Abstract Seascape 15X22 Acrylic, mixed media on paper


Is anyone else confused by this new blogger "interface"? I guess I don't like change; maybe it's my age. 

This painting is similar to the painting called "What Lies Beneath". The difference is that it's painted on paper and the other was on canvas. This one has little bits of egg shells pressed into the molding paste for added texture. I've enhanced some of these with colored paint. The disadvantage of doing a painting on paper is that it has to be matted and framed with a spacer so that the glass doesn't touch the raised areas. It does look very nice with a rounded white frame, though, and I'm already to enter it in a show. 

My photo got grey on the edges and I gather from reading another blog that it's a function of the camera to "average the whites". My camera is just a point and shoot so I don't know if I can turn off that function or not. Has anyone else had a fix for this?

Tangled

                                    Tangled acrylic on canvas, 16x20

This painting was made by using spider webbing stretched over the canvas. The webbing is a material available usually at Halloween and is stretched about to look like spider webs. It takes very little of it to pull and stretch over the canvas and I fastened it down with push pins into the back frame of the canvas. The acrylic is thinned with polymer gloss medium and water so that it can be poured and absorbed by the webbing. Spraying with water also helps to make the paint run. It makes an interesting abstract pattern. After it had dried I used a thinned gesso to veil some areas, I thought I would do more but fellow artists said it was "done". Since I didn't know what else to do with it, I took their advice and signed it.

Photobooks

Folded Photo book 6x6 watercolor and printed papers.

I learned how to make folded photo books last summer. I have been using the pretty double sided scrapbook papers that you can buy in craft stores. Then I got the bright idea to make the fronts and backs of the books with some of the watercolor paintings that I have. Many of them are paintings that were done in a workshop so they are not eligible to be put in a competition or they are not quite the quality for framing but they have some nice areas. I laid the painting outside and gave them a good coating of Krylon matte finish so the watercolors wouldn't be damaged. Then I chose areas in the painting that would make a nice cover and papers that would be compatible with the painting. The books are tied shut with a ribbon. The light was fading when I took the pictures out on my deck but I wanted to get a shot of it before taking it to the gallery tomorrow. The top picture is the closed book, the bottom is the opened book which looks a little like origami. I think they make very nice gifts.

What Lies Beneath

    What Lies Beneath, Acrylic with mixed media 20X20 wrapped canvas

It's been way too long since I posted a blog. I just don't know where the time goes. I started playing around with this technique after a workshop taught by Shirley Mancino. Modeling paste is applied in a swirly manner on a section of canvas or paper. Some of the paste, along with glass bead medium, is dragged down the painting. After it dries you can paint it however you choose and encourage the paint to run down the canvas. After the paint was dry I added tiny seashells with gel medium. It made me think of what was underneath the white caps if you could see a cross-section of a wave; the seashells tumbling and the seaweed hanging. I love the texture of the modeling paste and the glass bead medium and I plan to use it again. As a watercolorist it was also interesting to use acrylic in such an aqueous manner.

Zentangle?

Cup and Saucer Zentangle 4 1/2 X 6 Sharpie on paper

At our annual Art League spring luncheon we were all introduced to Zentangle and given the opportunity to try one ourselves. Of course we didn't get formal instruction, just a piece of paper, some pens, and some examples that were passed around. All of us in attendance make art in some form or another so it was interesting to see all the different things that were drawn in about a 10-15 minute time frame. When I got home I checked out Zentangle on the web and found that it is a bit more sophisticated than our playful doodles. They have actual instructors and formal names for the designs that fill the space. I looked to me like they are mostly done in black pencil. It was fun to do and another interesting art form to learn about. I would love to get comments from anyone who has some information about Zentangle.

Another Great Workshop

                                      Untitled, 16X20 Acrylic on tissue.

