Happy New Year!

 Mockingbird Pride

12"x12"

Artist Note

I am still working on this painting. 

Taking my time to think it out.

Tweak or not to tweak...

that is the question!

As the sun sets on 

2020

I  want to thank you 

for the support you gave me and my art

during this weird year. 

It has meant so much.

My painting habits have changed 

due to being at home with a

dear hubby - who is delighted to have

me around due to him being able to enjoy

regular meals served on time.

(I do not kid myself it is 

due to my scintillating personality!)

I have always worked and been a do-er

so learning to be idle has been quite a feat.

I miss teaching and the wonderful artists 

I was around. BUT... I am grateful to be healthy

and in a position where I can stay safe and

 thanking heavens for Walmart grocery pick-up.

I am also becoming a ping pong player!

Let me know how YOU have adapted

to the new routines 

with any helpful hints you may have.

 I want to wish you all

 a much better new year than this last

one has probably been.

May 2021 Bless YOU with 

Health, Joy and Peace

12"x12" oil on gallery wrap 

Pomegranate Duo

Pomegranate Duo

8x6" oil on raymar panel $150.

Purchase HERE

Artist Note

Every year I paint the pomegranates 

when in season. 

I got a call from a friend telling me 

her poms were gorgeous 

and she invited me over to paint.

It had been quite a while since I had painted 

so this was a real treat. 

Hope you are all surviving these

powerful and awful events...

Covid, the protests, the fires and hurricanes.

Who would have every thought it 

was all possible when

wishing everyone 

A Happy New Year...

Sheesh!

Please stay safe and sane.

Rushing Water

Rushing Water

6"x8" oil on panel $150
Purchase SOLD

Artist Note

When the guild classes were stopped 

in  March due to c-virus,

 I still owed the painters a lesson

so I gave some thought to what 

would be the most useful and guess what...

Absolutely...

Hands down...

THE Number one problem...

is watching artists

 trying to paint from a photo 

EXACTLY what  they see 

without doing a few 

The typical problems are 

VALUE

&

COMPOSITION

This is the original photo which I used for the painting.

As an Impressionist I had to add 

the colors I clearly remember seeing 

Water is full of colors

 in the sunshine and 

also reflects the sky. 

The dark values appear way too dark  

as we know shadows are transparent...

but notice how the tops of the rocks 

are not only competing with the value of the water

but tend to lead the eye out of the pic.

Below is how I check if the composition works.

I like to use 

"every quarter should be different" 

a very useful way to prevent matchy-matchy areas.

At the same time I mark off the center to help me 

remember to have a circle of the interest 

right in the middle. 

When I first became aware of art workshops 

in the 90's, I went to a 

few of the really good painters.

Ovanis Berbarian, for florals.

Dan Gerhart for figure.

Michael Lynch for landscapes.

plus

Richard Schmid, Burt Silverman - demos at ASL

They ALL said "paint what you SEE."

Trouble is... I didn't SEE what they did.

I had to learn.

But, hey, they too had to learn to "see."

I went back and found their early work 

and it was heartwarming to find

when they first started they made 

the same mistakes as all of us.

Time and learning are what make the difference.

Remember, shadows are transparent. 

If you are painting plein air 

you can see into the shadows very clearly

but a photo can make them way too dark.

Look above at original photo. 

I took this in Yellowstone

and I could see into those dark areas

and clearly "see' everything, 

all the bushes, stones and trees

surrounding this gushing stream. 

You cannot make any of those 

out in the photo

Sunsets are the worst offenders.

The ground is never as dark at sunset

as the photo makes them. 

I now take two pics - one of the sun setting 

and one of the ground. 

But logically, when you look how 

light the sky still is overhead, you know

it cannot be really dark on the ground.

The sky can look waaaay too dark 

in a poor photo. Usually it produces a

strong cyan blue - especially at the top, 

whereas it is actually

 more of a cobalt or ultramarine.

Take the photo to a window 

and look halfway up in the sky

to compare,

 and then down at the pic.

You will see it. 

