Red and Green Apples

Red and Green Apples, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2010

Sold! Private collection

And on this final day of the 25 days of Christmas, my wife suggested that I mark the day with a celebration of red and green. All that begins with apples will end with apples, and this bold and brilliant piece will signify the closure of an exciting and challenging project.

Of course nobody likes when things end, so I'm going to extend this promotion to the end of the month of December. I've received more than a few comments from people that were a little disapponted to miss out on some of their favorite pieces, so I've been thinking of how I might spread yet a little more holiday cheer. If anyone is interested in another version of any piece they've seen over the past 25 days, contact me before midnight of December 31st to be eligible for one more chance to own a piece of history, and a coupon toward a future art purchase.

A Sliced Avocado

A Sliced Avocado, 5 inches by 7 inches

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It's always exciting to see how much color is unleashed from a sliced avocado. I'm almost a completely different kind of painter when I first block in the colors that describe all the components of this subject.

A Bunch of Grapes

A Bunch of Grapes, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2010

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Every once in a while I'll see what I can do with a bunch of grapes. There seems to be an entirely different process to capturing this subject, as I must focus on describing the general shape of the bunch before articulating the colors that define each individual grape within the bunch.

Two Royal Gala Apples

Two Apples, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2010

Sold! Private collection

After all I've learned from all the odd subjects over the past few weeks, I decided to revisit a pair of apples and see what happens.

A Mango

A Mango, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2010

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I decided to revisit the rarely visited mango one more time, and I have to admit that I'm starting to understand the colors and mass and shape of these things. The sheen on the surface was a nice counterpoint to the fade of colors from red to yellow and green.

A Single Pear

A Single Pear, 5 inches by 7 inches, January 2011

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When the client came to pick up their very small paintings, they selected the second version of the same pear, finished after it had already begun to turn orange and red.

An Apricot

An Apricot, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2010

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The challenge was capturing the fuzzy surface and the luminosity and vibrant colors of this apricot

A Pint of Refreshment

A Pint of Refreshment, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2010

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Cheers.

A Slice of Canteloupe

A Slice of Canteloupe, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2010

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After carving apart a fresh new canteloupe, I carved out a fresh new study of a slice of canteloupe. This was a fun painting, exploring the gradations of some fairly bright and bold colors.

A Lime

A Lime, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2010

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I'm not sure if I've ever explored the simplicity of a lime. I was surprised with how much color can be found in what looks to be a fairly simple green, including hints of some fairly vivid blue for an overall coolness. At some point I'll be so bold as to actually slice one of these little puppies and see how it holds up in a painting.

A Banana

A Banana, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2010

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When I started this banana, it was banana yellow, but as the session progressed I could see more and more marks and discoloration appearing. I had to strike a balance between a fresh banana and an overly ripe banana to find a place to finish.

A Tomato

A Tomato, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2010

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Whenever I decide to study a tomato, the crown of spidery thin leaves around the stem always creates a surprisingly animated compositional element, almost like wind blown hair frozen in place.

A Strawberry

A Strawberry, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2010

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As snow started falling, I carved out this study of a single strawberry. Zoomed up to this level of detail requires that I find the marks that can describe the textured pattern on the surface, while still having it be a product of paint, and not tricks of illustration.

A Plum

A Plum, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2010

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The sun never came out today, so to celebrate the darkness I decided to paint a dark red plum. I'm always surprised with how much color I'm able to find in such a dark subject.

An Egg

An Egg, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2010

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The last time I painted an egg was in the first semester of my sophomore year in art school, when I thought that rendering an egg amid draped satin would teach me how to paint. All these years later, I believe I understand that painting is more about assigning colors to seemingly colorless objects, and no amount of fading and rendering will take the place of actually finding the color.

A Tabasco Sauce Bottle

A Tabasco Sauce Bottle, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2010
Sold! Private collection, Kansas City, Missouri

As the temperature plunges well below freezing, nothing warms up the heart like hot sauce. I revisited an old subject and learned some new things about all the reflections of surrounding light.

A Pomegranate

A Pomegranate, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2010

Sold! Private collection, Bondurant, Iowa

Today I revisited the ever evasive pomegranate. It has skin like leather, so it doesn't shine, and instead of gentle curves it has gently curving facets. It's almost dark red, but transitions in every direction to pale versions of faded violet. The turning edges reflect every color without ever having a gloss.

A Steel Steaming Pitcher

A Steel Pitcher, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2010
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I couldn't focus so intently on an espresso cup without also paying some attention to the little steel pitcher used for steaming milk, for that perfect cappuccino. Of course no part of this felt like I was actually painting the subject itself; instead I was challenged to capture all the reflections of myself and the room caught in the mirrored surface. If I wore something other than a dark sweater, it would have wound up being more of a distorted self portrait than anything else.

