linda hutchinson

Little Ditty

2012-02-09T06:20:00.000-08:00

Winter sessions of painting classes have begun. The first class is always a challenge as assignments have not yet been made. There are always new artists who don't quite know what to expect and sometimes arrive at that class without materials. So the goal for lesson #1 is a simple ditty with shared materials and shared experiences. This time I brought a bag of oranges. Each artist was then free to cut the fruit and arrange it in a way that was pleasing. And....we painted. No instruction, no warnings. Just mucking around. Truly, there is no better way to learn to paint. The lessons must come over time...and a few at a time. I painted with orange and its complement blue. The arrangement of soft and hard edges (lost and found) create a rhythm (hopefully) around the subject matter. I don't move my brush quite as freely at the focal area in order to retain whites and a bit of crisp detail. As always, there is a bit of a thrill as colors run into each other to become happy accidents. No high expectations. Just play. A Little Ditty.

Go Figure

2012-02-06T05:17:00.000-08:00

Figurative and portrait paintings seem to be a hard sell...at least for me. Buyers and collectors seem to be reluctant to hang an unrecognizable visage in their living space. I have also heard many folks who seem to be too modest to hang a picture of themselves as if it were boastful. I have a very difficult time with this notion as I see all of mankind in a gesture, a scenario or even the placement of hands. I relate to something in each model...something that echos a bit of my self and my longings. I guess that I wish to relate to a bit of what the model is feeling or revealing through body language. That is the reason why I continue to paint people and why I continue to learn about myself through them.

For me, the experience is tender. It is pure.

Go figure.

Informed Chaos

2012-01-26T05:47:00.000-08:00

For years now, I have been introducing a bit of chaos to my work. Chaos in the way of subtle destruction, dripping, squeezing paint onto, scraping back, palette knife additions or subtractions, dots and lines. This chaos provides a way of temporarily exiting the constraints of the reality of the subject matter. New puzzles to solve. Excitement. The extra-ordinary. I have come to realize that this chaos is not necessarily random...rather, it is informed. Informed by all that I have come to be. My experiences, my travels, my dreams, my passions and, most importantly, the varied movements made with brush or pen on the artistic ground. Keeping the tool moving without any particular goal while doodling, sketching and playing lets the confidence build in your own capability. Play becomes the thing, the reward. The more one plays, the more comfortable one becomes. The more comfortable one becomes, the greater the possibilities. Informed.

The right hand segment of Pearody reflects this notion. The line work was scraped through to an earlier layer. This process was planned so that the colors reflected, for the most part, the work that was happening on the left side of the canvas.

Chaos. Informed.

Facing the White

2012-01-24T05:55:00.000-08:00

Facing a white canvas or sheet of watercolor paper is a daunting task in the new year. Our strokes are timid and insecure. Our rhythms uncertain. Our confidence waning. I have faced this problem year after year when the holiday festivities pull us toward celebration and fun, which is certainly welcome, but away from the daily practice that makes for good art-making. No athlete in any sport would be able to turn out a peak performance without the constant and daily training demanded of him or her. OK, then. This year I decided to keep a few small canvases on hand for the couple of here-and-there hours that are freed up in just keep my brush moving. In the past, my preference has been a total clean-up of the studio area in order to complement the activities in the other rooms of the house. Not this year. I was able to find some in-between time to paint when my guests had other things to do and other friends to visit. As a result, the gap between the years was not so wide and so daunting.

The two pumpkin pie paintings were the result.

Resolution

2012-01-10T06:22:00.000-08:00

Tis the season for resolve! We take stock of where we are and where we would like to go. For visual artists, ideas are everywhere....on the web, in galleries and even in the newspapers that are heading to the recycle bin. Goals. Techniques yet untried. Excitement for the doing. My own resolutions include:

* to pump up more pure color in the work.....I have long been a neutral lover....primarily for their soothing nature.....but pure color grabs the attention and excites. I will give it a try.

* to paint more from sketches.....one step removed from reality, painting from sketches allows for more artistic freedom and interpretation

* to incorporate more patterning into the work. I am a lover of patterns - wallpaper, fabric and the like. Why not include them?

There we have it............Happy New Year!

Holiday Greetings

2012-01-05T05:52:00.000-08:00

in the mailbox are another of the perks of the season. My spirit is uplifted each day as I sort through the cards from those whose lives have touched our own. I am lucky to be on the lists of a few artists who continue to craft personal greetings. That is always such a treat! In addition, we exchange names in each of the classes for those willing to spend time on such a project. (And those who choose not to participate are always always forgiven and, in fact, complimented on their ability to say "no" in this season of way-too-much-to-do.) The two I received this year were both complete surprises and works of wonder....I realized the tenderness of time spent in each effort. I am amazed and pleased....these will be keepers. The cardinal by Jackie Roberts has been worked on 140# watercolor paper to a standard envelope size and folded in half. It appears that Carol Weigand's was worked on a watercolor postcard whose edges were taped down with artists' tape....this card was then mounted on a piece of colorful card stock which had been cut to a standard envelope size. The taped edges became a crisp border. Carol attended my demo at Summit Artspace early in the month and I distinctly remember someone taking photos. She has translated this photo into a charming little work. While individual paintings would be out of the question for cards, there are other possibilities for sure: linoleum printing; linoleum printing on printed paper; scanned and printed images on card stock; assemblages from craft supplies and rubber stamping. Thanks to: Ann Emmitt, Susan Mencini, Mo Mosyjowski, Janet Neubert and Delores Zink for their handcrafted cards!!!!

I should also mention a yearly project by artist Norma Ott. She and her husband Dave do a lot of traveling. As a result, she has lots of watercolors done at national parks. Each year, she makes up a calendar (at Kinko's) featuring 12 of her paintings which she presents to friends and family as a gift. What a wonderful idea! When her calender arrives in my box, my heart goes pitter-pat. Thank you, Norma!

oh, the memories

2012-01-03T13:20:00.000-08:00

of Christmas 2011! They came. We ate. We played. We enjoyed. We hiked. We listened. They went. All the people that I love in this world! It is always so bittersweet! The tree has been disassembled and the cookie tin emptied. I keep in touch with my pencils during this time of altered reality by using small moments for small, intimate and, hopefully, soft drawings of my loved ones that will sustain me while the merriment ends. I never ask anyone to pose, so often the drawings remain imperfect and unfinished. Sometimes that is definitely for the best. Stopping too soon is always preferable in my book...sketchbook, that is. Love.

Friend

2011-12-20T06:49:00.000-08:00

I believe that it was Andrew Wyeth who said that one can create from love or from hate. It is indeed strong emotional content that makes for a good painting. Creating from passion. For me, anything in between just won't do. In this case, my painting of Jo is a tribute in love for the friendship that has lasted for ever-so-many years. Our families were fast friends. We each had 3 boys who were stair-stepped in ages. We holiday-ed together. We played together. We shared each others' traumas as well as the triumphs in-between. And....we cooked together. Lots of hungry boys. Lots of cooking. Our paths have paralleled throughout the years and created braids of time....with some times away from and some times the returning-towards. But the foundation is always there. Jo is an accomplished woman and a strong woman. We seem to be able to read each others' minds at times....the knowing that that is intuitive and yin. And, so, this portrait is, for me, greater than the sum of its parts. It is a tribute. Merry Christmas, my friend.

Jo - Session 3

2011-12-16T06:59:00.000-08:00

When I approached this painting for session 3, I was fairly certain that it would be my last. My goals were:

* add the necklace

* add hard edges to restate my chosen rhythm around the canvas; and, if necessary, soften others

* adjust the color temperature where necessary; i.e. warming sleeve-tops of the coat. I will admit, that I like pushing the envelope a bit away from reality and towards more exciting.

* add highlights....for this, I used a cooled-down white using just a smudge of phthalo turquoise which is in the background and part of my original limited palette

* MOST IMPORTANTLY, I tried to avoid re-stroking areas with which I was pleased. It serves no intent at all. I can live with slight errors in draftspersonship more than ill-painted passages. That is my priority.

I am satisfied.

Jo - Session 2

2011-12-14T06:58:00.000-08:00

First off, my apologies for a really lousy photo. I was impatient. The natural light in my studio was next to nothing...a really gray day. Shutter stayed open for way too long. The painting has moved on since this photo....no chance for a re-do. Anyways, session 2 was about 3-4 hours. Because of the 3-4 day lapse since the first session, I was assured that my original strokes were solid. My goals were simply to come in for more detail in particular junctures; to assess and correct color; and to establish viable rhythms in the work. All the while, I try to avoid painting over passages that were exciting to me from the first session. Things happened easily in this work which is not always the case. I was very satisfied with the underplayed countenance. The background color went to a darker turquoise, almost teal. A good painting day.

Demonstration

2011-12-12T05:59:00.000-08:00

Every now and then I agree to do a painting demonstration. In this case, it was part of a group of Saturday art demonstrations at Summit Artspace as part of the Kaleidoscope 2011 exhibition. My friend Jo agreed to model. Demonstrations are difficult to do....mostly due to the fact that my intuitive painting process (done in solitude) is broken by talking and questioning. I can actually feel the chaos that builds between my L- and R-brain as a result. I find that my choices are not always the best in this situation. Because Jo has been a friend for so very many years, I was at least acquainted with a color palette that I deemed to be her own. I asked her to wear a coat that personifies her personality and has been her mainstay for a while. So....the pose, the colors and the atmosphere of communion were her contributions. She seemed at ease. Her face was comfortable and giving, which I attribute to the fact that she is an actress and seemed to know just what it was that I wanted. My own goals for the day were to relax and to make juicy, broad and expressive strokes on the canvas that broadly interpreted what I was taking in. The audience was wonderful....the questions well-informed and thoughtful. I was pleased with the image at the end of the session which lasted 2 hours. I knew that it was something that I could build on later.

Figure Drawing

2011-12-07T05:09:00.000-08:00

For the last session of our drawing class, we elected to draw the figure. The art teacher whose room we borrow at night was happy to recommend a high school art student willing to pose and make a few Christmas dollars. Yeah! Maggie was athletic, long and lean. She was able to relax well for us in this extremely horizontal pose. Results can be seen in the accompanying slide show. I felt that we all did well as far as simple shapes and proportions. There were a few angles(especially for the pillowed head) that were slightly off. Judging angles visually is difficult but can be aided by using one's pencil at arm's length to find it and replicate it on the paper. An angle that is off just a smidgen causes the head to lose its state of relaxation and appear to be full of tension, as if getting up. Once figure drawing is mastered, an artist will be able to use photos for reference without point to point copying without anatomical understanding thereof. Another problematic area occurred for those whose perspective involved the foreshortening of the head area. I recommended treating this head and shoulders area as a shallow bowl, with a losing of edges and slight shadowing in the middle with the more complete rendering around the diameter where most of the light would appear. A difficult, but interesting illusion.

For me, nothing is more rewarding than the curves of the human figure.

