The Summer of the Series

With the prospect of school soon to end in the next week, I am very excited to have all the time I want to paint.  I have so much beautuful reference from both the Philadelphia Flower Show and my trips to Italy and Sanoma.  I will work alternately from one set of series paintings to another.  For now I start with the Hawaiian Series from the flower show.

"Orchid Peaches"

from the series

"Pua Lu'au"

(Flower Feast)

Watercolor,  12" x 18"

© Carmella Tuliszewski

I have to admit to feeling a little rusty.  It's been over a month since I've done any painting.  I am just beginning this one but feel good about it so far.  The orange glow inside the orchids is almost there but overall it still needs plenty of play time.   I frame each photo in the lens as a composition to paint.  When it comes time to draw from the reference photo, I make any necessary chages in that composition to compliment the arrangement on the page.  Then I'm ready to go with the fun part.

My plan for the summer is to find a local Giclee printer that I can work with to start creating note cards and prints of my paintings.  I will set up a web site with a credit card app and have a go at starting a business of greeting cards, prints and originals for sale.  But first comes all the prep work!

I'll be back with a finish on this soon!  Thanks for viewing.

Adirondack Chair Exhibit

When I picked up my chair in February the only back support was the seven thin rails you see on the ground, spaced far apart.  Not much of a canvas to work on.  So I took the chair apart and rebuilt it.

Now, I've done a lot of projects around the house over the years, painting, sewing and woodworking.  My husband likes to say that in our family I'm the one with the tool belt!  I purchased a few larger planks and reconstructed the back with some real space to work with.  Next came drawing the design and using a scroll saw to carve our some of the shapes.

Here is the finished product.

When I think of gardens from art history, I think of the Impressionists.  So I painted with acrylic in an Impressionist style.  The butterfly is a copper attachment done in repousse', meaning the drawing is inscribed into the metal with a wooden stylist for a relief effect. 

I deliver the chair tomorrow morning and sometime in May all the chairs will be displayed around Chestnut Hill, PA and the Morris Arboretum in Philadelphia.  There will be a judging for prizes and the chairs will be titled and for sale.