Happy New Year!

I have spent the day today, setting goals for the New Year. I actually made some of my 2011 goals, didn't make my financial goal but did better than last year. I made my weight goal and will try for 15 more pounds this year. Need to set regular times to paint as if not other things interfere. And spend less time on the computer unless it is art related!! Happy New Year to all! May you achieve your goals in 2012!Also need to post here regularly!!

Cattle Dog

Did this painting for my son for Christmas.

Working on commissions and Christmas presents

Can't post as the recipients of the gifts might be watching but wanted you to know I am still painting.

Roses and Lavender,Sold!

Sold this painting and shipped it today to Australia! Now I can say I sell Internationally! Thanks, Australia!

Barn

This is a commission I have been working on for some time. Hope the people who commissioned it as a gift will be happy with it.

Rottie Female 2

Did some more painting on this as those who commissioned it wanted the dog to be darker. Hopefully they will be satisfied.

Red leaves in Winter

This was done on Yupo paper with Acrylic. It can still be wiped off as can watercolor but sometimes flakes off. A fun painting and done to show my class last Wed.

Grapes

This was done to show my class before we started working on Yupo paper. I did this over about three times to get it better. That is the fun thing about Yupo. Don't like it, wipe it! Fun!This was done with watercolor.

Rottie Female

Finished this painting this week. A friend's Rottweiler. She is so alert and watchful.

Waiting, dog portrait

Finished this today. A challenge, doing those whites which aren't really white! I was inspired by the eyes on this dog and wanted to challenge myself to do a white dog.

Its my Bag!Cat in the Bag

I have always loved this picture. This cat was very possessive with paper bags and boxes. She passed away recently and I wanted to capture her in a painting. She was a velvety soft Tuxedo cat. She was irritable with the other two male cats and my sister called her "Meanie Queenie" She would not let the dog or other cats sleep on the my bed and screamed bloody murder if the other cats would threaten her.

Beartooth Snow

Another winter pastel done earlier.

Beartooth in Sunset

This was done several years ago but wanted to enter it into a local Winter Festival show. I had fun doing pastels but just got caught up with the oils. I love the colors and the soft feeling of this painting.

Autumn Pathway

I completed this oil this week. I was inspired by the darkness behind the path and the brilliance of the trees. This is a studio painting as the weather was so cold and wet. Darn, its a long time to Spring!

Yupo Leo

Since I have spent many hours campaigning for my daughter who is running for Financial Director for my city I have not been painting as much. This painting of my cat Leo was done earlier. It was fun to work on the Yupo and I plan to do more of it. My cats inspire me and I am currently working on an oil of my cat who passed away recently.

Scruffy Dog

This was done for a commission for a gift. Cute little scruffy dog from out West. I did this with inktense pencils.

Portrait of Rusty

This is a portrait of my dog Rusty. Done in pastel 10 x 14. I am hoping to do more pet portraits, especially now since the weather has changed. A friend and I were to go plein air painting today but after walking Rusty this morning at 41 degrees with rain in the air I passed it up. Just too cold and dark. I know I am wimpy! But those fingers don't work well when they are cold and stiff!!

Portrait of a Songdog

Beginning a Pet Portrait Fan Page. This is a Limited Edition Print of an original pastel of mine. Print size 18 1/2 X 22. Image size 14x18. There were 450 signed and numbered with 50 Artist's proofs. S/N $45 AP $60 $10 shipping and handling.

Runner-Up!

I am thrilled! This painting was a Runner-up in the People's Choice Award for the show Breath of Fresh Air, a plein air show, at the High Roads Gallery in Worthington, Ohio. I am so happy that so many people chose this one that they liked.

Schnormeier Garden Waterfall

Painted plein Air today, October 15, 2011. This will most likely be my last plein air painting this year unless we get some warmer days. This was painted on an outing to the Schnormeier Gardens, near Gambier OH. There are hundreds of views and I will be anxious to go back in the Spring and spend the day painting. Today was cold and very windy. I didn't think ahead that being near the waterfall would be colder also! I love doing water and there are many falls and streams in this garden. I can see some things I may change. The falls need to be broken up a bit, too much of that white sliver! Had a good time!

Falling Leaves

I just had to do another painting this day, Oct. 11, 20ll, It was just too beautiful to pass up. I am so sad to see the leaves falling. They stay so brilliant for so little time.

Autumn Colors

This is my favorite painting for the month! It was such fun to paint. I painted with Sharon and this was her daughter's place. A great number of views to paint but I especially liked the back lit field and my trees came out well.One of the last warm days of October I fear.

