I have a great tangerine tree in my backyard that, although small in stature, produces a huge amount of super juicy fruit. Sometimes I have to pluck a few unripe tangerines so the branches don't break under all the weight. For this painting, I started with an all black canvas. Initially, my plan was to make the napkin turquoise, but changed my mind and went with cream. Also, I planned to paint dark green over the black as the background, and I did. But I wasn't satisfied with the look, so I washed black over the green and kept it. The black makes this painting feel real classy, black tie event classy, hence the title "Orange Is The New Black". Who knew that tangerines could be so chic!
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Titmouses or Titmice? That is the question... I had to google it and of course there's some authorities that on the side of Titmouses and others that swear by Titmice. One birder has the most convincing explanation that saying Titmice is like saying Mongeese (another word I'd been confused about since we have them in Hawaii). Apparently "Mongoose" derives from a root of "mangus"and "Titmouse" derived from roots "titr" (small in Icelandic) and "mase" (small bird in Anglo-Saxon). So although a majority of the public prefer the sound of "Titmice", the correct plural would be "Titmouses". There you have it! I named these Titmouses "Sittin' On A Fence" for obvious reasons. I like the Rolling Stones song with the same title, so it just fit. My favorite feature of the Titmouse is those dewy eyes! No matter what the Titmouse is up to, it always looks like an angel. I show my parents all the artwork that I do, partly for critique (make sure it looks like a pear for example) but mostly I show them for the selfishly fuzzy feeling I get when they send me their approval. When I emailed my dad "Family Portrait" along with a few others, he said "I like the Pear Family Portrait"... So I stole the name from him. We have a family of five: Mom, Dad, older bro, twin bro and me. I'm not sure who's who in the portrait, but man, we make a cute pear family! Next I will need a longer canvas to include our expanding family with spouses and baby D :) Check out my ARTWORK portfolios for newly posted paintings that I just uploaded yesterday and today (especially in "Fruits of Nature" and "Surf's Up!") Back to the birds! These are fledgling Pacific Wrens hanging out together and watching the leaves change color. Living in Hawaii is the best, but one thing I really miss from California is the wonder of fall. I used to love seeing all the leaves magically turn bright warm colors, seemingly overnight. I miss the rustle of leaves as I would crunch them under my feet in our backyard. And all the forest smells as nature prepared itself for the upcoming winter. Hawaii is constant summer with a hint of rain here and there. I love that it's never too cold, but sometimes I have to fly back to California to get my seasonal fix ;) Strawberries are yummy! I needed to take a break from birdies for just a moment, so today I decided to paint some fruit. I'll be back to birds in no time, but I really enjoyed painting these strawberries too. In Hawaii, we have some really amazing farms. A lot of the restaurants here implement "farm-to-table" style cooking which simply means that they utilize the local ingredients found on island from our many Hawaiian growers. Some of the best strawberries are located on the Big Island in Waimea. Deep red in color and intense juicy flavor make these strawberries hard to beat. Fortunately for us, Hawaii feels like summertime all the time, so we can get these strawberries almost any day of the year. Nature's candy! Yesterday I met Makenzie, my newest and youngest collector (9yrs old), and her family. It was a really fun outing, the first time I left my house since my surgery. Sometimes I will make studies of a painting as a rehearsal for my final one. I will admit, I don't do that very often, but I had an idea... Makenzie and her mom Laura really struck a chord with me. Laura told me that Makenzie has been drawing since she was two. Laura wants to continue encouraging Makenzie with art because she (Laura) enjoyed making her own artwork, but didn't quite get the support she needed as she grew up. I never would have continued my art if my parents said "no" to art classes or nixed my decision to major in a Bachelor of Fine Arts. So when Laura wanted Makenzie to meet me, I was really excited to go. Makenzie and Karen I brought my sketchbook and as I painted "From Me To You", I took frame-by-frame pictures to show Makenzie how I get to the final painting. My idea of making a study for this painting was so I could bring Makenzie a little gift to encourage her to keep creating her own artwork. "From Me To You" features the smallest Hawaiian honeycreeper called 'Anianiau. Mostly found in Kauai's upper forests, the 'Anianiau loves the nectar from Lehua (the Ohia tree's flower). To me, this 'Anianiau looks like he's holding onto this Lehua as a gift, offering it to you in return for your love:) The Black-Capped Chickadee is one of my most favorite birds to paint. They have so much character and I love their fluffy black caps! I see this pair as brother and sister. On the left, we have the tough-guy brother that is watching out for his sis. And we have