Monday, December 7, 2015

Watercolors on Silk and other Holiday Gifts

New Scarf Design





Vineyard Art Gallery

ABPA Home Tour

New designs for note cards plus the favorite State Fair Series

I have been busy completing commissions for Christmas deadlines and birthdays!  It is so hard for me to not post the photos of the completed work, but, I will be able to do so after December.  

Anyone can order a scarf via my website www.lianayarckin.com if you need one for a Christmas gift.  Locals, I will have an Open Studio in my Home Gallery this Friday 1-3, Saturday, 10-2.  You can pick up a scarf, note cards, prints and more!  Get that hard to buy for checked off your list!!!!

Thursday, October 15, 2015

New Studio Gallery & Classroom



The Colors of Venice
11x14 watercolor
by Liana Yarckin



Art Show currently at 
City Cafe Dallas
Lovers Lane at the Tollway


New Studio Gallery and Classroom

Entry

Orchid Dyptych

all paintings for sale





I have a new Studio Gallery and classroom to teach classes.  

First workshop - Flowers
Beginner to Intermediate
November 5 10:00 - 2:00 
or
November 14 11:00 - 3:00

Sunday, August 30, 2015

Chasing Days in Tuscany

11x14 watercolor
by Liana Yarckin

School is back in session and that means I get studio time!!!!  Last season got so busy with shows and selling my silk scarves that I decided to take the summer off and focus on my kiddos and family life.  

I have been painting images inspired by our family trip to Italy this summer.  It was such an amazing time.  I took my family to Santa Chiara were I did a study abroad program in 1989.  We were warmly hosted by the Santa Chiara family and met up with my professor.  Those photos are on my facebook page if you want to see more.  As well as pics of watercolors of Venice.  The trip was so amazing that I want to teach a watercolor workshop in Tuscany in May 2016.  I have everything I need, a place to stay for 14 of us with fabulous meals, the contacts for tours, interested students who want to go, my knowledge of the region and plein air painting!  What is holding me back?  Is it too wonderful for me to get to do?   

Tomorrow I take my painting to be hung in the Southwestern Watercolor Society Juried Art Show.  The show is the month of September at the Eismann Center in Richardson, TX.  September 20 is the reception party with food, wine, music, the amazing paintings that were selected and all of the artists. If you go, let me know, I would love to say hi to you in person!

I don't think I wrote anything about my silk scarves on my blog.  It was so busy.  I printed select watercolor florals on silk scarves.  Now a giant magnolia or a field of blooming tulips can be wrapped around your neck in luxurious silk.  Those are sold on my website in the shop.




Pics from the fabulous party thrown by Estate Life magazine:

 scarves on the table for a drawing and my butterflies on back wall

 favorite supporters and collectors

 a surprise visit from a collector


so lucky to have supporters that come out to every show

Friday, August 14, 2015

I got in!!!!



Great news which I am truly honored and humbled by.  I received the above email one day unexpectedly.  I think I was in shock for the first hour.  I had been so stressed when trying to select which paintings to submit.  Which painting would be the painting that would grab the juror's attention and make him pick it out of AAAALLLLLL of the other submissions?!  

When deciding which paintings to enter for acceptance to the SWS show this year, I looked at my others that had been accepted in past years.  I had just realized that for the last 3 years, 3 separate accomplished, amazing, well known watercolor artists selected one of my paintings to be in the show.  How could that be?  How could I be so lucky that 3 unrelated jurors would pick my painting.  I prepared myself that there was no way my painting would get selected for a fourth time.  What were the odds?  I don't know how it happened, but, I am taking it as a message that I should spend this year growing in my art.  Where that will take me, I don't know, but, I will just keep remembering it is the journey that is important.

Oh!  I have a new website!!!

send me a test message from either the contact page or the sign up for a newsletter

See my latest paintings of Venice
Liana Yarckin Watercolors

p.s. the painting that was selected is the one of the candy apples from my State Fair series.







Tuesday, May 5, 2015

You are invited to celebrate!




Despite the tornado watch, which cancelled the fabulous Friday night Member Preview Party, Artscape was still a success.  I am so thankful for all of those that came out on Saturday and Sunday.  We lucked out with good weather and nice crowds!  It was great to see so many community friends, as well as attendees from last year's show that were looking for my booth and even students from my watercolor classes.  Thank you to all of the new friends I met, both artists and collectors.  The Dallas Arboretum did a great job attracting artists from all over the country for this show.  I was lucky to find two pieces of art I bought for myself!  I will post more pics on my facebook page:  Liana Yarckin Watercolors.  

