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Friday, December 7, 2012

Cosmos Party, Oil Painting

 Cosmos Party by Marion Hedger
20x20cm (8"x8")
Oil on canvas board

This painting was one of my first oil paintings. It was painted about 18months ago when I was still very much a novice with oil painting. I wanted to see if I could replicate the looseness I can achieve in pastel. I think I achieved it in this small painting and I like the result, it has a looseness and freshness about it that sometimes can be lost as you progress. As they say, "ignorance is a wonderful thing" LOL.
Contact me about this or any other painting HERE

Friday, November 23, 2012

Black Friday, Cyber Monday Artwork sale

I have joined the Etsy promotion for Black Friday. I am offering a 10% discount on all my available paintings in my store. Use coupon code BFCMWEEKEND1 at checkout to receive a 10% discount on any painting.


What better gift to give at Christmas than an original painting.

Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Pink Hibiscus syriacus still life painting

Hibiscus syriacus by Marion Hedger
18 cm x 24 (approx 7" x 10") oil on MDF canvas panel

These flowers were picked form our hibiscus syriacus tree which produces these beautiful double flowers every summer. It was in the garden when we bought the house and is featured on the original house plans so must be at least 45 years old. I placed them in a green jug and placed some striped fabric behind it to set off the flowers. Part of my Garden 101 daily paintings.

This painting is for sale on Etsy CLICK HERE TO VIEW

See also my painting Orange Delight which uses the same striped fabric as the background.

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

White Orchids in Pastel - 2012 Autumn Sale

White Orchids by Marion Hedger
22x30cm
Soft Pastel on sanded card

The third of my pastels up for auction on Daily Paintworks at a low starting price

White Phaleonopsis Orchids are always nice to see. I usually always have at least one somewhere in the house. They make the ideal pot plant.

See also Stargazer Lilies and Orange Asian Lilies other pastels in the Autumn Sale

Monday, October 29, 2012

Orange Asian Lilies in Pastel - 2012 Autumn Sale

Orange Asian Lilies by Marion Hedger
22x30cm
Soft Pastel on sanded card

Another of my pastels up for auction on Daily Paintworks at a low starting price

I love this orange lily. I grow it in pots on the patio, and each year up it pops. It needs no attention and always gives a good show.

See also Stargazer Lilies another pastel in the Autumn Sale

Sunday, October 14, 2012

Stargazer Lilies in pastel - 2012 Autumn Sale

Stargazer Lilies in soft pastel by Marion Hedger
Soft pastel on sanded card
approx A4 size (21x30cm)
BID ON THIS PAINTING HERE
To make some space in my studio, I am gradually auctioning off some of my pastel florals, all starting at low opening bids. These paintings all make suitable gifts (- hint - shop early for Christmas).

Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Orange Delight oil painting

Orange delight gerbera painting by Marion Hedger
Orange Delight Oil Painting by Marion Hedger
Orange Delight by Marion Hedger
24cmx18cm oil on canvas board

I have a gerbera plant growing in a garden pot for the last 4 years or so. It produces these vibrant blooms each year, although it gets so little attention.  I placed one in a faceted triangular vase which I really like - although the shapes and reflections were hard to paint. I placed the vase on some old stripey curtain fabric. The challenge on Daily Paintworks that week was "stripes".
This is part of my garden 101 daily painting series.
Contact me about this or any other painting HERE

Wednesday, July 18, 2012

White Hydrangeas oil painting by Marion Hedger

 White Hydrangeas Still Life
Oil on canvas board
30x30cm (12"x12")
TO BID ON THIS PAINTING CLICK HERE

These white hydrangeas welcome me every time I venture out of the back door. They sit in a large pot showing off their beautiful white heads. This is their summer plumage, but as summer goes on they will eventually turn pink then a greeny pink colour.

Contact me about this or any other painting HERE

Wednesday, July 4, 2012

Pink Geraniums oil painting


 Pink Geraniums Container Plant by Marion Hedger
Oil on canvas panel, 17x24 cm (approx 7"x11")

These pink geraniums - or should I say pelargoniums? - are part of my container garden that brightesn up my back patio area in the summer. Because we have such dry summers, it is hard to have anything flowering as most of the plants go into a dormant stage. So I plant up a lot of containers to brighten the barbeque area. It's a win win situation as they are also lovely to paint.

Part of my Garden 101 series.

To bid on this painting CLICK HERE

Contact me about this or any other painting HERE

Saturday, June 2, 2012

Sunny Geraniums Plein Aire oil painting

 
 Sunny Geraniums oil painting by Marion Hedger
Oil on MDF gessoed board. 18x24cm

The second of my red geranium plein air paintings. Part of my Garden 101 painting series
Contact me about this or any other painting HERE

Saturday, May 26, 2012

Dancing Rudbeckias pastel painting

 Dancing Rudbeckias pastel painting by Marion Hedger
20x20cm (8"x8") soft pastel on sanded card

This is one of my favourites, probably because I have a soft spot for the pink/turquoise colour combination which I think fit so well together.

