Aug 2 - Horse in Oils Continues, Dog Rescue and AAEA

I just received news that two paintings of mine have been accepted into the American Academy of Equine Art's Fall Showcase. This is one of them! The second one will be showcased here in two images in the days to come. I'm very pleased that both my entries were accepted.

 

Now on to the process! Moving along with covering the canvas with color, I'm painting without too much consideration of the edges between shapes, unless it is near the focal point. Here's something to see: Look at the building corner in the upper right of the canvas. Note its value, how close the value is to the more distant trees? That was specifically intentional, because that roof line was going right out the corner, taking the viewer out of the picture. Squint down your eyes, and look, and see how the edges of the roof sort of disappear.

 

It looks like the Value System that is coming into prominence is the "Small Dark, Large Light in Midtones". Can you see it?

 

TECH TIPS: How you hold your brushes DOES matter. Holding a brush as if you were writing makes great details (plus) but also prevents you from being loose (minus). Holding your brush as though you are conducting an orchestra loosens up your wrist and makes for freer movement and fluidity.That's a reminder for the Color Boot Camp graduates, and perhaps news for some of my readers.

 

OTHER NEWS:

Yesterday a friend and I took our motorcycles out for a spin, and on our return home, we were going through a rural area. Out in front of us, a small puppy came to the edge of the road. I passed her, and she darted out into the traffic, where a pickup truck barely missed her.

  My friend pulled over, called her, and she came and jumped up, panting and shaking. Now the weather was almost 100 degrees and humid, so this little collar-less waif was obviously lost and scared. No sensible dog would be moving around in that heat.

  So what to do? 

 I unzipped my mesh jacket and cooler vest and put her inside. We rode to a shady, quiet location where she drank water and then snuggled back inside, happy to be with a human.

  We rode back home with her (about 20 miles) with her inside my jacket, and she was an angel passenger.

  This morning, Little Miss Roadside is part of the "pack", and is right now sleeping at my feet as I type.

  I did put an ad for her on Craig's List, but do not believe anyone that irresponsible would want her back, so they'll have to prove to me that they can give her at least as good a home as mine. My friend would have taken her, but she already has five!

  Say hello to "Little Miss Roadside" or "Roadie" for short. About six months old, she's getting crate training and basic obedience. What? A COLLAR? Yup.

More pictures in the next blog post as she adjusts to life at Two Trees.

 

Feel free to post comments on the blog or email me about these paintings. I enjoy teaching!

 

I hope you'll continue on with me on this journey, and perhaps forward this on to your friends and family.

The newest DVD on the Color System is HERE
You can see my entire blog HERE.
My workshop schedule for 2011 is HERE.
Color System information can be found HERE.
If you need to email me directly, please click here.

Jul 31 - Horse in Oils Continued

 

The 9 x 12 canvas is covered with more of the mid value colors, and I am keeping in mind the "inherent texture" (see sidebar) of the objects I'm painting. Bushes are fuzzy, horse's rear is not. 

I'm using my Color System to get the right colors for the distant trees and bushes, and then using it again to paint the shadow side of the horse's right rear leg. That's NOT burnt sienna (a warm color for sunshine sides) but is a mix of yellow ochre and alizarin crimson. Amazing how it always reads right in actual application.

I'd like former Color Boot Camp students to look at the potential value plan for this one. Could it go to large light, small dark in mid tones? Hmmmm.

 

Tech Tips:

I had a couple people ask me about the tech tips I shared yesterday, so I thought I'd clarify a bit.

When we paint, we have at hand a whole bunch of effects and methods for conveying three dimensions in two on our canvases.

One of the more powerful ways of painting objects is to think about the character of that object. Ask yourself, "Is it hard, soft, near, away, mostly moving, static, or..." In other words, what is the character of the object. Knowing the inherent character gives you the tools to paint meaningful subjects.

As an example of this, think of a field of grass in the breeze. Moving, shifting and alive with the wind! To paint static stems and leaves would not honor the inherent character of that field of grass. Does that make sense?

 

And on other news.... Vincent van Goat has been accepted into an MBA program in the hay business at the University of Riverside. Here he is with other business students for the required publicity shot. He's wearing the UCR colors and looks quite pleased with himself, don't you think? Mickey was too young to particpate, but perhaps another year.

 

Thanks for reading!

The newest DVD on the Color System is HERE
You can see my entire blog HERE.
My workshop schedule for 2011 is HERE.
Color System information can be found HERE.
If you need to email me directly, please click here.