Fall Brilliance

This painting was done October 9, 2011 back in a lane with a lone barn. I took my husky, Rusty with me and he was so good. We walked around, took pictures and settled on this view. It is getting late in the season and the leaves and color will be gone soon. I hope to paint from my photos that I took this day.

Carpenter Inn Garden

This was my last painting for the Competition. A lovely garden where I stayed. These paintings were done down in Southern Ohio, old coal mining country and I would still be lost wondering around on those dirt and gravel roads if I hadn't borrowed a GPS!

Carpenter Inn Pond

This was my second painting done after I finished the former pond picture. I ran out of time and don't know if I may leave it as is. It has a loose quality to it.

Weather for Ducks

This was my first painting after getting my boards stamped in Athens for the OPAS competition. It was cloudy and it did rain halfway through the painting but I had put a 5 can soup recipe in my crockpot and it was perfect coming in from the rain, and it poured while I had lunch and then the sun came out and I finished up the painting.

Morning Rising

This was my one of the paintings Done in Athens, Ohio for the Ohio Plein Air Society Competition. A fantastic view with the fog in the valley beyond. Almost too vast to paint. But it was so inspiring I had to do it. This was the painting that I entered in the Competition. I did not win anything but the competition was fierce!

Afternoon Bales

Sept 14, 2011 near Galion, OH plein air. One hour quickly painting! Toned orange canvas. By the time I got started my companions were ready to go so I hurried and this is what I got. Sometimes I think I work too long on a painting and the ones that are quickly done are the best.

Morning Bales

I was inspired by the backlighting this September 14, 2011 morning. The colors changed so fast. There was a mist in the background and then no mist. I did the small value study then quickly put in the darks, then the middle values. I had trouble making the bales look like bales instead of barrels! My fellow painters were not finished so I did a quick 8x8 in about an hour and everyone liked it the best. That painting follows

Herb Garden 4, A lovely place to sit.

I think I may be caught up except for some workshop paintings and some Competition paintings that haven't been photographed. I considered this for the plein air competition in Columbus but had to decide on two only. I liked the composition and the abstract shapes. I think the eye follows around well in the painting. I especially like the pot in front. I had some critique on this and finished up the green foliage background after some suggestions about the sky distracting so didn't feel it was all done on site. It looks lovely in a bright gold frame.

Blue Green, Summer Shadows

Painted plein air in a Bellville, OH park after driving, driving,driving to find a site. There were lovely blues in the background and I just continued the colors! Not really satisfied with this and would like to do it again. Maybe in the Fall.

Gazebo again

This is also a plein air painting done at Kingwood of the Gazebo. The flowers change monthly and this was a spectacular view. I found it after trying the Herb garden but they were watering with sprinklers in there!

Garden Fountain

This was done plein air at Kingwood Center Gardens. This was also entered in the Plein Air Show in Columbus. It was early morning and the sun was behind the heavily wooded area and the water in the fountain really sparkled. This was also done in the block in large shapes with their local color on a rose toned canvas. Then the darks, then medium values put in. and the lights last. This process seems to work for me better than starting with the focal point and working outward.

Abandoned

Finally getting back to this blog! It was almost if I had "abandoned" my blog! Not so, just been busy with painting, a workshop, teaching and visitors. This painting was done plein air on an abandoned dairy farm and will be entered into a Plein Air gallery show in Columbus, OH the end of September. It was a cloudy day with only a few spots of sunshine once in a while. I noted where those were in my value sketch before I started. I toned my canvas with permanent rose and started blocking in my colors in big shapes. Putting in the darks first then the medium values leaving the pink of the canvas for the lights and highlights. I began massing in the leaves and green areas with various green colors and yellow mixes. Finally the details. This painting worked well. I especially like the color of the bricks and the sunlight in patches.

Lessons I have learned for Plein Air painting

Always do a value study of what you like immediately.
Use this value study to block in your painting with the values in similar but darker colors that the true color.Check your design for lines to the focal point, does your eye move around the painting? No tangents,etc.
Do not follow the light. Keep your highlights the same as when you first viewed them as the light changes so fast.
Block in the color values.
Step back 15 to 30 feet and view the painting at this stage and make sure it WORKS! View in a mirror to catch any lines that are off or color values not true.
When this is all done, then and only then do you fill in the light values on top of the dark and think about the details. The secret is to wait and be patient for the base must be there before you can do the details. The painting should work without the details from a distance.

