Robie Benve Art

I have several wonderful photos from my time at the Bahamas and I am quite scared of trying to paint that amazing water. I already know there is no way that it'll look as wonderful as in the photo in one of my paintings. So, what's better than a quick painting challenge to embrace that challenge letting all fear go? Here it is, a 20-minute study of a paradise. "Bahamas Peer" 6"x6" acrylic on panel $45 To be attempted again. And again. And again. :) Next time I need to remember to set the sound of the waves as background "music".

The busy month of September 2018, with its 30 paintings in 30 days challenge ended!!! Here is one more of my paintings completed in September. "Look Up and Cheer" Study 9"x12" Mixed media on canvas Sold I have a few more finished and half-finished paintings that I have not posted yet, hopefully I'll be able to take photos and post tomorrow. Even if I did not complete 30 paintings, as the 30 paintings in 30 days challenge seems to require,  I feel good nevertheless. I painted way more than I would have done without the challenge, I experimented new things, and I had lots of fun. Some days I had no time to paint at all, on other days I had to find the time with big efforts. Overall it has been a period of great discovery. I tried to do mostly studies with mixed media, using acrylic paint, paper, fibers, and home-made stencils, and this one is an example of the colorful palette that came out from this very out-of-the-box technique. I also managed...

I worked two days on this. Yesterday I did the abstract underpainting using the mixed media elements, today I added layers of acrylic paint using brushes and custom made stencils. "A Bright Tomorrow" 10"x10" Mixed Media: acrylic, paper, fibers I already posted the under-painting as yesterday's work, but below is a reminder of what it looked like at the initial stage. I liked the clean look of the first stage, did I ruin it adding all the patterna and colors? I hope not, because I like the final version of it too. the mixed media under-painting for "A Bright Tomorrow" It felt god to go back to my favorite subject, a sunset on the beach, and this time I just did it from my head, without looking at a reference photo. Total freedom. :)

I have two paintings in the 2016 Dublin Area Art League Spring Show, and this is one of them. The other painting in the show is "Shine Your Light" (see previous post) which got an award. When I gave a talk for the Conversation and Coffee event last September, at the Columbus Arts Center, in the audience there was Inga Smith, a talented photographer, that offered to share some of her sunset pictures with me. (How wonderful is that??) She sent me some gorgeous shots of Hawaiian sunsets, and I picked one of Kamaoli Beach II as reference for this painting. "Holding Hands at Kamaoli Beach II" 20"x24" Oil on canvas Available I loved painting it, even with the challenges that I encountered; it has been fun figuring out how to render with paint the different effects in the clouds, foreground, and changes of light. Thanks for stopping by!

I entered two paintings in the Spring Solace art show by the Dublin Area Art League members. Last night was the award ceremony and I was happily surprised to hear that I received an Honorable Mention award in the fine art category for my painting "Shine Your Light". Me next to my awarded painting. Can you see the "happily surprised" expression? lol The Judge of the competition was Vivian Ripley, artist. This is her comment on the award:  "Shine Your Light" holds my attention with its excellent design depicting a specific time of day using complimentary colors."   Thanks Vivian!  "Shine Your Light" Oil on Canvas 20"x24" (51 x 61 cm) Available The Spring Solace show will be up at the Dublin Recreation Center until May 14th, 2016. 5600 Post Road, Dublin, OH. Free entrance. The show includes a great variety of paintings, drawings, mixed media, digital art, and photography. If you are in the area,...

"Evening Beach" 5"x7" Oil on panel SOLD One more version of the beach we stayed last summer, in the small town of Briatico, in Calabria, Italy. I really liked the feeling of calm of that small beach, it was cozy and picturesque. This small painting could really be a study for a bigger painting. We'll see. :)

"Shine Your Light" 20"x24" Oil on Canvas $460 Sunshine, ocean shore, and flying seagull. What says relaxation and freedom more than that? :) OK, you may have guessed it, this painting is not a "daily painting", meaning that I couldn't have done it in one day only. However, I did finish it today, so it counts as today's painting posting, even though it took several sessions to complete. :) Sides are 1.5 " deep and painted dark, so technically it does not need a frame.

"Sunny Waves" 9"x12" Oil on canvas Available And here it is, day one of the September daily painting challenge! I have considered doing all kinds of different themes for this challenge, but at the end I ended up painting what I love: a cloudy sky at sunset, with the bonus of being at the beach. :) Gotta paint what inspires me. The photo is not the best, will update when paint is dry. Good night!

"Thinking of You" 8"x10" Oil on Board Available This painting puts me in a romantic mood. It makes me feel like I want to be there, but not alone. So I know that if my loved one was not with me, with a sight like this I would be thinking of him, hence the title "Thinking of You". I filmed the painting process for this with my phone and created a time lapse video. I am trying to get better with time lapsing myself painting, but this video turned out all right for a time lapse rookie. You can see it on my facebook page (and if you get there, make sure you like my page, then you'd really make me happy!) One question still persists in my mind: is this a sunset or a sunrise?  I really can't decide. Thanks for visiting!

"Honeymooners" 9x12" Oil on board SOLD The sunsets at the beach are the best ones, and while I was in Florida last year I enjoyed every single one of them. One evening I took a photo of this sunset, and there was a couple just at the right spot, admiring it too. I had some fun trying to imagine their story.  I decided that they were a newly wed couple, deeply in love, full of romantic thoughts; their eyes, blinded by love, could see hearts everywhere. :)

"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! :) ...

"View of Tulum" 18" x 24" (45.7 cm x 61 cm) Acrylic on Stretched Canvas, Framed $530 Last year we went to the Riviera Maya, and it was the first family vacation for the four of us ever, unless you count when we go to Italy to see our folks, but that's home, different from a full blown vacation. We had a wonderful time, and I took several photos. This is one of my favorites and I have wanted to paint it ever since. Finally I completed the painting. It took me a while, I got frustrated and I set the painting aside for several weeks, and then brought it out again to continue painting with fresh eyes. Seeing it next to the photo, it looks quite different, starting from the sand that is not as white, but when I tried to paint it clear, the big light area was getting too much attention, distracting from the rocks and the ancient building, which I wanted to be the center of interest. So I darkened the sand and changed few things accordingly. Looking ba...