Test for Doneness

2011-12-02T06:41:00.000-08:00

The other day I met an old friend for wine at a local vineyard. She is a professional cookie baker. We were discussing the finer points thereof when she expressed her preference for cookies that are baked JUST BEFORE browning. I have always preferred those with a golden color....probably baked a minute or two longer. That very evening at critique, there were two amazing works on view whose makers expressed that they were "in progress". Whoa. I so loved them both as they were. Michael Nevin paints street scenes, especially Chicago street scenes. In this case the pencil drawing was revealed....some of the buildings and windows were painted in. The pencil marks playing with the paint was invigorating to me! Undercooked perhaps to him. Barbara Krans Jenkins paints with colored pencil on dried gourds. She has a fine eye and usually renders small flowers and birds on them. When finished, one would be hard pressed to know that they are gourds....they are ceramic in nature. In this case, she was asked to paint abstractly on the gourd using certain colors. It seemed that this was a bit out of her comfort zone. She had erased some masses of color thinking that they were mistaken. The bits of color that had settled into crevices was wonderful....it was there but wasn't. There was a good deal of rendering on part of the gourd which meandered into the halfway places. Superb. I would have considered it a fait accompli. Again, she considered it undercooked. Which just shows to go ya that every maker-of-things has a personal aesthetic that takes them along the artistic path and lets them off at different exits. I feel that there are artists and people of all kinds who carry things too far just because they feel they are doing a good job. If a little if good, then a lot must be great. Not always. An undercooked work allows the viewer to participate in the work....he/she is therefore engaged in the work as well. The rule of 3's. That which has been left undone. That in which there is space to grow.

There are two images here of Ella, a high school art student who modeled for our watercolor class. I later took the painting to completion at home. But in this work in particular, I so missed the rawness of the work at the end of the live session. This lesson will suit me well.

And as for cookies.....they rule. Undercooked. Slightly golden. Whatever. Joyful participation.

Let the Wild Rumpus Begin!

2011-11-29T06:04:00.000-08:00

Holiday season is a crazy mix of emotions! The extreme childlike joy that the season provides is immeasurable. Likewise, the frustrations. We have a holiday tradition here that requires us to fix everything that has been functionally broken for the past year....all in the month of December. Add to that the tempestuously tangled coils of holiday lights that you remember neatly coiling and organizing the January past. How does it happen? Holiday decorations defy organization entirely. (or the possibility of attic gremlins)

"Christmas Chaos" was painted at the end of last holiday season using a few bulbs that had hidden during attic reassignment. Yupo paper provides the texture. In fact, one simply cannot escape texture when using this paper, as the surface is a slippery plate. Adding more pigments always always disturbs what is underneath. Smooth passages are impossible. Although this paper is not my favorite, I can understand how using it in certain instances will support chaotic intentions......

such as holiday decorations.

And, as far as those cheap light strings that work only for one year (or half of them go out).....I vow not to purchase them any more. Please recycle them at :

Recycle holiday lights

All lights sent for recycling should be sent to:
HolidayLEDs.com Recycling Program
C/O Classic Turning, Inc.
4905 James McDivitt Street
Jackson, MI 49201-8958

Just what is expressive drawing?

2011-11-25T05:55:00.000-08:00

In the time I have been writing this blog, there have been more hits on my expressive drawing posts than any others. Unfortunately, until now, I have only described the steps we took in workshops without explaining exactly what I mean. Expressive drawing is my own moniker, albeit general, that signifies a drawing where other considerations trump the exactness of the subject. And, hopefully, it leads to expressive painting as well.

I use the design approach to drawing and painting. Design elements are the artist's tools. They include:
1. Shape (pattern, form, mass, object, subject matter)
2. Value (light and dark, tone, tint)
3. Space (the illusion of 3-dimensional depth and 2-dimensional flatness)
4. Edges (blurred and sharp, lost and found)
5. Color Temperature (warm and cool)
6. Texture (surface variation)
7. Line (drawing versus mass painting)
8. Color Hue (spectrum clossificotions: red, yellow, blue, etc; local and arbitrary hues)
9. Color Intensity (brightness, neutral versus pure)

The design principles ore the organizing aesthetic ideas that guide your use of elements in a painting. They are:
1 , Dominance (emphasis, focal point)
2, Movement (rhythm,, directions, gesture, transition)
3, Variety (contrast, conflict, tension)
4, Unity (harmony, balance or not with intention)

These elements are shared by artists of all kinds from illustrative to culinary. Each artist has his/her personal sense of aesthetic "correctness" that is a personal mix of the elements and principles dependent upon his/her preferences. My own mix is just that...my own. In expressive drawing, these principles are in play right along with the subject, the reality.

Drawing expressively relies on a good foundation in drawing; the desire for a bit of risk-taking; enjoying happy accidents and occasional chaos; a skill in gross motor drawing from the shoulder (as opposed to fine motor with the wrist); and the ability to trust your own problem- solving and decision-making ability.

My own preferences for an expressive drawing or painting include:

* moving from 3-dimensional correctness and detail in the focal area to 2-dimensional flatness in the far corners of the work

* calligraphic line (especially the S-curve) that mimic nature

* lines that extend too far

* broken line

* echo lines (or power lines) in important areas for strength

* combining like-valued shapes for simplicity

* unexpected shapes wherever

* warms played against cools

* line played against mass

* amazing neutrals played against a few pures

* as many lost edges as possible....leading to a bit of beautiful (hopefully) nothingness

* and rhythm, rhythm, rhythm using edges to create movement

Landscape!

2011-11-21T07:31:00.000-08:00

Because the interests of the artists in my watercolor class are so varied, we often vote on a genre to pursue. Our last project in the fall session was landscape. My goals were: a small colorful rendering; using smaller brushes than usual due to its size; and, of course, animation. I had hoped to stay true to my reference....as usual, that was not possible. My love for strong design trumps reality. I started by creating a nest for my pumpkin patch.....chaotic strokes and scrapings that would simulate the field in which they perched. Loose to tight. The reverse is impossible....for me. I tried to create a rhythm around the rows of pumpkins, as well as washing over some in order to strengthen others. This is a small painting - 10 x 10. I am happy....at least as happy as I can be at the finish. I always seem to yearn for the path not taken. Indecision.

The next painting is always my favorite.

Just how far will you go...

2011-11-17T06:50:00.000-08:00

...to finish a painting? I go pretty far. Long ago when things didn't go as planned, I would begin again, only to find different passages left wanting. Commitment is the thing. An interactive relationship between me, the artist, and the painting. No over-control. No under-control. A seeming back-and-forthness that will take you into a creative place you have never been. This work started out as a drawing demo during a workshop. Not much color....just the contes and sticks in my pencil box. At home I added pastel. Thought it was done..... The next day when I evaluated it, I saw BORING. Nothing worse. Using linoleum block ink and a template made of tracing paper, I printed over top. Zing. I am much happier. The last step was to touch up a few passages with pastel. Having everything in its proper place is just not enough for me these days. I need a bit of chaos, a bit of happenstance. Love that word. Love its effect.

Surprises are so sweet.

Gourds

2011-11-14T10:35:00.000-08:00

were another subject matter shared by both drawing and watercolor artists in my classes...those bumpy, shape-shifting and colorful natural objects that catch our eyes in November markets. Each artist had his or her own goals. Some chose simple monochromatic renderings with wispy shadows. Others went for more complex compositions and a more filled-in background spaces. In some cases the gourds are used only as a motif. for further design. In others, they are incredibly lifelike, resembling serpents. The addition of color always makes for a far more complicated problem. I am delighted by all of the results.

Tools

2011-11-10T06:38:00.000-08:00

were the topic, the seed, for concepting and design in both my watercolor and drawing classes. The choice of tools as well as the number was up to the individual artist, hopefully providing each artist with enough commitment to do well on the project. ( versus a topic selected only by me which might be difficult for all to relate and commit to) The results speak for themselves. These artists work hard and are serious-minded. The results are varied. Those who are beginners were encouraged to render only one item. Those with more experience were encouraged to use more items which exponentially increases the complexity of the composition. I see sensitivity. Great design work. Fabulous results. I am so happy that each artist pursued his/her own vision.

Tools are personal and soulful by nature. Add to that a willing artist. I do not value a dozen cloned photorealistic works nearly as much as a dozen individual interpretations. Enter emotion. Va-voom.

Raking

2011-11-08T06:19:00.000-08:00

is an example of what I consider to be a watercolor sketch. It has many elements that I adore....a figure in motion, a figure physically working (which I consider to be a soulful and noble endeavor), and a person I adore...my husband Rick. Rick agreed to pose for our watercolor class a few years ago. This painting is the result. I am thinking that its brevity is its strongest virtue. Having a model for a limited time period forces us to get to the point rather quickly...no time for extras such as a background. In fact, sometimes when a work develops into a full-blown painting, the original spark becomes buried in the paint. It becomes somehow duller. Poetry. Prose. I enjoy everything about it. Even the pencil squiggles that create a bit of a border. Would I have been that carefree on a painting in which I had invested several days? I don't think so.

The challenge then, for me, is to be able to save the original spark as the painting marches onward and becomes a bit weightier.

Canton Artists Gone Expressive!

2011-11-01T06:39:00.000-07:00

Saturday before last I had the pleasure of working with a number of artists down Canton way for a day of expressive drawing. These artists easily experimented with design principles and easily worked in a non-objective mode. We worked on collaborative drawings, going from easel to easel to consider one element or another. By lunchtime our drawings were finished. As we considered them during the break, there seemed to be 4 or 5 drawings that were a cut-above, those whose meanderings caught our eyes. After the lunch break, we moved into drawing an autumn still life set up, while still holding onto the freedom that the morning had provided us. There were so many good drawings, so many interesting drawings. And yet I realize that in so many ways, the transition from non-objective work into reality-based work is not an easy one. We are reluctant to prioritize the forms which greatly simplifies the work and allows the design elements to steer the way. We are reluctant to break up line, or leave out a boundary altogether which allows viewers to actively participate in the viewing of the work. We are reluctant to smear, to smudge and to wipe out. We are reluctant to use our erasers as tools. I guess that we are so programmed to add, add, add. We need to remember that subtraction has its place as well in the balance of the work. We often say too much when a little will do.

Our markings are not sacrosanct. Our forms are not precious. It is the meanderings that provide the thrill.

It's only a piece of paper. What do we have to lose?

Only ourselves.

and speaking of inky blue...

2011-10-28T07:02:00.000-07:00

Television seems at times more boring than ever despite the countless choices. Sometimes, for me, it is a commercial that gets my attention. Like the new Cadillac commercials....that whole package is terrific...the music....the street soul...the "that's the way we do it in LA", or Detroit-thing. Outstanding. Especially since Cadillac is on my never-ever list. So imagine my surprise when the current issue of Vanity Fair includes an article on "Art in the Streets - The West Hollywood Library Murals" presented by, yes, Cadillac. Graffiti artist Retna has created his own symbolic amalgamation of languages....beautiful marks that read as hieroglyphs/old English/middle eastern/centuries-old calligraphy. Meant only to be read visually. That is enough for me! The movement of the paint or ink resembling Sheaffer fountain pens, the ink flowing from translucency to opacity in a single stroke.

