Art by Niki Hilsabeck

Cactus seems to be everywhere in Southern California!  It can be a nuisance or a blessing, depending on how you look at it. "Prickly Paradise" 5.5 x 5.75 pastel on drawing paper Click here to view on my website I have to be in a particular mood to draw or paint cactus-- it's got a lot of funny shapes and details.  I see so much cactus every day I don't always think to paint it.  Having lived with a large patch of cactus near my house for many years now, I realized that although I may not take the time to paint it often, it really is an amazing plant.   I've written about painting cactus previously,  and the challenges I had this time were still the same.  I've come to appreciate cactus more, though-- if I take the time to walk over and really look at it, there's always something interesting to watch. It's provided a home for many squirrel babies, who are pretty adorable in their own mischievous way. (Their parents are entertaining too, ...

"Last Light" 9 x 12 Chalk Pastel, Water, and Red Wine on Flat Canvas (Original not for sale) Click here to view print choices: http://www.redbubble.com/people/nikihilsabeck/works/8290572-last-light-pastel One of the benefits of painting familiar things is the freedom to strip them down into their basic elements. In these paintings, I chose to focus on forms, as the strong directional shapes were what inspired me to paint them. I am one of those people who finds comfort in familiar surroundings, which means I spend lots of time studying the things I see every day and looking for patterns and characteristics to help me paint with ease. For "Last Light," I used a photo taken on my phone at sunset in Oceanside, California as a loose reference. I often get distant photos of people along the water and use their forms in my paintings. I get lots of sunset photos, because I'm not an early morning person. This translates into paintings that typically have a lot ...