Background Music - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Background Music 7x5 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara  I've been busy this last week working on commission paintings that are needed for Christmas. This is one of them. I've been lucky with this commission because they were able to supply me with some items they wanted to include in the painting. In fact, almost everything in this still life is from them, the horse statue, the jewelry, and the request to use sheet music. I have to admit I don't think I would have ever though to put these things together for a painting on my own. Doing these commissioned still life paintings are a great stretch for the creative muscles. It must have taken me over 2 hours to come up with something that worked, especially for this small size (7x5).   I must thank my lovely wife for the coming up with the name for this one. I was really stumped on until she suggested background music as a title. I liked it because of the sentimental meaning to most of the objects in the painting. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com

Lifelong Learning - Original Painting by George De Chiara

Lifelong Learning 8x10 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara This is one of the commission pieces I've been working on for the last few days. The idea is based on of one of my daily paintings, Desktop. This time I was able to expanded upon the idea and truly flesh it out. With this version, you can see more of the lamp and a few more objects placed though out the scene. I was even able to use the lamp as more of a direct light source with this painting, which is the first time I've tried this.  It did presented some problems though so I still had to use another light source that's not in the painting. I felt without the additional light, the scene just looked a little too dark.  After all, the light in the picture only has a 45 watt bulb in it and it's one of those small-sized bulbs on top of that. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com

Last Light, Lake Arlington - Original Painting by George De Chiara

Last Light, Lake Arlington 5x7 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara If you would like to purchase this painting visit my auction here  Today, while going to pick up our daughter at day care, my wife commented that it looked like we might have a good sunset tonight and came up with the wonderful idea of taking our daughter to the park so they could play while I painted. Who could argue with that plan? So off we went just as fast as would could since the sun was starting to set. As soon as we got the the park, I quickly grabbed my gear and headed off to the pier to catch the last of the sunset. I had to paint really fast since the sun was going quickly. There's nothing like watching your subject fade off just as fast as you can sling paint onto the canvas. Still, I must admit that I really enjoy trying these sunset paintings from life. They are a true adrenaline rush! To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com

Second Breakfast - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Second Breakfast 3x5 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara For the last few days I've been thinking about trying a painting of a cow field. I like the way the dark cows contrast against the golden ground cover we have here in Texas as our fall colors continue to turn.  I was determined to capture this scene today.  After an hour exploring the countryside, I finally came across a great little pasture full of cows with a safe place on the side of the road that I could paint from. Since this was the first time I tried to paint cows from life, I thought I it might be a good idea to work small so I could suggest the cows form while I studied them to learn their anatomy.  The next time I try this, I think I can go a little larger and get more detail and accuracy into the cows. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com If you would like to purchase this painting visit my auction here

Nanners - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Nanners 3x5 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara  I was suppose to have a roofer come out to the house today to look at a leak we have, so I knew I'd have to paint in the studio while I waited.  I've thought about painting bananas  a few times, but could never come up with a composition I was happy with. After a little messing around, I came up with this because I liked the way this arrangement gave slightly different views of the fruit.  I think anyone with young childen will know where the title for this one came from. Our daughter is just starting to be able to say a few words and every now and again she'll point at the bananas and say "Nanners!".   To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com If you would like to purchase this painting visit my auction here

Weatherford Hay Bales - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Weatherford Hay Bales 5x7 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara  I'll be honest with you, after looking at the the last two hay bale paintings I did last week for a few days in the studio, I wasn't very happy them. Mostly, I really struggled with the values and the color and knew I could do a better job. Today presented that possibility, so I went back to the first field I painted that had the drilling well on it. When I got there though, the well was gone and so were the workers. I guess they were taking the well down last time I was there. Anyway, in their absence, I was able to access almost all of the hay fields that surround this area. I liked the way the light was hitting these bales, although I did have to move them when I painted them to get the composition I wanted. I'd like to try a few more before all of the farmers pick them up from the fields, which could be anyday now. I noticed one of the fields I've wanted to paint no longer has any bales in it.  Well, I guess another lesson of plein air is that you have to strike while the iron's hot. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com If you would like to purchase this painting visit my auction here

