More French Riviera

Well, I broke my foot! Really. The only positive thing about it, is that I can sit and paint. So I worked on 3 paintings today. I painted outside with my foot propped up. Both of the above paintings are from photos. The other was a scene of giant Oak leaf hydrangeas. I will post that another day.

You have seen the black and white study of the Bike Race in Nice in a previous post. It is almost how I imagined. Still I would like to treat these cyclists as a single shape with colors mixing, just giving you the idea that they are cyclists. In the photo the cyclists are backlit so you really can't see as much detail as I have here. I did this on hot press paper. I sat on my back porch as the sky grew dark and thundered just before the rain came.

Beau Rivage was started a few weeks ago. Since I was so unhappy about my new status of being stuck with my foot up, I just finished this painting without being too careful. I liked how the finishing touches came out. Much looser than when I started. I also enjoyed the experience of "just do it". Because of that feeling, I started the Bike Race. Although I started Bike Race in a loose style, as the time went on, I got tighter, unintentionally.

Symbols of Summer

Plein air painting in my sketch book.


9x12 on hotpress watercolor paper

I painted the lemons this past Saturday. Acting on a suggestion an artist friend made, "paint an ugly painting first". So with that in mind and no preconceived images in my head, I saw the lemons in my kitchen and thought I would even go a step further to insure it would be an ugly painting by using a scrap of hot press paper. I had no expectations of having a beautiful painting. How could I when I know I don't like painting on hot press. But, now, I am liking hot press. I don't know if I will buy any more at the moment. I will just use the scraps I have. I am happy with the way this bowl of lemons came out. As you know, my constant struggle is to try and paint looser than my natural style. This is a little loose for me. This has me almost in the groove to paint the cyclists.

The painting of the beach umbrellas brings such wonderful memories back to me. I took out my watercolor sketch book to paint in as another method to trick myself into painting loose. I ended up going on a trip down memory lane. Before I had kids I would always paint "a scene" of the place we were visiting in plein air style. I can only say, I wish I had taken my sketch book on more trips now. It doesn't have to be a great painting. Just a little memory of that place, painting and noticing all of the details. I can remember many details of the day I sat under my umbrella with my husband painting this scene. It was around 10:30 a.m., in Nice, we were the early birds on the beach. Many couples and families filled the chairs around us. One family had a boy and a girl. They came to the beach fully dressed, hung out for a while and then changed into their swimsuits. Lots of fancy sunglasses and cocktails. Someone ordered a Salad Nicoise, I remember because it was the first time I had heard of this before. I ended up ordering my first Salad Nicoise. Then around noon, a gorgeous model walked back and forth on the stoney beach of Nice barefoot showing off the swimsuits and wraps that you could purchase at the shop! She had long hair blowing in the wind. Never once did the stones on the beach seem to hinder her swimsuit strut. And they say a photo is worth a thousand words.

Bike Race in France

Here is something I have wanted to paint for a very long time. We caught the end of this bike race when in Nice, France about 10 years ago. I was tired of seeing my flower paintings so I looked through my photos for another subject other than flowers. I saw these photos and the motion and blur in the photos makes me feel like it was just today that we fell upon this finish line. I am so overwhelmed with the thought of making a real drawing out of this. There is so much detail and we all know how I have a tendency to get caught up in the detail. The photo is not a good photo for photosake. The sun is behind the cyclists so everything including the cyclists are in shadow. Maybe this can help me simplify the painting. I will try to connect the long shadows and the cyclists as well as the crowd on the sideline. I think I will do a couple of more sketches to simplify before I try a watercolor of this. I am happy with the sketch. I would like to capture this looseness and feeling in the watercolor. All suggestions on how to do this are welcome!

Irises - the final

Here is the completed painting of the Irises from the previous post.

