Snow - Painting in the Car.

Abstract. Sketch of snow shapes

and dark area relationships

6x8in  watercolor on paper 

We could not drive as fast (poor hubby)

on the return trip due to snowy road conditions.

It gave me time to really look at the color 

relationships for a gray day in snow and tree patterns.

Subdued color in the shade still 

vibrated gently against  the snow

tree branches -  using a rigger brush.

Trying to get the feeling of 

multiple branches and values.

Fall colors still around, here and there.

I loved the color of these weeds

I have started a new 

painting  - a snow scene

I felt more comfortable with it because I had 

just experienced doing the studies in the car.

I will show it on my next post.

I wish Happy New Year to you all.

I will be so glad to see this year end. 

One of the worst in my life! 

How I kept painting I do not know. 

At the same time, I recognize the full value

of "carrying on." The discipline of 

daily painting is to be respected

 even when not much creativity 

enters the stress filled mind.

The power of prayer can never 

be underestimated and the strength

that comes through it.

To my community of blogger friends, 

I thank you for the year of 

friendship and support.

A life saver!

Onward to a healthy, happy 2015 for us all.

Painting in the Car - Tips.

A Decorated Nest

6x6in Casein. Gifted.

My daughter gave me this nest earlier this year.

The bright blue coated wire,

woven into the nest, had caught 

her eye as she was doing yard work.

 I have been wanting to paint it so

 I took it on the trip to paint when we drove 

through a long, boring area.

Before this happens though we go 

thru a really beautiful area called the Hondo Valley.

Some of the Wyeth Family 

have lived and painted there.

My goal, as I pass through, is to capture

shapes and colors only. It is impossible 

to get a finished painting, but easy

to look ahead and gather enough

info to maybe use in the studio. 

Besides...time flies by when I am painting!

On the way there...

snow on way back...

Looking ahead gave me time to get basic 

shapes quickly blocked in.

When we got closer I could see tree shapes

and I scrubbed those in as we whizzed 

past at over 75mph. 

(Memory painting becomes important 

when my hubby is at the wheel!)

I found a wonderful water holder which does 

not splash around during bumpy areas.

The lids are attached (bliss) 

It has two chambers - quite marvelous!

And the lid allows the inevitable

sloshing around without spills.

It fits in the pochade box below.

(See the nest peeking at the side.)

the watercolor container

see HERE

This box is a treasure for travel.

see HERE

mine holds a 6x8 board but different sizes

are available.
Shown is a sable travel brush
(with a metal handle)
I rest the box a lap tray. One of those with a
cushion on one side. Comfy and stays put.

I will show the snow study in the next post.

Callas At Christmas

Callas for Christmas

6x8in oil on canvas $125. SOLD

Artist Note.

Such a busy time of year.

This will most likely be my last post

until after Christmas.

Is it too much to hope for 

Peace in the World?

Wherever you live -

 I know we must all wish for it.

I thank our military, and their families

who sacrifice for this ultimate goal.

May everyone's 

Christmas or Holiday

 be full of joy and love for 

those we care for, as well as those who 

now are only memories in our hearts.

Be safe, be warm and be at peace.

Blessings!

What a Difference a Day Makes

Santa Fe Arroyo - Snow

14x11"  oil on canvas  framed

M.Phillips Gallery

What a difference a day makes.

This is the same arroyo and 

Pinion tree as previous post.

One moment, the day is sunny with 

temperatures in the 60's

and the next day ...snow!

The beauty of this area

is when the storm passes...

 out comes the sun again!

Artist Note

Obviously, this view is painted from

the other side of the pinion from 

the previous post and this time

is facing the hills of Santa Fe. 

I only did a few color notes on the canvas

and took photos because 

although it was sunny, my feet

got darn cold!

I am never a happy Julie with cold anything!

Santa Fe Arroyo

Santa Fe Arroyo

9x12in oil on canvas panel
M.Phillips Gallery  SOLD

Artist Note.

