104 Pearl Street

$75.00 plus shipping

If interested, contact me at ken.barclay@yahoo.com

104 Pearl Street  11x14  Oils on masonite

This building is in my neighborshood. I recently noticed (duh) that the address is 104 Rose Street!

I think that this was once a church but is now a cabinet shop.  I added the people. :-)

Menton France - Old Man Reading Newspaper near archway

$150.00 plus shipping

Man Reading His Newspaper   17x24 Oils on canvas panel

This painting is inspired by two of Jilly's Menton Daily Photos.  The man walking through the arch and the stariway on the right is one photo "Up Down and Roundabout". The gentleman reading his newspaper is from another photo "Old Wall, Old Man".



 April 21, 2010  -  update.

I did some of my fiddlin' - put the other leg of the bench in, and put the vertical things in the hand rail (what are they called anyway?).

Menton France - Creole Mass #1

$100.00 plus shipping

Menton France - Creole Mass 1  12x16  Oils on canvas panel

Another painting inspired by Jilly's Menton Daily Photo blog pages!

Jilly has this knack for making photographs that are interesting, colorful and show Menton, Frnace in such a wonderful light.  The people and are so colorful that I could make paintings from her photos without end.

I'll call this painting done although I may return to it to "play" with those beads around her neck! :-)  Fiddling, fiddling - leave it alone, already!

Outdoor cafe - Triangle of Light

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Outdoor cafe - Triangle of Light 18x24  Oils on masonite

Another painting inspired by Jilly's Mendon Daily Photo blog. This is a composite of three of her photos.

The couple on the left and the fellow standing under the umbrellacame from Le Martina.

The background and the three young men on the right came from Triangle.

I'm struggling with the gentleman sitting at the table on the left. What's new?

 April 21, 2010 - update.


I did a few things - most importantly (to me) making the man's head larger (the man sitting in the left of the painting).

Friends Relaxing in a sidewalk cafe

Friends Relaxing In a Sidewalk Cafe  18x24  Oils on canvas panel

Work in progress - April 7, 2010

This painting came about after looking at many of Jilly's posts in her Menton Daily Photo blog.  This painting is  combination of several of Jilly's photos - four, if you're counting.

This is a first "rough draft"; I have more work to do with the people. The restaurant seems OK now I think.  But the people . . . . .   ?

 Work in progress - April 8, 2010

I made a "few" changes to just about everything; the people, the mirror the doors to  the restaurant blah, blah, blah and blah.  The waiter (wait person?) still seems to be more of a mannequin than a person, though. I am beginning to be pleased with this painting.

I need to have the lady in the red sweater resting her elbow on SOMETHING instead of just hanging in the air!  Dang! 

Another few hours and I'll stop putzing around with this painting.  Enough, already! 


FINISHED - April 11, 2010

The Antique Dealer - Menton France

$175.00 plus shipping

The Antique Dealer - Menton France  18x24  Oils on canvas panel

Another painting inspired by Jilly's Menton Daily Photos. This fellow is an antique dealer sitting on one of his pieces looking a "bit" displeased with something. Maybe it was the last meal he ate, maybe there are no customers. Maybe, perhaps, who knows?

I think that his eyes are kind but his mouth reflects some disappointment(s)?

Children Sitting On A Park Bench

S O L D

Children Sitting On A Park Bench   16x20  Oils on canvas panel

Image updated 3/31/2010

These two are intently watching something in the grass. I wonder what it is?  :-)

I'll glare at this one for a while - I feel the need to make more showdowy shadows! The light is coming from the right but the children's shadows don't show that clearly - if at all.

I took a break from making canvases and frames to make a painting.  My palette had some two-day-old glumps of paint on it so . . . .   Surprisingly some had not dried at all and some were completely dry!  I dislike wasting paint, but I like to have enough on my palette that I don't have to find the tube then squeeze out some more.  Half the time I don't know the name of the color I'm using at the time anyhow!  Much of what I do is straight out of the tube - for instance the boy's shirt is four or five reds with Gamblin's Radiant Magenta as the lightest "red".

