M. Scott Paints

'Akepa

2011-12-11T06:00:00.000-08:00

Aloha, come see my latest island tiny creation.

'Akepa 1"x1" acrylic on board in hand carved frame.

Here's a close up of the actual painting. Doing a 1"x1" can be interesting, it's pretty small, and I need to use smaller brushes than I have been using. I'm just so cheap I never buy my self new materials.

The 'Akepa is an insect eating endangered honey creeper. This one is a male, you can tell by their bright orange plumage. The females are a dull grey in their coloration.

Here's a picture to give you some scale , a nickle would fit in that 1"x1" square. As always I hand carve all my frames and make them from reclaimed wood.

'Akepa 1"x 1" acrylic on board in hand carved frame.

$40.00

Red Surf Board

2011-12-09T09:58:00.000-08:00

Aloha! It's winter here in the islands and that means the waves are back. In fact I got thrashed by some other week, thankfully the red welt healed nicely. The boarders are out and enjoying the waters. Unfortunately for our friend in the painting, it looks like glass out there.

Red Surf Board 2"x2" acrylic on board in hand carved frame ( Appears larger than life size)

This painting is massive compared to a few of the ones I've shown before. You can see a size comparison by the nickle. Usually all you'd be able to fit in the frame is something of nickle size. I understand why those who choose to do miniature paintings stick around this size. It's easier. I like this painting, it was fun and I think it was successful.

Red Surf Board 2"x2" acrylic on board in hand carved frame
$85.00

Clown Wrasse Dyptich

2011-12-07T06:00:00.000-08:00

I've returned after a very busy November to post once again. It's not that December is any less busy, but I am a tiny bit more organized. Any-who on to today's work of art.

Clown Wrasse Dyptich acrylic on board 1"x1.5" in hand carved frame

When I was a smallish lad growing up in the Marshall Islands, I had an aquarium stocked with fish that came right form the lagoon reef. Among the occupants of my artificial ocean were several of these little guys. These are actually the immature form of the fish, they get larger as they grow up. At any rate they were fascinating to look at and would sometimes burrow themselves into the sand and be pressed up against the glass. It was like having an ant farm, but with tropical fish.

I like how this piece turned out, orange on blue has been a recent favorite color composition of mine. The bold contrast works in the small space.

Clown Wrasse Dyptich acrylic on board 1"x1.5" in hand carved frame
$65.00

Tiger Shark!

2011-10-07T23:38:00.000-07:00

Like my other micro works this is also done in acrylic on illustration board. The actual size is in the neighborhood of 1" x4". Sharks can look menacing even when they're painted that small.

I generally like how this one turned out. It wasn't so obscenely tiny that I could hardly control what I was doing. Though I have some really tiny ones coming up.

I decided to give the frame on this one a more rustic and distressed feel. I did some extra carving work on the outside. It was, after all, an old abandoned piece of lumber when I started out. I liked how it turned out.

Here is the magnificent profile of Thomas Jefferson to give you an idea of scale for this particular hunter of the great wide deep.

All mini-paintings are carefully painted originals and come with custom hand carved frames made from reclaimed wood.

Tiger Shark 1"x4" Acrylic on Board
$50.00

Mango in Trio

2011-09-09T09:20:00.000-07:00

Ah I love mangoes, fresh dried, or however you like to prepare them.

Another tiny masterpiece for you all today. This one is 3/4" x 2" approximately. It's Acrylic on illustration board and placed in a hard carved frame made from reclaimed wood.

All mini-paintings are carefully painted originals and come with custom hand carved frames made from reclaimed wood.

Mango in Trio 3/4" x2" Acrylic on Board
$35.00

Kohala Coast

2011-09-02T06:00:00.000-07:00

Kohala Coast, Acrylic On Board, 3/4" x 2 1/2"

Landscapes on this tiny of a scale present certain challenges. They force you to really decide what features are important to the composition, and what ones can really be subdued or ignored all together. You can't fit a whole lot in a space that's only 3/4" wide. Anyway, this is a portait of one of the beaches on my island.

All mini-paintings are carefully painted originals and come with custom hand carved frames made from reclaimed wood.

Kohala Coast, Acrylic On Board, 3/4" x 2 1/2"
$35.00

Bananas!

2011-08-25T23:10:00.000-07:00

Well I think the title says it all. I have to say I never thought I would get better bananas than the ones I used to have in Brazil, but I've had some pretty tasty ones here on the island. To all your poor people on the mainland who only get one type of banana, we have tons of different types here, my favorite being apple bananas, they're typically smaller and stouter with a thinner peel. They are sweet and quite delicious.