Last of the Peppers - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Last of the Peppers 11x14 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara  I set this still life at the end of last week with the intention of painting it over the weekend. However, our little girl, who's 13 months old now, has recently discovered the joy of running around at the park and the weekends are the best time to take her since both my wife and I can go. Besides everyone needs some time to just play! With the weekend over, I couldn't wait to get to painting. I've been watching the peppers continue to change colors every time I walked by them. These are the last of the peppers I think our garden will produce this year. There are a few still growing, but their production has really slowed down this week. The eggplants, on the other hand, are still going strong. In fact when I went to check on them today, they had new flowers on them and a half dozen more fuit growing. None of them are very large, but they sure are plentiful this year. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com If you would like to purchase this painting visit my auction here

Lake Arlington Boat Docks - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Lake Arlington Boat Docks 5x7 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara While I still believe that determination is a primary component of plein air painting, sometimes no matter what I do,  the weather just doesn't cooperate.  Last night I went to paint the sunset again on Lake Arlington, but the first real cold front of the season moved in instead. The clouds and the wind rolled in, making the lake a choppy mess and obscuring any hope at capturing the sunset. That wind was blowing with such force, I wasn't even sure I could keep my canvas on the easel even if I thought I could have stood in the wind and increasing cold long enough to paint. But determined, I looked around for a place that I could paint from while staying out the elements.  In the end though, I decided to call it quits for the night. I did go back today with the proper clothing and painted the private boat docks that I could see from the public park. There's another set of docks on the other side of the park that I want to try and paint one day too. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com If you would like to purchase this painting visit my auction here

Sunset on Lake Arlington - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Sunset on Lake Arlington 5x7 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara Somehow I got off by a day with my postings to this blog. I'm not sure how I did this, but this is what I painted yesterday, I had decided to go up the street to Lake Arlington to try to paint the sunset. Because it had a great view of the sun going down, I walked out to the end of one of the piers. Now, it turns out that painting a sunset on a swaying pier has some interesting challenges.  Sometimes,  I would go to make a brush stroke and would sway one way and my easel the other. And to top that off, just as I started to lay down paint, the clouds moved and I found myself staring right into the setting sun instead of the beautifully back lit cloud that had originally caught my eye. I could hardly look at it! To round out the challenges, I had to paint rapidly to catch the moment.  There's so much energy in a sunset. I didn't even notice how fast I was working until right after the sun slipped below the horizon. Suddenly, I felt a calm in air and was able to slow down and add the final few brush strokes before heading home. Once back in the studio, I made a few adjustments to this one.  If this story illustrates anything, it's that determination often dictates the painting. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com If you would like to purchase this painting visit my auction here.

Fall Hay Field - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Fall Hay Field 5x7 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara After I painted those hay bales yesterday, I was still in the mood to paint a few more when I came across this field.  It was just off of a rural road where I had a few horses that were across the street watching me the whole time.  Luckily, I was able to park on the side of the street and paint without causing any problems for the handful of cars that came be while I was there. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com If you would like to purchase this painting visit my auction here.

Round Bales - Original Painting by George De Chiara

Round Bales 5x7 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara  I've driven by these hay bales which are next to Lake Weatherford twice now. Both times, I stopped to look at them and thought about painting them, but for one reason or another, I would drive on to another location. Today, however, I stopped and finally painted them. They are in a field next to what I think is a gas well, which is still being drilled.  If the drillers were paying attention, I must have been quite an unusual sight.  Because the day was very bright, I had to face away from the field to keep the sun off of my canvas. The whole time I was looking at a gravel lot, and had to turn around to see my subject and then turning back to my canvas to paint. It's a small field and these three bales are all it produced. Hopefully, the well does better. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com If you would like to purchase this painting visit my auction here.

Pin Cushions - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Pin Cushions 8x10 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara Hmm... this is a new subject for me...sewing supplies. We seem to have a lot of them around the house.  I haven't a clue to how to use any of them, but Lord knows we have 'em. I was attracted to the great colors of the pin cushions and threads.  It seems like it takes me a few tries to get to get comfortable with new subject matter, so I'm sure I'll revist the sewing supplies again. My first paintings of new subjects never really come out exactly as I think they should, but then I go back and make a some adjustments to the composition, color, perspective, and so on and so on.  I really do find satisfaction in making progress. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com If you would like to purchase this painting visit my auction here.

