This little darlin' is finally finished and ready to ship to Myrtle Beach SC! This is one cute baby and I loved painting her!
I hope her momma enjoys this special piece for many years to come! Art is meant to be kept forever!
Soon I will be working on a painting for the winner of my recent photo contest. I really want it to be great. So stay tuned and see if I succeed!
The beautiful Amaryllis bulb I planted for some winter floral inspiration took it's sweet time about actually blooming. Although I followed the directions and even planted it well before the holidays a Christmas blossom just was not to be.
The going or should I say GROWING was slow. Before Christmas I posted an update excited that it appeared I would indeed have a blossom by Christmas. My glee was premature and I was soon to be acquainted with an acute case of frustration. The dang thing didn't bloom until New Year's day! Then it has taken another 8 full days for the rest of the blossoms on the stalk to open.
There are four blossoms in all, each one pink, perfect and beautiful. They are definitely floral inspiration for my painting! I guess in reality they bloomed at a perfect time. While this Polar Vortex is freezing me here in SC, I can be distracted by something lovely and daydream of the promise of spring.
Each year I carefully unpack my Christmas ornaments and distant memories stir as I free little treasures from tissue paper wrappings. This year, among the crumpled paper, bits of tinsel and glitter, I found three ornaments from my childhood.
Not just any time of my childhood but the happiest time. A time when my family consisted of just me, my mom and two sisters. We lived in a tiny single wide trailer perched precariously on the side of a hill in Kentucky. It wasn't much but it was the best my mom could provide. Back in the 60's being a single woman living alone with her three kids was not easy but she made do.
Christmas was my mom's favorite time of the year. She would get a real tree and drag it into our tiny trailer filling it with wonderful evergreen scent. Christmas had arrived! Invariably the tree would be too tall or wide. This situation was the perfect opportunity for me to add new "ugly words" to my "list of words not allowed to say" courtesy of my mother's frustration with trimming the tree to fit in the trailer. She had quite the colorful vocabulary back then.
Then the decorating would begin! We draped the branches with huge colorful lights large enough to land airplanes. Ropes of fluffy silver garland wrapped the tree and ornaments made of colorful glass decorated with glitter and paint adorned the branch tips. I thought those ornaments were the most beautiful exotic things ever!
I loved sitting by the tree engulfed in the fresh evergreen scent, basking in the glow of the colorful lights and staring at the beautiful jewel like ornaments. The way the light bounced and reflected from them mesmerized me. The bright cheerful colors made me forget, just for a time, the daily struggles our little family faced. I coveted those round glass globes. They were magic.
Time marched on and things inevitably changed. My mom married a soldier and we moved to North Carolina far from our little trailer on the hill. Later my parents bought a "real" house and our real Christmas tree was replaced by a hard stiff plastic tree that didn't smell like anything natural. The lights became tiny twinkle lights and the glass ornaments replaced by plastic.
Somehow, along the way, I managed to save three of those special jewels from my childhood. These days their colors aren't as bright, painted designs are scratched and faded, the glitter fallen away. But the sweet warm memories of a Christmas long past still glow bright in the reflections of my childhood treasures.
Awhile back I wrote about growing an Amaryllis for Christmas. I intend to use it as a model for a floral painting. You can read the original post here.
I am happy to report both are doing well but growing at a very uneven rate. One may be a Christmas flower and the other may hold out until New Years.
I have staked one and I turn it daily. The stalks have tendency to grow toward the sun so it is a good idea to turn them daily to keep them growing straight and tall.
So this is where I am starting today. I have masked out the areas I want to stay white. The shiny spots on the painting are where the masking fluid has been applied. My fist layer is down and dry.
I have to say the weather is not cooperating with me. It is wet and rainy causing my paint to take forever to dry. Some people use a hair dryer to hurry the process. I don't. The reason is, drying it with a blow dryer can cause the wash to look flat. For me that takes away from the natural quality of the pigments to have variations in tone throughout the wash. I know some watercolorists want that flat even wash of color. I don't. Neither way is wrong, just personal preference.
First thing I do is put a wash of Burnt Sienna for the eyes. Then start adding individual brush strokes with a mix of Antrhoquinone Blue, Indgo and Burnt Umber where my darkest shadows will be in the finished painting. I use a Loew-Cornell Ultra Round #4. These individual brush strokes will have the appearance of fur once I layer more washes over them.
