in Torch Lake). Until fairly recently, I hadn't attempted painting flowers. Seems like I now compare everything to the difficulty of painting cupcakes: all those complicated swirls of frosting, the paper cup pleats....! Yikes!

Made a "new" discovery on this one. New to me, anyway: the deeper purple glass cylindar (in the back). How to make it a rich purple, yet give the illusion of smooth, translucent glass? A quandry. My first attempt showed the brushmarks ---- too upsetting! Finally, what I "discovered" on this one was to take a dry brush, dip it into the paint (in this case it was "ruby violet" from Vasari), smear it on the canvas, then wipe it off with a Viva paper towel. In effect, I was staining the canvas.

One of my friends saw this painting yesterday & she marveled at the glass bowl & reflections, etc. Well, up here, I have no TV reception. I totally refuse to shell out money for satellite TV. No cable here. So what else is there to do? Housework? Hah! Given the choice between mopping floors and figuring out reflections, you know what I would chose every time....!

Daffodils & Narcissi!

2011-06-11T05:08:00.000-07:00

"Daffodil #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

"Daffodil #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

"Narcissus #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

Spring hit -- and with it, the many varieties of daffodils & narcissus popped up in my yard. I'd never tried painting flowers until recently, but since I love looking at them, why not try painting them? I admit it: I don't know the difference between a daffodil and a narcissus.

It's rather challenging to try to paint so many things that will only last a few more days! Try as I might, I know the season will end before I've gotten them all.

More Geraniums

2011-06-11T05:02:00.000-07:00

"Geranium #5" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

"Geranium #6" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

The last post I did was on May 3rd. And today is June 11th! Ooops! Trying to catch up. While at Pine Hill Nursery a few weeks ago, I spied these beautiful geraniums. I bought 5 small plants and talked the saleslady into letting me pick off a nice, fat pink bloom to take home to paint. They're so nice at Pine Hill!

Painting geraniums is kind of a freaky experience. I hadn't tried it before and quickly realized that for the first 95% of the painting, it looks like a big blob! It's only the last few defining brush strokes that pull it all together.

Geraniums

2011-05-03T05:12:00.000-07:00

"Geranium #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

"Geranium #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

"Geranium #3" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

"Geranium #4" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

The windowsills in my studio building are lined with pots of geraniums. Some are 5 years old. Some were picked up out of the trash and potted. I haul them out to the patio in June and haul back into the studio in September. They seem to like the south light and bloom like crazy all winter. After painting some roses, I thought why not try painting geraniums? My friend Jerry dislikes geraniums, calling them "old lady flowers". But I love their colors!

Some colors can't be mixed. The great still life painter, Janet Fish, said that she owns every shade of red and yellow that's made. One of the tube colors that I've found invaluable for times like this is "Aurora Pink". It's a neon-pink that is dazzling. Most pinks are impossible to mix. Red and white oil paint, mixed, usually turns muddy.

For about the first 95% of the painting, it looks like a dreadful mess. Just blobs of color. It's the last few strokes of detail that make them look like anything recognizable. Again, a good part of making a successful painting is controlling one's panic!

Decided I needed more different colored models to work from, so I drove to Pine Hill Nursery for more last night. They're only 10 minutes away. My favorite store!

More Roses

2011-04-29T05:04:00.000-07:00

"Golden Rose" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

"White Rose" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

"Lavender Rose" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

"Hot Pink Rose" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

These roses were in the bunch I bought on Tuesday, when I'd ventured into the Elk Rapids grocery store in search of interesting donuts to paint. Thank goodness all the donuts looked so blase!

We've had tons of rain lately, so there wasn't much else to do, other than housework. That always takes a backseat to painting. It's still a bit too early to plant anything here in NW lower Michigan. So painting it is!

Roses are hard to draw! All those doggone petals! I think what assisted me in being able to draw these was my experience in drawing and painting the dozens of cupcakes earlier this year. The swirls were a puzzle! As I painted the cupcakes, I kept thinking if you can do these, surely you can figure out how to do roses!

To make a successful painting, a good deal hinges on your ability to control your panic. Betty Edwards, in her book, "Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain" teaches how to ignore that part of your brain that sends out negative thoughts. The left side of the brain likes pronouncing such negative thoughts as it looks awful! You can't draw! But the right side is more concerned with measurements: is it straight up and down? Leaning a little? How much? Is it lighter or darker? Bigger or smaller? Betty believes that if you can see, you can draw. Her book changed my life!

Although I've been doing a lot of little paintings since the first of the year, don't think I'm giving up on big still lifes -- or plein air landscapes! There's only so much a person can crank out in a day.

Orange Rose

2011-04-27T06:01:00.000-07:00

"Orange Rose #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

While doing the cupcake series, I began thinking of starting a series of flower paintings. Roses are tough to paint! All those petals! But I reasoned that if I could slug it out with the frosting swirls and paper cups, surely I could figure out roses.

I'd gone to the grocery store yesterday in Elk Rapids to look for more interesting donuts. Alas, they all looked boring! Then I spied bunches of multi-colored roses. Ahhhhh! That would be it!

Had to hold this one in my left hand, looking directly down on it, while painting with my right hand. And while Miss America (a very needy cat of mine) pawed insistently on my leg, begging to be held. Oh, for a 3rd arm!

I really loved this rose. The center was darker than the outer petals. It was an overcast day (to put it mildly!). We'd had heavy rains and high winds and the power was out for 4 hours. Creeks flooding, plagues, raining frogs.... Ooops -- sorry.... not quite that bad. With now power, I had to choose between sweeping the floor, sorting paperwork, shoveling out the chicken coop -- or painting. Easy choice!