I just finished another great workshop. This week end I was with Shirley Mancino and 8 other wonderful artists exploring abstract or semi abstract art. Shirley's art can be found at http://www.shirleymancino.com/. I have this painting, which is finished, and two that are almost finished in just two days. It was more like play than work and we enjoyed Shirley's teaching style and methods a lot.
This painting was started by spreading acrylic paint which was thinned with polymer medium and water carefully on tissue paper which had been crinkled. The tissue was laying on a plastic bag surface so that it could be peeled off when it was dry. Shirley explained that some plastic bags work better than others. The tissue gets very fragile when it is wet so care must be taken.
After the tissue was dry templates of the horses were drawn onto the painted tissue and then painted negatively (the blue around the horses). I think it makes quite a striking painting and I'm enthusiastic about trying this process again.

Artist trade

                         Me, this week end at the Wild Child Gallery.

I painted outside at the gallery this week end. I did some, what I call, little wash pictures. They are small and easy enough to work on in between talking to visitors as they come through the outdoor part of the gallery. We had a lovely week end, lots of sunshine and friendly folks from all over the world.
I don't have a photo of the paintings because at the end of the day yesterday one of the other artists suggested that we trade our works with each other. Since the other two were jewelry makers that was more than OK with me! I ended up with two lovely pairs of earrings in trade for my little 1/8 sheet paintings, which I hadn't photographed. I was so excited about the trade I forgot to take pictures. So, here's a picture of me at the table with my brush in hand. Behind me, on the fence, are copper sculptures by another artist.
Hope you all had as fun a week end as I did.

Abstract with Collage

                                Impending; Acrylic/collage on paper 15x22

This is the latest of several abstracts I've been working on since the last workshop. This one has been fun to see evolve into a finished painting. It started out with the band of tan on the top but as I worked on it and turned it the painting wanted to be this way. The thick stringy collage near the center (why do I always do that?) has been "gilded" by using stamp ink and embossing powder set with a heat gun. I've always loved to put a dab of gold in my paintings. In regards to the title, perhaps I was influenced by the disasters in the center of the US last week, but the dark areas reminded me of storm clouds and the line coming down of a twister tornado. To me there is the look of an approaching storm. To the left is the hint of a rising sun, the hope of a new tomorrow. 

Sailboat techniques

                    Sailboat from Janet King's workshop, watercolor, 15x22

On February 1-3 I took a workshop from Janet King. Our first exercise was to paint using her chosen colors on her drawing of a sailboat. She had an interesting method of starting out; after drawing the subject on her paper, she wets the paper thoroughly and adds diluted yellow and pink randomly to the paper. After allowing this to dry you have subtle colors as an under painting and no stark whites. It seems to give the boat and water a glow without the glare of pure white. Following her instructions for the sailboat went pretty well the first day. The next day I tried to translate this method to children on the beach. I wasn't very successful, but then everything worth doing takes practice, and lots of it!

Abstract Impressionism

This is what I started with:

This is my final painting: Abstract G, water media, 15x22

I took a 3 day workshop with Sue Pink, a very talented artist who does abstract impressionism paintings. She was very generous in showing us her techniques and helping the class progress, layer by layer until we all had individual paintings we could be pleased with. We worked with watercolors and acrylics on paper. Some of the paintings were done on new white paper, some were old watercolor paintings that were covered over with a mix of gesso, water and matte medium. Abstract G was done in approximately 5 layers. You begin with layers of random colors and lines making imprints as you go. After that dries Sue told us to begin by covering the areas that we like the least with a neutral color and continue doing that. I found that to be a very easy way to start, eliminating things until I got to the point that I liked what was left. You add textures and lines using whatever you have on hand. We used stencils and stamps; manufactured or hand made; watercolor sticks and pencils, there really was no limit. We just let our creativity rule the day. It was great fun and the days were gone in a flash.

                             Batik Pink Orchids 11x13, watercolor batik

This is my second painting that I did using the wax batik method. It's painted on kenwashi paper which is thin and has a lot of threads visible in it. It was painted over a year ago but I just got it framed for the last show, hoping for a sale but it's still with me.
I have another workshop to participate in this week. It's being taught by Sue Pink. Sue does interesting abstracts on paper using acrylics and watercolor and a whole list of supplies which I have yet to assemble. So this post will be short for now. Look for some new material soon!

