Sunflowers

5x7 Oil on Panel

Oil on Panel.. Can't wait for the real sunflowers to come out!

Pottery for YSU Festival of The Arts

Getting ready for the Youngstown State University Festival of The Arts. 

Shown are just a couple of pieces from the first batch out of the kiln.  The wall flowers hangers are beyond cute.

I have new paintings as well.

Hope you all can make the show and see some of the pottery and paintings in person.  :)

Southwest Villa

Southwest Villa
Oil on Canvas Hardboard
11x14

Finally finished this painting.  It was not really a struggle except for the open window which took more thought than I expected.. But focal points are everything!

Chowdown For Hunger

  The last few months have been just a wee bit hectic.  Pottery students as well as painting students have kept me occupied.  But I found some time to setup at the Chowdown for Hunger event in Estero, Fl.

  I have not been physically painting but I have been studying it on a mental plane.   Which sometimes can be as challenging as putting a brush stroke to canvas.
  When I was first starting out on the art road I wanted to know how light works and why atmosphere effects it.  A mentor told me not to worry about it, just follow the suggested techniques/rules artists follow.  Ugh.. Not the answer I wanted to hear, because there has to be a 'reason' for the suggested rule.  So of course, me being far to inquisitive for my own good, I could not let the notion go and the hunt was on.
   After reading several texts on light waves and how atmosphere effects those waves, I realized that the eye is a factor too, on how these waves affect how humans see the world around them.  So off to find books on how the human eye works.  The time was well spent because while I only gathered a rudimentary understanding, it was all I needed to incorporate what I learned into my painting process. The work I produced showed a leap forward in how I represented light planes within my paintings. 
   Artists ask me how I was able to accomplish so much in such a short time.  They write it off as the fact that I have talent above most.  I can not emphasize just how wrong I feel their perception is!  Art is an understanding of paint and how paint is applied so that it represents objects.  So understanding the light and time spent learning how to draw with a paint brush was the key to starting to paint well.

    David Leffel, often called the artists artist, has been a wonderful find for me this winter.  I joined his website and watched some of his videos.   In the videos he mentions how painting is a study of science and how things work in life.  To which I heartily agree.
  

Road Runner

Road Runner
5x7 Oil on Hardboard

Now... we all know how much I love birds.  This one was a little different to sit down and paint.  Love the "hair doo." 
I have been trying out a new toy.. its an oil paint medium that I really have come to love the feel of.  A few years ago I tried Lukas Med. 5 that gives the paint the same wonderful silky feel as the Maroger.  I would have still been using the stuff but the odor was just awful.

The Maroger doesn't have that,  in fact it smells wonderful and it also gives the paint an automatic varnish quality.  Though there are two drawbacks with it though.  One being the price, which is pretty high compared to other mediums.  The second is that if your using a paint with a lower pigment load you end up with more of a glaze than a layer of paint.  I did break down and purchase several tubes of M. Harding's paint to see if my suspicions were correct.  Harding's product has a higher paint pigment load and to my delight his paint did help with keeping an impasto build up.  The photo of 'Road Runner" doesn't show the depth I achieved in painting with the Maroger, but its there.

Sweet and Sour

Sweet and Sour
Oil 5x17 hardboard

I usually avoid more than two elements, unless its a landscape, so this was a fun challenge.  I found fruit looses that wonderful sheen when its first cut if you take to long to paint it.  Next time I either have to paint faster or have fruit on hand.  Perhaps maybe a stronger light so that its not to close to the fruit may help. What would probably be the best is to make a shadow box.

The Orange

Orange 1
5x7 panel

Quick 20 minute still life diddle I did while Joe was watching football.  Oil on panel 5x7.  I like the painting though the orange is a tad bit floaty.   Hmm.. Guess I should not have eaten the orange just yet.  ;)  When it drys a bit I'll fix it.

"Color, color everywhere and not a thing to paint."
Sometimes that happens doesn't it?  You find yourself in one of these little ruts and can't seem to find something to paint.  Even though the world is just chock full of things nothing seems to suit.

