Decisions, decisions....

Simple Things

Seems I can't get a good photo today to save my life.  This is a still life I have been working on, with a painted Japanese silk screen behind it.  I wanted something besides just a flat background, and decided to do this screen.  The big challenge with that is keeping it very reserved and soft, so that it stays in the background.

I also had to be real careful about color choices so that it would harmonize with the rest of the painting. This whole painting is basically a study in red and green, painted with a palette of cad yellow, cad red, transparent red oxide, yellow ochre, viridian, ultramarine, and cad orange.  And white of course.

I try to repeat colors when I can. The shadows on the white cloth as well as the form shadow on the teacup are really the background color.  The viridian in the bottle is repeated in the copper kettle verdigris. Even the apple red finds its way into the kettle.

I am considering painting a real chickadee, who has landed on the table out of curiosity, perhaps wondering about those painted ones on the wall there.. Chickadees are brave, curious little birds, some of my favorite to watch at the feeder.  But I can't decide whether to add one or not. What do you think?