Enjoyed painting with a group of  painters yesterday, many of whom I have known since my early days in watercolor.  It was an inspiring show and tell, with everyone sharing their recent art projects and activities. This was from a photo of a peach blossom, which I enjoyed painting from a starting point and using clean water to pull paint into other areas. I then created stems by negatively painting around them with turquoise blue. I added the touch of yellow at the end, which I am satisfied with, as it is not as strong in the actual painting as it is in this photo.  

Cockerel

British artist, Jean Haines, taught a workshop in west Texas last week, one of only 3 stops she made in the states.  I spent most of the time watching her demonstrate her techniques, which was fascinating, and I will surely tell more about her unique style in future posts.  I am having fun practicing what I learned and integrating some of her techniques into my painting style.  Using my own reference photo of a rooster, I painted my "cockerel" onto a lively wash while in this class. 

Waterloo Watercolor Group exhibit

On a springtime walk in the country near my home, I delighted in the discovery of these emerging white blossoms, enjoying the anticipation of dewberries to come and immersing myself in capturing their freshness in my painting.  I enjoyed creating a balance of light and dark as well as a combination of lost and found edges.  

This painting is one of 3 juried into the Waterloo Watercolor Group Fall show, currently on exhibit at the North Hills Gallery.

 
Here I am receiving a Merit Award for Rose Joy at the opening reception for the show. The exhibit is especially interesting this year as the artists wrote a brief statement for each painting, explaining their inspiration for the piece.  I am honored to be a part of such a beautiful watercolor exhibit and such an interesting and diverse group of painters!

The Waterloo Watercolor Group Fall Show continues through December 1 at the North Hills Gallery, 7050 Village Center Drive in Austin, Texas.

The Pearls Before Swine Art Show last weekend in Elgin, Texas featured both 2-D and 3-D art from local and regional artists, with lots of lighthearted humor as well as incredible art work.  You can see the photo gallery from the event at www.elginartsassociation.com. 

I picked some little white flowers from my garden and put them in a blue vase, with the intention of playing with paint and keeping the juices flowing while helping to host the art show last weekend.  I'm glad I started it at home, because at the show there were so many people asking questions, buying art and having a good time, I had time to add only a few brushstrokes!

This little painting is a combination of direct painting to begin the centers of the flowers and negative painting around the white to carve out petals, with no pre-drawing. 

Next Sunday is the opening reception for NEW BEGINNINGS: Waterloo Watercolor Group’s 35th Annual Juried Fall Show in Austin, Texas.  See the sidebar for details.  I would love to see you there!  



  

Hummers 1 and 2

 I started my day yesterday sitting on my back porch taking in the bit of coolness in the air and writing my usual morning pages.  I became engrossed in watching the hummingbirds zoom in and out as they sipped from the feeders my husband so diligently fills. I had thought to get back to a painting I had started a few weeks back. Instead I grabbed my sketch pad and camera and went back outside! I did quick partial sketches, trying to catch the essential forms, keeping my eyes on the birds and not even looking at my pad.  Then I went inside to my studio and painted without drawing, while looking at photos and trying to capture the movement, rather than detail. Here are my first attempts at watercolor impressions of the hummers.  It has been a delightful two days studying and painting the changing forms and colors produced by the quick movements of these little birds!

A Fresh Mess

On Friday I revisited Linda Neuenschwander's watercolor class that I used to paint with every week.  Everyone selected a photo from one of 3 envelopes, marked "Landscapes," "Still Life," or "Flowers."  I drew blindly from the flower envelope.  After a brief demonstration, we all began to paint.  We were instructed to draw inspiration from the photo, and not to try to replicate it.  It was interesting to see the many different styles and interpretations produced by this exercise.  I am posting my attempts at capturing the freshness of a large single peony.  I was not satisfied with my painting and after I got home I lifted some of the purple in the background and painted over it with yellow and blue, which I think created a bit of a muddy mess. Every painting is a learning experience, and this one was for sure!

Rose Joy

I started this one with the background, painting around the flower and trying to work all the areas at the same time, in a workshop with Rae Andrews this spring.  The rose bud was from a photo that begged to be painted.  Allowing the breathing space around parts of the flower seemed to help achieve the feeling of joy spilling forth.

This painting and 16 others are on display at my current exhibit in Bastrop, Texas.  First Friday is a fun event in which many different artists are featured in shops and galleries in an Art Walk along historic Main Street.  See the sidebar for details.  Hope to see some of you there!