Irises

Here are some irises I have been working on. They are painted on a canvas that is made for watercolor. When I started the painting, I was imagining a very loose painting with the paint from the irises blending into the paint of the leaves. I will have to try for a looser painting on paper. Working on the canvas was interesting. There are both pros and cons. Pros, if you don't like it, you can wipe it right off with your brush or a napkin! This is great if you forgot to save a white or if you want to change anything on your painting. The negative is that you cannot really glaze or layer colors on top in the way that I am use to do on paper.

I apologize for having a big jump in progress from the first photo to the second. I was not originally intending to take progress photos. I don't remember why I took the first photo. When I took the second photo, it was to help me see what I needed to do next. Sometimes I will look at my paintings (when they are in progress) in a mirror. This really helps me to see what is missing or what I need to do next. I can get a similar experience when I take a photo of my painting and look at the image on the little viewer on the camera. I find that both of these techniques really help me to see where I need more darks, contrast, etc.

Miami here I come, not

I just found out that our trip to Miami has been cancelled. I know, I know, WAH. If that is my biggest problem, I am pretty lucky. I was so excited to go because Miami is beach, city, walk around, people watching, great metro vibe. AND we were going to go sans kids. Because my mindset was so ready for Miami, I thought I would post this painting inspired by a photo I saw in Palm Beach so I could experience the trip vicariously through this painting.

Look at this lady's giant hat and her over the top pants. She is free and sassy. Just walking down those steps without holding the rail, but, instead gracefully holding her giant sun hat. I think she is walking down steps at a beach club. One day....

Wishing you a very Happy Mother's Day!

I heard Diane Keaton speak the other night. I noticed that when friends would ask what did she talk about, I would give a different point to each person depending on who it was asking the question. The talk started out as sort of a tribute to Ms. Keaton's mom, who has now passed. Ms. Keaton said she was SO LUCKY to have her mom. Ms. Keaton told stories of how her mom encouraged her that of course she would "grow up to be Doris Day, a big movie star one day." How her mom would let her wear and even make her very own not so mainstream fashion ensembles. Then it turned into Ms. Keaton's present joy of ordinary daily life with her children. She showed very "ordinary" photos of her kids in their daily lives, the audience smiled and giggled with Ms. Keaton as she told the stories behind the photos. Then, last, Ms. Keaton ended with the whole point of life (in her opinion) was to live a very vibrant life. Be vibrant, go for it, don't let anything stop you, keep at it, but, live life full and treasure every moment including the very "ordinary" moments.

As a mom, I am hoping to be a little more chilled out and fun with my kids and to only be so lucky for my own kids to say, "I am so lucky I had MY MOM." As a person, I am inspired to live a very vibrant life.

Now to my Mom who of course, like all mothers, aunts, grandmothers, sisters and friends around the world, thank you for the unconditional love, selflessness, encouragement, shoulder to lean on and all of the other countless things you do that often go by unnoticed.

Spring has sprung

It feels so good to paint again! Here are some daffodils. I put these together from several different photos I took around the neighborhood this past March. I have more photos of other varieties of daffodils that I would like to paint soon. Now I am finishing a painting of red roses that I started in February. We are having a very mild spring for Dallas.

F

Friends, friends, friends, please forgive me for not blogging in so long. I have thought of you often. I truly have thought of my fellow blogger friends who are always so kind to take the time and comment on my posts. I have thought of you and what you are painting these days or enjoying. My excuse is, Spring Break, then Easter, then, well, I got involved with our school carnival. During all of that, I would think of you and your dedication to your posts and your paintings. I have also been admiring all of the beautiful blooms around Dallas. First, the daffodils and tulips and now the azaleas and the irises and then an amazing show by the climbing roses all over town and now even the hydrangeas are starting to bloom. I didn't even name the anemones and poppies, dogwoods, pear trees and mexican red bulbs. How lucky am I! I have taken some photos, and although the weather has been amazingly beautiful, I have not sat for plein air painting. The irony is that tomorrow, my painting group is suppose to paint in Turtle Creek for a plein air painting session, but, it is suppose to storm all day.

