Challenge Day 7: All Her Lovely Hues

"Fall Fillies" 8x10 oil on linen at Framed Image in Denver--SOLD

It was the rainbow gave thee birth, and left thee all her lovely hues.  (W. H. Davies)

I had so much fun last week painting my little horse painting (and it sold quickly) so I wanted to paint another one. This one my goal was to play with what I like to call prismatic color especially in the shadows.

I've always been attracted to paintings that use a lot of intense color but in a planned and thoughtful way. In this case, I'm trying to move the viewer's eye by color "steps" rather than value gradation.

This painting approach for me is all about color celebration and exploration. Here I've used at least seven or eight pigments plus white. This is a good time to get out that new or rarely used pigment and see how it plays with your regulars. Lately I've been seeing some "color buzz" about manganese violet and alizarin yellow--I don't have those (yet) but they would have been interesting to try in a painting like this.

This framed painting will be featured at the Framed Image Gallery's fall show in Denver through October 31. Update: Sold--thank you collector and fellow horse lover!