High Seas And Ground Clutter

I've been really trying to be disciplined and paint every day but in spite of the best intentions, it doesn't always happen.

But I've made tiny inroads for the past week or so and painted a seascape for my niece and a basket of tomatoes from our garden.

The seascape is acrylic on board and the basket of tomatoes (I call it Basket of Summer) is gouache on Arches watercolor paper. 

The basket of tomatoes was for a challenge at an art group I belong to and isn't as finished as I'd like.  I hope to paint it again in the future though.

I'm still plugging away at an oil painting of a fox and another seascape so look for updates in the near future!

Ain't It Funny How Time Just Slips Away

I was jolted out of complacency when my friend, Sue, from the Pencilpix blog emailed to ask if I'd been painting.  Well, I've done nothing but for the past few months but just haven't shown any on my blog!  Sue recommended that I remedy that so here are just a few of the paintings I've done recently:

The first one is a quick painting of my Dad who said he didn't want a birthday gift but would really like one of my wildlife cards.  Well, I figured there wasn't anything wilder than him even at the age of 95!  He was very pleased even if line and wash & especially portraits aren't my usual 'thing'.

The second two paintings are for challenges at a painting forum I belong to.  I was especially pleased with the ice cream cone as I usually have a hard time drawing hands/fingers but this came out better than usual.

 This bear is a painting I've worked on for nearly a year!  The medium is casein and even though I've really tried to like it, it's impossible for me to work with.  This painting was such a struggle that when I finished it, I bundled up the casein paints and donated them to our local high school art department!

 This crow is an acrylic underpainting that I did with the intention of glazing with oil over the top.  However, I had a bunch of people tell me to leave it alone.  There were two exceptions to this chorus though, including my husband and an oil painter whose opinion I value so I haven't totally decided what to do with it yet.

If you're a painter yourself, you know the inner argument where part of you wants to be done with it and another part of you wants to go with the original plan but worry about messing up what might be a good thing!

This last one of the eagle is a horrible photo as it was taken with my cell phone in really gloomy light as we've had rain during most of the month of July!!!  Suffice it to say it looks better in person.  It's gouache on board.

These are not all of the paintings I've done and I'm still working on several at the moment.  One, a fox, another crow and a couple of seascapes.  One of the seascapes is nearly finished but since this post is image intensive, I'll save some for another day!

Oh, Look, Another Bird!

I finished another bird in the woodcarving group and like this one a whole lot better than the first one I carved.  This one was sort of my own design although from a free vector from a public domain photo site I occasionally use.  I still have to put some sort of finish on it but I decided not to paint it.  If I wanted a painted bird, I'd do it on paper or canvas, right?

I think that's it for birds, at least for the time being.  One of these days, I'd like to carve a sandpiper, heron or egret but in the meantime, I have a fox on-board for the next project.  It's quite a bit larger than either of the birds (about 18" long) so wish me success!

Chickadee Painting Demo

Where does the time go?  Again, I apologize for the time between blog posts but somehow, time just gets away!  As kids, we'd used to complain that we were bored or had nothing to do and the day would just drag by.  My grandmother always used to say 'just wait til you get older!'  My grandmother was a very wise woman!

Anyway, the demo/paint-along of the chickadee went really well and the class actually finished in an hour instead of the two we thought it would take.  Here is a photo of the event and, as you can see, the participants were lively, fun and very good for first time painters!  Oh, that's me in the back row next to the gentleman in the light blue shirt.

photo courtesy of, and copyright to, Alan Russo

All of the participants were great sports and all said they'd had a good time.  Since we had some time leftover, I was asked to demonstrate how to make a tree with some leaves.  We were using cheap Canson watercolor paper and really cheap gouache but those who painted the tree still did really well.

Even though I was very nervous and sort of scared, the COA still asked me if I would do another demo and/or paint-along in the future.  I wasn't sure but think it would be fun now that I know the ropes a bit better!

Carving Out Time

Well today was another carving group and I started another bird.  I like birds and this one is kind of special as I modified a public domain vector from a free website to make my own carving pattern.  Plus, my actual chosen project from the bin at the group is a large fox which I just didn't have the room or the inclination to work on today!

I had to take in the paintings for the exhibit and frankly, after carrying in a couple of boxes of paintings (11 of them), I didn't want to try to tuck a heavy, 18" long fox under my arm when the block for the little bird and all my supplies fit neatly into my purse!

Here's what I accomplished today after starting with a small rectangular block of wood.  This bird is actually going faster than the first one but I've also done quite a bit of 'carving' on my left hand! (Memo to self - take a supply of band-aids!):

It doesn't look like much but has honestly come a long way from the original block of wood. I don't know when I'll get to work on it but if I find time, it wouldn't surprise me to have it done before the next group session.  Oh, and I filled the crack in the first bird but it isn't dry yet so don't know how it will finish.  I wanted to use a nice oil but may end up painting it to conceal the patch of the crack.

Will keep you posted!

The Paint-Along

Carolina Chickadee - gouache on paper

 I was asked to do a demo/paint-along for our local senior center and have been trying different subjects that should be easy enough for a total beginner to paint.  The little Carolina Chickadee above is the subject I chose. 

The ref photo came from a friend but has been simplified so much that no one would recognize it.  As a realistic painter, simplifing to make the subject easier for a beginner to paint was the most challenging part of the demo preparation!

There is to be a minimum of paint so it was also necessary to pick a subject that uses few colors and no mixing,  That means using black straight from the tube when I'd ordinarily mix my own or at least add blue or violet to the tube color.  But I'm hoping the participants will be able to paint something they're proud to take home.

More Spring and a Painting!

Here's a little more taste of Spring as the daffodils have gone crazy blooming!  Our temperatures have been up and down and the sun has been in and out!  The photo of the daffies was taken on a gloomy day but still hope they're a cheerful sight for those of you tired of winter!

My most recent casein painting was of a daffodil in a glass globe and is probably the biggest reason why I decided casein wasn't for me.  The paint handled much like acrylic which is the least favorite medium I've ever tried.  No matter what I did, I couldn't get the results I wanted - making the flower appear inside the globe!

This is on clayboard (which may be why I didn't like painting with the casein) and is only about 5X5 inches square.  I bought the clayboard because several people had said it was the ideal surface for casein.  I only got 3 of the small boards so it wasn't a complete waste and I'm sure I can use the rest for other media.  I think too, that other people use different painting methods and have different styles than I do which may make it work great for them. 

But, isn't that what art is all about?  Finding the medium, the support and the style that works for you, the artist?  So, maybe casein will become a favorite medium with the right support - hope so as I've invested a fair amount into paint!  Still have to finish a couple of paintings I started with casein and who knows from there!