Father and Son at the Beach. Original iPad Painting. 4:5 aspect ratio. 2017.
And another father-son in the water! What’s sweeter to behold than a parent and child at play?
Water Babes II
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Category Archives: Art, General
Ballerina
I love painting kids at play. Here’s a little girl playing ballerina. She’s got it down.
Ballerina I. Original iPad art. 1:1 aspect ratio. 2017.
Irrational Exuberance ~~ Painted Mushrooms? Or Toadstools?
OK. So, the leeks turned out well, aaaannnndddd ~~~~ I got sassy & decided to paint some portobello mushrooms the next day.
Bad idea! There’s not much ‘there’ there. Dull colors & shapes, arranged (by me) in an overly simplistic composition. Certain artists could make a good painting out of such drab components (Morandi?), but my first effort at ‘shrooms falls short.
Painting Leeks at Home in the Aftermath of Artin Workshop!
I was so pumped up after Wendy Artin’s workshop that, after a day of R&R, I pulled out my paints and a couple of elderly leeks from the fridge and painted another watercolor in the manner we had been practicing during the workshop. Here it is.
Leeks at Home. Watercolor on Paper.
I was tickled that it turned out nicely. Maybe I’ll have to do more!
New iPad Images: Buzz Lightyear and Friend
I haven’t done much iPad painting over the last year (carpal tunnel issues), but every now and then I see a subject that’s compelling enough so I can’t resist. These two pieces were inspired by grandson Max’s toys: Buzz Lightyear (perched on Max’s dresser) and a red robot whose name I never got. Do you know who he is??
As with all of my iPad art, fine quality prints are available at reasonable prices.
Buzz Lightyear. iPad.
Red Robot. iPad.
A Year-long Painting Project is Completed!
After struggling (really, procrastinating) for over one year, I have finally finished a large oil painting, Mary’s Orchids.
Mary’s Orchids. Oil on linen, 2′ x 3′.
My sister Mary asked me to paint this work, requesting orchids, cherries, and a piece of pottery by Walter Anderson, the wonderful artist who lived on the Mississippi Gulf Coast near our home. She also asked for it to be sized at two feet by three feet. Gulp.
I bought the canvas panel, arranged the elements in dozens of compositions before settling on this one, roughed out a drawing on the plastic wrapper of the panel, and then STOPPED. I was intimidated by the difficulty of the composition and its sheer SIZE. I hadn’t attempted anything that large since the portrait I did of our dad for his 90th birthday three years ago.
I have at least four pots of yellow orchids hanging around the house. As each orchid lost its flowers, I’d buy another pot in the expectation that I’d be starting ‘soon’. This went on for so long, the original orchid re-bloomed! So I decided I better get cracking, especially after passing the one year mark.
Finally it is done, about to be varnished and shipped down to Mary in Houston, TX. Whew.
If you’ve got an extra minute to spend, check out the site of the Walter Anderson Museum of Art in Ocean Springs, MS. It’s a fabulous museum, built with my dad’s help, honoring a fabulous artist.
Brushes with Nature ~~ a New Exhibit at Kentlands Mansion!
The City of Gaithersburg annually invites artists to compete for the opportunity to exhibit in its various art venues. Several of my art friends and I (aka ‘The 7 Palettes’) are delighted to have been selected to display 50 of our new works at the premier Kentlands Mansion, scene of weddings and other major events. The exhibit will run almost three full months — from June 17th through September 5. Please bring friends and families to see our art and join us at a wine and cheese reception on Tuesday evening, June 21 from 7:00 to 8:30.
Getting Bolder with Flowers
I made this flower study during a recent workshop with Duane Keiser. He plopped the vase down on the table one hour before the session was to end and suggested we paint quickly! I was slinging and slapping that paint around like mad. I completed it in the allotted hour. Actually, it’s more accurate to say I ‘stopped’ at the end of the hour! Duane encouraged me to go for the bright blue background — which the composition had in ‘real life’. I was about to tone it down to something insipid. I’m glad I followed his advice!
Red Roses & Frilly Purple Things
A Spring Bouquet ~~ Painting Flowers
I’ve never had a ‘comfy’ relationship with painting flowers. Like to look at ’em but shudder when I think about trying to paint them. I’m going to post one of my efforts here and will post some others as the days go by.
This one says ‘spring’ to me.
Yellows & Pinks for Spring
Danni focuses us on portrait nitty-gritty: fabric
If you’re going to paint a portrait, you need to know how to paint clothes and drapes.
Hence the homework assignment to paint two pieces of fabric so that a viewer would know that they differ in weight and texture. I didn’t have to look far for subjects: a blue denim apron friends had brought back from Sennelier in Paris and a red satin shopping bag made by a daughter-in-law. I draped them over a corner of my easel and set to work. Voila.
