"Transportation House"

6x6

Acrylic on Masonite

This image was taken while on vacation last year. We passed by the little train depot several times throughout our trip and on the final day we stopped just long enough to take a couple of photographs. I was drawn to the simple little museum like wooden structure that someone has seen the importance of keeping up even if not the relics scattered around the yard circling the building. Though I have never ridden on a train myself I do share an appreciation for them and their dying form of transportation.

After initially completing this painting I looked at it and was not pleased. It felt stagnant, boring and I even questioned what the purpose of painting it was anyway. I sat it aside but kept it close for several days before I put it back on my easel and added some brush strokes. This really gave the painting the energy that it lacked. I am pleased.

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Little Miss in Blue

11x14 in acrylic on hardboard What little girl doesn’t love trying on adorable dresses? This was the inspiration for my first painting in my Little Miss series. Lately, I’ve been experimenting with brighter colors, inspired by the bold palettes of artists I admire. Yellow, in particular, is a tricky color—it’s incredibly light, applies thinly, and can be challenging to create shades effectively. Navy blue, on the other hand, has always intrigued me, yet I often struggle to incorporate it because I’m always unsure of what color compliment it. I’ve finally found the answer, it’s golden yellow and white! SOLD

Little Miss Cutiful

11x14 in acrylic on hardboard I love pattern! I was immediately drawn in by the polka dots on the little girl’s dress. Before I retired from teaching, I would often remind my students that, just because something looks simple didn’t mean it will be easy. I myself relearned this lesson with this painting. Polka dots are simple enough but making them interesting is the hard part. When painting the polka dots, I had to make the ones on her dress more dynamic than those in the background to avoid a flat painting. It was a painstaking process, but in the end, the effort was well worth it. This piece also taught me patience. I originally started with a much larger version of this painting on stretched canvas, which I was eager to dive into. However, after five days of repainting the face for what felt like the hundredth time, I started questioning my own sanity. I’m not one to give up, but this one nearly broke me. Realizing I needed a new approach, I took a step back. I hadn’t painted in a ...

Turtle Eyes Too

11x14 in acrylic on hardboard The original Turtle Eyes has always held a special place in my heart. Instead of trying to clean up all the little imperfections in the first version, I decided to repaint it entirely. I used to be a messy painter. I think it was because my goals were different ten years ago. Now, I know that if I don’t keep it clean, I’ll have to edit it out afterwards and I have NOT mastered Photoshop…yet. The experience turned out to be incredibly rewarding. It helped me reconnect with my old self, bringing back cherished memories of Zora and our family pool parties, and how much I loved painting the big, bold portraits that break through the space of the hardboard panel. It all just reminds me of a perfect summer day. After completing the first version of this piece, I developed a habit of collecting animal-shaped goggles, inspired by the painting. You can see some of them in my older paintings. Powered by

An Artist's Journal:Paintings by Felicia Marshall

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