Jun 9 - The Acrylic Still Life Continues

Now I'm so much more pleased with this one. It is coming along well, with glazing done with traditional gloss medium and colors from the Open Acrylics, blending and unifying the upper left corner, and defining the green plate. The red grapes went in very fast, and yet are not painted as individual grapes. I'll still add much more, and have put off adding the lavender leftmost plate. I need to pull the entire composition together before making this bold statement.

I've thought about time of day for this painting, and it is definitely morning. I added bits of warm yellow to the whites, and of course there are all sorts of grayed purples in the shadows. Yes, even interiors can reflect the time of day--it just makes a better painting overall, in my opinion.

Every once in a while I like to share with you other artists' work, someone who has been in a Color Boot Camp. Since my epiphany of being a teacher vs. being an artist first, I want to share this site with you--this is my friend Louise Mellon, of Aiken, South Carolina. She paints what she loves and what is around her--mostly horses and their companions. I'm always pleasured by her courage in her work and her stunning designs. Check her work in progress through her blog: http://louisemellon.blogspot.com/

OK, OK.... if you want to be on the list for the October workshop, I'm going to take names. (Now stop pestering me! Just kidding!) I don't want to have to go to a lottery system, yet I understand everyone's frustration about not getting into a Color Boot Camp.

You can see my entire blog HERE.
My workshop schedule for 2009 is HERE.
Color System information can be found HERE.
If you need to email me directly, please click here.

Nov 29 - The Ground Squirrel Complete

I need a title for this one....
Here's the 18 x 18 inch acrylic photographed in the good light I need for entering shows. The glare is gone, and the colors are uniform across the canvas. Signed, it's finished mostly with Golden Open Acrylics, which I am coming to love.

I loved painting with the Open Acrylics, and of course the Color System makes this scene read right from the top to the squirrel's shadow. Our ground squirrels' Latin name is Spermophilus beecheyi but I just call 'em the common California Ground Squirrel--or varmits.

Tomorrow I go paint on location with the Plein Air Artists of Riverside--always a fun day! I'll be taking those Open Acrylics with me for more practice.

Below is a more detailed image of the squirrel:

This image shows the details where I felt details needed to be, yet the brushwork and loose edges of the other areas guarantee a hierarchy of edges.

These rocky ridges and "exfoliating granite" are very common around our place here in Riverside, California. The ground squirrels are no strangers to us either!

This original acrylic is destined for the Saks Gallery in Denver, Colorado for a show in February with the Women Artists of the West. I don't know whether I'll be able to go to the show, but I do have friends there to visit--and life is short, so who needs a better reason?

You can see my entire blog here.

Color System information can be found HERE.

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