Watch the video to find out who has won their choice of the Strada challenge paintings!
The chosen painting will be sent on its way as soon as it has dried and had a protective coat of varnish.
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Sorry for the delay in posting the final week of paintings, I had to catch up on those chores I didn’t do in January!
Well, I made it to the end and feel accomplished even though I wasn’t lucky enough to win a prize this time.
Over 800 people completed the challenge world-wide and it has been very interesting to see what others created. One person painted a different sweet every day and another painted the same lemon 31 different ways!
Here are my final offerings, feeling more confident I tried out some more complicated still life set ups. I hope you like them
Day 25 - ‘Tea and biscuits’ oil 8x6” panel
It was just going to be tea and biscuits but that biscuit jar just wanted to be part of it too. Who else drinks a lot of tea?
Day 26 - ‘Tonal vases in colour’ oil 8x8” panel
An evening spent in great company at Sunningwell School of Art, looking at tonal values using colour this time
Day 27 - ‘Last man standing’ oil 8x6” panel
Back to the apples and the pear, but trying out a different light effect
Day 28 - ‘Wine o’clock’ oil 10 x12” panel
Sometimes at the end of a busy week it is fun to may share some wine with a friend - tonight it was the star of the show
Day 29 -‘Winter fruit bowl’ oil 8x8” panel
This gorgeous glass bowl has been on my radar all month, and today finally had enough time to paint it (and all the fruit from previous paintings).
Day 30 - ‘Old boots’ oil 8x6” panel
A friend suggested painting some shoes and these old football boots caught my eye. The laces are removed because they gave my son a bit more room in them before his feet grew too big
Day 31 - ‘Strawberry finale’ oil 8x8” panel
I struggled with my conscience at the supermarket, but decided to overlook the air miles and purchase these strawberries to paint. They were enjoyed for tea the next day
So, there we go - 31 paintings in 31 days, all painted from life.
Here they all are together, which is your favourite? Do you want to win it? Keep scrolling!
Someone will be the lucky winner of their favourite Strada painting! Will it be you?
Sign up here by 7.30pm (GMT) on Feb 5th if you want to take part:
(you’ll need to click on the link in the email to confirm your entry - check your spam!)
Prize draw takes place 8pm GMT Feb 5th
Three weeks into January already! How is your year going so far?
It has been cold this week with frosty mornings, but gorgeous sunrises to compensate.
Early sunsets mean painting during daylight is impossible during the week so I've been getting creative with lighting the still life subjects for the challenge.
I hope you enjoy this week’s selection :)
Day 16 ‘Oranges and a lemon’ oil 6x4" canvas paper
A quick painting completed whilst still some daylight, before heading out to watch my son’s football match. I was glad for an afternoon kick off as the morning was icy - at least the sun was out in the afternoon 🥶
Day 17 ‘ Green pear on red’ oil 8x6” panel
I don’t usually eat pears but this one wanted to be painted so somehow it ended up in my trolley when I was at the supermarket 😁
Day 18 ‘Odd man out’ oil 8x6” panel
These British apples also landed in my shopping basket based on their paintability rather than taste! Anyone know which variety they are and whether their flavour is as great as their colour?
Day 19 ‘A grey day’ oil A4 oil paper
A new term started at Sunningwell Art school with a tonal painting using only black and white. I only had about 30 minutes to do the painting after preliminary sketches and tea break
Day 20 ’The one that got away’ oil 6x4” canvas paper
Back to the apples and a pear today as I didn’t have a lot of time to set up a new still life.
Day 21 ‘Heading out’ oil 8x8” panel
It was late and, as the apples were already set up, it was easy to rearrange them slightly and paint them again.
Day 22 ‘What I see in a mirror’ oil 7x5” panel
I thought I’d try a self portrait, but it turns out trying to paint a reflection of a moving being is harder than it looks! Also not helped by the changing light as night fell.
Day 23 ‘Looking ahead to Spring’ oil 8x8” panel
I have painted this watering can before as I love the colour, but the shape is tricky! The red background is possibly a bit too vibrant but it is my favourite colour and hard to lighten without turning it pink 😆
Day 24 ‘Gin o’clock’ oil, 7x5” panel
Sometimes it feels like a gin is needed after a challenging day - I decided to paint rather than drink it 😁. The frustration was caused by roadworks leading to a 20minute wait to leave the Hospital site after work. Such delays were a regular occurrence before Covid but lighter traffic has become a norm - a benefit from the pandemic that I hope stays!
Just 7 days left now to the end of this January challenge. I hope you are enjoying the paintings so far? Do you have a favourite?
I’ll be giving one of the challenge paintings to a lucky email subscriber in early February - if you haven’t signed up yet just click here: http://eepurl.com/gFyHgb
The winner of the draw gets to choose their favourite to keep! How would that feel?
You can find the challenge paintings from weeks 1 and 2 in earlier blogs if you've missed them.
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