In the meantime, please come celebrate with me this Monday night!  A huge thank you to Estate Life Magazine and Park Cities One Design for hosting this fabulous party.  Everyone is invited.  I hope to see you there!!! RSVP here.





Friday, April 17, 2015

Creating a composition from photos

 "Tulip Tranquility" in progress
22x30 watercolor by Liana Yarckin






Inspiration photos for "Tulip Tranquility"

This spring I have been seeing so many gorgeous blooms all around town.  Often I pull over and take several photos from a variety of angles.  In this case, I needed to see the shadows on the inside of white tulips.  

To create the above composition, I placed my "star" tulip first in one of the focal point locations using the "rule of thirds".  The rules of thirds is basically dividing your page up into thirds both horizontally and vertically.  This creates four intersections.  It is believed by many that the locations of these intersections is the best location for your subject.  The idea expands on the Golden section theory and 2:1 ratio.  After placing my "star", I then placed my second favorite flower near it and then continued to draw in blooms to fill the area.  I did refer to other photos of tulips that were not fully opened, yet. I am still working on this painting.  It is important that I paint the "star" with star attention and detail so that it will stand out in comparison to the other blooms. 

Come see me and this painting completed at this Friday, April 24 
Booth #9
Artscape - Dallas Arboretum


#Dallas Arboretum, #Artscape, #tulips, #watercolor

Wednesday, April 8, 2015

Detail from
"Duck Pond - Everyone is a Winner"
by Liana Yarckin

I am in love with this painting.  Not for Sale!!!  Sorry, no arrogance intended, it just speaks to my heart right now.  I am often asked if I use a projector for my drawings.  No, and this is the perfect example of why I don't.  I took several photos of the duck pond game at the Texas State Fair while my kindergartner played the game.  I loved the way the sunlight was hitting the ducks.  When I finally decided to paint it, I cannot tell you how excited I was that it was much faster to draw referring to my photos than pulling out the projector, setting that all up, tracing and then combining and scaling photos to work together.  When I am ready to paint, I just don't have patience for that.  This is just a detail of the entire painting.  I used my photos to place the large ducks were they needed to be following design rules.  I added more ducks AND had to take out some round happy face floats that were in the photos.  In the original photos, there were not so many baby ducks covering the water, but in my mind when I was taking the photos, this is how I remembered it, lots and lots of ducks.  I have a few people interested in this painting, but, I will do a few more studies before I decide on what to sell.  Yellow is one of the hardest colors to work with for values and shadows, but, thanks to an oil portrait artist friend and neighbor, she made a comment that made the light bulb go off which resulted in that one beautiful, perfect shadow on the main duck.  Now, I just have to learn to repeat that!!!!  Intentionally.

100 Sunflower Fields
16x22 watercolor by Liana Yarckin

  Inspired by the sunflower fields in Provence, once again, it was faster for me to create a composition using several photos rather than using a projector.  When you are standing in the sunflower fields, it feels like the flowers are this close together, but, the photos (maybe I am a poor photographer) show a lot more space between the flowers and the flowers are not in the perfect "pose" for the painting.  Again, I truly get so impatient to hurry up and paint that I can draw what I want from the photos faster than using a projector.  I did go to college for architecture, which required a lot of free drawing classes, plus once out of school, for fun, I did a lot of figure drawing classes, which are the best for learning how to draw.

Detail from Commissioned Wedding Bouquet

Did you know the new trend at weddings is to have an artist do a "live painting" at your wedding?!  I was blessed to be hired by a neighbor who loved my work to paint the bride's bouquet.  I also painted the first dance and the wedding cake because I had time.  When at a wedding with your easel and a crowd watching you - you can not set up a projector!  One most know how to draw, quickly, I might add, while wedding guests are standing around watching you.  It was so much fun and wonderful for me since I love anything beautiful and girlie.  I have 3 boys so I do not get my share of buying dresses or tying ribbons in hair, so painting scenes from a wedding was absolutely blissful for me!!!  I have 3 more weddings lined up!!!  I will post the other wedding pics next time or go to my facebook page to see.

