Pink Tulips & Peepers

May 19, 2015 Natalie Wargin

Pale pink tulips are my favorite and here it is, spring at long last, and I have been indulging myself with near weekly bouquets. And since it's spring the peepers are singing in the marsh behind the house pretty much non-stop. When I did the sketch for this painting it was raining and three of the tiny frogs hopped onto the french doors next to my work table. They stuck there on the glass. I love when I get to see them so close up, no larger than a quarter with a gorgeous copper ring around their eyes. I could see their little hearts beating so fast. They begged to be included.

This painting and prints in various sizes are available in my shop.
https://www.etsy.com/listing/232415560/watercolor-painting-original-tulips-and?ref=shop_home_active_2
https://www.etsy.com/listing/232454525/art-print-original-watercolor-tulips-and?ref=shop_home_active_1

New work -- Cardinals & Flame Bush

May 8, 2015 Natalie Wargin

There are birds galore here, as I've mentioned before, and I've painted a number of them: sparrows, bluebirds, crows, turkeys, phoebes, jays, owls. Here are a pair of cardinals. Since it's finally spring in the middle Hudson Valley I first thought to pair the cardinals with forsythia but red and yellow as a palette didn't do it for me. Red and red seemed like more fun. So even though it's spring and the flame bushes are far from their flashy autumn scarlet this is where I ended up.

This is a colorful painting but cardinals, the males at least, are very bright, and now that I think about it, unusual around here for their color since most of the birds I see are fairly subdued. Oh, there are a couple of other exceptions: jays and bluebirds. And I see touches of red on a blackbird's wing or a woodpecker's breast but overall muted earth tones prevail. It's survival that's important and these little birds have a lot to deal with. So how to explain the brilliant cardinal?

This painting, as well as prints in various sizes, are available in my Etsy shop.
https://www.etsy.com/listing/232229077/watercolor-painting-original-cardinals?ref=shop_home_active_2
https://www.etsy.com/listing/232215449/art-print-original-watercolor-cardinals?ref=listing-shop-header-1

Two Dogs on the Hudson

April 20, 2015 Natalie Wargin

I was asked to do a painting of two dogs in a Hudson Valley setting. I have always loved dog portraits, especially old master formal pieces. You know, the hunting scene with the dogs large in the foreground, horses and riders in their "pinks" in a tangle behind them. Or better, the stiff profile of a dog standing in the foreground of a country scene; river, hills and woodland always in the background. I admit I was a bit nonplussed by the request. I have never thought of myself as a portraitist but the opportunity intrigued me. I was provided with a number of photos of two handsome creatures. This is the result. Like so many of the old portraits I placed the dogs front and center. The requested Valley landscape -- Hudson River, Catskills, red barn, farm animals, foliage -- are present and also mimic the old portraits. But instead of a stiff traditional pose with the dog oblivious of the viewer, I have these two looking straight at us. Less formal. More like the dogs I know.

Prints of this painting are available in various sizes in my Etsy shop:
https://www.etsy.com/listing/230363174/art-print-original-watercolor-painting?ref=shop_home_active_1

Spring Bouquet in the Dead of Winter

April 3, 2015 Natalie Wargin

I received a bouquet of gorgeous spring flowers in the middle of February. They couldn't have been more welcome since we here in the northeast were struggling with the freezing gray winter that would not end. As you can see, the bouquet was very colorful and it fell into a very pretty arrangement, thankfully -- I'm not much good at floral arrangement myself. I used my most colorful vase too, a majolica carrot pitcher actually. The flowers lasted about a week but I'd taken a few snaps and, as winter continued to hold on, I decided they needed a longer life. So, the painting. I added a few of the funny green caterpillars I see sometimes. They're in there somewhere.

This is an original watercolor and gouache painting of a bouquet of spring flowers. It's 9.5 x 12 inches (24 x 30 cm). It's available in my Etsy shop along with prints of the image. Find them here:
https://www.etsy.com/listing/228382184/watercolor-original-spring-bouquet?ref=shop_home_active_1
https://www.etsy.com/listing/228385231/art-print-original-watercolor-spring?ref=shop_home_active_2