Daily Paintress: Paintings + Illustrations by Gayle Wheatley

Beautiful Grim Concept #3: Breathing Underwater

2010-02-01T07:16:00.000-08:00

"Breathing Underwater," Oil on Canvas, 12" x 9"

So, in a burst of inspiration, (and in a complete departure from my previous two concepts!) I finally came up with this finalized painting for the Beautiful Grim breast cancer charity art auction that harkens back to my bubble girl paintings: explorations of otherworldly environments where symbolic elements such as oxygen and water compete for sustenance.

The deadline is TODAY and I finally got the whole thing finished and turned in. Whew! It was getting down to the last minute there!

Adorned with a melting crown of textured coral that threatens to drip and tragically melt everything along with it, stands my "Beautiful Grim," a remarkably strong and beautiful woman who has learned to breathe underwater against all odds in order to survive. Wearing a glass explorer's bubble, her face is defiantly immersed in an oceanic microcosm full of fish.

Just realized this is the first OIL PAINTING that I’ve completed in 2010, as well as the first oil on canvas I’ve painted in about 8 months! (which is quite shocking for me as I’ve been paining in oils obsessively through the last decade and beyond.) Ever since my trip to Iceland 8 months ago, I have been experimenting with painting primarily in watercolors. Hadn’t realized it had been so long since I’d painted in oil!

Beautiful Grim Concept #2

2010-01-25T07:26:00.000-08:00

Watercolor on Paper

This painting deals more with the internal self, and the body's symbolic mysteries and organics under the skin...

Golf Island

2010-01-18T10:00:00.000-08:00

Watercolor on Paper (Private Collection)

Beautiful Grim in the Forest

2010-01-12T07:16:00.000-08:00

Watercolor on Paper

I’m a participating artist in the upcoming Beautiful Grim charity art show that will be held in San Francisco this spring to benefit cancer. I’ll need to turn in a digital image of my final painting in just 3 weeks, so I am currently visually brainstorming ideas. This watercolor represents one of my first ideas: a brilliant spark of warmth and light in the midst of a canopy of towering walls that encircle everything. I’m not sure if I’ll continue with this theme, but will probably be doing some more watercolor studies over the next week before beginning on the final art. Check out the website to find out more about this show: http://beautifulgrim.org

Firenze

2010-01-08T17:05:00.000-08:00

Watercolor on Paper

Untitled

2010-01-03T09:39:00.000-08:00

Watercolor on Paper

Happy New Year!

2009-12-31T19:37:00.000-08:00

"Twizzle and Fizz", Watercolor on Paper

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-24T00:05:00.000-08:00

"Holiday Flowing Wreath", Watercolor on Paper

Winter Crawl

2009-12-17T08:09:00.000-08:00

Watercolor on Paper

Sticky Maze

2009-12-07T07:55:00.000-08:00

Watercolor on Paper

Technicolor Veins

2009-12-02T20:31:00.000-08:00

Watercolor on Paper

Earth Lantern

2009-11-19T17:49:00.000-08:00

Watercolor on Paper

The Flowering

2009-11-13T07:53:00.000-08:00

Watercolor on Paper (private collection)

Yellow Roses

2009-11-05T07:45:00.000-08:00

In loving memory of William Wheatley.
Watercolor on Paper

LIGHTS!

2009-11-04T07:50:00.000-08:00

Lights was so much fun last night! She’s a bundle of pop goodness, and she has a very cute personality—very cool in concert. Anyway she sounded great, and looked awesome playing her keytar and pink keyboard. For her final encore song, she played this acoustic version of “February Air":

The Original Ladybug and The Skeleton

2009-11-02T22:15:00.000-08:00

My Halloween illustration this year (see post below) was completely inspired by our halloween personas created for the Muse Halloween Costume Ball at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. The ball was filled with elaborate, creative, clever costumes. My personal faves were a beekeeper with bees affixed to the outside of his bee suit, a venus fly trap whose plant parts encircled his head, Rainbow Brite, Clark Griswald with a squirrel on his back from Christmas Vacation, Green Lantern, Moses and the Golden Calf, and space travelers with full sized astronaut bubbles...I need to get one of those next year so I can recreate one of my paintings and have my floating goldfish inside around my face! Anyway, it was a blast!

Vampire Weekend!

2009-11-01T20:13:00.000-08:00

Spent a perfect Sunday afternoon in the park at the impromptu Vampire Weekend concert today. It was amazing!

The Ladybug and the Skeleton

2009-10-31T08:00:00.000-07:00

Colored Pencil on Paper

Happy Halloween!

Pumpkin Web

2009-10-27T18:07:00.000-07:00

Watercolor on Paper

Moss Spill

2009-10-20T06:59:00.000-07:00

Watercolor on Paper

Lookie Legs

2009-10-13T20:40:00.000-07:00

Watercolor on Paper

The Mermaid's Wineglasses

2009-10-07T18:14:00.000-07:00

Watercolor on Paper, private collection

Coral with Moon Jellies

2009-10-01T23:17:00.000-07:00

Acrylic on Canvas, 12" x 9"
Surfboard Painting Study #2

Basket Star Madness

2009-09-27T22:11:00.000-07:00

Acrylic on Canvas, 12" x 9"
(Surfboard concept painting for Billabong)

Sea Whips

2009-09-16T21:41:00.000-07:00

Watercolor on Paper
(Rough preliminary concept sketch for Billabong surfboard painting commission)