New Painting

Still Life with Apples, 2008, oil on canvas, 16 x 12 inches

What an amazing feeling it is when a painting is done, especially if it was begun a year before. I planned and set this still life back in early 2007 during a visit to my parents home in Hartford. I took over my mother's kitchen in search for inspiration. I love going through her pantry and cupboards looking for things with that unique touch. Nothing seems to be a set, dishes, pots, pans, cups, they are all a collection of misfits that have found a way to her kitchen. I set a number of still lifes and took reference shots, since I was only there for two days. This painting is the first of that group. This is the simplest one of the bunch, but I remember being very excited to start working on this one because of the apples. I don't usually paint apples or pears because they have been done way too many times. But I remember that day looking at the yellow and red variations of the fruit and thinking of Caravaggio's still life. I was after his apples! That's a tough standard to match, but hey I tried.