The above photos are a sampling from the Dallas Arboretum and the Valley House Art Gallery (a must see, always fantastic art in a beautiful intimate garden/gallery). We went to Valley House for their "Garden Party". Great exhibit with hot dogs, lemonade and brownies!!!

The painting is of Highland Park Pharmacy in Dallas. I had painted this a while ago and I thought by now I would have done a more detailed pen and ink of the building. My friends showed it to the owner, who has since replied favorably. Either way, I still have a pen and ink on my list of this subject.

The last bit. It was our leader of our Bible study 40th birthday. I was thinking of various gift options. Then I remembered that she always commented on my paintings. I looked through my paintings and found one that I thought she would like. It always feels good to give, in the words of Mary Clayton, (Bible Study leader) give what you have.

Blogger friends, I can't wait to visit your sites and see what you have been doing! Much love and happiness.

Spring and Snow

Geraniums in the Window, 11x14
I am still working on the oil of Mykonos which is coming along nicely. I put my oil palette in the freezer while I was out of town. While I was waiting for the paints to get soft, I finished this watercolor above. The oil palette came out nice and fresh and good to work with. In regards to this watercolor, I think I took this photo in California. There are geraniums and clematis growing on the wall. With all of the daffodils in bloom and the bright sunny days, I was inspired to make this painting really sunny. Ironically, the morning I finished this painting, Dallas was covered in snow! It never snows in Dallas, until this year, that is. I am happy with the light and shadow in this painting. I did take artistic license on this painting and changed the white shutters to blue and embellished the flowers.

Look at this beautiful planet we live on. These images were in Beaver Creek, Co. this past Spring Break. I didn't get as many photos as I would have liked. That is why I had to put the one of family up there. It was the only one that shows the blue sky and the mountains behind. Look at how tiny the people are down the slope in the distance. While we were there the sky would be clear cerulean blue and as the day went on it would go to deep cobalt without a cloud in the sky. I took a lot of pictures of aspen trees as well. In the Batchlor's Gultch the ski paths are heavily lined with bunches of aspens. When you are skiing through them there is warm glow all around. So many colors are reflected off of the trees, lots of grey green, gold, cool yellow, orange and brown madder (red brown). Some of these trees are so big around. A photo cannot depict the feeling of being surrounded by aspen trees. Something I noticed from the ski lift is that even in the shadows of the aspen trees in the morning, the main shadow would be a french ultramarine blue and as the shadow of the cluster of branches went away from the tree, there would be a golden color on the snow, sort of like a halo, then the white, white snow.

European Paths

I have been working on this oil painting (second picture) of an alley in Mykonos. While I was trying to develop the foliage and plantings, I got distracted by this watercolor I had started (top photo) over a year ago. I had drawn and glazed the watercolor, but, at the time, I felt that I didn't save enough white, so I started over (Siesta in Cap-Ferrat) and put this one aside. Today, I liked the glazes I had put down. So I went back and forth between the oil and the watercolor on this day. I finished the watercolor and to my surprise, this watercolor came out much brighter than the one I completed first (posted in 2009). I will continue with the oil.

Someone asked when did I go to Mykonos. The last time was in 2002. Like many artists, I take lots of photos for inspiration and then organize them by subject. I have all of my Greece photos out right now because I really want to paint this photo of a woman walking with her donkey. Eventually....

Pears

I did these pears in a plein air class on a rainy day. We met in the studio and made some simple still lifes. We were limited to two colors and the main challenge was the painting style/technique which I cannot recall the name. I searched my notes and the internet and cannot find the name. If anyone knows please tell me. It is the style / technique were every stroke is put down with intention. No glazing or layering. If it is dark, you put it down dark the first time. Susanne Kelley is the teacher and her quote constantly is "paint what you see, not what you know". That is how I was able to paint the glass. I would like to try this again with another subject.

