More Water Under the Bridge

Fall Fashions

Bowl of Encouragement

These paintings represent the beginning of my change to oils. 'Fall Fashions' is painted on watercolour canvas and 'Bowl of Encouragement' is painted on paper but with the influence of all those academic drawing classes I realized that I wanted to see the vibrancy and detail that could be had more easily with oil paint. This was the last watercolour I did before taking the plunge into oils.

Early Days

Hydrangea Leaf

Bottles of  'Sunshine'

Rainbow Catchers

Here's a few older pieces. I started out painting in watercolour. I've been told that it's the most difficult medium but if I hadn't of fallen in love with the work of artist Nancy Woodall and then been fortunate enough to take lessons with her, I don't know if I'd still be doing this today. I learned a lot about how to really 'see', not just the object, but the light surrounding it. I'll spend the rest of my life learning about how to translate what I see into 2 dimensions but will never tire of  'looking' at things through new eyes. If you would like to see some of Nancy Woodall's work, I have included this link. http://www.quinteartscouncil.

More Academic Stuff

Just another example of academic training and yes it's another Prud'hon. If you have a knitting needle, some paper, charcoal and about 100 hours of time, you too can make your own copy :) The strange thing about this is that the colour has changed completely . It is done on a blue paper which gives the effect of moonlight on the figure. I'm likin' the colour here but just amazed how it has changed. So much to learn still about photographing work....

A Bit of History

I have been trying out a new camera in the hopes of improving my photos of work so have practiced on some old pieces. This piece was done some years back when I had the opportunity to learn from a classically trained artist. Academic training requires copying master drawings. This trains the eye and improves the ability to render what you learn to see. The drawing is a copy of a master work by Pierre Paul Prud'hon. It is done in charcoal on paper. I altered it a bit to have the 'buddy' sitting on a log instead of a big jar. My husband is a forester and he always told people that he had modeled for me...:)

Drawing on the Past

This is a drawing done in pastel on paper that is taken from an old photo. It shows my mom as a teenager, standing in the field at her home farm holding what I think is a kitten. The photo is old, black and white and small so was quite a challenge to try and interpret. I like it tho' as the whole process of doing it was like a meditation on a part of a parents life that a child can never really know--their youth. The way she's holding this little creature made me think of how much it symbolized the final grasp of innocence before circumstances in life threaten to grab it out of our hands. So hang on tight!

Life's A Journey

I had a request to post this picture in a larger format. It's the one I use for my profile photo.  It is a self-portrait, done in oils, on 3ft x 4ft canvas. I still have not done the final varnish so colour, albeit very grey, may show more interest once that gets done. I painted it ( last winter) because it was an image that just get rolling over in my mind... so  had to get it out and onto canvas. The picture seems a little squeezed. Something to do with the formatting process and digital camera operator (me!).

Isn't She Lovely

I painted this a few years ago when I was making the switch to oils from watercolour. A great way to learn is to try and copy an artist you admire. Well, Breughel lived in the 1300's and painted everyday life and people around him as semi-caricatures. I love this woman's face and the reactions I get are often based on the fact that she is not 'pretty' but I see that her face is being transformed by something or someone she's just seen. She's looking up and I think she's been filled with surprise and wonder and in that unguarded moment you catch a glimpse of the beauty within. And that's what art does for me--reveals the God-given beauty in the unnoticed faces and objects in the everyday stuff.