Beautiful. Thoughtful. Inky Blue.

copyright: Vanity Fair, November 2011.

Inky Blue over baby blue/ daisies over roses/lemon over orange

2011-10-26T05:12:00.000-07:00

These are some of my preferences. I believe that, as artists, we need to pay attention to those things and those situations that spin our fans. Self-definition. In order to find yourself and your own style in your creative endeavors, you must be able to identify that which is you and that which is not. Self-Realization. Attention must be paid. Although we take classes with other artists, and admire other work, we must be willing to find our own ways, our own personal journeys. As a teacher, I find it very difficult to tread the fine line of "these are the things that could be improved in your work" versus "do this is you wish to paint like me". The latter does no one any good. It is my opinion that every art student, even those more experienced, will benefit from the gradual whittling down of "that which I am not". Of course, that all leads to "that which I am".

Paying attention to what gives us a buzz is fun as well as informative. It seems as if we spend so much of our lives trying to fit in that we ignore our preferences. A lot of this is cultural as well.....as well as gender-bent. (don't get me started)

"Halloween Sky" was painted from a memory that was presented to me as I headed home due East one late night after class. Inky blue was part of that memory. Wait a minute....inky blue was the memory.

My personal fashion style: baggy. soft. And, above all, garments and cloth items made in India.

Play Time

2011-10-24T06:25:00.000-07:00

sounds like the name of a day care center. And just think of the fun to be had there! Crayolas, paper, blunt-edged scissors and glue sticks galore! Sometimes we artists take ourselves much too seriously and skip over play time without accessing its benefits. A few weeks back at our art club, we had a model session where each participant took a turn at a 10 minute pose. My goal for the evening was to attempt to render each pose with as little detail as possible. My paper for the evening was a thin 90# cold press watercolor. Efforts on newsprint are forever locked into practice, as the paper disintegrates into yellowed nothingness. Of the 5 or 6 done that evening, the one of Shannon reading a book was the most successful. It was interesting to me. It sat on my work table a while before I decided where it would take me. First I made a template from tracing paper to cover the figure. The copy was then worked using petite rubber stamps....oh, the boredom. Then watercolor on top. I resisted the urge to return the figure for more detail.

Fun. Not-so-serious. Yeah.

How to Feel Miserable as An Artist

2011-10-20T06:20:00.000-07:00

is one of those humorous lists that artists pass on or e-mail to each other. This list was shared by Tom Auld and is worth further sharing. There is no credit line.

1. Constantly compare yourself to other artists.

2. Talk to your family about what you do and expect them to cheer you on.

3. Base the success of your entire career on one project.

4. Stick with what you know.

5. Undervalue your expertise.

6. Let money dictate what you do.

7. Bow to societal pressures.

8. Only do work that your family would love.

9. Do whatever the client/customer/gallery owner/patron/investor asks.

10.Set unachievable/overwhelming goals. To be accomplished by tomorrow.

Subtitle: What Not to Do. See yourself in any of the above?

Fragile Patterns

2011-10-19T08:56:00.000-07:00

tickle my fancy. This portrait of Elizabeth was done from life at a session a week or so ago. Elizabeth is a long and lithe and terrific model....very beautiful. She was wearing a necklace comprised of hundreds of beads, a red vest and a black sequined bra. I used vine charcoal to render the portrait. At home, I thought about the pattern of the beads and chose a Moroccan design for the background. Red watercolor washes overall. The beads were intensified by dipping a pencil eraser into printing ink and pressing them onto the surface. Patterns and jewelry are a woman's armor, weaponry if you will... peaceful decorations that celebrate beauty and love.

Pattern recognition and musical patterning are functions of the right brain.

Fragile patterns celebrates this notion.

Stem to Stem

2011-10-17T06:05:00.000-07:00

One year ago mid-morning, I shot lots of photos at a local farm that puts on fabulous fun Halloween displays to tickle the fancies of children and adults alike. Until now, I have included pumpkins in many still life paintings, but this time felt drawn to render a row of pumpkins....a row of $5 pumpkins, as they were lined up according to size. This project became rather tedious as my goal was a vertical wedge of orange, rather than individual pumpkin portraits. As I worked it became harder and harder to tell them apart, to separate them. The crevices in-between became more and more important. The rhythm throughout became a bit of a tangle. The intense colors urged me on. The stems (hats? hair?) with their twisting, turning and varied directionality was the turning point. I chose to leave the $5 signpost out of the work... that touch of commercial seemed just too vulgar compared to the beauty of the skins, the shells.

The work has been drying for several weeks now. I am quite pleased.

Endless Possibilities

2011-10-12T06:06:00.000-07:00

I believe in endless possibility. In painting. In life. Each element is a variable: the medium used; the paper used; the choice of brush; the color palette; an artist's individual sense of aesthetic; the force and rhythm with which the surface is stroked; and so on and so on; scooby-doo-be-doo-be. Harriet Elson, a regional watercolorist whom I so admired, used to refer to caressing the surface. Therefore, those detractors who feel that in representational art, "it has all been done before" are out of line, out of touch with the individual and the endless choices made by that individual. My opinion, of course. Somehow, we representationalists are made to feel lesser by the modernists whose squiggles and random shapes require page-long explanations of the work. Truth is, I believe that we all matter. That our work matters. That it can all be appreciated. The work and website of Wendy Artin, an American watercolor painter who lives and works in Rome, was forwarded to me by fellow artist Tom Auld. It is truly spectacular. She considers and reconsiders. She is representation. And she wields a soft caressing brush.

I have chosen my painting "l'oignon" to accompany this entry, as I feel it is perhaps the most sensitive watercolor I have done to date. Of course, most in my circles would call it a watercolor sketch, as it doesn't have the power (and background) of a powerful painting. And, most likely, it would never be accepted into a major exhibition. Too small. Not enough impact. But sensitive I think.

Spiders on Parade

2011-10-05T05:49:00.000-07:00

For me, this October-time-of-year gets my creative juices flowing. Renewal. Fun. Colors. Excitement. These rubber spiders from Dollar General were the seeds for our first watercolor class. Each artists concepted, planned and painted, using Itsy Bitsy as a model. The results were spectacular. The spider who ate New York. Spiders put into a natural surround. Spiders up close and personal. Deliciously-spun webs. Beautiful under-bellies. Only one artist had to change her project because she felt just too uncomfortable. (don't be afraid, Barb. Itsy is made of rubber) Spiders get a bad rap. They are amazing colorful and interesting creatures... creatures of beauty doing what comes naturally. Can't the same be said of the human?

These projects were inspiring to me personally. Creativity in the round. Web-like. Tenuous.

The Letting Go

2011-10-03T08:16:00.000-07:00

was painted fairly recently as a therapeutic work for myself....and vicariously for a friend. The work was created from many photos taken click-click-click.....style on a beautiful spring morning in Boston. The figure is a composite of two separate girls. The face is made up and played down to increase the power of the overall figure. The arm is made up. I modeled my own hand. The horse is a composite of real and imagined. The interior of the carousel's roof was flattened into a 2-dimensional pattern. I was concerned with the overall lightness of the bottom of the canvas. I was advised at a recent critique to leave it alone and consider the work finished. Terrific. Using a design-centered approach can leave one up in the air as far as a cemented finish as there are always patterns that can be enhanced. OK. Wonderful. There was also a comment regarding the lack of sheen on the painted surface. Up until now, I have used a 5:1:1 medium mix of turpentine: stand oil: damar varnish. I may experiment with a 50:50 mix of turpentine:stand oil.

Learn. Re-learn. Keep moving.

We are lucky

2011-09-30T06:00:00.000-07:00

here in northeast Ohio. There are concurrent exhibits throughout the city and metropolitan areas at almost all times. If I attended exhibits for which I receive notices, I would no longer have time to make art. The club to which I belong, The Akron Society of Artists, is having an 80th anniversary exhibition this coming month at Summit Artspace located in downtown Akron. 80 years.

The postcard states: Practice makes perfect, and for 80 years members of the Akron Society of Artists have been perfecting their talents by gathering for regular demonstrations, lectures, critiques and studio sessions. Come enjoy this special anniversary exhibition showcasing this region's finest traditional painters and portrait artists.

When: September 30 - November 6

Several free Saturday demonstrations are planned.

The opening is tonight...5-7 pm. And, yes, there will be snacks.

Expressive Drawing and Doughnuts

2011-09-28T06:04:00.000-07:00

What could be better? We had a wonderful workshop last Saturday in Medina with many willing artists. The slide show includes the works that were spawned that day. The first half of the works were collaborative and non-objective, using only the design elements and principles to guide us. We started by making a mark on the paper. The next person reacted to that mark with a counter-mark. In turn we: softened some edges, located a focal area, incorporated both texture and passive areas, found rhythms to enunciate, introduced chaos and reacted to that chaos. In returning to her own easel, the artist then completed the work to her satisfaction. These works are always gratifying without pressure. Over the lunch break, we then voted on our favorites and discussed our selections. There was a clear cut winner....that is not revealed here. Make your own choices. The afternoon was spent in the study and rendering of an autumn still life. We tried to incorporate the efforts of the morning to excite our work. The second half of the slide show demonstrates our results. Terrific!

And the doughnuts were wonderful as well.

Safari

2011-09-26T07:30:00.000-07:00

is a Swahili word that literally means "long journey". I would like to think that its implications include a finding, a journey of the self, which is pretty much inherent in the notion of a long journey. Our friend Pat recently returned from an African safari, not in search of hunting game, but in search of a knowledge of the world at large, and, of course, in search of self. After years and years of the nine-to-five in support of his family, this was his treat to himself. Likewise, each and every work of art is a journey....some longer than others. The slide progression shows my journey in the painting of my rooster friend. I yearned for my paint and my stroke-making to be all-things-rooster, in order to avoid the stagnancy of rooster-for-decoration. And, a journey it was! Each of my works has always included a problem area.....in this work is was the rear leg...the one that should be not-so-dominant and fading into the ground area. However, as I work abstractly at the same time, the overall design seemed to be fighting with the notions of reality. Originally, I had planned to discuss my decisions at each pass. Unfortunately, those explanations have faded with two exceptions. I always recall the feeling of unrestrained joy at the beginning, the first pass, and the openness of possibility. I can also recall the thrill I felt as the cool green was added to the mix....that was, perhaps, the most exciting moment in the process. As you can see, I played with many solutions and came to an agreement of sorts. Is it finished?

I do not know at this time. Perhaps the journey is over. Perhaps not.