I love this spot and have painted 

it many times in all types of weather. 

 The far mountain range,  

named the Jemez Mountains,
(pronounced Hay-mez) 

and over 11,500' high,
is also where Los Alamos Laboratories
are located.
From this spot the Jemez range
can appear almost a cerulean blue 

under certain light conditions.

 With snow it is extra stunning.

Scurrying Clouds

Scurrying Clouds, NM
6x8in oil on canvas panel $125. SOLD
To Purchase  click HERE

If you like lots of green trees then
this is not the view for you.
Personally, I find I love
the long view...
where trees do not block the view.

Artist Note.
I used an angle
brush to form my basic shapes
of color
moving into palette knife work
to add texture for an interesting
surface.

Calla Lily Study

Calla Study

12x9in oil on linen  Sold

I took some of the calla lilies out of the 

previous rose and lily bouquet 

to do a separate study. 

This one was done on

a sheet of Senso - a wonderful, 

clear primed linen -  

leaving the natural color as 

part of the background. 

Artist Note

When I do a study using "paint",

I quickly try to

grasp the essential essence 

of my personal response to 

what I am 

feeling 

as well as what 

I am seeing. 

If I am tackling 

a brand new subject,

I like to do a detailed 

exploration where

I  start with a tight 

and accurate drawing. 

I have many, many 

calla lily drawings.

Love their grace.

Callas and Roses - Correction Made

Roses and Callas

12x9 watercolor on Yupo paper

Artist Note.

It was good to read all the positive 

comments on my last post

and I thank you for them.

I agree and do believe that there 

may have been more 

energy it that version, but once I saw 

something 

I did not like, I had to make the change.

Culprits... the two

facing callas, left and right,

I thought of "horns" when I finally "saw" them

(see below)

To make the change I became cautious.

I painted some paper I matched with 

the general background

 color and hovered over the two shapes

to decide which one I would change.

The dominant right one had to go

.

Hats off to clever Sea Dean who 

spotted my  problem with the first

version. Sea put it this way

" PS I bet it's the clone Callas left and right,

 but sometimes these aberrations are what gives

 the painting it's quirkiness and prevent the

chocolate box effect. 

That's where artistic license comes in.

Excellent -  Now I have to figure out

if they are  too chocolate boxy 

Any thoughts anyone?

Check out Sea Dean on DPW

Precious Flower Gift

Roses and Callas

12x10 watercolor on Yupo paper

not quite finished...

I had a birthday recently and my daughter

and her hubby sent flowers - 

gorgeous flowers. 

(She knows what I like to paint.)

Thanks a bunch, Rainy and Eric.

I had a wonderful time looking, and painting.

Artist Note

I thought this was finished, but,

sigh... I just noticed something 

 I have to fix. 

Put it up on the screen,

 and something not right, jumps right out.

Frustrating, but very helpful.

Does this happen to anyone else?

A Thank You Bird

Watching

6x6in  watercolor on paper
Gift

What do I paint for someone who loves realism?
Why, something I love to paint, of course,
 but with more detail than usual.
A month or so ago
a friend's husband went WAY out of his way
when I was experiencing a rather painful
situation, and he donned a Knight's
attire and rode to my rescue.
Bless you, Wiley, and thank you.

Artist Note.
My hijacked email account was apparently
one which has been around
a while. It made me very upset and hope
everyone changed their password
IF
they opened it.
Thank you to those of you who quickly
let me know about how to deal with it.
It was my first experience with one.

A friend expressed the desire to
super glue together
the fingers of the hacker. 
Loved that thought!

Ancient Pitcher at Thanksgiving

Ancient Pitcher with Pomegranates 

12x9in oil on canvas  $700. framed On HOLD

For sale in M.Phillips Fine Art Gallery


Happy Thanksgiving to all.
May your day be filled with Love
and many blessings for which to be grateful.