Pecan Roll

2011-04-27T05:52:00.000-07:00

"Pecan Roll" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

After dropping off paintings to Seeds Gallery in Elk Rapids, Michigan last Thursday, I walked around the corner to the town's bakery. What treasures might they have? This pecan roll looked the most interesting.

Sometimes things are quite stale by the time I get around to painting them -- and this was no exception. Remember the cupcake paintings? I kept most all of the cupcakes. Some are 3 months old, but they look fairly good yet. Hard as rocks, but pretty.

Like donuts, the pecan roll was fun to do! Much simpler than the rose (next post).....

Toasted Coconut Cake

2011-04-27T05:47:00.000-07:00

"Toasted Coconut Cake" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

My friend Pete Peterson brought this over on Good Friday. I believe he said it was from Moka, a great little cafe in Central Lake, Michigan. He knows coconut cake is my #1 favorite. Although untoasted coconut cake is really my favorite by far. And I never make it. One time Pete made me one, totally from scratch, starting with the actual coconut. It was to die for!

In reality, this slice of cake had one bite out of it. I had to taste it before I could paint it! It was good, but not as good as the one Pete made for me. And the phone kept ringing. And unexpected visitors dropped by. Your basic chaos. I finished the painting, eventually, and took it out to set under the bird feeder (the cake, not the painting!). There was a poor, wild turkey hen scrounging around for fallen sunflower seeds and I thought she'd enjoy a slice of cake.

Apparently she was unimpressed. The cake sat there. So I scooped it up and gave it to the chickens. They love me.

More Donuts!

2011-04-27T05:40:00.000-07:00

"Donut with Pink Sprinkles" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

"Striped Donut" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

These were from the grocery store in Elk Rapids. Cheap, too: three for 97 cents! Yeah, I'm sure you'll want to know what happened to the third donut? Truth is, it's still in the bag in the studio. I might get to it, but not for a while. On a flower painting jag now.

I really enjoy painting donuts! I find them easier to do than the cupcakes. I set them on the windowsill in the studio so they get full sun. That is, when we DO have sun up here. Northwestern lower Michigan is notorious for its overcast days, from November until at least May.

The pink one was so cheery to do. I love the colors! It was decorated for Easter. And the striped one -- I really like that one best. It had such interesting designs & contours!

Fruit Swirl Cheesecakes

2011-04-27T05:33:00.000-07:00

"Key Lime Cheesecake #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

"Key Lime Cheesecake #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

"Key Lime Cheesecake #3" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

"Mixed Berry Cheesecake #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

"Peach Cheesecake #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

"Peach Cheesecake #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

Ever see one of those big cheesecakes in the grocery, the ones with the different flavors? I was invited to a dinner party and said I'd bring dessert. But who has time to fuss with making it anymore? I bought this one just because of the colors. Probably the chocolate cheesecake would have been yummier.

I had just one day to paint slices, so I worked like a DAWG and did 6 slices. Then it was off to the party. Where only 3 slices were eaten. I tried the peach and found it nearly tasteless. Boo-hoo!

When painting these, I thought it was fascinating to see how parts of the fruit swirls would seem to glow in the sunlight. And I loved how the "mixed berry" stained purple into the cheesecake. But I must admit to being glad to be finished painting this series. That pitiful-tasting peach slice just kind of killed my enthusiasm!

Dog and Fries

2011-04-27T05:21:00.000-07:00

"Dog and Fries" -- oil on canvas 11x14"

If you knew how OLD and soggy these fries were! I'd bought them over at the Golden Nugget in Ellsworth a week or so before. I didn't want to use McDonald's fries -- too skinny and soggy! The Golden Nugget has surprisingly good food for being a bar.

This setup was in my windowsill on one of our rare sunny spring days. As usual, when I finished painting, I took the whole thing in to the chickens. They went for the hot dog first thing. Fries followed later. I think my chickens love me....

Red Water Pitcher

2011-04-27T05:14:00.000-07:00

"Red Water Pitcher and Vintage Cloth" -- oil on canvas 12x12"

We had a rare sunny day a couple weeks ago and I decided to take advantage of it and paint this view of one of my favorite water pitchers. Both it and the tablecloth were vintage finds. Both are tough to do, too!

I love the shadow/sunlight patterns! Strong sunlight is what helps make a painting "sing"!

Running way behind on my posts, so this will be brief.

Strawberry Shortcakes

2011-04-27T05:10:00.000-07:00

"Strawberry Shortcake #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

"Strawberry Shortcake #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

Oh boy -- I'm running way behind on my posts! I've been very busy painting, and now that the snow's finally melted (!), there's my morning bike ride and gardening chores.

One of my friends told me a secret used by advertising photographers. For non-melting ice cream and whipped cream, they would beat up Crisco and powdered sugar. So I experimented with this technique. It worked! In fact, these paintings were done a couple weeks ago and I still have a bowl of the "ice cream" sitting on my kitchen counter, looking as fresh as the day it was made.

When I finished painting these two, I gave the setup to the chickens. They dove into it! Kind of funny to watch them. Their beaks were soon covered with the Crisco-powdered sugar. It was completely devoured within 5 minutes.

Hot Dogs, continued

2011-04-12T04:32:00.000-07:00

"Hot Dog #9" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Hot Dog #10" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

These two are teamed up with some canned chili sauce, onions and cheddar cheese. My favorite way for hot dogs is to pair them with chopped Vidalia onions and yellow mustard, so the chili sauce is a new thing for me. It smelled good! It deserved a taste-test! I ended up making one for myself with the last of the Hebrew National hot dogs (the only brand I'll eat).