Fright Night

2011-09-20T06:01:00.000-07:00

I am a mystery-lover. After all, isn't making a painting somewhat like solving a giant mystery? Each October, I have a bit of a film festival for myself....mysteries, thrillers, haunted houses and the like. Things that go bump in the night. Things that jar us away from the day-to-day, the status quo that can become ever-so-monotonous. When I hoisted the work "Shocking" onto its notch on the wall recently, I was reminded of how much fun it was to create this work. I assembled photos of shocked and surprised friends and family: my friend Concepcion, friend Brian and his two sons Oscar and Casper, son Seth and friend Cheryl who for many years, ran the now-defunct Brimfield Post Office. Cut linoleum blocks printed onto the paper's surface provided the "look" of a film strip. (which has indeed become an antiquity) The work continued by arranging faces and drawing with pastels in my favorite spooky colors. I tried to keep a vague darkness going on....as if these were faces in a darkened movie theater. My friends had fun posing for this work, I think. And I had a great deal of fun making it. "Shocking" is the title. I am slightly hidden in the upper right hand corner.

Ah....Middle Age

2011-09-16T06:05:00.000-07:00

In our youth- and diet-oriented culture, we seem to cringe at the the notion of middle age. My work was painted from a detailed sketch made during a live model situation. There were those who really didn't want to participate, as this gentleman's body veered quite a ways from the beautiful norm that we admire. As I have never appreciated or enjoyed the notion of physical perfection, nor likewise the notion of ugliness in order to make a statement, I thoroughly appreciated the opportunity before me. (I much enjoy the French term jolie-laide, which incorporates a bit of both) Middle age...the period where gravity takes its toll, where backs laden with fatigue become curved...where support is welcome...where plumpness becomes the norm. Yes. I relished the opportunity to reduce this drawing to a few simple shapes and lines that would tell the story of middle age.

P.S. A simple look around the studio revealed similar bodies, even among those who scoffed. Life is interesting.

Bold versus Sublime

2011-09-14T05:36:00.000-07:00

I would have to say that I prefer bold paintings....those that pull you in from across the room and beckon you to come closer. But I also believe that we need to learn to play all of the notes: loud and soft; quick and slow; rhythmic and not-so. These are the tools that allow us to solve all (or almost all) visual problems. It seems to me that great musicians are masters of all kinds of notes that lead us into varying moods and feelings....they need to be able to manipulate their listeners. Same with great actors. And so, from time to time, I present myself with a painting problem that requires a more sublime presentation.

"Pumpkin with a Twisty Stem" was begun as a watercolor monoprint. I painted tender strokes onto a piece of plexiglass then transferred it by pressing onto a sheet of hot press watercolor paper. I continued to coax the image into being. The sublime is more easily accomplished with this versatile medium. I am pleased with these results.

Torrit Gray...in praise of neutrals

2011-09-12T06:22:00.000-07:00

I am in love. With Torrit Gray. No, not a guy... a paint from Gamblin.

I am a value painter. But I do appreciate neutrals a great deal, especially when laid next to pures and sparkling brights. I have always mixed my own grays. It is usually quite an ordeal, searching for a particular neutral nuance, while adding and adding and subtracting with my palette knife. This summer I found in my color box a promotional tube of Torrit Gray from Gamblin. I have absolutely no idea where it came from. But I now hail its unexpected arrival. Because it is such a beautiful gray, in my opinion, I found myself simply mixing the pure hue of my choice to get it to lean in a particular direction. The tube says " In honor of Earth Day, we make this oil color from recycled pigments collected by our air filtration system". Wow.

There is a special link on the Gamblin site that explains this pigment and its making. I found it fascinating.

Torrit Gray is quite a guy.

Here’s the secret of being a great colorist: it doesn’t matter how well you combine the bright, obvious colors, it’s the so-called dull, closely related shades - gray-greens, pewters, tans, muted browns, umbers, ochres, stormy blues and charcoals - that determines whether you have an eye for color.

Dorothy Shinn, April 14, 2005 review of Yves Saint-Laurent, Akron Beacon Journal

The Nature of Work

2011-09-06T06:47:00.000-07:00

For me, work is how I define myself. Work is soulful. Work takes a lot of energy. Work keeps me focused. This Labor Day weekend we were blessed to learn from a couple of others whose work is intertwined with self. My friend and fellow artist Mo visited on Saturday. She absolutely overflowed with enthusiasm from a recent workshop by Robert Burridge. She brought along her notes and a willingness to share what she had learned. What I learned from her about Robert Burridge is: he warms up every day with a series of paintings on a singular subject....9 to be exact. Wow!!! Nine paintings as a warm up! He also advocates planning and thought processing before beginning a major painting. Those are the lessons that stuck with me. The next day we had a visit from a young man who recently achieved his masters degree in zoology and has spent much of his summer studying birds and animals with a team in Peru. I was excited, as was Rick, to learn so much about a world we had never experienced.

This morning, September 6, my e-box contained a fabulous article entitled "The Job of Art" from Canadian artist Robert Genn who publishes and sends out a twice-weekly. Ever full of facts and opinions, his newsletter is often a shot in the arm for me and a source of ideas to consider until the next one comes around.

Work. Learning. Direction.

Hanging Around

2011-09-02T05:49:00.000-07:00

is a term that implies a bit of laziness, without particular goals. Hanging around was something we did as teenagers.....waiting for some excitement to stir us. There are paintings that hang around in my studio. "Boston Beat" was one such work. I trusted my intuition as it resided there against the wall. I was not ready to hang it, to wire it, to consider it finished. It was just fine....all the pieces were in their places. The forms interrelated to my satisfaction. The color pleasing. Still....I found it a bit boring. Too much reality. Values that, to my irritation, whispered. Not to mention that dreaded green triangle in the upper left. Painting is a process that requires continued learning and questioning. I love work that has an immediate impact with its shapes and values. There was only one thing left to do............surgery. What it needed took its time to infiltrate my brain. I am happier.

Resolution is always sweet. Sometimes attainable. Sometimes not.

Re-Do

2011-08-31T06:40:00.000-07:00

I decided fairly early on in my art career that re-do's were a waste of time. Sometimes we think that if we re-paint our subject, we will certainly do better. Usually, for me, I find that some passages are improved and others, which were previously satisfactory, are left wanting on the second trip around. Re-Do's also interfere with commitment. Morayo is the younger sister of my son's friend Bandele. She is a prickly girl. She modeled many years ago during a hot summer for my colleagues Jack Liberman and Judy Carducci.....and me.....when we painted in an upstairs garret room of The Italian American Center in Akron. Her pose, with delicately placed fingertips and a flower, is at odds with her personality. Her life had not been easy. The first time I painted her, I was dissatisfied to the point of torture. A second painting yielded approximately the same results. Now, many years later, I look back on this work and realize that she is there. I see both Morayo and her her brother. I see who she is on the inside.

Onionskins......layer upon layer. Sometimes it takes a while to get to the inside.

A painting is never finished.

2011-08-29T06:20:00.000-07:00

It simply stops in interesting places.
Phil Gardner

I know artists on both ends of this spectrum....those whose goal is a signature and a frame, being more stimulated by the product than the process ; as well as those who add a brush stroke now and again for decades.....really. I guess I am somewhere in the middle. I really like to keep a painting leaning against my studio wall for a while, usually upside-down, being somewhat certain that I have resolved most major issues. The release of the work just happens....either sooner or later. That doesn't seem to matter. It is deeply disconcerting to find awkward passages in those works that have "passed over". Usually, for me, it happens more often in small works, those little paintings that I would like to think are so casual that they fill in the gaps; those little paintings that are taken a bit less seriously; those that I haven't pondered about in excess. And yet, "Girls Named Susan" hung on my studio wall for less than a week when I realized that it could me made stronger and more exciting by adding some violet passages. I succumbed. Removed from the frame, it was. Back on the easel. I am happier.

I think it is a mistake to constantly correct paintings....that goes nowhere. The best tack for me is to internalize the lesson learned and apply it to future works. I am, at this point, wise enough to understand that perfectionism is rarely the solution for me. I adore the happy accidents along the way that provide a searching, a discovery. And so.................I really do try to honor the release of a work into completion.

Almost always. Never say never.

Back to School

2011-08-25T05:38:00.000-07:00

Yes, all announcements, all advertisements and all commercials announce that we have entered "back to school" mode. My son and I joked it only this week as we recalled all of things we purchased for back to school success: Ninja Turtle lunchboxes, Superman backpacks and Trapper Keepers, which somehow became the notebook to covet. (What was THAT all about?) I have no objection as I always did like school and much preferred the 9-month school calendar to the more laid back 3-month summer vacation. And so, even at my age, it is with a bit of excitement that I face September. Cuyahoga Valley Art Center, where I teach, is also gearing up for an exciting season of learning, of exploration. New classes. Many instructors. The open house is this Saturday evening, August 27, from 5:30-7:30 pm. There will be a gallery filled with student and instructor work. There will be refreshments. There will be entertainment.

It's almost September. Learn something new.

No Trapper Keepers. No lunchboxes. Just self-discovery. And, perhaps, a brand new set of pencils.

Game On

2011-08-23T06:53:00.000-07:00

Competitive gaming on a large scale makes me nervous. Too much tension. Too much noise. Too many egos on the line. But I am always up for board games at home. I look at these games as mental exercise...they keep the brain moving forward and back, side to side, and help us to discover all kinds of possibilities. I was fortunate to marry into a family of gamers. And, as a result, we enjoy Euchre, Oh Hell, Dominoes, Phase 10, Scrabble, Pictionary, Quiddler, Rapidough, Sequence, Jenga and Mancala. Mancala is our summer game of choice and is permanently set up on the patio for short breaks during the day, or for enjoyment before dinner. As is the case with all endeavors, what seems simple is actually complex. The more one plays, the more one is able to see connections that are not initially visible. "Saturday Morning Mancala" is a small drawing done on a visit to our son's apartment. He and my husband were playing on the balcony while I peered through the sliding door, trying to capture his head as it pivoted during the game. It is a small imperfect drawing that gave and still gives me pleasure and sweet memory.

Rediscovery

2011-08-19T06:33:00.000-07:00

This week I have been getting some work ready for an exhibit which requires fetching, cleaning and, sometimes, framing. In doing so, I come across works that had been put aside. "Amanda" is such a work, a charcoal drawing which gave me pause. In fact, I pulled it out twice. Mostly, in pulling out past works, I focus and fixate on weak passages....those passages that haven't been considered.....well....well enough in my opinion. In this case, I was pleasantly surprised. Because I have been painting all summer, the strength of the drawing and its values pleased me. I loved the quick and spontaneous way the charcoal stick had moved around the paper. The color of mid-tone paper was satisfying. I enjoyed the rendering of the short and choppy hairstyle. I remember being disappointed at its completion that the likeness wasn't right-on. In the rediscovery, I had completely forgiven myself for this shortcoming and was thrilled with its essence.

Time heals. Rediscovery.

Glory Be to Limoncello!

