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Summer’s Jewels – Nasturtiums
Summer’s Jewels was so much fun to work on – I mean I completely love these colours. And I completely loved pouring the colours of nasturtiums! There were a few moments of uncertainty – like when the making compound really did not want to come off. Took me a few hours…. and a blister to make it happen! This painting went through seven different pours – one colour I applied twice to increase the intensity. Below is the peel reveal I friend and I were recently discussing colours what subjects pour better or what make a successful poured painting. Whether monochromatic or complimentary colours pallets would be more effective? I…
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Sunshine Yellow Azaleas
I just finished this poured watercolor commission of sunshiny yellow azaleas I think what I like best about poured paintings is how fast they seem to build. The process keeps you engaged daily – I typically work on them each day for about two weeks. Each stage has to dry completely before you move onto the next. But the progress really builds nicely. There were seven pours with this painting. Once completely dry I removed the frisket. I call this the peel reveal. Some artists take their work to this stage and call it done. I personally cannot do this, although I have been tempted a few times with the…
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Duckie Duet and trouble with my easel
So today I had one of those days in the studio Everything I touched went wrong. Easel Troubles. The bottom support on my big easel dropped to the floor right through my fingers with a loud bang and a bad word. The ball bearings in the crank mechanism hit the floor and rolled all over the place. Unfortunately we were unable to recover all of them. Does anyone know how to reassemble a crank easel? The air in the studio has to be exceptionally dry this time of year with the electric heat going all the time. Because of the dry wood on the easel frame we couldn’t tighten it…
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What I have learned
What I have learned while attempting to Painting 30 28 Paintings in 30 Days Once I got over the initial fear of committing to a project of this magnitude, I made the decision to approach it with a few ground rules for myself: First – that I would not compromise on quality; and Second – that I wanted to use this challenge to explore new surfaces and mediums What I have learned: That I like to paint watercolors on larger paper 11.5 x 14, what is call ¼ sheet. It only took one day for me to realize this size was not sustainable as it takes too long to complete a…
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30 Paintings in 30 days Finale
Wow. What can I say. I really did stick with the 30 Paintings in 30 Days Challenge. Only I painted 28. Really 27 as my last painting was finished today – after the end of the challenge. I am so glad I decided to do this challenge for a few reasons – it help passed this cold month and I wanted to use materials and subjects I do not always get around to. And I learned a lot. I learned that I actually do like acrylic paint. I just do not like to use it on canvas as I am unable to get the degree of detail I want…
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Icky ick ick ick
Icky ick ick This is an interesting photo I want to share. When working up close and personal on a bug painting there is a bit of a creepy factor with that level of concentration. It actually imprint on my brain! I still feel the disgust… As I was focused on this little painting, I almost jumped out of my skin. There on my drafting table was a dead roach of some kind between me and my palette. I stood up in disbelief, moved my canvas away and swatted at the thing a few times. It didn’t move. Then I squinted at it and low and behold – the creepy…
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Painting Returns Home with Two Awards
My painting “Sitting Duck” just returned home the 89th Annual “Open Water” juried art show recently held in Toronto. This show is the major event in the Canadian Society Painters in Watercolour (CSPWC) exhibition calendar. Open Water is open for jurying to artists working in transparent watercolour. With my painting were two award certificates; the “Sally Sloan” Award and “The Artists Magazine” Award. This is all very exciting – I was pretty proud to have a painting selected for the show. Then just prior to the show opening I was notified about receiving the Artists’ Magazine Award. Pretty happy about that. Then I received a call awhile later informing…
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The Naming of a Painting of a Raven
Naming the bird Here is my yet unnamed and unfinished painting of a raven. My friends at Google tell me that there are three names for a group of ravens. Unkindness. Conspiracy. Constable. When I embark on painting a series I do quite a bit of research on the subject, in this case ravens. I like to title my paintings with meaning whenever possible, especially if I can come up with a name that includes somme tongue-in-cheek humour. What’s in a name? I know ravens are important in the culture of First Nations (and I have this lineage on my mother’s side) so my curiosity is naturally piqued. An Unkindness,…
