(148) Secondary Triad: Orange/Violet and Green
This is also not a combination I would normally reach for, but I especially like the rich neutrals that these colors produced (wow, aren't they gorgeous little grays?) It occurred to me today that once these little studies are dry, I could put them in clear plastic sleeves and transfer them to a spiral bound notebook for reference. Now how cool would that be?


You just knew I would have to paint a tree (with my limited palette) on Earth Day, right?
"If a man walks in the woods for love of them half of each day, he is in danger of being regarded as a loafer. But if he spends his days as a speculator, shearing off those woods and making the earth bald before her time, he is deemed an industrious and enterprising citizen...
I frequently tramped eight or ten miles through the deepest snow to keep an appointment with a beech-tree, or a yellow birch, or an old acquaintance among the pines"...Henry David Thoreau"
I'm off to keep my "appointment" with some of my favorite trees...Happy Earth Day, everyone!

(147) STUDY: Primary Triad
I have enjoyed my "break"-- got caught up in a flurry of stuff: spring cleaning, planting flowers; registered my son for college, hosted a tea party for dear friends, all fun stuff-- thanks to all who checked in to say hello and inquire why I was absent from the blog. I enjoyed every minute of the shift in focus, but now look forward to a painting routine again. Because this week marks my 6th month anniversary of initiating this blog,(oh yes it does!) I thought I would move in a different direction and explore new things.
During my break, I re-read Kevin Macpherson's books, and made a list of the many challenges and painting exercises he suggests. I took the list, cut it into strips and placed them in a basket where I plan to blindly choose one or more to explore. (Why didn't I just pick one from the list?--because its more fun to be surprised with each assignment-and admittedly, I feared I would get lost looking for the "perfect challenge" and waste time searching.) I plan to take a workshop with Kevin later this summer, so I hope to work through many/most of his suggestions in the coming weeks. Today's exercise consists of tiny studies using a primary palette. Just for fun, I chose colors that I normally would not pair together and noted the secondary colors and neutrals mixed from those color relationships. I tried other combinations for comparison that I will share in the days to come. One of my other favorite books is Edgar Payne's "Composition of Outdoor Painting" so some of my landscape configurations are an exploration of his suggestions for compositions. Too much information?(sorry)
"All the tube colors in the world will be useless to you if you do not properly relate them. A palette of three primary colors gives you all the relationships you need and is simpler to work with"...Kevin Macpherson

(146) Blue Hydrangeas
private collection
6 x 8, oil
Robert Henri talked about the importance of painting the spirit or essence of your subject. Eckhart Tolle explains this concept further when he suggests that we consider the wonder and awe of life, stating that a flower "silently communicates itself to you and reflects your own essence back to you. This is what great artists sense and succeed in conveying in their art. Van Gogh didn't say 'That's just an old chair.' He looked, and looked, and looked. He sensed the Beingness of the chair. Then he sat in front of the canvas and took up the brush."
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"An artist's studio should be a small space because small rooms discipline the mind and large ones distract it"...Leonardo da Vinci
While I see merit in da Vinci's statement, some days I feel like the "old woman who lived in a shoe" because it can become equally distracting to efficiently organize a tiny space. So, with that in mind, I'm stepping away from the easel for a few days in an attempt to do some major sorting, filing,and spring cleaning. Who knows what I'll find out there?Maybe the weather will cooperate and it will actually feel like spring!...TTFN

(145) History of Art
6 x 6, oil
As I painted this, I was thinking about how this brush cleaner is a much more inviting subject compared to "everything else" in the set-up because the wonderful reflections force me to see it as only abstract spots of color. Whereas, I tend to see the book as a preconceived idea of what a book is, which gets in the way of seeing it as a shape or a value. I've tried squinting at the subject, but it just doesn't accomplish the same goal for me. A lot of artists paint from upside-down photos for this reason, knowing that if the left brain can no longer label what is there, the shift to the right brain is easier--not possible if you are painting from life instead of a photo... So, short of standing on my head to paint, how can I reduce everything to spots of color? something to ponder...
"The airless studios grow stifling. Kick the door open--the hum of life turns into a roar!"....Feliks Topolski (one of my favorite quotes)