Desktop - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Desktop (SOLD) 5x7 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara I'm not sure why, but it took me forever to set this up today. I originally started off thinking this would be a painting of a teapot and a cup. That set up led me to get a couple of books so I could have the teapot and cup at different heights. Well, that set up felt like it needed something else, but I couldn't put my finger on what it was. So, before you know it, in went glass bottles, a bowl, a vase, more books, and a desk lamp. Eventually, the subject really started to emerge of an organized little desk, crammed, but neat just waiting for the return of the reader. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com If you would like to purchase this painting visit my auction here.

Autumn Classics - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Autumn Classics 11x14 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara It rained here again into the afternoon, so I painted a still life. Since our little pumpkins are still relatively fresh, I wanted to use them one more time. These varieties of gourds have spots of color that are a real treat to paint. When I set the painting up, it seemed the compostion called for the pumpkins to be at different heights to create interest. So I went to the book shelf and picked out two nicely leatherbound books.  Thanks to  Charles Dickens "Oliver Twist" and Tales of Edgar Alan, coming up with a title was pretty easy. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com If you would like to purchase this painting visit my auction here.

Thoughts of Spring - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Thoughts of Spring (SOLD) 5x7 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara It rained here all day, and with the weather getting cold, I couldn't help but think back to spring time. Hopefully, the weather will dry out a bit later in the week and I can get out and paint again. I wasn't in the mood to do a still life today, so I painted this from a photo I took at a near by park early last spring, right when the new buds are blooming on the trees. The spring is a great time to get intense color as the trees flower in the early spring. It's a beautiful sight here in Texas. We sometimes don't get those great fall colors that other parts of the country are blessed with, but I've never seen another place that gets such great spring color. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com If you would like to purchase this painting visit my auction here.

Fall Breeze - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Fall Breeze 8x16 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara I have fond memories of this side of Lake Weatherford because when my wife and I first started dating, we use to take her dog, Tramp, to this part of the lake where he loved to swim and chase the ducks.  He would swim and swim, sneaking up to the ducks, at which point the ducks would look at him disdainfully and casually fly away a few feet.  Later that summer we had a bit of a drought, and this part of the lake dried up.  My wife and I realize the lake is only a foot or two deep for most of this area, and suddenly, this explained a lot.  No wonder Tramp enjoyed his "swim" so much!  He could basically walk up to the ducks on his hind legs and steer his body with his front paws. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com If you would like to purchase this painting visit my auction here.

Grape Leaves with Fruit - Originial Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Grape Leaves with Fruit 5x3 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara First off, let me apologize for the title of this one. It's not very original or catchy, but it's the best I could come up with tonight. I really wanted to challenge myself today by practicing painting very small and detailed by placing a lot of objects into the still life.  The goal is to get simple shapes of color with the largest brush I could get away with.  By going with a small canvas, it made all of my brushes a size or two larger by comparison. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com If you would like to purchase this painting visit my auction here.

Lake Weatherford Boat Docks - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Lake Weatherford Boat Dock (SOLD) 5x7 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara My wife works in Weatherford, an up-and-coming little burg just outside of the metroplex. For most of it's life, Weatherford has been a town that served the ranches that surround it. You can't stop progress though and slowly, but surely, this place seems like it is on the verge of being swallowed by DFW. So this morning I joined Marcie for the ride to work intent on painting the rural sights before they all get developed away. After dropping her off at the college and looking at different areas, I finally settled on Lake Weatherford to paint this view of some of the private boat docks. There's a little curve in the lake where the land goes out a bit and offers this view of these docks. This little spot is public access to the lake, so I was able to set up there and have a great view. I even had a large tree to give me some shade while I painted, so what more could you ask for? To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com

Peaches and Plums - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Peaches and Plums 8x10 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara  This isn't what I set out to paint today. I was really in the mood to do a landscape, so I packed up the car with all of my painting supplies and headed out to a spot that I thought would be good for painting. After driving around for an hour looking at different places, I didn't find anything that really struck me so I headed home. I found this bowl of fruit sitting on the kitchen counter that I was playing around with last night and decided to paint it instead. I'm not sure how they managed to grow peaches so large, but these are almost the size of a softball. I prefer the both the look and taste of smaller ones because they seem more natural, but these are what were at the store this week. In order to keep them from looking disproportionate to the plum, I shrunk their size a little, making them a touch smaller then they are in real life. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com If you would like to purchase this painting visit my auction here.