To make the cheese look slightly melted, I stuck this into the microwave and kept checking it every 15 seconds. One thing I noticed -- that I liked -- was how the grease (and spices) from the chili sauce turned orange, soaking into the edge of the bun. It's fun, watching for these "minor mysteries" in ordinary things.

Strawberry Cheesecake

2011-04-12T04:23:00.000-07:00

"Strawberry Cheesecake #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Strawberry Cheesecake #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

This cheesecake was a take-home from the shitake log production workshop in Bear Lake, Michigan. I'd forgotten to bring home my shitake logs when I moved up here, but that's another story. We'd all been asked to bring something for the potluck lunch and one lady had brought this amazing cheesecake. She let me whack off a big piece to take home to try to paint.

For the first painting I used artistic license to paint it as a thinner slice. The second painting shows the way it really was. The sun was creating a lot of glare on the strawberry glace, but that's what made it interesting. As soon as I finished these, I took the cheesecake over to the neighbor's. I'd have eaten it all myself, otherwise.

Coconut Donut

2011-04-08T17:17:00.000-07:00

"Coconut Donut" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

OK, a switch from hot dogs! Friends came by to pick me up for lunch today and I spied this donut in the restaurant. Coconut is my favorite, so I had to get it. I liked the shadow shape, all raggedy-looking. There won't be a 2nd version of this donut -- I ate it already. Oops -- there went my diet!

More Hot Dogs!

2011-04-08T17:13:00.000-07:00

"Hot Dog #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Hot Dog #3" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Hot Dog #4" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Hot Dog #5" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Hot Dog #6" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Hot Dog #7" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Hot Dog #8" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

I don't know why I got on the hot dog kick just lately, but here they are! After painting so many cupcakes, it was a fun change to do the dogs for a while. I have a huge package of hot dogs in the fridge. Very cheap ones I'd bought to toss to the poor possums this winter. I'd see them scrounging for fallen sunflower seeds under the bird feeder. Poor things! So I found a 3 pound pack at Meijer's, super-cheap. The possums loved them. Alas -- one day the possums quit coming around. After the snow melted, I found out why: a coyote got them. Poor things!

So I'm stuck with all these hot dogs. I have to use a bit of artistic license on them, however. In reality, they're skinny and kind of gray-ish looking. Nasty things! I try to do at least 2 paintings from each "dressing of the dog". By the end of the 2nd painting, the mustard is looking toxic! But -- waste not, want not. I give some of the bun to Henny Penny, the studio chicken and the rest goes out to the rest of the chickens. The first time I threw a hot dog into their coop, they sat up on their roosts, eyeing it with utmost suspicion. Like Mom threw a bomb into their midst.

I'd been told that chickens won't eat onions. Well, mine do. I watched them take a bite of chopped onions. They stopped, chewing, looking around, kind of "licking their lips" and seeming slightly surprised. But they ate the whole thing.

Found a little can of chili hot dog sauce in the store today, so that painting will be on the horizon soon.

Hot Dog!

2011-04-05T06:38:00.000-07:00

"Hot Dog #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

A diversion from the sweets for a little while! Who doesn't like a good ol' dawg? Up north here in Michigan, we're still enduring remnants of winter: dark, gloomy skies, snow, drizzle, etc. Yesterday afternoon was so dark, the hot dog looked very gray-looking. Not at all appetizing. Well, to start with, the dawg itself wasn't so great. I was using one of the ultra-cheapies from Meijer's. They were $1 a pound. I'd bought them 2 months ago to throw to the semi-tame possums. They looked SO pitiful out in the snow, snuffling for fallen sunflower seeds. They really loved hot dogs, though! In fact, if I saw them out in the yard, I'd yell, "Possum!" and they actually would come running to get their dawg. Nothing quite so funny as a little possum with a weenie hanging out of its mouth, bounding through the deep snow!

So back to this particular hot dog. I had to make it look fatter and more reddish. For lack of a better idea yesterday, I just zig-zagged on a line of yellow mustard. But I plan on doing more interesting combinations in the future.

When I finished painting, I broke off a piece of the bun and gave it to Henny Penny, my studio chicken. She loved it. But when I threw the rest of it into the chicken coop, the chickens remained on their roosts, peering down at it with suspicion: what the devil was THIS? Nobody moved.

Having finished cleaning up my painting mess, I snuck back into the coop area to take a peek. Oh yes -- the hot dog was long gone! I wonder if their eggs will taste like hot dogs in a few days?

Triple Chocolate Cheesecake

2011-04-03T07:06:00.000-07:00

"Triple Chocolate Cheesecake #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Triple Chocolate Cheesecake #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

I could feel my arteries slamming shut as I painted this -- super-rich! Definitely NOT on my diet! After I painted these two, I packed them up again and took to sax quartet rehearsal. We always have refreshments after our practice. It's a good way to get rid of diet no-no's. And yes, I did eat a piece of this one.

Coming up next: hot dogs!!!!

Mississippi Mud Cheesecake

2011-04-03T07:00:00.000-07:00

"Mississippi Mud #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Mississippi Mud #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Mississippi Mud #3" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

This slice of cheesecake was a hoot to paint! I love the ziggy-zaggy stripes! This was the first time I'd ever bought a cheesecake -- so expensive! But I'm glad I did. This one was a "sampler" cheesecake, with various flavors.

The brown shades were interesting to mix. I do have a pre-mixed dark brown on my palette (one of Scott Christensen's Vasari colors), but as usual, I had to add "things" to it. Adding a touch of ultramarine blue makes a really great black". For the brown tones in the creamy part, I mixed ultramarine blue, cadmium orange, plus a touch of permanent red and a hint of white. Surprising about the red, but it needed it.

