Figurative painting, woman, figure study, contemporary figure painting, figurative artist

Daydreams, acrylic on canvas, 20" x 20"
$600 plus $25 insurance and shipping in US
Email: marie@mariefox.com (Click image to make larger)

This painting includes a lot of drawing both underneath and over the paint. It's an experiment and an attempt to paint more loosely. I find it curious that I'm always trying to move away from the way I do things but still retain the elements that make my art mine.

On The Dock, Figurative painting, woman, figure study, contemporary figure painting, figurative artist

On The Dock, 24" x 18", acrylic on canvas
$600 plus 25 insurance/shipping
Email: marie@mariefox.com (Click image to view closer)

Each time I drew a line in this painting I made myself paint over it. I was really trying to color outside the lines but did so rather timidly. However,  I'm pleased with the simplicity of composition and play of colors within the shapes.
DETAIL:

Mirror, Figurative painting, woman, figure study, contemporary figure painting, figurative artist

Mirror, 14" x 11", acrylic on canvas
$450 plus $12 insurance/shipping SOLD to a collector in Massachusetts
Email: marie@mariefox.com (Click image to make larger)

It's good to be painting again and I see that some bright colors have crept into my palette. This model was actually quite skinny but I find curves luscious and fun to paint.

Figurative painting, woman, figure study, original art, figurative artist

Sleeping, 6" x 6", acrylic on canvas
$90 plus $10 insurance/shipping via US Priority Mail
SOLD to a collector in North Carolina
Email: marie@mariefox.com

I'm trying to color outside the lines. I painted in the general shapes and colors first then drew the figure over them.

Figurative oil painting, woman, female figure, figurative art, beach, Marie Fox

Girl Reading, 8" x 10", acrylic on canvas
$220 plus $12 shipping/insurance via US Priority Mail
to a collector in California  SOLD
Email: marie@mariefox.com

This is a smaller version of a painting I did a while ago. I love the pose with its twist and somewhat architectural feel so I painted it again. PS The collector who purchased the larger version bought this one also and displays them together. She sent me a photo - I love the look!

Figurative painting, woman, nude, figure study, original art, Marie Fox

A collection of my small (6" x 6") paintings that have sold to collectors in Texas, Massachusetts, Oklahoma and North Carolina. The center image is an 8" x 10" which is in Australia.
Email: marie@mariefox.com

Figure Study on Orange, figurative oil painting, woman, female figure, figurative art, Marie Fox

Figure Study on Orange, Oil on canvas, 20" x 16"
$120 plus $14 insurance/shipping via US Priority Mail
Email: marie@mariefox.com

This painting was created during a two and a half hour figure painting session. It was a pleasure to paint from a live model and I'm happy that the details of real life didn't overwhelm my sense of the overall. I like the fact that some areas are more completed than others.

Seated Woman, figurative oil painting, nude woman, figure study

Seated Woman, oil on canvas, 12" x 12"  SOLD
$195 plus $15 insurance/shipping via US Priority Mail
Email: marie@mariefox.com

I was intrigued by the pyramidal shape of the model's pose and invented a background to support the triangle.

The Boardwalk, figurative painting, woman bathing suit, female form, figure art, Marie Fox

The Boardwalk, 11" x 14", acrylic on canvas
Not for sale
Email: marie@mariefox.com

The title suggested itself to me because of the pose, the 1920's hairstyle and the awning-type pattern along the top. Although the painting medium is acrylic, it has an oil-like look to me. I find it useful switching between oil and acrylic because they differ greatly in handling and drying time. Of course, the art conservator in me knows not to combine these two materials in the same painting.

The Mirror, figurative oil painting, woman, female figure, beach, Marie Fox

The Mirror,  20" x 24", oil on canvas SOLD
Email: marie@mariefox.com

This painting pleases me because it's simpler than most I do. I'm trying to reduce detail without eliminating the visual interest that detail provides. I do like the subject of a woman and her reflection - an ancient theme. The figure's profile view also reminds me of Egyptian art which I love.

