A Hershey Kiss

A quick demonstration that I did for my teen class last night.
We took something small and enlarged it.
Such fun to use oil pastels and draw quick and loose!

November

This was a fun project that I had my students do in class. We took tissue paper and glued to watercolor paper using a 50/50 water/mod podge solution for a nice texture. After it was dry we painted leaves and I chose a dark background. Spray to seal and then ink over it.
It sure does feel like November to me.

Sunset at Montage Resort

The beach and rocks at Montage near Laguna Beach is one of my favorite places. It does not matter if it is cloudy or sunny. It is just beautiful at any time. These paintings were inspired by a visit at sunset. Oil Painting on 5 x 7 panel.

New thoughts on buy local, paint local

I took a long break from the buy local, paint local series. I was doing these large watercolor paintings and they took a lot of time and framing... With teaching taking most of my time, 

I could not work on the larger projects. 

So I tried this small 5x7 inch oil painting yesterday and like this new format. 

I can continue to paint these stories 

and work in a manageable size and timeframe.

Josh invested in a local opera house and surrounding buildings 

and created the Center of Harmony, a friendly group of collaborating businesses 

promoting music, the arts, education and a better community for all.

Check the link to see shops, food, wellness providers and music events. 

Wonderful, unique places where you can support your "buy local" businesses. 

See you there!

Josh is number 3 of my Buy Local, Paint Local series.

Day 5 of 3/5 art challenge

Day 5 of my 3/5 day challenge and want to thank Diane and Wanda for nominating me. It has been fun to go back and revisit some of my work. I spend much of my time at the studio teaching and preparing for classes. I have many demonstration paintings that I do for the classes but not many recent finished paintings.  These are two from a series I started called "buy local, paint local" that feature people and local small business. I hope to continue this series as time permits.

Day 4 of the 3/5 day art challenge

For Day 4 of my 3/5 day art challenge I thought I would post some small 8x10 inch watercolor images.

Day 3 of 3/5 day art challenge

For the third day of my 3/5 day art challenge, I thought I would share some pastel portraits I have done through the years. These are some of my favorite people.

Day 2 of 3/5 art challenge

Day 2 of the 3/5 day art challenge has me going back to 2007 to find some paintings I did inspired by vintage photographs. I used white to make some of the colors to layer over others. These were done after a workshop I took by Jeannie McGuire.

3/5 Day Facebook Challenge

My first of the 3/5 day Facebook challenge. I am posting three paintings from when I started full time as an artist in 2005. I was exploring watercolor surfaces, still learning color, technique and painting subjects that are close to me. 
Picnic Conversation- Watercolor on Gessoed paper was fun and easy to lift but hard to layer. Kind of like painting on Yupo but with texture. This is of my grandfathers who dressed in a suit for most occasions. Kind of miss those days...
Elizabetha, Watercolor on coldpress is a story of my Grandmother's life. So sorry I sold this but happy that so many connected to this.and 
John's Dad, Watercolor on Coldpress done for my sister's father-in-law who loved to share his music.

Approaching Clouds at Arches National Park

Arches National Park is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been.

My husband took a photo in the late afternoon with some wonderful clouds contrasting the sunlit arches.  I knew it would be a painting.

15x22 inches, watercolor

Early Halloween

Is it too early for Halloween? Yes, probably, but...

 We went to Disneyland last week and it was so much visual fun. 

You know what I mean... everywhere, the details, so fun to look at.

So I planned to do some plein air this week,

 but instead I just had fun painting this little fantasy house out of my head.

It will be a project for my watercolor students this fall. 

Update--Go to this link to see their work

Teen class link 

 And here is the demonstration I did for the teen class.

Two Watercolor Dog Portraits

These are two watercolor dog portraits that I just finished.

Fun dogs to paint.

8x10 to fit in 11x14 inch frame

Lisa's Darn Yarn

  

I met Lisa at Darn Yarn, Needles & Threads in Harmony, PA.  Her shop specializes in American made yarn and supplies for knitting, crocheting, spinning... needs. It is a friendly place where Lisa also offers classes, tips and knowledge of the craft and local community. 

I spent some time photographing Lisa and the shop and found I was distracted by all the great conversation. We easily moved from subject to subject covering family, gardening, uni/bicycles, and ideas for future projects. I felt I made a new friend.

Last time I visited, Lisa showed me a new aluminum spinning wheel that is a work of art in itself. It is so beautifully balanced and so lovely to look at. A new "spin" on an old design. 

 You can follow Lisa on facebook here for shop info and because it is just fun.

https://www.facebook.com/darnyarnneedlesandthread

"Lisa's Darn Yarn" is number two of my "Buy Local, Paint Local" series.

Watercolor 14x14

It will be part of the AABC Invitational Art Exhibit at the Cranberry Township Municipal Building from July 9th - 18th and at the AABC Art Center from July 23 - August 2nd.

2nd in Buy Local, Paint Local!

This is the step by step progress so far for my second painting in Buy Local, Paint Local!

I will share more when the painting is done.

It was slow going this winter. But slow and steady... well , you know!

Summer Camp Info

The summer animation and art camp schedule is out and can be seen at this link

http://room101art.blogspot.com/p/summer-camps.html

Sally at the Cider Press

As I finished this painting last week, I was reminded of a nice day this past fall. 

I spent an afternoon at a local cider press to do some "painting" research. 

It was a busy day at the press. People that waited to have their apples pressed shared stories about gardens, seasons and families. 

For me it was a chance to slow down and appreciate these seasonal traditions.

This is a family run cider press and they all work together with a comfortable ease. 

At first I thought I would do a painting about the men that work there. 

But as I watched and photographed the workers, I saw that the real energy came from Sally. 

She went from job to job seamlessly and was welcoming to all. 

I am sure that is why the cider press has her name on it!

Sally at the Cider Press,  17x29 inches, Watercolor on 330 lb. watercolor paper

Update- May 9th 

This painting won the Evelyn Nicholas Portrait Award at the 71st Spring Show 

at the Associated Artists of Butler County

July 10th

Also won third place in the AABC Invitational in Cranberry Twp, PA

Buy Local, Paint Local!

I photograph and turn my paintings to black and white to see if the values work. Then I make any final changes if needed. This one is almost done.

17x29 inches watercolor

I also wanted to introduce my "Buy Local, Paint Local" series.

I have been visiting small local businesses, farms... and have met some hard working people with a strong sense of community. They run farms, cider presses, markets, raise chickens, bees, are yarn/weavers, bakers... I interview, photograph, sketch and paint what I find at each location. 

These paintings are about people, opportunity and community.

I will include a short story of each painting as I finish. 

I look forward to sharing this journey with you!

More Demonstrations

Just a few demos that I did for some classes.

and this value butterfly.

I wish I got the name of the artist that inspired this project to share with you.

It was a good one for the adult class to do.

Route 65 from Bakersfield to Sequoia

   

A quick watercolor study of the landscape on the road from Bakersfield to see the big trees in Sequoia a few weeks ago. We took a short tour of Central California with the boys while visiting them for summer break. It was so dry and dusty, more that I remembered. And the light was so sharp and crisp.  I exaggerated the warmth/color of the grasses with the intent of balancing the deep shadows.  Too much? What do you think?

Back to art!

Sometimes I get busy with other stuff... Sometimes I just have nothing to say... Sometimes I need a break to redefine where I want to go with my art and blog.
So I am back today with a demonstration from one of my summer classes. This is a format that I would love to explore... possibly with my nighttime ideas. Stay tuned! Acrylic on 4 x 24 inch canvas board