It's been a while since I've featured a painting here on my blog, so I wanted to share this one. This week while working on my Christmas children's book illustrations, I just needed a quick break from the pressure of illustrating. I wanted to paint something that was just "no pressure" and allowed me to be free with my work. Doing paintings for "me" is such a refresher sometimes. Anyway, I came across an image on my phone that I took months ago of these beautiful petunias, and immediately knew that's what I wanted to paint. They did their job, and I had SO much fun painting them. I was able to get back to my illustrations with much more clarity and motivation afterwards, too. I named the painting Welcoming Petunias though because here in Dallas, just starting this week, I've been seeing gardens full of petunias and the big box shops putting out all their garden supplies and flowers. It's always my favorite when you walk into a shop and there are flowers for sale out front--no matter ... View Post
Sarah C. Nightingale - Fine Art - SarahNightingaleArt.Com
Original impressionistic artwork by Chicago-based artist Sarah Croft Nightingale. Created with optimism in pursuit of beautiful, undisturbed moments. Award-winning and collected around the nation. Follow along the art-making journey.
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Latest from the blog:
Recap and Where I’ve Been!
Where do I even begin with this post?! I have so much to say, so many things I have been wanting to share, and so many things planned between now and the end of April. First, let’s recap a little bit! In case you missed it . . . I’m pregnant! We’re expecting our first little man in April, and we are excited beyond words! Because of that . . . It’s no secret that I was quiet on social media, my blog, and elsewhere for a few months this past fall and winter. Around August, the early stages of pregnancy and all it’s terrible but wonderful side effects hit me very hard. I’m sure there are plenty of women who have and have had it far worse, but for me, it felt pretty terrible. I wasn’t expecting to be so nauseas all. day. long. and neither was I expecting to be so utterly exhausted all the time. I wish I could tell you I only fell asleep in my studio chair while working from my home studio a few times, but unfortunately it happened more often than not! I had many projects going ... View Post
My Top Ten Most Asked Questions
When I was 13, a few of my paintings were in an Art in the Garden: Home and Garden Show. It was my first time ever really putting my art out there and having to represent it as the artist. I had been in children's art shows prior to that, but this one felt a little bit more serious to me. Afterwards, I remember saying telling my mom about every conversation I had with very kind and generous people (she had probably heard the conversation herself, but I was a bit jazzed about it all.) Over the years, I'm still asked a lot of those same questions as I was then, but my answered have hopefully evolved and matured. Maybe you've had a few of these questions for me yourself? Here are my top 10 most asked questions. 1. Q: When did you start painting? A: I was about 7 or 8 when I got a set of Acrylic paints, some drawing supplies, and an “art desk” for Christmas. Not too long after, I tried my hand at oil paint with a real artist and I loved it. It's been seventeen or eighteen years since ... View Post
When The Winds Come – A Story of Plein Air Painting
Earlier this week, a dear friend of mine, Eliza, her little sister, Sarah, and I went out to Lake Michigan to do a little bit of watercolor painting. The lake is such an amazing part of living in Chicago, and it was a very warm day! It was so warm that none of us did our hair and escaped our houses as fast as we could that morning. Lucky for us, it was picture-perfect at the lake with a breeze! But tragedy struck!!! At the start we (or maybe just me) felt a little frazzled to find a good place to paint and quick! I had groceries being delivered in 1 hour, and that didn’t give us a lot of time to paint and get home in time. It should be noted that I tried to change delivery time, but I had forgotten my password and didn’t have it on my phone (whoops!) We decided to paint out on the jetty, or maybe it’s the lookout?, and it was a beautiful view of the Chicago cityscape. After we laid all our supplies and things out to start painting, I realized that I didn’t bring any water to ... View Post
Summer Peonies
It’s the first week of The Farmers’ Market Collection. I began with Peonies because I couldn’t let this season slip by without getting a fair share of peonies in my studio. They’re so gorgeous always!! It’s no wonder they are so abundant at Farmers’ Markets! At the latest market I went to, there were at least 4 floral booths FULL of peonies!! Did you know that there’s such a thing as YELLOW PEONIES!? I was in awe. I definitely have those on my list of “to paint” for this collection! Stay tuned! I picked up these beautiful, light-pink peonies over the weekend, however, and it’s been so wonderful to paint their delicate petals. I wish I had documented more of this painting because it went through some serious changes! It went from a very airy and light painting, to a dark, moody piece, and it balanced out in the end and became exactly what I imagined it should be from the start. Something soft, yet summery and full of the feeling you get in that crisp, bright, midday sunshine. As a ... View Post
The Farmer’s Market Series
The opening of summer brings the fulfillment of spring with its promise of warm, leisurely days, backyard living, and my personal favorite, the farmers' markets. I love those fragrant booths, and the chime of happy market goers soaking in the rays of the sun. It seems that time slows just a little there, and it’s wrapped with the perfect dose of nostalgia. Each stand holds its harvest with commitment of juicy crops full of the earth’s finest color pallet. I find myself staring at the beauty of things as small as a perfectly round pea to the marbled texturing of a watermelon. The colors blend in perfect synergy, painting nostalgic memories into visions of summers past. I love these markets. I love their hustle and bustle and equally calm and refreshing demeanor. As Spring rolled around this year, I began planning for my Summer projects, and I knew just want I wanted to do. I had been planning it in my head since the close of the last summer. The Farmers’ Market Collection. This ... View Post
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