For Day 6, I posted a more conventional figurative piece ~~ a young visitor who plopped herself down to wait til her mom finished visiting. She was such a sweet ‘Patient Reader’.
Day 6 of the Challenge ~~ Patient Reader
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Tag Archives: representational art
Paintings 24 & 25. Mock ‘Frescoes’ of Gouache Painted into Damp Plaster
I’m currently taking a class on mixed media and was intrigued when teacher Susan Hostetler mentioned “mock frescoes”, made by painting gouache into still-damp spackle or joint compound slathered onto cardboard or other heavy substrate. I decided to try it. My first attempt was a simplistic sugar bowl sitting on our kitchen table. My quick contour was misshapen, so I touched it up with some water-soluble pencils, moistening the marks to blend them into the gouache.
I then plopped down a seashell (interesting shape though dull colors) and tried again. I was happier with that one, though disappointed when a little flake popped out sometime later. Maybe a fixative would deter this type of defect — will have to research it. . . .
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- Seashell. Gouache on Damp Joint Compound on Cardboard. 7.25″ x 6″.
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- Sugar Bowl. Gouache on Damp Joint Compound on Cardboard. 7.25″ x 9″.
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- Post painting mess! Didn’t manage to get the shell into the picture.
Painting #23. Another Experiment ~~ 15-Stroke Shells!
Sometimes it’s fun to challenge yourself: can you make a painting in a very limited number of strokes? Say, 15? I decided to try it the other day. I placed three shells from my beach-combing stash on a sheet of paper and attacked, carefully plotting color and placement of each stroke. At 15, I was itching to do ‘just a few more’ to beef it up ‘just a bit’, but gritted my teeth and concluded the effort. Here it is, along with a snap of the shell subject.
In keeping with the spirit of the test, I made only a few light guidelines for size and placement, before constructing the design via ‘color-shapes’.
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- 15 Stroke Shells. Oil on primed Arches Oil Paper. 10″ x 8″.
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- Shell Setup for 15-Stroke Painting.
Painting #22 – Birds in the Backyard and a CMYK Palette
My most recent small painting features some bright cardinals showing off among their Plain Jane pals. It was based on photos taken last year. Our feeder is empty and there are few birds to watch now. (Our neighborhood has been encouraged not to use feeders so birds won’t gather and spread a new virus among themselves.)
For the artists who are reading, this painting was an experiment in “cmyk” colors — a very limited palette of cyan, magenta, yellow and black. This group of colors is used with great success in color printing, but it’s pretty rare to see it underpinning an oil painting or water-based art.
For this attempt, I used the closest hues in my paint stash: manganese phthalo, quinacridone violet, azo yellow and ivory black. I managed to mix everything in the painting without resorting to additional colors ~~ other than the male cardinals, for which I dipped into cad red. I can’t say I enjoyed the experience or like the outcome! I’m not sure whether I’ll try it again!
#22. Birds in the Backyard. Oil on Primed Arches Oil Paper. 8″ x 10″
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- Reference Photo 1
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- Reference Photo 2
A Past Start Destined to Remain Unfinished. Dad on the 4th, 2010.
In the last post, I included a photo I took of Dad during our July 4th party in 2010. I have always treasured that shot. Back in 2014, when I was beginning to experiment with gouache, I decided to hazard a rendering of the fuzzy image. I got it to this stage in my first session and put it aside for further work. I have never had the nerve to do more on it because I was afraid of messing it up or not doing Dad justice. I’m now declaring it ‘officially unfinished’. It’s not gonna be changing. I like it ‘as is’, shortcomings and all.
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- Dad – July 4, 2010. Gouache on paper. Private Collection.
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- Dad. July 4, 2010.
Painting #21 – Red Tulips
We have some short native tulips in our yard that thrill us every spring. One of my recent 10″ x 8″ paintings features these beauties. . .
Red Tulips. Oil on Primed Arches Oil Paper. 10″ x 8″.
Painting #19 – Calla Lilies.
Continuing with my flower binge, here’s another I finished today — of some sweet white calla lilies.. I hope you like it!
#19 White Calla Lilies. Oil on Primed Arches Oil Paper. 10″ x 8″.
Painting #18. Toothiness I ~~ the Start of Another Intermittent Series
My hubby and I stick our toothbrushes into a tarnished old holder in between brushings. Awhile back, I started paying attention to how they’re standing ~~ are they facing each other leaning in for a kiss? Are they turned away from each other? Is one facing away while the other looks on?
It’s been fun anthropomorphizing these humble objects. I’ve even started noticing brush positions at other folks’ homes — family, mind you, not friends!! I’ve taken photos of some of these little vignettes and even crafted some arrangements. They’re a form of truthiness — errrr toothiness, right?? Or am I just crazy?
Here’s a painting of our ancient holder and current brushes, from life . . . .
#18. Toothiness I. Oil on Arches Oil Paper. 8″ x 10″.
Pre-Workshop Painting of ‘Susan’s Marsh’ Got Some Touchups Pre-Exhibit
Before the recent workshop on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, I tried to get in the groove by painting one of the places we would visit there. I call it ‘Susan’s Marsh’ because it was based on a photo my sister took in showing us potential venues. I didn’t finish it then, but did so a couple of weeks ago so I could include it in our new Maplewood Exhibit. I decided to spice it up a bit by adding a heron — it was looking a bit too tranquil without it!
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- Susan’s Marsh. Oil on Linen. 20″ x 16″
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- Reference Photo by Susan O. Snyder
Painting #17. Back to Painting the Big Flowers ~~ Another Pull-Out-the-Stops Hibiscus
This hibiscus was growing in my sister’s yard. I generally shy away from screaming colors but, hey, this one was trying SO hard I just had to snap its portrait and paint it. We may need sunglasses for this one!
Neon Hibiscus. Oil on Primed Arches Oil Paper. 20″ x 8″.
Reference Photo