Busy Season

                                         Paris Flowers, Watercolor and collage

OK, I know I've shown this one before but it won a second place in our local art show so I thought I'd show it again. It's a very busy time right now because it's the "season" when all the northern visitors are here to get out of the winter doldrums. So, there are art shows and art sales going on every week it seems. Also, art workshops are a constant draw on my time. I just finished a workshop with Janet King so I have been painting, I just don't have anything finished to photograph and put on the blog. I read the blogs that I follow and comment when I have time. I have another workshop this week, I hope that I can get something finished to get on the blog soon.

Outdoor Cafe

                                       Outdoor Cafe, Watercolor batik

A couple of years ago I took a workshop in watercolor batik painting. I loved the class and the look that is achieved using this process of using melted wax as a resist and then cracking it when it has cooled in order to put on your dark paint to get the batik look. The part I didn't like was using an iron over newspapers to melt the wax and absorb it out of the painting. It took a long time over a hot iron to get all that wax out. I've never been fond of ironing. I did manage to paint another batik painting and thought I would do more but I haven't. Now I wonder if I could remember the process.
Anyway, I found this painting when I was looking through my stash. I decided to frame it and put it in the art sale our local art league is having this week end. I'll be at the sale with my paintings and cards for sale. It ought to be fun.

Geranium Card

                              Geranium Card and envelope, watercolor.

While I was painting outside the other day I also did a painting of my brave little geranium plant. I call it brave because it came through the summer even though it was sorely neglected. Before I left Florida for the summer I put it in it's pot in the landscaping where it would get irrigation and rain whenever it was provided. Geraniums don't like wet feet so they don't usually make it through the summer here. But, this one did. It looked pretty awful, scrawny stems and tiny leaves. So, I watered and fertilized and even though the leaves are still small it is blooming like crazy! It adds a pop of color to my lanai and it deserves being painted onto a card.

Daisies

                                  Gerbera Daisy Card and Envelope

I decide to paint some cards for an upcoming art sale at our local art league. I do these quickly and  don't worry too much about accuracy. I just concentrate on getting the paint on the paper without drawing my subject. I'm painting on Canson watercolor greeting cards, they come with envelopes so I put a little matching design on the front to make a complete set. It was a beautiful day to sit out on the lanai and get some painting done.

Burrowing Owls

                      Two Young Burrowing Owls- Watercolor and Ink

                         Hootie In A Palm Tree- Watercolor and Ink

Where I live in Florida we have these little creatures called Burrowing Owls. They dig a burrow in our sandy soil during the dry season (winter) and raise their young. It's fun to walk by their home in a vacant lot and see the little ones lined up outside their burrow under the watchful eye of their parents. The adults mate for life and both take care of the young. They are in constant danger from hawks, raccoons, and other predators and they are loosing their habitat as more people build homes in the area. As a result they are a protected species. We have a Burrowing Owl festival every February to inform the public about these delightful little birds. Our art league is sponsoring an art show with birds as a theme and is working in conjunction with the Owl Festival. I've been trying to come up with some ideas for painting these little birds. These are little ink sketches with watercolor that I'm using as a springboard for something a little less conventional. I'll be posting whatever I come up with. If anyone has an creative idea I'd love to hear it.

Correcting Watercolor

                                           Pears and Apple  9x9 watercolor

This little painting was stuck in my portfolio for weeks because I didn't know what to do for a background. Then one day I was leafing through an older copy of one of my watercolor magazines when I found an article by Ann Abgott. She's the one who inspired me to paint the fruit in the first place. She had a still life of fruit with a really dark background. It made the fruit just pop on the page. So, I decided to try it. First I tried Payne's gray on a wet background. Not only did it look dull, the paint started to seep into my nice pristine fruit, and they were dry! I sat a babysat it, dabbing away at the seeping paint until it dried enough to stop. When it was completely dry I went around all the edges of the fruit with a masking fluid. Then I mixed my own dark with Windsor green and alizarin crimson. I was much happier with this color, it just seemed livelier than the Payne's gray. The next mistake I made was painting the background down to far on my painting which caused the apple to look like it was floating. I had nothing to loose so I decided where the line should be and started scrubbing all the dark below that line, 3 or 4 inches. All those staining colors were very stubborn, I attacked with a Mr Clean Magic Eraser sponge. I got off as much as I could, burnished the poor bruised paper and coated it with Aquacover Liquid Watercolor Paper. You have to be really close to see the correction but I cropped the painting quite close and into a square shape to minimize the visible amount of correction. Who says you can't correct a mistake in watercolor?

