Pair of Peaches by Michael Naples 6×6 Oil

Michael Naples. There are so many wonderful paintings – Michael has a great website as well as a blog and a Daily Paintworks site. All are fabulous, be sure to check them out! I love the black background in this painting PAIR OF PEACHES. Doesn’t it just make those peaches come alive? Wonderful!

Also be sure to keep up with Michael on Instagram @michaelnaplesfineart!

Read a bit about Michael, from his website:

Michael Naples is an artist from Wheaton, IL (Chicagoland). He earned his BFA degree from the American Academy of Art in Chicago. In 2001 he was accepted into the Society of Illustrators and published in their annual.

For the next decade he filled his time doing various illustration jobs, murals, and many, many commissioned portraits for people all over the US. But it wasn’t until a chance encounter with an article about Daily Painting that he found his passion for oils. He began his own Daily Painting Project in August 2006 and hasn’t lost a bit of momentum.

Michael has won several awards and had numerous articles published about his paintings. These Daily Paintings have been purchased by collectors all over the world including Australia, New Zealand, Switzerland, Czech Republic, Great Britain, Netherlands, United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, Sweden and every state in the US.

When Michael is not behind the easel, he enjoys spending time with his beautiful wife and 3 daughters.

All images via MNaples.com, used with permission…

Images are not for reproduction, they are property of the artist.

Catch you back here tomorrow!

Charleston Street Corner by Brennen McElhaney  14×11″  Acrylic

Brennen McElhaney. Nice work! A few Charleston scenes caught my eye (I always love to see the way artists all capture Charleston a little differently). The painting above has been a few different restaurants over the years, it is currently a brewery company/restaurant. The old brick on this building is that wonderful color that turns to magic when that right light hits it. This painting is a beautiful interpretation of that architecture. Right down to the lamp post and the stop lights, Brennen captured this so perfectly.

Be sure to check out Brennen’s website – his paintings, stories, blog, etc. – he has wonderful information!

Read a bit about Brennen, from his website:

Brennen McElhaney was born in 1968 in Santa Barbara, California. He studied fine art and illustration at the Rhode Island School of Design and graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 1990. Back in California, Brennen married Sheila Springer in 1992. As newly-weds they had the opportunity to run a fine art gallery for a time.

Brennen went on to have one-man art shows at the Delphine Gallery, the Hahn-Horn Gallery, Gallery 113, the Faulkner Gallery, Sterling K Gallery, the University Club of Santa Barbara, Antioch University and the Gallery Off Grand (Los Olivos, Ca.). During that time he served on the board of directors of the Santa Barbara Art Association.

In 2005, Brennen, along with his wife and their three children, relocated from California to Western North Carolina. They live in Fletcher (Asheville) NC.

Mr. McElhaney is creator and curator of the website AVLarts.com which promotes the visual arts in the Asheville area by listing a directory of local artists, galleries and art resources. Brennen works as an illustrator and art director, his main client being Oodles World, a family entertainment company. Continue reading HERE…

All images via BrennEnMcElhaney.com, used with permission.

Images are not for reproduction, they are property of the artist.

Catch you back here tomorrow!

The Muse by Jose Pardo 28×22″ Oil

Jose Pardo. Wonderful still life & figurative paintings. I chose one as an example – be sure to check out his website!

Jose can paint detail wonderfully. It looks as if you could reach in and grab a tool right out of this painting. I liked the description Jose gave regarding this painting (I love it when artists add a blip about a painting):

“My father-in-law can fix just about anything, from a commercial airliner to a lawnmower. We’ve inherited quite a few old fashioned tools from him. This is one of the rare still life paintings I did not have to purchase a single prop for.”

Read a bit about Jose, from his website:

I was born in 1964 in Habana Cuba and migrated to Spain at the age of 5 with my mother and grandmother. I spent two years in the outskirts of Madrid learning to play futbol, absorbing the local accent, and trying at times unsuccessfully, to stay out of trouble. When we arrived in the United States, I was overwhelmed at the enormous size of the skyscrapers and cars in New York City. As a child I loved to travel into Manhattan with my grandfather to purchase fabrics for his custom tailor business, all the while hoping to catch a glimpse of Spiderman swinging between the skyscrapers. I started learning to draw by copying comic books. At that early age I couldn’t comprehend how it was possible for people to draw such amazing art, since my attempts to replicate the drawings were abysmal.

Being the first in my family with a serious interest in art, I have to credit my High School art teacher, Thomas Carcich with giving me my foundation in art and being instrumental in guiding me to study art in college. After receiving a BFA from Jersey City State College (now New Jersey City University) in 1988, I worked in several  small business to business advertising agencies in New Jersey as an artist before marrying and moving to Orlando Florida to start a family with my wife in 1992. Here I have worked as an artist for Disney, Scholastic, and Universal among others enjoying my share of success in both the commercial and Fine Arts.

I returned to my first true art-love, oil painting, in 2012 after an unintentional hiatus of well over 20 years. Wanting to give my mother a more unique Birthday present than in recent years, I decided to do a small oil painting for her. While delighted at how much I enjoyed the process, I was more than a little dismayed at how much I had forgotten! Although Mom loved the painting, I immediately set out to bring my skill with oils up to where I wanted them to be. I know I can never reach my ever advancing and evolving goal, but I strive to make progress with every painting. I’ve repurposed and refurbished my home studio to paint from life. That’s where I can always be found trying to make up for lost time. With more ideas than time to paint them all, my easel is never empty. I have been fortunate to win recognition in all the juried local art shows and am starting to enjoy success at the regional level. I still live and paint in Orlando with my wonderfully supportive wife, two amazing children, and three very mischievous cats.

Be sure to check Jose out on Facebook and Instagram (PardoStudio).

All images via PardoStudio.us, used with permission…

Images are not for reproduction, they are property of the artist.

Catch you back here tomorrow!