Friday, September 30, 2011

Blue Houseboat


This little painting was started when we were all together on Monday.
Kathy took pictures while I was working on it, and I think the progression is interesting.
Mary

Friday, September 23, 2011

Our Own Carmen at AGUA Tonight!





Our very own Piece of 8 - Carmen is part of a group show tonight at the EGAD Art Lab - 1405 Highland Avenue in Downtown Eau Gallie! Don't miss this lovely exhibit - all about AGUA. Stop by and say "Hi!".

We always have fun at our Monday painting sessions and this last one was no exception. While we all worked on individual pieces, Carmen was working on a very beautiful oil painting for the Agua show. This may not be its final view, but check out the mini surfer about to take a dive from this awesome wave!

The opening is from 6 to 10 p.m.

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Hidden Pond Resort, Maine

 I just returned from a lovely vacation in Maine, which included some plein air painting. This was the gate at our cottage.

 This area was where we could pick vegetables or flowers, do yoga (rain or shine!), or paint with the resident artist, Judith Kinsman. Of course I chose to paint, and Judith was absolutely delightful. The place even provided easels.

Posted by Carmen

Friday, September 16, 2011

Print your Art to Fabric


I'm down in the Everglades photographing snails again. I love their patterns. I wanted to spread the word about putting your designs to fabric. It's so easy now that we have spoonflower.com available to artists everywhere.

Being able to print your designs to fabric quickly is very exciting. Two weeks ago I uploaded the Illustrator image shown above to spoonflower.com. It shows three of my snails and the patterns inspired by them. Less than 9 days later, the fabric arrived and I cut it apart and finished the edges. They only had a voile that was the right weight for scarves when I ordered. But, when the package arrived, it had a sample of their new cotton silk I'll try next.


I love Spoonflower.com and the possibilities it opens up for artists. If you haven't visited, check it out. It's easy as pie to have your designs printed to quilting cotton, voile, cotton silk, and more.

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Paper Paintings Workshop Day 1

Paper Paintings Workshop  Elizabeth St. Hilaire Nelson/// Follow Paper Paintings on Facebook or elizabethsthilairenelson.blogspot.com

Saturday morning 16 happy, enthusiastic artists, all loaded down with years worth of the most interesting papers you have ever seen settled in for two days of learning and sharing. Elizabeth started the workshop with a demonstration of painting and stamping your own papers. We discussed different kinds of papers, how they reacted, where to find them and using common objects to make interesting designs.
After Elizabeth did several sheets we all gave it a try.


Elizabeth demonstrating hand coloring papers












She also showed us some of her work and explained her approach to collage.

Elizabeth's rabbit

















After lunch we started on are apples.


Saturday, September 10, 2011

Correction and a flurry of activity

I stand corrected in some of the information I posted about my upcoming collage workshop. Elizabeth does not use magazines in her collages, she feels they wrinkle too much.  I am really sorry about that. Of course this news inspired a new fluffy of activity on my part. I started painting papers like a madwoman.
I used all of the methods that Elizabeth suggest plus some experiments of my own. I did lots of reds and oranges for my apple and got a jump start on the blues I will need for my second painting.
I also broke out a new apron for the occasion!! I love aprons and I know this one will keep me smiling.


Thursday, September 8, 2011

Getting ready for Paper Paintings

This week-end I will be lucky enough to attend a collage workshop right here in Viera. The instructor is Elizabeth St. Hilaire Nelson and her website is www.nelsoncreative.com/gallery. Her approach is a little different in that she not only uses magazines for her collages but she makes and hand colors many of her papers. She also likes to use found and personnel papers that have a connection to what she is doing.

Taking a workshop with such a creative and talented artist is a great oppurtunity and I am so looking forward to it, especially after my unplanned hiatus from art this summer. I am hoping this will get my creative juices flowing again and bring me back to my easel.




Checking my paper supplies




Drawing my apple for our group excercise




My very rough underpainting in acrylic paint


Sunday, September 4, 2011

Wetting your feet

After so many weeks of inactivity it felt wonderful to hold a brush again but after several tries everything I did seemed forced and flat. I felt like I had forgotten how to paint! Where was my spark? When I took out my palette knife to scrape yet another attempt a little light came on, why not use the knife to move some paint around, play a little, put some color on the canvas?
The mind is a strange instrument. Palette knife paintings are just as challenging as using a brush but somehow it seemed to free me up. I began to enjoy myself. I stopped trying so hard and got into the process of painting, looking at blocks of color, moving the paint around and getting lost in the process. Maybe the lesson is if you can't do what you normally do, just do something.




Ballard Park, Original Oil on Canvas

  I had not painted outside in two years, so this was quite a challenge. It was one of those paintings I had to improve upon in the studio. ...