   I'm trying to shake off one of those little ruts right now.  I've been afraid to paint for the last 4 or 5 months.  Yes, afraid to paint.  Why?  Because people, though meaning well, keep saying things such as, "You have to paint bigger."   Then there is the one I hear most often, "Your paintings are lovely but to win you need to capture more wall space, paint bigger."  I have several large canvases started but don't want to finish.  There is just to much tension to preform going on when I sit down to paint.
  When I was painting for 8 months my mentor gently insisted that I start to enter art shows.  His reasoning?  As a tool to compare my work with other artists to see where I needed improvement and to lean about styles.   He was right, I have learned much from shows.  But, truthfully while its nice to win or place its not necessary.  (Btw.. never say that out loud to an artist who takes winning seriously.) 
   What it all boils down to is this,   I don't want to paint better than other artists I just want to paint better for me.  Wherever that takes my art is where I want to be. 

Ceramic Bird Houses

Took some time to relax and finish the bird houses.  The plant hanger was a perfect find to hang them on.  The bottom has a flat iron wire shelf which you can put a potted plant on it as I did.  The plant gives it a really lovely look whether you put it in the garden or a sunny location inside and it makes the hanger even sturdier.
All the bird houses have nice big clean outs for those who would love to hang them off a tree limb or put them on a post.

Send me an email if you would like one as I am in the process of making different styles right now. 

Giraffe

Giraffe
18X24 oil

I met this fellow at the Naples Zoo.  Got to hand feed him, which was way more than cool. 

I have struggled with this painting for 4 months.  (There are three other giraffes hiding under this one. )   I think the struggling was because of the size of it, 18x24.  It is just plain hard to add interest to large areas that do not have shifts in planes of light.  Learned much and now its time to move on to the next painting.

A little aside about Giraffes:
Such unique animals, aren't they?  Not only to look at, but internally as well.  Did you know that they have special valves in their neck arteries that keeps the blood circulating so it doesn't just keep draining back down to the heart?  God sure knows how to design doesn't he!

Pottery Just out of the oven!

 I have been so busy with creating that posting photos of my artwork and pottery has been lax.  I just keep moving to the next project.

The pottery has most of my attention the past few months with having to get an inventory for the summer shows up north.  Though I now see a bit of daylight and I have been catching up on some much needed r&r with my painting!   Well as least I had a few hours to create the Christmas Kitty posted below.  :)

Christmas Kitty

Purrrfect Christmas
Oil 6x6

The Estero Art League of Florida is hosting the meeting of the Art Council of Southwest Florida.  Members were given a 6x6 canvas to paint something Christmas holiday related to jazz up the meeting and show of member skills. This is my submission.
Normally I don't get excited about my paintings but this one turned out just 'to Cute!'   A fellow artist friend thinks paintings should not be cute.  He is much to serious.. :)

Great Trail Festival

Been awhile since I posted hasn't it?   Painting and potting for festivals leaves little time for other things I guess.  A little about what I have gotten myself into..  . :)  Since I missed out on the Wheeling Oglelbayfest (somehow the application didn't make it and I waited to long to call to find out about it).  I decided to make some calls to other festival events to make up for the Wheeling one.   The worst that could happen is that I would hear "Fill out an application for next year."  The first festival I called was The Great Trail Festival after hearing that the festival was closed to venders this year so I asked to be on the mailing list for next year.  Barb asked what my art consisted of and I gave her my website and next thing I know I was admitted!  Seems they needed a potter.
  First off I didn't realize that it was a two weekend deal so spent three weeks potting like crazy and finishing up paintings.  The festival was right up there as one of the nicest festivals that I have participated so far in my art journey.  It was also the most tiring!  But well worth the effort.  Here are a few photos of the set-up and I was invited back next year, of course I said yes.  ;)

  Oh.. First dress up event too and that added to the excitement of the event.  Where else can you display your work and still get to play in the mud? 

 

The YSU Festival of The Arts

The YSU Festival of The Arts Event is my most favorite show to do.  Its well run and artist friendly with great PR of the event.  This years turn out was wonderful due to the hard work of the coordinator Lori and her staff!  Oops, I better not forget to mention all the volunteers too!
Sold out of all but a few pieces of pottery and 15 paintings went to new homes also. 

Thank You!  To all my customers for supporting me and my art.  Not only those who come to the shows but also those who purchase from me through the whole year.  Thanks again!

Sunflower

Sunflower
oil  12x16 canvas board

I have been wanting to paint this ref. photo for the last year.  Kind of intimidated with how the sunflower was right in the viewers face.  Tried a few little 5x7 and it just didn't do it justice.  So went a little bit bigger and found that the design worked much nicer.
All in all I'm happy with it.. Just might add a few blues/purples in the center though to highlight.  A thought..