Abandoned

Painted this morning at the abandoned Dairy Farm in Mansfield,OH. It is falling into disrepair! More deteriorated than last year. vines growing, weeds growing, etc. It was a beautiful day to paint. I started with a Quinacradone Rose tone then blocked in my darks, Then started mixing greens, dark to light, then the whites, not really white but blue, lavender,green lighted by white, then the brick shadows and lights and lastly the highlights and light leaves. Did the grass and path last. A fun painting, one I have wanted to do since last year.

Disappointment

The Lakeside Boat Show and Art Festival was a disappointment to me. I was disenchanted with my paintings that I did during the Festival and also disappointed that there were no sales even of prior paintings that I thought were done well. I did get many compliments from many people and that was somewhat satisfying.

Summer Fountain

I am fascinated with water in a fountain. I feel I caught the water and the light. I blocked in the large shapes with a darker than the final color so the lights could be added on top. I like this painting.

Herb Garden 3

I love this painting. I love the shine that the medium gives me and finally feel like I am an artist!

LAVENDER IN THE ROSE GARDEN

Done Thursday June 30,2011 at Kingwood Gardens. The weather is finally cooperating. My painting has improved so much with the blocking in of local color with medium.

Gazebo

This was done June 29,2011 at Kingwood. I am really feeling good about the way I paint now.

Across the river

Third workshop painting. This is really working for me. Feel the light green is a little harsh but will leave it. The only workshop that I am getting decent paintings.

Sunset Farm

Second workshop painting done in the evening. Used the same method as previous painting. I really like working like this and my painting has improved.

After the rain

First workshop painting with Chris Leeper. Wonderful workshop. Main principles: Shapes, value, color, edges. It was partly cloudy so the block in was with local color. Used some painting medium and blocked in lightly, adjusting the values. The color dried quickly and I was able to apply wet paint on top, then got my close edges with some bright color. I like working like this.

Preparing canvas boards

Spent the day preparing canvas 8x8 and 8x10 boards. Used flexible Modeling Paste first in and x type brushstoke, then two coats of Gesso with a little sanding on the bumps. Finished 24 boards. That should hold me for a while! I have been fascinated by the 8x8 format. Makes for interesting compositions.

Herb Garden 2

I was definitely intrigued by those pots in the herb garden. I wanted to do this painting the day before but we had to move due to spraying in the rose garden. I also wanted it to be an 8x8 but only had an 8x10 panel. If I cut it down the composition changes. I don't like it as well as the day before painting. The greens are a challenge and the amount of different foliage is a challenge also. What to eliminate to make a good painting!Sometimes painting a formal garden makes it difficult to do melodic lines!

Herb Garden 1

This was done on Monday June 6th in the early morning before it got too hot. I especially like this painting. I feel the composition works well, the planes read well, and the color is much to my liking as I feel lately my work has been on the dull side. I am hoping that the Chris Leeper workshop coming up will help me with this as his work is brilliantly colorful.

Kingwood Garden

This was done on June 4th at the OPAS paintout at Kingwood Gardens. Certainly a challenge with all that green. I did get some good critique remarks by Debra Dawson and she also suggested some lighting changes, which I did when I got home. Not perfect but I am learning to do greens and planes!

Kingwood Mansion

Painted this today (Memorial Day,2011) Very hot, 92 degrees, buggy with all the rain this year. Difficult to design as there was so much lawn but I didn't want the Mansion to be the center of interest. I think I am getting better at trees but still have problems with my greens.

Memorial Day 2011

This this weeks's Daily Paintworks Challenge,OUTSIDE MY WINDOW. I actually painted outside my front door! Had a hard time designing the flag. It was blowing pretty good. 92 degrees today. Attempted to design a composition so that the piller wasn't in the middle of the canvas and the flag was in the upper right third of the canvas. And then there were all those greens!

Malabar View

This was done plein air at Malabar Farm last Saturday 5/21,2011. It was one of the first nice days we have had here in Ohio.I got the background a little wet and it was difficult to put it cooler. I changed some of the tree shapes and some of the shadows to make a more pleasing painting.

Kitten Challenge

This weeks DPW challenge. I loved doing this as I so love cats. I almost changed the background but decided to keep the color and attempt to make it look like a pillow couch. I made the kitten not as dark for a softer effect. I am loving these challenges as it puts me on a time schedule and I get more experience painting!

Yellow Pepper

This week's Daily Paintworks Challenge, Paint a Vegetable. I am trying to do a color per stroke. Gosh, all those yellows, over-painted. but turned out okay. I learn so much from these challenges.

It's Me

Last week's Daily Paintworks Challenge, self-portrait. I think it is pretty good!

Cherry Tree

Third Plein Air...really working on trees. Difficult to get the blooms without getting spotty. Pretty happy with this except my photos are eliminating some of yellow. Probably this cloudy weather!