OIL - Ignorance is Bliss

Covered Bridge, 11x14 oil on canvas

Hot Summer Day, 11x14 oil on board

Recently I read an article about an artist that changed her medium to something else because her circumstances had changed (lost her studio, less time). I had noticed that I had been becoming even more impatient in my own watercolor experiences. I realized that I was trying to complete a watercolor in 20 minutes (my darling 2 yr. old) which is not at all the way that I have ever painted. I was not considering changing my medium, but, then I found these two oils that I had started long ago. I had taken an oil workshop from my watercolor teacher, Cecy Turner. (She is amazing in both mediums. In fact, she was just on the cover of Watercolor Artist, February issue). These oil paintings were far from being complete. The thought of completing them was daunting. There was so much canvas showing with very preliminary oil sketchings.

I started on Hot Summer Day first. This being my second oil painting, I didn't know what rules to follow. I don't even own an oil book to refer to. I had started this painting as a plein air painting with a painting group out at White Rock Lake. I started by applying paint with a brush to the sky. Painting the clouds and foliage on the tree were like playing with clay. I could move the paint around. Here, try there, no back over here, let's add some pink, what happens when you add cerulean, what about ultramarine? For the field I applied the paint with a palette knife which I had never used before. I mixed the colors right on the canvas. I loved using the palette knife. The white patches on the tree trunk and elsewhere in the photo is the reflection of the flash on the thick paint that is still wet.

For Covered Bridge (Vail), I basically applied techniques I use in watercolor. I saved my whites and I did push and pull. I think the shadows and the high contrast in the trees are what make this painting sing to me. Because I am not use to the qualities of oil, the shadows came out much darker than they would have if I were doing it with watercolor. For the detail on the aspen trees I used a red and green and applied with a palette knife which came out much darker than in watercolor. For the foliage on both paintings I mixed yellow and blue with a touch of red, "Nature's green doesn't come out of a tube," what Naomi Brotherton, another watercolor teacher use to always say. Even into her 80's, I am sure she still says that to her class. Again, it was such freedom to move the snow around and shape snow mounds, very different from watercolor.

Surprisingly, I didn't experience anything daunting while completing these paintings. It was fun, the time flew by, there were no expectations - ignorance (of your medium) is bliss! Try something new and leave your expectations at the door.

Stay warm! It's cold in Dallas, still!

Catch of the Day

I am so excited to post this painting for two reasons. First, I am very pleased with the results. Just as in the guitar players, I wanted to capture the expression and feeling in a loose style. There is still room for improvement, but, my kids recognized their aunt and I feel that I captured her look of being proud of her great catch.

The second reason I am excited is because I have to tell you about my Aunt, otherwise known as Fishing Philly. My aunt has fished all her life and even when nobody else is catching anything, she does! Really. Here she is showing a Red fish (the big one) and two black specks or also known as speckled trout. Of course, she had to mention to make sure to tell my boys that normally she catches trout the size of the Red. Yeah, yeah, another fish story? These fish were caught in the Corpus Christi Bay, my home town. Behind her is a shrimp boat where you can buy fresh shrimp right off the boat!!!!

When I told her I was posting this in my blog, her fish tales went on and on. She wished that there was not a shadow from the cap on her face because she thought it made her nose look bigger. I didn't even paint the shadow in. On the first version, I did, but, it covered most of her face, which I ended up overworking. As you can see from the shadows of the fish that the sun is nearly directly overhead. The shadow from her cap went across her face at the tip of the nose so I left it out in this painting.

Now my aunt is looking for more photos of her catches and that are more flattering of her. I guess that means it's not that bad if the subject is looking for more photos of their self for me to paint.

Have a great weekend and thanks for visiting!

