Chico at Dusk - Advanced class Painting

I intend to start posting all of the progressions of my current paintings.  The one being posted today is the painting from my Advanced Painting class.  At the end of the session I will also post a few of my student's work as well.  In the meantime, enjoy the step-by-step progression as the painting comes to life.

This is a photo taken at dusk after a wonderful rain this past January.
Step One

Step One

All of my paintings start the same way.  I create a contour line drawing of my image as it is my roadmap to a successful painting.  If I need to save the light areas of a part of the painting I will use masking fluid.  Once I have painted that area, all masking fluid will be removed.  I learned the hard way that masking fluid left on a painting for a few weeks can solidify and can not be removed.

Here are steps 2, 3 & 4.

Here is the last step prior to completion.  I will publish the new painting soon.

Two new paintings

Here are two new paintings completed from my classes.  The Beginner class painted the Magnolia and the Advanced class painted the marbles.  

There will be a show in the Gallery in October showcasing the work of my students.  I'll try to send out images of all of the artist's work.

I found my marbles, watercolor, 11 x 14 inches

I found my marbles, watercolor, 11 x 14 inches

Magnolia, Watercolor, 11 x 14

Magnolia, Watercolor, 11 x 14

Handles, labels, chairs, tents, envelop and light

Since I was really late getting home from the Matador....too much fun...I didn't get a chance to post the sketches so yesterdays and todays sketches are here.  If you like what you see be sure to select the little red heart at the bottom of the page.


Hot, tweetie bird, shoes,herbs, cooking utensils and luggage

Today was the start of Art at the Matador so my drawing was of a booth space.  Unfortunately, I left my sketchbook there so no sketch on the blog for me.  But, there are so many new ones to admire so mine is not a loss.  Enjoy!

Breakfast possibilities, bird home, bottle brush and water

Here are the images for today and here are seven new prompts for the following week...Remember you can sketch what you want, these are just ideas if your 'idea well' is dry.  Something with a handle, something with an interesting label, something you can turn on/off, a hat, cap or other headgear, some stairs or steps, the last thing you bought and something you use everyday.  Good luck and I'm really looking forward to your new sketches.

 


Happy Cinco de Mayo

Only three of us today...what is it with everyone...a small drawing only takes a few minutes...

Curtains, trees, towels and loquats

Here we are on May 3rd with a new group of sketches...We need more of you sending in your sketches.  I hope you enjoy.

 

Ice Cream, carrots, tomatoes and radishes

Here are the images I received today for the May Sketch Challenge.  Not too complicated but very effective...  I hope more of you will try this out.  

A Sketch a Day in May

Today, Katie, Ginny and I worked on plein air sketching and painting.  We first began by sketching in the studio to get warmed up and to get familiar with sketching with a pen.  Here is Katie's sketch of a cute pottery rooster I just purchased.

Katie's Rooster

Ginny sketched the wooden bird I have on a table in the Gallery...she used her artist's license and painted it with bright colors instead of the allover brown that it is in reality.

Next they sketched small houses in order to conquer their fear of sketching buildings outside.  It is much less intimidating to sketch a small 6 inch high ceramic house, but all of the same principles for sketching a building on site are the same as sketching the small ceramic ones in the gallery.

After building a little confidence with their pens, we moved to outside and here we can see Ginny sketched a large floral pot that sits outside of the Gallery front door.

Ginny-FlwrPot.jpg

 Katie sketched the water hydrant (I don't have a photo yet) and I tackled the other flower pot in front of the building.

This month I am asking everyone to create a Sketch a Day in May.  I will send out several prompts and ask that after you sketch an image to send me your photo and I will post it on the blog.   Remember, don't overthink it and have fun!

 

 

Moth Orchids, Trumpet Flowers, And A Signature Brush

Today a couple of my current students, Paula and Alicia, brought in their watercolor paintings from the last class for me to help them with framing their finished painting. I think you will agree that they both did a wonderful job painting the Moth Orchid. This was a real challenge as the painting is 11 x 14 inches and had many small shapes that required smooth transitions in color.

We are currently working on painting this Trumpet Flower that should be a beautiful painting.  We have just finished getting the image on our 300 lb. Arches watercolor paper and masked off all of the highlights. We are starting to paint the tops of the trumpets wet into wet using Azo Yellow and Pthalo Green. Next week we begin to create the texture in the petals and create blends of Quin Pink, Quin Coral and Pyrol Orange. Images of our progress will be posted soon.

Also, I am really excited to have my own signature brush. It is a wonderful brush for painting in watercolor. It is a blend in the same of a quill. It has the best of a sable brush, in that it holds just enough fluid, but has a beautiful point that can be used in the tightest corners. I bought this brush in England and believe I am the only one selling it in the U.S.