2011-08-17T05:39:00.000-07:00

Soothing essence of lemon. My first encounter with Limoncello was the lemonade beverage offered by The Olive Garden. Heaven. A bit too sweet but I replicated this beverage at home. Limoncello desserts followed. But still I was in quest of a simpler way to drink it. My friend and colleague Judy Carducci sips hers on warm European evenings at the end of the art day. She keeps hers in the freezer where it takes on a freezy syrupy quality. This summer my usual gin and tonic was replaced by a limoncello and tonic served over crushed ice. Fabulous. Quenching. The perfect refresher at the end of a hot summer day. Piquant. New.

"August Limoncello" is the painted ode.

Flowers have an expression

2011-08-11T05:33:00.000-07:00

of countenance as much as men and animals. Some seem to smile; some have a sad expression; some are pensive and diffident; others again are plain, honest and upright, like the broad-faced sunflower and the hollyhock.

Henry Ward Beecher

Painting with the season seems to suit me. One of my challenges this summer is to incorporate a bolder color scheme into my work....just to push my comfort zone. I am a unadulterated neutral-lover. Loud colors scare me. This morning while leafing through a fashion magazine, I came across a multi-paged article on bold color-blocked garments. I shuddered. "Sun Queen" is fresh off the easel. I am not certain I am satisfied yet. But the colors are bolder than I can recall using before. The power of the sunflower seems to demand it.

essence

2011-08-08T07:53:00.000-07:00

is a wonderful word. To me, it implies the distilling of something into its most flavorful, fragrant or visual parts. A boiling down.

The Place: Carter Mountain in Virginia
The Time: a muggy day in May

My husband and I accompanied our son Seth and his friend Louise on an upwards hike up the mountain. I was promised a natural fruit slushy of my choice at the top. Well.....both Seth and Louise are marathon runners. They trudged upwards effortlessly. I enjoyed the exercise but was happy to wearing my sweat band......I was sweating like a.....well.....perspiring to some degree.
The fruit slushy was fabulous. We took many photos. The trip down was easier. The day was amazing.

The patchwork patterning of the orchards was intriguing.

Essence.

Balancing Act

2011-08-04T07:04:00.000-07:00

Yes, indeed it is. For almost everyone. Finding that median in the land of polar opposites. Work:Play. Self:Others. Visual balance is important in my work....and I have noticed that most people are highly sensitive to balance and can tell when, in any situation, it needs to be improved. Being off-balance is disconcerting. (There are cases, when asymmetry is very exciting and helps to tell the story. In that case, imbalance is intended and purposeful). Mary was a tall and lanky young model. And then she did that pretzel thing with her legs wrapped around the rungs of the stool. First of all, painting the human figure on a standard size canvas is difficult at best. If the standing figure is painted in its entirety, the proportions of the surface are wrong to me, leaving far too much negative space. O.K. In this case, the lankiness was offset and balanced by some emphasis on the horizontals. In the working of these horizontals, the relationships of shoulder/shoulder; hand/hand; knee/knee and boot;boot became even more important. In this particular scenario, the stool had to be included as it was inseparable from the legs. The horizontal rungs also helped to balance this extremely vertical situation.

I have watched people straighten a barely-crooked painting on a wall as they walk by. I believe that a need for balance is deeply engrained in our physiology.

I am not a traditional realist

2011-08-02T06:37:00.000-07:00

There, I said it. Acceptance of my artistic direction. Said with a sense of loss. And also with a sense of relief. I so admire traditional realism. But after years of wiping out chairs upon which the models rest, I am ready to face my own direction with fortitude. I have tried painting the barn behind the horse, the curtain behind the still life and the trees behind the model. My sense of aesthetics has urged me to wipe them all out. Yes, a light source matters to some degree. It helps to describe my realistic forms, to ward them away from flatness. But the design approach of dark and light patterns is where my thrill is....those patterns that exist and move and relate without regard to the subject matter.

"Tomato Basket" took quite a while to paint, I remember being confused by my own desires being in conflict with the window behind the basket. The tomatoes literally rotted while I figured it all out.

I am what I am and that's all that I am........Popeye

Dorothy

2011-07-28T05:33:00.000-07:00

Gale just might be the most famous Dorothy ever...the I-wish-I-were-in-Kansas-ruby-slippers Dorothy. And then there is that darling skater with the darling haircut....Dorothy Hamill. But there are so many unsung Dorothys out there...participating in the daily grind and running offices at art centers on a volunteer basis. These are the real Dorothys. We were fortunate to have Dorothy pose for our class at the art center....3 hours. I need about three times that amount of time in front of the model, at the very least, to reach completion. If I'm lucky. The next week she was unavailable. I was lucky to have remembered my camera. When investing time and energy in work from a model, it is always good to have a camera handy for finishing the work if schedules go south....illnesses, vacations, and a million other activities can easily shortchange our best efforts. We work on a 20-minutes-on/5-minute-off session. My favorite time to shoot the photo is 5 minutes or so into the SECOND session. By this time, the model has found the pose. Also more relaxed from the break. Not too stiff from finding the pose again.

The world turns thanks to the efforts of all the unsung Dorothys.

and it's HOT HOT HOT

2011-07-27T06:28:00.000-07:00

here in Northeast Ohio. Our old 150-year-old dwelling has no air conditioning so the fans are at full tilt and begging for mercy. The good news is that the heat and humidity have been superb growing conditions for the garden. The first tomatoes are off the vine this week. Yum.

All forms present their own particular problems in painting. Circles. Circles. Circles. Without hard and soft edges, the forms become too self-enclosed for me, preventing the movement around the painting. I have learned this over the years with repeated efforts at painting pumpkins. I love to play off these circles with line...the vines...and with texture...the leaves and the small buds at the tops. For me, these considerations have improved my tomato painting efforts.

Add balsamic vinegar, soft mozzarella, salt or mayonnaise. Life is good.

Brush your teeth and paint some flowers

2011-07-19T06:50:00.000-07:00

are among those structured disciplines that reside somewhere in my head. Have to do them. Not always a pleasure. I feel that floral painting is one of the most difficult endeavors possible. The form of just one bloom is highly complex. Add another. And yet another. And consider the relationships between them. Yikes! I decided to paint the geraniums on my patio. They are, in my opinion, right up there with lilacs when it comes to complexity. They are made up of a myriad of pieces-parts, all in various stages of ebb and flow. And so, I knew that the simple shapes of the blooms might best tell the story. Seeing and interpreting their parts was amazingly confusing. Their colors are also complex....being somewhat florescent and a merging of more than one hue. And now, two days later, my studio is littered with pieces of geranium parts and leaves. I feel as if I have done battle.

"For the Love of Geranium" is the result.

Daily Painting

2011-07-15T06:00:00.000-07:00

Yes, I paint every day....or nearly. But the current daily painter movement is comprised of artists who actually finish a painting in a day. How DO they do it? I linger over my coffee and my meals. I even linger over many decisions. And, I just love the look of paint over paint. That can only occur when the paint has some time to dry. I consider and reconsider. To give myself a break from the larger painting problems in my work area, I have decided to paint a few smaller still life works that will be color-driven and a bit mindless. The shift will accommodate attention and practice in other arenas....brushwork, the difficulty of painting flowers and design to name a few.

"Ginger Jar with Peaches" is a smaller 12 x 9 painting. A 2-day painting. The best I can do.

How do they do it?

Express Yourself

2011-07-13T06:21:00.000-07:00

I am the happiest when my work reflects who I am....my own personal recipe of design expressed through paint. In the past, I have painted what is in front of me, especially en plein air, using local color, hard edges and pretty much what would be seen from a photograph. The result has been a great dissatisfaction and uneasiness. "Grand Dame" was originally painted from photos taken from a Victorian home. Its title was "Gabled". Despite the fact that it was, in my opinion, a respectable work, it didn't thrill me. It did not represent my own ideas, my own interpretation. After a year had passed and it was time for varnishing, I decided that I just couldn't preserve it as it was. I couldn't wait for the initial destruction. It sat in my studio for a very long time. By then I had deleted all photo references. It took four sessions of discovery and interpretation. It was rechristened "Grande Dame".

While I am certain that there are those who prefer the first version, I owe it to myself to be myself. Not painting to an audience.

I felt as if I had come home. At long last.

Surprise!

2011-07-11T06:00:00.000-07:00

is a wonderful expression....and most often conjures up a birthday party. Most recently, my work "Jardiniere" was the subject of surprise for me. This painting, a watercolor, was begun in class from a model who posed as a gardener. I continued the work at home, filling in the spaces with an imaginary garden. Soon, I was overwhelmed with a sameness of color and a busy-ness that had taken over. It looked like most of my other garden paintings droned into sameness. I yearned to simplify the background and, thus, shift all of the attention to the gardener whose work is unending. I am quite a fan of the teachings of Robert Henri who believed that the evolution of a work depending on the altering of passages that seem wrong. As the work progressed, I found myself using gouache as well as printer's ink which was applied to a plate and pressed onto the surface. Colors were urged into excitement. The journey became totally unpredictable.

Surprise! Immediately afterwards, I was very confused as to the amount of affection I felt for this work. Now, several weeks later, I find myself liking it.

SURPRISE!

The ideas that won't go away

2011-06-30T06:49:00.000-07:00

are the ones to which we need pay attention. The notion of a calliope has long been one of those ideas for me. Many times observed. Many times photographed. During a recent trip to Boston we happened upon a calliope filled with children, some smiling and some hesitant, on a brisk sunny morning. I stood at the edge and kept snapping photos, one after the other. "The Letting Go" is the resultant painting, one I have been thinking about for years and years. My attraction is definitely not nostalgic....although I have seen some delightful paintings that exude this quality. My idea has more to do with leaving the "round and round", about becoming fearless, and about letting go of past hurts and hurtful relationships. A spinning away from the expected and the predictable. The painting was created from many references including my own hand. The most difficult part to resolve was the value one....I was shooting for a light-filled canvas. Yet, I am value painter and needed to include powerful darks....that is who I am. I feel that I came to a useable compromise.

Last night on "So You Think You Can Dance", one of the beautiful choreographies was conceived from this same concept. Interesting! Synchronicity.

The Letting Go

The Beauty of Simple Shapes

2011-06-28T07:27:00.000-07:00

I'm afraid that I am a newbie when it comes to appreciating the beauty of simple shapes. Other concerns...many other concerns...have been much more apparent in my artistic studies. Simple shapes are often masked in the background....more subtle...as we work our forms into visual presence. It is true, however, that a painting is more successful from the get-go if the 4-5 simple shapes in the composition are also beautiful and stimulating in their interlocking jigsaw-puzzle-like nature. In fact, in class we have been analyzing these shapes using tracing paper on top of famous paintings, as well as on our own. I am beginning to appreciate these shapes from the beginning of a sketch rather than as an afterthought.

"Eleanor" is a sketch of my mother-in-law done on the deck of our vacation rental at the end of the day when light was waning. I don't need any other detail to tell me that it is indeed her. It is her shape, her posture, her figure.