Today's painting is a wee one. It's 1" x1 1/2" acrylic on illustration board. The frame is hand carved from reclaimed wood.

Here's a penny to give you an idea of scale .

All mini-paintings are carefully painted originals and come with custom hand carved frames made from reclaimed wood.

Bananas 1" x1 1/2" acrylic on illustration board
$35.00

Aloha Friday: Apapane

2011-08-12T09:00:00.000-07:00

E komo mai.

This week's Aloha Friday work is another micro painting of a Hawaiian bird, the Apapane. It also sports a bright red plumage, I love the color of these feathers.

Apapane 1"x1" Acrylic on Board ( shown twice life size)

The details are rather difficult the paint where your painting that small. Such are the perils of the mini painting.

Once again I carved this frame out of a single piece of reclaimed wood that was stained red mahogany. I really think this one has some interesting marks on it.

Mahalo nui loa!

All mini-paintings are carefully painted originals and come with custom hand carved frames made from reclaimed wood.

Apapane 1"x1" Acrylic on Board
$45.00

Aloha Friday: Kua Waves

2011-08-05T09:00:00.000-07:00

Kua Waves 1" x 1" Acrylic on Board ( shown twice life size)

E komo mai. This week's piece of paradise is a tiny landscape. Kua Bay is about 8 miles from our home and it's my favorite beach on the island. Lots of powdery white sand and crystal clear waters.

Here we have the micro painting's portrait taken at the very beach it depicts.

The frame is one piece of solid reclaimed wood that I've stained red mahogany. I really liked the texture on this piece.

Mahalo nui loa for visiting. Aloha!

All mini-paintings are hand painted originals and come with custom hand carved frames made from reclaimed wood.

Kua Waves 1" x 1" Acrylic on Board
$45.00

Aloha Friday: Plumeria Triptych

2011-07-29T09:00:00.000-07:00

Plumeria Triptych 3/4" x3/4" Acrylic on Board

E komo mai. This week's Hawaiian flavor is a triptych of Plumeria. I remember the scent of this flower from my childhood in the Marshall Islands. They grow all around Polynesia and Micronesia. It's extremely aromatic and gives you the olfactory thrill of paradise.

This mini painting is about the width of a penny if it were square, it's plenty small. I don't do a lot of florals, but they were easy enough to put into a space so very small. I made them a bit impressionistic as well.

I have no training working with wood, other than my wood working merit badge I got a summer camp. Carving out the three little recesses for the paintings was a little tricky because it was so small. I think it turned out alright, its reclaimed wood that I've stained red mahogany.

Mahalo nui loa for visiting. Aloha!

All mini-paintings are carefully painted originals and come with custom hand carved frames made from reclaimed wood.

Plumeria Triptych 3/4" x3/4" Acrylic on Board

Birthday Landscape

2011-07-27T09:00:00.000-07:00

Summer Field 3"x8" Acrylic on Paper

Here's a birthday card I've made for my Dad, it will be his birthday on the 2nd . I thought I'd do something a bit more than my usual black and white illustration. I've been making birthday cards for my family since I was in elementary school.

My Dad's been wanting a pastoral landscape for sometime. I started one before we moved to Hawaii, it was pretty big and is still unfinished. I thought he might like this one in the mean time. He's out of town working for a few months, so this painting is small enough that he can take it around with him.

I even signed it for him. How about them apples?

NFS

Aloha Friday: Sailing Canoe

2011-07-22T09:00:00.000-07:00

E komo mai. This weeks slice of Island life is a double hulled sailing canoe. The ancient Hawaiians used these vessels to sail the vast expanses of wide ocean that separated them from the rest of Polynesia.

Sailing Canoe 1"x2 1/4" Acrylic on Board (shown enlarged)

This mini painting is about the width of a quarter, so it's larger than last week's tiny work, but it's still pretty small. Once again I liked using the complementary color scheme, this time orange and blue.

The frame is reclaimed wood that I've stained red mahogany. I really like this piece because of the prominent knots and cracks, it has a lot of character.

Mahalo nui loa for visiting. Aloha!

All mini-paintings are carefully painted originals and come with custom hand carved frames made from reclaimed wood.

