End of the year

What a fun year to review. I looked back on my posts this year and am delighted to see that I tried so many different things.

First there was 'Mikey' (that's the St Michaels crab on my street banner). He was eating an ice cream cone. By the way, my 2017 banner is finished and will be posted in the near future...what's Mikey doing this year?

I really tried this year to experiment and make myself do new things. That's always risky. It would be really easy to keep doing what works, but I have loved the new challenges. I have been fortunate to substitute in the watercolor class a lot, but have also dabbled a bit with my pastels.

Looking back, I rediscover various class assignments - boat painting, "Painted Ladies - Victorian House;" my rivulet paintings; painting with a matchstick; painted screens; melting crayons with grandchildren; different shape paintings to fit mat cutting practice; painting on a Chesapeake Bay chart with the Jimmy Buffett signature; various sketches; finding common things and turning them into art; and the most fun, doing LOTS of puns.

It was been wonderful to hear comments on all these different things. Thank you all for your supportive observations, critiques and encouragement!

I end the year with New Year wishes. Of course, in keeping with my quirky nature, it's Gnu Year. Does anyone know what a gnu really looks like? Or, more correctly, what a 'happy gnu' looks like?

I offer this quick sketch that I did this afternoon. I don't think his smile is quite the happy one that I wanted, but perhaps...he is a little anxious about what's ahead in 2017!

Best wishes everyone and thanks for following my blog!

Fleece Navidad

It's DECEMBER! Yikes, how did that happen so fast? In speaking with several friends, we are all saying the same thing...this season silently creeps up on us and then WHAM - the holidays are here!

I am now playing Christmas music and writing Christmas cards. There is nothing like singing along to traditional holiday music. In prior years, even though I do most of my shopping on line, I sometimes just sneak away to a mall and walk around to listen to the canned music and get 'in the spirit.'  So, that secret is out...

Last summer I started thinking about this year's card. Yes, I was in a quirky mood and sketching silly puns. I came up with a number of different ideas for the card. Several of them made my smile - some more reverent than than others.

In the end, I decided that at this time of year - especially this year - it would be good to really smile. So I am offering a preview of what goes in the mail this week.

I had such fun drawing all the little sheep - each is its own character. I hope you enjoy.

Merry Christmas and Holiday Blessings to all.

Making the invisible, visible...

A few weeks ago, I began sort of a series  - trying to make 'art' out of common things we don't usually see. Here is another under this heading. I am thinking of it as making the invisible, visible.

I had walked around Barbara's neighborhood during a watercolor class when I came upon the fire hydrant. (see Post on 10-13-16) Another day, I walked around her house with my camera. Again, I was trying to see what we don't normally look at. It was fun to look purposefully for the invisible.

In her furnace/laundry room I discovered furnace pipes - perfect! I took several photos and went to work. My goal was to simplify - I left out the clothes hanging behind the pipes and just focused on the pipe shapes themselves.

I sketched it out with pencil and then got out my matchstick and ink. I was ready to take it to class for critique.

I really liked the sketch and I was anxious to paint it. We talked about what kind of background would not interfere with the overall image. I decided just to use all the colors I was using in the pipes and do some wet-on-wet painting.  I also cropped it closer to the pipes, creating a more vertical impact. Voila...

 Artwork titles are always a challenge - one of my friends suggested "Turn me on." I am not sold on that - open to other suggestions.

"Painted Ladies"

For the past few months, my watercolor class has been working on a project - "Painted Ladies." We were each supposed to find and paint local Victorian houses. Traditionally, these houses are colorful - painted with at least three colors - and stand proudly in various neighborhoods...strutting their stuff!

Most of us groaned with this assignment. However, over the weeks of painting and critique, we all began to appreciate the what we were learning with this task. We were each to have three paintings ready to go for the show at the St Michaels Library during the month of November!

I began with the Parsonage Inn - a B&B in St Michaels. I have always been intrigued by its many angles and its fun turret. I painted the entire house several times before I figured out that what I really liked was the chimney and roof line. Here's what I finally came up with.

 After driving around town and looking at lots of photographs, I decided to paint the "Eagle House" - located on the grounds of the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum. The house has an interesting history - you can go to cbmm.org and read about it. Bottom line - it has an eagle on the top of its turret. Yeah, I am into turrets...   The thing that caught my eye with this house, in addition to the eagle, was the strong shadow across the front. I love these strong colors and light.