I was surprised to see how yellow the upper edge of the "crust" was. But it was there, so I painted it.

Strawberry Swirl Cheesecake

2011-04-02T05:49:00.000-07:00

"Strawberry Swirl Cheesecake #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Strawberry Swirl Cheesecake #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Strawberry Swirl Cheesecake #3" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Strawberry Swirl Cheesecake #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

Can you tell I liked this cheesecake? The red stripes!!!! After painting so many cupcakes, I found this refreshingly different to try to paint. Love the subtle color changes between the sunlit surfaces and the shadow sides! I'd bought a cheesecake sampler at the grocery store the other day. Not to eat, particularly. I just liked the way it looked. I'll be painting all 4 varieties.

This day I wanted to paint a bunch of cheescake paintings so I could take the cheesecake to sax quartet rehearsal on Saturday. I don't dare keep this kind of thing in my house! Stay tuned: 2 kinds of chocolate cheesecake coming up next!

Blue Bunny

2011-04-02T05:42:00.000-07:00

"Blue Bunny" -- oil on canvas 6x6"

The other day I noticed this little blue glass bunny in the sunlight. The glare and shadows were so interesting, I had to paint it.

Bagels

2011-04-02T05:33:00.000-07:00

"Poppyseed Bagel" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Sesame Seed Bagel" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

I'm running way behind on my posts again! If you knew how stale these bagels really were when I painted them, you'd laugh. Like rocks. But they still looked good! It was a nice change from painting cupcakes. These came from Johann's Bakery in Petoskey. I'm sure they're wonderful bagels when fresh. I soaked these in a glass of water for a while, then gave them to the chickens.

Cupcake Party!

2011-04-02T05:28:00.000-07:00

"Cupcake Party" -- oil on canvas 30x40" -- Margie Guyot

After finishing painting just about every variety of cupcakes that Simplycupcakes makes, I wanted to pull them all (OK, most) together for a bigger still life painting. That's a vintage tablecloth under everything. I loved the cheery tulips in it. Had to throw a little vase of real tulips in as well, along with my favorite frog teapot, sugar and creamer set.

We only had a couple days of sun while I was painting this, so every time the sun came out, I focused on painting the shadow shapes. I think it's the shadow/light patterns that give a painting a feeling of reality.

I'd never painted Depression glass dishes in the sunlight before, and they were an interesting challenge. This painting has a feeling of "gay chaos" in it -- but isn't a good party a sense of "gay chaos"?

Cherry Danish

2011-03-25T06:19:00.000-07:00

"Cherry Danish" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

Glad to be finished painting "Hint of Mint", I turned to a cherry danish I'd bought up at Johann's Bakery in Petoskey. I'd bought it at least a week ago, but heck -- it still looked pretty good. So I painted it, using the last of the 6x6" canvases. It was so much fun to do! I'll probably start a "pastry" series next, followed by slices of pie, slices of cake, flowers, maybe even fishing lures.

Jerry's Artarama put on a huge sale on their 6x6" canvases, so I ordered 90 more. Look out, world!

More Hint of Mint Cupcakes

2011-03-25T06:13:00.000-07:00

"Hint of Mint #4" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Hint of Mint #5" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Hint of Mint #6" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Hint of Mint #7" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

When I'd realized I'd sold the first 3 versions of "Hint of Mint", I realized uh-oh: I needed to paint more for some upcoming shows! So I made a mad dash to Traverse City, home of Simplycupcakes. The weather's been typically lousy (dark, gloomy, spitting snow), and given the choice between doing housework and painting -- well, there's no contest!

Donut with Sprinkles #2

2011-03-22T04:07:00.000-07:00

"Donut with Sprinkles E2" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot"

This donut came from Johann's Bakery, in Petoskey. After painting frosting swirls on cupcakes for weeks on end, it was truly refreshing to paint this!

More Chocolate Covered Strawberries!

2011-03-22T03:59:00.000-07:00

"Chocolate Covered Strawberry #3" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Chocolate Covered Strawberry #4" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Chocolate Covered Strawberry #5" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Chocolate Covered Strawberry #6" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Chocolate Covered Strawberry #7" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

This is such a beautiful-looking cupcake to paint! From Simplycupcakes, in Traverse City, Michigan. It's made of strawberry cake, topped with chocolate ganache, strawberry buttercream and a slice of a fresh strawberry. I'd painted a couple of this one the day before and removed the strawberry at the end of the session. Fed it to Henny Penny, the studio chicken. These cupcakes hold up remarkably well, but I knew the strawberry slice would turn it funky in a hurry.

People ask why I'm painting multiple versions of cupcakes. Well, I've got 5 shows this year and I need cupcakes in just about every one of them. It's kind of a fun break, painting small canvases. I've done so many large still life paintings, it's kind of a lark to work differently. Each time I finish a canvas, I turn the cupcake a little to see a completely different view. It's not like I'm copying the same finished painting. THAT would be way too boring.

Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cupcakes

2011-03-20T04:15:00.000-07:00

"Chocolate Covered Strawberry #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Chocolate Covered Strawberry #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

Len Mayhew, owner and baker at Simplycupcakes, made this gorgeous cupcake this morning. Yes, that's a slice of fresh strawberry on the top. Couldn't dilly-dally -- had to paint these as soon as I got home. It's made from strawberry cake (!), with chocolate ganache, strawberry buttercream, fresh strawberry slice and sprinkles of some kind of sugar (little white balls). It smells wonderful!

