Still Life Compositions

 

Sharing with you all a few of my still life compositions and tablescapes - some old and some new, some real and some imagined.

These two were painted earlier this year in summer.

Snake Plant in Green Teacup

Milk and Wine Lilies

While these two were painted almost ten years back and were sold recently.

White Petunias - 2

Red Hibiscus in Orange Can

Can you find any changes through the years? It is good to revisit old work as that gives one a sense of how much progress has been made over time. The one thing that I find has remained constant in my work through the years - my bright and bold style. 

Write to me at creativerumblings@gmail.com to purchase my work.

The Lemon Tree Studies

 

This month I'm bringing you my lemon tree studies. But first, the back story: so we have a lemon tree right in the middle of the backyard, planted by the previous residents. It has a uniquely shaped crooked stem and gives fruits aplenty in season. Though I wish the fruits would turn yellow sooner.... they remain a vibrant green for weeks, and take forever to ripen. 

But I'm grateful for the lemon tree and its bounties anyway. So I tried painting it using acrylics at different times of the day. The aim was to capture the changing light, and the various moods of our crooked lemon tree.

The Crooked Lemon Tree

The first study focusses on the unique crooked shape of the tree, and how the leaves light up in direct sunshine. Maybe we need more chairs in the shade to enjoy the balmy weather! Who all want to join me? 😃

The View from the Bedroom

This next study keeps the lemon tree as the central focus but also attempts to capture its pretty neighbours - a flowering vine, a herb, and a fruit tree. This study is my favourite of the three lemon tree studies I painted, as I enjoyed its complexity. 

In the Evening Light

The last study is an attempt to catch the fading evening light falling on the lemon tree, where some parts of it are in the direct light while some others are in a pinkish reflected haze.

Hope you enjoyed this foray into my backyard, and the various moods and shades of the lemon tree. Do let me know in the comments if any of you would like prints of these lemon tree studies.

The Great Chomper

In these last couple of months of lockdown and staying in, one has hardly had any human visitors. Just occasional interaction with the neighbours from a distance.

But one summer day we discovered someone new roaming in the neighbourhood. She came straight towards our giloy plant, plucking off all the fresh leaves at one go. After finishing chomping on the giloy, she made a beeline for the red hibiscus.

And thereby hangs the tale of how this painting was created and named. Our bovine visitor now comes by occasionally, and is always seen chomping on new varieties. Though the giloy remains her favourite.

Many Hands Make Light Work

Sometimes a random quote can set off your imagination, translating into images and ideas in your head. That is exactly what happened the minute I set my eyes on these words — "Many Hands Make Light Work". I could instantly visualize the quote...

Glad that I could transfer the image in my mind's eye on to paper pretty accurately. In fact, it has turned out better than I anticipated. You may want to zoom the picture to see the vegetable prints that have gone into making up the background layers on the palms. Onion, okra, turnip... they are all in there! :D

And yes, the whole family pitched in on this one, giving me their palm prints. :) That was a fun way to work alright!

Durga Puja & Dusshera Greetings

The festive season is upon us, the season of feasting and fasting. While the east Indians, decked in their finery, get into celebratory mode and tuck into visual and gastronomic feasts, the north Indians turn pious and fast through the Navratras to express their devotion to the Mother Goddess.


The Goddess has arrived.... the vanquisher of all evil. Let us celebrate her coming, and hope for a better tomorrow with her blessings.

Wish all my readers a happy Durga Puja, Dusshera and Vijaya Dashami.