Waterlilies - original oil pastel painting by Connie Chadwell

This is something totally different for me - but I decided to depart from the usual.  I sketched these waterlilies with oil pastel on 5 x 7" Pastelbord last summer at the McNay Art Museum in San Antonio, Texas.  The art is wonderful and the grounds are lovely - if you're in San Antonio, it is definitely a beautiful place to visit.  Thanks for stopping by!
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The Guys at the Bar - original figurative oil painting by Connie Chadwell

Love those bars! This painting is 11 x 14" on Fredrix archival canvas board. Thanks for stopping by!

Waiting to Dance - original oil figurative painting by Connie Chadwell

This painting is oil on 12 x 12" gessoed panel. It is, as an artist friend referred to my work, another of my 'short stories'. Is she waiting for someone who will never show up, or will she be asked to dance? I don't know. I hate to stare, although being so addicted to drawing and painting figures, I'm sure I should be embarrassed at all the 'watching' (there's a nice word for it) that I do. Anyway, I'm not sure how this story ended. Happily, I hope.

Thanks so much for visiting my blog - I'm thrilled for you to stop by!

The Japanese Fan - original oil figurative painting by Connie Chadwell

I'm typing as fast as I can before my laptop shuts down - it has some weird things going on.  Technology - can't live with it, can't live without it!

The model was holding one of my Japanese fans and I couldn't resist doing a quick drawing and then painting from the drawing.  It's 10 x 8" on gessoed panel.

Did this in record time!  Thanks for visiting Hackberry Street Studio - always happy to see you here!

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Backward Glance - original oil portrait painting by Connie Chadwell

This painting was sort of a difficult pose to paint, I think, but I'm pleased with the outcome.  It's from a line drawing that I did and for the life of me, I can't remember who or where the model was.  Scary!

This painting is 8 x 10" on linen.  Thanks for visiting my blog!

JIVIN' - original oil pastel figurative painting by Connie Chadwell

Been working madly for the past few days on "serious" artworks, so here's what I really, really love to do - at least on canvas - another jive painting.  This oil pastel is 12 x 16" on Pastelbord.  The dancers had fun, I had fun - can't beat that.  Thanks for stopping by. Sold

Even More Jive - original oil figurative painting by Connie Chadwell

This painting is based on my earlier charcoal drawing, More Jive.  It's the same size as the drawing, 6 x 12" and is on Masterpiece stretched canvas.  So much fun to paint dancers - they never tire of dancing and I never tire of painting them!  Thanks for visiting Hackberry Street Studio! Sold

Sports Fans - original oil figurative painting by Connie Chadwell

In keeping with the time of year - football mania. I love bars with TVs tuned into the sports of the season.  This painting is 12 x 16" on Fredrix archival canvas panel.  Thanks for visiting my blog! SOLD

Lana - A Portrait Sketch - original oil pastel portrait sketch by Connie Chadwell

I love this particular pose and use it a lot.  This quick drawing - or painting - was a real pleasure to do. I saw in the model's skin tones lots of the green that I find so beautiful.  I love those colors in skin!  We used to have an old television set that had a messed up color reception, but I liked it because most of the people were lime green and fuchsia. It was a little over the top, and people in that color combination might be pretty scary, but it had a certain charm, in moderation, anyway.
Many redheads or those with lots of red in their hair have these green tones, plus there are different, but no less beautiful, shades of green in the skin tones of light-skinned brunettes - known as olive coloring. Just lovely!
I painted this oil pastel on 10 x 8" Pastelbord.
It's so cold here - 7 degrees last night.  This is probably nothing to Northerners, but it makes a total wimp out of me.  Summer, with all its heat and humidity, sounds great right now - hurry up July!  Thanks so much for dropping by - stay warm!  Sold

Evening at the Bistro - original oil figurative painting by Connie Chadwell

It always takes me several days to get back to normal - or what passes for normal - after the holidays.  Since I've been painting feverishly for a few days, that's a good sign.  Here's one of the results - an observation of a young couple in a little cafe. I had a tiny drawing that I worked from - done from life in a cafe with 'atmosphere', which I suppose translates to 'too dark to draw very accurately', but I really like to work from drawings that don't have a lot of detail.  This painting is 10 x 8" on gessoed board.
Hope everyone's staying warm, which is going to be tough for the next three days!  Thanks for stopping by!