The eyelid casts a shadow on the eye and I indicate that with another layer of the same color to darken the area under the lid.
The nostrils and inner lip have some touches of pink, so I mix a small amount of Alizarin Crimson and just a touch of Indigo for those areas. You can see the liquid frisket where I want my highlights to remain. I decided to remove the liquid frisket. I use a crepe rubber eraser to remove the mask. At this point I will be able to paint carefully enough to keep my highlights.
The ball is painted with a mix of Sap Green, Cadmium Yellow Light and Neutral Tint. I also started darkening the background to have something to start comparing against my lights and darks in the dog's fur. I wet the background and dropped in Burnt Umber, Burnt Sienna and Indigo. Cadmium Red painted on the edge of the collar and then a a brush with clear water brushed on the edge of the color to make it bleed to the center. These layers will need to dry before I can go to the next layer of washes...so stay tuned for part 3!
There are many reasons people want portraits of their pet. The pet may be a senior and the pet parent wants to capture a lasting image of their beloved family member with something other than a photo. Some people have pets that have already crossed the Rainbow Bridge but still occupy a special place in their heart and want to have a one of a kind reminder of their loved one. Others have show dogs and want a painting of their champion. No matter the reason for the commission, I generally go about the process the same way.
First I get reference photos from the pet parent and find out a little about the pet. Usually the pet parents have an idea of a favorite pose they want.
I use 300 lb Arches Cold Pressed paper for my watercolors. It is heavy enough that it doesn't require stretching. I stretch mine anyway.
To stretch my paper, I wet it on both sides and then staple it to a board. I then let it dry flat and it's ready to go!
TIP: Don't dry your paper with the board leaning against an object. Make sure it is on a flat surface or you may get buckles in your paper.
Next I sketch using the images I have collected from the pet's parents.
I used these three photos for the sketch. I used the far right pic for the overall look on the Lab's face but I liked the way he was holding the tennis ball in the middle pic. So I placed the ball in the position of the middle pic. I used the far right pic just as a reference for overall head shape since the Lab's head is not shown in full view on the other two pics.
Then I transfer my sketch to the watercolor paper using graphite paper.
TIP: Use a kneaded eraser to lighten the drawing if you have pressed too hard on the paper. You don't want a lot of dark lines showing through your finished painting.
In my sketch I try to outline the shapes of the light and dark areas. I tend not to see the dog in it's entirety. Instead my brain breaks the dog down into simple shapes, created by the light and dark areas. These shapes are what I focus on, not the actual dog.
For example, in this sketch you can see I did not draw the Lab's nose as you might think it looks, I drew the shapes of the light and dark areas that make up the nose.
Once I get the sketch down I apply liquid frisket to mask the areas I want to remain white. I just use a simple wooden skewer to apply the mask. You know, one of those deals used in cooking. Then I let the mask dry.
TIP:Let the liquid frisket dry thoroughly before you begin painting. You do not want the masking fluid on your brushes. It will ruin them. NEVER use a good brush to apply masking fluid
Next I decide what colors to use. Since this is a black lab, blue will be my base color. I am using M.Graham Anthraquinone Blue mixed with a small amount of Burnt Umber and Alizarin Crimson. This is what will be my initial under painting.
For my under painting, I paint what will eventually the darkest areas first. I use a glazing technique which builds color from light to dark. Each layer must dry thoroughly before I apply the next layer. Each layer has to be applied with very careful strokes as not to destroy the bottom layer and create mud on the paper.
I then decide what color I will use in my background. I tend to like complementary colors. the complement of blue is orange. I am not going to use a true orange in the background but a color with orange tones. I chose Burnt Sienna and painted a light wash for the back ground.
TIP: Use some of the color of the main subject in the background to unify the painting and also use some of the background color in the subject.
I have dropped some of the blue mixture of the Lab's coat into the background and pulled some background color into the Lab's coat.
Now to let it dry thoroughly before starting the next layers....Stay Tuned for Part 2!