Flexibility

2011-06-27T06:20:00.000-07:00

is a characteristic that keeps us fresh and new. It keeps the doldrums away, for the most part. It helps up to solve new problems in a new way. It prompts us to reuse, deconstruct and reconstruct. I believe that it is a key ingredient for happiness. When we first started visiting Charlottesville, Virginia a few years back we wandered into a spacious gallery called Sage Moon. Great ambiance. Several rooms. Artwork by professionals and school children alike. A cultural mecca. Owner Morgan MacKenzie-Perkins, a dynamo to be certain, had to close this gallery due to the economy's downturn. She picked up the pieces and found a new way to operate. The works she features are shown in various local locations, including Siips Wine Bar. Although she regrets this turn of events, she has certainly made the most of a bad situation. Thanks to Morgan, many artists are still being shown in this wonderfully cultural community.

Lemonade from lemons. Fresh at that.

Constant Change

2011-06-24T06:58:00.000-07:00

is difficult for painters to capture. We deal with a frozen moment situation. Claude Monet solved his curiosity with haystacks by painting an entire series. Contemporary kinetic sculptors such as Janet Echelman and Anne Lilly create works whose movement IS the art. Gazing at the face of a loved one provides multitudinous "looks" in the course of a day. Which one to choose for the frozen moment? Likewise with the ocean. Colors, texture and direction change many times during the course of the day. During our shore vacation, I painted only 2 very small watercolors of the ocean. There could have been dozens. Yet each one allows me to feel the infinite.

Give More Stickers

2011-06-23T07:13:00.000-07:00

Recently I had the most wonderful experience of coloring with a lovely 3-year-old girl named Jaidyn on an extended family vacation to the shore. She was armed with a lovely set of Crayola Twistables that I also carry in my drawing toolbox. As we colored and scribbled, we chatted about the yuckiness of boo-boos and the deliciousness of milk. About every 5 minutes, she awarded my sketchbook with a sticker. As you can see, I was rewarded with many stickers....which definitely felt great.

Picasso said: Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up.

Jaidyn's approach was one of play....non-judgmental and honest. Naive. It put things into perspective for me...at least for a short while.

Give more stickers. Receive more stickers. And dip some Oreos while you're at it.

Home

2011-06-08T06:34:00.000-07:00

is where the heart is. Certainly true. I am a notorious homebody. Home is where I work, where I relax, where I cook and garden and where I worry. Thomas Moore expounds upon the great soulfulness of home in The Re-Enchantment of Everyday Life. Still, travel opens up great windows of awareness. To travel is to experience new sounds, smells and flavors, as well as sights. A spring trip to Boston was like a jolt of adrenaline. Two new paintings are the result. A pair of street musicians in Boston Commons in the early spring light was a momentous experience. I envied their musicality, their spontaneity and their seeming unawareness of onlookers. "Boston Beat" is the result.

Nesting

2011-06-07T07:27:00.000-07:00

is a fairly common sight this time of year, especially if you are an observant nature-lover. My husband knows where every feathered nest is in our yard. We wait on the trimming until the first brood has flown. We painted nests in class. Almost every artist was able to bring in an abandoned nest. There they were in all their glory...feathers, strings, fishing line, small bits of paper and even some Chinese money plants woven in. They are an art form unto themselves. The challenge was to create an entire composition around the nest....where the dark brownness of the nest did not overwhelm value-wise to create a "hole" in the picture. We had some amazing results! Each one different. Each beguiling. The results were as glorious as the nests themselves.

Too Much Light

2011-06-06T05:56:00.000-07:00

can be a great detriment in painting outdoors. We automatically adjust for the extreme light by painting darker. It seems perfect at the time - until we take the work indoors and we are stunned. In some cases, the work is so off-kilter that it impossible to rescue. These conditions occur at the beach and on patios. Some alternatives are to find a shady area in which to park your easel. That way your eyes can adjust, even if you are focusing on a sun-drenched area. Another alternative is to sketch outdoors and paint from the sketch when back in the studio. And yet another alternative is to paint sun-weary vacationers back at the ranch or condo. I have to learn most lessons by myself...the hard way. This is one of them.

Organic

2011-06-03T05:26:00.000-07:00

is a word we've been hearing a lot lately. Organic signifies no pesticides. No chemicals to ingest. Just like anything else, there are arguments on either side. Organic foods cost much more. The produce is usually smaller. It doesn't last as long. More trips to the market. But, gee, it is always so beautiful. Where else can you get carrots with the tops still on them? Much more beautiful to paint! Carrots in a plastic bag yield no measurable aesthetic qualities. I will be honest....just about the only time I spring for organic is for painting....then we eat it up quickly. A good plan. Organic markets please the eye as well as the palate.

Postcard Art

2011-06-02T06:14:00.000-07:00

is a fun vacation thing to do. My work does not rely on the outer environment so traveling doesn't necessarily involve big plans for plein air painting. Some artists I know love to make travel journals that involves art-making each day designed around a place and time. Not me. I actually relish the break from the intensity of studio work. I pack a small wicker suitcase with: drawing materials, a small set of pan watercolors, a couple of brushes, and some postcards. I find traveling with oils too cumbersome. I like to travel lightly. Painting small cards and actually putting them in the mail is a fun thing to do. I enjoy the look of a handmade postcard after it has traveled across the country. Most folks enjoy receiving them as well. And, well, the others are happy to give them back to me. One of my favorites was done quite a few years back around the pool of beachside condominiums. The patriarch of a large family spent the afternoon in a floatie-of-sorts. And I spent the afternoon painting him. I really don't think he knew what I was doing. It took so very long, as I recall, as I had to wait for his floatie to spiral around toward me repeatedly....each time gaining only a couple of strokes.

If he only knew.

Inside Out

2011-05-31T06:39:00.000-07:00

Part of my painting and drawing process involves working from the inside out. For me, this makes sense. The block-in is extremely light. Not committing to hard edges until the necessary tipping point allows for greater flexibility and malleability during the rendering. Especially necessary for portraits, as every facial feature relates to every other facial feature, including muscles, tendons, bones and the obvious eyes-nose-mouth. The artists in my class requested a painting demonstration. I rarely comply, but a class vote put me in the minority. Painting and talking is just too hard. I much prefer the tunnel-vision-focus where I can achieve the state of mushin. Pam was a willing model. The painting was finished from a photograph in four passes, top to bottom, although I will confess to leaving it on my table and noodling over it throughout the weekend. I shot photos of the progression which should be available by tomorrow. Whew!!!!

Memorial

2011-05-30T07:18:00.000-07:00

Day is a time to visit grave sites and to remember those who are no longer with us. It is also a time to remember those delicious picnic food flavors! Happy burger-potato salad-baked beans-watermelon day!

The Beginning

2011-05-27T08:54:00.000-07:00

of any work is all-important. The energy, the strokes and fervor with which pigment is applied sets the pace for the entire work. Many of the artists that come to my classes state that they want to learn to paint and draw more loosely. Loose is scary. It is out of control. Loose strokes cannot be added to a tight painting for any effect other than that of an afterthought. The goal is: loose to control; big brushes to smaller; thin paint to thicker paint. The beginning is everything.

I have been reading a book entitled Blue Nude by Elizabeth Rosner, recommended by a fellow artist. Interesting to be sure. The author is definitely familiar with art processes...and feelings. I see myself on nearly every page. At one point, the blocked artist named Danzig states: Begin again. How many times had he said it? The phrase was half encouragement, half admonishment, the constant reminder to his students that the beginning was all that mattered and, at the same time, the very thing that had to be executed with abandon. Perfect and irrelevant.

I couldn't agree more.

Handmade

2011-05-25T06:16:00.000-07:00

I appreciate all things handmade and have actually found myself "rescuing" such things from thrift stores.....(no, I am not a hoarder). They are sacred. Because they are so often handmade, I seem to love all things Mexican...the glass, the jewelry and the frames. The glass is full of bubbles and the glassware sometimes a bit lopsided. The framing is my absolute favorite, but a bit difficult to work with as the metric system is used for assembly. Fitting them with glass is tricky.

"Mexican Glass" was painted in the summer...I remember it well. Along with the Mexican blanket flowers from our garden. Hot. Cool.

The Case for Original Art

2011-05-24T07:40:00.000-07:00

Just last week my son was searching for some white glazed pots for his indoor plants. His trips to some Mom and Pop plant stores yielded much better results than a trip to Lowe's. Large discount houses cater to the lowest common denominator with more generic products. The same with art prints which have been killed with correctness. Of course, we all need those deep discounts in some arenas of our lives. But, for me, what we choose to put on our walls defines us personally....our senses of visual aesthetics. No generic here, please. Original art is one of a kind. It has a personality and character all its own. It speaks of the artist's hand who created it. Lively. Nurturing. Lovely. The more I am able to celebrate my own uniqueness, my own oneness, the less I am able to tolerate generic artwork.

So, OK. Buy generic toilet paper....bars of soap in bulk. But engage in the liveliness of original art and the artists who choose to spend their lives in wonder. Participate. Oh, yeah.

Measure Twice, Cut Once

2011-05-23T06:12:00.000-07:00

O.K. I have to keep repeating this mantra. Preparation is a key ingredient to the success of a painting. But I don't think that I am unlike most artists who want to jump ahead to the fun stuff, the painting. Impulsiveness. At the Mentor watercolor workshop, we spent the first hour drawing our still life set-ups. My goals were the following: to familiarize myself with the subject matter; to understand the underlying rhythms of dark and light values that lead the eye through the painting; and to be able to merge similarly valued shapes for the sake of simplification. And yet, I wanted to retain the enthusiasm for the painting. (I didn't want to spend it all on the drawing.) I believe the preparation paid off. I used the drawing as a road map to guide my painting and used the actual objects for color and detail references. I think it made for a better painting, at least one that eliminated meandering, making all strokes more crucial and significant.

Let this be a lesson to me, to us.

Blue

2011-05-18T06:10:00.000-07:00

is forever connected in my mind to N.Y.P.D. Blue. A cop show with no equal. I guess the notion of justice is so appealing...especially these days with the lay-offs of these much needed public workers, and the line between right and wrong frazzled and wavering. Double standards. Monied payoffs. The shrinking of the middle class. Manipulation and trickery for a dollar. So when our artwalk model showed up, a retired policeman, all of my cop-thoughts came into play. Our model took great care with his appearance...a stingy-brim hat (which was new to me), a striped 40's styled tie and an earring. Along the Frank Sinatra-lines. Terrific. Three hours never passed so quickly. Thank you, Al.

Justice has been served. "Blue" is my response.

