Three plums #699

Daily painting #699 6"x8" oil on primed canvas panel

Three plump, jewel-like plums nestle into one another in the dim light....

After all the "pretty" blomme (flowers in Afrikaans), I feel the need to sit quietly and mull over a very traditional little still life. I see-saw between the energetic, compulsive and experimental and the comfortable, soothing and traditional. It is a good balance for me between exploring and concentrating on observation. The exploration is exciting, my marks more energetic and I never quite know where the work is going. In contrast the little traditional still life set-up, painted in a more traditional way gives me comfort and is like revisiting a good and faithful old friend. One can also never underestimate the skill of observation and these little still life paintings really force me to focus on interpreting what I see. So something a little more traditional for you today and a bit of soul food for me switching off in my studio, no interruptions and just observing, painting and loosing myself in 3 little plums!

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May blooms

A selection from the month of May!

Looking back over the month, I have realized there has been a whole lot of 'pretty' happening this month in my studio and it is not even Spring in South Africa! I thought I would share this little selection with you. 

You can view all available daily paintings by clicking the link below or visiting www.paintingsinthepost.tictail.com

South African friends and followers can message me privately at heidishedlock@gmail.com for prices in ZAR or for direct purchases.

May seems to have been a blooming good month!

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Pink and blue #698

Daily painting #698 6"x6" ink and acrylic on primed panel

A little floral study just to set me up for a day of floral painting on some large canvases that will be leaving my studio soon. Little studies like this fine tune the eye, heighten my sense of observation and get me all excited at the prospect of what today's paint explorations might bring (I can only be hopeful....of course the day could be a flop and the painting go all wrong and tomorrow will have to bring some magic but I'm an optimistic girl).

Happy Friday! 

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Hello!

ME!

There are a lot of new people following Paintings in the post on various social media platforms, especially Facebook and Instagram and so I decided to reintroduce myself for those that don't know much about me or Paintings in the post. A new follower who I happened to meet in person the other day commented on how lovely it was to be able to put a face to the artist and the person behind Paintings in the post...so here I am as large as life today....to say "hello!" Below is the message I posted on my Facebook page (Paintings in the post) and so I thought I would share it on the blog page in case you too are new to Paintings in the post....it read....

"There are a lot of new people (yay and thank you) on this page so I thought I would take the time to introduce myself. I am a full time artist and art educator and Paintings in the post began in 2013 when I decided to begin the daily ritual of daily painting. My purpose was not necessarily to paint every day but to engage as often as possible in completing a little painting that took me no longer than an hour and in one sitting. It forced me to observe, experiment and just paint for the sake of painting...like a little record of my daily living. That being said I managed to complete 568 consecutive days of daily painting (yes...I never missed a day for 568 days) until an accident, which left me immobile for 3 weeks, kept me out of my studio and stopped me painting for a period of time. I still love to complete little daily paintings but it now forms only part of what I do and I am enjoying concentrating again on some much larger paintings ...painting a little painting every day had become too all consuming and I had neglected doing other work too. Paintings in the post, the name, came to me when I posted my first little painting off to a friend in the UK, since then these little paintings have travelled all over the world, bringing joy to people who have delighted in receiving a little painting in the post. My paintings can be viewed in an online store which makes the paintings accessible for overseas followers. South African followers and friends can message me privately for prices in ZAR and for direct purchases. You can visit my blog page if you would like to read any of my ramblings and you can also find me on Instagram at heidishedlock if following images is what you enjoy! Thanks for stopping by and remember to leave a message occasionally...it's been wonderful meeting SO many beautiful people through Paintings in the post and I look forward to meeting many more....so if you are new, welcome...and if you have followed for a while...thank you!

Have a fabulous day..... X Heidi" 

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Soft pinks #697

Daily painting #697 8"x8" ink and acrylic on primed panel 

Protea....South Africa's national flower and a real beauty! I love the variety of colour and shapes that are found and their hardiness and resistance is a quality I admire. They really are beautiful to paint!

