Bookshelf

5.5x8.5 watercolor still life using White Nights paints done week before last while on a trip; this is in Master's Touch sketchbook 80 lb paper painted within 2 hour time limit. Ref courtesy WetCanvas weekend drawing event challenge. COPYRIGHT Kay Smith 2025

Wine Still Life ~ Have a Happy New Year!

4.75x3.5 watercolor on 140 lb Daler Rowney cold press paper done yesterday, a miniature still life set up with a wine bottle, an orange, books, and a candle. Have a very happy new year 2022! COPYRIGHT 2021 Kay Smith

July Watermelon

9x12 watercolor still life I set up then photographed of a ripe red one on white paper plates complete with spoon, salt and pepper although we never use seasoning.  All is sitting on lightweight bamboo lap tray.  In the photo, I had a newspaper with July 4th ads showing underneath, but when painting decided to eliminate text and just put in dark blue lines.  Maybe now it is a tablecloth! I cut this melon up and served with balsamic vinegar/blood orange sprinkled with feta cheese.  Note the melon's reflections in the silver spoon.
COPYRIGHT 2020 Kay Smith.

Beach Beverage

5x7.75 watercolor on Italia 140 lb cold press paper painted over this past weekend from an online miniature painting challenge.  I love the shadow the drink cast upon the sunlit beach sand and the distant water.
COPYRIGHT 2020 Kay Smith

Vegetables on Talavera Mosaic

18x12 watercolor on Canson 140 lb cold press paper still life I set up of two onions and a red bell pepper on tile surface.  The pattern areas are Talavera pottery pieces along with rusty iron and concrete parts.
COPYRIGHT 2020 Kay Smith

Old Lace & Apples

5x7 watercolor on Magnani Italia paper 140 lb cold press, an imaginary still life of two apples and old lace. I decided to make the background black and this was achieved by mixing alizarin crimson + phthalo green. The highlights on the fruit were left the white of the paper in this miniature.
COPYRIGHT 2019 Kay Smith

Antique Store Petunias

11x15 watercolor of a downtown Big Spring antique store owned by the Atkins family, complete with potted petunias and a red yucca.  This is from a photograph I took there when my studio was next door. A limited palette of cerulean blue, yellow ochre, and Indian red was used.  I've painted other versions of this old store and all have found new homes.
COPYRIGHT Kay Smith

Fresh as a Daisy

15x22 watercolor on 140 lb hot press Strathmore Gemini paper done today in under two hours.  I was in the mood to paint a morning still life so concocted a country kitchen scene complete with coffee cup, book, and pitcher of fresh daisies.
Image COPYRIGHT Kay Smith.

Group of Gourds

7.5x6 watercolor on 140 lb cold press paper completed over the weekend, another image from and for our Big Spring Art Association summer challenge.  Photo courtesy Leatrice.  With this still life colors being in the warm range I did sneak some tinted pale yellow green in part of the background underpainting wash.
Image COPYRIGHT 2017 Kay Smith.

Hurricane Lamp still life

11x8.5 watercolor and ink (Pigma Micron 01 pen) on Strathmore art journal for mixed media completed today.  For several days I've been working on a still life of items suggesting the rugged outdoors from work gloves, old hurricane lamp, wood, and a plaid woolen textile.  Winter will soon be but a memory.Image COPYRIGHT 2016 Kay Smith.

Italian Pitcher and Orange

9x12 watercolor and ink (Tombow brush pen) done this past week for Sketchbook Skool assignment of setting up a 3 object still life.  Using a watersoluble pen, a contour line drawing had to be done and then painted.  I used this pretty ceramic pitcher given to my by my sister-in-law Christy, a fresh orange cut in half and the kitchen knife.  Soon I'll plan to do this one over.  The instructor was Brenda Swenson.
Image is COPYRIGHT 2015 Kay Smith.

Olive Oil Pots

12x9 watercolor of three Greek jars or pots commonly called pitharia.  I painted this over the weekend from a black and white photo version of the colored one supplied by Athena on WetCanvas, using only a limited palette of quinacridone gold, midnight blue, and carmine.  Pitharia are used to store grain, seeds, wine, and oil.  According to Athena, the large pot is dated 1909.  Support used was Canson 140 lb cold press paper.
Image is COPYRIGHT 2014 Kay Smith

Birds and Blooms

15x22 watercolor on 140 lb cold press, an older still life I set up in studio of fresh flowers, antique birds, and my faux stained glass windows.  This work has been SOLD.
Image is COPYRIGHT Kay Smith.

Fall Inspiration still life

22x15 transparent watercolor on Daler Rowney Langton Prestige 140 lb cold press paper, done this week and finished today.  It has been a looooong time since I painted a still life and these old apothecary bottles too interesting to pass up.  A branch of turning red orange leaves completes the vertical composition.  This was painted wet on dry using Daniel Smith paints:  Quinacridone burnt orange and gold, new gamboge, green gold, UB, transparent pyrrol orange, undersea green, raw sienna, cobalt teal blue, Prussian blue, manganese blue, along with Winsor Newton lemon yellow.
Image COPYRIGHT Kay Smith 2013.

WIP - Some Like it Hot (still life)

15x11 watercolor on Arches 140 lb cold press paper work in progress begun yesterday with detailed drawing using fresh jalapeno peppers, tomatoes, bell peppers, and onions of all varieties.  It was painted wet in wet today, and this is about 1.5 hours worth of work in a direct painting style using 1" flat sable brush.  I've been buying old kitchen colanders on eBay and photographing any interesting ones in antique or secondhand stores; love the rusted and shiny metal juxtaposed with smooth colorful vegetables' skins.  I may put these salsa ingredients on a white tablecloth and will finish this still life tomorrow.

Compote Pears

7.5 x 10.5 watercolor fruit still life of a bunch of pears in white china compote.  It makes the fifth still life so far this year.  I'd fallen way behind in painting still life subjects so one resolution this year was to do more.

Candlelight Roses work in progress (WIP)

This is grey ink sketch using 3-4 different colors done today using old silver candlestick and imaginary roses for a work in progress watercolor I'll post as I go.  I flipped the candlestick and drew it higher on the right side for balance, then added a red and black bowl as seen in the beginning image below.

15x11 watercolor on Strathmore 140 lb cold press paper and Daniel Smith paints, about 1.5 hours of work this afternoon during the pouring rain (thank you Lord, for the rain!) Stay tuned.  Another New Year's resolution for me was to resolve to paint more still life.  So this one is my 4th still life, and I have done even more but they are ink sketches that have not been shown.

Juicy Fruit Strawberries

10x14 watercolor of fresh strawberries on a plate, waiting to be eaten.  I enjoy these complementary color schemes and my favorite combo is red and green as the use of them side by side intensifies their hues in this simple still life.

First Day of Summer

7.5x5.5 watercolor imaginary scene of summer in a jar painted a few days ago in my hotel room.  A sprig or branch of pink wildflowers sits in an old glass jar, ready to celebrate the summer solstice.  Support is Arches 140 lb cold press paper with Winsor Newton travel kit paints.

Cherries Jubilee

15x22 watercolor on Arches 140 lb cold press paper done a few years ago combining more than one photo for a varied fruit and floral still life arrangement.  I especially enjoyed painting the crocheted white table doily design.