“Abundant Harvest” 36″ x 48″ oil and metal leaf on canvas – $4,500
I have noticed over the years that when I’m passionate about the subject of the painting, it flows effortlessly and if the subject is something that I need to paint to give variety to a show or something for a client, the painting can sometimes be a struggle to complete.
This painting is the latest in my series on grape vines and I’m still passionate enough about them that I’ve planned to do several more. I have even created a separate category for these paintings under the heading “Wine Country” on my website.
The fact that I live in one of the largest wine countries of the world may have something to do with all of this inspiration, but it wasn’t until I visited a private garden and saw a spectacular grape vine that I was inspired to paint one. I’ve been back to visit the garden several times in different seasons and have also visited the Home Orchard Society in Oregon City to photograph their many varieties of grape vines. The gnarled, twisting trunks of these plants have helped me create a contrast of “new” and “old” in the same composition.
I’m particularly pleased with this painting because it was my first in an experiment to create some of the grape leaves in composition gold metal leaf to act as a transition from the solid gold area to the oil painted part of the composition.
Please visit my website – http://www.joanmetcalf.com to see the rest of my grape vine series.