There is simply no substitute

2011-05-17T06:49:00.000-07:00

for drawing from life. It is in this life situation that we are able to understand the forms, the roundness, the hills and valleys of the human face. And, when practicing, the best way is to use pencils or charcoal....values will teach these subtleties more easily without the added complications of color. I have seen seasoned artists freeze up when faced with portrait-drawing. It is here that small errors in scale and measurement show up. And, when we freeze up, we tend to see the human face as we did when we were children....two eyes, a nose and a mouth....and perhaps a couple of ears and some hair. Getting the eyes "just right" will help, but is not the true foundation of drawing the human head. In actuality, the simple planes of the head tell the true story. It is indeed an overwhelming task. It is easy to practice on yourself in the mirror....perhaps limiting yourself to just one quadrant of the face. That success will urge you onward. My friend Mo does a self-portrait each day, both to improve her skills and to understand herself maneuvering through life. Her set-up is stationary in her bathroom. Her drawings are done in an old copy of The Gulag Archipelago.....one page a day. Whatever medium spins her fan at a given moment. What a wonderful way to learn. Let that be a lesson to us.

Themes

2011-05-13T10:20:00.000-07:00

I believe that it is the path of the serious artist to paint those things, those ideas, that are important to her...those remnants that when left behind, will help to decipher the life of said artist. I did not set about painting with any themes in mind., but I did follow my interest and paid attention to my intuition. After several years, I realized that one of my interests is "things dappled", things wabi-sabi, those things of pied beauty. I am certain that what lies beneath this whole spotted and imperfect notion, is a distrust of black and white thinking as well as a personal dislike for the purebred, the pedigreed.

Thus, one of my themes is "things dappled". I hope to continue all this vein for some time to come. "Dappled" and "Dappled 2" have been included in the Artists Archives of the Western Reserve annual May exhibition.

Glory be to God for dappled things--
For skies of couple-colour as a brinded cow;
For rose-moles all in stipple upon trout that swim;
Fresh-firecoal chestnut-falls; finches' wings;
Landscape plotted and pieced--fold, fallow, and plough;
And all trades, their gear and tackle and trim.

All things counter, original, spare, strange;
Whatever is fickle, freckled (who knows how?)
With swift, slow; sweet, sour; adazzle, dim;
He fathers-forth whose beauty is past change:
Praise Him."
— Gerard Manley Hopkins (The Poems of Gerard Manley Hopkins)

P.S. I was a little freckle-faced girl.

West meets East

2011-05-12T10:15:00.000-07:00

Last evening at our local art club we were treated to a wonderful presentation on Chinese painting presented by Mina Huang and Manna Huang. Mina provided a power point presentation on the evolution of the characters showing different styles and varieties common during particular dynasties. The characters we see today have been around for 1700 years! Then Manna, who is classically trained, demonstrated the actual painting process. For me, two amazing things stood out: first of all, the economy of stroke-making (every stroke counts...and none will be covered over) and secondly, the ease and care taken to mix the ink/water solution properly and load the brush. It was simply superb! And each of these artists has carried over their talents to accomodate our Western way of painting.

Many years ago, I practiced using the brush this way to form our western alphabet. I can remember putting my young boys into the tub to play, while I sat nearby practicing the push and pull of the brush to and from the paper surface.

Let's hear it for stroke-making!

Drawing as Finished Art

2011-05-09T06:47:00.000-07:00

Drawings are useful as painting preparation and help to resolve design problems early on. But drawings are also quite powerful as finished art. Without the complexity of color issues, they are able to get to the point quite quickly. I also enjoy the play of the charcoal across the paper which certainly is easier than with paint! Drawings are value-driven. "Power Tie" was drawn from a model. Because I saw the major shapes as light, I tried to used the darks to rhythmically move the eye throughout the drawing. Thanks to my friend Ann who always has a plethora of pastel sticks on hand, I added the red of the tie at the very end.

Fine or Chunky?

2011-05-05T07:35:00.000-07:00

Discovering yourself in your art is very exciting. It defines who we are personally and helps us celebrate our own uniqueness, oneness. I love all things chunky - salsa, spaghetti sauce, applesauce, jewelry and orange juice with pulp. Mugs, not teacups. I prefer large brushes and chunks of charcoal...never pencils. The first week of watercolor class is always a bit problematic in that no one is really prepared for an assignment. I asked each artist to grab something in the well-stocked trove of still life objects at the art center. I grabbed a tarnished silver plate teapot. I don't question my motivations....I just go with my first inclination. It was indeed a challenge with all of that tarnished goldeny-violety-blacky reflectiveness....and some dents as well. It was only when I finished the work at home that my self-definition revived itself. The beauty of this pot was in the embossing on the handle and on the spout. But when I picked up a small paintbrush, I felt disappointment...a "why bother" kind of feeling. It was just short of revolting. I always want to finish off a class project using only watercolor because, after all, it is a watercolor class. But I had to be true to myself. The pot was finished with chunky charcoal lines which pleased me greatly. The overall feel is always more important than the detail to me.

I was reminded of who am am.

Feelings

2011-05-04T06:03:00.000-07:00

are entwined within my every brushstroke. Tension shows. Neurotic behavior reveals itself. Confidence uplifts and frees. For me, painting and feelings are inseparable. Painting is, quite frankly, where my inner world resides. It is rare to commune with an individual whose ego does not get in the way of the communion. I have never enjoyed painting landscapes that much. Part of the reason, I'm sure, has to do with a reality-based color palette that is all over the wheel, and whose disparate nature fragments the power of the work. But artists in my classes enjoy the painting of the outdoor scape. And so I deal with it. For me, a limited palette is a must. Colors were pushed. The blue-violet of the sky was brought down to the middle ground. And the grass green was pushed up into the sky. The large tree was not solidified. My response to an early spring landscape: before the first mowing.

Whether inspiration is based on what one sees or on ideas, the artist's job is to react emotionally to what inspires him. Be less demanding of the source of your inspiration and give more guts to the representation of your visions and ideas.

Alex Powers

Baaaa.....d to the bone

2011-04-29T06:26:00.000-07:00

This month I have been painting a sheep. Yes, a sheep. Massive. A gentle giant. Painting animals makes me feel serene and complete. It helps me to understand just where we fit into the grand scheme....that we are a small part of the world in which we live. My goals were to render the wool in a general way and to merge the sheep shape into the surrounding ground. The gestalt. The overall sheep feel. I felt reverence as I painted. Respect. Admiration.

The highest purpose is to have no purpose at all. This puts one in accord with nature in her manner of operation......John Cage

One who lives in accordance with nature does not go against the way of things. He moves in marmony with the present moment always knowing the truth of just what to do......Lao Tzu (Tao de Ching)

Workshop Work

2011-04-28T07:03:00.000-07:00

It has taken me quite a while to accept the fact that my workshop work is never my best. Not only is it difficult to focus clearly in a workshop setting, the concerns of having enough coffee and the volume level of music tend to disrupt and get in the way. My top concern is that the participants have a successful experience. As a result, my own workshop drawings are often discarded. The work of the participants must be the priority and, I must say, I have been so greatly pleased in this regard. The fact that what I am trying to communicate visually is getting through to participants is unbelieveably rewarding! And, the fact that my own work seems to be subpar during this same time period is disappointing but no longer a surprise. As I culled through the work from the expressive drawing human figure work, I decided that one drawing was worth some extra work. It was on good paper. "Fedora and Stripes" is the finished drawing. Thanks to Leta for being such a great model.

Handed-ness Matters

2011-04-27T06:17:00.000-07:00

no....not left or right. I am referring to how we strike or caress the painting surface with our tools. I believe that those of us with heavy hands need to learn how to caress the surface in appropriate passages. And, likewise, those of us with a more timid approach, must learn to bravely become heavy handed and bolder when the work requires it. I guess it seems similar to learning to play the piano....or any instrument for that matter. Fortissimo. Pianissimo. Over the years I have found that, in general, it is more beneficial for me to lighten up my touch. ( I am a natural heavy-hander). A lighter touch provides more glide. An energy that allows for more curve, more swerve. When I recently experimented with gold leafing, I was so very surprised at the light touch required, with a soft brush using circular movement, to actually adhere the leaf to the adhesive. (In my mind, there was a burnishing, a pounding effect....wrong) A light touch allows for more free play and more movement. To and fro. Ebb and flow. Push and pull. All good.

The King Midas Touch

2011-04-26T05:56:00.000-07:00

Gold has a history of desirability, representing wealth and status. As we define ourselves as artists, we gradually sort through what is us and what is not. For the most part, I have rejected this notion of gold-status. I do not like gold jewelry....or gold frames. I much prefer the weathered look of worn materials of an everyday nature...flaking paint, rusted iron and speckled stained materials. Me. Years ago, however, when studying calligraphy, I often admired the gold leafing on ages-old manuscripts and holy books. The reflective quality was beyond compare, even after hundreds of years. In my art cabinet is a kit containing all the things needed in order to gold leaf. It sat unused for so many years....simply because I did not want to read the lengthy instruction manual. I am a doer...not a reader. A few weeks ago a painting of a gerbera daisy just seemed lackluster, for want of a better word. I pulled out the kit and read the instructions. Yes, read. It really wasn't so difficult. I loved the addition of this material onto the painting.

Never say never.

Eggs

2011-04-25T08:07:00.000-07:00

are always a challenge to paint....white, elliptical and fairly reflective. I usually try to put eggs into a composition with patterning in order to highlight, by contrast, these qualities. "Chinoiserie Eggs" came into being fairly easily and, I have to say, I enjoyed the rendering of the blue design. As always, the most difficult part became the opaque darks surrounding the pot itself. Selective light washes were painted over most of the egg surfaces in order to really eliminate the "too much white stuff" quality that undermines so many watercolors. Dirty water washes are often a great addition, I find, as the pigments swimming around in the wash water make for harmonious neutral glazes.

Making egg salad from the set up is just gravy.

How to paint water

2011-04-22T06:32:00.000-07:00

is a concern for most artists as water reflects what surrounds it for the most part. Frozen water. Moving water. Stagnant water. Each creates its own problems to solve. Here in America we don't often worry about a source for water. Solidarites International is one organization making an effort to provide clean water for folks around the world. Artist Clement Beauvais has illustrated this need on a vimeo film clip by drawing with water and dropping in ink on the surface. Fellow artist Tom Auld has forwarded this clip to me....he was intrigued by the drop-in of pigment....one of the beautiful qualities of a water medium. The film is both beautiful and haunting.

Matt Damon and Gary White have founded water.org here in this country. Donations are accepted to help to provide enough clean water for a year for an individual. It is estimated that 3.6 million people, including 1.5 million children under the age of 5, die each year from consuming water that is undrinkable.

Let water be the link for solving this global problem. Donate. Paint water.

Our Expressive Drawing - the human figure -

2011-04-21T06:14:00.000-07:00

workshop last week was both exhausting and ever so rewarding all rolled up into one. Our first day was spent in creative mark-making and recognizing simple shapes. We also studied the design elements which culminated in some collaborative drawings. We voted on our favorites during the lunch hour and then analyzed why certain drawings seemed to have more appeal. And....believe it or not....we were almost in total agreement. (the winning drawing is in the slide show....can you pick it out?) The second and third days were spent drawing from a model. We approached the drawings as design problems through using paper doll and silhouette darks and lights, working hard to approach a great overall design including the background. Identification of focal areas, dominance and rhythm were our goals. I am satisfied and wonderfully excited that the participants achieved so much in such a short time. Now..............a nap?