It's Snowing Somewhere

                                           Christmas Tree 5x7 acrylic on paper

Nice, gentle snowflakes falling softly on Christmas eve. That's the ideal picture in so many minds. That may happen in some part of the country this year. A fresh snowfall is hard to beat when it comes to a beautiful sight in December. To wake up in the morning as a child and to look out the window to that sight of all that white stuff covering everything is an amazing thing. Children don't think of shoveling or scrapping car windows. It's just the wonder of the change in your world overnight; from dull gray and brown one day to pristine white the next. I do miss it just a little living here in Florida, especially this time of year. However, I don't miss the cold or wearing heavy coats, gloves, boots, hats and scarves. Wherever you are, cold climate or warm, enjoy the blessings of this season of Christmas and the wonder of it all.

Oh the Weather Outside...

                                       Coconut Palm acrylic on yupo 12x15

...is frightful, so that song goes. Maybe in some parts of the world it is but here in Florida beautiful, warm weather greets us each morning. Not that we don't get an occasional "cold snap", perhaps even some freezing, but that's not the norm. I painted this palm while sitting outside the gallery a few weeks ago. The parking lot did not make a very good background so why not a beach instead? I used my liquid acrylics like watercolor to get the loose, watery effect along with a quick spray of water. On a cold and dreary winter day come and sit under my palm in the sun.

Christmas Card

                                    Christmas 2011 5.5 X 7 Mixed Media


Every year I try to come up with an image that conveys my beliefs about the true meaning of Christmas. This year's image came out of a rather randomly done collage. As I was looking at it, the possibility of a figure emerged in the blue collage piece near the center. I painted in the face  and added a halo of shiny gold colored paper, painted the manger and added the gold paper "beams". I was thinking of the 3rd verse from the Christmas carol "Silent Night".

Silent night, holy night,
Son of God, love's pure light
Radiant beams from thy holy face,
With the dawn of redeeming grace,
Jesus, Lord, at thy birth.

Then I thought of the angels that sang after announcing to shepherds the birth of a Savior. Their song was "Glory to God in the highest..." My card illustration was complete.

I wish all of you a very happy and blessed Christmas!

Tyvek Wallets

I haven't posted for awhile so I thought I show what I've been up to for the last week or two. I was very fascinated by these Tyvek envelope wallets that were demonstrated on Myrna Wacknov's blog. She had posted a 4 part video on her blog several weeks ago about how to make them and I got totally hooked. The envelopes can be purchased at an office store. You paint one side of the envelope and then by folding, cutting and taping with double stick tape you end up with a wallet for credit cards and folding money. Since our grandchildren are of an age where we send them a gift card or check on gift giving occasions I thought this would be a clever way of packaging the gift. Myrna decorated her wallets with stencils so that's how I have done mine. It's been a learning experience, especially when it comes to folding them so you have the openings where they should be. I think I watched video 4 at least 6 times and stopped it and started it and repeated it. Finally I made my own instruction sheet and marked on a white envelope the folds and cuts. It's all fun from the painting to the cutting and folding. Myrna's blog is http://myrnawacknov.blogspot.com/

Poinsettia on Yupo

                                     Poinsettia on Yupo 5x5 acrylic


This is another quick painting done on Yupo with liquid acrylics. I felt that the white background was too white and plain so I decided to use a rubber stamp that has calligraphy on it to fill in some of the blanks. I brushed gold metallic acrylic onto the stamp in random places and stamped it onto the painting. I like the look of calligraphy in a painting and this is an easy way to add it. I think the words are in another language so they don't make any sense to an English reader, they are just random shapes in the background. It's very subtle and just breaks up the white. I also added some of the gold to the center of the flowers.

Experimenting with Yupo

                                  Blue Fish 5X6 acrylic, mixed medium on Yupo 

I did some experimenting on Yupo which is a slick plastic product that you can paint on. It comes in different weights, in opaque and translucent. I have painted on it with acrylic inks and with watercolor. This time I decided to try liquid acrylics that were thinned with water. My thought was that this would be more permanent than the watercolor and perhaps more controllable than the acrylic inks. Of course, for control-ability it depends on how much water you use. After the painting was dry I decided it needed some texture so I dug in my "toy box" for some stringy stuff that was already the color of my painting and stuck it on with some matte medium. I think it makes an interesting piece. The red lips add a bit more whimsey.  

Ceramic Bird

                                Still Life with Ceramic Bird  Watercolor 4X6

I found a couple of ceramic birds that belonged to my mother when I was recently cleaning my china cabinet. I was about to put them in the thrift store box when I realized that these would make fun still life objects. (Maybe this is why I can't get rid of anything). They are small so they fit well with fruit and other small things for easily managed arrangements. This was a fun execise that I did on a watercolor postcard.
The postcards come in a pack and are glued on 4 sides with a little spot where you can insert a small palette knife to separate them once it's dry, just like a watercolor pad. They are really handy to take along on trips because they are small and easy to pack with your travel kit.

The Good, the Bad and the Mermatron

                                "Mermatron" 5 x 7 mixed media on paper

On one of my collaged backgrounds I decided to paint a mermaid. I drew her the way I thought I wanted her and went in with the acrylic paint. She got a little chubbier than I wanted her to be but then I thought that maybe mermaids get older too. Maybe they gain a little weight like the rest of us. Maybe they don't keep a girlish figure. A little extra around the middle must be why they call it "middle age" don't you think? In that case she would no longer be a mermaid would she? In a wedding an older, married lady is called the matron of honor instead of maid of honor so my mermaid must be a mermatron. I'll bet she can still flip her tail, though.

Paint, Collage, Paint

                                 Rocks and Sea 5 3/4 X 7 Mixed media


I tore up an old watercolor painting into small pieces and decided to put hand made collage papers over them all using Yes glue. This piece was already a rock and sea painting so I just added to it by putting dark papers over the rocks and lighter blue papers over the water. When this dried I added paint to make some details, a horizon line, light in the waves and top of the rocks and a few birds in the sky. When that was dry I coated it with matte medium. The other collages are more colorful and I'll post them in the days to come.

Collage and watercolor

Fluers de Paris  watercolor and collage on gessoed paper 11X15

I guess I still have Paris on my brain since our trip. There are the most incredible flower shops there. They display their flowers almost like they are tumbling out the door for the abundance of them. I think they must know how irresistible they are to those who pass by. The blooms are the freshest arrangements possible. My background was painted in the blues and purples then a layer of thinned gesso was applied over the top. I painted the bouquet next and when that dried I applied another layer of the gesso which I textured with bubble wrap. I started with my collage papers next, some I've made myself, some are torn from colorful napkins. The red/orange bird, also from a napkin, was added for interest and whimsy. I added watercolor here and there as I thought it was needed. If you look carefully you'll see a little Eiffel Tower to the left of the bouquet.

20 Minute Postcard

I found some watercolor postcards in my stash and decided I should paint on them and send them to friends. I made up this scene of a clump of two palms on a beach at sunset. The water is calm as it so often is on the gulf coast of Florida. There is a rosey glow from the setting sun and the palm fronds are picking up some amazing reflections from the waning light. Perhaps I used a little artistic license for that but then, I do have an Artistic License. It's signed by Kathleen Conover, AWS, NWS. I guess that's official enough for me.
(Also posted on 20 Minute Challenge http://twentyminutechallenge.blogspot.com/ )

Ripe Pear in 20 minutes

                                    Ripe Pear 31/2 x 5 1/2, watercolor

Sometimes I just have to remind myself that a little quickie to send to 20 Minute Challenge is better than not painting at all. I love to paint pears and have some artificial ones that look almost like the real thing. I can get one out and paint it over and over and there are never two that look alike. When the paintings are this small I can always use them on little note cards. People always seem to appreciate a hand painted card. I keep telling myself that there is really no excuse for not painting. Take the 20 Minute Challenge!

A Swan Afternoon

                                          Swan Afternoon Watercolor 15x22

It feels really good to be able to paint regularly again! I started this painting last spring with the drawing from a photo that I took. I did a little painting on it this summer and finally finished it (I think) this week. I was really fortunate that the liquid mask that I put on at the beginning, several months ago, didn't ruin the paper when I took it off. I only masked the sparkles in the water and a little bit on the head and neck, the rest I just painted around. I think it would be fun to do something more interesting with the water but for now I think I'll leave it and go on to another.

Brushes Still Wet

                        Yellow Daisies in a Blue Vase, watercolor, 5 X 7

So far my plan is working. My painting table is still cleared off and my brushes are ready to go. I love working with blue and yellow so I took these daisy like flowers from a supermarket bouquet and put them in a little blue vase. Working with small containers is a trick I learned from Ann Abgott. It takes fewer flowers, cherries or whatever you are painting in a still life set up if you work small. It seems to simplify things as well. The copy of my painting came out with much darker yellows than are on the painting and the upper left corner should be white. Since I copied it by scanning maybe there is something I can tweak on the scanner. If any bloggers out there have an idea about this please leave a comment. All comments are appreciated.

Keeping the Brushes Wet

                                   Plums and Apple, watercolor, 4 1/2 x 6


I'm still working on the organization of my home studio, it's a slow process as I decide what I can and can't live without. In the meantime I want to keep my painting table open for painting and my brushes wet. It's so tempting to pile things on the painting table while trying to find them a home. If I have a painting in progress on the table, I can't put anything on top of it. That's my strategy anyway. I set up a little still life of plums and apples with the thought of painting them in 20 minutes but it took a little longer than that to get the deep colors of the plums. The idea is just to keep the table clear, the paper ready to go, and the brushes wet. 

It's Been a Long Time

                                  Chocolatier in Brugge, Belgium




It's been a long time since I last posted a blog but I have a good excuse. My husband sprung a trip on me. Our 50th Anniversary is coming up and he arranged a trip to France and Belgium. We just returned two days ago and are just starting to come out of the jet lag fog. We spent 3 of our days in Brugge, Belgium. What a delightful little town that is! It's very picturesque; I took lots of pictures during our walks around town every day. One day we stopped at an outdoor cafe and noticed a darling Chocolate shop across the street. The shop was nestled on a corner and one had to step down into the shop. I think the other buildings were built around it in order to preserve it. I had my little painting kit along so I painted it in my 3.5 x 5.5 Moleskine. 

Home in Florida

                              Cat on Porch of the Pines at Dresden


I was able to do just one little watercolor sketch on our trip back to Florida. We stayed in Dresden Ohio at a B & B, The Pines. It was a delightful place with very congenial proprietors and guests. The cats on the premises tolerated the guests but were not particularly friendly. I used to have a plaque that said, "You're nobody until you've been ignored by a cat." This cat definitely ignored me but that was a good thing because then I could get my little sketch done. Next to the wicker, the cat was easy. I don't think I've attempted to paint a wicker chair and table before, and probably won't again. Did you know that the word wicker comes from the same root word at wicked? I was reminded of that as I tried to capture the look of it. My next post I'll tell you a little about Dresden OH and what we found there.

Details of the Blues

                                                                   Upper Right

                                                                   Upper Left

                                                              Lower Right

                                                           
                                                                      Lower Left


I did get a request for seeing some of the details of my painting "He's Got the Blues". I especially like the first one, the upper right; maybe it's because I'm right handed that I like to put some interest there. In this case the calligraphy is stamped on very thin paper and then glued onto the painting. That way I can move it around, adjust the size, and decide where I want it by looking at it before gluing it down. I also use Yes paste which is water soluble and can be removed. It also allows me to easily paint over it which is more difficult with mat medium, a second choice for adding collage.
This may be my last post for awhile, we must begin our transition to Florida again. I don't think there will be time for painting but I will sneak a peek at the blogs during the week. 
Thanks for all the encouraging comments!