A Mess of Curls

I decided to participate in James Parker's February challenge since I had good luck with it before. I was attempting to do this painting in 30 minutes so that I could get a loose effect. The top painting is the first attempt that I ended up overworking the eyes. I tried a second time. The two bottom pictures are the same painting. Although I overworked the eyes on the top, I love the hair, the overall style and feel, the colors and the depth in the girl's face. Maybe I can fix the eyes later. I think I can lift out some. The second painting is probably not complete, but, I don't like how her face is looking older than what she is. So on the advice of some of my so sweet artist followers, I am done with this one and ready to move on. Thank you to my artist friends on blogger who were full of good advice and encouragement. I have already started another painting, one of a Nice Beach. A little more complicated than 40 min. But, I have wanted to paint it for a long time.

If you would like to see the other entries or the original photo in James Parker's monthly challenge, visit Windows to the Words ART.

Thanks for visiting.

Discovering what I like about watercolor

At top are the guitar players that I have been working on / avoiding for so long. I have had a lot of questions for myself on this painting. Why do I want to paint it? Why is it taking me so long? Why can't I do it? Why am I having so much trouble with it? What do I do next? Normally when I paint flowers, landscapes, structures, it is a fun and short process. I don't always get a painting that sings to me, but, I never have the kind of trouble I am having on this painting. The reason why I first wanted to paint this is because I saw the photo and really liked the expressions and the body language of the band players. They are in an elevator, so the photo isn't a perfect photo, in my opinion. I truly believe that some photos are meant to be photos only and not painted. I am having trouble with this painting because I know one of the guitar players. I have been told it is much more difficult to paint someone you know vs. someone that you don't. So I have worked all around the painting avoiding the person's face that I know. Thanks to an artist friend, she encouraged me to go in with a dark background. I promise the day I did the background, it was really dark, although now it seems a midtone. I will go back with more washes. So now, I have time invested in this painting and I don't want to mess it up by ruining the faces. So I am avoiding them. Chicken!

What I have at least learned is that the way I like to experience watercolor is wet and loose. I find that painting on large paper allows for me to go wet into wet with colors side by side blending into each other to make a new color. I like clear, vibrant colors and I love high contrast - white as the white of the paper next to very dark.

I may not have achieved that in this painting, but, I have several ideas dancing in my hand where I can experience watercolor in this way. The subject matter is flowers, something that I am comfortable painting and that I love to paint because of the curves, turns and interesting shadows. But, I want to learn how to apply this technique to subject matters that I want to paint. My Friday painting group is not meeting right now and I am not taking any class or workshops so I feel as if I am in a rut, unless I paint, paint, paint and learn by trial and error. Also, I have been spending a lot of time looking at other artist's blogs. I have recently found several watercolor artists that I am so inspired by. Feel free to check out the artists that I follow on blogger.

On a happy note, everyone, look at our beautiful snow. We are actually snowed in today. This is so unusual for Dallas. I know in other parts of the country this would be nothing, but, for us this is a fabulous winter wonderland. If you go outside you hear this amazing sound of the snow melting and dropping from the trees. It is a peaceful whishing sound.

Thanks for visiting!

Flying Low in Santa Fe

My husband and I went to Santa Fe this past October. One of the highlights was the Georiga O'Keefe Museum. I loved seeing so much of her work together and hearing about her life. We spent our time going from one gallery to another. The main highlight for me was going hot air ballooning! Unfortunately, this is an early morning activity. It is necessary to go in the morning before the sun starts affecting the earth's surface so that you have a smooth ride vs. experiencing a lot of turbulence. Flying low is because, we did contour ballooning which is flying low to the earth right along the contours of the hills. If you ever go ballooning, ask if they are contour flying otherwise, you just go straight up, maintain one altitude, then straight down. On our ride we went up and down, felt the ever so slight wind changes, touched ground a couple of times and glided right beside these gorgeous vertical ridges.

It is absolutely amazing when you lift up off the ground and right before your eyes the ground is shrinking away and you see a very fast changing perspective. It is so peaceful and like floating. It was almost like time stopped only because it was the quietest quiet I have ever experienced. I wanted to stay up there all day. To be gliding smoothly and quietly over the earth so close to see wild rabbits.