Setting Sail, figurative painting, woman, female figure, sailboats, ocean, Marie Fox

Setting Sail, oil on canvas, 40" x 30"
$1200 plus $24 shipping and insurance
SOLD to a collector in North Carolina

Email: marie@mariefox.com

This was a fun one to paint in that I was trying to restrict my colors and details, and to emphasize form. (But I do love color so some are bright.) On the figure I used many small strokes following the shape of the body. It's a true luxury to sit making small brush strokes around an arm or torso, searching for and evoking form. The process reminds me of working with egg tempera. In this painting, there seems to be a story too.  

"Waiting", Figurative Painting, Marie Fox, Woman at Beach, female figure

Waiting, oil on canvas, 20" x 20"
$600 plus $18 insurance and shipping via US Priority Mail
SOLD to a collector in North Carolina
Email: marie@mariefox.com

For this painting I imagined a woman at the shore leaning on a Corinthian capital, waiting for.....

The Postcard, Marie Fox, figurative art, woman, water, contemporary art

"The Postcard", Oil on Canvas, 30" x 40" $2400 plus $30 insurance and shipping
Email: marie@mariefox.com  Not For Sale

I'm daring to paint larger than I have before and I enjoy it. The colors of this painting please me as does the design and subject. Women and water seem to be a theme for me.

Reading, figurative female oil painting, beach, ocean, figure, woman, figuration, contemporary art, female model

"Reading" Oil on canvas, 16"x 20" $500 plus shipping of $12  SOLD

I'm happy to be settled in California after two exhausting moves and a car drive from New England. Although the water in this painting is abstract, I'm quite certain it is the Pacific Ocean rather than the Atlantic.

Email: marie@mariefox.com

Woman with Cat, Marie Fox, figurative painting, figure drawing, woman, cat, contemporary woman artist, women art, kitten

Woman With Cat, 24" x 24", acrylic on canvas
$600 plus $25 US shipping
SOLD to a collector in North Carolina
Email: marie@mariefox.com

This painting was a first for me in that I did not use a model as reference for the figure. I just made it up. I'm pleased with the pose which although awkward makes sense structurally. The curves of the arms suggested that the woman hold something - and this black cat came to mind. Curves within curves.

The Balcony, figurative painting, woman in art, beach, female figure, contemporary women artists

The Balcony, acrylic on canvas, 24" x 30"
$1500 plus $20 US Shipping  SOLD to a collector in Massachusetts

Email: marie@mariefox.com

Here's my earlier study of a woman standing serenely on one leg. I love the pose because the body must be perfectly centered in order to achieve balance. No part is quite at rest, yet the figure appears relaxed and casual. The photo colors seem off so: dress is dark purple, water dark turquoise, skirt hem bright pink, hairband and town rust red, skin warm dark and the tile dark yellow, its shadows like Dijon mustard - well, this is France!

Green Towel, figurative painting, paintings of women, woman at beach, figuration, female figures, figures in art, women paintings, Marie Fox, figurative oil paintings, contemporary artist, women in art

The Green Towel, 24" x 18", acrylic on canvas
$700 plus $15 US shipping SOLD to a collector in California
Email: marie@mariefox.com

I enjoyed painting this big girl by the beach. I like the figure's solidity and her pose with arms and legs at different angles. I'm going to keep this one for awhile so I can learn from it.