Along the Shore - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Along the Shore (SOLD) 5x7 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara This is the last painting in the current commission I'm working on. I've really enjoyed working on this commission. It gave me the opportunity to paint some things that I haven't used a lot in my other still life paintings, like money, branches, and foliage, which I can't wait to use in future paintings. Unexpectedly, I found there is something I really enjoy about painting money. It reminds me of collecting coins as a kid. I still remember the thrill of finding a special coin mixed in with my change from the day, like a silver quarter or a wheat penny and running off to add it to my collection. It's a wonderful thing when I can spend an afternoon painting and be reminded of what it's like to be 12 again. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com

Mums and Daughters - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Mums and Daughters (SOLD) 5x7 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara I really wanted to take another stab at painting the flowers that we had for our daughter's birthday party (see yesterday's post). This time, I wanted to have fewer flowers so I could give each one a bit more attention. For me, paintings like this require a lot of concentration and having fewer flowers helps. I need to remind myself to go slowly and paint what I'm seeing. Don't rush it! When I rush things, I notice I tend to have to wipe off and start again. In the great Richard Schmid's video demonstrations, he talks about how a painting should appear loose, but not necessarily painted loosely. In other words, it should be painted with purpose. I find myself thinking about this while I work and it reminds me to slow down and paint what I want my result to look like. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com

Birthday Flowers - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Birthday Flowers 8x10 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara My daughter had her first birthday this weekend and we used a lot of pink and white flowers to decorate the house for her party. Actually, we had a lot of pink and white everything.  We had quite the family celebration complete with streamers, balloons, and a cake shaped like a teddy bear wearing a tutu.  Normally, my wife and I aren't into the sea of pink that seems to surround baby girls, but the color really suits her.  Also, my wife thought it would be terribly cute to put the baby in a tutu to continue the theme of the cake.  So we did and now we have a lot of roses and alstroemeria in vases, left over from the celebration. Like any practical daddy/artist, I decided that I would paint a few of them. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com If you would like to purchase this painting visit my auction here.

Catalina's Pumpkin - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Catalina's Pumpkin (SOLD) 5x7 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara A few weeks ago my wife and I took our daughter, who was almost one, to pick out her first pumpkin. Usually she dives into new experiences head first, but this time she was just getting over a cold and wasn't very sure what to make of the different pumpkins and hay scattered around the store. After looking, touching, and considering just about every pumpkin the store, she picked up this tiny pumpkin and held on to it tight. It was hers and she wasn't going to let anyone get it from her. She even took it to lunch with us afterward and fell asleep holding it in the car on the way home. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com

Little Bass' Picnic - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Little Bass' Picnic (SOLD) 7x5 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara This is one more in the current commission I'm working on. This is the third of four paintings that I've been asked to do. You can see the others here and here. It's been pretty interesting coming up with different arrangements of the two main lures (the big blue one in the foreground and the little green and white one on the cup's rim). It feels a little bit like the painting equivalent of a Flat Stanley and I've been tempted at times to take the lures out and paint them in front of famous settings, but have resisted so far. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com Contact me.

Last Ranch on Ranch Road - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Last Ranch on Ranch Road (SOLD) 5x7 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara I was still in the mood to paint some sort of structure today when I went out looking for a painting spot. I didn't really have any particular location in mind when I set out, so I drove around for a while scouting out different places when I finally came across this old abandoned ranch boarded up at the end of, appropriately enough, Ranch Road. It's the last one left. The rest of the area has long been bought up and turned into some very nice, very expensive homes. Funny enough, there are still a few cows left to wander around the land, keeping most of the grounds in check except for a whole field that was in bloom with these very tiny yellow wild bushes. Because I refuse to trespass on private property, it was difficult to get a good location to paint from. I had to do this from the side of the road, looking through an opening in the brush growing along the fence line. Luckily, Ranch Road doesn't see a lot of traffic these days. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com

Tractor Shed - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Tractor Shed 10x8 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara t seems all this week I've been painting water and trees in one form or another. I was ready for a change today. Determined to find some sort of structure to paint today, I went to several different locations searching for a subject that I could paint. At the end of my search was Cedar Hill State Park where I found this building. Actually, I had picked a different building to paint. I even blocked it in before deciding that I wasn't happy with neither the my view of the subject nor my composition, so I wiped it off my canvas. It was then that I noticed this little building right next to me with an old tractor in it. I was drawn to the shadows and the way that just the front of the tractor caught the afternoon light. With a slight turn of my easel and turning my canvas vertically, I was off and painting. My brushed danced across the canvas and mixed colors as if I wasn't even there. I love days like this! To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com If you would like to purchase this painting visit my auction here.