I am also loving working with ink and acrylic at the moment. I find the quick drying speed forces me to be less structured and I can feel I 'play' more with the paint and marks. Very different, I know, from my very realistic still life paintings in oils but part of doing a little painting in one session at the start of the day, is to force me to paint intuitively but without processing and overworking too much. I just  paint and see what happens! Some paintings work and some don't but the beauty of the little daily painting is that it becomes like an exercise, a ritual or warm up for other things that might be happening in larger works and so to always stay with what I am comfortable with (little realistic images) would be defeating the reason why I do these little paintings. That being said there is something important in the observation that happens when realistically depicting an object. Perhaps my choice of medium and style for these little paintings has much to do with how I am feeling on any particular day. What I do know though is that it is important to just paint...not for any reason other than because I need to....

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Tuesday pinks #696

Daily painting #696 6"x6" acrylic and ink on primed panel

I sense a bit of old worldly charm in these beautiful blooms....a little bit of romance perhaps...and who doesn't love a little romance every now and again? So some pink prettiness for you on this Tuesday. I hope you have a fabulous day...and maybe even a little romance! 

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Rich reds #695

Daily painting #695 6"x6" acrylic and ink on primed panel

A rather moody image....but I do love the richness of the colour! I had a busy day in my studio today....and it all started with this quick little daily painting with rich reds!

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Mother's Day orchids #694

Daily painting #694 8"x8" ink and acrylic on primed panel

Some beautiful orchids from the people who mean the most to me in the world!

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Pink #693

Daily painting #693 8"x8" acrylic on primed panel

Something a little more bright and vibrant this morning! I felt a little unsettled this morning in my studio....I have loads of work to do, I have a son at home who is sick with flu and after all the wonderful Mothers Day celebrations yesterday, I could feel a dose of procrastination coming on! So I changed things up a bit and pulled out the acrylic paint. Because it dries so quickly I have to work fast and I enjoy the loose brush marks that result from this. I still struggle with the intense colour of the acrylics but feel that each time I work with them, I enjoy them just a little more than I did before.

I hope all the Mummies out there had a wonderful Mothers Day yesterday....I treasured my time with my children and my precious Mum! 

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Strawberry and a china pot #692

Daily painting #692 6"x8" oil on primed canvas panel

I love the combination of deep blues and rich reds. The colour combination never fails to attract me. 

I have some delicious farm strawberries that drip red juice as you bite into them and they are not going to last a day in this house (they are already almost finished after just one breakfast) so a quick painting with just one...and a little flash of blue to enhance the colour. 

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White #691

Daily painting #691 6"x8" oil on primed canvas panel

Thank you Kate for all the beautiful roses...I am so blessed with your kindness! 

Kate paints every Tuesday in one of my studio painting classes and knowing how much I love roses, she brings me a beautiful bloom each week from her treasured rose garden! How lucky am I? Besides having beautiful roses to brighten up my studio and beautiful reference material to photograph, I also always have something beautiful on hand to paint!

I am a real pushover for beautiful fresh flowers and would ashamedly have them in every room in my house! Mothers Day is this Sunday in South Africa and if you were planning on spoiling your Mum with some fresh flowers, why not give her a little floral painting....flowers that would last a lifetime. Now I don't need to tell you how many floral paintings hang in my house....(I would be ashamed to admit) but there is always room for one more! 

You can view all available little paintings by clicking on the link below and if you want the prices in ZAR or for direct purchases (in SA only) you can email me at heidishedlock@gmail.com

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Birthday cupcake #690

Daily painting #690 6"x8" oil on primed canvas panel

We welcome in May with a public holiday...a good way to start the new month! Especially after April which is always quite a busy month with 5 family birthdays....2 of those being my children! Trying to remain as sugar-free as possible with so many birthdays has been a challenge! So a little birthday cupcake to end off a month of birthdays....

If you are in South Africa, I hope you have a restful day off! 

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