Personal Art Blog

Sharing the lessons I teach at the Artist Guild and the personal discoveries in my art.

Friday, December 30, 2016

Hydrangeas

Hydrangeas
8x6in oil on canvas panel $140. SOLD


Artist Note
It is hard to believe
 another year has passed.

I am not making any 
New Years Resolutions 
as I am grateful for so many
aspects of my life.
I am learning to be a 
little more forgiving of 
my shortcomings. 
What a shame it 
has taken me so long
to get to understand that
just like my paintings,
some parts of me 
are better than others! 
 Also, I can correct, erase, 
and improve
when I can "see it."

I am truly grateful for all 
my blogging friends,
and to all the artists
who honor me 
by allowing me to be their mentor.
I love painting and teaching.
They both satisfy me on a deep
emotional level.
 I THANK YOU.

Wishing you all the 
very best for 2017.
...catch
these 
blessings 
and hug!

Friday, December 23, 2016

Tis The Season...


Wishing
for
PEACE
and JOY 
in your heart
during this very special season.

Blessings and thanks
for your 
wonderful support..

Julie

Tuesday, December 20, 2016

Moonrise - Ink On Copper.





Moonrise
6x20 in alcohol ink on copper SOLD

Artist Note.
These images are from 
my Avian November show
This one got lots of attention.
The copper gleams through 
and creates an inner light.
I really liked working on it.

As I mentioned 
in a previous post,
I pushed myself to try 
doing some creative work
for my avian series.
I KNOW
I was totally creative with 
the one below.
The nest is actually
made of rust...
the bottom of a rusty bucket.
I wanted to use the walls
of the bucket
for a different project so
gently tapped out the bottom 
and when it fell to the ground
I saw it shaped like a nest.
I treated the rust and mounted it after 
I had painted the background shapes.
  It looked like a nest to me, but I
felt I wanted to pop an egg in.
Painting the egg was the
hardest part. 
If it was wrong 
then there would be 
no way to correct it.

(click to enlarge)
Rusty Home
18x21' treated rust mounted on
black acid-free foam board
painted with acrylic.
below - close-up of rust piece.


I was pleased I could break 
out of my usual imagery.





Friday, December 16, 2016

Waiting - watercolor on Yupo


Hoping
(Window from Chimayo, New Mexico)
8x10in watercolor on Yupo  SOLD

Chimayo is famous for
El Santuario de Chimayo
and the documented healings
from the "sacred earth"
The link is worth the visit.

Artist Note.
Watercolor on Yupo
is pretty remarkable,
 allowing for stress-free
painting due to the
clean lifting ability

Different techniques
are fun to try...
like in the one below


Threesome
9x7  watercolor on Yupo  SOLD



Tuesday, December 13, 2016

Life Cycle


l
Life Cycle
13x10in mixed media on paper SOLD

Artist Note

Yes - a little different for me but
I did enjoy using acrylics
in this piece.
I love the colors of turquoise
and earth tones together.

My process...
after layering acrylic
colors and disturbing the surface
all over with the fracturing
technique,
I restored certain outlines
with
water-soluble artist's crayon.


I have been really busy.
I enjoyed a trip to
Art Basil
in Miami where I saw lots
of work, I wouldn't call art.

I also saw many brilliant 
paintings
which fed my soul.

I came back refreshed
and went right into
my fracturing workshop.
Lots of talented painters
with great attitudes.
They were all established
artists so a lot of good paintings
 came out of it.

It is always great for my moral
when I can help an artist
find a new direction to their
painting style. A great thing
about the fracturing technique
is you can use it a little or a lot.
It is really neat to see how
they adapt to their own
personal preferences.

Thank you for trusting
me to inspire you,
 Brenda, Kay, Carol,
Ana, Marilyn, Lindy and Candi.

Life is good.






Wednesday, November 23, 2016

Family Time


Family Time
11x15" Acrylic on paper SOLD


Wishing everyone a
Happy and Peaceful Thanksgiving.

Saturday, November 19, 2016

Bouquet of Yellow


Bouquet of Yellow
6x8in oil on canvas panel $140.
Purchase HERE

Artist Note.

It was fun to get back to the 
fracturing technique in oils.
I find that although I use the 
same technique in other mediums,
only the acrylic comes 
close to the same effect as oils.

Another from my avian show.



Waiting  13 x10"
acrylic SOLD

Quite a fun one to paint
pushing into the abstract.
I used the fracturing 
technique a lot
It doesn't really show,  
but first I wrote 
all over the white surface 
with my thoughts 
about the avian world 
and then painted over them.
Small areas of it
appear here and there.



Thursday, November 17, 2016

Sunny Lunchtime


Sunny Lunchtime

12x9in alcohol ink on yupo
Available HERE


Artist Note.
This one looks a bit like a batik
to me. I loved the way it 
turned out. 