Pappy Elkins Park - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Pappy Elkins Park 8x16 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara I just love the name of this park. It's not far from our house, which is good since things got to be pretty crazy today and I only had a few hours of daylight to paint in. I had all of the best intentions to get out first thing this morning and get to painting. My plan was to drive my wife to work since she still has problems driving with her cast and then go paint. As soon as I dropped her off, our daycare called and said our daughter looked like she had pink eye. I turned around to get her and take her to the doctor. Luckily, she doesn't have pink eye, but she did scratch her eye, which is why it was tearing and red. By the time I got her back to day care it was just about time to go pick my wife up from work. After getting her back home, I was able to go paint finally! To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com If you would like to purchase this painting visit my auction here

Waiting for a Bite - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Waiting for a Bite 8x10 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara Lake Arlington has a few piers to fish off of and a pretty amount of shore line that's easy to access.  The water is nice and people speed by on boats and jet skis all day long.  There are a few spots that I think would make good paintings so it was hard to choose what to paint. Then I spotted this fisherman at the end of one of the piers and knew that's what I wanted to paint today. I set up on the shore and got to painting quickly since I didn't know how long he would be there or how much he would move. Luckily, the fishing was slow, so he stayed pretty still for about 20 minutes, which was just enough time to get a good block in before he packed up his stuff and left. After he was gone, I worked on the rest of the painting by finishing off the water and the background. When I stepped back to check my work, I wasn't happy with the head I had painted.  It just didn't look right, so I scraped it off and painted the head of one of the other fisherman still on the pier instead. Between the two of them, it seems to have worked out very well. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com If you would like to purchase this painting visit my auction here.

Oakland Lake - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Oakland Lake 5x7 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara Today's painting was a fast one. I only had about an hour to paint this before I had to rush off to pick up my daughter at day care. This little park is only about 15 minutes from our house, but this was the first time I had gone there. It has a small lake, which is what I painted today, and lots of open ground. I want to go back as the fall color starts to change and maybe try a different view. I'm not sure why, but I had trouble with glare today. I tried painting this while sitting on a park bench, but the reflection on the canvas was terrible. I finally went back to standing. For me, it just works better if I stand. I feel I have more energy in my work when I'm standing and I can step back freely and check my progress.  To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com Contact me.

Whisper of Fall - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Whisper of Fall (SOLD) 5x7 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara I went to a little park just down the road from where my wife works with a little lake. It was the first time I had been there, so after scouting out the place for a few minutes, I settled on this view of the lake and the trees. I like how a few of the leaves are starting to change color, just hinting at fall! I had some trouble with the computer I usually use to process the images of my images, so hopefully this one looks okay. I had to use a different monitor then I'm use to and different software to color correct it. I hope to can get my other computer running properly before too long. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com

Eye Candy - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Eye Candy (SOLD) 5x7 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara I picked up these carrots to paint since they still had the large leafy part that grows above the ground attached. These seem to be a lot harder to find in the stores these days. Everything is those prepackaged varieties. I like the ones with the stalks on them still since they remind me of Bugs Bunny; however, the leaves wilt pretty quickly so I think this will be the only painting I will do from this bunch. Besides they look pretty tasty so I think I'd rather eat them, "Ah, What's up Doc?". To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com

Wild Hillside - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Wild Hillside 5x7 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara  I love painting this hillside, which we found while vacationing near Medicine Park, Oklahoma. I've painted it a few time over the last year. My only regret is that wish I had the presence of mind to take more photographs of this area.  It's a wonderful area with a huge wildlife refuge with lots of longhorns, buffalo and elk. We actually got stuck in the refuge for about an hour while a herd of longhorn crossed the road. Well, most of them crossed the road. A few of them just stopped to stare at us! To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com If you would like to purchase this painting visit my auction here

Yesterday's Harvest - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Yesterday's Harvest 5x7 inches Oil Painting on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara When my wife came in yesterday with the peppers she picked from the garden with some of the leaves still on them, I knew right away they had to be painted before they were eaten. I asked her not to touch them before I had a chance to use them.  She muttered something about pico de gallo and dinner, but without too much fuss agreed to my request. So, I set them up and painted them. The colors in the peppers where so rich that I found it  quite a challenge to try and replicate them with paint. We have a lot of peppers growing in the garden right now so don't be surprised if you see a few more of these before the season is done. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com If you would like to purchase this painting visit my auction here.

