Summer Figures: An Original Art Collection

As winter was coming to an end I was feeling completely depleted. Our 6 months of bathroom construction finally came to a close, the dust was finally cleared from our bedroom and we had a functional bathroom. I moved out of my downtown studio and created a beautiful at home studio. It was refreshing, but I was so empty.

At the same time, I was accepted into a spring art show in Greenville SC, and they wanted some fresh figures. I immediately knew I wanted to paint figures that reminded me of warm summer days. I wanted them to embody the energy and spirit of summer. Summer re-energizes me and I desperately needed fresh energy. I looked through photos, went to Pinterest for color inspo and slowly but surely a color palette emerged. Blues and yellows for those relaxed summer evenings and bright pinks and yellows for the bold sunny days and yummy cold drinks.

I pulled out my large newsprint sketches from a figure class I took at the local museum, along with other various reference images, and began to pull out figures that grabbed my attention. This approach to painting is a little different for me, I don’t always plan things out so much and I was worried that I would stifle my intuitive way of painting if I continued with this method. But I think it did the opposite, this little bit of pre-planning allowed me to be intuitive with how to combine the colors, which figures to paint large and small and lead me to creating 2 sets of monochromatic paintings that I had no plan of creating.

When I laid down that yellow paint, which I used as the base for some of the other paintings, but all of a sudden I knew these weren’t going to be all colorful. The yellow was screaming at me to let it be and I kept thinking “what, really? no, I can’t just leave them like this!” Even looking back at these initial sketches and plans, I can feel their energy. That is always my goal with figures, no necessarily the form, but the essence of the soul. Dare I say these are sexy, powerful, moody, yet carefree, relaxed and easy going.

These two diptychs above just make me exhale calm energy. I initially planned to add figures in the empty spaces, but the those spaces just wanted to breathe. I stared at them for a long while and decided the texture of the cold wax was enough and the little bit of color and pattern from the striped towels evoked the feeling you get when you stare out at blue water.

I love these figures! I love their energy, and honestly, they just make me smile. I’m so happy that two of them already found a home, and I can’t wait to see where the rest end up. They are all framed in gorgeous poplar floating frames, made by fellow local artist Maya Murano, and wired in the back for easy hanging. I would love for you to take a look and share with anyone else who may enjoy them.

Now that summer is here, I hope you’re able live out the energy of these beauties, whether at the ocean, pool, or lake, or even by a sprinkler in your backyard. Grab a little pink mint bubbly water or a glass of refreshing iced tea and enjoy your summer.

With love,

Ella