Art High in The Sistine Chapel, study Michelangelo, figurative painting, woman, women artists, the figure, contemporary figurative artists

Art High in the Sisine Chapel, 30" X 24", oil on canvas
Alternate title: You're Wearing That?
$1500 plus $25 US Shipping SOLD to a collector in Massachusetts
Email: marie@mariefox.com

Yes, this is about being intoxicated by an up close view of Michelangelo's exquisite fresco. An art history enthusiast has climbed precariously high on her ladder to check out a Renaissance guy and his family at home in a lunette on the Sistine ceiling.  ~  I started this painting last year but could not complete it. The scene was painted but I could not get the girl to come to life. A few weeks ago, I began again. I painted her bigger and curvier to balance the intricacies of the fresco figures. I love the colors here - of the reds against the grays. And it was a true treat to learn from the Master by copying his fresco.

By The Brook, figurative painting, figurative art, paintings of women, woman in art, female figures, women paintings, Marie Fox, daily painter, large figure painting, original oil painting, contemporary painter, women in art, water, stream

By The Brook, 20" x 20", oil on canvas
SOLD to a collector in Alberta, Canada
Email: marie@mariefox.com

I loved painting this figure in a limited color range of rust-reds, grays and a bit of blue - and in a setting that's a bit mysterious and austere. At the very end, I thought to add some tiny flowers near the water and noticed that her big hand was the perfect shape to hold one of them. Hence the story. But really, it's the sturdy and serene woman here who is the story.

The Doorway, Marie Fox, oil on canvas, figurative painting, art of women, figure drawing, painting women, figurative art, woman in bathing suit,

The Doorway, oil on canvas, 18" x 24"
$450 plus $19 US shipping
Email: marie@mariefox.com
SOLD to a collector in Oklahoma

I started by drawing in the figure with a deep purple color and eventually added blues, red and cream to describe the flesh. So there's a bit of all these colors still present. I wanted to create some interesting grays. As my artist friend Raymond Logan says: "Gray is your friend". Check out how he dazzles the eye with his clever use of grays, and warm/cool combinations.

On The Sea Wall, sailboats, ocean, beach art, figurative painting, figure drawing, figurative art, paintings of women, woman in bathing suit, sailing

On The Sea Wall, 18" x 24", oil on canvas
$430 plus $15 US Shipping SOLD

Email: marie@mariefox.com

I found this pose intriguing because of the twist in the body and the overall X- shape it created. Again, a woman by the ocean. Having lived on sailboats and grown up in a seacoast town, the ocean and boats are natural subject matter for me. The ocean has always given me a sense of 'beyond' so perhaps that's why I enjoy perching my women at the border of land and sea.

The Striped Towel, Woman on beach, figurative art, woman reading, female figure art, figurative painters

The Striped Towel, 18" x 24", oil on canvas, Not for sale
Marie@mariefox.com

One lesson I learned from the fabulous Matisse exhibit I saw in NYC last week is to use a pose more than once. On display were multiple versions of a single pose done as drawings and paintings. I decided to try this with the girl in my Diving Board painting - and came up with a simplified version that I'm going to keep for myself. But more beach babes are on the way.

Girl in Orange, figurative oil painting, figure painting, paintings of women, beach, contemporary figurative art

Girl in Orange, oil on canvas, 20" x 20"  SOLD 
Email: marie@mariefox.com

I really like this painting and am especially pleased with the sculptural feeling of the bathing suit area and the legs. The colors were an experiment for me too. (What reads in this photo as blue is actually a greenish gray.) I think I'm getting back to my love of sculpture, and my student studies of it. In the end, I found the materials (marble and wood) cumbersome because of size and weight although I loved shaping them with hammer and chisel. Paintings are more portable. And tomorrow I'll transport myself to NYC to see the Matisse show. Whee!!

The Santa Monica Pier, ocean waves, ocean, surf, beach art, figurative painting, figure drawing, figurative art, paintings of women, woman in bathing

The Santa Monica Pier, 24" x 18", oil on canvas SOLD
Email: marie@mariefox.com

Just trying to imagine myself back to Santa Monica, California. (The colors of my photo seem off. The suit is persimmon, beach gold, sky light grey-green and wall a warm gray.) I do like the solid feel of her body.

