Challenge Day 6: Ready for Red

"Wine Garden" 8x10 oil on linen (private collection)

If one says 'red' - the name of color - and there are fifty people listening, it can be expected that there will be fifty reds in their minds. And one can be sure that all these reds will be very different. (Josef Albers)

A few days ago I posted a blue/orange complementary painting. Today I’m working with red/green. This can be an awkward combo because it tends to have that holiday flare. I went with an obvious and easy choice here with a floral.

I also used a palette knife for most of this for some extra texture as well as to help keep the colors cleaners in an alla prima painting with lots of red.

These cheerful late summer flowers (some kind of petunia??) are from a neighbor who has one of the nicest private gardens I’ve ever seen. I tend to like more unusual colored flowers such as blue, green, blacks--so this rather unusual wine color caught my eye. I’m not a gardener so I really admire anyone who has a way with flowers and plants.

They say if you want to attract attention wear red. And I think this is true of red paintings as well. They tend to be really eye catchers at shows and festivals. There’s just something about red…Thanks and happy weekend painting to all my fellow challenge painters!