Emily Dickinson wrote

2011-04-11T05:59:00.000-07:00

I dwell in Possibility--
A fairer House than Prose--
More numerous of Windows--
Superior--for Doors--
Of Chambers as the Cedars--
Impregnable of Eye--
And for an Everlasting Roof
The Gambrels of the Sky--
Of Visitors--the fairest--
For Occupation--This--
The spreading wide my narrow Hands
To gather Paradise--

Oh, the possibilities. Members of the Women's Art League in Akron spent Saturday morning creating pear possibilities. This slide show shows but a few. Juicy. New. Individual.

Life and Art

2011-04-08T08:03:00.000-07:00

I become elated when art intertwines with everyday life and becomes a bit disengaged from the elite sector. That is one of the reasons why I love street art so much. And, let's face it, artists spring from that part of life that is all about the essential, the important, the work that creates, often counter to the destructiveness that surrounds us daily. And all without regard to pesos. (of course, pesos do help) Art elevates. Art enchants. Art saves. And so I am particularly delighted to have my work shown at Clip Art Salon and Gallery over the next several months. Owner Denise Pepe has shown local artists for years in her salon. She has given many artists a great start, myself included.

Clip Art Salon and Gallery
1165 E. Tallmadge Avenue
Akron, Ohio 44310

Stop by for a color or a cut. Stop by to become elevated.

Discipline is Freedom

2011-03-30T08:54:00.000-07:00

said Garth Fagan, the Tony award-winning choreographer of "The Lion King". "Study the rules before you break them". Quotes of this nature abound. Probably because they are so true. When you study your craft so very much that its nuances become part of your nature, it is then that you can begin to play....true play from which creativity springs forth. Yes.

A few weeks ago, the program at my local art club was about breaking the rules. I was unable to attend that evening. Sometimes, in breaking the rules, we are more able to completely say what it is that is felt. "One in Every Crowd" is a case in point. A painting about chicks, sweet chicks. And also a painting about following the crowd, or not. I chose to paint my independent chick a different color and to put him facing a different direction than the others. These changes made the painting more interesting to me, and also made the painting more interesting and challenging to paint.

Alice

2011-03-29T05:47:00.000-07:00

(of the Wonderland tale) would love stepping into Heavenly Cupcakes in Kent! Pink and Green everywhere. Antiques. Bold stripey wallpaper. Games. Tables. Sparklies. and now.....cupcake paintings. Artists in both of my classes have contributed to this wonderful exhibit of cupcake art: Sheri Linzey of Kent; Norma Ott of Cuyahoga Falls; Jackie Roberts of Sagamore Hills; Carol Weigand of Rootstown; Delores Zink of Kent; and myself.

Check it out. And, btw, Alice said to bring your sweet tooth along.

Change of Pace

2011-03-25T06:58:00.000-07:00

Changing my painting pacing keeps me interested. Some days are large oil painting days....they take quite a while to resolve. On watercolor days, I often work on more than one, switching back and forth while trying to time the drying times. And, when I become overwhelmed with problem solving, I paint small oils on small canvasses, just painting as I see things. Simple. Uncomplicated. Refreshing. Often, these small works are driven by color harmony and color experimentation.

Country Eggs....change of pace.

Swoon

2011-03-24T06:38:00.000-07:00

is defined by dictionary.com as "to enter a state of hysterical rapture or ecstasy". What a marvelous word! Swoon is also one of my favorite street artists. She studied painting at Pratt. Her subjects are street people. Most often she does wheatpaste prints and paper cutouts. I love her style as well as her subject matter. Sometimes her figures are a combination of great design and draftspersonship combined with decorative elements which make me swoon. I noticed her work in "Exit Through the Gift Shop". She is also represented in Graffiti World: Street Art from Five Continents.

What a surprise to receive one of her images yesterday in my mail. My son photographed this work on Grand Street in Brooklyn and sent it to me from his phone.

Technology.

Swoon.

Cyclical

2011-03-23T07:44:00.000-07:00

living is what I relish in, what I delight in. The small changes that occur through the calendar year pique my love and my passion. This past weekend was a warm one. I try to rid the flower beds of winter debris early enough to create a clean environment for the new bulb shoots. What a miracle! The predictable rise and fall of bulbous flowers...daffodils, tulips and the like. We count on this rhythm.

The tragedy in Japan is constantly on my mind these days. Their cyclical rhythm has been totally disturbed, interrupted....what to do?

Pear Possibilities

2011-03-18T07:19:00.000-07:00

Early next month, I will again be presenting a program called "A Pear is a Pear is a Pear". It is a fun and playful session that involves process rather than product. During the workshop we consider such things as: edges (soft vs. hard); texture; color temperature (warm vs. cool); line and mass; and color (neutral vs. pure).

The slide show shows some the fine small pear paintings that were made that during our Thursday watercolor class. The pressure was off....we were loose and free. After all, it was only play-time....right?

Bling,

2011-03-17T09:32:00.000-07:00

current slang for shiny things, is a distractor. Shiny things attract crows as well. I was inspired by Picasso's "Woman With a Crow" done in watercolor, pastel and charcoal in 1904 and owned by The Toledo Museum of Art. I love everything about it...its simplicity, the soft caress of the woman's hand, the colors, the elongated fingers. Some pictures just move us....who knows why? Maybe it stirs up something in the memory. Perhaps it indicates a place we would like to inhabit artistically or emotionally. I painted "So Young Worries" d'apres Picasso. My work is done also in watercolor, pastel and charcoal. The gold coin is gold leaf applied. I guess I feel that we are too often distracted by bling and all it represents. It really keeps us from knowing ourselves. To have or to be.

Yardsticks

2011-03-16T11:08:00.000-07:00

are good for measuring things, even measuring finished work, but lose their function when trying to measure the quality of our work. One day at the end of class, one of the artists asked me if I thought his work had improved over the past couple of years. Wow...talk about a loaded question. I hate to respond with another question, but I think that improvement can only be judged from within. With some paintings, I felt that I really hit the mark. Others, not so much. I have sold many paintings that were not among my favorites. I am happier with my work than I was a decade ago....does that count? It seems that my earlier work garnered more awards....but I may be wrong. I am doing riskier things these days...solving more difficult problems....I feel that my work is now really mine. But how would others measure it? I don't know. Sometimes I really love a painting that has not even gotten a second glance by others. I guess improvement is in the eye of beholder.

"Pot of Potatoes" is the aforementioned work.

Life is just a bowl of....

2011-03-15T07:18:00.000-07:00

let's see...we had spools of thread, bok choi, fruit and my own response, broccoli. In this case I was working on an unusually shaped scrap of paper. I wanted the darks and lights to play against each other to create drama. And....I had the green/violet combo in my brain. The tops of each floret are a kind of bluish-whitish-greenish. Millions of little pieces. The goal: to indicate broccoli without too much detail.

"Eat Your Broccoli" is my response.

Winter-ful

2011-03-11T07:13:00.000-08:00

This has certainly been a winterful winter....after weeks of slightly warming temperatures and chilling rain, we are back into the grips....the trees and ground are covered with the fluffy white stuff. Last chance to paint a winter landscape. Painting snow in the spring seems, well, just wrong, like looking at a Christmas wreath in March.

"Blue Hen Falls" is the result. About half of it was painted during class. I was terrified to complete this in the studio at a separate session....worried that I would be unable to continue the earlier color palette, the earlier soft rhythm. I guess the muse was with me on this one. I am pleased.

Missed Opportunity

2011-03-10T07:35:00.000-08:00

Yes, I missed the Dean Mitchell exhibit at the Canton Museum of Art. I have seen many of Mitchell's paintings before in various group exhibitions. The truth is this: I would rather paint than go to a museum. Wear denim bibbies wearing yesterday's makeup with flyaway hair OR groom and clean to be presentable. Actively mix paint to my heart's desire OR passively take in the work of another artist. Problem-solve visually OR problem solve with driving directions. I choose the former. Truth is, there are so many exhibits these days that it could literally take up my time. Sacred Time. Bea loved the winter landscapes. Kelle noted the use of hot press watercolor board which aids in precise interpretation. Ah, yes. Second hand information. I will get a book from the library.

I guess I would rather miss the opportunity to see someone else's work in order to grab my own oppotunities. Good Decision.

Mucking Around

2011-03-09T07:01:00.000-08:00

is how I describe our attempts at painting anything at all. Too often we wait until "we're good enough". Well....I am not sure that waiting will produce anything at all satisfying. And so we are left with mucking around. It is scary. It is us facing paper or canvas and relying on the moment. Our Thursday watercolor faces are immensely satisfying to me as a teacher. Bea described her effort as that of a 12-year-old. That can be a good thing. Her self-portrait has a happy, charming and naive feel. Much like her. I was thrilled by Kelle's response to her portrait of Carol...she congratulated herself for a job well done! We should learn by her example instead of the negative self-talk that permeates our creative lives. And as for Bob and his confusion in his portrait of Concepcion, I must say that I can certainly relate. We are all confused and we are all tormented by how our work doesn't measure up to some unknown aesthetic in our brains. He has been reading Painting People in Watercolor: A Design Approach by Alex Powers, one of my favorite Alex's. Trying to assimilate information from a book into your own approach is always problematic. Too much prescription. I have been there. Very confusing. Bob's portrait has an absolutely wonderful feel. The face area shows his confusion and search for finding his own approach. He will get there. It is just a matter of time.

Literature

2011-03-08T06:54:00.000-08:00

(that which one chooses to read) and life experience are inextricably related. Life experience, then is inextricably related with what one chooses to paint. I am a fan of the work of Louise Erdrich. I found Love Medicine and Plague of Doves to be both haunting and a bit disturbing. When I was in elementary school, our class assignment was to question our relatives about our heritage. In a supermoment (one that remains strongly engrained in the conscious), I asked my grandfather where our ancestors came from. He replied that my grandmother was a "wild injun". My grandmother gave him a mean glance and then went about her chores....she was a woman of few words. I thought it was a joke, even though she really did look Native American. In years to come, I did find out that her own mother was the child of such a "bi-racial" relationship. The details are quite sketchy but researched to a degree by a cousin. I have no desire to undertake the task of geneology. But the interest is there. That my tolerance of cold, that my extremely slow metabolism and my love of silence could be a product of genetic coding. When Twelve Eagles posed, I undertook the project with enthusiasm. Indian art runs the gamut from being a bit scientific (as specimens from The New World) to a bit too sweet as in "cute little Indian girl". But as I worked, I realized that even though Twelve Eagles is authentic, she came off as a beautiful woman in a costume, as defined by my narrow middle-class-America-Ohio-to-be-specific cultural dictionary.

"What Have We Done With Us?" was painted of a sketch of Twelve Eagles. I see myself in her.