“Axel”
Oil on canvas ~ 14″ x 18″

After a 15-year hiatus to raise my adopted son who has high-needs…when I started painting again 3 years ago, I decided that I wanted to do a painting of a red husky. When I was younger, I had a husky who looked very similar to this guy, but he was a bit lighter in color and the markings on his head were a little different. Unfortunately though, I do not have a reference photo that shows how beautiful my dog was that is nearly detailed enough to create a good painting from…so I was very happy to find this one of Axel. I really enjoyed painting this, I searched for a long time to find an image to work from that reminded me this much of my sweet pup and very dear friend and family member, Chukchi.

This painting was a challenge for me because I wanted to have some very detailed areas, such as in Axel’s face; as well as some impressionist areas like the fur on his chest, neck, and shoulder. The colors I decided to go with, were a bit stronger than in the photo I used as a reference. I was able to pull out some turquoise and a more purple-toned blue which were more subtle…plus the background in the photo was originally trees and has green tones, but I wanted to use similar hues as in the reds of Axel’s fur.

Thank you to Lorna Dandy for the use of her beautiful reference photo I found on pmp-art’s website.

I look at an incredible amount of art…

I am inspired by so much of the work I see every day. Just check out some art websites like FASO (Fine Art Studio Online), NOAPS (National Oil & Acrylic Painters Society), as well as what artists are posting on Facebook & Twitter…and you will see really phenomenal work being created in oils, watercolor, acrylic, and colored pencil.

So…the challenges with my own paintings

have become about how to give whoever is viewing them, the feeling that they are actually there, in that moment, with that subject…or in other words, a way for me to be able to convey a ‘more real than a photograph’ impressionism, which possesses the color and light values, along with enough detail to satisfy my need to express the technical abilities that I have been working so hard and so long to perfect. There is also the challenge of making sure that my paintings do not look as if they appear to be exactly like the photo I’m using as a reference, or worse…like another artist’s work!  Speaking of that,  I do spend a great deal of time either thinking about or looking for ways to create a niche for my own work, in order to set it apart from other artists…both, because of how I want to feel fulfilled as an artist with my own individual style, and also so that I will be able to feel comfortable offering it for sale as something that is a unique piece of art. I am sure that if you asked most artists they would without a doubt say, that this is the least favorite part of being an artist.

My new philosophy…well, actually it’s not that new.

I am simply re-visiting something that I have always believed, but haven’t focused on its true importance…until recently. I have been finding that it can be applied to any subject I decide to paint…and what it comes down to for me, is how; by only using the subject’s form in the photo as the blueprint, that it can be the catalyst for what it can become as a painting.  In a photo, the space within in the subject’s (or subjects’), borders; is merely a starting point. That space becomes the place to create my own version of what I see, a place where the clues are found which will dictate the colors, highlights, shadows, and values, of hopefully of something completely unique…something that is based on that form, but having its own, new, character and soul. If I pay attention to what I have learned, by ‘studying’ all of this art that I see…together with that and with using the skills I have accumulated, I will get closer to what I envision as my best work.

It turns out…that there are no guarantees.

Even when I think I’ve found the most perfect photo…once I get started painting from it, I find that can’t always make what drew me to it, become the focal point for the painting that I had in my head. Sometimes I have found that the answer I’ve been seeking for what I want to be able to do, as well as to become as an artist, already exists in my experience. I may not have embraced its importance until now…I just needed to be open to it.

Kind permission was given for use of this photo reference, by Lynne A. on Pixabay.

“Balance” received an honorable mention award in Cape Cod Art Association’s Easel Art – Summer 2016.

~ THIS PAINTING HAS SOLD ~

Oil on canvas ~ 18″ x 24″ © ArtistKarin Press Cohen – 2016

If you would like to have a painting done of this ballet dancer, I can create another one very similar to it, in various sizes. With all hand-done artwork, there will of course, be some small differences…no two paintings will ever be exactly alike. Please contact me using the form below.

Contact Me:

Commissioned oil painting of a female Shih Tzu, named Charlie. This was a very difficult painting to do, since what happened to Charlie is so very tragic. She passed away this past August, from an infection that she caught while she was lost back in July…when she ran away after being frightened by some firecrackers that were set off by some neighbors. She was found ten days later, but the infection Leptospirosis, (a spirochete bacteria) that dogs and cats can contract from drinking from puddles or eating contaminated food when they’re outdoors…wasn’t caught by her vet in time. ‘Lepto’ is CURABLE with antibiotics if it’s caught early enough…so knowing the signs could save the life of your pet or someone’s pet you know. Charlie is still missed very much by her ‘parents’ who are my dear friends, who commissioned me to do this painting of her.

Here’s a link to more information about Lepto, on the American Veterinary Medical Foundation’s website:

https://www.avma.org/public/PetCare/Pages/Leptospirosis.aspx

“Charlie” ~ Oil on canvas – 8″ x 8″

Oil painting of “Marvel” the sea turtle, done as a holiday gift for a very dear friend who has symbolically adopted one because she is especially concerned about these amazing creatures who face many dangers in their habitat.  Sea turtles are in trouble from not only encountering and becoming entangled in discarded plastic bags, but also hatchlings who are guided by moonlight, are often confused by automobile lights being shone towards the beaches they inhabit…and there are others they face constantly.

I was given kind permission to use this beautiful photo, by photographer Linda Willason; (Paint My Photo), as a reference to paint from. The colors I used varied from intense cobalt blue in the water, to shades of teal; (achieved by using “Thalo” blue and green for the coral in the foreground).  In the photo, I saw different pink and orange shades in the coloring of “Marvel’s” head; which I then covered with a layer of turquoise whichI lightened with some white, that helped me to achieve a more luminous effect. Much deeper shades of orange and some magenta, highlighted the underside of his shell; which was very colorful since it appears that light-source was coming from below as well as from the sunlight above. I really loved being able to accentuate all the colors I saw in the darker areas on the top of the flippers; which were each set off by the bright yellowish-green; almost honeycomb shapes. I got to use that yellow-green color again in a much more vibrant and intense way on the lower flippers, which even had some purplish shades in the shadow that was projected by Marvel’s shell.  I thoroughly enjoyed painting this, and I may decide to do a larger version at some point, since this one was fairly small in size.

Although the original painting of “Marvel” was a gift, it can be painted in sizes ranging from 8″ x 10″ up to 20′ x 24″. To buy this, one of my other paintings, or to commission a painting…you can contact me by filling out the contact form below.

Contact Me: