Tag Archives: wave

Searching for Shark Teeth

Here’s a pastel of my husband, Steve, loosely rendered. He’s looking for shark teeth on the beach at Mickler’s Landing, in Ponte Vedra, FL.

I loved the contrast between the hot orange of his shirt and the deep blues of the surf. The sun was low in the sky for this picture and so all the foam was creamy where the light hit it. Delicious!

After the craziness of all those portraits, it’s kind of nice to relax and do some low key painting for a while. Since my life is only going to get more hectic as I go, what with getting our house ready to sell and moving back to Michigan, I think I’ll do beach scenes for a while. They’re calming, a good place to put my head.

Searching for Shark Teeth, 6×9″ pastel on illustration board by Marie Marfia

pastel painting of a man searching for shark teeth on the shoreline

Searching for Shark Teeth, detail, 6×9″ pastel on illustration board by Marie Marfia

Gratitude – Wave Portrait No. 148

5×7″ pastel painting on gessoed mat board of a wave in green and purple, with a blue and pink sky, representing feelings of gratitude by Marie Marfia

Party Time – Wave Portrait No. 146

Party Time, Wave Portrait No. 146, 5×7″ pastel painting on gessoed mat board by Marie Marfia

When I was a teenager, I couldn’t wait to get out of the house and go somewhere, anywhere. I tried on fourteen different outfits. I fiddled with my hair. I put on make up. I thought about who I might talk to, what I would say, hoped there’d be dancing. I wanted to hang out with my friends, to meet someone new, to flirt.

When did pre-party anticipation turn into pre-party dread?

Now, it’s a struggle to leave the comfortable confines of my cave. Getting dressed up seems like so much work. Should I drink? Not drink? What shall I bring? Snacks? Dessert? Unthinkable to show up empty-handed! What if nobody eats it? Do I dare dance without my husband? Is that allowed?

What ever happened to just showing up and expecting to have fun? I swear, I am going to dedicate the rest of my life to remembering how that works. There’s too much seriousness in this world. It’s time to par-tay!

Here is the progression of this painting:

Stretched Thin – Wave Portrait No. 144

Stretched Thin-Wave Portrait No. 144, 5×7″ pastel painting of a wave in purple, gray and blue by Marie Marfia.

This is how I feel when I am in the middle of a project, in this case, re-doing my website, and I’m not familiar with the software, and there are too many choices, and the directions I’m following are three years old, so nothing matches, and I decide, screw it, I’m just going to do what I want, and all the while in the back of my mind I’m thinking, “I just want the work to already be done. I hate learning new things. Just leave me alone in my corner, sitting in a puddle of ignorance. I’m tired of all if it!”

This painting occurred to me while I was doing yoga of all things. I thought it was about feeling transparent, but it turned out to be about feeling inadequate to the task at hand.

Here are the progress pictures. I included a picture of the pastels I used for this painting.

Bloop!

Wave Portrait No. 135

This guy is just doot dootling around, minding its own business. A happy little wave. Bloop!

Wave portrait no. 135, 5×7″ pastel on Uart sanded paper by Marie Marfia

I painted this with a bright yellow alcohol under painting on sanded UArt paper (400 grit) using almost all NuPastels.

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GRR

This painting is how I feel when my computer is being stupid (operator error, no doubt!) or my dog doesn’t come when I call (what’s so interesting about kids walking along the back fence?) or the Detroit Tigers blow a three run lead in the 8th inning (I know I live in Florida now, but I’ll always be a Michigan girl).

GRR, Wave Portrait No. 134, 5×7″ pastel on UArt paper by Marie Marfia.

I used a medium gray pastel and alcohol for an underpainting and deliberately left it as the sky in this painting. I think I’d like to do the next one with bright yellow. I’m thinking of calling this series, “The Moody Blue.” What do you think?

You can purchase the ORIGINAL painting on Etsy.
You can purchase PRINTS on Fine Art America.
Get a free mini-print when you sign up for my newsletter.

More whimsy, less realism

I’m getting into these colorful, whimsical versions of waves. They’re fun, they’re simple and they’re bright. And they have so much personality!

