Christmas Rose 10x12 Acrylic on Canvas

The Christmas Rose is finally done. I'm very pleased with it. It looks busy and the idea is to give viewers a lot more to look at than just the roses. I especially like the depth in this painting, not only the enjoyment of the primary subject being the roses, but I also enjoy the hidden places behind them. It leads one to imagine that there might be something lurking within! I think that's why I like painting florals in this manner. The attraction for me is the mystery behind all that is beautiful. Enjoy! And Merry Christmas to all!

Work in Progress 4 ~ Christmas Rose

It's starting to look more interesting now. Details are showing through. Lights and Darks are coming together. What is really interesting to note here, is that, there is no rhyme or reason to it, everything is random, leaves that may not normally be present with this particular rose, is present and those that should be, are there too. But somehow, it all works. Harmony.  Anything goes in Art! 

This is the first time I photographed my own hand showing how I get into those little nooks and crannies. Not an easy thing to do. You can see I'm using a detail brush. I'm big on those and have lots of them in my arsenal of brushes and a must if your a detailed artist like me. Here, I'm using a no.1 round and applying the paint in small careful strokes. I have to be totally relaxed when I do this so that I don't touch the already painted areas. "Yikes!"

My palette is very limited. It wasn't always this way, but over time, I've learned it's best to keep it that way. I like to mix only what is necessary for a painting, using pure opaque colors and a few transparent ones. And by the way, try making your own black. It doesn't show it but this paining has all the colors used in it to make black,with the exception of white and yellow. It's fun to try.

Work in Progress 3 ~ Christmas Rose

You can now see the progression on this third post. I'm working from a photo but it's not one of mine. The background leaves on the photo is very fuzzy, making it difficult to make out shapes, so instead I just improvised. I still need to work on the rest of the leaves and work out some of the dark and light areas. It's looking good so far and almost finished.

Work in Progress 2 ~ Christmas Rose

I'm moving along just nicely on this Christmas Rose painting. I'm liking how it's turning out so far. I'll be turning my attention to the bud on the upper left corner next and then on to the leaves. I'm not sure at this point what I'll do with the background, but maybe I'll play around a little and experiment. Enjoy!

New Work in Progress ~ Christmas Rose

I'm calling this work in progress, my Christmas Rose because it does look like a flower appropriate for Christmas time. I'm not sure what it's really called but I hope I get it finished by Christmas. Sorry for the low lighting on this photo, I took a picture of it in the evening, on my table easel with the light coming from above. Still looks nice though.

Three Sisters 10 x 12 Acrylic on Canvas

A few years back, while on a summer day trip to Lake Minnewanka, I spotted these three Western Mountain Asters, in the thick under brush beneath a large tree. There they were, alone, protected by the elements and were just waiting to have their picture taken. I couldn't resist !

White Shrub Rose 10 x 12 Acrylic on Canvas

I've been working on this painting for a month now. I was taking my time with it. I'm glad I did. I was taking the advice of one of my favorite Canadian Artists, David Langevin.  I took one of his workshops one year and this was one of the key things he talked about. He said, to take your time with your paintings, don't rush it, because every time you come back to it, it's always fresh. I found that too. I also challenged myself by applying his technique of using thin glazes of paint for the shadows and for the flower petals, which seemed to have given the petals a more transparent look. As you can see by the photo I used, I made a few minor changes and gave this painting a lot more depth to it as well, which I felt the photo didn't have. Now that it's done I'm ready to move on to my next painting. Hope you enjoy this one!

Suddenly, the inspiration comes back....

This past summer, I had decided not to paint or draw. Instead, I had been pulled away by other forces that didn't allow me to be my creative self. I think we've all been there at one time or another.

 

Normally, being very passionate about doing my art, somehow just began to feel to me like a daunting task. With no inspiration and desire on my side, art was pushed aside. Even after spending hours sitting in my studio and staring at my paintings ( we've all been there too!), I began to realise that you can't have desire without inspiration, just as you can't have inspiration without desire. Both go hand in hand. We all know this.

 

I hate when this feeling happens because this is exactly why some artists ( myself included) don't spend more time at their easels. I often wish that I can focus on one subject and keep painting that one subject over and over again and be really good at it, that would be easy, but that's not who I am, I need to be challenged, to be inspired by all things. 

