When life gives you lemons, draw them, 11 x 14 inches dry pastels, graphite on paper

"When life gives you lemons, draw them." (Nikki)

"Color! What a deep and mysterious language." (Paul Gauguin)

Archive for September, 2007

A tale of two drawings

Friday, September 21st, 2007


 

 Northern Delights 01, Banff, Alberta, Canada, 14 x 11 graphite, waterwash graphite, oil stick, colored pencils

Northern Delights 01, Banff, Alberta, Canada, 14H x 11W graphite, water-wash pencil, oil pastel, colored pencils on paper. 3-inch-wide white double mat and 26H x 22W inch white custom-built white wood frame with crackle finish.

and

Redbuds 03, Eastern Redbuds blooming on a foggy Spring morning in Coppell, Texas. 14H x 11W oil pastels, graphite, water-wash graphite, colored pencils, eraser on paper

Redbuds 02, misty morning in Coppell, TX, 14H x 11W inches oil pastels, graphite, watercolor pencils on paperBrowsing for pieces to enter in a juried exhibition, I came across two drawings started in March that have a lot in common. Both scenes are low-light situations that were achieved by lots and lots of layering, scraping, redrawing, and using the eraser over pastels for blending as well as erasing. Both are experimental re: oil pastels vs. paintable water-wash graphite pencil.

Milkweed Melody

Thursday, September 20th, 2007


 

Milkweed Melody finished, 27H x 33W inches oil pastels on 140 lb cold pressed premium watercolor paper, brassy-gold frame

  Frame detail images:      
         
  Milkweed Melody, upper left frame detail   Milkweed Melody, upper right frame detail  
  Milkweed Melody, lower left frame detail   Milkweed Melody, lower right frame detail  

Milkweed Melody finished. Oh, the joy of color! 27H x 33W inches Oil Pastels on 140 lb cold pressed premium on WC paper. Has brassy-gold frame painted with an extension of the drawing, frame detail images above. Below: work as it was in progress.


 

Milkweed Melody - stage 1 Milkweed Melody - stage 2

Milkweed Melody - 22 x 30 oil pastels on watercolor paper - in progress

Growing Up and Looking Back

Wednesday, September 19th, 2007


 

Lucas at the Museum, 11 x 14 inches graphite on paper

Lucas at the Museum, 11H x 14W inches graphite on paper, originally posted March 23, 2007 – today notified as part of the exhibition Growing Up and Looking Back – Reflecting on Childhood, Parenting, and Home at Gallery RFD in Swainsboro, GA October 12th – November 3rd, 2007.
See more of the Children Series, graphite illustrations available as cards, matted prints and framed prints.

Dancing With Trees 02 work in progress

Monday, September 17th, 2007


 

48H x 48W x 1D inches acrylics on canvas
Dancing With Trees 02, 48H x 48W x 1D inches acrylics on canvas. Layers of glaze used in final stages: Hansa yellow light, Pthalo blue, Pthalo green, Permanent green, thio violet, Mars black, Cadmium red light, Dioxazine violet

It’s the sky’s turn

Tuesday, September 11th, 2007


 
Sky detail, Dancing With Trees

It’s the sky’s turn to dance! White glaze will attach itself to the varnish I dripped on the other day.

Dancing With Trees 02 – progress

Monday, September 10th, 2007


 

Dancing With Trees - Sept. 10 details  Dancing With Trees - early details using drips of varnish  Dripping varnish, and painted upside down for about four hours

Dancing With Trees - Sept. 6(WIP Acrylics)  Dancing With Trees in progress: Sept. 4  Dancing With Trees, started August 30, 2007  Dancing With Trees started Aug.30, 2007

Dancing With Trees 02, started August 30th – 48H x 48W acrylics on canvas – progression details are combined into one post. The oil pastel with the same name, posted in March 2007, inspired the painting.

I’ve tried lots of new things with this one – am hoping to keep just the impression of branches. I don’t want too many details.  Using washes and glazes to help create the cedar branch texture I’ve dripped water, paint, glazes, and varnish across patches of color, splattered it on with a brush and also painting upside down.