The blue sky overhead is not what

you paint. 

Shadows are not the same gray 

over everything they travel.

A LIGHT COLOR IN SHADOW

BECOMES MORE OF A MIDDLE VALUE

A middle color value goes 

deeper in shadow BUT not as dark as

A DARK COLORS IN SHADOW 

The reverse is true in the light. 

BLACK MOVES TO A  MIDDLE VALUE

IN THE LIGHT and even lighter in some cases.

Remember the ABSENCE of light is the darkest

area. Underneath bushes, rocks or in still life 

it is the line you see under the object.

Strong sun bleaches out color.

If you cannot paint plein air

then the next best way is to paint from 

a monitor of some kind. 

Even then you sometimes have to lighten

the darks to see into them.

But if you have a stash of old pics

(like I do)

which inspire you to paint them 

then I hope these hints help.

If you are a decorative or abstract painter 

none of the above applies.

In my next post I will demo a abstract version.

Cheers everyone. Thank you for staying until the end.

Stay safe.

The Water Jug

The Water Jug

8"x10" oil on linen mounted on panel $225.

Purchase HERE

Artist Note

A cause for celebration....

I finished a painting without
scraping it off!

It has been a bummer of a summer 

as far as my painting block goes.
I tried all suggested solutions.

I have enjoyed a couple of trips and not 

having to be in my studio quite as early.
I guess it just takes time.

The 4 week online tutorial I paid so much for 

has not been staying on my computer. 

Cannot find the darned thing.

I have only done two segments 

and cannot get the other two.

The second segment is on automatic
writing/mark making.

That influenced some of the marks here.
I kept doing the spiral of  life
with the charcoal.

It is the first online I have ever done so 

maybe I am doing something wrong.

I am going to persist because I think it is well 

thought out and has been excellent in the 

first two segments.

Will let you know when I know.

I continue to post new and older works
on Instagram where my following
far exceeds Facebook.
Weird when it is the same paintings.
It is also far easier to be able
to reply to their comments
and that adds up - time wise.
My instagram is
juliefordoliverart.

I still post here first though.
Enjoy your week and thank you
for following my blog.

Pomegranate Pair.

Pomegranate Pair 

8”x6” oil on canvas panel $150.

PurchaseHERE

Artist Note

An artist friend gave me some

beautiful poms right off her tree. 

I have painted them in

three different sizes and 

this is the first one I finished.

A bright glowing red can be 

very difficult 

to paint. 

Adding white can cool it too much. 

I used 

Grumbacher Red (napathol)

Naples Yellow

Alizarin Perm. 

Thalo Blue

I used white to make a purple

from the aliz and blue. 

The greens were made with 

that wonderful 

Perylene Black and yellow. 

Transparent Brown Oxide

is always on my palette. 

I looked back at the poms 

I paint every year. 

These are the first 

I have done with them

hanging from their branch. 

I enjoyed having the leaves

to help with the design. 

I have made a little video

I will be showing soon. 

Learning to edit!

Santa Fe Adobe

Santa Fe Adobe

6"x8" oil on canvas panel  $150 SOLD

Artist Note.

Most of you know how much

I love living here in the southwest 

and this is the painting which

got me back into the flow

of painting again

after having cataracts removed.

I feel like a whole new person.

 I am enjoying seeing clearly.

Life is good

... but the painting part of my life

has only just starting to flow 

instead

of hit and miss.

I have completed

several paintings 

and I am going to 

show them first in my newsletter.

It has been sadly neglected

so I am hoping to make amends.

If you feel you would enjoy 

getting it about four times a year

you can sign up on my website 

using link below

Newsletter

Enjoy your week.

Maybe I will be back before then.

Poppy and Red

Poppy Red

6'x6' oil on Raymar panel 110.

SOLD

Artist Note

I have a new red tube of paint

I wanted to try out.
Holbein's Rose Dore

I thought it was a cool red.

Wrong!

Look below 

The swatches are of transparent reds.

I found

Rose Dore 

to be a beautiful transparent red.