 

An opportunity for inspiration arose recently when my artist friend Dayna and I attended the Leighton Art centre Autumn Paint Out on September 30th. This is an annual event which brings artists together to do their art out in the open air in a beautiful setting. I finally put my foot down on myself, packed my painting supplies and went. The day was fabulous, and the inspiration came back... 

 

 

My unfinished painting of the Mountain landscape

( I just didn't have enough time to finish it!)

 

 

The Inspirational view

 

 

Dayna and a Pottery Artist

( maybe she wants to take up pottery?)

 

 

An Artist doing encaustic painting

 

 

Tent set up for the Artists

( good place to keep out of the wind)

 

 

Two Artists at work

 

Safe Harbour 20 x 40 Acrylic on Canvas

I've learned last month, that certain life's situations can take you into different directions both physically and emotionally. Sometimes leaving you drained and lifeless in it's wake. Early last month during the time that I was to finish this painting, my husband passed away on June 5, 2012 after a long battle with cancer. I wanted to paint this scene as a gift of my love to him. Having always loved the water, he enjoyed sitting gazing out across it, saying how peaceful it was. Before he died, he was able to see this painting even though it wasn't quite finished yet, he quickly called it, Safe Harbour, a place of refuge. My comfort now is knowing that he's in his own Safe Harbour and as for this painting, it's one that I will always hold a most special place in my heart always.

Today I'm posting this special painting as a tribute to him and to also say, Happy Birthday Love. He would have turned 63 today. 

Early Fall Harvest 30x30 Acrylic on canvas

Autumn was just beginning in Southern Alberta last year when I snapped this photo while out for a country drive. I think it was the positions of the hay bales and the flow of the landscape that caught my eye, because as you followed the hay bales, your eyes moved on up to the Foothills and the Mountain beyond. I remember at the time that I thought this scene would make a nice painting and I always meant to paint it eventually.

A few weeks ago, I began reading a particular book about landscape painting. I decided to try out the advice given in the book and decided to paint this scene from my photo.  The canvas is large and it took me 2 full days ( of course, with breaks in between ) to paint it. I think the finished painting looks better up close than what it may look like on computer monitors, because its very colorful and realistic looking. I also toned the canvas before starting as the book suggested, and allowed bits of color to shine through the painting, which adds the vitality to it. I hope you can see that.  All in all, I'm very pleased with the results and now I look forward to my next project and trying more of the techniques offered from the book.

LEOTIE 22x28 Colored Pencils on Starcke Fine Grit Sand Paper

This is the second drawing that I did of a young Aboriginal girl, some years ago, while taking art classes.

With the exception of only a few people, this drawing has never been seen by anyone else that I know since then. I had her tucked away in a special box and put away on a shelf in the basement of my home all this time. When I found her again, I noticed some of the colors had faded and some parts of the drawing were unfinished.

I decided to revitalize and finish what I had started and now she looks beautiful again. Not knowing what to title this drawing, I researched Aboriginal female names and among many, I chose to call her "Leotie", which means, "Flower of the Prairie". A beautiful name fitting for a lovely girl and a fabulous drawing.

French Pears, still life 10x12 Colored Pencils on Canson Mi-Tients Paper

Last Sunday at the studio, I brought along these two red pears to draw. I set them down on the table in front of me. I got excited to see how the work lamp above me was casting blueish shadows of the pears on to the work table. One pear was a little lighter than the other but they both took on a nice reddish brown tone from the lamp as well. I decided to do something a little different in that I only colored in the table on the bottom half of the drawing, preferring a white color, and leaving the top half of the paper untouched. The color of the paper is in a warm yellowish beige tone and it makes it look like a painted wall. Doing this cut my time considerably and allowed me to concentrate on the pears themselves. A good drawing tip I think..., by just letting the paper speak for itself.  Enjoy!

Valentine Floral Bouquet, still life 14x18 Acrylic on Canvas

Side View

My Husband gave me cut flowers for Valentine's Day last month and told me that I should paint them. They were very beautiful but as time past, I procrastinated and many of the flowers wilted and had to throw them out. After weeding out the wilted ones, I cut down the rest of the arrangement a bit and placed them in water in a medium size milk pitcher. I have to say that I'm not very good at arranging a floral bouquet, but I don't think it mattered too much, I was simply going for a more natural look and not fussing about with them. The colors in this painting are bright and beautiful and the Gerber Daisy takes center stage amongst the carnations, staring you in the face, a fabulous focal point. Sure glad it lasted for as long as it did!