Orange Wedge - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Orange Wedge 5x3 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by Gorge De Chiara While I was trying to come up with a name for this painting, I started thinking that the orange wedge looked like a little Viking boat docked along the shore line of the blue land.  The white area is the water and the blue cloth is reminiscent of the land. See how it kind of makes a little cove where the blue cloth just barely gets back on the canvas? The problem was I couldn't think of any title that would sum this idea up in a few short words, so I had to go with the slightly pedestrian Orange Wedge. If anyone out there has a better title let me know. I'd be happy to change it. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com If you would like to purchase this painting visit my auction here.

Hanging With Big Blue - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Hanging with Big Blue (SOLD) 5x7 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara This is another one for the commission I'm working on (see yesterday's post). I wanted to try to capture a brighter feel, so I placed this whole set up on a white piece of matte board. The matte board reflects light, so I could see many details in the shadows. I always find the reflective quality inspiring and I find painting the details in the shadows very enjoyable because the shadows have surprising, wonderful color when I look and then "Squint and compare", as my instructor Bill Parks use to say. Today's painting rearranges a lot of the same elements I used yesterday, like the tin and coins, but the difference the reflections and shadows makes the effect strikingly different. For the next one, I will need to gather up some supplies over the weekend, so tomorrow I'll probably paint something else, maybe.... To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com Contact me.

Working Lunch - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Working Lunch (SOLD) 5x7 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara This is part of a commission I'm working on. The only requirement was that I use the two fishing lures; how they are used and in what context is up to me. This has turned out to be an exciting challenge. I spent a couple of hours thinking about how I wanted to try and set these up and then messing around with different things. I knew I wanted the lures to look like they where diving through the water and I had this idea that everything else in the painting could be things laying at the bottom of the lake, which is when the idea really came together. I liked the idea that this is a perfectly dry still life done in my studio, but it could almost be a scene found in any lake. When it came time to name this I asked my wife if she had any title ideas (truth be told a lot of the titles come from her) and she said "Working Lunch". I asked what that meant and she explained how the lures were lunch for the fish. I liked that, so Working Lunch it is. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com Contact me.

Tea Party - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Tea Party 5x7 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara  I must admit I've been building up quite a collection of tea cups in the last few weeks. It seems like I've been buying almost every one I've run into at the thrift stores lately. True be told, I'm running out of space in my studio for all of my "things" and need to start looking into some kind of shelves soon. In the meantime, here is one of the tea cups my wife bought at a garage sale a while back.  She says it's apart of someone's divorce china, which is why it is very nice and was priced very cheap. Anyway, it is a very reflective white and has a rather wide mouth, which proved to be a more challenging shape to draw then I thought it would. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com If you would like to purchase this painting visit my auction here.

Plum Stories - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Plum Stories 8x10 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara It's funny how these still lifes evolve.  This was originally a painting of carnations! Now, I won't bore you with all the details of how a painting of carnation turns into a plate of plums, but it took a series of eight major changes before settling on this one.  Normally I have a pretty good idea of what it is I want to paint and I may even have some sketches of the idea to help me, but not this time.  I did manage to work in the cookie jar I bought a few weeks ago at a local thrift store. I've also been toying around with this vague idea to somehow use some books in a still life. Books are fun to paint because there is such a variety of size and color so I'm sure I'll use this idea again at some point. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com Contact me.

In Need of Ade - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

In Need of Ade 11x14 Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara  I've been trying to figure out how to work this bowl in almost every still life I've set up since I bought it a few weeks ago.  I finally thought it might look good with some lemons and limes. I really enjoyed painting the details in the bowl, the little dark red rim around the outside, the slightly raised edge along the rim before the bowl dips down, and, of course, the painted details in the bottom of the bowl. I was trying to do a lot with transparent washes with this one, especially with the surface the lemons and bowl are on. I did have to use thicker and more opaque paint here and there, but that's okay. I like the effect of thick over thin paint. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com Contact me.