(144) Strike a Pose
6 x 8, oil
"Without the studio, however humble, the room where the imagination can enter cannot exist"...Anna Hansen

(143) Mannequin
6 x 8, oil
"Room service? Send up a larger room"...Groucho Marx

(142) Tools of the Trade
6 x 6, oil
"The studio, a room to which the artist consigns himself for life, is naturally important, not only as a workplace, but as a source of inspiration. And it usually manages, one way or another, to turn up in his product"...Grace Glueck

(141) Daffodils
6 x 8, oil
"We can do no great things; only small things with great love"...Mother Teresa

(140) White Roses
8 x 10, oil
In today's painting, my focus was in pre-mixing the shadow and light colors, as suggested by my friend Frank Gardner. To see how he organizes his palette, click here. One of the reasons artists choose to pre-mix colors is because once the decisions have been made, the artist can switch from thinking to doing, from planning to spontaneously placing the paint on the canvas. Ken Auster calls this the dance between "intellect and passion."
"All true artists, whether they know it or not, create from a place of no-mind, from inner stillness"...Eckhart Tolle

(139) Pruning
6 x 8, oil
“A single rose can be my garden...a single friend, my world"... Leo F. Buscaglia

(138) La Vie en Rose
6 x 6, oil
“I once had a rose named after me and I was very flattered. But I was not pleased to read the description in the catalogue: no good in a bed, but fine up against a wall"...Eleanor Roosevelt

(137) For Carson
6 x 6, oil
private collection
"There was a star danced, and under that was I born"... William Shakespeare

(136) Rose Garden
6 x 6, oil
"If the rose puzzled its mind over the question of how it grew, it would not have been the miracle that it is"... Yeats

(135) Guitar
6 x 6, oil
"I look at the world and I notice it's turning
while my guitar gently weeps,
with every mistake we must surely be learning"...George Harrison

(134) Primavera
6 x 6, oil
My long weekend turned into a little more as I got "caught up in catching up" with the business side of art: filing, framing, etc. So, it is good to be back painting today.
Happy Spring everyone, and Happy Birthday to Mimi, a wonderful artist and friend.
"There is nothing more difficult for a truly creative painter than to paint a rose, because before he can do so, he has to forget all the roses that were ever painted"...Henry Matisse

(133) Welcome!
9 x 12, oil
private collection
As soon as I heard about the "door" challenge for today, I knew this was the door I wanted to paint-- a work of art in and of itself. It belongs to lovely friends who live on a street lined with Victorian homes built in the 1800s. As I painted this, I pondered what life may have been like during an era that was wrought with the absolute best and brightest, including artists Sargeant, Monet, Cassatt, Beaux, Manet, Pissarro, Degas, Sisley, Hawthorne, Henri, and Chase--just to name a few! Some of them were friends who encouraged each other and sometimes painted together. I have to wonder what ideas they could have shared with internet "door projects" as we are doing today!
For instance, would Sargeant have asked his friends' opinion of his painting Madame X before he entered it in the 1884 Paris Salon where it was deemed an outrageous scandal? (and more importantly (giggle), would his artist friends have suggested he paint her strap up or down?)
“Sometimes we stare so long at a door that is closing that we see too late the one that is open” Alexander Graham Bell (another notable during this era, he invented the phone in 1876, at the age of 29)
Don't forget to visit all the other links posted on yesterday's blog entry to see the rest of our worldwide exhibit! Ta-ta for now, I'm stepping away from the easel for a long weekend with loved ones. Blessings to all!
fcp