New Year's Jive - original mixed media figurative sketch by Connie Chadwell

This sketch is a preparatory one for a more finished painting and was such fun to do!  First, I scribbled the figures with a calligraphy felt pen that has two different size tips, onto 11 x 14" Stonehenge paper and then added a little color with Crayolas!  I love those crayons; the wonderful scent of new Crayolas reminds me of happy childhood afternoons spent 'painting' in my movie star coloring books.

Thanks so much for dropping by my blog! I have sincerely appreciated your comments and emails over the past year and look forward to more visits with you in 2010 - I wish you all a HAPPY NEW YEAR!   SOLD

Girl on a Sofa - original figurative oil sketch by Connie Chadwell

I had fun doing this little painting, which is really a preparatory sketch for a larger, more complicated one that I am planning to do later. This time I used thalo blue, which gives that greenish color - don't know if I'll keep using it or if I'll go back to another blue. I do love greenish blues, though, so maybe. Today's painting is done on gessoed panel and is 8 x 10".  Thanks so much for visiting my blog! SOLD

More Jitterbugs - original figurative oil painting by Connie Chadwell

I did see some folks carrying on like this recently - just living for the moment - and it was great to watch! The result for my artwork was lots of fun sketches that I may turn into paintings and post later.  This 6 x 6" painting is on Gessobord and is somewhat tamer than some of the other drawings I brought home.  It was so enjoyable to paint these little wild things that I think I actually smiled while I painted.  Thanks so much for stopping by - I always love for you to visit Hackberry Street Studio!  SOLD

The Dancer's Portrait - original oil portrait painting by Connie Chadwell

I spent most of my day making Christmas goodies, but did set aside time to paint from a drawing I did earlier in a drawing group.  It was such a difficult pose, so we had the model stop after a few minutes or she would have had such a sore neck! I did get enough information down on paper to do a painting, though.  On gessoed panel, this painting is 12 x 9". 
Hope everyone's staying warm!  Thanks for stopping by my blog! Sold

Ellie as the Model - original oil portrait painting by Connie Chadwell.

You know how sometimes the model doesn't show? And the drawing group participants have to take turns being the model? I hate that. Sigh. Oh well, I always dutifully take my turn - even though it's not my favorite thing to do - and the bright side is that you get a variety of models in one session. Here's the result of one of those poses. I worked very fast on a 7 x 5" panel. Thanks so much for visiting my blog!

Mandy's Blue Mirror - original oil pastel figurative drawing by Connie Chadwell

I finished this painting yesterday at my Thursday Painters' group. It's one of those things that's around for a week or so and the decision hasn't been made as to whether it's finally completed. My dilemma was whether to use the background that was in the setup, plus whether I should put in all the detail that was in her dress. I know one should work on the whole painting simultaneously, but in this instance, I was just stumped.

In the end, I decided just to use the Colourfix paper in the Deep Black color as background and call it 'finished'. After all, that's why I buy this paper - it's really, really black and has the most marvelous tooth, so I thought I would use what I adore about this surface as the background for Mandy.

This piece, which I totally loved doing - I think because it hovers between a drawing and a painting - is on 12 x 9" paper.

Thanks so much for stopping by! SOLD

The Young Violinist - original oil pastel portrait by Connie Chadwell

It is SO cold here - we'll have a miserable 19 degrees in the Texas Hill Country tonight!

Today I drove from the Austin area to my home in Junction and it actually snowed. It was lovely, but more of a dusting of white than a real snowstorm.

I love to paint people playing their musical instruments and the violin is one of my all-time favorites. I took piano lessons for years, but never attempted the violin. Maybe my mother had had enough of trying to get me to practice the piano, so I wasn't encouraged to pursue yet another instrument. Now, though, I'm working on the harmonica. Fun! I have lots of drawings of bass violinists, guitarists and other musicians that I'll paint and post one of these days.

This piece has lots of oil pastel on Pastelbord, 5 x 7" - I really piled it on (as usual) because this board can take it.

