Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Chaco #3 - Ancient Architecture series

Chaco #3
12x9 inches
pastel on black Strathmore paper

Hmmm...this looks a bit better in person; I could not do any color adjustment to get the correct saturation of the turquoise-green on the right side without completely over-saturating the left-sided greens.  I loved the design of this, but may re-do it in a different color scheme later; it doesn't look as good as I'd hoped when I tested the colors out together...and so it goes.  

------

Nelson celebrates Fat Tuesday in style* and wishes everyone a happy Mardi Gras!




*[subject was not harmed or otherwise subjected to inhumane working conditions during today's photo session.  And, there's nothing like a string of beads to top off one's fancy tuxedo attire.]






12 comments:

  1. Looks like comments are back "on" for me at your blog.

    I don't know what your intention was, but these colors work very well for me. This is my fave so far.

    Thanks for the mention before. These are awesome pastels, Sonya!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks, Casey - I really liked the colors together on the "test" sheet, but you can never tell how they are going to read once they are all on the paper. I also see that Blogger fixed the thumbnail problem as well - yay.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Your paintings are always a delight to view!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Nelson is looking very natty! I also like the colors in this painting more than you do.

    ReplyDelete
  5. My brain keeps telling me these are moonlight colors, but they're not. They're more exaggerated feeling--like the impression of moonlight color. In any case these colors and compositions are working well together. I have no trouble with the saturation balances. Wm

    Sorry about that--had to try again.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Thanks, Helen - I appreciate that :)!

    Sam - yes, we like to say that Nelson is always "nattily attired" ;). I'm pleased that y'all think this combination of colors works...I am probably being over-analytical and over-critical.

    William - you know, I hadn't thought about these as moonlight colors, and that wasn't my intent, but now when I look at it, I see exactly what you are saying. That is really pretty neat that it is open to viewer interpretation - thanks for that.

    ReplyDelete
  7. The painting is so powerful. I'm with Casey.
    Nelson is such a man!))

    ReplyDelete
  8. Tuxedo with shiny beads! Oh, what a handsome boy!!

    I think I like this one best of the three Chacos so far.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Hi,
    I just discovered your blog and have been enjoying your work and commentary. I visited Chaco also and was struck with the razor sharp corners and the intensity of the red against the deep blue sky. Even though you've changed the colors, your work somehow captures the intensity and reads as the actual color relationships. Not sure how you did that!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Hi Irina - thanks for dropping again by and commenting - I appreciate it :)!

    Hi Jala - thanks! Nelson wears his shiny beads in style, doesn't he? When he isn't trying to eat them, anyway ;).

    Hi Kathy - thanks so much for stopping by, and welcome! I enjoyed the work on your blog, including your Mesa Verde pieces. The architecture of these ruins is so fascinating, isn't it? For this series, I have been trying to stick to the same values as those in my photograph references, at least for the building structures, and go with colors I think will harmonize well together.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Sonya--don't sell this painting short...I like it a lot.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Thanks much, Don - I appreciate that!

    ReplyDelete

Your thoughtful comments add value to this blog - thank you so much for taking the time to leave them!

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...