July 19 - Solo Oak Tree, Acrylic 12 x 9

Fun again! Acrylics and layers and texture and brushwork! I love acrylics! A painting that is dry and ready to go for Saturday, and one of the subjects I love--solo Coastal Live Oak tree and coastal fog. I wanted something smaller featuring an oak tree to bring to the Jubilee, since the attendees are supporters of the Santa Rosa Ecological Preserve (as I am) and painting subjjects that have meaning for them is also meaningful for me.
The dog commission is on hold for a few days--I was hoping to get it well in hand before leaving for Maine next week, but things always go the way they are supposed to, so I do hope you enjoy this detour into acrylics!

Elin's Acrylic Painting - Fast and Loose! is shipping now! Available from this link.
You can see the entire blog here.

If you need to email me directly, please click here.

July 18 - Tweaking for the Cowboy Jubilee

I'm pulling work out of the racks and making selections for the show up in Tenaja, for the Cowboy Jubilee. It's fun to look once again at some of my earlier pieces, and this one needed a "bit of a jolt". Used for the invitation for one of the summer art shows at the Visitor's Center, This 24 x 30 acrylic was painted on location and shows Rancho California Road heading toward Tenaja. I was in the Sylvan Meadows parking area.
I tweaked it a bit, brightening up the foreground and unifying the sky into more closely related values. My goal was to have the feeling of passing cloud shadows throughout.
Getting ready for a show when I haven't done an outdoor venue in a while is interesting--I have to find and put together my "kit bag" of tools, and think about the whole presentation with groups of art. Sigh.
In between that I'm shipping Acrylic Painting - Fast and Loose! DVDs. Retired? HAHAHA!


You can see the entire blog here. And purchase the newest acrylic painting DVD "Acrylic Painting - Fast and Loose!" here.

If you need to email me directly, please click here.

July 17 - Dog Commission, Stage Two

As I start to cover this 38 x 50 inch canvas, I'm doing what I can to keep the values light and bright, (high key) so that the collectors needs will be met. It is coming along well now, almost ready to drop into the "Uglies". Those of you familiar with my DVDs will laugh along with me when I say that, because "we" know that every painting goes deep into the "Uglies" before coming out the other side!

The 8 x 10 reference photographs are mounted on each side of the painting hung next to the wall to show you the five images from which I am taking my inspiration at this time. Each dog has a characteristic "look" to it, and no two dogs are the same--thus the specificity of dog portraits, and the general blanket acceptance of cat images. I'm quite pleased with the colors and developing atmosphere right now, and will begin to tighten down and detail out after I finish the underlayment on the upper right corner. It's all being caught on digital video, too! (However, I am not talking!!!)

I'm sending a bit early, as we have plans tonight and I plan to have a couple glasses of wine! No can do and come home and paint...sigh.

You can see the entire blog here.

If you need to email me directly, please click here.

July 16 - The Three Dog Commission/Lesson commences

Here's the first pass on the 38 x 50 inch oil on linen commission of three dogs, lab and golden retrievers, that shows the owners the placement and basic overall high key color scheme that is coming into play. As I don't begin with my focal points, but paint TO them, subordinating the colors and edges as I paint to the crescendo of the three dogs' faces. (Dogs have faces... no argument there!). Richard Schmid constantly maintains that the focal point be the highest contrast and the sharpest edge, and there is tremendous validity in that phrase.

Hmmm, I just noticed that I mis-sent a couple of posts, the 14th with my studio pics went out after the 15th's desert revision. Must be senior moments, eh? Well, they are in order on the blog in any event, and in the scheme of things it is small potatoes.

You can see the entire blog here.

If you need to email me directly, please click here.