The Blue Suit, oil on canvas, figurative painting, art of women, figure drawing, painting women, figurative art, woman in bathing suit,

The Blue Suit, oil on canvas, 20" x 20"
SOLD to a collector in Oklahoma
Email: marie@mariefox.com

An experiment with odd colors but I do like it. Any excuse to paint a figure.

At The Beach, ocean waves, ocean, surf, beach art, figurative painting, figurative art, paintings of women, woman in bathing suit

At The Beach, oil on canvas, 20" x 20" 
SOLD sold to a collector in Massachusetts
Email: marie@mariefox.com

The colors of this figuratie painting showing a woman sitting at the beach are gold, turquoise, dark blue and a light slightly pink skin. My hope is to build more abstract paintings of the female form based on the anatomy I'm getting to know.

The Diving Board, figurative painting, female figure, woman, pool, figurative art, paintings of women, contemporary figurative painter

The Diving Board, 30" x 40", oil on canvas
$1900 SOLD to a collector in Massachusetts

I've finally started experimenting with space in my compositions, and am happy that this figure feels as if she has lots of air around her, not to mention water below. (I began this painting during some especially humid summer days - a bit of wish fulfillment!) At the conclusion of a painting, especially a big project like this, I find that I have to allow time for the bits and pieces to become a whole. Eventually I also reach that moment when I actually enjoy the painting, when it gives something back to me after weeks of work. And a big painting is really work - but I love confronting the canvas with my whole body. I'm tall so painting big is really fun. As is painting big, strong women.

Email: marie@mariefox.com

The Siren's Day Off, 24 x 30 Oil Painting, figurative, woman at beach, sailboat, figure painting, ocean

The Siren's Day Off, Oil on Canvas, 24" x 30" $1200 SOLD to a collector in Vermont

Happily I've returned to painting after the stuff of life forced me to put my art aside. I'm quite pleased with this one as I can see I have a better understanding of anatomy. I love the voluptuousness of the body, and the twists and angles of the pose. When starting a painting, I always find the pose first, then create a story to support it. It seemed a fun idea to show a mythological Siren on a day off, not at her weekday work of luring sailors into the rocks. Lucky fellows sailing by!

Oil Painting Challenge "Striped Socks" figurative and still life

"Socks First", Oil on Canvas, 24" x 18"
SOLD to a collector in Massachusetts

This painting was inspired by my group challenge of "Striped Socks". Instead of depicting simply a pair of socks, I chose to create a figurative work. The socks provided the story.

Her New Necklace, figurative oil painting, woman at mirror, oil on canvas, 18 x 24, female figure bedroom, contemporary art life drawing, original art

Her New Necklace, oil on canvas, 24" x 18"
SOLD to a collector in Massachusetts
Email: marie@mariefox.com

This painting started as a drawing - a study in composition and values. Usually I just begin painting, hoping the lights and darks will work themselves out in a pleasing and balanced way. I've been drawing a lot recently so I decided to work out this composition in pencil before starting the painting. I found it difficult to maintain control of the values because color kept seducing me to pay more attention to it. But I managed to stick to my original value drawing and am happy with this effort. As always, I love painting the female form and telling a tale about the imagined woman. Like me, this one loves her necklaces! (The actual colors in the painting (versus online) are: leotard is dark purple, mirror is dark turqoiuse-blue, bedding is light turqoiuse blue-gray, her hair orange-red.

Figurative oil painting, coffee and Matisse, woman reading, large figure drawing, art history book, contemporary painting

"Morning with Matisse"
Oil on canvas, 24" x 30", SOLD

Email: marie@mariefox.com

A woman (artist, perhaps) enjoys a cup of French Roast while perusing her book about Matisse. This is always a jazzy combination for me in the morning - coffee and art history, the perfect stimulants for artistic imagination.