Sailing Canoe 1"x2 1/4" Acrylic on Board
$60.00

Aloha Friday: I'iwi Bird

2011-07-15T12:20:00.000-07:00

I'iwi Bird 3/4" x2 1/2" Acrylic on board (pictured larger than actual size)

The I'iwi bird is a beautiful creature with bright red plumage and a long delicate beak. It's endemic to Hawaii. I decided to continue my micro painting series focusing on Hawaiiana. This tiny painting is very small. It's about the width of a penny, to give you an idea of scale. The image here is larger than it is in real life. I really like the red green composition. What do you think?

I've hand carved frames for each of my mini paintings, because they simply don't exist at the size and scale I'm painting. I've used reclaimed wood and given them a dark finish. I like picking pieces of wood with a bit of character that show their age.

I hope you all have a good weekend. Aloha!

All mini-paintings are carefully painted originals and come with custom hand carved frames made from reclaimed wood.

I'iwi Bird 3/4" x2 1/2" Acrylic on Board

$45.00

Pololu Morning

2011-07-01T16:11:00.000-07:00

"Pololu Morning" 11x14 Acrylic on Canvas Board

This was based on a photograph I took while I was hiking in the Pololu valley here on the Big Island back in early March. I got there early in the morning, and the sun was coming up of the cliffs. The photography was pretty monochromatic and back lit, so I had to summon all my abilities to remember what Bill Maughan taught me about landscape painting. I hope that I have not sullied his good name by my feeble atempt.

I finished it on Wednesday, it took me the eintire afternoon. I It's too bad I'm poor, i'd use a lot more paint, that would help in the expressive marks department. Anyway I'm generally pleased with this one, barring a few problematic sections. Have a good long weekend.

"Pololu Morning" 11x14 Acrylic on Canvas Board ( This work is unframed)
$500.00

A landscape in 1x1

2011-06-03T09:04:00.000-07:00

Waipio Lookout 1" x1" Acrylic on board

Here's my first micro landscape, its about the size of a quarter, as you can see by the image below. The frames are reclaimed wood and are hand carved from one solid piece. They're quite fun to make.

All mini-paintings are hand painted originals and come with custom hand carved frames made from reclaimed wood.

Waipio Lookout 1" x1" Acrylic on board

Micro-ChevronTang

2011-06-01T10:13:00.000-07:00

Micro-Chevron Tang acrylic on board 3/4" inch (as always click for a larger view)

Good news everyone! I got my old camera working, its got a decent macro lens so it can actually take a half decent picture of these itty bitty paintings I'm doing. While I'm on that subject I'm not quite sure how to classify these little guys. Allow me to pontificate.

These paintings certainly occupy the realm of tiny paintings, as their size indicates. I think it's also safe to call them mini paintings. The problem is, that there are artists out there who work as large as 10x10 and call that a "mini" painting. My penny size paintings are quite a bit smaller than that, so I decided to call them micro paintings. The problem there is that there are some crazy creatives that have painted things in the eye of a needle and called those micro paintings. My wee ones aren't that small, so can I actually call them micro paintings? I guess there's really no standard, unless there is. For now I'll just call them micro paintings until someone tells me otherwise.

All mini-paintings are hand painted originals and come with custom hand carved frames made from reclaimed wood.

Micro-Chevron Tang acrylic on board 3/4"
$25.00

Pele, Hawaiian Goddess

2011-05-18T19:59:00.000-07:00

Pele 24"x48" Acylic on Canvas

Heres a better picture of my Pele painting. I took it with my other higher resolution camera, I think it shows the colors and details better. I've been out of town for a while that's why I haven't been posting too much, but I'll get back top it soon. I have a lot of things I'm working on.

Micro-Long Nose Butterfly Fish

2011-05-05T23:17:00.000-07:00

Heres another one of my wee tiny paintings the size of a penny. This one has a long nose butterfly fish. The wood is reclaimed and given a nice sanding and finish. This one is the brother to my other micro-painting that I did the other day, you can see it here.

Sorry for the poor quality of the photo I need a better camera.

Micro Fish Painting

2011-04-29T09:30:00.000-07:00

Tiny Moor Acrylic on board 3/4" inch diameter

This is one of my "penny paintings" they're very small paintings that are the same size as a penny. This one is of a Moorish Idol, one of many inhabitants of the local reef. I've done three of these so far, they're kinda fun to work on, and look interesting. I made the little wooden frames out of salvaged wood. I'm sorry the picture quality is not so great, I don't have a macro lens anymore, so I can't get a clear picture at that size. Still I hope you can get the general idea.