He's Got The Blues

                                        He's Got the Blues, watercolor/mixed media, 16x22

I painted this to be an entry in the State Fair Fine Arts Show. They get several thousand entries each year in every category that you can think of. This year it was one accepted work for each ten entered. Not bad odds if you're playing the lottery but not good odds for getting into an art show. Mine didn't get accepted so now I've got the blues! I've only gotten accepted once at the Fair and it was the first time I had entered. So, like a lottery player who wins once, I keep entering. Oh well, I had fun painting him; I made my under painting with lots of textural materials and then added some of them back as I painted the picture. My photo doesn't do it justice because you can't see all the fun things in the background. I may try taking pictures of parts of it and posting it in segments in the future.

A Collage

                                          Untitled Collage  6x8

 The last day of the workshop we were to work on an old painting to make a collage. All my old paintings are in FL so I got to pick one of Karen's as the background of my collage. By the time I was finished there was very little resemblance to her painting except some of the original colors. The dimensional effects of this work are not appreciated in the photo, which is too bad. We built our composition and then added the dark areas to draw the eye to the center of interest. I enjoy adding the little bits of "bling" at the end but I have to be careful not to overdo the calligraphy, gold ribbon, and gold dots. It's  hard to know if you're doing too much until it's too late.

Quilt Abstracts with a Silhouette

                             Frog Silhouettes In a Quilt Abstract 5x5 each.

On the third day of our workshop we used an abstract design and put in a subject of our choice. Some ideas for subjects were birds, leaves, people, fish, simple flowers, animals or symbols. The idea is to have two or more separate paintings that can be hung together or individually like the previous day's paintings were done. First we drew our abstract design and put a light wash of our colors on it. I had a photo of a frog that I manipulated on the computer until it was the right size and traced it to my paintings so that they would be the same on both paintings. The subject was placed into the abstract and then some areas were painted negatively around it. The darks were put in last to make the subject "pop".

Doing Fun Things- Day 2

                            Quilt Squares with a leaf motif 5X5


This is, for me, the fun stuff. I love adding collage elements to paintings. The second day of our workshop we were to start with an abstract design, do an under-painting and then add our collage elements. One of the elements was to be a skeleton leaf or two. These are natural leaves that have been treated so that just the veins remain and then they are coated with something to give them either a metallic or plain color. What gives these works "punch" is the dark areas that lead the eye to the subject. The class had great fun exchanging art papers and colored napkins to use in our future collages.

Quilt Abstracts

                                     Two Quilt Squares    

In the afternoon of the first day of our workshop with Karen Knutson we developed our abstracts into 5X5 squares. These are designed to be framed separately, hung together but are not diptychs. You could make as many squares as you like as long as they are related in color and design. My designs reminded me of a Southwest or Native American motif. The thumbnails above show the design that I was working from; the colored square is a section from a magazine advertisement that I used for my design turned and used in different directions. This is the springboard for the design, the rest is all imagination. It's a good way to get a start on your abstract design but the formulas for design that you find in design books seem to work the best for me.

Four Day Workshop- Day One

This week I had a four day workshop with Karen Knutson in her home studio. The first day we were to make some abstract studies using magazines to locate little abstracts with a 1 inch view finder. Once we found one we liked we used it to make our little studies which were colored with Prismacolor or Tombow markers. For our colors we were to use a picture of a room from a decorator magazine and notice how there were punches of color in a fairly neutral setting. The room I chose had tans for the neutral colors and punches of blue with accents of shades of orange. Complements! How clever! These were my studies, or thumbnails. They are each 3X3 inches.
Karen also challenged us to do one 30 minute thumbnail like this everyday in a dedicated sketchbook. Am I up to the challenge? Time will tell.