French Memories, oil painting canvas, colorful figurative art, woman at beach, semi-nude female figure Riviera

French Memories
Oil on canvas, 20" x 20" 
SOLD to a collector in Texas
Email: marie@mariefox.com

The original version of this scene struck me as too staid so I decided to create a more colorful, playful version. This is the other girl's younger, more spirited sister who just had to see the South of France for herself.

I Am Here, Figurative Oil Painting 24 x 24 woman at the sea, female figure ocean waves

I Am Here
Oil on canvas, 24 x 24 in.
SOLD to a collector in Maryland
Email: marie@mariefox.com

I liked the pose of this figure and eventually arrived at the idea of painting a stormy sky and ocean behind her. It's something I'd do if standing at the edge of the sea on a windy day. It's exhilarating to feel the force of the wind on one's body, so long as there's a sense of safety. Woman, wind and water.

Woman at Beach Reading, Figure painting, original oil 18 x 24 figurative canvas

"At The Beach"
Oil on canvas, 18 x 24 SOLD to a collector in California
Email: marie@mariefox.com

After completing this painting, I felt it had a very peaceful feeling about it. Perhaps its because I know the serenity of a beach and a book. As winter approaches New England, I trust I'll be spending my imaginative time at the beach with paintbrush in hand. While living in Santa Monica, on the occasional hot day, I'd stay cool by painting snowy folk art landscapes from my memory. Ah, the reality of the imagined....

Red Flowers & Valentine Heart: Oil painting 11" x 14" still life, yellow rose gerber daisies, colorful glass vase, painting a day

"Flowers and Heart", Oil on canvas, 11 x 14
$90
Email: marie@mariefox.com

Another remake of an earlier painting. When making the color and composition changes, I'm often oohing and aahing as the color and design elements rearrange themselves to create something entirely new. I'm always amazed at how colors become something other than themselves when placed next to or surrounded by other colors. The mystery of visual perception.

Cowboy Boots Painting: 24 x 30 oil painting, vintage cowboy boots, still life womens boots, cowgirl red tail birds, butterflies leaves

"Light On Her Feet", 24" x 30"  
SOLD to a collector in New Hampshire

Email: marie@mariefox.com

These boots make me feel like dancing! I absolutely loved painting these boots. I pretty much painted non-stop for a day and a half on this canvas. The boots are depicted larger than life. Painting big keeps me from tripping over ant-hills of tiny busy details. And up close, the image achieves a certain abstraction. Enough talk - time to go dancing!

Flour Scoop: Oil Painting 8" x 10" still life kitchen art, reflective silver, colorful small painting

"Flour Scoop"
Oil on canvas, 8 x 10 $100 plus 8.95 shipping
Email: marie@mariefox.com
SOLD to a collector in Oklahoma


I jazzed up this little painting I'd done before by adding strong pure color to the pieces of paper. I also darkened the table top and added lighter reflections in the silver cup. I do love working on a painting when it is dry. The brush drags across the surface in a wonderful way.

Red Napkin colorful original oil painting of still life: Botticelli Primavera, pitcher, olives, linen fabric napkin

"The Red Napkin", version 2. SOLD
Oil on canvas, 16 x 20
Email: marie@mariefox.com

It seems that I'm always reworking my paintings. But that's okay - I do enjoy it and I think there's a good reason to do it. This week, as I repainted "The Red Napkin", I realized that the 2nd go-round is really quite different from the first. When I'm painting the original version, I'm the one in charge, telling the paint, composition, colors, objects what I want them to do. Done. Then weeks go by and the painting starts asking me for more. The second version is the painting talking to me, telling me what needs to be done. Corny, but the process does seem to work this way for me.

By changing the border of the calendar on the wall to a dark red, the Botticelli girls celebrating Primavera (original is at the Uffizi, Florence) assumed more importance in the composition. I like the way their softness contrasts to the hardness of the pitcher but imitates its curves. I removed the potato at the far left and intensified the shadow of the pitcher.

