Sunday, July 31, 2016

Yesterdays breakfast with William Forsyth

Last Gleam is the title of his painting. Ca. 1910.    It is shown in American Artist Review. Dec 2004 page 46.     So much subtle color blending made it interesting.  I punched it up a bit and then when ink lines were added it helped define spaces and planes.

More ink

Here are a couple more examples.    

Ink lines. What a difference.

Usually after I finish my watercolor sketch - I will go back with my ultra fine Sharpie pen and add lines.    I dont feel like they are finished until  this last step is done.    You can look back at the photos that were shared pn this blog previously - before the ink was added.   

Breakfast with Veraldo Giuseppe Cariani

Carianis painting "Overlooking the Valley" is the inspiration for this mornings breakfast sketch.   I spotted it in American Art Review  Dec. 2004 p. 32.     It is a composition I had not done before.     Far away horizon with  distance between foreground and horizon showing no details in that mid range.    The colors also attracted me.        i hope you like it.   

Yosemite Falls

Id like to take a hike there after breakfast.    Painted as my breakfast sketch based on familiar post card.     

Felted piece

This is a little needle felted landscape I did awhile back.   It is not based on any particular sketch. It was created rather organically.      

Thursday, July 28, 2016

Breakfast in Utah.

This post card of Double Arch in the Arches National Park is my inspiration this am.   My sketch needs tweaking but its a decent start.    Might be something to explore as abstract shapes.    Hmmmm

Dance interrupted again

You will note some changes.      i think its done.

Mountain high.

The air is thin in the high country. .   I tried to convey that by using thin muted colors.   Based on oil study of Taggert Lake by Milo Whitcomb.  From American Artist magazine. July 1996.   

Wednesday, July 27, 2016

Roses for breakfast

Fresh.

Studio

This where I start every day with the radio on,  a bowl of cereal, my dogs and my paints.    Its my favorite room.

Breakfast with Richard Bepristis

Some time ago I purchased the painting on the left.     Richard was still painting in oils ar the time.    I think its brilliant - a masterpiece!   I never framed it. It sits where I see it several times a day.   I thought Id try to paint the scene in watercolors.    I have no idea how to paint eucalyptus trees.     But I gave it a shot.    

Sunday, July 24, 2016

Dance interrupted.

Abstract 3.   Breakfast sketch. Im listening to news.    This is my response. 

Abstract 2

Another abstract.   It turne into a moose!
Breakfast sketch.

Saturday, July 23, 2016

Breakfast floral sketch

I based this on one of the acrylic rose paintings I did earlier.   Quite a change from the palette knife.   I wanted this to be very loose and fresh.      Its going to be over 100 degrees today.   I wanted to paint with beachy cool colors.     

Abstract

I have been viewing a John Salimen dvd workshop I purchased online.   I think it was from Northlight.     Im about halfway through.      He starts us out with a very complex exercise to find abstract shapes.   A Technical Approach to Watercolor Abstract?      Not this one but am definitely using many of his ideas shortcutted.    I have no idea where to go from here but will soon watch more and then work it out.  

Based on book cover

Breakfast sketches   buildings.   Loved her colors and of course the shapes are quite wonderful.

Complete Watercolor Artist

I recommend it.

Paint to felt pic

Pic didnt go up with the post.

Wednesday, July 20, 2016

From painting to felt.

Buildings on this landscape are a new challenge.    This is yesterdays breakfast sketch.    Im starting to lay out the buildings using a single felting needle and some fine yarn.   Next I will be laying in colors.      

Sunday, July 17, 2016

Ink added

A few speckles of paint and some ink outlines. Done.  

Now some flowers

Step by step. 

Adding color.

I had not consideted what color to use for tabletop so held my paint sample sheet near painting I auditioned colors mentally and selected this one.

Starting another quick floral

I always like paintings at this point. Waiting for paints to dry and letting them mingle and migrate in the process.  