It was a typically cloudy, dreary day. By 4 PM I had to quit painting -- it was just too dark to see what I was doing. Since I plan on doing more paintings from this one, I removed the strawberry slice and gave it to Henny Penny, my studio chicken. Packed the cupcake safely away (so the studio kitties won't lick it). I've always got strawberries in the fridge, so I can easily cut a replacement.

Chocolate Cherry Royale

2011-03-20T04:06:00.000-07:00

"Chocolate Cherry Royale #4" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Chocolate Cherry Royale #5" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Chocolate Cherry Royale #6" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

I just realized that most people tend to prefer the paintings with the cherries on top. So I had to crank out some more paintings of this one. I think it's one of the prettier cupcakes from Simplycupcakes. According to the website description, this one is composed of chocolate cake, cherry filling, chocolate ganache, vanilla buttercream, a cherry and shaved chocolate. Whew! Hard to resist eating this one!

Pina Colada

2011-03-20T04:00:00.000-07:00

"Pina Colada #4" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Pina Colada #5" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

More great cupcakes from Simplycupcakes, on Front Street, in Traverse City, Michigan. When I started this cupcake series, I only did 1 painting of each variety. But it didn't take long to realize I needed to do multiple "takes" on each cupcake. I plan on using some in at least 2 shows coming up, plus I've been selling some paintings right out of my studio. So I had to paint at least 2 more of Pina Colada.

I've saved most all the cupcakes. Some are approaching 2 months old. They still look wonderful, although the cake part is hard as a rock. The maraschino cherry on this one has fallen off onto the floor several times. I just pick it up, pull off any stray cat hairs (!) and stick it back on.

More Raspberry Waltz Cupcakes

2011-03-07T15:32:00.000-08:00

"Raspberry Waltz #6" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Raspberry Waltz #5" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Raspberry Waltz # 4" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

At the time of this posting, there must be some kind of glitch with Blogger. It wanted to underline some of the text (above) and post it in blue. I've tried several times to correct it, but it's "stuck". Will see if I can fix it tomorrow.

Obviously, "Raspberry Waltz" is a favorite one I love painting. I'd painted a series of 3 of this variety last month, when the baker used finely-chopped almonds. This most recent batch had thin-sliced almonds. I didn't think I'd like them, but I changed my mind. I think they're more interesting to paint than the previous variety, with the itty-bitty fragments of almonds. I'm not a big fan of painting little sprinkles -- the paint is always very wet and gooey by the time I go to add tiny dots, and it's kind of maddening.

Some painters might find it tedious to paint cupcakes, but I'm surprised to find that they're rather enjoyable. Over the month or so I've been painting them, the frosting swirls no longer throw me into some kind of panic. Each cupcake has a different look, a different side to it. Almost like painting a portrait from different angles. Amazingly, these cupcakes, from Simplycupcakes in Traverse City, Michigan, hold up very well.

I do plan on starting a large still life soon, however. I'm thinking of setting up a party scene, with a vintage tablecloth, Depression glass dishes, flowers, and of course cupcakes....

Toffee Caramel Crunch

2011-03-04T04:36:00.000-08:00

"Toffee Caramel Crunch #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Toffee Caramel Crunch #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Toffee Caramel Crunch #3" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

Lots of activity around my studio and house lately, so I got a little bogged down on my painting (and posting!) schedule. Had some cabinets fixed in my kitchen and some lighting fixed (finally -- no more holes and dangling electrical wires!). Had to spend an entire day emptying out the back room of my studio so the carpenters can get in next week to build some storage shelves for my still life props. By the end of that task, I was so dusty, I had to take all my clothes off and throw into the washer -- even my down coat! Thank goodness I'd had the wisdom to put on a dust mask. Never a dull moment around here, even in winter!

Toffee Caramel Crunch: chocolate cake stuffed with buttercream, caramel and toffee topped with chocolate ganache and finished with buttercream, caramel drizzle and sprinkled with toffee.

The most fun part? Painting the caramel "drizzles". My favorite view? The last one. This angle always reminds me of a fully-opened rose.

Chocolate Cherry Royale

2011-03-04T04:24:00.000-08:00

"Chocolate Cherry Royale #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Chocolate Cherry Royale #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Chocolate Cherry Royale #3" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

Earlier I'd done the "non-choclate" version of this cupcake. That one has pink frosting and yellow cake. Simplycupcakes came up with a new version, with chocolate cake, cherry filling, white chocolate buttercream, a cherry-covered chocolate on top, sprinkled with shaved chocolate. Whew!

I think this is a very pretty cupcake. Almost reminds me of a tuxedo. I really enjoyed painting it!

Sticky Bun

2011-03-04T04:17:00.000-08:00

"Sticky Bun" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

It's freezing rain out and too dark (and early in the morning) to start painting, so I'm trying to catch up on my blog entries. Fell behind recently. This sticky bun is from a bakery in Traverse City. Not Simplycupcakes -- they only do cupcakes. I was with friends and we stopped for sandwiches at this bakery and that's when I spied the sticky buns. Thought it would be interesting to paint one.

Blueberry Blast

2011-03-04T04:13:00.000-08:00

"Blueberry Blast #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Blueberry Blast #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Blueberry Blast #3" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

Running behind on my posts again! I thought once Labor Day passed, life would quiet down. But nooooooo! These are 3 more studies from the fabulous bakery in Traverse City, Simplycupcakes.

