National Doughnut Day original oil painting of a donut "Doughnut Day", oil on panel, 6x6 ©2016 PJ Cook

In honor of National Doughnut Day I painted this donut in oil paint. This glazed cruller on a napkin was what I picked for my free donut yesterday. I usually don’t eat doughnuts but decided to treat myself for National Doughnut Day. Then I decided to paint a still life of the donut. I set up the donut in a box with a single light. I wanted to paint this quick (so I could eat the donut) so I picked out a 6×6 Ampersand gesso board.

I worked in my usual way for an oil painting, applied a thin layer of transparent earth red and removed the lights by wiping off the paint. From there I worked on the donut, then the white napkin and shadows. The background color was done last. Once I covered the panel I went back to add highlights.

It was fun to paint this doughnut in honor of National Doughnut Day. Definitely a change from the landscapes and flowers that I have been painting recently.