Louisiana Swamp

Louisiana Swamp
12x16 oil on mounted p. canvas

   First.. To answer a couple of people's questions.. "Yes.. I'm still painting.  Just not posting as I should."  Now that that is settled.. ;)   I think I'll post a few.. :D

On our way to Sedona the Louisiana Swamp just seemed to go on forever, almost as bad as Texas.   When we stopped for gas I wandered on into the shallow water edge.  Nope.. no gators.  Did a quick thumbnail sketch and painted it from memory color wise.   Not quite what was in my head as I remembered it, but close.
  

Stoneware- Robin Egg Blue

   Stoneware is such a different animal compared to the porcelain!   I had some of the mugs on the window sill after they came out of the kiln.   A few gals walked by and decided they had to have them.   A few other gals stopped in and 20 mugs are gone along with most of the vases, plus I have orders for 3 dozen of the robin egg blue.  If this keeps up I'll be hurting for festival pieces and paintings.  So.. must throw/paint faster. ;)

Porcelain Fresh Out of The Oven

  These are a few of my porcelain dishes fresh out of the kiln.   Have to get a supply started for festivals and these are the first of the year.  Cups and mugs are going in the kiln this week!

    I must say that throwing pots is addictive.  In an odd way it really is so much like painting.  The use of interesting shape and color harmony really sums up how a painting presents itself to the viewer.  I think the only difference between the two is that I don't agonize over the pottery like I do the painting.

I've started mixing some of my own glazes.  There was a lot of trial and error with this batch.  Most turned out great, but now I have to pick which glazes I like the best.  Trouble is.. Well.. I like them all!

Great Blue Heron

Great Blue Heron
11x14 Oil on board

Finally finished this piece, forced into it as a client spied it on the easel and had to have it.  Up till then I did not think that I ever would get the eye correct and was hesitant to continue with the painting.  Their eyes are such odd shapes!  Disk-like so were such an oddity for me.  Also it was very difficult to get it with the right color.  But I percivierd and got it finished today.
Just a bit of a side note..  These birds are just fabulous to paint and to watch.   I took the photo of this bird along the way in Texas.  Seems that some members of the population migrate there to breed.   Perhaps it is just the members of the colder states that migrate.  The heron we have here just stays here.  It is a female so does not have the beautiful colorings that the males do.

Coat of Many Colors

5x7 Oil on Linen Hardboard

Just love the colors with these birds.  Didn't do him justice but he does look great on the wall. :D

A Little News

     Got a bit of news!  The Fort Myers Beach Art Association had their reception this afternoon. I was contacted and told I had gotten an award, but didn't know which one. The art there was just so stellar (and my piece so little) that I figured it was an honorable mention or some such thing. I was a bit shocked when I walked in to find out that 'Running Free' I had taken grand.
     The FMBAA had a wonderful reception and I met many talented artists.  I truly can say that this group is serious about their commitment to advancing and giving to the arts.  Everyone I have met over the last few weeks is eager to give a helping hand to all artists.
One more thing though..  I do have to give thanks to the Lord and also to Joe for being supportive. 

On The Way Home

8x10  Oil on Canvas

  This barn is located in Carrolton, Ohio.  I've been wanting to paint it for a long time.  Just could never quite find the time.  Not really thrilled with this one though.  I think the greens got away from me.  Better than the cows getting out isn't it?  I really hated having to chase cows when they escaped. :)
  Hoping to get a few more up this week.  Seems finding time for posting photos of my work is getting scarce too. 

Put The Lime in Da Coconut

8x10 Oil on Canvas

It has been awhile since I posted some paintings.   Finished a few but they left for new homes before I got photos.  

This one has been on my mind since last Feb.  A cute little lime house in Key West that caught my eye.

8x10 oil on canvas

Grand Entrance

Oil  On 12x16 Hardboard

  This was the view as you come into Sedona off of Rt. 179 and 87A.  It was our first glimpse of the famous red rocks.

  Usually I can paint a landscape in a day or two.  The clear sky and brilliant colors  made this a difficult piece for me to finish.  The moving and not having a designated place to paint didn't help with getting it done either.
  Learned much from this painting.  Foremost lesson is that if you don't know the subject well its difficult to make color choices.  The Sedona area was a very beautiful but foreign landscape. 
  Don't have my light box down here so the photo is not quite representative.

Southwest Artist Exchange

I was happy to participate in the Wet Canvas Southwest Forum Artist Art Exchange.  My partner was Jenna and this is the piece that I created for her.


