"Leaf Posing" 11x 14 oil on canvas 2024

                    

Sometimes I like to create in oil.  It has many similarities to pastel but I personally find Pastels to be more challenging yet more familiar to me.  One thing I dislike about oil is the reflection and the amount of time it takes for the multiple layers to harden. (Oil paint never dries.  Did you know that?  I was shocked when I learned that it actually "hardens'.)  Pastels are immediate. No waiting.

The piece above is oil.  I did maybe 10 layers of various thin application of color on top of a brown under painting. I wanted the leaf to glow to show that it has energy. I wanted to mix colors through layering to get multiple values and hues. I put it in a night landscape because I have spent a lot of time in my life staring out the window at the soft Wood County open fields when I couldn't sleep at night. Of course I didn't sleep well as I was caring for Dad during his last few weeks.  Looking out the dark window during this time and remembering the gold leaves inspired this painting.

Any how, if you look at the photos below you might understand my fascination with leaves, nature and open fields.  You see these influences in many of my still life.  These are photos of my parents yard.  Dad took such good care of his garden like yard for the 60 years that he and mom lived here.  It makes sense why going to my childhood home for several months was so emotionally healing for me. All I needed was the love of my large family and a few walks around the property.

I started this oil above during this time but finished it last week.  I called it leaf posing because the shape of the leaf looked like something I might draw in life drawing class of a posed model. It has no deep message but it was healing for me.

                                             Where I grew up, in Bowling Green, Ohio.                       

                     

             

                                                                 "Abstract 2"  11 x 8.5

If you are familiar with my work you know that I very rarely draw abstract.  I decided to do this mostly just to practice some techniques and have a little fun.  I sat down in front of the blank paper and just started making marks.  I did deliberately avoid any shapes that could be construed as "figurative" since thats what I mostly draw.  What came out was this sort of burning lava under a layer of pretty shapes.  Have fun psychoanalyzing me over this one.  HA  I am interested in how this drawing makes my viewers feel.  please let me know here or on facebook at emilychristoff.

 

    

 "Nettie's Leaf" 8 x 10" pastel on velour 2024

I have not drawn in the past few years thanks to a long healing broken arm followed by a car accident which messed up a pre existing condition in my lower back. I am being treated for that now. I went to my childhood home last fall and brought art supplies with me, hoping to get working again.

I did a series of pieces over the 2 and a half months I was home assisting my siblings taking care of Dad. This is one of the first ones I did. I grabbed an interesting leaf from the front yard and a precut piece of velour paper. I simply held the leaf in my hand while I drew it from life. It got me excited to work again despite my painter's block, depression and aches. I will be posting my works from Ohio throughout the next few weeks. Now I am in the studio every day, working full time. I was starving to create.