(132) The Hill
6 x 6, oil
In order to get the "snowflakes" I thinned the paint with medium (Gamsol, linseed oil and stand oil) and then dipped an old toothbrush in it. Next, I thumbed through the bristles to flick the paint onto the canvas (you thought painting was "work"?)
"The flute of the infinite is played without ceasing and its sound is love"...Kabir

Elizabeth from Marrakesh and Frank from Mexico have invited me to participate in a celebration of DOORS. As Frank explained "There is something intriguing about doors. Doors are all over the world. Doors lead somewhere. They keep things in, they keep things out. Doors have histories, stories, mystery. Let's share some."
So, on Wednesday, March 12th, I will join participants from the U.K., Canada, Australia, Scotland, the U.S.A. and Finland in celebrating doors in paint, words, drawings, photographs, poems, etc. In order to make it easy for you to view this "worldwide exhibit" I am including links to the other participants' websites in today's email (because tomorrow I will be busy painting my door!).
When I first began this blog, my intention was to share what I am doing with friends and family, but I could never have anticipated the many "doors" that would be opened to me as I am welcomed by new friends around the world.
"May you have warm words on a cold evening, a full moon on a dark night and a smooth road all the way to your door.” (Irish blessing)

Jack Riddle, Maine, USA
Mary Sheehan Winn, Florida, USA
Terry Rafferty, New Mexico, USA
Constance Muller
Jennifer Thermes Connecticut USA
Joanne Giesbrecht, Alberta, Canada
Eric Orchard, Nova Scotia Canada
Christine Mercer Vernon, Pennsylvania, USA
Britt Arnhild Norway
Kate and Roger Skophammers Virginia, USA
Barbara London, UK
Pam Aries South Carolina, USA
some Pink flowers, Florida, USA
Rima, Scotland
Merisa, Austria
Paz, New York, USA
Dale, Australia
Aesthete, USA
Mari/Kameravena, Finland
Lea Harris, USA
Maryam, Morroco
Willow, California, USA
Ari, Finland
Stephanie
Madelyn, Canada
Leslie, Pennsylvania, USA
Karen Cole, Pennsylvania, USA
Barrie, California, USA
Sherry/Cherie, Toronto, Canada
Claudia Schmid, London, United Kingdom
Sue, Bristol, United Kingdom
Gemma Wiseman, Australia
Neulekirppu, Finland
Laura Fortune,California, USA
Sara Lorayne, California, USA

(131) The Nonconformist
6 x 6, oil
Ever observe a child and see yourself ? This little girl grabbed my eye with her complimentary colors of periwinkle and orange, but it was her comfort in choosing to slide down the entire hill sideways that kept my attention. Love that!
Congrats to another nonconformist, John Mellencamp, who is being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame tomorrow:
"Be careful with your heart and what you love
Make sure that it was sent from above
It's what you do and not what you say
If you're not part of the future, then get out of the way"...( from "Peaceful World" by JM)

(130) Snow!
8 x 16, oil
To all my friends to the north who are sick of snow, please accept my apology, but we were thrilled to see it arrive here yesterday! It was our first and only snow of the winter, the only "significant" snowfall in ten years, so children (young and old) were out enjoying the day. I didn't attempt to paint from life since the children (and the sun) were in and out, up and down at rapid speeds. Instead, I photographed at a favorite sledding spot that became more heavily populated as the day went on. I made a conscious effort to close my eyes and memorize the sounds of joy, laughter, and shrieks of delight all around me. Some of the children there had never seen snow--priceless.
“Getting an inch of snow is like winning 10 cents in the lottery”...Bill Watterson, creator of the comic strip Calvin and Hobbes (I miss seeing C&H in the daily newspaper; Calvin's "snow art" was a favorite series)

(129) Balancing Act
6 x 8, oil
"Pretend you are dancing or singing a picture. A worker or painter should enjoy his work, else the observer will not enjoy it"...Robert Henri

