12.27.2012

Serving Brunch

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Although there is not much food on this table, I named this painting "Serving Brunch" because I think I already have a painting named "Serving" or "Making Breakfast". Hope everyone had a great Christmas! 

12.18.2012

Finished Chekhov

This is the final Chekhov painting. I didn't have a chance to paint a "daily paintwork" today, so I am posting this last version.

12.16.2012

The Red and the Redder

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Sofiya was delighted that she got three bids on her "Candy and Lemon" piece from yesterday. I was calling, "You have a bid!" I could hear her running down the stairs. She couldn't believe that someone would actually buy her painting. Thank you for the bids and comments!

12.15.2012

Candy and Lemon - by Sofiya Almeteva

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Well, this is my daughter Sofiya's first real painting on a gessoboard! For the first time, I let her use my equipment - a 5"x5" gessoboard, all my brushes, and oil paints. She kept asking me, "Really?! I can use a gessoboard? An easel?!" The "SAY" signature are her initials - with the middle name in the wrong place so the initials make a word. :) I can imagine her delight if someone buys her painting!

12.14.2012

Mandarin Bowl

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Every time I sit down at my easel and stare at my 6"x6" gessoboard, I wonder how I am going to fit all of my still life set on that teeny tiny platform. I start painting, and as a result, my composition on the gessoboard always turns out bigger than the one on the table. All the objects that I've painted are larger in size and not how I planned them to be. So, my point is that I am probably going to try moving to bigger sized gessoboards and make more out of my brushstrokes. Painting on a bigger size will not make my details seem as big, and I think I have a tendency of painting large, so I'll experiment with other sizes and see where that leads me. Hope everyone has a great weekend!


12.12.2012

Yellow Flower

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Although this still life looks like a yellow daisy and two oranges, it is actually one of a chrysanthemum and two lemons. The lemons are the special miniature "Meyer's".

12.11.2012

Citrus Bowl

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These are tiny lemons I recently got in a grocery store; they are more juicy and are more sweet than sour. When I was peeling the lemon in front, my hands were soaked with the juice, and the lemon was expelling a sweet fragrance.

12.10.2012

Tea & Jam

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For your convenience, I have created this painting on a 5"x7" gessoboard, so, as I have heard from buyers, it will be easier to find a frame for this piece.

12.08.2012

Sunday Tea

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Rather than coffee, people in Russia drink tea three times a day, after every meal. And a couple more cups between meals!

12.06.2012

Cup of Gold

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I had another debate with my family about the name of this painting. We finally settled on "Cup of Gold". The teacup and saucer are outlined with gold, the chocolate spheres have shiny golden wrappers, and the present in the background is pale gold with a bright golden ribbon. So there was no other logical name for this piece than "Cup of Gold".

12.05.2012

Christmas Candy

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Merry Christmas! This may seem like an early start, but I saw this bag of chocolate spheres and I knew I had to use them as models. Their shiny color makes them look like Christmas ornaments, doesn't it? 

12.02.2012

Red Reflection

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This is the companion for "Green Shadow". It is actually supposed to be called "Red Shadow" instead of 'reflection', since it is the companion, but the shadow in this piece is not the most important detail. We had quite a discussion in our family about how to name this piece. "Red Shadow"? No. "Red and Orange"? No. "Bottle and Oranges"? No. "Little Charming Red Bottle"? Umm... "Red Reflection"? Yes.

12.01.2012

Green Shadow

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I noticed this green bottle right when I was about to checkout. I quickly bought it and a red one just like it. I am going to paint something different with the red bottle as well. Be on the lookout! :)

11.30.2012

11.29.2012

Two Slices of Shine

These are my accomplishments for today. I am working on the series of portraits of some writers lately. All of them are going to a library in my home city in Russia. So, this morning I started to work on one of the famous writers - A.P. Chekhov.
Thank you all for the comments on my last work! I had no idea it would be so popular!

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11.28.2012

Lemon Royalty


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This lemon tea is fit for a king. :)
The antique silver spoon and the mysterious black background makes it look especially "royal".




11.24.2012

A Simple Breakfast

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Someone sitting down to a simple breakfast on a weekend morning : coffee and an eclair.
This eclair was the last one left in the box - my husband and daughter ate all the other ones! (I helped a bit, too.)


11.16.2012

Citrus Delight




This certain clementine has given up a fifth of her edible self for humans to eat. :)
I just got some gessoboards 5"x5", a new size for me. I have never tried it before, and 6"x6" always seemed like a TINY size for me to paint on. But now, even more miniature!
I like that new size; it's a new experience for me. I've found that painting miniature is a "delight" for my liking. Oh, by the way, they are delicious!!

11.15.2012

It's Me Again

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The rose seems more confident today, greeting you with an inquisitive though brave "Hello, remember me? Well, it is me again." The rose waves a leaf at you and blushes.
What do you reply today? 

11.14.2012

I'm Just a Rose

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This little rose is peeking out at you, shyly, anticipating what you are about to say. It ventures, "I'm just a rose...", then glances up at you questioningly. It does not know what to expect from you, what response to await. It waits... then you answer -
Send in your replies to the rose via comments! :)

11.13.2012

Blue Squares

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This is the piece I told you to look out for - the sequel painting "Blue Squares". Instead of eggshells, I surrounded the glass with grapefruit slices. Deciding to make it look colorful, I made the grapefruit slices bright orange-red and the squares on the glass a bold sky-blue.
Unfortunately, I do not own any other glasses with the colored squares on them. If I had, I would've added to the series! Maybe sometime in the far distant future I will find similar glasses and use them as my painting models. :)

11.12.2012

Green Squares

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Another piece in my "eggshells" series. I bought this  Made in Italy cup quite some time ago, but used it as my model only today. I also bought an identical glass with blue squares instead of green. Coming up in one of my next pieces will be "Blue Squares".

11.11.2012

Polka Eggplant

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This polka dot cup and eggplant are friends because of their similar color. I just noticed that the polka dots on the cup are like the reflexes on the eggplant.

11.07.2012

Making Eggnog

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When I lived in California, stores would always sell eggnog during the holiday season. So, as we are nearing the holidays, I dedicate this piece to my California Eggnog.

11.06.2012

Baby Eggplants

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These little eggplants I found in one of the local farmers markets. They are actually called Indian Eggplants, but they are miniature, so I named this piece "Baby Eggplants". Also a variation of the name: "Two Little Eggplants" or "Twin Eggplants".

11.05.2012

Eggplant Delight



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This little eggplant is getting ready to be chopped up into pieces and fried up in a pan. But don't worry, it doesn't hurt him. :)

11.04.2012

Coffee Cup & Crackers


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 This coffee cup reminds me of the coming Christmas - its red coloring and all. By the way, is there coffee in the cup? That's a mystery question just for you. :)

11.03.2012

Grapefruit Shine

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This grapefruit is reflecting the light, and therefore, I named the painting "Grapefruit Shine".

11.02.2012

Cherry & Blackberry


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Someone getting ready to have morning tea. They fixed crackers, and are waiting for tea to heat up. Then they will pour tea into the teacup, eat the crackers, lick off the spoon, and wash their teacup. Then they will wipe all the crumbs off the table, smack their lips in anticipation of the day, and hurry about their daily chores.

10.28.2012

Yellow Pansies

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I painted this piece just before darkness fell. I knew that I had to do it in a hurry to transfer onto the gessoboard only the most important brushstrokes. No time for details!