Contact me about this or any other painting HERE

Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Sunny Geranium en plein aire painting in oils

My pots of geraniums are coming along nicely, and who could resist painting them. They give such a splash of colour, it makes me smile when I see them.

 Sunny Geraniums oil painting by Marion Hedger
18x24cm oils on canvas board (MDF)

I painted the board with an underpainting of pink for this one. Not a lot of it shows through in the final painting, but enough to give the red geraniums a sunny glow.

Contact me about this or any other painting HERE

Tuesday, May 22, 2012

White Ice Bearded Iris oil painting

White Ice Bearded Iris
Oil painting by Marion Hedger
18x24cm, on canvas board (MDF) (approx 6"x10")
I have joined Daily Paintworks and this piece is for auction
THIS PAINTING IS NOW SOLD
Contact me to commission a similar painting HERE
Another of my Garden 101 series cross posted in my daily painting blog.

Thursday, May 10, 2012

Calla Lilies, oil

Here is an update on the plein aire calla lilies I posted earlier. I have lightened the top of the background, added more contrasts, and very slightly smoothed some of the lily.
 15x20cm (6"x8")
Oil on canvas board
I think I prefer it. It didn't need much tinkering so I am quite happy with the result.

Contact me about this or any other painting HERE

Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Calla Lilies Alla Prima oil painting

I've set myself a task to do 101 daily paintings related to my gardens, to try and loosen up my style. I did a few featuring the lemons and oranges from my trees but now that the flowers are blooming I am using those and painting en plein aire when possible. I am taking the liberty of cross posting in this blog.
Here is one of the calla lilies


White Calla Lilies Oil painting by Marion Hedger
27cm x 19cm (11"x8" approx)
Oil on canvas board
Painted alla prima wet in wet.
Contact me about this or any other painting HERE

I'd like your opinions. I am quite happy with them when I paint them (I have several iris paintings which I shall post later) - but when looking at them later, they leave me less than satisfied.

I am always undecided on whether or not to leave well enough alone (and use as a ref to see if I am improving), or to rework some of the areas and bring them up to a more finished piece. Or is this my nitpicking and fiddling side taking over.
All comments welcome.

PS I do like sloshing that thick paint around.

Friday, April 6, 2012

Garden Flowers watercolour painting

Garden Flowers painting by Marion Hedger
30x40cm (12"x18") water colour on wc paper
Contact me about this or any other painting HERE
This painting is of some of my English garden flowers, I am contemplating an alternative title of 'Reach for the sky' as this is what always comes to mind with these stately blooms. It was painted a few years ago and reminds me of those wonderful English cottage garden flowers that I cannot grow here- but then again, many of the plants I grow here will not survive in England. It's been a while since I painted in watercolour, but I do love the lovely loose washes that can be achieved in that medium.

Thursday, April 5, 2012

Peach Amaryllis in soft pastels

  Peach Amaryllis painting by Marion Hedger
40x50cm (16"x20") soft pastels on sanded card
Contact me about this or any other painting HERE

This painting is from a photo I took at a local village flower festival, where the entire village was decked out in flowers including all the rooms in the chateau. These amarylis were hanging up-side-down along the large sweeping staircase - a truly breathtaking display.

Sunday, March 25, 2012

Poppy Medley in triplicate - poppy paintings by Marion Hedger

I always love the way the flower petals catch the sunlight and give that lovely transparent glow. There is one reference that I have painted several times because I like the colour and the effect of light. It is of a group of poppies. Here are my different versions, all in different media.
The first in colour pencil - previous posted as a work-in-progress demonstration. Here is the link Poppy Medley Colored pencil demo
Poppy Medley 1 - Coloured pencil painting by Marion Hedger
30x30cm coloured pencil on sanded card.

The second is in Acrylic and my favourite.
Poppy Medley 2 - Acrylic painting by Marion Hedger
46x55cm Acrylic on box canvas.
The third is in oil pastel
 Poppy Medley 3 - Oil pastel painting by Marion Hedger
33x20cm on sanded card.

All three are colourful and look stunning in a contemporary setting.

NOTE: Thanks to wetcanvas.com reference image library for the reference photo

Saturday, March 24, 2012

Bronze Slipper Orchid oil painting

Bronze Slipper Orchid with dew drops by Marion Hedger
46x55cm oils on narrow box canvas
The photo for this was taken at Park Pheonix, Nice, France a couple of weeks ago. I've tried to portray the waxy leaves on this one. I uses a blending technique to represent those shiny leaves, with some glazing with undiluted paint on some areas.