Donut with Sprinkles; Danish

2011-02-24T04:18:00.000-08:00

"Donut with Sprinkles" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Danish" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

At last: several sunny days in Michigan! Our winters are generally overcast, so it was exciting to have strong sunlight and shadows. The shadow shape of the donut, with its sprinkles, was what I found most interesting. And I loved the bright colors of the sprinkles. A friend had brought me a few pastries from Johann's in Petoskey. When I first saw this donut, I was rather surprised. It is a variety I probably never would have bought for myself. But it ended up being a visual treat!

Last of the bunch was the Danish. Painting the jelly was my favorite party! Love painting "mooshy" things! The bakery must have some kind of mechanized "thingie" that puts the frosting glaze on. I found the stripes fascinating, especially the color changes as they fell into shadows. Another fun one to do!

Jelly Donut #2

2011-02-22T14:08:00.000-08:00

"Jelly Donut #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

A friend came to visit on Sunday and brought a box of donuts. Not so much for me to eat, but to paint! She knows what I'm up to these days. This one is from Johann's Bakery in Petoskey. I love painting the red jelly -- it's just so fun -- and gooey! A nice break from painting frosting swirls, that's for sure!

Lemon Love and Triple Chocolate

2011-02-22T04:00:00.000-08:00

"Lemon Love #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Lemon Love #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Lemon Love #3" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Triple Chocolate" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Triple Chocolate #3" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Triple Chocolate #4" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

Whew! I'd been running behind on my posts! Trying to catch up this morning. All these cupcakes come from Simplycupcakes in Traverse City, Michigan. They're no ordinary cupcakes. Len Mayhew makes them from scratch every morning, in small batches. The Lemon Love cupcakes have lemon curd filling and are topped with fresh lemon zest. The Triple Cocolates have chocolate buttercream, chocolate ganache, etc. They all smell wonderful!

I'm finding it interesting to zero in on each cupcake, examining it from different angles, rather like an astronaut approaching a new planet. Hmmmm.... what does it look like over here?

The most challenging part of painting these is the frosting patterns. All the twists & turns! So easy to go into a panic. Painting these has been good for me. I'm looking forward to starting a series of small flower paintings. I figure if I can paint frosting swirls, then I sure as heck will be able to handle rose petals!

Butter Finger & Simply Delicious

2011-02-15T05:14:00.000-08:00

"Butter Finger #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6 -- Margie Guyot

"Simply Delicious #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

Realized I've been running behind on my posts! These are the most recent cupcake paintings. I'm trying to do at least 3 versions of each variety, seeing as how I've got 3 art shows coming up to paint for. Each time I paint a cupcake, I turn it a little to get a new angle. Doing identical paintings wouldn't appeal at all to me. These are actually kind of fun to do. Challenging, but fun. A nice switch from the big still lifes, which I will get back to.

These are wonderful, gourmet cupcakes from Simplycupcakes in Traverse City, Michigan. NOT like those nasty cupcakes from the grocery store! Len, the owner, gives me these for free. I've taken a few paintings down to him and he's got them up on the wall of the bakery, for sale.

Cinnamon Roll & Jelly Donut

2011-02-15T05:05:00.000-08:00

"Cinnamon Roll" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Jelly Donut" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

A break from cupcakes (momentarily, at least!). My friend Gail came over, bringing a giant box of fancy pastries from Johann's Bakery in Petoskey. They looked interesting, so I thought I'd try painting some. As soon as I painted one, I took it to the chickens. Hey -- I can't eat everything I paint! The chickens were quite excited. They were pecking furiously at the jelly donut and when they hit the jelly, they paused for a second. Lifting their heads, looking around and licking their beaks, as if they were thinking aha! They were very thirsty after all that jelly.

Butter Finger

2011-02-11T04:36:00.000-08:00

"Butter Finger" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

I think my waistline is growing thicker, just by LOOKING at these things! This one is called "Butter Finger", described in Simplycupcakestc website as: dark chocolate cake topped with Peanut Butter buttercream and sprinkled with butterfinger candy.

This cupcake is safely tucked back into its box, in the refrigerator, waiting to be painted again. I've got jazz ensemble rehearsal this morning, but maybe I can get back to my studio again this afternoon.

chocolate donut

2011-02-11T04:30:00.000-08:00

"Chocolate Donut" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

OK, a little break from the cupcakes! My friend, Gail DeMeyer, came over to see my studio and she brought a huge box of donuts from Johann's Bakery in Petoskey. Egads! We OD'd on coffee and donuts. She had a gay old time, photographing my chickens.

Then she watched me paint "Butter Finger", another of the cupcakes from Simplycupcakes of Traverse City.

After Gail left, I grabbed this chocolate donut and painted a view of it. The sun was out (a rarity here in winter) and I loved the shadow pattern and the glare on the frosting. When finished, I took the donut straight out to the chicken coop. No more donuts for me!!!! The chickens were quite thrilled.

Silly Wabbit

2011-02-09T16:07:00.000-08:00

"Silly Wabbit #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Silly Wabbit #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

Standing in front of my north studio window, I saw a movement of some kind. Looking closer, I saw a mink staring at me! He was under a pile of lumber. Then he took off, bounding through the snow, back out into the swamp! I love it here.

So this is another new selection from Simplycupcakes of Traverse City (Michigan). It's carrot cake, topped with chocolate ganache, white Italian buttercream and finished with finely chopped walnuts. I've never been too interested in carrot cake with chocolate, but the smell was ravishing! And no, I didn't eat this one. I'm going to try to paint a 3rd view of it tomorrow.

The swirl formations just captivate me! I really enjoy painting a view from directly overhead. The view is something reminiscent of a galaxy. Or maybe a rose or a lily.