Yes Yes Yes! It is getting closer to Christmas each passing day! I love Christmas. I love everything about it but I especially love traditions. One of my favorite traditions is planting Amaryllis bulbs before Thanksgiving to get beautiful flowers by Christmas! Amaryllis have big beautiful blooms that make wonderful subjects for painting. So for all you floral painters, inspiration could be just a bulb away!
You can buy Amaryllis bulbs at almost any big box discount store and some home improvement stores carry them during the holiday season. They come in a variety of colors, mostly red, shades of pink and white.
Make sure to purchase a bulb that is firm without any soft or visibly rotten areas. The roots should be thick and fleshy and often the top will have some green or new growth just beginning.
Planting is easy. You need:
Once you gather these things, plant the bulb, roots down in potting soil just up to the neck of the bulb and water. I place stakes now before it starts to sprout to avoid possibly breaking the stalk trying to place them after it sprouts. Make sure to plant it in a substantial pot because once it blooms it will be top heavy and prone to tipping over.
Now just place the bulb in bright light and water regularly. Don't over water because the bulb may rot. In about a week the flower stalk will start pushing up through the top of the bulb and eventually thick strap like leaves will appear. In about 4-6 weeks, you will have a beautiful huge Amaryllis flower. Here are some of my past blooms:
Once your amaryllis has bloomed you can plant it outside in the spring. It will bloom in your garden the following year, usually in early spring. For more information on growing them in your garden click here.
Not only do Amaryllis make great subjects for painting, they also make great gifts. Just put together a nice big healthy bulb, a beautiful container and instructions on planting and care and you have a great gift to give the plant lover in your life. Or artist.
This is an old sketch but this year you can bet I will be inspired to do a full blown painting. Stay tuned.
Looks like Lindsey is getting in the Christmas spirit!
I love painting animals, cherished pets specifically. Here are a few for you to enjoy!
Bulldogs have to be my favorite subject to paint. How can anyone resist those wrinkles and dark soulful eyes! My youngest puppy's favorite games were to either pin the other dogs down or sit on their heads! Well she still tries to sit on their heads if they have a toy she wants. But at 60+ pounds she is far from a puppy now!
When I first started painting, the first thing my instructors told me was to paint what you love and know. I have taken that to heart. When I am painting for myself, I always paint things very near and dear to me. When I am painting for others, I try to make a personal connection to either the client or the subject they are requesting me to paint. That way it becomes "personal" for me.
Your personal paintings should always have some meaning for you or a connection otherwise you just won't do your best work.
I was recently in a painting class and we all painted the same subjects. I noticed when I painted subjects I didn't have a connection to, the painting failed miserably, but the things I wanted to paint came out beautifully.
I am very bossy about my personal art and the ability to create because it is the one thing that is completely mine and no one can take from me except God. It belongs to me and I treasure it.
So when you make art, choose subjects you love and what is meaningful to you. Treasure your gift of creation and don't compromise.
Wow, talk about going back, waaay back. I made this little gem way back in high school round about 1984. Don't laugh. It won over all the other high school entries in North Carolina's 7th Congressional district and hung in the Hall of Congress in Washington D.C. for a year. I even have a fancy certificate with Charlie Rose's signature and all. He happened to be the Congressional representative for the 7th district during that time. His district stretched from my hometown of Fayetteville NC to the coastal town of Wilmington NC. I cherish that certificate to this day.
I keep this piece as a reminder of my journey. At the time I created this, I was an awkward 17 year old in a star crossed relationship doomed to failure. I had an aloof mother and lecherous step-father. Life sucked and I was completely insecure. My insecurity fed a jealous streak that bordered on maniacal and caused constant friction in my relationships. That jealous streak was what I was trying to express in this work. I felt out of control and, much like this drawing, I viewed myself as a monster with too many demons swirling around me, my mouth covered in scales and unable to voice my heartaches, my forehead wrapped in bandages trying to cover my gaping emotional wounds.
Back then creating art was the only way I could express myself in a safe way.
Now I am all grown up, in a stable 21 year not-star-crossed marriage and I have plenty of self confidence. I have traveled a long and interesting path to get to the good place I now enjoy. I create art for entirely different reasons now, mostly to make myself happy and to make other people happy. I am proud I made it to this point in my life and finally left those demons behind.
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