Margret E. Short Fine Arts

Portland, Oregon artist Margret Short - a modern day master of 17th Century Dutch art using the chiaroscuro technique to create still life and floral paintings.

The Great Girl Jazz Singers

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For as long as I can remember, I have been crazy for the music of the Great Girl Jazz Singers of the past. When I was a little girl, my gramma and I would often snuggle up to the radio to listen to singers such as Jo Stafford. Some performed at the legendary Mount Hood Jazz Festival which I attended many years. Stars like Anita O’Day, Ella Fitzgerald, Cleo Laine, and Betty Carter, Sarah Vaughn, Carmen McRae, and Nancy Wilson graced the stage at Mt. Community College at that outdoor music fest, stars twinkling above and moon listening through the treetops.

Many of those greats are now gone, but lucky for us, Christa Wessel at KMHD is keeping the music alive on her weekly Divaville radio show right here in the Portland area at 89.1 on your FM dial. Every week you can hear music by Nina Simone, Shirley Horn, Rosemary Clooney, Billie Holiday, Julie London, and Peggy Lee along with so many other unforgettable voices.

The “Flowers for” paintings is a new series I created to honor the “Girl Jazz Singers” from the Golden Age of Jazz. It was common for the singers to tuck a flower behind one ear during their performance. Perhaps the most famous was Billie Holiday, honored here in my painting called, Flowers for Billie’s Hair.

Flowers for Billie's Hair8x8 panel 72@4
Sold, Highlands Gallery

© Margret E. Short 2011, OPA. AWA

The paintings shown below in the previous posts represent the ever funny and entertaining Pearl Baily, Blossom Dearie who was once a librarian, and the sultry Keely Smith.

I invite you to cuddle up to your computer or wrap your arms around your radio any Wednesday evening at 7 and enjoy both male and female voices from the past. You can even send or call in requests. Stir up some martinis and kick back the rug to enjoy two hours of nostalgic music from the 1920’s to the ’60s.

If you have any suggestions for my “Flowers for” series, I would love to hear from you.

 

Chiaroscuro Painting

Oil painting with the chiaroscuro technique illuminates the focus area with a strong light. All other areas are painted with less detail, lower values, and intensity of color giving a mysterious appearance. By putting one or two objects in the important focus area, a strong but simple composition will emerge. Combining these oil painting techniques with a selection of superior natural pigments and oil paints result in the beautiful and evocative quality known as Chiaroscuro Painting.

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Comments

  1. I love the idea for this series! Your flowers are always so beautiful!
    Looking forward to more flowersvand Diva’s.

  3. I love that you share the same music love of great female jazz singers. I look forward to more of your wonderful paintings full of life! What could be more colorful and full of emotion than the great jazz singers of past! I look forward to seeing these up close.
    Inspiring!

  4. Wow – love this idea and the painting above is exquisite! The way you breathe life and softness into your subjects – some day I must come and take a lesson or more from you. Nina Simone and Billie Holiday on CD play regularly in my studio, too