I still had one more to do. Several years ago I had done an ink drawing of a house for the local holiday house tour. I found my old drawing and decided to redo it in color. I picked just a section of the front of the house for this painting. After all, there is only so much fancy porch railing that I can do! What were these Victorian craftsmen thinking?  

We hung the show yesterday - what an amazing display. Stop by the library and take a look. And, of course, many of the paintings are for sale...

Common things we don't see...

A few weeks ago I was again in that 'in-between' place. I had finished a painting for a show and was stuck as to what to paint next. I went to class that morning and just felt flat. I still needed to paint a house for an upcoming exhibit titled "Painted Ladies," but was not inspired.

It was a beautiful day so I decided to take my camera and walk around the neighborhood - looking to be inspired. What I discovered was that the things that caught my eye most were not the lovely Victorian houses, but the 'invisible' things: a trash can overturned, old duck decoys hanging from a tree branch, a rusty old gate and a fire hydrant! Not exactly what I had planned, but why not give it a go?

I really like the shapes on the fire hydrant...I began drawing. I sketched first with pencil and then got out my matchstick and ink and completed the ink sketch.

A bit of watercolor wash on the hydrant and a dark background and this really pops!

I love it that common (invisible) things can be art!

"Just Desserts"

The St Michaels Art League will be presenting a new exhibit at the library in St Michaels during the month of October. The theme of this new show is "Just Desserts."

Many of my artist friends just groaned when they heard the theme...not me...I have been painting ice cream cones! I had the cone thing going and was so ready for my 'demo' for the Labor Day Show (which was postponed). I had thought that I would use the 8 dip cone (see post from 8/18/16) for Labor Day and then put it in the library show.

Well, that won't work now. The library exhibit begins next Monday and the postponed show has been rescheduled for the following weekend. So, I just painted a giant new cone. This one is matted and framed 16x20. That's a really big lick!

We are allowed to enter two paintings in this exhibit so I am also putting in another one. This is one that I had been thinking of painting for some time. It's a pastel of granddaughter Winnie discovering cake on her first birthday. What a happy child! 

If you are in St Michaels, drop by the library during October...and look for the

Columbus Day Art Show and Sale under the tent at St Luke's Church on

 Saturday, Oct. 8 from 10-5 and Sunday Oct 9 from 12:30-5.

Painting with a wooden match

A few weeks ago I received an email from an artist friend who was setting up a one day workshop with watercolorist Paul Allen Taylor. My friend included a description of a technique I had never heard of...painting with a matchstick and ink. There were examples of the artist's work. I was hooked.

It looked similar to my watercolor and ink sketches - and it looked like fun. Several of the artists I regularly paint with also signed up. It would be great to spend the day with them.

We began the workshop with introductions and a little of Paul's personal history with art. Then the technique... He 'whittles' the wooden match head (after breaking off the tip that you would normally light) into a point. The match is inserted into a special holder or a wooden dowel(a hole has been drilled to accommodate the match). You dip the whittled tip into a bottle of permanent ink and basically draw with it. Unlike an ink pen or marker, the ink line is less defined and more irregular. It's an interesting effect.

After demonstrating the matchstick technique, he showed us some of his earliest work. Yeah, like his high school paintings - really early work. The message here...we are all learning all the time. We were encouraged to be free and loose. There was no pressure to paint the 'perfect' painting, just learn a new skill.

Instead of trying to figure out what to paint, he offered us a barn scene. We were, after all, not trying to paint the perfect picture, we were just trying out the technique.

I did feel free...

It was fun to try something new. As I painted the barn scene, I really was just experimenting. The ink and the watercolor washes flowed.

It was one of the first times I have been to a workshop and ended up really liking what I painted! The style seemed to fit me and my mood that day. My painting could probably use a tweak here or there, but for now, it's enough!

Melting Crayons - another way...

Since I posted about the melting crayon experience with a couple of my grandchildren (a few weeks ago - see "A grand(children) time" 8/9/16), I have had a lot of comments from friends who want to do it, too. So I thought I would also post this - it's another way of looking at this technique.

We just returned from a visit to Vermont (ahhh, it's wonderfully cool there...), and a granddaughter there had her own ideas about trying this method.

Maizie is really interested in fish and wanted to to do an underwater scene. She picked out all the blues and purples and decided to take the paper off all the crayons. She also had the idea of making fish shapes out of painters' tape (it's the kind that is easily removed) - she taped the shapes onto her board. (She just used foam core for her project)

Then she used the hot glue gun and stuck all the crayons to the board. She put the board in the dirt driveway and leaned it against an old milk crate.