Things here have been busy.  With the new house, traveling, and being sick its been hard to paint.    The three months of being sick has taken a bit of a toll.  Not painting everyday has left me feeling a bit intimidated when looking at a blank canvas on the easel.  I think I have my studio set-up where I can be happy painting again and since I'm feeling better I have no excuses. 
My hope this year is to start painting bigger.  But now I really have to paint bigger.  I ordered a couple of large format canvas boards along with my usual sizes, but there was a mistake when the company shipped them.  Now I have 50 large canvases and the company didn't charge me for the panels since it was their mistake..  Told me just to keep them.  Hmm must be a bit of a God Wink going on.  So painting bigger it is. :D

Montezuma's Well Cacti

5x7 OIl  Hardboard

      Did this one during a visit to Montezuma's Well. I liked how the cacti was nestled out on a ledge. People thought I was a bit nuts just doing the cacti when there was so much open space to be painted. Ah well its not their painting its mine!  :D  

    Still not used to people taking my picture with my painting, which I took it in stride. Then there are the people asking me if I would pose with their family too. Now this request I found to be extremely odd. The ones that wanted me in their family pic all came from China. After the third family asked to have a group picture with me, I was itching to ask if it was a cultural thing. But because I didn't know how to phrase it without making it seem awkward I let it go. Made me feel a bit odd/weird. 
       Joe says I'm just to personable for my own good.   Nah.. That is not it the case. But right now I'm just waiting for the adoption papers to come through.    :D

Anyway.. took only a 1/2 hour because I had premixed some earth tones and reds the night before so was not hard to slop it on to the canvas.

Mark Hemleben- Arizona Plein Air Artist

Mark holding the painting I purchased

Back from Sedona!  It was beautiful, interesting, but  cold.  Didn't get much painting in due to breathing and elevation.  But I got to go look at others work!




Mark Hemleben is such a sweety and a very talented plein air painter.   His work glimmers with the colors of the southwest.  I purchased one of his paintings as I admired his handling of the colors and modeling.  Since I could only get out a few days to paint his painting will be a helpful road map for me as well as a welcome addition to our wall!   His studio is in Old High School building in Jerome Az.   The Jerome area is pretty central to all of the breath-taking scenery in the Valley and Sedona. 

In the area? Stop in and see his work (some are pictured on the wall behind us.)  I'm sure you will take one home too! 

Thanks again Mark for all the little pointers you gave me.  The advice really helped. :D

Plein Air in Naples

Florida... What a wonderful place! Finally getting a chance to show some of the plein air paintings.  This one was a quicky from our balcony.   First morning light.  I concentrated on only painting the big shapes of shadow and light.  Took about 45 mins and has no real detail than the palm.  But it does convey the essence.  I think I am beginning to understand how to leave things out.  You just have to paint what was important to you in the moments you first looked on the landscape.  Any other detail should be lost and left out.  Much harder than it looks to do.

So.. Thats The New Chick

Oil
12x16 Canvas paper

 

I'm still recovering from a brief illness and I can't tell you how much of a joy it is to finally be caught up with life.  Its also nice to be able to feel like painting again and getting out of the house!  Along those lines.. My class went well today and I got a lot of input.  Sure nice to feel back to normal.

     I've talked before about my "When I'm A Better Artist Box," well this painting was from one of those ref. photos that I pulled from the box the other day.
  The challenge for me was painting in a large format with more than one or two subjects.  Its hard to keep head tilts and eyes on the same plane.  While this painting has a bit of an amateurish feel to it, just getting over doing more than one subject makes it a success.  Not to mention that I did not use a brush on these gals, strictly knife.  I was trying to see if I still remembered how to use knives.
  

Sea View

Sea View
8x10 Oil Canvas

  Oglebayfest was almost perfect.  Except for the weather it would have been a 10.  Thanks to all those who purchased my paintings, pottery, and cards!  I hope you enjoy as much as I did in creating them.

   I did get a chance to do a plein air while I was there.  It was the setup for the booth next store.  It was a fun scarecrow/pumpkin kind of scene.  It is more of a tole style painting and so different from my normal style, its bound for the recycle bin.  Looked really out of place in my booth.

  But this one I started from a ref. photo.  Was a tad bit cold out and figured that painting something warm would help.  Ok.. didn't help but I enjoyed painting it. 

Oglebay Plein Air Workshop With Ron Donoughe

 Attended The Paint Oglebay weekend event this past weekend..  Three days of painting plein air and wonderful weather to do it in. 