Good Sunday morning

Beautiful Sunday morning.   Temp dropped from 100 degree days to high 80s today.   I work at the gallery this afternoon.   quick little still life during breakfast today.     Picture on left inspired layout.   It's too colorful a day to stick to that artist's (Joe Anna Arnett) palette.  

Have a great Sunday.    

Saturday, July 16, 2016

Mission garden

It has been said that we should carry pictures in our minds of happy peaceful places.   So if you are at the dentists office or waiting at dmv for your number to come up - you can take yourself to this private happy place. It helps settle the nerves.    For my dad it was Alaska.    He often slipped away to his happy place when things got noisy and hectic.    

The Carmel Mission grounds are one of my happy places.  Its sheltered and feels sacred.     If I lived close by Id be one of the volunteers to tend the gardens.  

The photo on the left us one I just found as I was sorting through studio things.   I thought I'd take myself to this happy place by painting it for my breakfast sketch. Its still wet and I have done no details yet.      its a start.

Friday, July 15, 2016

July 14 breakfast sketch

This simple little landscape sketch is inspired by Milo Whitcomb's  "Moonrise" a study he did in oil  in 1994 before translating it into pastels the following year.    It appears in American Artist magazine. July 1996.    10 years later I came across it and thought it would be a good  subject for my breakfast watercolor exercise.

Fabric collage

This morning instead of my usual watercolor sketch, im recycling an old canvas that I have primered and will use as a base for a landscape done in fabric scraps.     Here I'm blocking in the mountains over the strips of sky colored fabric.

Two hours later

Working from the distance to the foreground I'm about ready to start tackling the river water which will be the hardest part of this piece.  My stash of blues is minimal so not sure what. to do.    Its a make it work moment.

Tuesday, July 12, 2016

Saved

I was shaken yesterday by an accident that almost occured.    I was driving along  a major city street past a large strip mall.   Suddenly a car waiting to enter the street from parking lot darted into the road right in front of me. Driver had obviously not seen me although my SUV is good size and lights were on.   They just did not look. 

I could see no way to avoid the collision.   It was dead on in front and seemed only inches away.   Yet,  suddenly divine intervention or instinct took over and i turned wheel sharply to left swerving  into next lane.   I did not have time to look to see if there was another car there.   Fortunately no cars to my left in either lane.   The other driver must have slammed on his brakes at the same moment.

The culprit sped away and I continued on my way thanking God for saving me and anyone else that could have been involved -  which logically would have been a minimum of a three car pile up.  

This is the closest I have come to a collision.   Too close.    Having right of way does not protect you from careless drivers.

Tuesday morning

My inspiration today is from The Complete Water color Artist book. Page 199.   I spiced up the colors by layering in watercolor glazes.    I only use student grade paper so i cant always remove colors well.   My friend Jean uses really good paper so she can go back to white.   She keeps insisting I would love the better pricier paper but Im stubbornly working my way through all the old pads I have on hand.   Some of them are several decades old.   Im looking forward to finishing the stack.   I actually have good paper.   Im saving it.   Lol.  

Monday, July 11, 2016

Monday morning done

Here it is. I will take it to show Lillian today.

Yesterdays tweaked

Before I added these to my stack of breakfast quick studies I added more color and penwork.    When I photographed them yesterday the paints were still wet.  When they dry the colors fade back.   Now they are ready.

BREAKFAST SUNSET

What was I thinking?    Well actually I decided last evening what I would paint for breakfast today.   Painting at bottom was done by Lillian Smith.   i used it to inspire a felted puece but thought Id see how it would look in watercolors.   

Here i have it blocked in before adding details.  

Sunday, July 10, 2016

Crabby

This image was in the watercolor book I mentioned a couple bosts back.  I never thought of painting a crab.  But love the colors.  So here it is.  

Larger version

I cropped off right side earlier.

Redo

Heres the second one.    Much fresher looking.    

Good Sunday morning.