She started up the hairdryer...

...and the crayons began to melt. It wasn't long before the fish were completely covered with crayon, but if you look closely, you can still see a vague outline.

Once the crayons hardened, she carefully peeled off the taped fish. She needed a knife in a couple of places.

Voila! Fish revealed! We were both struck by the wonderful texture of the 'ocean' and the very interesting bottom edge that had been in the dirt. It wrapped itself forward and hardened that way.

As we used to say, "Try it, you'll like it!"

The lighter side of art

I have been having such fun with my artwork lately. I had been thinking that I was being so serious...I needed to do something silly.

The St Michaels Art League has a Labor Day Show and Sale coming up soon. We will have artwork for sale from 34 different artists. Street banners from prior years will be on the clothesline and offered for sale along with the original banner artwork from this year.

This year we will also be featuring artists' demonstration throughout the two days. I will be offering a 'you paint' ice cream cone (just one dip cones) opportunity on Saturday afternoon. See post from July 20th.

I am signed up for two display panels. One panel will have some 'serious' art. The other one I will call "The Lighter Side of Art."

So, now I am working on a series of puns! I am doing watercolor and ink sketches for everyone to try to figure out and then giggle - or groan! (Groaning being the 'proper' response to a pun)

Here is a preview of a few of the sketches - see 'answers' below...and then drop by St Luke's Church lawn on Saturday, September 3 from10:00-5:00 or Sunday, September 4 from 12:30 to 5:00 and see more!

How did you do?

Apple Pie

Spring Training

Peace on Earth

Here's to you!

Hope you see you Labor Day weekend - come see some more...or if you have any ideas, let me know and I'll see about doing a sketch just for you!

A grand(children) time...

I have just waved good-by to two of my granddaughters who have been visiting with us for a week. It's always a busy, fun time...fishing, crabbing (we caught enough to steam and eat!), swimming, kayaking, shopping, MANY games of Sorry, watching the Olympics, and of course - arts and crafts.

So today instead of my artwork, I am posting the masterpieces that they created.

One of them had seen this idea of TV so we decided to try it.

We began with a brand new box of 96 crayons which they discovered in my craft box. We needed two canvas boards which I found in my workshop.

They each chose an assortment of rainbow colors (who knew there were that many different reds, blues, etc in that box!). They lined their crayons up on the canvas and we used a hot glue gun to stick them on.

Now for the fun part. We set up sort of a 'painting station' outside because it was going to be messy. We used newspaper, wax paper (to catch the drips at the bottom) and a cardboard backdrop...and got out a hair dryer!

Each girl blew her crayons and watched them drip in amazing ways! Here is the process of Hildry's masterpiece.

The crayons are glued on - she is beginning with hair dryer. It doesn't take long...

Here is the first round of dripping - we let it cool off and dry and decided to do it some more!

It was such fun to watch the colors drain out of the crayon papers and mix with each other! 

The wax paper at the bottom caught all the drippings and made another wonderful pattern of color!

Here is Winnie's artwork. As you can see she glued hers on straight across. Some of her crayons were 'metallic' and they created interesting textures and sparkle!

Her first dripping looked like this. We were really interested in the white space, too.

Some of the white space remained and the other colors are so vivid! We discovered that you can really blow those colors around. 

Here's a close up of her puddle of color. It still looks wet and runny, but by this time it had hardened.

Some might say that we 'wasted' about 4 dozen crayons, BUT... we had such a good time. 

I'm thinking that art should be FUN! 

The porch railing

A few years ago, as I was going down our main street in St Michaels, I spotted a porch railing that was tangled with a wonderful flowering vine. Of course, I got out my camera and began to take pictures. Then I forgot all about it.

Recently my watercolor class has been working on a project that we are calling "Painted Ladies." We are looking for Victorian houses with interesting features - windows, porches, carpenter's lace, interesting colors...  I went through my picture file and there was the porch railing picture I had taken - waiting to be painted.

I sketched in the railing and vine...and then began painting...

I went a little nuts with leaves, but loved the flow of vines. If you look closely, you can see part of the window sketched in above the vine. I realized after I got this far that the shutter was too small, so I drew it larger and added paint to it. In the photo, the house was gray and the shutter was black. That seemed a little boring to me. I wanted my painted lady to have color!

So now I have a yellow house with green shutters. I got this far and oh no, I made the shutter bigger but had left the clapboard siding too narrow.  Too many lines - too busy. I stopped and took it to class for a helpful critique.