Room For One - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Room For One 8x10 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara  I've been dying to paint this vase since I bought it a few weeks ago. It has such interesting color to it when the light shines through it. I also have a taller, skinner one that I can't wait to use in a set up one day. While I was painting this, I kept thinking to myself that the one apple stuck in the vase had turned to the other apples who where hoping to get in and said "There's only room for one, fellas." Of course, the next thought in my head was, how can I make that into a shorter title. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com

Waiting for the Vase - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Waiting for the Vase 5x7 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara When my wife brought home these carnations, I thought they might be a nice change of pace from all of the fruit and vegetables I've been painting lately. They also gave me a chance to use one of the new plates I picked up last week at the thrift store. I really enjoy painting these types of plates with the decorative border on them.  It's such a great design element.  I can't quite put my finger on why that is, other then they usually have some great colors in them and they bring a certain level of detail to the painting that I really like. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com If you would like to purchase this painting visit my auction here.

Some Weather, Huh? - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Some Weather, Huh? 8x10 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara  The weather here in Texas has been so brutally hot these last few weeks, I couldn't help but think of the beach. Today topped out to 115 degrees, according to my car's thermometer and I think this has been the 22nd out of 23 days that we've topped 100.  The breeziness of the coast would be very welcome now.  That reminded me of the awesome shorebird sanctuary close to the Texas A&M Corpus Christi campus my wife and I visited over our anniversary.  It was a hot, quiet place teeming with brown and white pelicans, egrets, and, more excitingly,Roseate spoonbills.  Unfortunately, I couldn't get a good reference photo of the spoonbills because they were just too far away.  These seagulls were much more bold and I think they knew they were safe there enjoying that hot day at the beach. There they were, just sitting in the water without a care in the world About half way through painting this I thought, these seagulls must occasionally say to each "Some weather we're having, huh?", which is were the title came from. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com If you would like to purchase this painting visit my auction here.

Apricots with Plum - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Apricots with Plum (SOLD) 5x7 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara When I noticed that my wife had purchased some apricots at the store, I thought to myself "I've never painted those before" and so I set up this still life. Originally I had included some black grapes, but as I was painting, I thought the whole thing looked a little busy, so I took them out. Although I had a lot of fun with the reflections I had to really spend some time working them out. I only wish I could have included more of the bowl so I could have had even more reflection, but I didn't want the fruit to get too small. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com

Clementine's Tea Party - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Clementine's Tea Party 11x14 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara  A week after setting up this still life, I finally got around to making the final painting .  After examining the set up and making some adjustments over the week, I painted some smaller studies (see previous 3 posts). Since I had tried this same set up before and wiped it off, I knew where the trouble areas where going to be, namely the doll's head and some of the patterns in the material. I had a feeling if I could get the head to a pretty good point, the rest of the painting would fall into place for me.   Seeing no reason to put off the challenge, that's where I started. It was a little touch and go for a while, but I finally figured out how to paint this doll's head. Satisfied, from there I painted pretty much from right to left, top to bottom. What did I learn from this painting?  Well, painting patterns on fabric can be a real challenge and this still life I had a lot of those challenges. With a plaid background and all of the fabric patterns on the doll, I felt a bit overwhelmed at times and decided to try and keep the patterns fairly simple, using the details where I thought they would help and skipping them when I could. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com If you would like to purchase this painting visit my auction here.

Hot Tomato - Original Oil Painting by George De Chiara

Hot Tomato 5x7 inches Oil on Canvas Panel by George De Chiara  I'm not sure why I put these things together other than I liked the way the shapes worked with each other. I wasn't really thinking about what they are as much as how the red of the tomato compliments the green of the peppers. It wasn't until after I was done painting when my wife walked into the studio and said "Who has peppers and tomatoes with their tea?" that I thought about what the real world relationship between peppers, tomatoes, and a nice cup of steaming hot tea. Before I could come up with an answer, she added, "You can call this one hot tomato" and walked out again. To read more about this painting please visit my blog. http://georgedechiara.com/blog Visit my web site to see more of my work. http://georgedechiara.com If you would like to purchase this painting visit my auction here.