“There is nothing more difficult for a truly creative painter than to paint a rose, because before he can do so he has first to forget all the roses that were ever painted.” Henri Matisse
Perhaps Matisse was speaking to me as I painted the latest in my red rose series, as the oil pastels melted between my fingers and one line stroke blurred into the other. Painting a rose today was a lesson in forgetting every rose that came before ~
Red Rose series #5, an oil pastel (7×5) was painted on ochre tinted Mi-Teintes pastel paper using mainly Sennelier and Holbein brands. Besides using my fingers as a painting tool, a painters knife and razor blade helped to create depth, and fractured color and light within the painting.
Thank you for checking in. Have a wonderful weekend – click onto the image for a larger view.
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Oil Pastels by Mary 
the image creates a mood. very nice
Thank you Heath – I like your response, it’s what I had hoped for.
Magnificent Mary!
Thank you Dorann – happy August to you!
What a lovely rose! The transparent effect of the bottle is PERFECT! … 🙂
Hi Maniparna, thank you so much for your thoughts on the painting – always appreciated!
The melting pastels helped turn out a gorgeous solitaire rose!
And melt they did (temps continue at the 100 range) – today will be no different!! Thank you so much, love your enthusiasm!
Wow, Amazing!!!
Thank you so much Rexlin for visiting and commenting.
A beautiful red rose, Mary. I agree with Joanna about the neck of the vase. It was the first thing that caught my eye when I opened your post. I’m now imagining you with rose-red fingers. 😆
Thank you Sylvia for your kind response to the painting. Oh those red fingers, the paint was getting everywhere!
🙂
Another lovely one, Mary.
Thank you Derrick!
Yay! My Sunday treat!!!! 🙂 🙂
Thank you my friend. Hope you have a lovely Sunday and great week ahead!
You have created a lovely rose. You know me, I also like looking at everything surrounding the “star” of the picture, and I also really like the colors of your background, and I LOVE how you created the vase, especially the neck. 👏👏
Hi Joanna, thanks very much. Can’t tell you what it means for you to really look at the work and noticing the details. Actually had the bottle neck done several times, finally the third time was the charm with the various values of light and shadows. Thanks again!!
It’s so gorgeous! The large version makes a difference, a grand view!
Thank you, Mary!
Thanks Amy – especially for viewing in the larger mode. I love your response! Have a great week ahead.
Captured translucence of bottle admirably.
Thank you so much Carl – bottles are a fantastic subject to work out with paints.
Wow, Mary, your roses have a dreamlike quality that makes them even more amazing. Just loving what you’re creating. ❤️
Thanks Laura – glad you enjoyed this one. The scraping with a razor really helped with the visual effects of the painting.
I love the quote from Matisse – oh so true. Another lovely study….reminding me that if we mere humans had invented the rose…there would be lines miles long of people waiting to view it. Through the rose once again we see the sheer glory of Mother Nature. Thank you, Mary and hoping you are enjoying a lovely weekend. Janet:)
Thank you Janet – such a great quote from the master, glad you enjoyed! After number 5 in this series, I’ve decided that red is difficult to paint – to mimic the gorgeous red color of nature with oil pastels well it’s a test of perseverance and patience. The surface color helped tremendously in getting past the difficulty – in some cases giving the scene warmth and giving a deeper and richer feel to the red. Thank you so much and hope you have a wonderful week!
Always a great post! Thanks so much, Mary!
Thank you Fabio for your enthusiastic response!! Have a great week ~
Nice quote and pretty rose Mary.
Thanks Eunice – appreciate it very much!
great quote! and I adore how you have filled the bottle with such Light. The background has been done beautifully! lovely painting 🙂
Hi Debi, thanks so much and for mentioning the bottle and light. The effects on the bottle were interesting to get – lots of layers of paint and in between, a sort of smashing the paint with a painters knife and then scraping with a razor. It was fun to develop this aspect of the scene.
my pleasure Mary! I’m always looking…for the light! that sounds funny, too. lol but its the first thing my eye goes to in a painting. its sooo… restful and spacious, I feel. well done!
What a perfect quote for you, Mary. And your rose, it’s quite perfect too! Excellent work!
Thanks Jill – I always appreciate your kind thoughts and encouragement! Hope you have a beautiful Sunday and great week ahead.
GORGEOUS!!
Thank you my friend, have a wonderful week ahead!
Evelyne is correct, enlarging your paintings is a real viewing experience! I like the deep red of the rose, I like the background but what I really appreciate is how you manage to render the glass of the bottle…not easy but you are a master 🙂
robert
Thank you Robert and for opening the image, it gives a totally different feel for the painting. I really enjoy painting glass bottles, thank you for noticing and complimenting. I read a long time ago (and have also been told) to paint what I see, not what I think is there – that piece of advice really helped me a lot with painting glass vases.
“to paint what I see”…yes, it’s what my teacher tells me…the difficult thing is to learn to see properly 🙂
robert
Great comment Robert, you are so right. While the glass vases might be one of my easier subjects (except cut-glass would be a nightmare!), many other subjects is very difficult for me. To read lines, angles and proportions – this trio is often the most difficult for me to manage. Your last line, “the difficult thing is to learn to see properly . . .” sums it up perfectly!
Please, everyone, click to enlarge the photo. This rose is gorgeous. Sorry, Mary, for my long absence. I was busy finishing up a novel. Hope all is well for you.
Wonderful to see you Evelyne again! Thank you for your lovely response to the painting and for enlarging the image. Very excited to hear that you are finishing up a new novel, very exciting news. Congratulations ~