I truly am grateful for all of YOU!

Watercolor - Pansy Study

Pansy Study

8x7in watercolor on Yupo paper NFS

Artist Note

I have been trying to figure out how to do '

the pansies on this slick Yupo paper. 

For those of you who do not know what it is like,  

visualize a thin sheet of smooth,

white, flexible plastic. 

The stuff is great for abstract and 

non-representational art because 

the paint floats on the surface. 

The mingling of colors happens beautifully.

Flat areas are quite doable and 

 neat edges are formed where a puddle ends, 

but try to do a more impressionistic style 

of layering and it looks pretty messy 

right off the bat because

the darn paint lifts off when you don't want it to.

BUT 

that is also exactly the beauty of using it

...to be able to lift the paint cleanly off 

to get back to the white.

Here I slightly stained everywhere but 

the main white pansy first and lifted off 

smaller white areas - trying make sure 

that nothing 

competed with the focal pansy.

Anyone with any hints out there?

Pansy Pleasure... continued

Pansy Pleasures - continued

8x6' oil on canvas  Sold..

What's not to like about pansies? 

They are sturdy, colorful and

have a happy face. Best of all 

they provide visual pleasure

throughout the winter months. 

Artist Note.

One of the advantages I find by 

using the Fracturing technique

is the ability to suggest something by color, 

without rendering it perfectly.

In this case, I first painted the focal point 

with the correct form of a pansy.

Once this had been established I could 

then make any shape, and as

long as I repeated a color or used 

the very distinctive yellow center,

it would read as a pansy.

Here is a close up to show you how abstract 

the one above and next to the focal pansy is.

The mind makes it a pansy 

because it is next to a pansy of 

the same color.

Also the little touch of a yellow center 

is code for pansy.

I am experimenting with painting the pansies

in watercolor on Yupo and regular paper. FUN.

but hard to get what I want. 

P.S.

This is a repeat of a post I did back 

a couple of years ago. I am busy wrapping up 

the classes for the year, One more week!

Pansy Pleasure

Pansies and Purple

6x8in oil on canvas SOLD

The colder weather means the pansies 

can now be planted.

My friend Sharon has a lovely new

area of them, bringing a bit of sunshine

warmth to a cold day.

Artist Note.

I am posting an old painting at top.

One I really like. 

I am going to try one in watercolor 

and use it as a reference.

Stay tuned...

VINCENT VAN GOGH'S PETS!

Vincent's Pets

8x8 gallery wrap SOLD

What could be more fun than to know that 

Vincent took his pets along to watch him 

paint Starry Night!

Artist Note

This is for a fundraiser to support the 

Humane Society here in Las Cruces, NM.

Lots of wonderful paintings will be sold

at Unsettled Gallery

Click on link to see the full exhibit.

Maybe you will see something you would 

enjoy owning at a very reasonable price.

Dryer Lint Nest.

Dryer Lint Nest

6x7" watercolor on Yupo
Sold

I was given this wonderful nest last week.
The eggs were still in there - never hatched.
Lots of dryer lint was attached by strands
of horse tail hair and stuffed between twigs.
Quite amazing how those birds are such
good engineers...
BUT
they do not know dryer lint is bad for
them if they use it.

Chemicals 
From the soap and dryer sheets.
Dust
Dry, loose lint causes respiratory problems.
Scent
Attracts predators right to a vulnerable nest

There are other serious problems too,
 but the thing I hope to pass on
 is not to put dryer lint out for
the birds during the nesting season.
I used to, but not anymore.

There had to be a reason these eggs
did not hatch.

Grateful Thanks

Veteran's Day/Remembrance Day

 6x8" watercolor on paper. NFS

This is truly the National Holiday

which effects us all. 

I am grateful for the freedom we enjoy,

but brought at such a cost. 

With great respect

I honor and thank the living military and 

 and give thanks to all those families 

who make the sacrifice and especially

those who have lost their loved ones.