When it was time to land, the wind and changes in air pressure had already been affected by the sun. Our speed was high, it was pretty bumpy skimming the ground for so long and the balloon wanted to keep going although the land crew had hold of our basket. With this balloon company they always end every ride with a champagne toast to remember the first balloon ride in France. When the first balloon landed on some farm land in the country, the farmers were so frightened and wanting to protect themselves. The pilots proved that they were harmless and flying the king's balloon by sharing a bottle of the king's champagne with the farmers.

The painting, Santa Fe House is probably one of the most photographed houses in Santa Fe. I thought I had found some little gem. Painting the adobe structures is very similar to painting the Mykonos structures. Very thick walls that you can catch the light on or some creative color play in shading. I used several very soft, pale washes on the adobe. I enjoyed seeing all of the light blues, lavenders, oranges and reds in the wood shutter to the side of the door. The wood door had some of these colors, but, the shutter for some reason had so many more. As you can see, I found several colors including blue and lavender in the adobe.

11x14 original watercolor, sold.

Mykonos Revisited

This was a villa down below where we were staying. The sun has already passed over the house and it is about 3:00 or 4:00 in the afternoon. I love Mykonos' white and blue architecture. All over the island are structures made of thick white walls with bright blue doors and shutters. These structures are great to paint/draw because they are simple, yet, have so many different surfaces and the thickness of the wall gives an opportunity to play with light and shade. The white is really bright with the sun shining on it. I have only been twice, once in March and once in April. Both times just a tad too cold to thoroughly enjoy the beach. The water is the most amazing clear blue. Despite how cold it was, I still went swimming. It was not nearly as cold as a lake in Red River, New Mexico. That water was clear green, reflecting the trees.

11x14 original watercolor

Architectural Journey

Here is a commission I just finished. For the locals, do you know which house this is? As you know, I love the architectural detail in old homes. This house was built in the 1920's, but, has been renovated recently. The architectural detail inside and out is amazing. Because of the trees and landscaping, it was difficult to get a photo. Also, I had to be discreet when taking the photos because my client was going to give it to her husband for his birthday. The first time I went to take photos, the husband came out to walk the dog so I had to sneak away. I went back on another day when I knew he would be gone and took several photos. I finally got a photo from an unexpected viewpoint which was perfect. I love how the trees in the foreground frame the entry with the trees that are in the center of the yard. This is the 4th house on this street that I have had the privilege of painting.

11x14 original watercolor by Liana Yarckin

I found these cards from a Christmas past. Years ago, before I had children, I would paint individual Christmas cards. That was when I had all of the time in the world to meticulously tape off 50 plus cards and paint one for everyone on my list. It was a relaxing and rewarding time preparing the cards. Sometimes I would paint snow scenes, Christmas trees, holly branches, every year a different theme. The above are cards from the Christmas that I had just found out I was pregnant with my first child. I don't remember exactly how I got the image for the above cards. I always loved Michelanglo's Pieta. My mom even had a small replica in her room. I remember that was my inspiration. As always, I wanted to use lots of vibrant colors. Also, another favorite technique, wet into wet. With the above 3, you can see how the results are different as the paper was freshly wet compared to starting to dry. I would line my cards up and do several at a time. I tried different colors in different areas, as well as different techniques. It was always fun to see the results. For the first few years after children I would send a watercolor card along with a photo card. When I stopped doing that, a friend called and asked if she was off of the "A" list because she didn't get a watercolor card. I told her that I didn't do them that year. She told me that she always looked forward to getting her original little painting every year.