An Espresso Cup

An Espresso Cup, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2010

Sold! Private collection, Chapel Hill, North Carolina

Over a week after returning from our trip, I'm still not over jetlag. Exhaustion kicks in at 6pm, and I'm watching the stars moving through the branches of the tree outside the bedroom window at 4am. Powerful cups of espresso don't seem to equalize the balance of night and day, but that didn't stop me from carving out this little study of the iconic Illy espresso cup.

Two Pears

Two Pears, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2010

Sold! Private collection, Baltimore, Maryland

When I picked out these two pears, I thought they were more or less the same color, but setting them up for a study revealed so much more variety from one to the next.

Three Cherries

Three Cherries, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2010

Sold! Private collection, Greenwich, Connecticut

The vivid color and high gloss made this a fun little painting, and the coordinated sweep of the stems made an interesting compositional element. As a reminder, this is the fifth painting of the 25 days of Christmas series, selling for a special promotional price of $200 including a dark mahogany hardwood frame. Included with the painting will be a $200 gift certificate valid until December 31st of 2011, good toward any other David Oleski painting, outside of any other offers or promotions. As many of these certificates can be combined toward a discount on a larger piece.

A Tangerine

One Tangerine, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2010

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Somehow this single tangerine managed to look fresh after sitting on the counter for over a month. Studying shades of orange always feels like more of an exercise in blue than anything else, as I constantly compare relative shades of grey to create the volume and depth.

Three Blueberries

Three Blueberries, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2010

Sold! Private collection, Reston, Virginia

I decided to revisit an old favorite, the brilliantly blue blueberries. I was having a hard time picking three good ones, as I kept eating them every time I'd finish comparing one against the others.

One Lemon

One Lemon, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2010

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My year ended with some exciting things happening with lemons, so I decided to start the new year with the refreshing smells and colors of a single lemon. Ahh, fresh!

One Green Apple

One Green Apple, 5 inches by 7 inches

Sold! Private collection, Baltimore, Maryland

All things begin with a single green apple, as will the 25 days of Christmas. In these darkest of days, I somehow managed to create an image of great light and reflection. This is the first of the David Oleski 25 days of Christmas promotion, and the purchase will include a gift certificate for $200, good toward the purchase of any piece from my current and upcoming available inventory, valid from the day you receive your very small painting until December 31st of 2011. As many certificates as you collect can be combined together for any purchase, although these cannot be used in combination with any other offer or promotion.

The 25 Days of Christmas

From December 1st to the 25th, each day I will be making available one very small framed 5 inch by 7 inch painting, for a special promotional discount price of $200, just in time for the perfect holiday gift. As though that weren’t enough of a holiday miracle, included with each painting will be a gift certificate for $200, good toward the purchase of any piece from my current and upcoming available inventory, valid from the day you receive your very small painting until December 31st of 2011. As many certificates as you collect can be combined together for any purchase, although these cannot be used in combination with any other offer or promotion. Buy all 25 paintings and get the giant painting you’ve always wanted to hang above your couch…for free! On December 26th I might wake up and wonder what I was thinking, but in the meantime, I’ll be having fun playing Santa Claude Monet for The 25 Days of Christmas.

The paintings will be posted here, on this journal, as they are made available, as well as being listed on the Paintings of David Oleski Facebook Page. Both listings will refer to Ebay where the paintings can be purchased.

Two Green Apples

Two Green Apples

8 inches by 10 inches, August 2010

Private collection, Mclean, Virginia

I carved out two different studies of the same two granny smith apples. I'm reminded of how fast and dynamic these very small paintings can be, with foundation and resolution happening in such rapid succession.

One Royal Gala Apple

One Royal Gala Apple, 5 inches by 7 inches, August 2010

After more than a few months of nothing but giant paintings, today I carved out a very small study of a single gala apple for a commission. It was fun seeing how the smallest brushes scrub out such broad and sweeping areas, and color decisions are made with the smallest flick of paint with the smallest palette knife I have. This was my morning exercise before diving into a very large painting of eleven of these royal gala apples, including this one.

A few small things

One Green Apple, 6 inches by 6 inches, Private collection

An Espresso Cup, 6 inches by 6 inches, Private collection

I finished a pair of very small paintings for a commission. A previous client told me to leave the logo off the Illy cup, as he was more interested in all of the transitions of white. I happened to have a few espresso cups without the bold red logo, so it was easy enough to oblige his request.