Sunday, April 30, 2023

I DID IT! Number 30 of 30 Paintings in 30 Days!!

This is our beloved canine, LUKKI.  I couldn't wait for this painting day to come, because I already had a plan to use my oil paints (which I had not used for 29 days) and paint this subject.

It is on stretched canvas - 12" x 12".  I also got to use an oil paint color I bought some time ago, that I had been waiting to use because I love the color - Scheveningen Purple Brown - by Old Holland. Now that's a celebration!

If you were visiting without commenting, as I see in my stats that you were - thanks for stopping by. And I appreciate the ONE person who often leaves a comment - Salty Pumpkin Studio, in the sidebar.

So now, I will trot off into the sunset, singing a song and patting myself on the back - I DID IT!



Saturday, April 29, 2023

Day 29 Cat Number 2

 


"Smokey"
6" Aquabord and mixed media
This cat is MORE light grey, but as I painted, it got darker and darker.
Looks like him, but color is not correct.

OH well, one more day!

Thursday, April 27, 2023

Day 27 - Cherry Blossoms on a Tree mean Spring to ME

 


"Cherry Blossoms"
8" x 10" 
Aqua Oil on stretched canvas

Painted from my own photo of cherry blossoms on our tree when
we lived in Kansas. Aqua oil is a very different medium, first time I have
ever used it.  I am not sure I like it very much.  I tried it on Claybord,  the wrong surface
to start with today, then switched to a regular canvas. Took be ALL day
to paint for Day 27, not what I had planned. Live and learn, the trials and tribulations
of an artist in the studio.



Wednesday, April 26, 2023

LOCAL NEWS

 





Local News....

Less than two weeks until the “Wild Things” Opening Reception!

May 6, from 11am – 4pm, at the 3rd Street Gallery, in Westcliffe, Colorado.
The 3rd Street Gallery is located at 59000 N. Highway 69, Westcliffe, CO. Sangres Art Guild is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit. www.sangresartguild.org
Images: Spirit Resonance, mixed media, by Pattie Wall; Chamisa Gone Wild, oil, by Lorie-Merfeld Batson; Early Winter, photography, by Gerri Duke

Day 26 - a Grinner in pastel

 


 Opossum or Possum for short.  It is sad when people 'put em down' - in more ways than ONE.  This one liked to hang out under the bird feeder in Kansas.  They are fairly elusive and not pretty, but they are important to the environment.  I bet not many people paint them. So here he is...Day 25 in pastel.

Day 25 - Mini Donkey

There are lots of minis in my area - just about every other ranch or farm has one or more.
Loved pasteling this one - DAY 25 over and done.

 

Day 24 - a PanPastel piece

 

"Sunset on Auke Bay, AK"
9" x 12"
PanPastel on Kitty Wallis paper

Running to catch up....

Thursday, April 20, 2023

Day 20 - another chicken painting

 


"Red Hen"
watercolor on 6" square Aquabord
Zolotow pen for white accent

Painted quickly, lots of paint, lots of fun.
Source by Susan Gibson

Day 19 - African Tortoises

 On Tuesday morning of this week, there was a terrible fire at the Gator Farm in Mosca, Co...just on the other side of the Sangres from us.  It is a well-known and well-frequented animal sanctuary for reptiles.  Not all of the creatures who call that place home were killed, but SOME were.  I spent the day feeling so sad and helpless about it all...so I painted some of the residents there.  We visited the farm a couple of years ago, my grandkids, daughter and I.  It was so fun and full of interesting and amazing creatures!  These giant tortoises were walking the hallway path between exhibit areas..like two big GUIDES.  RIP critters of Gatorville.  ( if you Google "Gator Farm in Mosca, Co" you can read about it and see the news videos.  There is also a GoFundMe page for the loss.)



"African Tortoises"
pastel and colored pencil
about 8" x 10"
Kitty Wallis sanded pastel paper



 


Wednesday, April 19, 2023

Day 18 - more pastel

 

"Ahhhh"
4.5" square with 8" square matboard
pastel on sanded paper by Kitty Wallis

Love this piggie - he sleeps where he can - getting the most from 
the warmth of the sun.

Source photo by Susan Gibson.

Monday, April 17, 2023

Sunday, April 16, 2023

Day 16 - Painting Fish

 

"Catch"
9" x 12"
acrylic on Raymar canvas panel
DAY 16 of 30 in 30

Inspired by a photo sent to us by a family member, 
whose 'group' caught LOTS of
these fish/striped and white bass. They were laid all out in a photo - 
so I flipped them a little and selected
the number '5' for a vertical placement/composition on the canvas.

Spent a LONG time on this one, it's more like about 2 days worth of
easel time, but I kept it going to get it done in one day.

Liked it, it was fun and it went through many metamorphoses before
I got it to this point..could work some more on it, but HEY, it's a daily painting.