The photo was taken in 
my daughter's garden where she 
had the tallest sunflowers
I have ever seen.

I did another watercolor 
on yupo with the same theme 
only it was a goldfinch
playing a camouflage game
with the sunflowers.


Monday, November 14, 2016

Edgar & Poe plus Nevermore!


 Edgar & Poe
10x8in acrylic on paper sold

Nevermore 
10x8in acrylic on paper sold

Lovebirds
11x14 acrylic/watercolor on paper sold

Artist Note
I really enjoyed doing these 
three pieces and am disappointed 
that the images do not show the 
mellow feeling of cohesiveness
I see/feel in them.

 These paintings were 
started as random 
mono-gesso prints
for a link to the process
if interested. 
The only difference
 is, I used paper 
instead of board

The emerging images I saw
in my magination
 came out of the three values,
(black to white)
and were already 
very much 
 like birds.

I used lighter colors to develop
the negative background 
with the ravens 
and darker tones
to bring out the white of
the doves.
  Creating the 
birds out of a messy
blob
was fun.

I made a stamp from 
corrugated board for the 
bottom areas of the 
two different raven pieces. 
I took some picture of ravens 
through
a picket fence once and 
that has stayed with me.

I developed the Lovebird nest
in  my usual way. Love the leaf
near the front!
The acrylic paint dries 
slower than the inks so some 
interesting mark making 
 and layering can go on.

Working on pieces 
which are not planned, but 
learning to respond to 
what I saw in my imagination,
added to the feelings of 
discovery and excitement
which are important to me...
especially when working 
on a large series. 
Prevents the sameness
- the security!


Thursday, November 10, 2016

Berry Picking - and other stuff


Berry Picking
13inx10in  Alcohol Ink on Yupo  SOLD


Artist Note
Painting a series allows an artist
to experiment freely with 
different media. The Alcohol Inks 
were a real adventure into
the unpredictable.
I enjoyed it.
I had 9 out of thirty paintings
done with the inks.

Below I am looking happy
that all the work was over
on the night of the opening.

My house became a real mess due 
to a knee injury which 
prevented easy access to the 
steps to my studio.
Guest room
and dining room below.
The kitchen table was worse
so no pic of that!



Invaluable lack of complaining 
and total support from hubby
earned him a few gold stars!

Life is getting back to normal.
Everything picked up and clean.
Daily painting has resumed.


Tuesday, November 8, 2016

Hummer


Hummer
Alcohol Ink on Copper
6x6in mounted on 8x8in and framed.

available HERE

It was great - the opening of my
solo show was the most fun one yet.
Lots of warm and friendly faces.
I had a great time.

Having a solo show takes a huge 
amount of work and I was 
pretty well shot by the time
it rolled around but two great
friends flew in and another
one drove in with food
and they made it a real party.
Hubby was delighted
and I am still Beaming!










Friday, September 23, 2016

Poms From A Friend.

Pomegranates
6"x 6" oil on canvas panel  $110. SOLD

Artist Note
I really do enjoy the 
pomegranate time of year.
These are in a glass bowl
in case you cannot figure
it out.
A fellow artist passed these 
on to me - thanks, Chris.

I apologize for not getting 
round to answering the 
comments on my previous post.
I truly appreciate them all,
but I am at the hair pulling stage
and berating myself for 
agreeing to do a solo show.
I know it is normal - 
well, for me anyway,
and, yes,  this too will pass,
but until it is all at the framers
and invitation done I 
am out of my 
comfort/ routine zone.

Wishing you all a wonderful
painting week.

Sunday, September 18, 2016

White Oleanders


Oleanders
6"x 8" 
oil on linen mounted on panel $140.
Purchase HERE

Artist Note.
We have a beautiful
large bush of these
blooming by the deck.

In this painting, I am trying
for a cooler palette.
I am usually drawn to
the warmer colors but
here I used
lavender and green
-a warm and cool
of each of them.


Monday, September 12, 2016

Lucky Me!






Lucky, lucky me!
 These are the
 four paintings
I have in
Exploring Color.
Click on link above to see a
short flip through.
I highly recommend this book.
Not because I am in it, 
but the information she
shares is invaluable 
for any artist working 
in any media.



Tuesday, September 6, 2016

Misty Morning


Misty Morning
6 x 6 inches oil on canvas panel 

Artist Note
I saw a photo of
this stunningly beautiful sunrise
shared on a friend's blog,
and asked for permission to use it
and LOVED painting it. 
Simple shapes and lovely harmony.
Thank you, dear Debbie.

I am busy painting for my 
solo show in early November.
Pressure is on because I
have to finish all the ones 
that need framing by October.