Snowy Days

A tribute to our white Christmas in Dallas. It never snows here, so the excitement of a snowy Christmas Eve and then yards and houses covered in white snow on Christmas morning made me feel like Santa came! Some even made snowmen. Because of the holidays and also my latest project the guitar players, I have no new paintings. So I found these two to post just to say hello to you. The one on top was done years ago in Naomi Brotherton's class. She is known for her night paintings, so here I have not only a night painting, but, a snowy night painting. The second painting is not complete. I am working on a couple of house paintings, plus doing a lot of research on trying to find out what to do next with my guitar players. I found an artist that is highly regarded for his fantastic portraits. I love his work, and it is close to what I am imagining for the guitar players - just capturing the essence of their expressions, but, I am shocked that his work seems to be unfinished and sketchy, yet he is regarded as highly accomplished. Don't get me wrong, I do love his work. In the meantime, I found a book in all places, at my mom's house on our Christmas visit. This book posed the challenge for an artist to go beyond painting what you see. Create tension and vibrancy by purposefully selecting the appropriate colors. Right now all of the ideas are jumping around in my head and I have to either wait for them to calm down or just experiment to move on.

I will posts the name of the book next time (it is in the car right now). Hopefully, I will have something new to post for you soon!

Happy New Year!

English Tea

Guitar Player

English Tea

The above painting is a still life I did in a class. Up until this point I have never liked doing still lifes. I didn't want a still life to look at. They are so boring or odd. A bunch of random objects, usually from the kitchen. What is the point. But, from this still life I learned that the finish product is not really the point. By doing a still life, one gets to experiment with the medium of their choice. An artist can chose to try to be realistic or take the painting down a different path with different techniques. Also, not to mention, still lifes can greatly improve one's drawing skills. Still lifes are a good way to practice and experiment with simplifying shapes, learning about color, finding patterns, understanding positive/negative space, the way the light falls on an object, relationship between objects and the list goes on. I don't know why I like this still life. It does not sing to me, but, something about it keeps pulling me back to look at it. It is clearly not my typical color palette, maybe that is why there is no song. Something about it is working though and I am happy about that.

Guitar Player
I told you about the guitar player I was working on. This is as far as I have gotten. I started it long ago, but, am chicken to continue. I don't want to mess it up. When I am working on a painting, I am always visualizing it in my mind constantly. Whether I am driving, cleaning the kitchen, watching T.V., I sort of daydream and imagine the finish piece and then when I go to paint, I know what to do. Most of the time it is so easy for me to see the finish product. On this painting I cannot see what I want for the final product to be. I can kind of imagine it, but, it is cloudy. It is so weird, like having a dream that you can barely remember. So I keep thinking of it and waiting for the image to appear in my mind. I am so happy with what I have so far, can you believe that with the way it looks? I want to keep the sketchiness and just the essence of the gestures.

All comments welcome! Thanks for stopping by and Happy Thanksgiving!

Girl on Beach

Here is the watercolor from the ink study posted down below. The photo was taken in Nice. The girl is a young Italian girl watching her brother play. I simplified the photo, taking out all of the people, beach umbrellas, the city in the hills and focused only on the girl and her dress. I loved the way her dress was blowing in the wind and how it seemed that she had absolutely nothing to do but, take small wandering steps and twiddle her thumbs.

I have good news in regards to the two art shows I posted. Both were a success. The Grape Escape raises money for Heart House, an organization that provides after school care and activities for children. Art works by several artists were displayed and for sale with 50% or the proceeds going to Heart House. The most touching detail of the event was all of the "postcards" made by the children. Each postcard was decorated by a child with a message from them and their photo. To read the messages was both sweet and heartbreaking. Of course, I immediately took out my checkbook. I am so happy that my Aspens painting sold as well and that half of the proceeds will go to Heart House.

Then Friday night was the Annual Preview Party for CityArtCal. Great party with lots of great art by local artists. A guest found Sunbathing Poppies for a Christmas present. It sung to her and she said that when she saw it she immediately thought of her daughter. There were a couple of bidding wars going on with some of the artworks. My husband luckily won the bid on a painting that sung to him. Would you believe, aspens, but in a completely different style than what I paint.

Have a fabulous week. All comments welcome!

CityArtCal Party

Friday, November 6

1544 Slocum, Dallas

6-9pm

Great Art by local artists

Cocktails, Hors d'oeuvres, Live Music, Silent Auction