(128) Celebration of Red
6 x 6, oil
"Every answer asks a more beautiful question"...e.e.cummings

(127) Red Plums
6 x 8, oil
"The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeing new landscapes but in having new eyes"...Proust

(126) Life is...
6 x 8, oil
"Life is a bowl of cherries, don't take it serious, it's mysterious-so live and laugh, and laugh and love"...Bob Fosse

(125) Jubilant Cherries
private collection
5 x 7, oil
"In the depth of winter, I finally learned that within me there lay an invincible summer"...Albert Camus

(124) Yellow Delicious
6 x 8, oil
In my opinion, Kevin Macpherson is one of those rare artists who not only paints exceedingly well, but also teaches with equal skill and excellence. I have found that one of his more helpful suggestions is to observe the object or scene and identify the contrasts: that is, ask yourself what are the sharpest/softest edges, highest chroma/most neutral colors, darkest dark/lightest lights? Once you have identified those, it is easier to organize everything else accordingly because all else must fall within those two extremes. With the apples above, the contrasts are quite subtle, which can be even more of a challenge than extreme contrasts, so I am especially grateful to discover a way to simplify the process.
"Making the simple complex is commonplace; making the complicated simple, awesomely simple, that's creativity"...Charles Mingus

(123) A Pairing of Pears
6 x 8, oil
private collection
"A seed doesn't struggle to become a tree--it simply unfolds in grace"...Deepak Chopra

(122) Tomato, Tamahta
6 x 6, oil
"The only virtue to painting is to put down an idea about what you feel at the moment"...Andrew Wyeth

(121) Radical Radishes
6 x 6. oil
"When bankers get together for dinner, they discuss art. When artists gets together for dinner, they discuss money"...Oscar Wilde
(I adore Mr. Wilde's wit and wisdom. Wouldn't he have been the ultimate dinner guest?)

(120) Emeril's "Gahlic"
6 x 6, oil
At first glance, garlic appears to be off-white or ivory in color. But once you start painting, you begin to see all sorts of beautiful bounced colors. Then, "white" takes on a new meaning for you, and you never see it the same way again.
"Impressionism is the newspaper of the soul"...Henri Matisse

(119) Three's Company
6 x 8, oil
"A common defect of modern art study is that too many students do not know why they draw"...Robert Henri

(118) Sunday
6 x 6, oil
So how do you paint melting ice cream? Gee I don't know, but let's add a little chocolate syrup and make it abstract...
“There are four questions of value in life... What is sacred? Of what is the spirit made? What is worth living for, and what is worth dying for? The answer to each is the same...Only LOVE"
...Johnny Depp (from Don Juan DeMarco)
Here's a little trivia for you: Both Johnny Depp and George Clooney are nominated for best actor Oscars at tomorrow's Academy Awards, and both are from KENTUCKY! (and you thought we were only known for our beautiful horses, right?)

(117) Triple Chocolate Fudge
private collection
6 x 6, oil
"I'm just the flavor of the month"...George Clooney

(116) Make Mine Scrambled
private collection
6 x 6, oil
I was enthralled by how the ripples of light bounced into the egg whites and on through the clear glass onto the tabletop--sort of like a play-within-a-play.
"What we need is more sense of the wonder of life, and less of the business of making a picture"...Robert Henri

(115) Yellow
private collection
6 x 6. oil
"Some painters transform the sun into a yellow spot; others transform a yellow spot into the sun"...Picasso

(114) Pebbles
5 x 7, oil
I love how Nate Berkus incorporates natural elements into his designs. He suggests putting a personal stamp on decorating by displaying organic materials you have collected from nature or travel. I think we can all relate to finding the perfect shell at the ocean, knowing it will bring back memories of the vacation every time we pick it up, or see it on a shelf. Thinking about this today, I realized that pebbles would be a good study in plane changes. I picked these up in Nice, near the home of Henri Matisse. They are my good chi--I love the colors, smooth edges, and striations in the stones, and when I look at them, I envision Matisse walking along the same shoreline, picking up a few pebbles himself.
"An artist must possess Nature. He must identify himself with her rhythm, by efforts that will prepare the mastery which will later enable him to express himself in his own language"...Henri Matisse

