Wine and the Short Story - original oil pastel figurative sketch by Connie Chadwell

I wish I could say that this oil pastel sketch came from life, or came from a drawing from life.  But, it didn't.  My husband was flicking through the channels and I had a one-half second glimpse of someone reading a book.  I don't know if they had any wine or what color the book was and, actually, now that I think of it, I'm not certain it was a three-quarter view - might have been a profile.  Reading a book is one of my favorite pastimes, (right now, it's The Great Upheaval by Jay Winik).  I just started scribbling and this is the result.  It's on 9 x 12" Colourfix black paper.  Thanks so much for visiting my blog!

Cheryl on a Gold Sofa - original oil figurative painting by Connie Chadwell

Here's another one of the paintings with robe and fan.  It's still so wet that it's difficult to phtograph.  On Gessobord, it's 10 x 8".  The painting was done from a drawing from life - really just a quick little sketch.  I did a bunch of these and didn't want to drive the model completely crazy, so I drew many fast little gestures, then we went on quickly to other poses.  Much easier for her with the frequent changes of position.  Thanks so much for stopping by!  Sold

Flamenco Fire - original oil figurative painting by Connie Chadwell

Oh so much fun to do!  I just felt - this painting was done from a drawing that I did from life last year - that the dancer was oblivious to anything but the insistent rhythm of the guitar and the stamping of her feet. My objective was to capture her movement and her involvement in her art.

It's on gessoed panel, 10 x 8".  Thank you for visiting Hackberry Street Studio.
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Preparations - original oil figurative painting by Connie Chadwell

This 8 x 8" painting on gessoed panel is composed of drawings from life that I combined into an arrangement.  Hmmmm.  I don't know, but I enjoyed it.  Seems like forever since I posted anything - with my injury still a problem - but much better - and painting for some shows, I've neglected my blog a bit.  But I'm back. Thanks for stopping by!  Sold

Flowered Robe - original oil pastel figurative sketch by Connie Chadwell

This is quick sketch - well, I guess most sketches are quick - of the model as she put on her robe at break.  She was nice enough to hold it for a few minutes and we  - being the nice people we are - let her take a longer break.  Probably didn't get all the flowers in the right places, but there wasn't much time. 
I did this one on sand-colored 7 x 5"Pastelbord.  This is a really great color - am coming to love it more all the time.  Thanks so much for stopping by!  Pssst - see what's going on at
The Oil Pastel Review.    Email me anytime - I'm always glad to hear from you!

Salsa Sketch - original charcoal figural sketch by Connie Chadwell

This sketch is for a painting I hope to do.  I find salsa hard to figure out, but I attended a salsa dance show a month or so ago and am thinking maybe, just maybe, I'm learning a little bit about it.  The salsa drawing was done with General's Primo drawing pencil on Bristol board and is about 11 x 13".  I love these new Primo pencils - they are so smooth and easy to work with - they practically draw the sketch by themselves.  Well, a slight exaggeration.
Thanks for stopping by!

Letty - original oil pastel portrait painting by Connie Chadwell

Letty is a great model and I love her name.  I think her real name is Violet.  This oil pastel is on 12 x 9" Pastelbord.
We are having the most beautiful spring here in the Texas Hill Country.  All of my roses are in full bloom - some of them will bloom only once, but what a show that one bloom is!  This weekend I will plant more of these glorious plants - if I can find places for them.  I always do.
Thanks so much for stopping by - have a lovely day!

Another Tango Moment - original oil figurative painting by Connie Chadwell

Not painting much the past few days because I'm recovering from an aerobics injury.  That'll teach me!
This painting is on 12 x 9" gessoed board and sold at Artworks recently.
Thanks for stopping by!

Lexie - original charcoal portrait drawing by Connie Chadwell

I did this charcoal drawing on 12 x 9" bristol paper  - the medium I love the absolute most!  Well, I have so many favorite media and surfaces, but for the moment, this is my true love.  Vine charcoal and bristol board, plus a kneaded eraser, are a delicious - not to mention forgiving -  combination!
You probably noticed my banner across the top of my blog proclaiming - or screaming, I guess more accurately - that one of my drawings, "The Artisan" was selected as a finalist in American Artist's Drawing magazine cover competition.  I am totally thrilled!
Hope you're all having a glorious spring as we are here in the Texas Hill Country - thanks so much for stopping by!

Flamenco Passion - original oil figurative painting by Connie Chadwell

This painting - 8 x 8" on Gessobord - was one that I did quickly without much attention to detail.  When I noodle too much, I always kill it, so I just let it go.  Hope it shows motion - that's what I was after in this piece.  Today was a moody day - dark and rainy - and a great day to stay inside and paint.  And with Mother Nature watering my tomatoes and roses, I had no gardening cares!
Yesterday, I mentioned a support I enjoyed using and today I found that it's Creative Mark Centurion.
Thanks so much for stopping by my blog!   Have a great Thursday!

