I had some leftover paint...

 I've just completed a cover commission painting for a publisher in Australia. I can't reveal what that is just yet, but it was both nerve-wracking and fun at the same time. And of course after that, I had some leftover paint on my palette. There was also an explosion of Permanent Rose since I squeezed the tube BEFORE clearing the blockage in the mouth of the tube...sooooo big spoosh of paint. Sigh. So, I picked up a little canvas, drew some circles for moons and a space station and 'went to town'. So the first little rocket doodle was born. After it dried a little, I decided that it needed a teeny rocket for narrative. Here is the result...

 "Red Dust City"

(5x7", Oils on Linen, Framed)   Price: $240.00  SOLD

The second little painting was one I had already drawn up from a few months ago. I'd used an idea from my teeny 3" sketchbook. So I popped that canvas onto a small easel and ferreted out the reference that had inspired it. Suffice it to say, it is a space station orbiting inside the rings of an ice/gas giant planet. The space station is a refinery that continuously processes minerals, gases and ice resources for a variety of colonies and nearby inhabited planets. The rocket ship has left the station and is cruising above the outer rings, skimming over the glittering ice chunks, prospecting for a new area to mine. The pilot must be careful not to be blinded by the light reflecting off the ice-steroids, nor become mesmerized by them either, or he and his ship could end up just another casualty among the ancient planetary ejecta. So...

"Prospecting"

 (6x8", Oils on Linen, Framed)  Price: $300.00 SOLD

Here is the teeny thumbnail sketch from my little design sketchbook that this painting is based on...

It was detailed enough that all I had to do was enlarge a copy to the correct size and trace it down. It gave me basic lines to work with and just noodle paint.

Unfortunately the bad photos were taken quickly in our kitchen before we left for a show, and they have lost the luminosity that original oil paintings have. Then again that happens with most photography of oil paintings. Light bounces through the paint, hits the white canvas beneath and bounces right back out at the viewer, giving off the typical luminous look of oil paintings no matter when they were painted. It loses that when photographed in most instances, sad to say. Photography also lose subtleties in the paint as well as colour variations. Digital photography has come a long way, but still has far to go to capture any painting correctly. Still, bad kitchen lighting and all. Ahem. LOL

Anyway, I just thought I'd throw these up on the blog while I could. There is more to post. Isn't there always? So I will get to them when I can. Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see you again soon.
Cheers,
Marianne