Between teaching and painting 
I have not had any time to visit,
but will get round to it tonight. 
Not complaining...just explaining!
I miss my routine of 
seeing what everyone is doing.

Wednesday, August 24, 2016

Yellow Roses and Split Complementary




Yellow Roses and Vase
8x6 inches oil on canvas panel $140.SOLD

Artist Note
Continuing the color harmony
focus at the Guild this month.

This Split Complementary
 color harmony is an unusual
one for me to try.
For a start it is a red/violet
and not a blue violet.
The wheel below is by
The Color Wheel Company.


I made a reminder of my 
warm violet mixture.
and decided to use a tube color.
See the top one below.



Below is the palette
for the painting
The larger amount of the red/violet
reminds me to have more of it than
any other color. I cooled it 
with the black.
I used both the 
complement - yellow
and the grey to neutralize it.
 -

Colors used are
Mauve  (Holbein)
Perm Yellow Light
Ivory Black 
Titanium White

One dominate color - meaning "more of"
is the key to all these harmony lessons.
I remember the wonderful artist/teacher,
Ovanes Berbarian, saying over 
and over again...
"ask yourself is it a 
A pink-y painting
a blue-y painting - a green-y painting!"
Then make sure that color dominates.

I used to think the accent color 
was the dominate color
because I would notice it first
Like the yellow rose here. 
It took Ovanes to 
put it in easy words 
for me to understand.
So this is a "mauve-y painting!"


Friday, August 19, 2016

Sunset On The Bay - Blue and Orange



Sunset On The Bay
6"x 6" oil on canvas panel $110.
Purchase HERE

Artist Note.
I am still following 
the Guild's class assignment
of different color harmonies
This one is the 
Complementary one
I chose blue and orange
for mine.
Titanium White was invaluable
with the orange mixture. 

I mixed a pile with just a wee
spot of orange and that became my white.
 Transp Brown Oxide 
( a deep burnt orange)
took down the orange into 
the rich tones before.adding blue
to darken 
I used a coral
orange which can bend 
to the pink tones with a blue gray.
I used both a warm and cool blue 

Nita Leland's book,
Confident Color
has been fabulous for helping 
me understand all the different
color harmonies. The good news is that
Nita has a brand new book out,
EXPLORING COLOR

I am excited to see it because her 
other books have been invaluable 
with helping me in so many ways.


 Hover over the North Light
block under the book and 
you will find a discount code.
She also has lots of free info 
and color charts to download.
A fabulous site!


Monday, August 15, 2016

A Floral and An Analogous Demo



Three Flowers
6"x 6" oil on canvas panel  $110  SOLD


Artist Note.
At the Artists Guild this month we are 
working on doing the basics 
for getting back in touch 
with the different
sets of color harmonies. 
After a two month break
 the basics 
are a fun way to start the flow.

  We started off with 
Monochromatic of course. Easy - one color
in all the right values and chroma.

Next
 the one below was a demo
for the Analogous harmony
choosing 
the run of the wheel from
from orange,
 to yellow to yellow green.

SOLD

Shown on my palette below are 
T White - Perm Yellow Lt - Orange - I Black
Pre-mixed before starting to colors 
shown below 
Important
Mix black with white to 
the correct VALUE before
adding it to the other lighter colors. 

The yellow and black
make the greens
The orange and black make browns.
Gray mixed from black and white
added in small proportions to the
colors makes many subtle
 mauve,
green,
pink,
 and bluish neutrals.

The top painting is done with
Yellow Light, Permanent Rose
(instead of the tube Orange)
It gave me a cool pink
as well as orange.
I also went into a touch of
Ultramarine Blue added to the Black
 to cool down the gray into a true
blue/gray
for warm/cool bounce.
The effect is brighter in
all the colors, but
 especially in the greens.

I know all of you reading this already
know all this stuff about color,
but when I was
painting for my show last month
I found lack of good color harmony
was the single main reason I
tossed and started again.
Have to remember
ONE
DOMINATE (more of)
COLOR.

Next - the Complements - a fav!

Wednesday, August 10, 2016

Watermelon and Cherries


Watermelon and Cherries
10"x10" oil on panel Gifted!

Artist Note.
This was started as a demo during the 
June workshop. 
I finished it a few weeks ago.
It is bright and cheerful and 
given as a wedding gift 
to a very dear friend's
granddaughter.

AND...
I did it!
I hibernated from all distractions
for over a month.
No visiting blogs or writing them.
I found I went thru 
major blogging withdrawals.
I went off social media, too,
and immersed myself into
painting for my November show.
I emerged with seven 
completed paintings from
48"x39" to 9"x12"
and 
several good starts.


I am now back in the classroom
and my busy, but stimulating
 life starts up again.
Can't wait to get around to
catch up on everyone's blogs.

