One Year Later...

A good test of what I have learned in a year was to try and do another painting of the little fox and compare it to my experience of painting the first one last year.

First of all, I knew that if I started with a grey value underpainting, I should make that painting accurate to what I wanted the finished artwork to look like. I spent a lot of extra time on the first fox trying to cover up problems with the value underpainting.

Second, I knew what colors to mix to get the fur tones I wanted. The first painting, I wasn't very familiar with the oil paints. After a year of working with them, I was a lot more confident.

Third, I did learn something about the anatomy of foxes from all the drawings I did last time, and that did help me in getting a better drawing in less time.

Overall, it was a happier and less stressful painting experience. I did struggle with getting the eyes right because I couldn't use an exact photo reference, but I learned from that too. Mostly to trust myself when the painting seems off. I learned that painting is just like anything else, practice, practice, practice makes all the difference. I often have a faulty belief that I should just be automatically good at something just because I want to do it. Rats, all my teachers were right about having to work to master the skills!

Jeff's Corner: She couldn't find Carnegie Hall on the first try either...

Twilight Zone

I have been working out of town for the last three weeks. It has only been for three days away from home each week, but I have to say my schedule feels completely turned upside down. I have been helping to develop new ideas for sculptures for the fall show for the artist I work for. This is surprisingly tiring and some times frustrating work. I think I know what she wants, but then after spending all day on a concept, it isn't quite what she was after and I have to change the shape of the piece again.

I tried taking some of my own drawing and sketching work with me, but I didn't make much progress. When I got home, my extra time went into catching up with all the garden plans that needed to move forward. Growing plants insist on more space and sunshine! The cute little seedlings I have been starting inside the house are wanting more permanent accommodations, and I don't have all those ready yet.

I did manage to get two underpaintings in grey tones started. One of Muffy, the Disdainful Kitty and one of a baby fox. I had an interested buyer for the original fox I did last year, but she expressed a desire to have the fox looking up instead of at the ground. I delved back into the world of trying to get inspiration without copying someone's photo. I think I have made a good start, but something looks a bit strange around the fox's eyes...oh well, just more time in the twilight zone.

Jeff's Corner: Jeff is at home and I am away, so we STILL don't get to enjoy his witty remarks! Believe me, I miss them too.

Childhood Memory

Last week, I heard about a birthday party for my aunt who is turning 80 years old this May. When I was four years old, my Mom became very sick and sometimes some of my siblings and I stayed with Mom's sister, who is the Aunt that is having the birthday.

One of the things my younger brother and I remember is eating the roses made of "decorator's frosting" that my Aunt used to adorn the wedding cakes she made. She would let us have the extra ones that she didn't use and we would sit under the table with the wax paper sheets studded with the lovely colored flowers. I always admired how pretty they were before we devoured them, saving the purple ones for last because I liked that color best. Actually they all tasted the same and I think only small children can have such a tolerance for such an intensely sweet treat!

I decided I wanted to do a watercolor rose birthday card for her in honor of the occasion. I haven't painted with my watercolors for almost a year now and I was interested to see how it would go. I was pleased to find that I actually had a better sense of the layering of the color washes and solved my light and dark values much quicker that I used too. This is such a help, since watercolors can look muddy and overworked so easily. It is always a happy day when I feel like I am making progress in becoming a better artist. I hope my Aunt likes the card!

Jeff's Corner: Jeff will be returning to his "corner" tomorrow, after a two week business trip away. I am so glad!

Balancing Act

I went out of town recently to visit my family which involves a 12 hour drive. I have made it a goal to take my camera with me more often when I go anywhere and I tried to capture some good pictures in what I call "guerilla photo taking" on this trip too. This often involves shooting out of a moving car window, (yes, Jeff was driving) or only taking a quick moment to take a picture when we made a stop.

Red Rocks really fast!

It was great to see my family and I was very pleased to discover that many of them have been following the blog. Some haven't commented, so I didn't know they were reading along. I have been contemplating ways that I could use my flower painting images in more ways than just the finished painting. I appreciated the great response from the idea to put them on cards. I would also be open to any other appropriate suggestions.

Quick stop at the springs.