Blue Striped Butterfly Fish

2011-04-27T09:30:00.000-07:00

Here's another in my fish series, these paintings are on the diminutive side, but I think that adds to their charm. I got to a certain stage and thought that I was finished. I think I was being lazy that day, when I took the painting out later I decided that there was a lot more I could do. So here are the before and after pictures.

Before: The fish is pretty well finished, but lacks that spark in the background and I thought the contract could be improved to help things along.

After: I through in a lot more detail in the coral and amplified up the color. I finally used pthalo blue. I never really used pthalo a whole lot, and now I can't fathom why that was. I like how the blue contrasted against the lemon yellow.

The Evolution of Pele

2011-04-09T13:40:00.000-07:00

Hello Friends,

Life here in Hawaii is great, as one might imagine. At the same time it has its challenges. I've been really busy with my full time job and getting settled here. However this last week I finally was able to really sit down and work on my first large project here. Up till now it's been smallish paintings from my 3/4" circle paintings ( more on that later) to my 10" x 8" still life that I posted previously. I'm going to do a series of the Hawaiian gods and goddesses. My first one was Pele, the fiery volcano goddess, one of the most well known of the Hawaiian pantheon. It was a really fun project to work on. Anyway, I'll show you my process from start to finish. Here's the beginning of the sketch, getting the figure down.

Then I threw some marker down to get some color in the composition

I went and got my 24" x 48" canvas and began drawing the composition on it. My current camera is one of pretty poor quality in the image department, so I apologize for the fuzziness.

(You can click on the image to see it a bit bigger though.)

Here I have my full color sketch attached to my easel so I could use it to construct my full composition.

Here's one of the first steps with the paint. I did a a pthalo blue under-painting, and then layered red on top of it. I wanted the cool blue to contrast with the red overlay.

In this step I have most of the color down where it needs to be. By now I'm solidifying the compositional elements and seeing what needs adjustment.

I wanted the figure to stand out more so I increased the contrast behind her with yellow.

Having finished most of the painting by now, I went ahead and did the detail work in the face hands and hair. The Composition is always the most important, but its the details that really make the painting shine.

And here we have pretty much the finished project on the easel. Hopefully I'll be able to take a good quality picture of it so you can see it in all it's hi res splendor.

I really liked how this painting turned out and I'm excited to work on the rest of the one's in the series.

Thanks for stopping by. Hopefully I'll have more stuff up right soon.

Mahalo,
Scott

BIG NEWS!

2011-01-11T14:07:00.001-08:00

I got a job in Hawaii on the Big Island ( also known as Hawaii) So the family is packing up and moving away. The bad news is that we have no money for moving expenses, so I've come up with a possible remedy.

I'd like to introduce my new, but hopefully temporary blog...

MOVING FUND EXTRAVAGANZA!!!

It's a magical place where you can name your own price on dozens of my paintings, drawings and other projects that I have cluttering up my house.

No really horrible offer will be denied!

If you've always wanted to own an M. Scott original, there's no time like the present!

I've got them all, illustrations, still lifes, landscapes and much more so stop on by at :

MOVING FUND EXTRAVAGANZA!!!

Three Oranges

2010-11-11T09:13:00.000-08:00

18'x24" Acrylic on Board

Here's another larger format still life that I finished this week. I once again used the blue orange compliment. I really like that pairing of colors. I threw some green in there as well just for kicks.

Apples and Salt

2010-11-09T09:47:00.000-08:00

18" x14" Acrylic on board

Here is one of a few pieces I've been working on as of late. That is all.

Complimentary Oranges

2010-10-28T08:38:00.000-07:00

"Complimentary Oranges" 11x14 Acrylic with oil glaze on canvas

I'm still playing with still lifes and with color schemes, this was a learning piece. There are some portions that I really like, and there are others that don't work so well. I love reflective surfaces, and how color bounces around.

old stuff

2010-10-26T10:05:00.000-07:00

Still Life 17"x17" Oil on Board

This is a very old still life I found in a pile of paintings. I did it in one of my college classes. I like the cool and warm contrasts.

Frisco Art Show

2010-10-20T11:49:00.000-07:00

Earth 4"x4" Acrylic on Board

In the immortal words of Professor Farnswoth, "Good news everyone!" This tiny work of mine was accepted into the Art in the Atrium Show here in Frisco at the city building. The show will be on Nov. 8th and the art will hang until Aug. 26 If you're in the area, come by and see.

