He was so keen on it, I barely had enough time to put the first on the porch (in the sun to help speed up the drying time) when he was well into priming the second.
Ahhhh, warms the cockles of my heart to see such a thing!
Wednesday, September 5, 2012
Increasing interest
My four year old has started showing increasing interest in painting lately, especially with my artist's oils (haha!). So he helped me prime some canvases today.
He was so keen on it, I barely had enough time to put the first on the porch (in the sun to help speed up the drying time) when he was well into priming the second.
Ahhhh, warms the cockles of my heart to see such a thing!
He was so keen on it, I barely had enough time to put the first on the porch (in the sun to help speed up the drying time) when he was well into priming the second.
Ahhhh, warms the cockles of my heart to see such a thing!
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
Metamorphosis
Years ago I had two separate painting styles. Sort of...
I had my whimsical pieces full of sea chickens and flying fish, and my first attempts at Plein air painting landscapes- what I called "serious" work. I chose to go the "serious" route because I needed to make a living. Luckily, I found myself falling more and more in love with landscapes and their ever changing beauty so I didn't feel the loss of that imaginative play that comes with the whimsical work.
My husband, Nick, (a king of country living and all things manly) said something the other day about my style being so different from most other landscape painters that I could paint the twin fawns we just saw and it wouldn't be like other wildlife pieces. I started looking closer at my work, trying to see what made it so different.
I was mulling over the two cattle ramp pieces I just finished, and my next painting adventure (this next one includes a bet and an odd sort of commission) when it hit me-
Quietly, over a relatively short period of time, the whimsy has found its way into my "serious" paintings. Or maybe it was always there and I just didn't see it. Or maybe it was trying to be there but can only come out when I let the painting paint itself.
However it got there, I'm glad it came. It's like seeing an old friend, and knowing the friend is here to stay.
Painting is such a lovely form of self exploration and discovery. The whimsy in my work is like that inner being that I am, always have been, and always will be. (The spirit. That part of us that is forever in contact with Infinite Intelligence.)
Sometimes I lose touch with my inner self and everything seems to fall apart. Then one day, something clicks and I see that everything I thought I had lost has been there the whole time.
How cool is that?
The piece in this post is one of my recent cattle ramp pieces. It'll be in Whistle Pik shortly. The other will make its debut at the November show.
(I apologize for the picture quality, I took it with my phone. I'll have a better image on my website later, and the gallery will have one when the piece goes in. If you would like purchasing information, feel free to contact Ms Mary or Ms Julie at Whistle Pik Galleries.)
20x30
Oil on canvas
I had my whimsical pieces full of sea chickens and flying fish, and my first attempts at Plein air painting landscapes- what I called "serious" work. I chose to go the "serious" route because I needed to make a living. Luckily, I found myself falling more and more in love with landscapes and their ever changing beauty so I didn't feel the loss of that imaginative play that comes with the whimsical work.
My husband, Nick, (a king of country living and all things manly) said something the other day about my style being so different from most other landscape painters that I could paint the twin fawns we just saw and it wouldn't be like other wildlife pieces. I started looking closer at my work, trying to see what made it so different.
I was mulling over the two cattle ramp pieces I just finished, and my next painting adventure (this next one includes a bet and an odd sort of commission) when it hit me-
Quietly, over a relatively short period of time, the whimsy has found its way into my "serious" paintings. Or maybe it was always there and I just didn't see it. Or maybe it was trying to be there but can only come out when I let the painting paint itself.
However it got there, I'm glad it came. It's like seeing an old friend, and knowing the friend is here to stay.
Painting is such a lovely form of self exploration and discovery. The whimsy in my work is like that inner being that I am, always have been, and always will be. (The spirit. That part of us that is forever in contact with Infinite Intelligence.)
Sometimes I lose touch with my inner self and everything seems to fall apart. Then one day, something clicks and I see that everything I thought I had lost has been there the whole time.
How cool is that?
The piece in this post is one of my recent cattle ramp pieces. It'll be in Whistle Pik shortly. The other will make its debut at the November show.
(I apologize for the picture quality, I took it with my phone. I'll have a better image on my website later, and the gallery will have one when the piece goes in. If you would like purchasing information, feel free to contact Ms Mary or Ms Julie at Whistle Pik Galleries.)
20x30
Oil on canvas
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
Decisions, decisions... And painter's block.
My fabulous new brushes came in a while back and I adore them! Thank you Rosemary & Co!
My husband/business manager always says to work with the best materials you can afford. You can only go so far with crummy supplies.
That said, it is time to move on to a more pressing matter...
What to paint?
Oh dear Lord, this decision sometimes stops me in my tracks and leaves me boggled for what feels like an eternity.
I swear I have a million or more reference photos full of wonderful content but nothing is ringing a bell... yet. Ever have that issue?
I grumbled to myself for a few hours today about not knowing what to paint next when I remembered something oh-so-very-lovely!
One of my all time painting heroes, Kevin MacPherson, suggested in his book, Fill Your Oil Paintings With Light and Color,to make a scrap book of artwork you love for those times when you need a break or a touch of inspiration (p. 120).
