Sunburst – Color A Day #50

Sometimes a thing of beauty brings me to a dead stop.  Today it happened.  I was driving by a house with a white plaster wall in front of which rose bushes bloomed.  The color of this particular bud was beautiful enough for me to stop my car right there and stare.  While my car idled by the curb, I hopped out and snapped this shot.  The soft yellow-orange made me think of a sunburst, or maybe a “Tequila Sunrise”.  Like a ray of warm sun, I soaked the beauty up.  And I thought of the old saying,   “Remember to stop and smell the roses”.   I stopped.

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White Inspiration – Color A Day #49

"Aporia crataegi-Black-veined White", By Igor Siwanowicz

I stumbled across this beautiful monochromatic image taken by Photographer Igor Siwanowicz (see more of his work here).  I was struck by the beauty of these gray/white moths.  Although I immediately categorized the colors in this photo as “white”, the truth is that these colors are not strictly white.  The subtle white shades found here are mixed with gray and brown or tan.  It’s this small touch of color that brings warmth and variety to the white. Just the smallest touch of another color can gently tinge white and create a plethora of new shades.  And as anyone picking out colors to paint a wall knows, there are a huge variety of “white” paint colors to choose from.  Today’s color is inspired by…white.

Peeling white plaster at Mission La Purisima

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February Compilation

The beginning of a new month…already?  Can someone explain why time moves so quickly?  How I wish I had a pause button.  February is always short, I suppose, even if we did have an extra day in it this leap year, but for some reason this particular February just flew by.  So today I’m looking back at the color concoctions from this now bygone month.  (Click here to see January’s compilation.) 

Here’s my little February rainbow…and looking forward to the Colors of March.

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Sunset Pink - Color A Day #47

My husband is presently in the air, flying home from the “family” vacation that only he ended up enjoying.  Our family of four was to enjoy a short visit (6 days) in the Florida Keys.  Unfortunately, that didn’t happen.  Three-fourths of our family ended up staying home, courtesy of lying, thieving Spirit Airlines.  (Yes, I’m bitter.  And, I. Will. Never. Fly. Spirit. Again.)

Nevertheless, I’m happy that at least one of us was able to soak up the Keys colors…especially the spectacular pink-tinged sunsets.   Here’s a taste of what we missed.
Color A Day #47 – Sunset Pink

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Red Eye Effect - Color A Day #46

I took a few photos of myself last night…just fiddling around with my one of my iPhone photo apps.  I actually liked a few of the images, which is saying something, since I usually despise most photos of my mug.  I don’t find myself particularly photogenic.  But these pics turned out just “artsy” enough that I can tolerate looking at them.  The filter added some color interest with pops of orange and green, including my eyes, which are glowing with red-eye effect.  My photo editing program has a “red-eye” fixer, and so I got rid of that glowing dot of orange-red.  Except that taking out that eye-flame took a whole lot of punch out of the photo.  So I put the red orb back.   Tonight I’m loving that red-eye effect.

Color A Day #46 – Red-Eye Effect

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alisapstudios' photostream

alisapstudios' photostream on Flickr.

Ancient TerraCotta - Color A Day #45

TerraCotta Warriors Exhibit at Bowers Museum

I took my kids to see an exhibition of the Chinese Terra-Cotta Warriors (and other treasures at the Bowers Museum) today.  The boys listened attentively to the self-guided audio tour, and seemed to really enjoy the experience.  I must say, it’s gratifying to see my children behaving themselves well and enjoying a cultural experience.  (Small pat on my back for surviving the toddler years when attempting a day at a museum was a much less enjoyable event for everyone involved.)

The sculptures were amazing, especially when the enormity of the archeological treasure is considered…approximately 1300 of these statues have been found in three pits in the Shaanxi Province of China.  It is astounding, to say the least…in fact, it is one of the wonders of the world.
 
On our way home we chatted about the exquisite sculptures we had seen.  And my boys, ever the budding artists, were keen to create some terra-cotta warriors for themselves.  I obliged them by stopping along the way and picking up a brick of clay from the art supply store.   They both created their own masterpiece.  Truly a day of great cultural and artistic learning.  Big Smile.

 

So….on to color inspiration.  The sculptures at this exhibit were apparently painted originally, although almost all of the pigment has long since vanished.  There are still hints of color here and there, but for the most part these sculptures are now faded to a soft gray or beige.  Of course, they are called “terra cotta” for a reason, as they were all sculted from clay.   But in terms of color, they have just the faintest hint of red/terracotta mixed in with the aged gray/brown of the clay.  Ancient TerraCotta is what I’m calling it…Color A Day #45.

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