Playing with color

Our painters group is working on a winter project. You can see the work at http://subjecttointerpretations.blogspot.com/ Every 2 weeks a new photo reference is posted and we are invited to post our interpretation of it. I'm having fun using colors from my imagination. In this case, changing a gloomy day into a vivid nocturne.

Happy Thanksgiving

To celebrate Thanksgiving, my favorite holiday, here is my painting of family love.

Chinese Fishermen

I'm posting this to celebrate the year of figure drawing we just completed. I'm proud of those who stayed with it. and I'm proud of the curriculum. I will do it again, but not for awhile. First, I'll see how it shows in the work of my students.

Portrait of James

Beginning the underpainting with two yellows. I like to use primaries in layers as I study the subject and the color. Yellow is easiest to start with since it is a the lightest in value. Then red, then blue.

I do an underpainting in pigment dispersions. To find out more about this pigment preparation, go to Guerra Pigments.
When the underpainting is dry, I continue with pastels





















with some pastel marks




























James, 22"x 17" pastels with pure pigment underpainting, on my sandpaper.

Peoples's choice at my Open Studio

'Leslie in Hot tub' 40"x26" Pastel on Sandpaper

This piece is about my love of painting water and people. Fun to combine them and see the distortions of the figure under water. I did a series of these paintings.

As I painted it I called it 'Handful of Jewels'. I learned a lot painting her backlit head; remembering the backlit figures I had seen in Maxfield Parrish's work. Making the skin glow with heat in the shadows was satisfying.

At the bottom of the paper you can see the underpainting. I have only a few pastel marks there. Water-based underpainting with pigment dispersions gives a transparent dimension to the opaque quality of pastels, when the underpainting is successful enough to let it show.

Bumper Sticker

This morning, at breakfast with my art friends, we spent part of our time exploring the ideas :
What motivates you to paint?
Is art necessary for life?

As I drove home I saw this bumper sticker:

EARTH

Bridge at Giverny

I found two of my plein air pieces painted at Giverny. I thought they were all sold long ago but I just found these. They are in my Open Studio show, today and 10/17-18

Watch this space for photos of my Open Studio Show. Still getting it ready.

Or come see it. I'll be open from 10 to 5 both weekends, 10/11 and 17/18. And I'll be making new paintings most of that time. Some people come by more than once to see how the paintings are coming along.

Portrait scheduled for Sat morning: Vicki Rohner
And for Sat morning 10/17: James Lusk

Ramping up for Open Studios

I'm swamped with preparations for our Open Studios show this weekend and next. Preparing pictures, preparing the studio, meeting with student intern, generally making ready. I love this event. I love the energy of art lovers pouring into my studio and giving me feedback about my work. I love interacting directly with folks rather then thru the screen of the gallery world.

Getting to know blogging.

A portrait showing the person in my cat

After resisting blogging for many years, I realize this is the venue for me. Painting, talking, teaching, listening are all favorites of mine. Here they all are, in abundance. Maybe it was the abundance that scared me.

Beginning as I mean to go forward, I expect to reveal my hopes, fears, and various attitudes, just as I do in my work.