So nice of you to drop by my studio - it's great to see you here! SOLD

Delia Again - original acrylic nude painting by Connie Chadwell

Today's posting was painted from one of my life drawings. Since I wanted to paint quickly, I set my timer, turned on the thriller I'm currently listening to while I work, and in a few seconds, was totally engrossed in the protagonist's latest frightening situation. Involved as I was in that scary stuff and having completely forgotten about the timer, I almost freaked when it went off. So glad nobody was there to see that!

Every now and then, I like to get my acrylics out and get to work - I like that it dries so quickly and somehow, I just feel freer when I paint with acrylic. For me, it's as much a drawing medium as a painting one. I've had to explain that idea more than once when I've submitted an acrylic drawing to a juried show.

This "Delia" is 12 x 9" on board. I love it that you stopped by my blog - thank you so much! SOLD

Portrait of a Bailaora - original oil pastel portrait by Connie Chadwell

I could have entitled it 'Female Flamenco Dancer', but the Spanish sounded so much better.

What an evening! My USB ports quit working, so I had an interesting time getting the photo on my laptop. Then my laptop quit on me for about ten minutes. I'll bet I get to know the Toshiba customer service people really well in the morning.

Back to my posting - it was a quick one and small - 5 x 7" on Pastelbord. I could have done a larger one and taken more time, since she held the pose awhile, but I just wanted to get the essentials down.

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving! I was going to post a picture of family and friends at the table on Turkey Day, but got all involved in visiting and completely forgot.

Thank you for stopping by Hackberry Street Studio!

Another Tango Fever - original oil figurative painting by Connie Chadwell

In the painting posted today, I started out with a notion of what it would be, but then she laid her head on his shoulder and I took it from there. It's 7 x 5" on gessoed panel.

Today's other challenge was working on a scene from a sports bar, which I will probably post in a few days. Love those bars! Thanks for visiting Hackberry Street Studio.

Lisa as Aphrodite - original oil pastel nude sketch by Connie Chadwell

The model just took this pose so naturally and it reminded me of some of the Aphrodite statues I've seen. Once upon a time, I drew and painted lots of Aphrodite-type pieces and still have a fondness for them. This one is on gritty and wonderful Art Spectrum Colourfix paper - 12 x 9". I find the surface of this paper just luscious for an oil pastelist. Some of the painting can be brought to a more finished appearance and some can be left less so. Works for me. Or at least I think it does.

Thanks for visiting my blog.

Tango Mood II - original oil figurative painting by Connie Chadwell

Today I spent working on a few tango paintings for blog and gallery, and in addition, a cowboy painting for an upcoming art club show. Two days ago, I did a western painting that I really liked but, foolish creature that I am, I put it on the floor, leaning against the door facing of the doorway from the studio out to the main room. That evening, as I was leaving the studio, I thought to myself 'no need to turn on the the light in the main room because hey - I certainly know the way out to the porch'. Hmmm, well, apparently I didn't, because I planted my foot right through the painting. Sigh. Nothing to do but paint another one and hope I like it as well as the first, but I don't think I will. There's just something spontaneous and free about the first one and this painting is kind of stiff. Probably I'm trying too hard. Oh well. Maybe now I'll keep my paintings off the floor - there are better places for them to dry!

Today's tango painting - tangos are always fun for me - is 7 x 5" on gessoed panel.Thanks for stopping by and listening to my tale of woe. Just kidding. But not about visiting Hackberry Street Studio - I'm really glad to see you here! (Now I've changed it again - an artist's work is never done.)

Nude on a Green Chair - original oil painting by Connie Chadwell

I promise - this is the last time I'll do a painting from this pose. I really love it, but all things must eventually end. The painting is on 8 x 8" gessoed panel. Thanks so much for visiting my blog! Sold

Alone Again - original oil figurative painting by Connie Chadwell

While I love watching the guys and gals at the bar, seeing someone sitting alone always catches my eye. This is painted on 8 x 6" linen panel.

I'm sitting here at my keyboard, typing with one hand and throwing the ball for Roger, my assistant, with the other. It's a slow operation. We're all snug inside because we'll have some freezing weather tonight. I'm such a sissy about cold weather. Give me 105 degrees anytime, but br-r-r-r, I don't like the cold. Somehow I managed to adapt to all the years in Washington D.C. - even though it's not really cold there by northern standards - but I've gotten spoiled down here in the southwest and I love our sizzling summers.