the cute little sister who is much tougher than she looks. I have two brothers and, although I can hold my own, it was always comforting to know that they'd have my back. My sister-in-law Amanda has told me before that she was jealous of my siblings' close-knit relationships because, as an only child, she didn't have that growing up. I never knew any different, but I appreciate our special bond now. Of course, Amanda is now my sister, part of the clan, and she gets teased, pinched and smothered just like the rest of us... Forgot to tell her about the torments of siblinghood that comes along with the love;) What comes first the song or the painting? Usually I pick a song to match my painting as part of my post-creation homework. But sometimes, the song inspires a painting and I have this need to make the lyrics come to life! Obviously this painting is an example of the latter situation. In Hawaii, the struggle and strife found in most reggae lyrics usually gets lost in translation, even though the native Hawaiians went through similar trials and tribulation. Most people in Hawaii love reggae for the melodic, rolling ease of the music, the loose moves of skanking (dancing style) and the ubiquitous feeling of hope. The birds I chose are Ruby Crowned Kinglets. Males and females look very similar aside from the males having bright red crown feathers. Ruby Crowned Kinglets are known for being small, round and all around adorable! They are constant movers, hopping and flying every which way. And when nesting, the RC Kinglet will use a "broken wing" tactic to lure predators away from the nest or outright mob the interloper with torpedo attacks. Since these birds hardly take a break, I thought it would be fitting to have them cruising for a moment on Bob's doormat:) Bob Marley's "Three Little Birds" (the song): "Rise up this morning, smiled at the rising sun. Three Little Birds, pitch by my doorstep. Singing sweet songs of melodies pure and true. Saying this is a message for you... Singing don't worry about a thing, cause everything little thing's gonna be alright... " Yay! My newest collector, Makenzie (and family), decided to take home "Purple Haze" and "Born In The USA" yesterday from Genesis Gallery! I get to meet her this weekend and I'm very excited! First trip out into the world after my surgery. She's also an artist, so we are going to swap ideas and tips. Maybe Makenzie can give me a few more ideas for future paintings, she chose two really great paintings :) Happy Fourth of July, Everyone! I've got my burgers and onion rings ready to grill, so I figured I should do a patriotic bird painting today. These little cotton balls are Bald Eaglets. Until three or four weeks old, Bald Eaglets have snowy white down covering their entire bodies. As they mature, their bodies get covered in grey down then brown feathers and their heads produce the familiar bright white feathers. Politics have never really been my favorite topic of discussion. And I know that all my politically-savvy friends are up in arms about that statement (You need to get involved in what the government is doing, knowledge is power! America is politics!). The way I see it, my gung-ho buddies can focus their passion on politics, and then let me know and I'll support what sounds good to me. America is a great country. Yes, we have some major issues to iron out and, yes, some other countries say "Americans" as though it's a bad word. But where else can you grow up dreaming of being a professional athlete/astronaut, win a sweepstakes to meet Oprah in Hawaii, eat a double-fried, chocolate-dipped Twinkie at a state fair and quit your career as a neurosurgeon to become a yoga instructor? So enjoy your hotdogs and potato salad today with fireworks in the cul-de-sac after sunset. After all, that's what we are celebrating today. America is all about having choices, celebrating our independence and embracing the freedoms of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Proud to be an American! Thanks to Amy and Dan Weiske! "You Be My Honeysuckle" is a larger canvas 11"x14" with a pair of Anna's Hummingbirds and Coral Honeysuckle. The female has reddish spots on her throat and the male's crown and throat are brilliant pink. The Weiskes are big fans of hummingbirds, just like me, so we get along really well. I will keep making more, stay tuned! :) I want to love you, P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)! American Yellow Warblers live and breed all over North America and down into South America. The adult male is bright yellow with green-black striped wings and rusty red streaks down his belly. Females are duller and the juveniles are puffballs of white, grey and yellow. Ever since I started with "Hello, Birdette!", I have been meaning to make an army of birdy minions. This little warbler chick is included in the group. He's really small, 5"x5" canvas, but he makes up for his size with loads of fluffy feathers and a wide, bracing stance. It's tricky: I don't know whether to fear his tough-guy bravado or snuggle the living poof outta him! ...I think I'll go with the second option, thank you very much;) |
AuthorKaren Obuhanych (kto ART) is a Hawaii-based artist who relishes in the simple, happy moments of everyday life. Archives
May 2019
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