Painting in Progress plus Palette

First layer of color, and I already love it!
This is my palette, but I never use all this color at one time.  I select specific colors for each painting based on a complimentary color scheme (even though this painting is actually a close-compliment scheme of yellow and blue.)  First I decide my "star" color.  The star for this painting is yellow, so I'll want to pick out a variety of yellows and its compliment purple.  My main yellow will be Cad Yellow Medium, and main purple, Garnet Lake.  
I've mixed this on a piece of glass to see the color easier.  I rarely use tube earth tones since I can mix them using compliments.  In this case, making a yellow ocher, which I can easily make lighter and darker, or warmer and cooler.  If I use a cooler and bluer purple, the colors will end up a bit on the green side, and I'm seeing a lot of greenish-ocher color in the shadow side of the "flower." 
These are the rest of the colors I will use for this painting, plus white.  I love having lots of choices, so I usually add warms and cools for each compliment.  For my yellow side, I add a warm of Cad Orange, then four cooler yellows.  I'm not going to add a warmer purple, because I can warm up the one I have with the Cad Orange, but I am going to add several blues.  

That's my color scheme theory in a nut shell.   

Drawing and homemade view finder tool

In typical Chicago spring fashion, it's snowing here today.  Lucky for me, I have my own make believe spring growing right here in my studio.  This is the completed drawing on the 10x10 canvas, basically the same as my last post's drawing, except bigger and on canvas.  I did spend more time with this one, and I really loved every minute of it.  

Since this is more or less repeating my last post, I thought I would show my little homemade view finder tool.

I made this years ago, as you can see by the smudges and dried paint, from a 5x7 gray mat you can purchase for framing photos.  I cut the corners, then marked off the interior edges, starting at the corners going out, every half inch.  I can view my set up through my adjustable opening and determine exactly what size canvas will make the best composition.  Once that is decided, I paperclip the corners and continue to use it to help locate the major shapes during the drawing phase.  The mid-toned gray can be used to judge values as well.  

Now back to fun with flower!

Dandelion

Once again, rejoicing over the weather is causing me to throw caution to the wind, and celebrate by posting this very merry latest idea.  It is one that has been brewing and stewing in my brain for some time now.  I had planned to wait until the actual painting was completed before going full steam ahead, but I just couldn't wait, not on a day like today.  For tomorrow is sure to be cold again, but today is today!

STEP ONE:  photo of wire armature

STEP TWO (I know I should have made more photos of getting to step two, but I wasn't really thinking as usual.)  I used clay for the stem and leaves with actual bow and curling ribbon for those curly green things that are usually at the base of a flower.  Two light cans are visible, but only one is being used to light my 'flower.'  I am aiming for a 'fantasy' playful rendition of a flower, so the next one I do, I may need to push that a bit more.  But for now I'm excited!
STEP THREE:  I am what the book, Cheese Room Three, calls a Scurrier - one who has tendencies of scurrying to problem solve, instead of taking the time to think, before acting.  I've been doing a LOT of scurrying lately; starting new ideas and paintings, only to get half way into a huge canvas before realizing it isn't really a direction I want to continue.  My husband gave me a little pep talk, brought on by the mound of half finished paintings leaning against my studio wall, and suggested I might not be really thinking these ideas through before jumping into a painting.  I decided he was right, and that I would from now on, (or until I can no longer hold back the scurrier) start doing sketches and oil studies on paper before proceeding to canvas.  Besides, this set up has many potential compositions to explore, AND I've really been obsessing over Euan Uglow lately and doing painting exercises (will post later) to study his approach, so I thought this would give me a great opportunity to try mixing drawing with the painted surface.  I used Conte crayons for the sketch, which is 6x6, then sprayed with a fixative before painting on top.
STEP FOUR:  Could not be happier with the outcome of this oil sketch and plan to continue this on a 10x10 canvas.  I feel in many ways this is what I was after when I started my giant multi-yellow present painting LAST spring.  I've spent a year searching for what to paint since that incomplete painting.  Is it possible that an idea wants to be expressed so much, that it will hang on and torture you for a YEAR until it is figured out?  Looking at it now, it is so simple, what took me so long to act on this very obvious way for me to interpret Spring's first glorious show of color here in Chicago? I suppose sometimes the most obvious is the most overlooked.  Funny too, the Dandelion is certainly an overlooked flower, and just like my idea that refused to go unrealized, the Dandelion is certainly a persistent little thing!  Tomorrow there may be snow, but for today may there be Dandelions! 

Danae

I keep apologizing for my long absences. Honestly, I've been allowing myself the indulgence of focusing on my paintings - playing around with what direction I want to explore next. I have had two new purse paintings finished, but wasn't certain I was ready to post. Mainly because I wanted to see if these purses were going to make up a new body of work.