I love to cut images from art magazines and paste them into my little inspiration book.
I have masters mingling with newbies, landscapes with figures. There is no particular rhyme or reason to my inspiration book other than every image pasted in it is a particular favorite of mine for some reason or another. And boy do I have a LOT of favorites! I find at least one or two in every art magazine.
What I love most is how everything in the "regular" world starts to look like a painting after absorbing my little clip art collection.
It's a wonderful exercise, and I have to remind myself to do it sometimes. Especially when I am stuck and frustrated.... Foaming at the mouth.
Moral of the story:
If you find yourself in Drabsville, immerse your senses in work you admire.
(It's all about focusing on the things you love rather than nitpicking about the things you don't. Attitude is everything!)
I posted a couple of images from my inspiration book. I'd tell you who the artists are if I had only written them down when I cut out the images... Hmm. Note to self: keep better notes.
My husband/business manager always says to work with the best materials you can afford. You can only go so far with crummy supplies.
That said, it is time to move on to a more pressing matter...
What to paint?
Oh dear Lord, this decision sometimes stops me in my tracks and leaves me boggled for what feels like an eternity.
I swear I have a million or more reference photos full of wonderful content but nothing is ringing a bell... yet. Ever have that issue?
I grumbled to myself for a few hours today about not knowing what to paint next when I remembered something oh-so-very-lovely!
One of my all time painting heroes, Kevin MacPherson, suggested in his book, Fill Your Oil Paintings With Light and Color,to make a scrap book of artwork you love for those times when you need a break or a touch of inspiration (p. 120).
I love to cut images from art magazines and paste them into my little inspiration book.
I have masters mingling with newbies, landscapes with figures. There is no particular rhyme or reason to my inspiration book other than every image pasted in it is a particular favorite of mine for some reason or another. And boy do I have a LOT of favorites! I find at least one or two in every art magazine.
What I love most is how everything in the "regular" world starts to look like a painting after absorbing my little clip art collection.
It's a wonderful exercise, and I have to remind myself to do it sometimes. Especially when I am stuck and frustrated.... Foaming at the mouth.
Moral of the story:
If you find yourself in Drabsville, immerse your senses in work you admire.
(It's all about focusing on the things you love rather than nitpicking about the things you don't. Attitude is everything!)
I posted a couple of images from my inspiration book. I'd tell you who the artists are if I had only written them down when I cut out the images... Hmm. Note to self: keep better notes.
Thursday, February 23, 2012
Oh, how the mighty have fallen!
It's official. Some of my favorite brushes are shot. Sigh.
Goodbye soon, dear friends! I will scrub my canvas with your sweet little carcasses for just a little while longer.... Until your replacements come in. Muahahahaha!
Getting new brushes is like getting a fresh haircut, or a new wardrobe! My business manager made a very good point. From now on, I am to have three or four back-ups of the brushes I use most so I don't have to fight stray bristles while waiting on the postman to deliver reinforcements.
Makes sense. But then, that's why I pay him the big bucks. Hahaha! I'm so busy thinking about everything but the tools I work with that I back myself into a corner, surrounded by splay-ended brushes and empty paint tubes.
Moral of the story, folks....
Marry a business minded person and the creative process suddenly has a backup system!
A very wise man told me:
"Behind every good artists is someone who knows what they are doing!"
Hahaha! I love it!
Goodbye soon, dear friends! I will scrub my canvas with your sweet little carcasses for just a little while longer.... Until your replacements come in. Muahahahaha!
Getting new brushes is like getting a fresh haircut, or a new wardrobe! My business manager made a very good point. From now on, I am to have three or four back-ups of the brushes I use most so I don't have to fight stray bristles while waiting on the postman to deliver reinforcements.
Makes sense. But then, that's why I pay him the big bucks. Hahaha! I'm so busy thinking about everything but the tools I work with that I back myself into a corner, surrounded by splay-ended brushes and empty paint tubes.
Moral of the story, folks....
Marry a business minded person and the creative process suddenly has a backup system!
A very wise man told me:
"Behind every good artists is someone who knows what they are doing!"
Hahaha! I love it!
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Morning Fog
I can't stress enough how much I love where I live. This place has more variety than you could shake a stick at... But it all still fits.
We have been getting these gloriously foggy mornings lately and I got about a million reference photos to and from dropping Soren off at school last week. This is from my first batch of pics. I'd like to do some larger paintings like this, but am having a bit of a love/hate relationship with anything over a 5x7 right now. Which is not such a bad thing, since the gallery doesn't have many of my small pieces right now.
I like this one. It'll be in Whistle Pik as soon as it is dry!
Morning Fog
5x7
Oil on canvas panel
We have been getting these gloriously foggy mornings lately and I got about a million reference photos to and from dropping Soren off at school last week. This is from my first batch of pics. I'd like to do some larger paintings like this, but am having a bit of a love/hate relationship with anything over a 5x7 right now. Which is not such a bad thing, since the gallery doesn't have many of my small pieces right now.
I like this one. It'll be in Whistle Pik as soon as it is dry!
Morning Fog
5x7
Oil on canvas panel
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