Thanks for stopping by.  Please leave a comment if you care to.



Saturday, April 15, 2023

Day 15 - Half-way: Mark the Day

 


Today was a frustrating painting day - 15 days in, go figure.  For one, I tried painting something really detailed on a very small surface.  Oh well, I needed to try it out as I am thinking about painting it in a larger size and now I know what pieces I will leave out and what colors to use. 
This is done in acrylic on 6" x 6" Claybord.

"Off-Season Tuscany"

The colors sure didn't translate from my camera on my phone to my laptop.
Oh well, I will not fixate on this one, chalk it up!




Friday, April 14, 2023

Day 14 - a kitty in pastel

 


"Floki"
9" x 12" pastel on Art Spectrum
Source photo by Carmen Jems

Here is a peak at the process of underpainting with PanPastels.
Floki was FUN to paint.  It was more like what I used
to do with pastels - once upon a time.  So much learning has happened
with mixed media in the past several years, I have forgotten what 
pastel really should be all about.





 



Thursday, April 13, 2023

Day 13 - an Owl

 


"Barn Owl"

6" x 6" acrylic painting on Claybord

"Barn Owl"

YOU ARE INVITED to VISIT my ETSY shop 
where I have started posting many of these '30 in 30's' for sale.


Tuesday, April 11, 2023

Day 11 - Fem. Cardinal in Snow

 


"Female Cardinal in Winter"
6" x 6" 
watercolor on Aquabord

Soft and wintery...
Source photo by Rick Rauzi.

Day 10 of 30 in 30


"Mountain Cat"
6" x 6" 
watercolor and pen on Aquabord

Didn't photograph right - lately I have been having trouble with that, perhaps it's the light at the time of day I take my finish photo?  Dunno.
Source photo by France Bauduin.
 

Sunday, April 9, 2023

Saturday, April 8, 2023

Day 8 - Gonna Keep it Going

 Gotta keep it going, I'm committed now!

Day 8 - "Black Bear" watercolor on 6" x 6" Aquabord




YOU ARE INVITED to VISIT my ETSY shop 
where I have started posting many of these '30 in 30's' for sale.


Thursday, April 6, 2023

Day 6 - Moving Right Along

 I can't believe how quick the days go by - doing this painting challenge makes it happen even faster. Feeling grateful for the time to PAINT - and feeling good about the process and the end results.

Day 6 - "Eagle Owl" source photo with permission from Maria Watkinson.

Pastel and pastel pencil on Kitty Wallis sanded pastel paper.



Wednesday, April 5, 2023

Day 5 - Highland Cattle

 

"Highland Coo"
9" x 12" PanPastel and pastel pencil
on Kitty Wallis sanded pastel paper

Thanks for Leanne Findlay for permission to use her source photo.

I 'drew' with other artist friends today at the gallery.
Glad to have the time to get Day 5 done.

Color is not exactly true, but having trouble getting it the way it should look.




Tuesday, April 4, 2023

Day 4 - It's All About Showing UP

 and then choosing the right medium.  I began this one in gouache, without thinking it through. Was going to need alot of white and I didn't have that much..so wiped out the sky and started over, some of the mountains were already roughed in...got out the acrylics and kept going.   Snowing and cold again.

Will we ever get to Spring?

"Late Afternoon, Auke Bay, Juneau, Alaska" 

12" x 12" acrylic on stretched canvas


Done from my own source photo that I took on the Alaska Marine Highway ferry, 
the Matanuska, last June.  Knew I would paint it the moment I took it, 
loved all the marine blues and the layers.


Monday, April 3, 2023

Day 3 - local wildlife

 



"High Meadow Grazing"
DAY 3 of 30 in 30
These elk were grazing pretty far away, from my back deck, but I got out the PS900 camera and made a stretch across the meadow and captured them fairly distinctly.  I combined 2 photos to paint this one is PAN PASTELS and pastel pencil on Kitty Wallis sanded pastel paper.  
Here are the quick steps - when using Pan Pastel, 
the underpainting part goes very fast.













Sunday, April 2, 2023

Day 2 of 30 in 30

 






Today's painting "Day 2" - done in Pan Pastel, pastel pencils on Kitty Wallis sandpaper.
I love the partial face on animals, especially ones with amazing eyes.
Enjoying the process - and the challenge.

 

Saturday, April 1, 2023

Painting 30 in 30

 I have begun a '30 in 30' self-imposed journey for the month of April.  I need to paint every day for awhile and thought this would keep the challenge going. NO theme, just painting whatever moves me in whatever medium does the same.  Number ONE in watercolor and Posca pen.

"Mountain Bluebird"


YOU ARE INVITED to VISIT my ETSY shop 
where I have started posting many of these '30 in 30's' for sale.

Adventures in Pyrography

 Last year about this time, I purchased a cheapo woodburning set and some little wood pieces and tried my hand at woodburning.  I made a few...