3/31/2010 - UPDATE - I darkened the "shadow" side of the foreground objects - the children, the tree and the trash container.

Henri Rests A While

Henri Rests A While  12x16  Oil on canvas panel

This painting of Henri is another really wonderful from the blog Menton Daily Photos by Jilly.

After reading Jilly's narrative accompanying the photos of Henri I think that he's a guy that I wouldn't mind "hanging out" with.  There is another photo of Henri on "his" page that I might attempt but his expression in this photo spoke to me.

Thanks, Jilly for letting "us" look at your world!

I thnk that I'm not going to do any more with this, but . . . .   I think maybe his eyes need some attention.

Theme Day: Changes

Theme Day: Changes  12x16  Oils on canvas panel.

It's funny how "we" find wonderful photos to give us inspiration to make a painting. A blogger friend made a watercolor painting from a photo image on the blog built by "Jilly" where I found the photo for this painting. The website is Menton Daily Photo and contains beautiful images and descriptions of the subjects in and in the area of Menton, France.  The subject photograph blog post for this painting is Theme Day: Changes.

I could probably touch up this painting here & there, but NAH! I'm going to leave it alone, relax & enjoy Jilly's blog posts from Menton, France.  This is probably as close to being in France as I'll ever get!

The Eyes

The Eyes  9x12  Oils on canvas panel

I "found" this photo in "Georgia - Between Caucasus and Black Sea", the blog of Jemal Kasradze

Mr Kasradze is a professional photographer in Georgia, Russia and does (in my humble opinion) beautiful and thoughtful photography.  I'm confident that you will agree after you visit his web site.

 

Woman Outside in summer

Woman Outside In Summer  20x25  Oils on canvas panel

Image update 3/31/2010.

I have some work to do, but thought that I'd post the painting anyway!  I need to let the paint dry then I'll put in shadows and do some glazes.

Overall, though I'm not totally unhappy with what I've done so far.

3/31/2010 - Wednesday afternoon.  Although I had done all that I am going to do with this painting, I made a new photo just this afternoon for this update. 

4/7/2010 - couldn't help myself - I had to "fix" some things.  NOW it's finished!

I'm not sure that the title of this painting makes sense, even to me.  There she sits wearing a sweater, a blanket over the back of her chair and a jacket on the other chair.  Maybe it's early Spring?

Uncle Jemal

Uncle Jemal   12x16  Oils on canvas panel

"Uncle Jenal's" name is Jemal Kasradze a gifted photographer living in Tbilisi, Georgia, a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Mr Jemal;s blog is one where I can spend hours looking at his photographs. Beautiful.

The photo for my painting is taken from his blog ID photo. His niece, Irina, is one of my good blogger frineds.

As usual lately, I need to put this painting down and get back to it later.

Anuka - A Work In Progress

Anuka    16x20   Canvas panel

A Work In Progress.  I started this painting around 10 AM this morning I got this far by 2 PM.this afternoon.  Then I had to stop for the day. 

I have the foundation done pretty well (I think), now I need to make my darks darker (DUH?)  and just get the painting DONE!  The photo of my painting shows the painting a little lighter than the painting and there is some glare on the right side. That's my story and I'm stickin' to it!  :-)

I saw the photo of Anuka in a blog with gorgeous photographs taken in Georgia "Between Caucasus and the Black Sea". The photographer,Jemal Kasradze, is the uncle of Irina one of my "blogger" friends. Irina also makes some of the photographs in "Uncle Jemal's" blog.  :-)  You should take a look at both blogs ,they're really good.

I worked on this piece today (Feb 25th)  but I still have more work to do. Obviously!  I was able to darken her hair and I'm relatively "happy" with that. BUT, her face looks like one of the characters from The Munsters TV program!  Make it DARK DARK DARK There, I've said it and I know it!  But, dang, why are darks so hard for me? :-) 

Fiddly dee, tomorrow's another day!