Thanks for all the
encouraging comments on my last post.
You are great!

Sunday, July 3, 2016

Lilac Bouquet


Lilac Bouquet
8 x 6 in oil on canvas panel $150.
Purchase HERE

Artist Note.
When I was cleaning my studio 
I found this painting I had started, 
and never finished due to the
 lilacs wilting pretty fast.
I enjoyed finishing it using 
mostly the palette knife
and fracturing tool
.
I really like the colors.

Thanks for all the supportive 
and understanding replies
to my previous post.
Lots of great insights and sharing.
It is reassuring to find
that a messy studio
appears to be part of the 
job description for a lot 
of creative types.

Finally it is all clean 
and organized and
I am ready to start a marathon
painting binge 
to get paintings done for my
solo show in November. 
Classes resume in August 
so I have to really immerse
 into my own world
 for this month.

I am going to stay off all
blogging and social media 
after this post. 
I will be back 
visiting you all at the 
end of the month.
 I know 
I will go through withdrawals...
and miss visiting all your blogs.

Maybe I will not be able to 
stick to it,
but have to try.
.
Enjoy your July - be safe!






Friday, June 24, 2016

Tea Time


Tea Time
7x5 oil on canvas SOLD


Artist Note

This one is one I painted
way back in 2011.
I liked it then and I like it now.

Still cleaning up my
home studio
I have had such a lot
to do and so
have not painted.

I miss it.
And so yesterday
I started a new one,
but it is slow going
between making
decisions
like...if I should
save an item or let it go.

Brushes for example...
Now why 
did I hang on to them?

Anyone else a
 mega
studio clutter-er ?
Make me feel better 
if you would share.

Have a great weekend.

Friday, June 17, 2016

Peony Arrangement


Peony Arrangement
6x8in oil on canvas panel $140 SOLD


Artist Note.
The last of the peonies
until next year.
I watched a gardening program
about the peony losing favor in
British gardens and how
one woman is determined to
restore it popularity.
I hope she is successful.
They are so beautiful.

It is summer break and
yesterday I started to clean 
my home studio.
No easy task. I am messy.

My first job was rounding
up all the failures
to destroy with
black roof tar.
Nope - I am not allowed 
to burn trash in the city.

My dear hubby patiently wiped
tar on nearly 150 paintings today!
Three plus years worth of rejects.
I keep them thinking I can tweak
them to make them right,
but nothing is successful that way.

Why tar?
Non-removable that's why.
I actually have had people take
my paintings from the trash.


Now I disguise the trash bags 
with garden clippings

because if you look carefully
you can see the shapes 
of the canvases. 
We have professional 
trash hunters come round on
big trash day when the grappler
is due. 
Once bitten -  twice shy!

Happy Fathers Day 
to all the wonderful
men who take on that 
responsibility with 
love and pride.
Birth, adoption, 
and step fathers alike.
Our daughter is coming in
to be with her "Daddy" 


Monday, June 13, 2016

Watermelon Time.


Watermelon Time
8x6" oil on canvas panel SOLD

Artist Note.
This is a painting from my 
Farmers Market series I 
did back in
2013.
I still like it and as we 
are eating lots
of watermelons at 
the moment
I thought 
it was appropriate.

I finished the workshop 
last week. It was great
because all the artists
already had plenty of miles 
on their brushes 
and were eager to 
dive into a new technique.
Some stunning paintings 
were accomplished
- they took risks
and stepped out of 
their talented
comfort zones.

I thank them all for 
the trust and FUN!
I really enjoyed myself.









Sunday, June 5, 2016

Peonies


Peonies
6x8 in oil on canvas panel SOLD

Artist Note.
It has been a while since I posted.
End of semester - took a quick trip,
and lots of cleaning up to do. 
Also preparing for my workshop
which starts Tuesday. Again, lots to do.

I find it fun to prepare for 
 the workshops 
I provide all the different supports 
(six of them)
for the first day 
and we work like crazy
exploring each surface with the 
fracturing technique.
It is a good group of 
talented artists...
 all from different places.

The peonies are from a trip
to see my daughter over 
Memorial Day - she gets a gold star 
because back when she moved 
into this house
 she planted peonies just for me.

This was started plein air and 
completed in the studio. I
 painted early morning, 
and the cool sky really
was noticeable.

I find the
peonies are difficult to paint 
because it is too easy
to make them look like
 a cabbage rose. 
The peonies also droop with 
the weight  of the flower
and when standing like 
I do to paint, you tend to 
look down on them.

Not too bad if you squat down 
like I had to, to take this pic
just before we left.
(thanks heavens for yoga!)

I will look forward to getting 
back on track and catching up 
after the workshop.

Happy painting days!