Traveling away for a weekend made me realize how fine the balancing act I have been doing in order to get any art work completed. In between work, church, housework, and trying to start a garden, a long week-end away meant I didn't make any progress on the paintings. I felt anxious that I hadn't been creating anything and didn't have something new for the blog.

Jeff's favorite subject.

I decided to take a look at what I had accomplished. I took some cool pictures, I found out I had more support than I knew about, and I took stock and realized that in a year from when I first set out to paint more seriously, I have completed 13 oil and 9 watercolor paintings. That is a marked increase from the one painting a year I had been doing the for the last twenty years.

I suppose every juggler drops the ball now and then, especially a new juggler. I can pick up where I left off and keep going. Thanks everyone for the positive feedback!

Jeff's Corner: Jeff will comment when HE gets back from his business trip out of town...

Spring Fever and Winter Chill

We had a couple of warm weeks in March and I was itching to get going on the "garden". I did some preliminary digging and was very excited about what I was going to plant. I was considering a whole painting series on the color green and the light shining through new plants.

The next exercise for writing the artist statement is: "I am most inspired by...." I have to say that particular green color of new plants is very inspiring to me. I also like the bird song that starts to be heard this time of year. Every spring, I always realize anew how much I missed it all winter.

Well, then like missing that last step on the way down the stairs, the temperatures dropped to four degrees overnight and the wind and snow were here again. I really don't mind the snow so much, any moisture is good moisture, but those steep temperature drops are harsh and cooled down my spring fever in a hurry.

I was inspired by the brave rhubarb, daffodils, and tiny lilac bush that I just planted last year and I thought would be ruined by that freeze. But there they were, not blackened and still green. Also those tenacious little birds were still singing! I have a lot to learn from such determination, since I am easily frosted by negative comments. I don't want to be a hot-house flower.

I did make progress on the pink columbine painting even though I had many distractions. It was on the blog several entries ago in it's grey scale beginnings. It still needs a little color balance, but I will share it in it's imperfect state.

Jeff's Corner: This year March came in like a lamb and went out like a polar bear!

The Subjects and Style I Choose are....Because...

Spring Fever.

That is the first "exercise" I had to write about in my first attempts at creating an artist's statement. I am using Alyson B. Stanfield's book, "I'd Rather be in the Studio" as my guide.

I have to say, after writing for the required thirty minutes on that topic alone, I did unearth some things I didn't expect. Namely, that I really am passionate about living, growing things. I know that about myself and yet I hadn't really put it down in words before. Alyson's point that artists have to understand what they are trying to accomplish with their art before they can explain it to others in a coherent fashion really hit home.

Saturday, the first really warm spring like day here, I spent three hours hand-digging a new garden spot with a pick. Then while turning soil in one of my garden spaces from last year, I was plotting and planning how I was going to try and outwit both weather and chipmunks for a more successful growing season this year. I hadn't planned on spending so much time outside, but I was so inspired by the idea of beautiful growing plants. It is no wonder that I love painting them and try to capture the light shining through their leaves.

This is, of course, only one of the required writing exercises. I have a lot more to do. Hopefully digging about in my subconscious will eventually yield a harvest of good ideas to put in my final statement.

If anyone would like to know more about Alyson's ideas on artists and self promotion, check out her blog at http://www.artbizblog.com She has some really helpful suggestions.

Jeff's Corner: Always call the utility company before digging around in your subconscious!

Hello Kitty

I have not made much progress on my "artist statement" and was wondering what to write about since that was my plan to document my progress on writing it.

Hurrah! A commission has come my way for another cat portrait and I am thrilled to have a good reason to take a little more time for the writing of said statement.

I had fun this weekend getting acquainted with my new subject, Muffy, a beautiful cat with a lovely disposition as long as you were petting her ears and not trying to take her picture! She is fourteen years old and would make such faces of disdain by squinting her lovely green eyes everytime I pointed the camera at her. I wasn't using a flash at all, she just did not like to have her picture taken.

Finally, some neighborhood dogs stopped by outside the glass doors and I got one really great picture of her while her attention was on those dogs. Thank you doggies! I am still working on the flowers, but I am excited to get working on this portrait.

Jeff's Corner: "Who let the dogs out? Who, Who, Who..." Baja Men