Primary Composition no.1

2010-10-18T13:32:00.001-07:00

8"x10" acrylic on canvas board

I forgot that I don't like canvas, I don't like the texture that shows through my think layers of paint. I much perfer wood or Masonite. Anway I was playing with primary colors in this still life.

Un-peeled

2010-09-15T08:10:00.001-07:00

"Un-peeled" 5x7 acrylic with oil glaze on canvas

Fruit unwrapped. I really love that translucent glow that comes from the light going through the juicy meat of the wedges. As with most works, an attention to light is essential. I've noticed my other pieces lacked a greater consideration for lighting.

Pewter

2009-06-18T20:06:00.001-07:00

Oil galzed acrylic on board 5x7

I did this rather quickly, so it has some lighter brush strokes that I quite like, it's a bit more impressionistic than I usually get.

Orange Unwrapped

2009-06-17T11:06:00.001-07:00

oil glazed acrylic on board 5x5

Orange slices have a simple beauty that's actually deceptively complex.

Red Cup and Friend

2009-06-16T13:08:00.000-07:00

oil glazed acrylic on board 5x5

The Gas Key

2009-06-14T19:22:00.000-07:00

I found this old key that turns the gas on in our fireplace. I prefer burning real wood, so it dosen't get used much, but it looked very interesting, so I painted it.

Study in Blue and White

2009-06-12T17:17:00.000-07:00

Acrylic on canvas board 5x7

The color of the shell in the glass was very difficult to match, as was the refraction in the glass.

Torn Liberty

2009-06-11T13:18:00.000-07:00

Oil glazed acrylic 5x5

The old masters learned that in order to give red objects dimension, they had to do layers of glazes or it would look like a red and pink mess. I did several layers to get that tone of red.

The Black Vile

2009-06-10T10:33:00.000-07:00

Oil glaze over acrylic 5x7

Old wood has such great character, silvery and aged.

The Blank Blue Note

2009-06-09T13:20:00.000-07:00

Oil glaze over acrylic 5x7

Wood grains are always interesting. They have their own subtleties and fun patterns.

Paper and cap

2009-06-08T14:57:00.000-07:00

Oil glaze over acrylic 5x7

In Art school I did a fair amount of tromp l'oeil painting. It was always very fun, I think I'd like to explore it again on a smaller scale.

Sequestered

2009-06-07T18:37:00.000-07:00

Acrylic on canvas board 8 x 10

Reflective surfaces can be so interesting, and light bends in the most extraordinary ways as you observe glass.

Red Trees

2009-06-06T10:29:00.001-07:00

Acrylic on Canvas Panel 8 x 10

I miss the mountains.

Quarter of a Whole

2009-06-05T14:47:00.000-07:00

Oil glaze over acrylic 6x6 on panel

Ah reflective surfaces and the colors that run between! I had a craving for oranges after this. That's why I posted it for the topic at Illustration Friday. I masquerade as an illustrator in my other identity.

Bottlecaps

2009-06-04T19:06:00.001-07:00

Acrylic on canvas board 5x7

Clandestine Clementine

2009-06-03T15:38:00.000-07:00

Acrylic on canvas panel 6x8

I always like the contrast of orange and blue, it's very eye catching.

Cherry Dunk

2009-06-02T17:13:00.000-07:00

Acrylic on canvas panel 6x8

I'm always amazed that white surfaces never turn out to be white.

Lonely Clementine

2009-06-01T11:02:00.000-07:00

Acrylic with oil glaze on Illustration board 5x7

Clementines are so much more vibrantly red orange than actual oranges. I like their taste better too.

Orange Acrobatics

2009-05-31T21:06:00.001-07:00

Oil on board 5x 7

I don't often paint in Oils, although I do enjoy them. I find acrylics quicker, sand if used correctly can have the same luster as their counterparts

NFS

Thirsty Paper

2009-05-30T20:21:00.000-07:00

Acrylic on canvas panel 6 x 8

I don't know which side of impressionism I'll end up, I like the looseness of the paint, but I love detail as well. This one is more impressionistic. I like it though.

Yet, the Cherry Stood Aloof

2009-05-29T13:38:00.000-07:00

Acrylic on canvas panel 10 x 8

I really like painting bottles, glass in general is fun.

It Begins!

2009-05-28T16:36:00.000-07:00

Oil glaze over acrylic 10 x 8

Ah, my first entry in my daily painting blog. This little landscape is the view from my grandmother's porch in Pleasant Grove Utah. It was summer at the time.