(113) Pop's Airplane
private collection
8 x 10, oil
This is one of the wooden toys my dad made. I love the different kinds of wood he used that give it a rich color variety.
"Men of genius sometimes accomplish most when they work the least, for they are thinking out inventions and forming in their minds the perfect idea that they subsequently express with their hands"...Leonardo da Vinci

(112) Red Truck, take three
6 x 6, oil
I am still struggling with the drawing, but it is a magnificent subject for studying foreshortening.
"It is only by drawing often, drawing everything, drawing incessantly, that one fine day you discover to your surprise that you have rendered something in its true character"...Camille Pissarro

(111) Red Truck, take two
private collection
8 x 10, oil
I wanted to try a different view, different light. I really enjoy this subject.
"The centipede has rhythm and flow in its hundred legs precisely because it does not have to think about it. Consider this the next time you move the instrument of your art"...Robert Genn

P.S...I want to pass along a new discovery to all my painting friends out there. It is called "gloves in a bottle" --a moisturizing barrier lotion for your hands; it does an exceptional job preventing dry skin--better than wearing gloves--woohoo!

(110) Chevy Truck
6 x 6, oil
"Creativity is allowing oneself to make mistakes. Art is knowing which ones to keep"...Allen Lacy

(109) In the Big Chair with Daddy
private collection
8 x 10, oil
"A toddling little girl is a center of common feeling which makes the most dissimilar people understand each other"...George Elliot

(108) Beach Baby
8 x 10, oil
private collection
I decided to step out of the box today, break my own rule, and paint something from a photo instead of from life. So today's challenge is painting a gray day, something that I really struggle with because the values are so close.
“To myself I am only a child playing on the beach, while vast oceans of truth lie undiscovered before me”... Isaac Newton

(107) Cotton Candy
8 x 10, oil
private collection
Today's challenge: Plaid taffeta...confectionary fun.
"For beautiful eyes, look for the good in others;
for beautiful lips, speak only words of kindness;
and for poise, walk with the knowledge that you are never alone"...Audry Hepburn

(106) Pirouette
8 x 16, oil
A peach gelato for your Friday.
"Success is like reaching an important birthday and finding you are exactly the same"...Audrey Hepburn

(105) Toddle
Pink--preppy--silk, with a hint of sweet confection. Just the basics for spring.
"Whoever said orange is the new pink was seriously disturbed"...Elle from "Legally Blonde"

(104) Feather Boa
8 x 16, oil
"Fashion anticipates, and elegance is a state of mind...a mirror of the time in which we live, a translation of the future, and should never be static"...Oleg Cassini

(103) Swish and Swirl
8 x 16, oil
Here's a little tulle for a Tuesday. You just can't wear it without smiling. (and swirling)
“A woman's dress should be like a barbed- wire fence: serving its purpose without obstructing the view”...Sophia Loren

(102) Peony Dance
8 x 16, oil
private collection
Although the dress was painted from life, I added the peony hanger from imagination--they just seemed to go together. A new fabric to check off my list: chiffon.
"All gardeners need to know when to accept something wonderful and unexpected, taking no credit except for letting it be"...Allen Lacy

(101) Swirl
"I see myself as a true modernist. Even when I do a traditional gown, I give it a modern twist. I go to the past for research. I need to know what came before so I can break the rules"...Vera Wang

(100) Juliet
8 x 16, oil
So what is the opposite of yesterday's light, wispy fabric? Well, how about a thick, lush velvet?
"I think I have something tonight that's not quite correct for evening wear--blue suede shoes"...Elvis Presley (today is Lisa Marie's 40th birthday)