This painting will be on sale for the month of April, at the Hughes on Tenth Studio on 10th Street in the Kensington area. Hope you can drop by!

Venetian Vase and Grapes, still life 8x10 Acrylic on canvas

I love this small Still life painting, it reminds me of the Still life paintings that were done by the Old  Masters during the Renaissance period. I found and bought this Venetian style vase at an antique store and immediately fell in love with it. It's only 8 inches tall, very delicate and  has a beautiful color of a soft yellow with some orange highlights and the arms are a clear glass. Because I felt it had a roman look about it, I thought it might be fitting to paint it with the grapes which compliments it. The hardest part for me was the draping of the table cloth. I had to paint it several times before I was satisfied with the look. Now that it's done, and as time goes on into my painting endeavors, I am beginning to see real progression towards my painting style and the subjects that mean the most to me. Hope you like this one.

Wetland Pond in Winter, 20x20 Acrylic on canvas

My most recent painting is of this Foothill and Wetland Pond in Winter.This one is located just west and then south of the city, along one of the highways going towards Millarville, Alberta. The landscape and foothills here are very distinctive and it prompts drivers to stop and to have a look. Because of a mild winter this year, the pond was frozen over but no snow on the ground. The grasses on the foothills are always a brown ochre color in the winter months, but the evergreen trees are as green as ever. You can see inter spaced between them, the ghostly white Aspen trees and grayish purple sagebrush that is also part of this landscape.  In summer, this area comes alive with both animals and waterfowl. Everything turns into beautiful greens and is also a great place to visit and paint for the day. I hope you enjoy seeing this one.

Green Bowl and Oranges, still life 8x10 Acrylic on canvas

I think that every artist feels very happy and surprised when they produce one or several paintings in his or her collection that they truly feel is one of their best works. I feel that way every time I look at this painting. As I look at it, I'm hoping that I did everything right in achieving that certain professional quality that one sees in paintings that hang in galleries. However, one question that I've been struggling with since I finished this piece and that is, can I reproduce that same quality in my future paintings. It's not that I haven't given the same care and attention to my past creative endeavors but once in a while you feel you've created something special that your really pleased with and you want to do it over again by retracing your steps. Using cool and warm tones in this painting, I hope it's balanced as well as having a pleasing composition.  I've started a new small painting similar to this one, again using a white table cloth and painting it from life. I'm hoping it will end up looking the same too.  I'll keep my fingers crossed. 

"Who's been eating my apple?" Still life, 16x20 Acrylic on canvas

Whenever January rolls in and a new year begins, I'm already thinking about Spring and Summer. Reminding me of warm weather, flower gardens and just sitting on the deck, enjoying a cool drink. And just as the warm weather ends, later in the year, I'm thinking about Autumn, it's warm colors, eating apples and knowing that the flowers in the garden will eventually fall and die.  A kind of cycle in our lives that we all adhere to. There's a lot of symbolism here. But what I want to show as well is the style of this painting, which borders in my view, between Surrealism and Realism. I wanted to show the space around the objects, drawing attention to each of them. Reflected light, shadows caused by the sun or other light source and an overall airiness represented by the openness of the sky. These are elements that I'm most attracted to and hope that I've captured it in this painting. Hope you agree.



Bowl with Lemons, still life 16x20 Acrylic on canvas

For my first post for this year, I chose this still life painting of lemons in a white bowl. A few weeks ago, I began working on this painting in my home studio, where I created the set up on a small table. On that day, it was sunny outside and my studio was filled with lots of light coming in through the windows. The light cast shadows on the objects. I was particularly interested in doing this painting because I could also see the colorful reflected light inside the bowl that was caused by the lemons. Almost the entire painting is a series of thin glazes of paint, which is something that I don't always do in my paintings but now I think I'll be doing that more often. I used Golden's Acrylic Glazing Liquid (Gloss), which seems to make the colors pop and it extends the open time of acrylics. I got the idea to use the glazing liquid by watching an artist instructor use it in a workshop that I attended last year. I was recently asked by a friend, as to which part of the painting was the most difficult to paint. That would be the bowl I said. The bowl took the most time just to get the shape down but I hope the painting itself with it's bright and bold colors still looks very nice. And just for the record, I favor the color blue very much, can you tell!