All colors cool down adding white but the 

Rose Dore managed to stay warm

by comparison. 

I like it.

I will add it to my box for when 

I want a glowing, transparent underpainting

I went to the store and 

bought a beautiful red silk poppy 

and held it under a light.

It was fun to paint ...

and not so much fun to photograph.

It took as long to get the above image

closest to the real one as it did to paint it.

P.S.

House under contract again!

February 21st closing.

Fingers crossed. We really like

the family. A military family.

Blessings Are Everywhere.

Blessings Are Everywhere

watercolor on Yupo

Sold

First, let me wish you all 
a grateful and peaceful

Thanksgiving

Every 7 years it falls on my birthday

and this year is THE one.

My daughter will be doing the cooking!

Artist Note

I painted this one in the car going

to and from the dentist. 

A trip of an hour each way.

It was almost finished 

by the time I got home

(as you can see in the car photo.)

I spent another hour tweaking it

in the studio. 

I really, really like it,

partially because it is 

totally from my imagination.

Pulling on my memory of shapes

and movement of the birds, etc

It is larger than 

my usual daily paintings 

and when matted and framed

I hope it will continue to please me.

Steps

to start...

I deliberately used a staining blue

and took it right across

the page and then lifted it off leaving 

a light blue foundation.

Next, using a big brush I 

placed puddles of 

yellow pale

transparent orange oxide 

and transparent brown oxide

then fractured into them.

I lifted off the shaped of the birds 

with a paper towel and water.

I then began the details...

the fun part, but also what takes

the longest and is the most absorbing

with all the decisions to be made.

Pouncer ll - Fracturing Demo

Pouncer ll. Bird Watching
8x8in oil on Senso

Fracturing Technique - Step by Step.


Artist Note.

This is a re-post.
Some of you may not have seen it.
Swamped at the moment but hope
to paint tomorrow.

I have had so many requests for information on the fracturing technique
that I thought I would show some of the steps and tools I use.
I am using the natural linen SENSO. I buy it in pads which I tape
to foam core board. When it is dry I use YES paste
to glue it to a Masonite panel
Ampersand makes  boards in 6x8 in size.

 I drew this out with a mixture of
Ultramarine and Permanent Alizarin
using a script brush.

 Next, I placed quick brush marks
of bright, local color.

I made sure to go over the neighboring
edges in some places but not all.
Next, I used my handy tool to swish
 through some edges.
This part is where you allow your
own personal taste to guide you.

I hold the shaper at an angle and
VERY LIGHTLY  skim it over paint
to remove and randomly
break up areas .
Then I go back and reinstate.
Sometimes I fracture one layer
and others several times.
It all depends on how broken up
I want the image to be.

    This is a short handled, ANGLE brush.
    It is a marvelous brush for these
    small paintings.
    Using the edge, a straight line is easily
    made and I use the side to make
    multiple, different type marks.

 I make what I call "opposing strokes."
Shown here.
Make a stroke and then brush in the
opposite direction... and then again.
If you get into the habit of doing
this it will
prevent over blending and
keep your paint surface active.

MY SHAPER TOOL
If you click on the above it will
take you to DPW tutorial page where
I have a FREEBIE one for the tools I use
I also have a little video showing
 how I paint using the
fracturing technique.
(be sure to scroll down)
In the last two years, Catalyst has
come out with a whole line of shapers
so there is no need to make one.

I used a #2 round brush to do
the small areas to finishing up.
I check my center of interest
- the cats head- to make sure it
has not been fractured as much
as the other areas.



I hope that by showing my methods
and tools it will inspire some
of you to try some new method just for fun.
Let me know how it goes.

World Bank

Re-do

Farmers Market#15

9x8"

Artist Note.

I was honored by the World Bank Group

to be asked for another one of my 

Farmers Market series

to be used on the cover or their

Global Agriculture brochure.

BUT...

I had not taken a high enough 

resolution image.. RATS!

What a lesson...and a reminder

to ALWAYS take a 

proper image with my trusty Nikon

and not 

just the iphone one.