" I would appreciate any details or information you could give me about this beautiful painting. What inspired it? Thanks, Kathleen"

TAG California Open Exhibition

Great news! I learned yesterday that my painting "Sounds of the Sea" won First Place and $500 in the TAG California Open Exhibition in Santa Monica, California. My friends Perry and Kathy Anderson accepted the award on my behalf at last night's reception. They reported that close to 1,000 people appeared at the gallery during the 3 hours they were there. I do wish I'd flown across the country to attend my own party! Ah...next time.

My husband's title for this scene of a woman listening to the ocean is "Girl on her Shell-Phone".
Email: marie@mariefox.com

Teenager Asleep in Window Seat, original oil painting of sleeping child

Oil on canvas, 18" x 24"
Email: marie@mariefox.com  
SOLD to a collector in New Hampshire

Limes on Plate, daily painter oil painting still life of fruit

Oil on canvas, 8" x 8"
$130 plus $8.95 shipping via Priority Mail - SOLD
Email: marie@mariefox.com

This was a fun little painting to do mid-summer. Now maybe I'll go make a gin and tonic - and give my models a squeeze!

Seated figure model drawing

Pencil on paper, 11 x 14
Email: marie@mariefox.com

Figure lying down, drawing, pencil on paper

Figure drawing, pencil on paper, 11 x 14
SOLD to a collector in North Carolina
marie@mariefox.com

Thus far in my figure drawing class, I've been drawing by observation, rather than by knowledge of anatomy. Eventually, I'd like the anatomical structure of the body to inform my drawings, along with observation of what's on the surface. To that end, I've been studying from a set of CD's called "The Structure of Man - Learn to draw the human figure from your mind". The author, Riven Phoenix, approaches drawing of the human form as an imaginative exercise, as if the artist is inventing the figure from scratch. His is a novel approach which I hope will improve my understanding of the human figure.

Oil painting of woman at beach; figurative art, self-potrait

Oil on Canvas, 24" x 20" - $500  
SOLD to a collector in California

Email: marie@mariefox.com

Twenty years ago I painted myself in this pose, wearing a pink bikini. To create a "self-portrait" for my painting challenge group, I added my right hand holding a book and invented the beach scene. Soon the painting became a story, it seemed, about someone else. She's at the beach in her red bikini. She was reading, but her book has dropped back to rest against her leg. She's probably daydreaming, as one does at the beach. And there's that guy just beyond the top edge of her book. And a sailboat racing by. And it's summer...

Drawing of woman, charcoal

Pencil on paper, 14" x 11"
Email: marie@mariefox.com

Pencil Drawing: Woman Seated on Stool

Figure drawing, charcoal on paper, 14" x 11"
Email: marie@mariefox.com

Happy news! My painting Sounds of the Sea was just accepted for a juried exhibit, California Open Exhibition, at TAG Gallery in Santa Monica, California. The show runs from August 19- September 5. (Click title or scroll down page to see the painting.) This city was home to me for five years, and I'm very pleased that my art will be traveling from New England to pay a visit. Hey, those girls might just take off for the nearby beach and ditch that shell. Why not listen to the real waves....and splash in them!

Figurative art, woman on elbow

Pencil on paper, 11 x 14
marie@mariefox.com

Jim Dine quote about drawing:
… I knew drawing was essential to me. It kept alive the need I had for family. It gave me a line of tradition that led me back to artists I admired, not just Rembrandt and Picasso, Matisse and Degas, but others who are dismissed but who gave their lives to drawing.

Standing figure model, drawing in pencil

I bought a fabulous drawing book recently called "Classic Human Anatomy" by Valerie Winslow. The author is a skilled artist with an encyclopedic knowledge of human anatomy. Really, an unusual combination. She presents the anatomical information in great detail but always with the artist, not the medical student, in mind. I absolutely love this book and am slowly working my way through it.

11 x 14, pencil on paper
marie@mariefox.com