My latest painting provided one of those experiences that I’ve written about earlier – what I call the “Endorphin Rush,” https://oilpastelsbymary.com/2013/01/31/ever-feel-runners-high-when-youre-creating/. It hit while I was painting the first flower petal in this piece – can explain it, but I was definitely in the zone. I know you guys know what I mean.
Lily in the Dark, an oil pastel (12×9) was painted on Mi-Teintes black tinted pastel paper giving the piece underlying dark tones that I love with still life paintings and suited this painting perfectly. An objective I had with this piece was to use edges to define the piece.
Viacheslav, a photographer from pmp, provided an image used as a reference. The image was reversed, overall colors changed and dead leaves were added.
Oil Pastels by Mary 
That ‘you are in the zone’ is evident for all to see Mary. This is beyond beautiful!
Thank you so much Madhu for your generous comments.
So much texture with the different shades of red contrasting agaisnt the black. Great work, Mary.
Thank you so much Evelyne!
Mary, there is such a quiet drama to this fading lily,
and the details and textures are just wonderful!
Thank you for your feedback and thoughtful comments, really appreciate that you took the time to view the painting in its entirety. So glad you noticed the textures, oil pastels are great for producing them. Thanks again!
you are most welcome Mary, i’m a collector of details that often go unnoticed, i have a head full of ’em! lol you are inspiring me to try oil pastels again, i worked with them briefly when i was much younger but seeing the ‘painterly’ results you create, has me thinking…..ty for that!
Thanks. I hope you do go back and revisit OPs, painting with the artist quality gives a beautiful richness. These are the most mis-understood medium in the art world, but and more artist work in OPs are being recognized – check out Mary Currier (81 years old today), wow I might do a piece on her. She used to paint with oils, brushes but grew tired of the cleanup and solvent smells. Today her works sells in the 10’s of thousands – gorgeous still lifes.
So, so beautiful, Mary!
Thank you so much Francesca for your nice comment!!
Holding on to the memory …
Love the richness in this Lily painting Mary .
Thank you Poppy, this was one of those pieces that I didn’t want to end.
Gorgeous. How wonderful to feel in the zone. 🙂
Thanks so much Gallivanta!
Ah, beautiful dark tones, Mary and that lily… sigh! 🙂 xx
Thank you Marina for your beautiful comment. Hope you had a wonderful evening.
Absolutely gorgeous!
Thanks Rhonda!
This is incredible!!! Sooo realistic. How do you get so much small detail with oil pastels?
Hi Mamie, thank you very much for your feedback! Great question. I rarely use solvents with my oil pastels so normally I’ll use #2 firm clay shapers, my fingers and sometimes tortilums – in this case it was the clay shapers because the space was small and these shapers are perfect for working in tight spaces..
Wow! That sounds really cool. I love how it works out!
Being a totally NOT artist, I can only try to imagine what you mean. No matter: the end result is wonderful !
Thank you M.R. for your lovely comment!
really nice
Thank you!
you are welcome
Oh Mary, I can see why this one brought you to “the zone”. It’s otherworldly in it’s sheer presence!
Oh my Elena, you sure do know how to make me smile. So glad you enjoyed this piece, thanks you.
I hear you! It is a great feeling when one gets into the zone. Everything comes together.
Beautiful painting Mary. 🙂
Thanks Susan! I’ll bet you get the endorphin rush all the time with your beautiful art.
Thanks! Stay in the zone!
Mary, this is absolutely gorgeous! You were definitely in “the zone.” I’m not an artist but I relate because it happens with writers too. 🙂
Thanks Dorann very much – I really enjoy working this piece. Oh yes writers, photographers, etc. experience it as well – check out the post mentioned above and the viewers comments, you’ll see many writers experience the “endorphin rush.”
Wonderful way of rendering the flower. The dark background provides a mysterious and intriguing perspective to the viewer. Your attention to detail is amazing and your techniques fabulous! 😀
Thanks Patricia – I might go back into this piece at some point and paint a very scant impression of a table top. Undecided and am leaving the painting for a while.
Oh!! it happens to me all the time… when is it actually finish? Is the question I ask myself the most. I go back to paintings all the time… heehee 😀
I know I say this and then I go onto my next painting, w/o a thought of the other! Nuts, right?
this is so beautiful. Oils are wonderful, I only use acrylics now because of the mess and wait, but it is not the same as a painting done in oils.
Thank you so much! Oil pastels aren’t quite oils, per se there is oil in the formula but they are more solid in stick form. Probably the step-child of painting. Did you know that they now have water-soluble oils, I understand that they are the same richness as painting w/good old oils. Have you ever tried them?
Hi Mary, I have seen them but didn’t try them because they were quite expensive…I was very tempted though. It would be wonderful to get that richness that comes with oils without the mess.
You are a fabulous artist btw! Thank you.
Thank you so much for the compliment – have a great weekend!
Mary, you are really on your game again. Your edge definition really works well here. So often, artists do not pay proper attention to edge definition. Nice to see you doing so.
Thank you Craig for your nice comments and reference to edging. I’m working on them, only to soon turn my attention back to landscapes – it’s been a while and I’m looking forward to the change of scenery (so to speak).