Friday, January 14, 2011

Solstice eclipse



This is the first pastel I've done in a long time. It felt good to get covered in pigment again. I love working in oils and I love working in pastels, for such different reasons.

I couldn't get a good photo of this. In person, the image is soft, but not actually blurry the way it looks here. Grrr.

On the Solstice eclipse night, it was very cold so I kept going inside to get warm and then going back out onto our deck to gape. My neck started to hurt from all the craning so finally I just pulled my parka tightly around me and lay down on the deck. Mojito thought that was the most hilarious thing he'd ever seen. He immediately also lay down and started rolling on me. I kept trying to point to the eclipse, telling him, "You'd better pay attention--you won't get the chance to see this again. In fact, you should probably be howling at it, don't you think?" But he thought my hand pointing up was some kind of a game, and no matter what, I couldn't get him to look up.

So he missed it. But I didn't.

Pastel on Sennelier LaCarte, approx. 3" x 12".


Sold.

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Gadjo's about four or five months old now and he's gotten to that stage where sometimes when you glance at him, he still looks like a baby, and other times he looks like a gangly, fast-growing, handsome young man.




Stackables.

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In India, from the backseat of an auto-rickshaw. It was quite strange to see this written on the seat. While not particularly rude to their passengers, nor are the drivers noticeably polite, either.




More art on my website: jalapfaff.com

14 comments:

suzanneberry said...

Stunning, stunning, stunning!!!! one of my very favorites of yours. perfect!

Sonya Johnson said...

Whoa! This is so cool! I was wondering if you were going to do pastels again at some point. Glad ya did. It's a refreshing break from the oils, isn't it?

Love it!

When I was going out to observe/take photos of the eclipse on our deck, Nelson was desperate to hang out with me, scratching at the door. Cats can be so silly at times.

Mona Diane Conner said...

I agree with Suzanne Jala, one of my favorites of yours too! You were so lucky to see it in person. I stayed up most of the night in NYC to watch it online because it was too darn cold outside, but still so thrilling online.

Customer is God, lol.

Katherine van Schoonhoven said...

Wow!! This is gorgeous!! I love it! The blues are perfect and the moon a lovely orange again the midnight sky. SUPER!!

Anonymous said...

Absolutely love this Jala!!!! Beautiful kitty…I bet he thought….'what is she doing lying on the floor…. these humans are a strange animal'!!!!! (lol) So glad you have your mojo back….

Ian Foster said...

I love everything about this, the colours, the choice of dimensions and the simplicity combine to make it a triumph.

ELFI said...

le pastel est très beau!

Bonnie Luria said...

Love the impact of that singular image- this could also be one of my favorites of your pastels.
What the artist won't do to capture an image! Picturing Mojito arranging himself next to you on that cold ground. What dogs won't do for their people!
Sensational one Jala.

Do your stackables come with lids too?

Unknown said...

LOVE LOVE LOVE this new pastel of yours!!! I love the format too! And of course, the stackables are absolutely the cutest ever! :-)

Astrid Volquardsen said...

This pastel is stunning Jala, so cool. My favourite one of yours. It shows where your journey in pastel might go. It is a really good combination of what you have done with your abstract work and the pastels.

SamArtDog said...

Hey, the whole world is blurry these days! It's the colors and the value jump which make this so good.

Lisa Le Quelenec said...

Magic! I love this, and mojito's reaction :o)

Karen Bruson said...

Love your painting, especially the vertical format. Have missed your pet photos.

Mary Sheehan Winn said...

That's a fabulous painting!! And the cats are so so sooooooooo adorable!!