Proudly a US citizen,

originally from England (a long time ago)

and have watched the 

ceremonies from London...a day ahead because 

of the time difference. It is called

Remembrance Day there and everyone 

wears a poppy. 

For Great Britain, it is 100 years ago

that World War 1 started.

A small but valiant island.

Helped to survive by a strong and 

loyal ally - the USA.

Fall at Ghost Ranch, NM

Fall at Ghost Ranch

10x12"

Oil on crappy paper

NFS

The cottonwood trees turn a brilliant gold 

in the fall and when the sun illuminates 

them they look like 

they are alight with flames. 

Artist Note.

This was a demo of painting trees with

a palette knife.

Underneath was first done with transparent washes 

applied with a fan brush using the 

chisel motion shown in my utube short tutorial

 - link below.

fan brush technique

Starting this way gave the edges of the 

trees a more natural shape by blending

effortlessly into the other colors/values 

around them.

Late Summer in Santa Fe

Late Summer in Santa Fe, NM.

6x6in oil on canvas panel  SOLD


Late summer walks along on Canyon Road
cannot be beat. This was on a side street and
the light fixture caught my eye.

Artist Note

A neat couple saw this painting and liked it.

 We started to chat and I enjoyed some interesting

conversation before they returned another time

to buy it.

I really appreciate getting to 

know people through my paintings.

For a start, it has occurred  to me that we must 

share a liking for similar places
and types of beauty.

Computer fixed. What a pain when
they misbehave.

Carol Marine's Masterpiece of a Book!

Zinnias and Marigolds

6x8in oil on canvas 

2012

Sold

(See at bottom for a video flip-through of 

Carol Marines new book)

This painting

is the one Carol selected to be included

 in the chapter on Subject Matter.

I share the page with Raymond Logan. 

A very accomplished painter 

and across is a full page stunner from the talented 

Kara K Bigda

The book is on sale thu  Amazon before Nov 4th for 

$14.99. Afterwards it will be $22.

I predict it will be a long time BEST SELLER!

Below is a short video of a flip-through I made giving

you the idea of how many visual treats and 

written gems of information

are amongst its pages.

click below to see

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZC2mG0Xod4E

Late Afternoon Sun

Late Afternoon Sun

6x8in oil on canvas panel   SOLD

The sun is going down earlier and appears 

even richer in color as it casts 

its golden glow on the fall foliage.

Artist Note.

Another adobe where it appears 

they added on as the family grew.

The old adobe houses are so small
by today's standards,

but they certainly managed,
sharing one bathroom
and even their beds, and grew up

 becoming what has been called, 

The Greatest Generation.

My daughter is once again posting 

for me. My computer is in the shop.

I will be back posting when I get it back.

Santa Fe - Pink Adobe

Santa Fe Adobe

6"x 8"

oil on canvas panel  $130.

After all the previous "abstract" landscapes 

here is a direct painting

of a pink adobe house.

I love this particular house 

and have painted it several times!

Artist Note

I  have been having major computer problems

and my daughter is posting this one for me.

Thank you, sweet Rainy! 

Another thank you for

everyone's visits 

and comments.

Organ Mountain Sunrise

Organ Mountain Sunrise

6x8in oil on canvas panel  $125. SOLD

Artist Note.

This is a "site specific" landscape.
The Rio Grande with the Organ Mountains
in the distance.
The Organ mountains are the
jewel of the southernmost part
of the Rockies and are 9,000 ft high.

I cannot fudge and be my own landscaping
company with this one.
This is the only place where the river
bends to have the mountains as a backdrop,
otherwise, it always runs parallel.
After painting the previous two landscapes
in an abstract manner, and having leeway to
place masses for design impact -
I had to stay true with this one.
Fortunately, it is a view I love to paint. 

Approaching Storm - New Mexico

Approaching Storm - New Mexico

8x8in Oil on canvas panel SOLD

Artist Note.

