New Numbers

#60 - American Kestrel

I darkened the background on the American Kestrel painting and he seems more at home.  I also discovered that I missed a few paintings in my "counting" to one hundred, so I have 30 paintings that I did for "30 paintings in 30 days" and I now have 33 paintings as of Sunday that I have been working one little by little!

So only 37 left to go to get to my goal of one hundred!!!

#62 - Laguiole Belle

The sweet cow in the above painting was from a photo I took in the countryside in France.  My husband and I were looking for the tiny town of Laguiole which is famous for their knives which have a hallmark bee design on the handle.

#63  - Mama and baby swan - in need of a name!

I have also been trying to design a hanging system for the 100 little paintings.  I am planning on separating them into groups of 25 so that I have options when hanging them in a gallery.  I will be able to hang them in a large square of 10 by 10 panels or in a long line of 20 by 5 panels high or even randomly sprinkled around in groups of 25.

Day 3

Day 3 of Leslie Saeta's online challenge of 30 Paintings in 30 Days.  This is Face #16 of my personal challenge of painting 100 faces.  Isn't she a cutie?!

Day 2

Oil - 6 x 6

This is my painting for Day 2 of Leslie Saeta's online challenge of 30 Paintings in 30 Days. It is my own personal challenge of painting One Hundred Faces - #15.

Hello 2016

Well I have done it again......

Sebastian - 6 x 6

I have signed up for Leslie Saeta's 30 Paintings in 30 Days!  So for the next few days I will continue to paint my 100 faces.  The above painting is of a dear friend's daughter meeting her son for the first time.  I just love how the mom is holding her son so dearly and the baby looks like he is trying to look at his mom and it brings tears to my eyes to see that precious wrinkled finger touching his mother. 

New Life and a New Year!
 

Pathway to the Beach is Through the Forest!

In September I spent three weeks at the family cabin in Lake Tahoe and it was so relaxing! No cell service, no TV, no interruptions (except for the occasional bear, coyote or deer in the surrounding forest)!

 Just time to paint, read, paint, go to the beach, paint, relax.

I'm loving my "new" outdoor studio.......

I was working on the above painting "Pathway to the Beach" and also my online challenge of 30 Paintings in 30 Days which were "Portals" - windows and doors.

Pathway to the Beach - 30 x 40

It is hanging at the Marilyn Citron O'Rourke Art Gallery in the Benicia Library.  Hope you can drop in and see the various delightful paintings done by the group of painters I belong to Bay Area Studio Artists!

14 Paintings in 30 Days

Leslie Saeta's online challenge to paint 30 Paintings in 30 Days

The month of September was full of learning and letting go.  I have been in the Sierra's for the last three weeks and thought I would have oodles of time to paint since some of that time I was at the cabin alone. 

Number One - I went to a larger size canvas.  In January's online challenge to paint 30 paintings in 30 days, I used 6 x 6 panels and this time I was using 8 x 10.  Just that little difference made for a longer painting session.

Number Two - I used my own photographs for the most part instead of an artist's rendering which is what I did in January.  With the photograph I had to make my own decisions as to how I perceived the image.....this took longer than the artist's rendering where they have already made most of the decisions for you, like cropping, composition, coloring, etc.

Number Three - In January I was very disciplined about having a daily painting schedule.  There was something about being in the mountains this time that made me think....."I'm on vacation and there will be plenty of time later."

Number Four - Was about cutting myself some slack and being proud of what I did accomplish in 30 days.  I have 14 new paintings that I would not of had otherwise!

I still intend on doing my 30 paintings but now on a more leisurely schedule.  I'll keep you posted!

Challenge - Day 20 &21

 

Day 20 is from a photo I took last Fall in Paris at Momartre.

Day 21 is from a hotel we stayed at in Bordeilles with a Roman bridge next to it. Beautiful place. The window is from the dining room.

 

I have been in Tahoe and without cell service so I am painting a lot but can not post often. It's beautiful here!

 

 

Posted with Blogsy

Challenge - Day 13

This green shuttered house was painted while relaxing with family and friends in Lake Tahoe! Day 13 of Leslie Saeta's online challenge of painting 30 Paintings in 30 Days.

 

Posted with Blogsy

Painting Challenge - Day 10, 11 & 12

 

Day 10 of Leslie Saeta's online painting challenge 30 Paintings in 30 Days was of a small window in a house in the French Pyrenees. Friends of ours own this house and barn up in the Pyrenees near the town of Banca. What I found interesting about this window was the little hole in the shutter and the sliding cover. The window faces the barn and I imagine the farmers wife yelling for her husband to come in for dinner through the little hole during a cold winter snowstorm.

 

Day 11 is of a charming yellow door with wonky stone steps leading up to it with a beautiful climbing rose on the wall nearby.

 

 

Day 12 is of a row of windows with light green shutters and window boxes full of a jumble of flowers tumbling out. Location is in Dinan France.

 

Posted with Blogsy

Challenge - Day 7

Day 7 - Dinan, FR

Sorry if you received two posts today as I forgot to publish Day 6 on time! So it is officially one week into this challenge and Day 7 is of two lovely shuttered window where the late afternoon sunlight is casting long shadows across the stones and the white shutters.  I love how "wonky" and ancient everything feels!