But I guess they're gone for awhile, so I'd better go bring in my lemon tree, ficus, geraniums and probably a few more things. It'll be crowded in the kitchen tonight.

Thanks for stopping by! Sold

Catching Some Rays - original oil figurative painting by Connie Chadwell

This is a just for fun painting and done very quickly. It's painted from a drawing I did from life - I gave myself a limited amount of time to finish it and when that timer went off, that was the end of the session. I really wanted to fiddle with it here and there, but restrained myself. Whew! Self-control is really tough!

It's 6 x 6" on Gessobord. Thanks for looking! Sold

Kathy's Homework - original charcoal portrait sketch by Connie Chadwell

Happy is the portrait/figure artist who has a real live person to draw! This young girl was involved in her homework - cozy in a wingback chair, with her notebook balanced on her knees, oblivious to the artist lurking to her side. Although she was occupied, I still didn't have time for much detail, but was delighted for even this small opportunity.

Most of my day was spent finishing some paintings, all of which are too wet for photos, so I was really glad to have this drawing to post. It's 14 x 11" on Stonehenge drawing paper. Thank you for stopping by!

The Menu - original oil pastel figurative sketch by Connie Chadwell

The couple studied the menu for quite awhile. Very intent on getting just the right dish, I think. This 9 x 12" painting is on Art Spectrum Colourfix paper in black. It has this wonderfully gritty finish that is difficult to cover completely, so I don't try too hard to get it smooth. I really like the black bits peeking through, as well as the way the colors show up on the deep black surface. This sketch/painting is not very "finished", but I decided to leave it alone.

We're having such wonderful weather here in the Texas Hill Country now, that it's hard to stay inside and do art. I keep saying that I'll do some landscapes since the weather is so nice, but driven as I am to draw people, just never get around to it - so, off to the places where people hang out. Something to do, I guess, with my obsession with figures and faces.

Back in my studio to work some more on the piece, I listen to George Jones. Yeah, I know, I should be listening to Mozart, but I just love the "soul" in country music.

Thanks for stopping by Hackberry Street Studio!

The Daily Specials - original oil pastel figurative sketch by Connie Chadwell

I had such a good time doing this one, from life, in a small neighborhood restaurant, where they write the specials of the day on the blackboard. The initial parts of the sketch were done on-site and then filled in back at Hackberry Street Studio. The wonderful thing about oil pastel, for me anyway, is that it's very freeing. I just scribble away really fast (especially when working from life since people move around so much) and end up with a lot of oil pastel on the support; but since it's on Pastelbord, it will dry fairly quickly.

Maybe I'll paint a larger version in oil of this sketch and then again, this may be the only one, but I loved doing it. Painting is more enjoyable when it's done from actual models, I think. The waiter was a problem because he moved so quickly in and out of my vision, so he is less exact. Well, nobody in the painting is "exact", but he is definitely less so. It's 5 x 7". Thanks for looking!

Leslie - original oil nude painting by Connie Chadwell

It's been awhile since I posted because I've been working on my new blog to promote oil pastel, The Oil Pastel Review. And now it's done, so I can concentrate on work here at Hackberry Street Studio. I hope you will visit the new blog - the guest artist is David Berridge and I know you will enjoy his work and his story.

The model in today's posting, Leslie, is so elegant and so leggy. I kept measuring and the proportions were accurate. Well okay, maybe I did make the legs a little long, but it just looks like her, so I went with it. It's 18 x 22" on canvas.

Just looking at the posted picture I thought I needed to put up a close-up of her, because the photo of the whole painting doesn't show her pretty face very well. So here's another view.

Thank you for visiting Hackberry Street Studio!

The Russian Girl - original oil portrait painting by Connie Chadwell

The young woman in this painting was originally from Russia and she had such a sweet, yet melancholy expression, I thought. During the entire session, I attempted to get up the nerve to try some of my college Russian on her, but sanity prevailed and I never did. If I had blurted out the few words and phrases I remember, she would have had a look of utter confusion - an expression much more difficult to paint, I think.

I used oil paints on oil primed linen on board. Love that stuff. Thanks for looking. Oh, and it's 10 x 8".