Stay tuned for more orchid paintings, as this is one of my favourite subjects.

Monday, March 19, 2012

Sunlit White Lilies Oil Painting

Sunlit Lilies oil painting by Marion Hedger
Oil on boxed canvas 40x40cm. 
Can be framed or hung directly on the wall.

These lilies were growing in a pot outside of my kitchen door last summer. The way the light was catching the petals intrigued me. I had to include the dew drops which were a challenge making them look real. I had to wipe away the first few attempts as I had the shadows much too dark.

Saturday, February 25, 2012

Red and White Amarylis Canvas Print

I now have my 'Red and White' Amarylis painting available as a canvas print from Zazzle. It is available in several sizes but I think it will look stunning as a 24"x24" print (the original is 20"x20" (50x50cm)). It is on box canvas in several thicknesses so will not need framing.

I will gradually be adding some of my other florals and making them available as prints. Please contact me if you are interested in any painting in particular, as a print.

Friday, February 24, 2012

Magnolia Grandiflora á la Georgia Oil Painting

Magnolia Grandiflora á la Georgia
Oil painting by Marion Hedger
50x50x1cm (20"x20")
Oil on boxed canvas - no need for a frame

This was painted as part of a challenge on wetcanvas.com floral forum. The challenge was to paint magnolias in the style of Georgia O'Keefe. It was quite a fun challenge and certainly challenging. How did I do?

Thursday, February 23, 2012

Lily Bouquet Acrylic painting

Lily Bouquet by Marion Hedger
40x50cm (16"x20")
Acylic on gessoed mountboard
Not for sale
This one was painted many years ago. It is a special painting for me, as my husband was away on work for several weeks, and this is the bouquet he sent me on our anniversary.

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Pink Camellias Still Life Acrylic painting

 Pink Camellias Still Life painting by Marion Hedger
50x50cm Acrylic on box canvas
Can be hung as is, or framed as desired.

"The camellia is a symbol of devotion for lovers in China. - In the eyes of the Chinese, the petals reflect the spirit of a lady, and the holder of the petals (the calyx) represents the young man entrusted by the lady as her protector.
The calyx of the camellia falls with the petals when the flower has finished blooming. This is unlike most other flowers, where the calyx seems to hang around the tree even after the petals have dropped. This phenomena symbolizes an everlasting union between lovers. In many parts of China, the camellia is considered as the flower for young sons and daughters." 
Thanks to 'livingartoriginals.com' for this description

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Slipper Orchid oil painting

Slipper Orchid painting by Marion Hedger
40x40cm (16"x16") on black gessoed box canvas

This was painted in response to the wetcanvas.com floral forum monthly challenge. I used my own reference taken at Montreal Botanical Gardens a couple of years ago. I used a blending technique where I placed the paint onto the canvas and then used a soft brush to blend that paint together. It was painted alla prima apart from the 'spots' which were added once it was fairly dryish.
Here are some Work in Progress pics

Gridding and outline drawing - no details at this stage
 Underpainting in acrylics - lights using warm colours and shadows using cool colours. This acts as a guide for the highlights and shadows


Starting on applying the oil paint
Close-up of the paint before blending

After this stage I used a soft brush to blend the paint. Sometimes adding more paint if needed. I stopped taking photos as I got so caught up in the painting process.
I used very little pure white until the final highlights, but added a small amount of yellow ochre pale and/or pink just to tint the white.
I am used to using a lot of scumbling rather than a blending technique. This was an interesting process. The blending process takes a lot longer than the application of paint and it is interesting to feel the painting come to life.

Wednesday, January 11, 2012

Orchid Crowd WIP - Acylic painting

Orchid Crowd by Marion Hedger
50x60 cm 20"x24"
Acylic on canvas

Here are some WIP pics for this painting
Stage 1
The colourful underpainting using warm colours for the highlights and cool colours for the shadows.

Stage 2
Making the colours look more real. A true fauvist's delight
 Stage 3
Breaking up the areas more and more. It is starting to come alive now.

After this stage there is more and more refining. Unfortunately I forgot to take photos - as so often happens I get carried away.




Monday, January 9, 2012

Dancing Fuschias Acrylic Painting

This is one of my earlier works that I realise I have not previously shared with you.
 Dancing Fuchsias by Marion Hedger
Acylic on box canvas
40x40x5cm (16"x16"x2")
My Website  
This was one of my first paintings on a black gessoed background. I cropped a larger photo to obtain the a more macro image and generally scumbled all the colours on until the depth of colour required was achieved, but first I gradually lightened the highlights with a thin scumbling of white. The darks have less layers than the light areas, especially the deeper darks. That is one of the advantages of the black background it creates some lovely darks, although I never leave the pure black showing.
This image is also available as a mousemat from Zazzle