 If you would like to inquire about this painting, just email me.

Another Woman with a Fan - original oil figurative painting by Connie Chadwell

Just a little fun thing - I love turquoise/aqua/green and with an art supply order a couple of months ago, I got a free 7 x 5" stretched linen.  So, I just fooled around with this color I'm so crazy about.  Lots of fun with brushstrokes!  I always like to paint on linen, but this surface has an especially wonderful feel.  I can't remember the brand right now, so I'll have to go through my receipts to see who made this gem and then I'll let you know. 
To inquire about a painting, just email me.

Date Night - original oil portrait/figurative painting by Connie Chadwell

Back home from a little jaunt that proved to be longer and more taxing that I'd anticipated and happy to be here!  Stayed up late, got up early and then walked with a friend for four and a half miles.  Did that three days last week, too.  Who knows, this could be habit-forming!
Here's a painting of a couple I observed recently.  They were so sweet - did a little sketch of them, then painted on 10 x 8" Gessobord.  Thanks so much for dropping by!
If you're interested in this or any other of my artworks, just email me.

Flute Practice - original oil pastel portrait painting by Connie Chadwell

This oil pastel is on Pastelbord and is 8 x 10".  I did this one today at the Thursday Painters, using combinations of my drawings.  Fun to do - hope you enjoy it.  Thanks for looking!

A Little Modesty - original oil portrait painting by Connie Chadwell

This 6 x 6" painting is on Gessobord and was done from a drawing that I did in a life drawing group.  I get such a kick out of painting quickly and just letting the chips - or in this case, the paint - fall where it may. 

Today, I worked while listening to Matthew Pearl's The Poe Shadow.  When we lived in Washington, D.C., we often went to Baltimore to see the formerly fabulous Orioles play and would occasionally visit the gravesite of Edgar Allan Poe.  As soon as I finish this book, I'm going to reread all of his works.  That'll keep me busy!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Rockin' - original oil figurative painting by Connie Chadwell

This loosey goosey painting was done from gesture drawings of dancers and I thoroughly enjoyed painting it.  The drawings look kind of like scribbles - I think I've posted some of them before - but I can 'read' them.  You'd probably look at my gesture drawings and ask "Hunh?" and wonder how on earth I came up with the final product.  Gesture drawings are a kind of shorthand that you can build upon right on top of the drawing.  That's not what I did here, but building on top of the gesture is one of my favorite things to do.  Once you have the gesture, you can stop any time and have a finished product.

"Rockin'" is 6 x 6" on Gessobord.  Thanks for stopping by! Sold

Flamenco Frenzy - original oil figurative painting by Connie Chadwell

I know it's a little crazy and a little wild, but she's totally involved in the music as she stomps her way across the floor.   This painting is 7 x 5" on gessoed panel and I LOVED doing this one!  Thanks for stopping by Hackberry Street Studio - I'm always glad to see you here!

Orange Chair - original oil figurative painting by Connie Chadwell

Now that the weather is warming up, I have a tough time staying out of the yard.  There's so much I want to do - especially before the temperature reaches triple digits!  I decided, though, that the other three blueberry bushes will have to wait until tomorrow to get planted.  I just have to paint or draw every day - a bit of an obsession, probably -  and I'm so lucky to have the time to do it.  This 7 x 5" painting is oil on panel.  I've painted the orange chair many times.  It's always been here in this house and I've always loved it - great for curling up in with a good book!  Preferably a mystery.

More Tango Nights - original oil pastel figurative painting by Connie Chadwell

Puff puff - trying my best to get this posted!  We've had spring break guests and lots of fun - now back to the usual routine.  This painting is on Art Spectrum Colourfix paper - 12 x 9".  Thanks for looking!

Red Ribbon - original oil pastel portrait painting by Connie Chadwell

I've been so busy painting for upcoming shows and getting started on spring planting, that I decided to post another of my small, quick studies that I love doing.  This one is 7 x 5" on Pastelbord.  Thanks so much for visiting Hackberry Street Studio!

Seated Nude III - original oil pastel nude painting by Connie Chadwell

This quick sketchy painting was much fun to do.  It's on Pastelbord and is 7 x 5".  Hope you like it.  Thanks for stopping by!

Alone at the Bar II - original oil figurative painting by Connie Chadwell

This painting is oil on 7 x 5" gessoed panel.  Thanks so much for visiting Hackberry Street Studio - I love it when you drop by! Sold

Sketch of Penny - original oil pastel portrait sketch by Connie Chadwell

This portrait sketch was done quickly from a live model.  The pose would normally be a very tough one to hold, but she rested her head lightly against the wall - which to my eyes, resulted in a charming, wistful look. Today I posted on The Oil Pastel Review another oil pastel.  It's also a portrait, with the title "Sketch Chronology".  I hope you will check it out!