 February 27th - worked on this painting some more. I'm beginning to like her eyes more. The photo doesn't represent her hair well - it's much darker in the painting.

Young Artist - Finished

Young Artist   18x24   Oil on canvas board

I'm trying to have the figure back lighted (back lit?) and it's proving difficult for me.  The photo picks up brush strokes more than I'd like, but . . . 

I still have some work to do - obviously. I thought that I would post this "work in progress" since I hadn't posted anything in quite a while.

After some adjustments. :-)  Feb 20, 2010

Her eye and arm need some work.  duh

After some adjustments. :-)  Feb 24, 2010

I'm calling this one DONE!

Taking A Break - a work in progress

Taking A Break  18x24  Oil on Masonite

A WORK IN (not much) PROGRESS!

I started this a week or two ago then did a "manly thing" and hurt my leg so I couldn't get around for a while.  I'm making this from a photo I took at the Bentonville, AR Public Library Cafe. The lady in the photo is Melissa (my wife) and I'm the chunky blob on the right side.  I'm not EVEN TRYING to make a likeness, just  a reasonable-looking couple relaxing with an espressso.

I've putzed around with this for a couple of days now and it's beginning to shape up, but . . . .

If I were a carpenter I'd use a bigger hammer. Maybe I should use a bigger brush!   :-)  

At The Flea Market

At The Flea Market  18x24  Oil on Masonite

I did a smaller version a few months ago but I wasn't very happy with it.  The jury is still out whether I entirely like this version.  

The "backpack" lady's hand needs some work, I see and those guys on the right aren't quite right.

Gripe gripe gripe!

House of China - Eureka Springs, AR

House of China 16.5x24  Oil on panel

From several photos taken last summer in Eureka Springs, Arkansas.  Beautiful little town with many, many turn of the century homes and buildings.  A real fun tourist stop!

The House of China sells asian things. I'm not a shopper, so I don't know what to call the things in the store. But my daughter and my wife sure did enjoy buying a few things!

Melissa in a Blue Mumu

Melissa in a Blue Mumu  12x18  Oils on Masonite

I've been working and working and working on this one. Getting the folds of the fabric in the beautiful blue mumu has been tough for me.

AND since the beautiful lady is Melissa, it's doubly difficult. True to my limited talent as a portrait painter, I've missed her likeness by a LONG mile.  :-(

But I'll keep on keeping on and sooner or later I'll figure it out!

Woman Near Green House

 

Woman Near Green House  16x20  Oil on canvas panel

Updated Photo 1/2/10  - The photo of the "new" painting is on the left, the "old" painting is on the right.  I tried to improve the rendering of the woman's hands and face.  The darker photo is just digital bloggerization; I didn't change anything about the house in the painting. Honest!

For a person who tries to avoid GREEEEEN, I sure went through a LOT of green in this painting.  I picked this out of some public domain photos on the internet cause it seemed like I needed to make a painting.

It's hard to believe, but this will be my last posting in 2009! Tomorrow is 2010. That number seems cumbersome to me but I'll need to get used to it.

I'll probably make some adjustments to this painting after a while and before I sign it. I guess it will be finished when it's finished.

Happy New Year!

Bon Fire on the Beach

Bon Fire on the Beach 11x14 Oil on Masonite Panel

I had to stop "messing" with this painting. I don't know that I'm happy with it - yet but I'm going to let it rest then take a look at it in a couple of weeks/months. Some paintings seem to just jump out of my brush onto the canvas but this one . . . grrrrr Perhaps it wasn't meant to be?

I finally figured out why my post formatting was being weird?!?! There's a SETTING to use the "new" editor or the "OLD" editor. I chose the OLD EDITOR and badda-bing, badda-boom I'm a happy dude. It probably doesn't matter, though. YA THINK??????? DUHHHHH!!!!!!!! But I'm grinnin'!

:-)