Mission:

Create a sense of place without detail

using simple abstract shapes, and color.

Both the previous post and this one 

were self-assigned 

exercises to help me explore the relationship

of warm color 

in both receding and frontal space.

Sunset Reflections

Sunset Reflections

 8x8in oil on canvas panel  SOLD

The Rio Grande River is the main source of water 

for the beautiful Mesilla Valley, NM, where I live.

Many irrigation ditches divert the water to

the small farms which grow

chilies, onions, cotton, pecans, 

corn and yes...even wine.

The sunsets here are gorgeous, making even the 

oldest farms beautiful in their glow.

Artist Note.

Mission:

Create a sense of place without detail.

 Simple, abstract shapes and color

were formed using palette knife and brush.

Waterfall and Demo

Waterfall

8x6in oil on canvas

work in process

Artist Note.

Working from a gesso mono print

and using the imagination.

First Step.

 See video showing 

HOW TO 

I started with a gesso mono print made by

using both black and white gesso.

I used a Raymar canvas board to press into 

the black and white gesso mixture. 

Paper does a fine job also.

I lifted it off and turned the board and 

pressed down again leaving the above image.

Using my imagination I looked for shapes 

I could already "see"  a subject forming from.

There it was...

The angle of gray running across made 

me think of water and rocks.

The texture made from the gesso was great.

I used transparent colors to test out 

the imagery and I could have painted the

whole painting this way if I wanted to. 

Building layers of glazes and scumbling

in some areas.

This is where the individual's own response 

has to be listened to. I decided to go into 

it with the palette knife...and had a heck of a 

lot of fun. In fact I am still nibbling at it.

The role of imagination in painting is not necessary

to be a good painter. 

In my opinion, it IS a necessary exercise to explore

everything you can to find out if that little voice

inside responds with pleasure - or not!

A multitude of pleasures eventually becomes our

own distinctive style.

To see a sample using paper from my 

September 27th post of this technique

HERE

New Mexico Window

New Mexico Window

51/2in x 8in watercolor on Yupo paper  SOLD

New Mexico windows  and doors
have been a favorite theme for me.
This window is a new find.

Artist Note
I consider door and windows almost
like a still life within the landscape.
The light may change, but not that quickly
and being able to
get close up to study them is a real pleasure.

A Thank You

This was my third Challenge and this time

I knew enough not to have a 30 day 

theme, but allowed myself to change my 

subject and 

media to suit my inspiration. 

The best part was finding the work 

of accomplished artists

whose art inspired me. 

With so many participating it 

was pretty well impossible to get around 

to leave a comment

 as well as

completing a painting 

AND 

working.

The good news is they stay on Leslie's blog forever 

so I will have plenty of time to catch up.

I loved the map Leslie had on her page for 

registration and finding 

where many of the participating 

artists lived. Neat!

I also want to thank all of you who 

visited with words of encouragement.

I swear I have the BEST, smartest

and friendliest artists who take 

the time to visit and comment.

P.S.

A minor bit of surgery hindered my 

final few days of the Challenge

and completing the requested collage 

of all 30 paintings

would have polished me off

completely.

Side Entry Nest - day 30 in the challenge

Side Entry Nest

11x9" watercolor on Yupo Paper NFS

Day 30

Artist Note.

A friend gave me this wonderful

nest recently.  

He knew that the nest was no 

longer occupied and he thoughtfully

included the tree branches which 

supported it rather than

destroy it's structure.

I love the "side entry" type nest, but this one 

tragically came with two tiny

skeletons in the interior.

Unanswered questions.

Were they too large to have

been recently hatched?

Or were they the parents?

I will be very respectful 

in my handling of them 

and their lovingly made home

If you can use your imagination

 there are two leaves up on the right

near the opening which I painted to 

form an abstract shape suggesting

a bird flying towards it.

This is the last painting

for the challenge.

I will do a wrap up of my experience 

tomorrow.