Robie Benve Art

"November Sunset" 6"x6", Oil on Gessoboard SOLD I don't do a small painting every day, but when I do I really enjoy it! This one I did it in one session, no breaks, and it took me a little longer than an hour. I painted it with my friend Lynda Guenther, in her studio. It's nice to meet and paint together, we work on different things, but the creative energy seems to multiply. It must be the chatting in between strokes that helps. :) I like painting alone too, but rarely in silence: I listen to music - Most of the times singing along and dancing to the rhythm - or some radio program like the Artists Helping Artists podcasts (so inspiring!). I enjoy company when I paint, as long as it's not someone standing by me just watching what I'm doing. That makes me too self conscious, takes away spontaneity, and it's very distracting, as my family know pretty well by now.  #leavemealoneplease   :) ______  __  ______   Are you receiving m

"Line Dancing on the Scioto" got third place at the DAAL Fall Show 2013 18"x24" Oil on canvas $540 I am very proud to announce my first painting award. I got third place at the Dublin Area Art League Fall Show! I surely did not expect it because there is a lot of great art in the show I would not have hoped to get an award. I've got an honorable mention before at a plein air competition, but this is the first time a qualify in the first three.  The judge was Jim Glover, very talented impressionist painter. His comments made me so happy, Here is what he said about my painting. "Like its title suggests, this painting takes the eye dancing from one red/orange sphere to the next, pulling back into the depth of the picture plane. The blue-green/orange/red complementary colors create a subtle vibration for the retina, adding visual interest to the piece. The hillside is believable, the tree line in the background is varied and organic and the ba

"The Journey is the Reward" 6"x6", Oil on Gessoboard SOLD “The journey is the reward”, a classic Chinese Proverb, that's what this painting tells me. What matters is not where we are heading, but where we are and what we do now. So true if you want to live a meaningful life. I try to enjoy the positive things that are happening today, be thankful for what is here now, not wasting too much energy waiting for what I don't have yet. We need to live the moment, don't postpone. Our children grow up too quickly, our loved ones may not be here tomorrow, as may the blessings we enjoy each day and we may give for granted. Only a now well lived makes a promising tomorrow possible. I choose to savor each moment.  :)

"Cielo - Clouds at Sea" 6x6, Oil on Gessoboard SOLD I don't know if I am just more attentive to the sky in this period, or if the clouds are really more spectacular this time of the year, but over the fall I seem to have developed an obsession for watching clouds, how they change shape and color. My family is probably tired of hearing excited comments about the atmosphere. What can I say, I love sunshine, but cloudy skies are much more interesting, and I make sure I share with whom is around me. :) Sunsets without clouds are not as fascinating. Strangely I never realized that until painting became a main part of my life. If you asked me a few years ago I would have said that I loved sunsets and sunrises, period. Now every time I see a beautiful sky I think of how I would paint it, and this extra attention made me realized that I love cloudy skies better. The things you learn! :) Happy cloud watching!  :)

"Hearts of the Ocean" 9" x 12" Oil on canvas panel Finally, after months of hopes and desires, I was able to join a group of artists that meets each Saturday morning to paint. During the warm months they do plein air painting, in different locations all around Columbus, OH. Now that it's colder and often wet, they meet indoors. With young children and a husband that works on weekends it has been impossible for me to join in the painting fun earlier, but last Saturday I was finally able to participate. One artist brought two big shells for a still life, and I challenged myself to paint them in a couple of hours. What I found most challenging about this painting was that the shells' exterior did not have much variation in color and the ceiling lights were shining from all directions, without creating any good shadow, so there was barely any contrast. Somehow I managed to make them look like shells (I think) AND I got to meet some very neat people! :)