Cafes from Cape Cod and Dallas

Lobster Rolls at JT's Seafood

11x14 watercolor

by Liana Yarckin

Selected for the Artists of Texas Fourth Annual Show:

Lunch in the West End

11x14 watercolor

by Liana Yarckin

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No matter what the temperature is outside, everyone always enjoys a meal with friends alfresco.  Here are two more paintings for my cafe series.  In order to be considered for my cafe series, umbrellas are key!  Umbrellas or a trellis of vines.  


The painting on top is of JT's Seafood.  They have the best lobster rolls.  I first saw the umbrellas and crowds of people when we were driving by on Route 6A several years ago.  The traffic was heavy and traveling at a good pace that it was difficult to get my husband to turn the car around so I could take some photos.  Photos would have to wait for another summer.  I found my way back to Route 6A and took photos of JT's and the much photographed Brewster General Store.  Little did I know that we would end up spending time in Brewster for the next two summers.  Now I have several photos of JT's from all angles taken while we waited for our food.  It is funny how things in life can make a full circle.


Lunch in the West End is inspired by the West End in Dallas.  The West End is a popular place for tourists to go when visiting Dallas.  A nice little walking area in Downtown full of restaurants, shops and live entertainment.  I really liked the shadows coming around the building here.  The red brick arch marks the entrance of the West End.

PLEASE VOTE FOR OUR FELLOW BLOGGER FRIEND

My dear blogger friend, Sandra Busby, has a chance for her painting Sherlock to be on the cover of the art catalogue, Ken Bromley Art Supply.  Sandra is such a talented artist and has a wonderful series of teddy bear paintings.  Here is Sherlock:

To vote: click on this link , Sandra's name is right under the picture.  It would make a darling cover.

Abstraction Study

work in progress 

by Liana Yarckin

I am working on this abstraction of a conch shell using a fracturing technique.  I have been wanting to create paintings of these conch shells that my husband and sons picked from the ocean floor a few years ago.  They are giant and heavy, but, it reminds me of the conch shell my grandparents had in their home long ago in which they used as a door stop.  I was just a toddler and my aunt and grandparents would hold it to my ear and tell me, "if you hold this to your ear, you can hear the ocean."  I think they would even say that, "so even if you are not at the ocean, with this shell, you can always hear the ocean."  Unless that is something I have made up now as an adult.  


I decided to do this abstraction for several reasons.  One, I wanted to capture or remind the viewer of the clear blue moving water in which the shell was found.  Two, isn't their a famous conch shell painting?  Just of the conch shell in the middle of the page.  I googled it, but, could not find it.  If you know which painting I am talking about, please let me know.


About the technique, first I drew the shell using mine as a model.  Then I used one of Pat Kochan's templates to create the abstract pattern over the shell.  She has several templates to chose from, but, when I saw this one, it felt right.  I feel like it echoes both shell and moving water.  We will see where this goes.  So far it has been both fun and challenging to paint.


Thanks for visiting and for your thoughts!  Have a great week wherever you are.

Latest Painting and a Bit of Good News

Days of Innocence

11x14

Here is a painting of where I wish I was.  On the beach with my feet in the sand, the hot sun feeling good because of the ocean breeze and the sound of the waves!  Instead, for the time I am in hot, hot, hot Dallas trying to stay cool and hanging out with my kiddos.  My precious little one did get a hold of a piece of 300lb. watercolor paper that I was going to paint on next.  He colored ninjas on one side and a force field on the other side!!!!  


For the painting above, I created the image from a photo of the two girls playing in the sand at the Dallas Arboretum.  I had the trees and shrubs drawn, but, I couldn't bring myself to paint the greens.  So I decided to turn it into the beach.


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Accepted into the Southwestern Watercolor Society 49th Annual Juried Exhibit

The big, exciting news is, I found out that Summer has Arrived (above) was accepted into the SWS Annual Juried Exhibit!!!!  If you read Carrie Waller's interview with me, one of my goals was to be accepted into a juried show.  I cannot believe I got in.  I am honored and feel so justified and inspired to paint, paint, paint!  I realize the other side of the coin is that it is just one person's opinion and if it were a different juror, maybe, my painting would not have gotten in.  But, either way, it shows how this artist (me), can be made so happy if just one person likes her work.  There is no "Buy It" button here because I kind of want to hang on it to it for now.  


If you would like to see the other selected paintings for the show, visit here.  One of my favorites is the alligator on the second page, but, I have a lot of favorites.  The physical exhibit will be in September.  I will post details for it closer to the date.  


Try to stay cool where you are.  And thank you all so much for your encouraging words!