One of the reasons I'm interested in purses, is similar to my attraction to my presents. Both are elaborate, decorative surfaces that disguise/hide interior content. The main difference for me is that we have a pretty good guess as to what might be inside a purse. Purses are so personal too. They reveal our personality, whether we like it or not. Funny thing is, I myself rarely carry an actual purse. Maybe I'm just not ready to commit to a personality yet, or maybe I haven't found a purse that can adequately hold my personality. I think I'm going with that last one.

Anyway, I'm actually pretty certain that purses are not going to be a totally new direction, (I am actually working on two bow themed paintings right now) but I do think they will continue to make guest appearances. They give me the opportunity to ponder an intriguing question..... what shiny fun self do we show the world, and is it the same self as our inner private one?

Thanks as always for tolerating my musings.

Take a Listen

Everyone make a cup of coffee or tea, sit down and take a listen to the podcast on Bad @ Sports  Great honest advice from Edward Winkleman about how artists might best approach galleries plus other nuggets of wisdom.  

Amy

Sold

Two and a half years ago while living in Atlanta - in the south where I had always lived - I thought it impossible to jog in the snow.  As a matter of fact, knowing that we were moving, I purchased a yoga dvd thinking I would be forced into an indoor workout throughout the entire winter.  Would I have believed I could actually LOVE jogging in the snow?  Never!

This morning I headed out for my cold winter jog.  It's now my third winter here and I actually had high hopes that this day might bring my first snow jog of this winter.  Towards the end, as I made my way back home, I started thinking about how lucky I was for this change in my life.  Suddenly, on cue, the snow came falling down in those big fluffy swirling magical flakes.  I was reminded on my snowy lakefront path, that the impossibility of the unknown can actually be an unknown joy, just waiting to be found.  

So, being inspired with positive thoughts of change, I decided this would be the perfect day to show the newest change in my subject matter.  "Amy" is actually the very first of this series, and although I have completed several now, she's the one that seemed perfectly dressed for today's silvery, snowy day.  

Riptide

Sold

I don't know exactly what it is about these presents that keep pulling me back.  I can't explain it.  Maybe I'll eventually figure it out and never need to paint another one, or maybe not.  All I do know is that I'm still very co-dependent, and this aqua bow was determined to show me that. 

What started as a wave to ride back into shore, turned into a struggle with a current.  Every stroke in my direction taking me further out.  A reminder that I don't always know the path I'm suppose to take, but also a reminder that I've been in currents before, and if I can just hold my breath I'll eventually find land.  

Swim

Sold

I am fortunate enough to paint full time, and even though my blog doesn’t show any evidence to back up this claim as of late, I do paint every day… I’m sort of a workaholic. So what have I been painting during this past month since my last post???

Well that is a long story, and it will need to be spread out into several posts. But before I back track, I wanted to post this latest painting. In a way, this painting represents for me where I’ve been and why I’m back. Let’s just say, I’ve been out exploring new ideas and subject matter, testing new water so to speak. One part of me wants to explain why now, why I would think about a departure from painting presents, the other part of me thinks it really doesn’t matter. What does matter is that I continue to pursue whatever it is that will make me a better person and a better painter. Bottom line, I’ve enjoyed my time out into these uncharted waters and I’ve made some great discoveries....one of which is that I needed to swim back to shore, my shore.

Exciting News

Two exciting pieces of news I would like to share with everyone. First, I was interviewed by a new website called Neoteric Art. The site was started by a friend of mine and I am very flattered that he asked me to participate. He asked some tough questions and they were fun to answer. Just follow the link over to check it out.

Second, the dandelions are here! Serendipitous moments happen to me all the time! I have long awaited these beauties and I can't believe they decided to pop up today. Weed to most, but to me it is the first glorious color after the long winter. Right now they are just dots here and there along the lake front, but soon it will be a sea of gold!

Dark Comedy

SOLD
First I'd like to thank everyone who has been so helpful with suggestions/comments and emails concerning my hard drive. I have very much missed keeping up with all the blogs I visit daily. I hope to get totally caught up with everyone and everything soon. Thank you all so much!

While struggling with this painting and with my lingering winter, I happened to be reading a book about the history of color in art, and one chapter dealt with black. The most interesting line suddenly leapt off the page. It was that Matisse made the observation that Manet and Renoir turned “black into a light.” Suddenly it all made sense to me, not in the way Matisse had intended, but it was just the thing I needed to hear. I immediately saw light everywhere, in my bow and in my winter. I was able to finish up this painting with the thought that I already knew, but just needed to be reminded of. That thought is not just that there will always be light in the dark, but that by trying to understand my dark I can turn it into a light. And sure enough, as I’ve finally finished up this painting, the first signs of spring have come.