And I love the way the swirls also remind me of ski trails on a mountainside. Not that I ski, but I'm imagining it. So far, I'm having a good time painting these little "fluffs". It's kind of a nice change from painting the big, complicated still lifes. I'm not giving up on those, though. I just needed a bunch of little cupcake paintings for a show coming up this fall. Stay tuned!

Simply Delicious

2011-02-07T04:30:00.000-08:00

"Simply Delicious #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

This one's a real cutie: yellow cake with buttercream frosting, topped with sprinkles and a little heart. I bet Simplycupcakes will sell a TON of these this Valentine's week. This was the last one I painted yesterday afternoon and I had to quit. The sun was setting and I cannot paint under artificial lights. The glare on the wet paint is confusing. And the colors never turn out right.

After painting this one, I thought I should finish assembling the rabbit cage. While prying a metal clip off, it suddenly flew off like a rocket, hitting me in my right eye! Thank goodness it hit in the corner and my reflexes were quick. Another fraction of an inch over and I probably would have blinded myself! It stung like hell. Oh boy. I always wear glasses when using power tools. Or when I'm cutting brush, mowing the lawn.

It was a Sunday afternoon and I didn't know if I should go to an emergency room or not. Fortunately, one of my friends had worked at an eye doctor's office and she told me I'd probably just scratched my cornea and it would heal quickly. She said to put warm, wet compresses on it.

Happy to report this morning that my eye feels a lot better. Still a little sore, but I can see fine. Good heavens. Maybe I should wear glasses whenever I pick up ANY tool!

Hint of Mint

2011-02-07T04:15:00.000-08:00

"Hint of Mint #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Hint of Mint #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Hint of Mint #3" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

However garish the green frosting might seem to some of you purists, as an artist, I enjoyed painting these. A new color is a treat. For 30 years I worked on the assembly line at Ford Motor Company. Our plant made Lincoln Town Cars. I always paid attention to the car colors. I had my favorites. At the beginning of every model year, I had hopes for new, exciting colors. But they were Lincolns: very sedate colors -- grays, browns, black, navy. One year they had 3 shades of white! Oh, boo-hoo! How I longed for turquoise! So you can see how much I'm enjoying this green frosting.

Hint of Mint is another wonderful creation from Simplycupcakes, a gourmet bakery in Traverse City, Michigan, that specializes in nothing but cupcakes. This one is chocolate cake with mint buttercream frosting, topped with an Andes Mint. The smell --- oooh la la!

I'm trying to do at least 3 paintings from each cupcake. Each one I try to do slightly differently, turning it at a different angle, exploring the many "moods". I especially enjoy looking straight down at it (#2 here). It looks almost like a miniature galaxy. Gives the viewer the impression that he/she is about to fall face-first into it. Whatta way to go, eh?

Mocha #1

2011-02-05T15:51:00.000-08:00

"Mocha #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

One of my artist friends came over today to spend the day visiting and sharing my studio. She decided to paint a purple hyacinth and I worked on this very tempting chocolate cupcake. It's another creation from Simplycupcakes in Traverse City, Michigan. Their website describes it as:

Mocha : Dark chocolate cake topped with mocha flavored buttercream and finished with a chocolate covered espresso bean.

After I finished painting this, we decided it was time for a lunch break. My friend had brought homemade soup. Once we had 2 bowls full, we declared it dessert time -- and of course you can guess what we had! Split in half, I figured it wouldn't kill me, calorie-wise. And goodness sakes -- it was delicious! We also had 2 glasses of champagne with it. Ha ha!

Ah, retirement!

Funky Monkey

2011-02-03T05:25:00.000-08:00

"Funky Monkey" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

Started the day with the goal of painting 3 versions of this and only managed to paint one. Some days are like that! From Simplycupcakes in Traverse City, Michigan, it is described as:

Funky Monkey : A banana cake filled with peanut butter buttercream topped with chocolate ganache and more peanut butter buttercream and a banana chip.

The swirls: always a challenge! Once I finish a painting, I like to turn the cupcake a little to get a different swirl pattern. Why paint multiple versions of an identical scene? That would bore me to tears.

Years ago when I was in a landscape painting class, the instructor took a dislike to me (? why???) and said, "Obviously this comes easy to you!" Huh???? I was shocked. I said, "No, it's hard for me. I always set up and look at the scene and think good grief -- this is going to be tough! But I just keep plugging along, figuring things out as I go."

Painting, for me, is like taking an algebra test. When the instructor hands it to me, I initially freak out. All those problems frighten me. I flip through all the pages until I see a problem I think I can do. I do that one, then hunt for another problem I can handle. One solution feeds the next solution. And so it is with painting. I start out with a basic outline, very rough, to figure out where to place it on the canvas. Then I figure out what space the frosting will occupy. The paper cup -- how much does that cover? And so on. I have to control my panic when figuring out the twists of the frosting. Then I start in on the darks. It all goes like that, working from dark to light. For most of the painting process, it looks pretty bad! But, like Clyde Aspevig told our class one time, while doing a demonstration painting, "This is the point at which beginners would quit. But I know how to fix it!"

That's why I tell people, "Making a good painting involves learning how to control your panic!"

Betty Edwards, in her book, "Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain", teaches how you can learn to ignore that part of your brain that wants to tell you it looks awful! You can't draw! Great book! It changed my life.

Peanut Butter Cup

2011-02-03T05:10:00.000-08:00

"Peanut Butter Cup #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Peanut Butter Cup #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Peanut Butter Cup #3" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

This cupcake smelled so wonderful, I drooled while painting it! This is another one of the selections from Simplycupcakes in Traverse City, Michigan. I've been trying to resist eating all the cupcakes I've been painting, but this time I just had to try it. Dark chocolate cake with peanut butter buttercream frosting, topped with a little Reese's Peanut Butter Cup. And it was delicious!