It is so important to stop and really look at my work. Listening to others - what they see and say makes such a difference. Being too close to what I am doing gets in the way of making it better!

Comments: 

Define window sill

Add shadow under shutter 

More shadow under and at side of railing

Connect window to railing by having vine touch window

Add weight to vine in lower right hand corner - it will balance the shutter

What a difference!

I can always learn from others. Thanks!

Mat scrap inspirations...

My husband is a writer/photographer - we have a darkroom in our house where he develops, prints, mats and frames his photographs. A couple weeks ago he was having problems with the mat cutter (which, since I began to paint, we are now sharing).

I joined him at the mat cutting table and we began to practice cutting mats with some odd shaped scraps that were left over from another project. We solved the trouble issue and ended up with some long, skinny mats that were really interesting.

Now, normally I paint something and then cut a mat to fit what I have painted. Hmmm, what about doing it the other way around? Paint something to go in the mats we just cut! Here were some challenging shapes - yes, that would be inspiring...and fun.

I was looking for something light and whimsical - some watercolor and ink sketches would be perfect! It's a hot summer day...the ideal thing for the vertical shape would be... 

and then I tried a horizontal - 

That started me on a whole lot of other sketches - for another blog. I think they may end up being for sale at the annual art league Labor Day Show and Sale in St Michaels on September 3 & 4. Mark your calendars and come see them in person!

Once upon a time...

A few weeks ago as I was leaving my watercolor class with a couple of other students, one of them stopped and pointed to a tree, "Look at that!" she said. I turned around and saw a rusty old wheel in the crook of the tree. It had obviously been there a long time as the tree had grown around it.

I have passed by this tree dozens of times and never seen this before! (It makes me wonder how much else I have missed...) "There is a painting", I thought - I took a picture of it.

I have also been intrigued by some 'rivulet' paintings that I had recently seen. Perhaps I could do a rivulet painting of the old wheel.

The rivulet technique is one is which you begin by doing a drawing on watercolor paper. Then the paper is wet and a raw umber is applied. I covered the paper with a raw umber wash and then dabbed on some heavier blobs of the raw umber pigment.

Next, while the paper is still pretty wet, I held the painting up vertically and sprayed the whole thing so that the rivulets began to form. This takes a little while, but the texture is really amazing.

Here are some close ups - 

The next steps are to add various washes to define the picture and then lift some of the paint to capture the highlights and, for this picture, to identify the old wheel. 

"Once upon a time there was a cart..."   11x 14 watercolor $225

So, there you have it - interesting technique, texture and story...although the story has yet to be written. I don't have a clue as to how or why the wheel got into the tree. I/we need to make up something great and write a book about it!

Screen Painting

It's officially summer - things are supposed to slow down now... It seems the past few weeks I have  been on 'high' getting ready to slow down! I have missed blogging - it's good to get back.

A few weeks ago the art league offered a class in screen painting. It sounded like fun - certainly something very different from my watercolor or pastels.

Painted screens were very popular in the Baltimore area years ago. Various scenes were painted on the outside of the screen. People passing by could see the painting, but not look in the window. From the inside, you could see out and not see the painting at all! Amazing really.

There were about a dozen of us taking the class that morning. We had a little history lesson about the screens and then we all started to paint. When the screen was finished. We painted the wooden frame.

I am not going to revel the secrets of how you paint on only one side - just know that we all had a great time. If you want to find out more, google John Iamperi and see what he does.

This is the back of the screen...

And, here is the front!

The Boat Shed

A few weeks ago, one of the regulars in the watercolor class brought in a photograph of three boats that were stored in/near a shed. There were several more boats in the background. I am not sure how it happened, but apparently the class decided it would be fun if everyone painted it! Since I was not there that day, I just received the photo in an email and was told about the 'assignment.'

UGH! I am not a boat painter - here were LOTS of boats - and I am trying to simplify - here were LOTS of boats!

But, even though I am only on the sub list, I am part of the class and want to 'play by the rules.' So I would tackle this project.

The first thing I did was print out the photo. The nice thing about painting is that each of us can choose to interpret an assignment in the way that works for each individual. We are NOT compelled to copy the picture.

How could I simplify? Maybe just paint one of the many boats... I cut the photo in half. That's better.

I did my sketch and thought it might be okay. As I began painting, I got into the rhythm of it and began to think of the boating that my husband and I had done. At one point we had an old dinghy much like this one and I remember it leaning against a tree in our backyard in the 'off' season.