Its another beautiful day with sunshine and a little delta breeze.   The sheer curtains in my studio are dancing and billowing with each breeze.   Dogs want to. Sit outside on the porch rather than come back in.   The door is open so they can choose.    

This morning I selected an image from "the complete watercolor artist" by Jenny Rodwell.    I did this one but it seems so careful and boring.   So i sketched it roughly in pen to try it again.   

Saturday, July 9, 2016

When is enough enough?

Is it harder to start a painting?  Or knowing when to stop?   Hmm....

When I first started painting it was harder to face the blank canvas or paper.    Fear of failure or just not knowing what I wanted to do.    My cure to overcome this was to just barge ahead.   Nothing is sacred or meant to survive for centuries to come.   Its paint. And paper or canvas.   What we contribute  with our hands is art. Good or bad.  The process is the part I enjoy most.   Selecting the brush.   Misting the paper.   Dipping the brush in water and then the paint.    I seldom mix colors on the palette, preferring to blend them on the paper.      

The painting Helen did used a very different palette than she usually uses.  Shes more of a green and blue painter.    The soft ochre tones and soft violet in the background prompted me to buy it.   Now that  I am translating it into watercolor -  it is those colors I wanted to bring out.     I will show it to her  Monday.  

Now it us hard to know when to stop.    I dont like overworked paintings.   This still feels fresh so I had better call it done.     

Adding color

A little further along now.

Ready to begin

The small painting on the left was done by Helen Pauwels.  One of my senior painting pals.    She paints mainly landscapes.    I am just starting to block in some shapes and colors.   Her work is my inspiration for my breakfast sketch.

Friday, July 8, 2016

Making the bed with a helper

Lulu would rather play.    

Variations

I painted these little buildings from an earlier painting i did many years ago.   But now they have moved from the shore to the hills.    Breakfast yesterday and today.

Wednesday, July 6, 2016

Better?

Some bad paintings are not worth rescuing.   This is better now.   It served to remind me that some inks do not hide behind acrylic paints.    Now there are at least 5 layers of paint over those lines in background - yet they still bleed through.  Maybe its something that can be useful in the future.

Ugly ready for makeover.

This is that old painting that i never got around to tosding.   Ugh.   

Tuesday, July 5, 2016

Old rose

I painted this years ago.   In the 90s I'd guess.    I forgot all about it until it was found at the bottom of a drawer of old works. Painted on the back of another painting.   

Monday, July 4, 2016

Up with the birds

Mockingbird. Quail. All kinds of chirpings and cooing can be heard from my open windows in studio while I have breakfast and do my little sketch.    I havent much time today as I volunteered to take care of a horse race game for 4th of July picnic.

I grabbed up another copy of the little birds Roberta photographed and disguised them as love birds.   

Thats it for this am.    Id better go check in and see what I'm supposed to do. Have a wonderful holiday.   

Sunday, July 3, 2016

Breakfast with Harriet Marshall Goode

The artcle on left was clipped from 1996 Watercolor Magic.   Thus first illustration was my inspiration for breakfast sketch.  She uses acrylics and guache.   Mine is transparent watercolors.  i did not do a preliminary sketch w pencil but just picked up brush and brazened it through.     its going to b a busy day.  I have company coming so i will call it a day.      Have a good one.

Saturday, July 2, 2016

Quick coverup in acrylics

I thought I'd do a quick sketch while layering more paints over another used unloved piece.    I like it better now.  Ill call this my breakfast painting.     Now I had better get my breakfast.    Its a perfect morning in the studio.  Once I walked in I just didnt want to leave.   Windows are wide open with a slight breeze. This following some 100+ degree days. Its only 9 am and studio temp now up to 80 degrees.    have a good holiday weekend.

Abstract.

This is another unloved earlier piece.  W. It turned into an abstract. Some of the ink on lower layer is bleeding through.

Fresh background.

Covering an unloved earlier painting with color.