As the days grow dark and short, the delicious tangerine is a burst of color and freshness.
Two Pieces of a Tangerine
Private collection
Wednesday, December 3, 2014
Tuesday, December 2, 2014
An Asian Pear
I'd always avoided painting the Asian pear, only because of the lack of a defining shine. I've explored every version of secondary light sources, reflections from underneath, compounded reflections of adjacent surfaces, and on and on, yet nothing prepared me for the smooth flat finish of this new subject. I learned some good things.
An Asian Pear
sold! Private collection, Washington, DC
Monday, December 1, 2014
A Green Apple
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 $240, 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 $240, 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 2015. 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, or the Eight Days of Hanukkah and the mystic prime number of 17 days following the Festival of Lights. The paintings will be listed each day on the Very Small Paintings page, as well as on the Paintings of David Oleski Facebook Page, to be sold through the modern miracle of Ebay.
All things begin with a green apple.
One Green Apple
Private collection
Sunday, December 22, 2013
A Banana
As the 25 Days of Christmas holiday promo is winding down, and these last few paintings may or may not get posted before the 25th.
A Banana, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2013
Friday, December 20, 2013
Thursday, December 19, 2013
Wednesday, December 18, 2013
Monday, December 16, 2013
Sunday, December 15, 2013
Saturday, December 14, 2013
Friday, December 13, 2013
A Bunch of Grapes
On Friday the 13th, a bunch of grapes is the perfect subject for me to paint. The key is to understand the bunch first as a shape, and then break down the mass into the components of the individual grapes.
A Bunch of Grapes, 5 inches by 7 inches
Thursday, December 12, 2013
Wednesday, December 11, 2013
The last 10 days of December
As I've been away for the One of a Kind Show in Chicago since last week, I haven't been able to post the new paintings. So now I'll try to play a little catch-up.
Two Pieces of a Tangerine, 5 inches by 7 inches
Sold!
One Green Apple
Sold! Private collection, Washington, DC
Two Pears, 5 inches by 7 inches
Three Cherries, 5 inches by 7 inches
Sold!
A Sliced Lime, 5 inches by 7 inches
Two Tomatoes, 5 inches by 7 inches
Sold!
One Egg
Sold! Private collection, Philadelphia, PA
Three Blueberries, 5 inches by 7 inches
Sold!
Sunday, December 1, 2013
Salt and Pepper Shakers
From small things shall the big things be born, and December 1st of 2013 begins with the first very small painting of the 25 Days of Christmas of 2013 painting series. Included with the purchase of these paintings will be a gift certificate good toward the purchase of any other painting, equal to the purchase price of the very small painting.
A Salt and Pepper Shaker, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2013
Sold! Private collection, Alton, Illinois
Tuesday, December 25, 2012
Three Blueberries, and a Steel Steaming Pitcher
Three Blueberries, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2012
A Steel Steaming Pitcher, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2012
On the final day of the 25 Amazing Days of Christmas of 2012, I decided to bring two paintings back by popular demand, the trio of blueberries, and the highly reflective steel steaming pitcher. As always, I had a great time with this series of little gems, and more than once I was a bit sad to see these get sold off to collectors from all over the country. As this effectively winds up the 2012 year, I'm excited to dig in on some exciting new frontiers in my ongoing mission into color and space.
Monday, December 24, 2012
Three Thai Chili Peppers
Three Thai Chili Peppers, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2012
Sold! Private collection, Henrico, Virginia
Just to warm up this dark and cold day, I decided to carve out a study of three Thai chili peppers. These little accent marks of color become graphic little slashes to compose a gestural piece of calligraphy.
Sunday, December 23, 2012
An Espresso Cup
An Espresso Cup, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2012
As coffee is the only thing that focuses my attention in these dashingly short spans of daylight, I decided to embrace this forbidden love with a small study of the stately little espresso cup. Of course I drink my espresso as a double dose long pull in a cobalt glass mug to catapult me forward like a banshee on rollerskates, but the sentiment is charming and subtle in this lovely little painting.
Saturday, December 22, 2012
Three Seckel Pears
Three Seckel Pears, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2012
As the days wind down to the end of the 2012 promotion, I decided to try my hand at a trio of adorable little Seckel pears. Seckel pears are named after a farmer from Pennsylvania who discovered the fruit in the early 19th century. Today everybody has a chance to discover this charming little painting of Seckel pears, done by an artist in Pennsylvania in the early 21st century.
History is amazing, isn't it?
Friday, December 21, 2012
Red and Delicious
A Red Delicious Apple, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2012
Private collection, McLean, Virginia
Thursday, December 20, 2012
A Persimmon
A Persimmon, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2012
Sold! Private collection, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
To celebrate the end of the world, I decided to paint a persimmon. I'm not sure if the ancient Mayans would have approved of this as the appropriate means of celebration, but I did it anyway. Afterwards, we sacrificed the fruit by eating it, just to get a deeper understanding of the ancient ritual of celebration.
Wednesday, December 19, 2012
Two Pears, and a Yellow Pepper
A Yellow Pepper, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2012
Sold! Private collection, Henrico, Virginia
There's no shortage of color and excitement here in Chateau d'Oleski. I started off with a study of light and transclucence in the key of yellow, with a fresh yellow pepper. It is always a great challenge to figure out what colors will describe the light that glows from within a yellow pepper.
Two Bartlett Pears, 5 inches by 6 inches, December 2012
I followed up with another study of bartlett pears, just to have fun with the musical rhythms of curves and color in these shapely subjects.
Tuesday, December 18, 2012
A Salt Shaker
A Salt Shaker, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2012
After exploring the world of one sweet fruit after another, I decided to explore a range of other flavors, starting with the ubiquitous salt shaker. The thick glass and chromed steel dome provided a nice basis of study of many aspects of this interesting shape.
Monday, December 17, 2012
Starfruit
A Starfruit, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2012
Sold! Private collection, Rumson, New Jersey
Several years ago I approached this subject with mixed success. The translucent flesh of this fruit compounded with the odd shape feels oddly artificial and contrived, like painting a big piece of colorful candy. The details become telling, as fine lines on the edges become defining delineations of some of the facets and angles. The waxy sheen provides a good study of reflections unlike anything else.
Sunday, December 16, 2012
Two Strawberries
Two Strawberries, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2012
Few things are as challenging as the details and textures of strawberries. Turning one to the light and the other away provided a good exercise in generalities and details.
Saturday, December 15, 2012
A Small Bunch of Grapes
A Small Bunch of Grapes, 5 inches by 7 inches, December 2012
Sold! Private collection, Glen Allen, Virginia
The requisite bunch of grapes is always a good exercise in trusting in the process of building a painting from generalities to details. By initially describing the overall mass, and only then defining the colors that structure the individual components, this subject always seems to just paint itself.
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