This is Day 7 in Leslie Saeta's online challenge 30 Paintings in 30 Days.

Challenge - Day 5

Day 5 - Dinan, FR

My husband and I have traveled to this little town in France several times.  Dinan is a walled Breton town with many half-timbered buildings along cobblestone streets.  I enjoy sitting along the river bank sketching the delightful town & her people.

This is day 5 in Leslie Saeta's online challenge - 30 Paintings in 30 Days.

Challenge - Day 6

Day 6 - Lamon, Italy

Ten years ago I was fortunate enough to visit where my grandparents came from in Northern Italy.  It is quite common in those areas to see this type of shutter on windows.  Many times there would be an elderly woman watching the activity on the street or talking to a neighbor through them.

This is Day 6 of Leslie Saeta's online challenge - 30 Paintings in 30 Days.

Challenge - Day 4

Day 4 - Santa Fe, NM

Several years ago I took a workshop with Carol Marine in Santa Fe, NM with fellow painter Nancy Hartley.   Early one morning I walked around town and snapped some photos of doorways and windows.  Amazing colors around that area of New Mexico!


So this is Day 4 of Leslie Saeta's 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge.  My theme for the 30 days is Passageways. 

Challenge - Day 3

Day 3 - Saint-Maximin-la-Sainte-Baume

Saint-Maximin-la-Sainte-Baume is a small village in Southern France near Aix-en-Provence and is known for it Basilica which has relics of Mary Magdalene. There were some beautifully painted buildings near the Basilica and when I spotted this one with the linen outside airing, it reminded me of Italy.  I love how part of the scene is in shadow while the rest is flooded in bright sunshine!

This is Day 3 of Leslie Saeta's 30 paintings in 30 days online challenge!

Day 2 Challenge

Day 2 - Saint-Cirq-Lapopie

Saint-Cirq-Lapopie is named one of "Les Plus Beaux Villages de France" meaning it's one of the most beautiful villages in France.   It's a quaint little village in South-Western France in the Lot area. My husband and I traveled there just last Fall.  I have several windows from this charming little village!

It is Day 2 of the challenge 30 Paintings in 30 Days.  

The archway going into Saint-Cirq-Lapopie

Day 1 for 30 in 30

Day 1 - The Blue Garden Door

Last month I decided to once again join the online challenge of painting 30 paintings in 30 days!

It begins today!

After much deliberation on what to actually paint, I decided on Windows and Doors or what I like to think of as Passageways!  I have so many photos that I have taken of passageways through our various travels that it was fun to go through them and reminisce about that particular trip.

This photo is actually one that I got off of a website that I use often for reference - Paint My Photo
It's a place where photographers and artists come together to share reference material. Thank you Rodney Campbell for the great shot!

I Have De-Boned the Duck

Day 30

After Toulouse-Lautrec

I am sure many of you have seen the movie Julie & Julia in which the character, Julie keeps putting off the intimidating recipe where she has to de-bone a duck.  My husband said at the beginning of this challenge of 30 Paintings in 30 Days, that it reminded him of that scene in the movie.

So my friends, I have completed the challenge with Painting #30 today.

Like Julie says in the move, one must be fearless - No Fear!

Make up for Day 29

Day 29

30 Paintings in 30 Days

After Fairfield Porter

I was first introduced to Fairfield Porter's style by Tim Horn. This style of portraiture is often referred to as a "mudhead".  The first time I heard that term was at a Peggi Kroll-Roberts workshop.  Here is Henshe's definition:

               "A model, often one of the local Portuguese fisherman’s children, posed on the beach, sitting on a barrel with their back to the sun.  The students positioned their easels facing the shadow side of the model.  Hawthorne instructed them to paint this dramatic silhouette against the blaze of light on the beach, the water, and emanating from the sky.  By having his students paint with a large, unwieldy putty knife, it forced them to concentrate on the large shapes of color, rather than outlines around the shapes, the way one might do when painting with a brush.  The quality of a study was judged by the effectiveness with which the light was suggested by these simple shapes of color.  The resulting mud-like color of the face in shadow gave rise to the studies' nickname, "mud head"."

--From Henry Hensche: Teaching

One more to go!

Final Day for 30 in 30

So Saturday was day number 30 in Leslie Saeta's challenge of 30 Paintings in 30 Days of which I am showing 28 in my collage above. 

My husband and I took a trip to Yosemite and that threw me behind in the challenge for several days but I intend to catch up this week and finish my final two!

It has been a great challenge and I loved getting up each morning with an idea already planned to paint.  But in a few days it will be good to get back to my own paintings and commissions!

Thanks to all for viewing and your support through this challenge!

Love that Man......et!

Day 27

30 Paintings in 30 Days

After Edouard Manet

Love Manet's paintings! The more I study them, the more I appreciate his work! Unfortunately I had a full day today and by the time I finished this there was only my easel light to photograph from so some of the colors are a little washed out.  

I will try to get a new shot of it tomorrow!

3 days left in the challenge!