This is Ron Donoughe, founder of Plein Air Painters of Western Pennsylvania was one of the instructors and I took his workshop.  It was fun and Ron was a good teacher.  I enjoyed the workshop.  Took some good info from it.  Thanks Ron, and I hope they have you come back next year.




This painting was the first one that I did during the workshop.  Not a great picture of the painting but I was happy with it.  All total I painted 5 paintings during the weekend.  Course I never remember to get pictures.

Oh.. I almost forgot!  This weekend is the Oglebayfest weekend.  I'm a vender there and hope to see everyone there!

Elmhurst Plein Air Event

The Elmhurst Plein Air Event was such fun!  It was held by the Elmhurst House Of Friendship, Wheeling, WV.  The mansion itself is a huge and embodies the true Victorian style.  I tripped through it here and there and was just amazed by the interior.  The outside was gorgeous too!  Google'n it will take your right there if your curious. 

You could not ask for better weather on both days and with such a pampering that the visiting artists received, I'm sure we are all going to come back next year.

On the easel above was my first painting that I finished, in the beginning stages of course.  The second day found me at the font of the mansion painting.  As you  have noticed the finished paintings are not up.  I was so excited to just get the paintings done I forgot to take a few photos.  Both paintings sold and I never did get pictures.  Ah well..  I'll remember next time.

Fall scene

8x8 oil

Pulled this from the "when I"m a better artist' box. 
 Can't say I am all that happy with the turn out.  But I post the good with the bad.  How else can I call it a journey if I just blog the stuff I am happy with.  It gives me reason explore and paint the next attempt with a do and don't list.
 Leafs and other foliage are a challenge.
Looks much better in person as the pink and mauve highlights got lost in photoing.  But I'm painting and having fun.

Here Little fishy

5x7 oil on hardboard

Another zoo photo.   Lots of fun as I loved painting the bright colors.  Never painted a fish before.  Though once an artist figures out that painting is all shapes and values its not all that hard.  I'm finally getting some of this down.

Young Herd Sire

OIl  5x7 Harboard

The trip to the zoo was so inspiring!  I couldn't help but paint this fellow!   I had to use three or four photos to get this right.  He was standing at such an odd angle to the camera that not all of him would fit so I had to move around the enclosure to get clear shots of him.  I ended fudging a bit here and there, but still a bit thrilled that it worked out.
The second photo shows the painting at the 'almost finished stage.'  Usually I work the background at the same time but this was an experiment to see just how the values and hues change when placed  next to different colors.  The idea came from a canvas that I primed with left over mix of paint that was a deep red. (Waste not want not right?)  Normally I use a magenta/orange wipe so it was kinda of odd to paint on this.  There really is difference how the eye perceives the colors isn't there?    I did add a touch of the finish background and had to deepen some of the shadow values to him so the colors would be harmonious. Though most of the elephant's coloring is untouched.

Kidding About

Oil 8x10 canvas

The reference came from a Wet Canvas Week End Challenge that I hosted last year.  I was to chicken to do this and watched as others did a mighty fine job of it.  Put it in my "Someday, when I am a better artist box."  Yesterday was someday.   :D  Wish I had a better shot of this, but paintings don't photograph well in the studio.  To much glare.    

Getting The Hang Of It.

   Well I haven't dropped off the face of the earth..  As someone asked.. :D    I have done painting, just been bad about posting. Chickens and other critters for the fairs have been on the agenda.  Stay tuned.  I'll get a few up this week, summer and other things going on have keep me busy.

   The pottery has had me a bit enthralled.  Ok, more like enchanted!  I was told a few weeks ago that porcelain  was not for a beginner.  Good thing I didn't hear that when I started, as porcelain was my choice of medium with the pots.  Was the same as my beginning situation with painting.  No one was teaching me that I should not stretch so far ahead of my capabilities.  The result of independent study, for me, is a more complete understanding of where I am at and where I want to be.  It is a study in progress.

YSU Festival of The Arts

 Its been very hot here so when the weather man called for temps around 100 deg.  I was so glad that I had an oak tree overhead!
The festival went well.  Sales were down a bit from last year, but that is ok, it was fun!!
Sold some painting and pots too.
The pots are my first batch.. I tried a couple of differant colors so I could maybe find something I liked.  Found out from a potter at the festival that reds don't do well when fired with greens.. SO.. that is why my reds are not red red.  ::sigh:: Don't you just love a long learning curve?

Oh.. I also had a chance to do a few plein air paintings.  One I gave to a young aspiring artist, age 6 or so.