Tag Archives: workshop

Ten Small Studies in Three Values ~~ Black, White and Gray.

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Here is the series of monochrome studies, all 6″ x 8″, done during the workshop with Bernie Dellario. Such a concentrated repetition of that exercise was useful in helping us spot values quickly.

  • Flower Girls at the Beau. Oil on Paper. 6×8.
  • Max and Stash at the Market. Oil on Paper. 6×8.
  • Roxie and the Window. Oil on Paper. 8×6.
  • Birds on Break. Oil on Paper. 8×6.
  • Chef Chaoun Morocco Alley. Oil on Paper. 6×8.
  • Smokebush against Trees. Oil on Paper. 6×8.
  • Koi Pond. Oil on Paper. 6×8.
  • Scotch Breakfront. Oil on Paper. 6×8.
  • Cannas, Bamboo & Joe Pye. Oil on Paper. 6×8.
  • Racing on the Potomac. Oil on Paper. 8×6.

Mississippi Workshop – Part II. Water & Wildlife.

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It would be impossible to retrace our workshop footsteps and recount all of our painting triumphs and pratfalls, so I’ll just say:  WATER and WILDLIFE!   We spent every day painting by beautiful waters ~~ the old Ocean Springs harbor, the gentle marshes of the Gulf Islands National Seashore, the sparkling Ocean Springs beaches and the marshy streams meandering down to the shore.  Here are a few shots of the waters we enjoyed.

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And as for the wildlife, there was a feast for the eyes ~~ from bombardier pelicans, sunning alligators, eel-gulping herons, osprey, crab and who knows what else.  And I guess we have to count as ‘wildlife’ the daring youngsters, male and female, who paddle boarded within feet of the alligator after he decided to take a dip in the harbor.

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Pre-Workshop Painting of ‘Susan’s Marsh’ Got Some Touchups Pre-Exhibit

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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!

 

Touching Up an Oldie-but-Goodie ~~ a Favorite Painting from a Long Ago Workshop

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Some years ago I took a workshop from nationally known artist Carolyn Anderson.  One of our tasks was to paint an interpretation based on one of her stash of photos that she uses for inspiration.  I selected the one I liked and did a nice start, I thought.  I’ve always liked that old painting and decided to finish it up last week.  It only took a few minutes.  Ahhhhh.  That felt good! Here it is and below that, its state before the touch-up, as well as the reference photo.

Irrational Exuberance ~~ Painted Mushrooms? Or Toadstools?

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OK.  So, the leeks turned out well, aaaannnndddd ~~~~ I got sassy & decided to paint some portobello mushrooms the next day.

Bad idea!  There’s not much ‘there’ there.  Dull colors & shapes, arranged (by me) in an overly simplistic composition.  Certain artists could make a good painting out of such drab components (Morandi?), but my first effort at ‘shrooms falls short.

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Excellent Watercolor Workshop – Thanks, Wendy Artin!

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This past weekend I spent two grueling days knee-deep in watercolor.  Wendy Artin, a fabulous artist and lovely person, was our instructor, at Glen Kessler’s Compass Atelier.  Talk about ‘alla prima’ painting!  She dives right in – no rough sketch, no gesture drawing, no nothing — just her eye, her paint & her brush to guide her relentlessly down the sheet of paper.  Her tonal nudes, in which she paints ONLY the ‘shadow shapes’ yet leaves you believing the whole body, are exquisite.  Her colorful fruits & veggies are more fully rendered, but are also beautiful & light.

Here’s one of her nudes:

And one of mine — a half hour pose during the workshop (quite a difference, yes??:

I was VERY happy to be able to switch to vegetables in the afternoons!

Teaching and Being Taught in Lafayette

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Last week I taught a one day iPad art workshop to a number of local artists in Lafayette LA and then attended a three-day workshop in watercolor journaling held by Don Getz and organized by my sister Ceci. Another sister, Mercedes, participated in much of the fun, including the iPad session. Since I was so close to home, Ceci and I swung over to Biloxi afterward to visit our dad and his wife and more brothers and sisters.

As for making art while out-of-town, I didn’t paint while teaching. And it was so cold and windy during the plein air workshop that I didn’t do anything of note then either. In fact, after a couple of watercolor/ink drawings, I resorted to my iPad to get something — anything — down before my hands went numb. Though everything is unfinished, I’ll show you the state of play (along with a few photos of what we were memorializing) so you can get a flavor for the beauty of Cajun country. Teaser: we painted the St. John Cathedral Oak, the third largest live oak in the country.

Cuba was a Trip!

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With a cohort of fellow artists from the Yellow Barn and several family members (including my hubby), I just completed an extremely interesting and fruitful trip to Cuba. We planned to interact with Cuban artists; paint Cuban people, land and cityscapes; soak up the culture; and leave behind art supplies and other items that could be useful.

We began in Pinar del Rio, in western Cuba, exploring the Vinales Valley, with its mysterious mogotes, and other environs. Here is the spectacular view from our little balcony immediately upon arrival.

Red earth, green fields, and mysterious mogotes

Vinales Valley, with Mogotes in the Distance

And a photo of fellow artists, also soaking up the beauty.

All Enjoy the View

All Enjoy the Spectacular View

And an ipad sketch I immediately began (using ArtRage3).

iPad Sketch of Vinales Valley

iPad Sketch of Vinales Valley