Raspberry Waltz Cupcakes

2011-01-29T04:28:00.000-08:00

"Raspberry Waltz #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Raspberry Waltz #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Raspberry Waltz #3" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

The snow was still blowing on Thursday morning, but it wasn't too bad, so I made the 45 minute drive down to Traverse City, to Simplycupcakes. They're a gourmet cupcake bakery on Front Street. Their cupcakes are nothing like those horrible, day-glo cupcakes from the grocery store! Len Mayhew, the owner, is generously providing me with cupcakes to paint. Some will be for sale in the bakery; others are going to galleries. A bunch will be in a big show at Crooked Tree Art Center in Petoskey this fall, in their "Let Them Eat Cake!" show.

This cupcake is described on the Simplycupcake's website as:

Raspberry Waltz : An almond flavored sour cream cake topped with a raspberry sauce and white buttercream with toasted almonds and a fresh raspberry.

I'm trying to paint each cupcake at least 3 times. Rather than make carbon copy views, I like to vary them, moving the cupcake around a bit, maybe zeroing in on it from above. As if you're about to take a bite. I am trying to keep the background and shadow pattern consistent, though.

So far, I'm enjoying painting these little things. It's a nice break from the big still lifes for the time-being.

Cookies & Cream Cupcakes

2011-01-25T05:18:00.000-08:00

"Cookies & Cream #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Cookies & Cream #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

Another dark, snowy day in NW Michigan. The first cupcake painting had better lighting -- you can tell that by the color. It's kind of fun to see the same cupcake painted under slightly different lighting conditions and angels, though. The folds of frosting mesmerize me.

This cupcake is from Simplycupcakes in Traverse City, Michigan. That's a tiny "Oreo" type cookie on top. The frosting has finely-ground chocolate cookies in it (see the specks?). They're on Front Street and usually sell out every day.

Red Velvet Cupcakes

2011-01-25T05:10:00.000-08:00

"Red Velvet Cupcake" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Red Velvet Cupcake #2 -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

You can tell which one was painted last, even without looking at the title. The darker one was painted late in the afternoon, as the light was growing dimmer. I never paint under artificial lights. The glare bothers me. It's overcast about 98% of the time in winter here in NW Michigan, so the days are usually rather bleak.

What I loved about this Red Velvet Cupcake is the deep red of the cake! Notice on the first cupcake, how red it looks? The brighter light and angle helped bring it out. I was focusing more on the beautiful patterns of the frosting on the second painting.

This cupcake came from Simplycupcakes in Traverse City, Michigan. The description on their website is: A southern classic… a red cocoa cake finished with a creamy cream cheese frosting and red sprinkles.

Mmmmmm! What won't they come up with next?

Pina Colada Cupcakes

2011-01-25T05:01:00.000-08:00

"Pina Colada #1" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

"Pina Colada #2" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

Yikes! I've gotten behind on my posts. It's been very cold and snowy, and I've been hanging out in my studio, painting cupcakes - and playing my sax.

I've decided to do several paintings of each cupcake, varying the angles slightly. The frosting swirls are always a challenge. Learning to control your panic is one of the keys to producing a good painting. Seeing those swirls of frosting could throw me into a panic, but I know to just ignore the freak-out messages from my brain and just calm down and figure them out.

This is another cupcake from Simplycupcakes in Traverse City, Michigan. The description of this one (taken from their website) is: Pineapple cake topped with a butter rum buttercream frosting and finished with coconut and a cherry. Mmmmm!

Owl

2011-01-20T15:33:00.000-08:00

"Owl" -- oil on canvas 12x12" -- Margie Guyot

Years ago I found this at some old codger's garage sale in Livonia, MI. Visitors to his house were greeted by a pair of bikini-clad manikins lying in lounge chairs, holding beer cans. So you know he was a hoot (sorry about the pun). Have been staring at this owl for 2 days, so everything is owl-related. He'd painted this old, cast-iron owl white. I fell in love with it. Now it's beginning to rust, acting as a doorstop in my studio. It's got a place for a candle inside. Love the eyes!

I set it atop an old tablecloth and let me tell you -- painting those patterns & folds was a BITCH! Still might tinker with it for a while.

Cherry Royale Cupcake

2011-01-20T15:22:00.000-08:00

"Cherry Royale Cupcake" -- oil on canvas 6x6" -- Margie Guyot

I'd just finished "Owl" and it was only 1 PM. No snow yet. Big snowstorm expected tonight, dumping up to 10" by tomorrow afternoon. It was the perfect window of opportunity to zip down to Traverse City, to SimplyCupcakes and get a few new varieties to paint. It's about a 45 minute drive for me, so I was very happy when they gave me 4 today. It will keep me occupied while snowbound!

Here's the description from their website (www.simplycupcakestc.com):

Cherry Royale : A sour cream cake filled with our homemade tart cherry filling made with local cherries (Friske Orchards) with a thin layer of white chocolate ganache and a generous portion of cherry buttercream and topped with an Imperial red chocolate covered cherry from Cherry Republic!

I imagine it's delicious. It won't be, by the time I'm finished painting it 3 or 4 times. There are several galleries that I want to place these cupcake paintings in, so I may as well do several paintings from each cupcake. The chickens will get them when I'm finished. Trying to watch my waistline, so I can't pig-out on sweets like I did when I was a kid.

Many thanks to SimplyCupcakesTC for generously providing me with cupcakes!