"Sketch of Penny" is painted on 11 x 14" Strathmore 403 oil pastel paper.
Thank you for visiting Hackberry Street Studio - hope to see you here again!  PS - Sorry, subscribers, I had to correct the size of the painting.  Hope you didn't get more than one notification.

The Thai Restaurant - original oil figurative painting by Connie Chadwell

I painted this from another drawing of my favorite Thai restaurant.  The painting is 10 x 8" on Fredrix archival canvas panel.  When I work on this support, I really like to paint fairly thickly so there's variety in the texture.   This panel has the best of both support worlds - canvas for its nice surface texture and panel for the rigidity that gives my brush something to react against.  I like it when the surface doesn't 'give' the way stretched canvas does.

Thanks for visiting my blog!

The Dancer's Shoe - original oil figurative painting by Connie Chadwell

This quick little painting (7 x 5" on panel) was a pleasure to do.  It's one of those where maybe something isn't explained perfectly, but you just move on because time is running out.  I love doing that.  When the timer is set, I can't overwork it - at least I hope not.
We're having a little cold snap here, but that's okay.  Baseball season is underway, so all is right with the world.
Thanks so much for stopping by Hackberry Street Studio!

The Model Reclining - original oil pastel figurative by Connie Chadwell

This little painting is gooey with oil pastel, just the way I like it!  Much fun to do!  Can't beat those Senneliers when you need lots of pastel to pile on the support.   This was not the most comfortable pose for the model - which I originally did with charcoal - so she was able to stop frequently to rest. 
It's always said that oil pastel never dries and it doesn't dry the way oil does, but this afternoon I was going through some oil pastels that I did in 2009 - ones that were never posted on my blog - and they are dry, dry, dry.  Especially those on Pastelbord and Colourfix paper.  A few sprays with fixative and they had a nice finish to them.  Usually, I don't apply fixative to oil pastels until they're sold, but it just seemed like a good idea to spray them today.  
This painting is on Pastelbord and is 8 x 10".  Thanks so much for stopping by!
NOTE:  I know there are lots of sentence fragments in this post.  Ordinarily, I'm a stickler for things like that, but sometimes sentence fragments really work!

Geisha with Fan - original oil pastel figurative painting by Connie Chadwell

This painting is on Colourfix paper, 12 x 9".  I worked on it while I watched the Olympics finals in ice dancing.  While I've always been such a fan of Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto and am so disappointed that they didn't medal, there was a lot of beautiful skating tonight!  I was always surprised when I could just get around the rink without falling flat, and am completely in awe of what these 'real' skaters can do!  And they make it look easy!

Thanks so much for stopping by my blog - it's always so nice to see you here!

Sketch of Helen - original oil pastel portrait sketch by Connie Chadwell

This portrait sketch was done on Colourfix paper with oil pastels and is 12 x 9".  I loved doing the line work along with the bits of color - much fun!  Thank you for visiting my blog! 

Black Lace - original oil pastel portrait sketch by Connie Chadwell

I did this sketch in a life drawing group, where I moved around and did several drawings during the evening from the same pose.  It's 11 x 14" on Strathmore 403 pastel paper for oil pastels.  I really do love that paper, although I think its texture has changed somewhat over the years.  The oil pastel just  melts onto the paper.  Wonderful!

Thanks so much for stopping by my blog!

K's Necklace - original oil pastel portrait sketch by Connie Chadwell

I can't believe I haven't posted in ten days! There's been a lot going on, plus I had some issues with my laptop, so couldn't transfer photos of my artwork.  But I'm back!

This drawing was done from life - great model - really loved drawing this one.  It's 14 x 11" on Strathmore oil pastel paper.  Thanks for stopping by! Collection of the Model.

The Spanish Dancer - original oil pastel portrait sketch by Connie Chadwell

She does flamenco dancing, and she looks like she could be from Spain, but the model - Laurie - is actually of Irish ancestry.  I hope Laurie sticks around; she's really a wonderful model and it's so hard to find good ones.

This quick little painting is oil pastel on Ampersand Pastelbord, 10 x 8", and was a pleasure to do.  The Pastelbord is so forgiving and after the oil pastel is dry, easy to frame, as well.  Oil pastel performs beautifully on so many surfaces and I love almost all, the exception being canvas.  Although many oil pastel painters like to work on canvas, I'm not one of them.  It just never works for me and there are so many wonderful papers, plus Pastelbord, that finding a great surface for oil pastel is easy.

I really could go on and on about the joys of oil pastel, but it's getting late, so I'll save that for another post.

Thanks so much for stopping by! Sold