An Oil Painting of a Raven

"A Perch for Nevermore"

16" x 20"

oil on stretched canvas

Finished this afternoon.  

For sale at Etsy HERE.

Not for sale HERE anymore as this one was selected as a winner in the ANAC annual traveling show - it is going on a journey to Nebraska towns and museums/galleries for one year 

(along with many other wonderful pieces.)

WIP and Working on Repairs

 While waiting in the Jeep on a hot day with the dogs in Frisco, Colorado for DH to return from the store  ~ I took a great couple of photos of a raven in a tree.  I loved the way the photos turned out.  Upon returning from our trip which was  last year, I got out a 16" x 20" canvas and sketched in the scene with acrylic.  I meant for it to BE an acrylic painting, but as it sometimes goes, it didn't get very far.  I didn't like it and in lieu of 'wiping' -because one really has to be fast to wipe an acrylic painting it dries so fast, I made it into a story.  Poor RAVEN - he was caught in a bad storm and was about to be blown out of the trees.  Nuff said, and I put it behind another BIG painting that has about the same dilemma.

What you see above is something that can be 

likened to 'scribbling it out'.

Today, I FINALLY got to the studio after being 'house bound' for a couple of days. We have had a MEGA ice storm in North Central Kansas..and this ankle STILL does not want to go across ANY ice right now.  However, upon arrival there today, I began to look through canvas and ideas and came across this one.

I think the truth of it was and still is, there was soooo much detail in the pine trees that he was sitting in...and without painting them - 

well, it just wouldn't work.   Also, the large surface area - needs some detail.

Today I felt like revisiting it IN OIL paint and tackling those trees - head on.

The raven would be fine, it was working, the trees?  Had to get that one going, and I think I did. Here is a photo on the progression today.  The 'wind' died down, of course.

I am liking it - it calls to me now - it will get finished.
I like the bold acrylic colors as an undercoat.

With that ICE and snow, we had MUCHO wind.  We have a great bird feeder

that was left on this farmstead when we bought it.  DH has mended it a few times..but the strong winds a few days ago took it right off it's mooring and it smashed apart pretty bad.   (There are more times than fingers of things the wind has ruined here - this IS Kansas, afterall.) 

My studio is adjacent to his shop..he worked on rebuilding the bird feeder today - using some of the old structure and adding to it with some new wood, staples and screws.

Below is the bird feeder one winter with a bird TOO BIG for it..

but you get the idea of where it has been and how it has been used.

Definitely  NOT YOUR SIZE sir...

And here it is in the shop today

getting a rejuvenation.

Lid open..

lid closed.

I think Winter is not coming back anymore...I am crossing my fingers.

The next moisture we get should be only 'rain'.  But Kansas

is alot like Colorado (lived in the 'Golden' area)...change of the seasons, you don't know what you will get.

In Colorado, it depends on what comes over the mountains..here it's about the 'highs' or 'lows' that come across the plains..usually from the north...and if storms creep up from the south, you have fair warning.

Tornado season is starting now, OH YAY!!

A Dog Portrait Finished in Oil

"Happy Dog"

9" x 12"

oil on Raymar board

SOLD

Second 'happy' animal I have painted this year.

See 'Happy Cat' back in the 30 in 30 Challenge - must be a phase.

I love this dog's personality - 

she is one 'laid back and OK with anything' pooch 

and a real pleasure to paint.

Spring happening all over the place here, 

even though it's a little on the 

cool side.  I will take it, love the 'greening' 

and the 'brooding' going on.

Painting a Dog and Making a Slide Show Video

Today I painted in the studio which hasn't happened much since Spring has decided to speak to some things that need to get done on the farmstead.
I took photos with my iPad as I went along and the stages are NOW in a video on YouTube - so you can see the process of painting a pet/animal portrait.  I had to upload it three times to be satisfied...but in the end, it turned out like I wanted.

This is NOW easy to do and I am hoping to make some more.  The trick is finding music that is copyright free.  At first, I chose some iTune music which is a NO NO on social media - the Facebook police were all over that one.  So now it has such music accompaniment.  Thanks for watching.  Comments are greatly appreciated.

A Pastel for Today by Pattie Wall

"Provisions"

14.5" x 19"

pastel on Canson pastel board

Finished this one today - lots of work in that basket...what was I thinking?

Cut the mat for it and have an 18" x 24" frame for it.

Getting ready for 6 to 8 inches of snow tomorrow.

Spring is near, I can tell.

And more snow...

Looking out the window there is just what was predicted...a blizzard - this Sunday morning.   I think we are slowly catching up on some moisture - 

maybe the spring will be very green - and if the weather patterns hold,

maybe a wet spring.  I will take that - over a drought any day.

Pastel Work in Progress

Work in progress 

in pastel on Canson pastel board -

large-ish -

haven't measured it yet.

While cleaning out some portfolios and loading things into my flat files, 

I found a piece that I started many, many years ago.  

There was a reason I held onto it.

It had a vision from the 'get-go'.  

I loved that mad chicken.  

It makes the painting.

So, I got 'back to it' a few days ago, 

knowing that I would eventually 

be left with painting that lovely handmade basket.

Not a problem, I know baskets -

my mom taught me how to make them, 

also many moons ago.  

It's just going to take some more days to get it done.

Bad news - I had to almost RE-DO the commission of the drummer -

see a few post ago.

I attempted to varnish it, 

knowing quite well it was not ready for it.

It schmeared some of the lighter colors across the surface.

Not good on that dark background and lighted figure.

Been there, done that - 

mad because I knew it would.

But glad today I fixed it back to it's original colors 

and it's now - even better - than it was.

Now it just needs to dry AGAIN.

Oil paint drying time can be very unpredictable.  

I have started using Liquin mixed with the oil paints

IT HELPS WITH DRYING - 

but hadn't done it on this one ~ but I have now!

Learn by doing - learn from mistakes.