Like this guy reminds me of my brothers’ hair. The twins used to get their hair cut in the utility room while perched on a stool with my father wielding the hair clippers. Zoop, zoop up the sides with a front fringe. It was a practical look. Dad would say, “Now you look like a white man,” when he’d finished. The boys would complain because the clippers would heat up after a little while and it’d be uncomfortably hot on their necks. Afterward, they would check themselves out in the mirror, looking for holes, my sister and I helpfully pointing out where Dad’s clipper hand had slipped.

Wave Portrait No. 133, 5×7″ pastel on UArt sanded paper by Marie Marfia.

Love it?
You can purchase the ORIGINAL painting on Etsy.
You can purchase PRINTS on Fine Art America.
Get a free mini-print when you sign up for my newsletter.

Pump it up

I need regular pep talks. Since I work at home, that means I have to go find them, because when I give myself a pep talk, it doesn’t always work. Trust issues, clearly.

Sometimes I read books about inspiring subjects. Sometimes I go looking on the internet for uplifting stories. I find that without something funny or wise or encouraging every day, I slip into downer mode and it’s hard to do anything at all, much less make a painting.

Here are some places I go in no particular order:

Imgur – puppies and kittens and the occasional red panda
Ted Talks – Twenty awe-inspiring minutes of hope for humankind
Writers Almanac – A poem a day for FREE!
Brain Pickings – Great place to find inspiring reads
Clients From Hell (I go here to remind myself what great clients I have)
Other artist/art biz websites

Today’s wave portrait was inspired by the work of Drew Brophy, whose work I found on Maria Brophy’s blog. She’s inspiring in all kinds of ways from a business standpoint and Drew’s work is pure awesomeness.

Wave Portrait No. 132, 5×7″ pastel on UArt paper by Marie Marfia, $70.

I just drew a line and filled it in with lots of luscious colors. The sky reminds me of orange sherbet and the white cap looks like whipped cream. I think I must have to eat something.

Love it?
You can purchase the ORIGINAL painting on Etsy.
You can purchase PRINTS on Fine Art America.
Get a free mini-print when you sign up for my e-newsletter.

Wave Portrait No. 130

Another pastel painting of a wave breaking on the Atlantic ocean. This is on UArt 400 sanded paper with a dark pastel underpainting. Again, I used a remnant from another painting that just didn’t work out. Kind of nice to recycle paintings like that! Makes me feel all green and stuff.

Wave Portrait No. 130, 5×7″ pastel on UArt sanded paper by Marie Marfia, $150, framed, on Etsy. It is also available as a print on Fine Art America. Here’s the same painting, framed.

Wave Portrait No. 129

I just have to get back to daily small painting again. I miss it. Woman cannot live by skellies alone! So here’s a wave painting that I did this morning. I used a piece of UArt paper that had a failed painting on it, brushing some rubbing alcohol over it for an underpainting. Then I worked quickly, trying hard not to fiddle with it too much. It’s on my Etsy site for $70, includes shipping anywhere in the USA. Or if you’d rather have a print, it’s on my Fine Art America site, in a range of sizes.

Wave Portrait No. 129, 5×7″ pastel on UArt paper by Marie Marfia. $70 in my Etsy shop, prints available at Fine Art America.

Blue Skelly Dancers final

I started a membership on Fine Art America, just so I could see what this finished piece looks like as a shower curtain. I think I must have one, but it might not be to everyone’s taste. If you’d rather have a print, click the link and order the size you like. They’ll even frame it for you or you can have it on canvas or as a throw pillow… whatever your heart desires! I’m also offering the original painting for $512 in my Etsy shop.

Blue Skelly Dancers from the Old (Dead) Masters Series, 16×16″ pastel on Canson paper by Marie Marfia. $512 in my Etsy shop. Prints (and shower curtains) available at Fine Art America.

Other good news

Since signing a contract in June, I’ve received two deals through Art Licensing International, Inc. for which I am very grateful. One is a company called Leotie Fashion and Lifestyle in Germany, and the other is from Art.com.