I painted the boat and the shed. When I got to the background, I decided to throw in some color (not paint any "things") and then I added a yellow sky. I knew it wasn't finished, but wanted to just look at it for awhile to see what else I might do.

I took it to class the following week - it looked like this.

One of the questions asked in class was "Where is the horizon?" It needs to be defined. It also needed more definition on the keel and the lower corner of the boat. I added some additional darks and a few other tweaks here and there. Voila - it looks like this!

"The Boat Shed"  matted 16x20 watercolor  $150

This painting is currently hanging in Miller Hall at Trinity Cathedral. Drop by and see several other artists' works also!

The Chalice

A few weeks ago I attended a one day workshop entitled "Artistic Breakthrough - taking your art to the next level." It seemed like a good idea, except that I had just completed the marine chart with the challenging small, acrylic paintings (see my last post) and felt like I needed a break from 'breakthrough/challenge.'

At that point, I was not quite sure what 'the next level' would be.

The workshop information invited us to use any medium. Hmmm, it would be good - and feel familiar - to reconnect with my watercolors or pastels. Since I regularly substitute in a watercolor class, I chose to spend this day with my somewhat neglected pastels.

We had lots of choices as to what we would paint that morning. It's been a long time since I used the pastels, so I decided to paint the still life set up as a warm-up exercise. The set up was a tarnished silver goblet... and a few other things. I am into simplifying, so I focused only on the goblet.

I had such a great time - the drawing just flowed! And then, I began to add the color. I love the pastels at this stage. Layers of color, changing and glowing...it was like magic for me.

I have tweaked it a bit since then - and continue to look at it from across the room. Recently, I stuck it in a gold frame and I love it. It's no longer just a goblet for me - it's a chalice.

"The Chalice"     9x12 pastel     $225  

Jimmy Buffett and Me

For years I have enjoyed listening to Jimmy Buffett - I love his music and his laid back style. It evokes wonderful memories of sailing trips in the Caribbean, warm breezes, a bit of rum...you get the idea.

So, when I was asked by Brad Fout, of LeHatchery Gallery in Easton to work with him on a special project involving Jimmy Buffett, I said "Yes!"

I went to talk to Brad to find out more about the project - LeHatchery is donating a framed marine chart that has Jimmy Buffett's signature on it to the Bryan Brothers Foundation for their annual auction. Brad told me that he has always loved my crabs (St Michaels Art League Banner Project - see examples in posts - Feb 1, 2016 & Feb 5, 2015) and asked if I would be willing to paint one on the chart. It sounded like a fun project.

We discussed other "Chesapeake Bay" things that might also be painted on the chart to enhance it. Now both of us are getting more excited about the possibilities.

Then I discovered that the chart paper was water resistant! Hmmm, I am a watercolor painter. Now, this is a challenge...I left with a strip of the paper from the bottom of the chart so that I could try out my watercolors.

Of course, they wouldn't work. After experimenting with acrylics, begging a friend to 'teach me to paint with oils,' and consulting other artists, I got down to work practicing...  I began with a gesso base (which I toned light blue) and then used acrylics - which seemed most like the watercolors I am used to.

I tried lots of different ideas and placed the figures around the chart in various places. Yesterday, I finally began painting on the actual chart and completed it!

Here are close ups of my paintings...

And of course, I know you want to see this...!

FYI - the auction is this coming Saturday, April 9th at the Oaks in Royal Oak. For more information about the event or to buy tickets, call 410-819-3780 or email info@shorekids.org.

Star Wars...

My children grew up with the original Star Wars movies. We had little plastic creatures all over the house. These imaginative toys gave my son, in particular, many hours of pleasure as he reenacted movie scenes.

One of the characters I remember fondly was the Jawa. Jawas were little brown hooded figures with beady eyes. I don't remember whether they were good guys or bad guys, just that they were really cute.

Recently, when we were on vacation, I was on the balcony of our condo and I looked over at the pool - there were two Jawas!

I added the eyes so you could see what my imagination saw...

Actually, they were new umbrellas that had not been opened to provide poolside shade yet that morning... It was such a fun surprise!

I love it when I see something like this - an actual 'thing' that takes on a suggested something else. It's a little like lying on your back and watching the clouds become different shapes. We know they are actually clouds, but we see other things there - usually for just a moment.

And, yeah, later in the day the umbrellas were opened...the magic disappeared.