Come see me at the Dallas Arboretum Artscape Art Show
April 24-26 
Booth 9


TIP on drawing: use your arm and body.  It sounds crazy, but, really think of using your arm and body to mask out the overall large shapes.  We get into trouble when we use are wrists and these little wispy, sketchy lines.  The drawing becomes too contrived and stifled.  You are just trying to capture the essence.

Don't miss a post, subscribe in the upper right hand corner.  

#weddings #bouquet #livepainting #texasstatefair #rubberducks #provence #sunflowers

Monday, April 6, 2015

BIG Art Show - Artscape Dallas Arboretum



Friends, I am so excited about my upcoming art show at Artscape at the Dallas Arboretum.  I cannot tell you how fun this event is, especially, the preview night on April 24.  I have special tickets for you if you are not a member.  Please let me know if you would like a ticket.

Liana Yarckin Watercolors
Booth #9
April 24-27
Dallas Arboretum

I am honored to be selected as one of the artists in this show.  The show features artists from all over the country who specialize in a variety of mediums.  There is something for everyone.  Last year, many of my visitors found interesting art pieces in a booth across from me for their little peeps.  I have been working very hard and will have new works on display that I have not posted anywhere online!  The only way to see them is at the show!!!  Last year I sold 5 pieces on opening night.  Two were by facebook followers and they knew exactly what they wanted.

So come and see me, bring the family, make it an outing - it is only once a year.


#dallasarboretum, #lianayarckin #artshow






Sunday, March 1, 2015

Painting the Great Hall


 11x14 watercolor by Liana Yarckin



The school fundraiser is over and the painting, "The Great Hall" has gone to the lucky high bidder.  This is a beautiful space and I think it is wonderful for the students to get to dine here daily.  The architecture alone expresses what a special place this is and how sacred it is. 

When it was suggested that I paint this space, I immediately thought of how was I going to capture the feeling of this space and what it represents.  I wanted to paint it full of the students talking with each other, the sunlight coming in through the clear story windows and the grandness of the architecture.  To fill the space with students, I used several reference photos taken on different days.  It wasn't as simple as go one day during lunch and get the photos I needed.  Some of the tables were empty so I had to fill these tables with my imagination.  I made sure to include some Seniors in their "blues", too.  

The ceiling is a beautiful wood with an amazing wood truss system.  I layered in several colors to emphasize the truss system and the varying shades of light and shadows coming from the windows and the trusses.  

I ended up growing fond of this painting because of what it represents.  What a privilege it is to go to a school like this.  To be in an environment where learning and growing into the best person that one can be.  Having the best teachers and resources possible.  The friendships that are made.  Where one's future is ahead of them.  To be a young student again.  I am so pleased that this painting went to someone who I know will cherish it.  

What were your favorite memories from school?  When you were a student?


Be my friend:  Liana Yarckin Watercolors
www.lianayarckin.com

Sign up for my class on March 21
Architecture in Watercolor
at the Dallas Arboretum

Saturday, January 31, 2015

Inside at The Great Hall

The Great Hall
11x14 watercolor by Liana Yarckin

Painted for the St. Marks School Fundraiser
Who will be the lucky bidder????

A collector with her Liana Yarckin original.  I was so inspired to paint her dogs after I saw a photo she posted on facebook.  Aren't they the cutest dogs ever.  One of the precious pups has gone to doggie heaven.  

Monday, January 26, 2015

New Year, New Watercolor Classes, New Art Shows


Save the date for Artscape at the Dallas Arboretum
April 24-26
I am thrilled to be accepted in the Artscape Artshow!  I cannot wait to show my new florals and I will have some surprises, too!  Join me on the 24th for the special reception with cocktails and live music!  Mention you saw my blog on the 24th and I will have a special treat for you!

I am so excited to be teaching a plein air class at the Dallas Arboretum on March 21.  The title of the class is "Architecture in Watercolor".  We will focus painting some of the architectural features of the arboretum in their beautiful surroundings.  If you prefer to focus on the flowers, that is perfectly fine.  The class will be small enough so I can give each student individual attention.  Sign up quick, since we are trying to keep it small.

Four Seasons of Aspens with their collector.
Each will be matted and framed separately to hang in the family room.

Please join me at City Cafe for our 5 Year Anniversary Celebration
featuring artist, Ron Stephens debut.
February 17, 6:30 - 

www.lianayarckin.com
say hi to me on facebook:  Liana Yarckin Watercolors