Hot chicks

I was painting in my studio all day yesterday and managed to fill an Instagram request for abstract figure studies in a small size on paper.

This morning, I leisurely pulled out my photography supplies and took the shots I needed. I posted them on Etsy and then Instagram. Boom! They sold in minutes. I guess I will be painting more this weekend.

I also worked on several canvases with figures too. This chick is the only one I finished. I think I am holding her back for a show later this year.

About a painting

"Prayed for" oil and charcoal on linen by Kerry Steele

Sometimes I like to "cleanse my palette"  (pun intended) with a figural painting. Last week I did just that and my results or rather the response was surprising to me.

I looked for photos with an interesting pose to sketch  and then paint as I reimagined it and came across this...

I only wanted the figure and pose for this as opposed to painting the same thing as in the photo.

My surprise was the number of people on my personal Facebook page and my art Facebook page that liked and commented on the painting. It was far more than usual and I can't help but wonder what aspect of the painting so moved people to tell me how much they liked it.

I will continue with these figural pieces but abstracts will continue to be my main focus. Which do you prefer?

Like Kerry Steele Art on Facebook to see my latest artwork

Follow me on Instagram to see paintings in progress

More girls in the studio

"Figure 6"

I am playing hooky from my normal "Room of the week" post today but I will be back with it next week.

A month or so ago, I painted "Figure 6", a 30 x 40 oil and charcoal on linen. It was really popular and is on consignment in a penthouse staged for sale at the Ritz in Baltimore. Ever since I have been really hooked on figural paintings.

"Figure 9"

I had fun with "Figure 9" last weekend. My sketching was much looser than normal and I let that show by adding less paint too.

"Figure 8"

I have never claimed to be a patient girl and I posted this one as finished when it was incomplete and flawed. I finally satisfied myself yesterday and posted it with confidence.

I worked on "Figure 8" alongside a commissioned nude over the weekend and had an "Aha" moment when working on the commission. I discovered that I love the short, squarish strokes gave the figure the edgy quality I was looking for without looking like an outline or sacrificing curves.

That said, I still love flowy brushstrokes.

Small series figural nudes on linen

My small series are built around flowy brushstrokes and those lines are necessary to portray the human figure but I am liking a balance between the two.

This is a classic subject in Western art but not everyone likes it as a subject. I grew up with nudes in my house that were painted by grandmother, like the one below. We are very comfortable with them and I find them very beautiful.

Nude by Elisabeth B. Iddings (my grandmother)

Are you drawn to figural art or other subjects?

New work

"Champagne street cred" 30 x 40 oil on canvas by Kerry Steele

The painting above is something a little different in terms of color for me. It is a commission for a very exciting installation that I will share soon. I started with white and a tiny touch of lavender and then added the "blacks" which are sepia, Payne's gray and Mars black applied mostly with a credit card type hotel key.

They wanted a bit of gold and I decided on an oil stick for that. Oil sticks are like big buttery crayons and really fun to work with.

"Canon in D" 16 x 40 mixed media on canvas

This floral painting was inspired by all of the wedding pins I have been seeing on Pinterest. I am loving these elongated canvases for floral paintings. This is my first 16 x 40 inch canvas and I may be doing more since I liked it so much. I began with acrylic spray paint and finished with oil colors and Conte stick.

small figural series  #7

I am continuing to do more small figures on linen and I now have a commissioned nude that you will be seeing sometime soon.

Stay tuned, I have lots of work in progress!

Like Design du Monde on Facebook for blog updates

Like Kerry Steele Art on Facebook to see my latest artwork

Follow me on Instagram to see paintings in progress

New work

I have been in a figure painting mood lately. This week's snowstorm had me wait an extra two days for some supplies I was anxious to have. The most important was a pad of unstretched, clear-primed linen. They are 11 x 14 and offer me a less expensive chance to paint figure studies and feel more comfortable with them.

"Figure 6" By Kerry Steele

 I was using large linen canvases like this one above for my figures for the most part.

A few weeks ago I was tidying my studio and found a half done abstract and plopped on the easel and proceeded to glaze over it, leaving much of it visible and then incorporated a figure.

"Figure 7" by Kerry Steele

I believe I have shown this here before but my point is that I have a few abstracts in different stages of completion and I am thinking about using their depth and layers as backdrops for figures.

I finished  a larger nude on linen but ran out of daylight to photograph it and there is no sun this morning. Speaking of sun, where the heck is Spring? My kids one day of school this week. Even my 4 year-old told me she is sick of snow. I digress.

I have a large abstract commission to tackle for a really exciting installation that I will share as soon as I can.

In the meantime I will be having fun with these small figure studies and watercolors for The Pink Pagoda.

New watercolors go up on Monday, March 10 and a few figure studies are available in my shop.