 I really wanted 

them to be able to use it so I 

painted it all over again. 

I found it is impossible 

to get exactly the 

same with the 

fracturing technique but similar 

colors and placements

turned out a decent copy.

Fortunately they liked it and 

I will have the pleasure of knowing 

my painting will grace the cover 

again in 2017

If you would like to see the first one

CLICK HERE

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!

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

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.

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!"

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!

Yellow Roses And 1,000 Posts

Yellow Rose #1

6"x 6" oil on canvas panel $110  SOLD

It is rose season.

I managed to get two paintings

completed before the petals fell.
Thank you for sharing your
beautiful roses, Joan.

Artist Note.

I am giving myself a
pat on the back today.
This is my 1,000 post.
I had a shock when I saw
it on the sidebar.
That's a big number!

Quite a while ago I went back
 and deleted some of the
images/posts I thought were
ones I wished I had not shown.
I had gone 488 days without
missing a post, and the
quality... or lack of it
was definitely noticeable,
 and that is
the double edged sword
of "daily painting" and
posting it.

Yes - it is a marvelous way
to improve the actual craft
of painting, but the
creative side does not always
shine through under
those circumstances.
Not for me anyway.

I started to understand
that I needed
to paint every day with
an explority curiosity.
"Good" paintings did not come
out of this, but being aware
of what I liked
 and didn't like 
sure did  - and that
helped me develop
my own style

 I maintain the habit
of painting or sketching daily
Some paintings are
 definitely better than others
..just like some days
are better than others!

The enjoyment for me
is always
with the immersion
into paint and process.

Please share with me what
makes you happy about painting.
The process or the results?

All MINE!

All MINE!

6x6in oil on canvas panel SOLD

Artist Note.

I may prefer to paint nests but

I have loads of bird pics

and sketches.

I find them totally fascinating

and can watch them for hours,

Anyone out there relate?

I find crows are great to paint 

and somewhat easier too

because of their strong

shape and color. 

This guy is scurrying 

away with his treasure

but, look who is watching him...

Yep, he didn't have it for long!

I have been trying to work 

on a painting of the

American Goldfinch 

I see at my feeders,

but the painting got 

looking too much 

like a greeting card.

Not what I wanted so I

kept scraping it off.

Got a great abstract 

out of it though!

I am going to keep trying.

All my 

American Goldfinch

disappeared overnight.

last weekend - it seems too soon.

(they only winter here)

Wouldn't you know it ...

they left the very day

after I paid big bucks for

a nice quality bag of

 Nyger seed.

sigh.

.

Yellow Roses & Fruit

Yellow Roses & Fruit

8x6in oil on canvas panel SOLD

Artist Note.

I loved painting this one

and am thrilled it turned out well.

The light was just right.

Yellow roses for 

Valentine Friendship

were a gift and I gathered 

the other items easily.

I am back

 to doing still life paintings,

and it feels very, very good.

I think they are my favorite

for a couple reasons...

I get to choose items I respond 

emotionally to, and the 

biggest plus...

I can set it up,

and it stays in one place.

Yes, I do have to paint 

the flowers first before they droop,

but other than that 

I can come back and do a 

bit here and there.

I have several displays

set up in 

my studio at home and it 

is a wonderful feeling

to walk into the studio and choose

which one I want to paint

that day.

Valentine Cupcake

Valentine Cupcake

6x6 in oil on canvas panel $110.

Purchase HERE

Artist note

I love February!

Why,

because 

Valentine's Day is a 

lovely way to remember 

our loved ones.

Not only sweethearts, but friends, 

pets...everyone or everything 

which brings 

happiness into our hearts.

And the anticipation 

starts on

Feb 1st

Single Bloom

Single Bloom

6x6in oil on canvas panel $110. SOLD

Artist Note

I thought a close-up

of a single blossom

would be easy.

Sigh...

I did enjoy painting it though 

and that is the reason

I paint.
The pleasure of it

 cannot be beat.
Struggle included.

Have a lovely weekend
and for those of you
in the big storm area,
be safe...
be warm...