WIP - Learning to paint orchids

 I know little about orchids and I have to admit that they are usually not my favorite flower - I actually find that some look a little bit scary:-). However, if possible, I would like to enter a few orchid paintings in the Ottawa Orchid show in late April. This is my first try: don't ask me why I chose such a complex reference instead of just one macro flower!!!The reference is by Pampe on Wetcanvas...Thank you Pampe!

This watercolor is about 11' X 14" and instead of Arches CP paper , I am once again trying the Fabriano 140 SP...so far I like it: it is very white, it has been accepting a lot of abuse ( removal of masking, some lifting).

The gold petals will have some rusty color and two of the flowers will have some red in the centre...The composition is in arc-shaped., which I though would add nice movement to the piece. However, there are so many blades of grass and leaves at the bottom...I am not sure if this piece will turn out ok....

Mascarone 2 and plans

I posted a Venetian mascarone ( carved stone head on  a keystone) a few weeks ago. It was a very quick sketch and I wanted to paint another one. Below is a 8"X 10" watercolor of the same mascarone, but from a different reference photo.. I took this one from a different angle and on a sunnier day. This painting started much larger, but I got tired of all those perspective lines and decided to keep only the focus on the mascarone itself. As a result the mascarone is too much in the center of the page...but that will have to do:-)

I think what attracted me to this reference photo was the little pigeon that I discovered as I looked at the photo more carefully...

I now really want to return to my florals...I would like to paint some orchids: I don't especially like these flowers usually, but I would like to submit a painting to the artist section of a large Orchid Show in Ottawa in April. I have not painted regularly in the past few weeks and when this happens I always have a hard time  starting something new: insecurity? an equivalence of stage fright? painters' block? Do you sometime feel this way?

I'm back,...Abraham Lincoln's Posterized Portrait.

I have not posted for almost two weeks because I was moving my mother into a retirement home and had to take care of all the "stuff" she has accumulated in her 92 years! She is now settled into a very nice retirement home, has a nice room, likes the meals and the activities and is making friends. Although I still have a few more trips to move furniture, my life should start to get back to normal.
Last night, I started a posterized portrait of Abraham Lincoln as part of the DWP weekly challenge.

Part of the challenge was to paint this portrait using only 3 colors to achieve shades of gray. I decided to use only one color, ultramarine ( although I did add a touch of black for the eyes:-) and to use an almost pop art approach - posterization, where the image is created by a number of different values, without any concern about color or smooth transitions.  This time, I did not use the pouring method as in last month's posterized portrait I did all in green ( see Feb 9th posting). The result is a monochrome posterized portrait that was a lot of fun to do! Do check all the entries in this challenge.

I am also completing another "Mascarone" ( carved stone head over an archway) that I will post tomorrow at the latest.
I hope that you have all been well!

Having fun: something different...and Red Bubble update:-)

I seem to have to play between labor-intensive paintings. Last night, instead of tackling a new floral or a Venice cityscape ( not sure which will be next), I painted a small, quick painting from one of my Venice reference photographs: a Venetian Mascarone.

What is a mascarone, will most of you ask.

Also known as decorative keystones, nmascaroni are stone carvings that lie in the middle of the stones that together form an archway, holding them together and completing the strong structure over arched doorways, windows and bridges. Often, especially in the case of Venice‟s keystones, these important puzzle pieces play a decorative role. Over 300 of these mascaroni were catalogued a few years ago in Venice. I must have photographed a dozen or so...this probably means that I will have to return to Venice to photograph the remain 290 or so:-) Those that I photographed are carved heads...there is one in my painting "Venetian Guardian".

This little watercolor  is only 5" X 7"; it has a touch of metallic fluid acrylic on the inscription on the archway. The inscription is not entirely visible on the photograph. It is something like "Dominus custodiat", or "May the Lord ( or master of the house) protect  (you). I rarely paint paintings quickly like this - it was fun. Can you make out the face enough?

Now, what would be a post without a Red Bubble update? Do I hear a collective groan :-)
My recent Dahlia has just been featured in the Painted Nature's group.

 (Added Feb 24) It was also selected a one of the  Best in Show ( Feb 21-24)in Painters Universe:

And, my Springtime in Venice,, that you may not remember from over a year ago, placed in the top ten of a challenge on Spring in "The Painters Universe"group.

Have a great evening!

Dahlia Completed...and Red Bubble of course:-)

I have finished my dahlia for now. I will probably go back and softened edges etc before matting it. I really like some petals, other petals did not come out quite the way I wanted. However, I am pleased since whenever we paint we learn! What do you think of it?

Dahlia Beauty

As mentioned in a previous post, I would like to try a Fabriano soft pressed paper for a floral. Lately, I am having problems (fuzzy paper)  with the Arches 140 lb CP where I have used masking fluid. Is it the masking or the paper? 

I have been very spoiled on Red Bubble lately. Since my last post two days ago, I have had two more features: 

1. Garden Kaleidoscope  ( my recent clematis) was featured in Just Watercolors:

2. Forever Friends was featured in the Fine Arts Group:

And now, what to paint next? 

Have a great weekend everyone!

Dahlia WIP Part 3, ARTALEE feature...and Red Bubble update anyone?

I worked on the dahlia this afternoon. I like it, but would now change a few things if I redid it: I think that I would leave a lot more white on the light petals...I find that they end up looking gray with that yellow, pink and blue. I should perhaps have just put in a touch of blue...It would have been a lot simpler. What do you think?

I may also go back to experimenting with the Fabriano soft press paper: I do a lot of lifting with these florals ( with Q tips mostly while the paint is still wet) and I seem to remember that lifting was much easier on that soft press. When I played with this paper last year, I had noted that it would probably be a good choice for florals. It is also much cheaper than Arches in my area. So...I am putting this paper on my list for my next shopping expedition at my art supplies store.

I finally took the time today to add a new feature on ARTALEE: the wonderful poured watercolors of Leslie Redhead. Please have a look at her beautiful work.

And, yes, my lucky streak is still going strong apparently with Red Bubble, since I received a feature today for one of my doors, Venetian Doorway  in the group Windows and Doors; this painting had been submitted to that group more than a year ago and they have now discovered it:-) Thank you again, Red Bubble!

Have a great evening and I hope that you will all have time to paint or look at some great art tomorrow!

Dahlia WIP part 2 and more Red Bubble news

I worked a bit more on my Dahlia. Here is part 2 of this WIP:

The heart of the flower will have some reds and rusty-gold. The other petals should be mostly white, but how can one resist adding color:-)

I was hoping to make a lot more progress on this painting yesterday and today, but somehow time just flies and there is always something to do: today, it was grocery shopping, getting new passport pictures, cooking, cleaning. How did I manage before I retired in December??? How do you balance your painting and your other responsibilities?

 You may be getting tired of hearing about Red Bubble, but I really want to post this little bit of news: my  Cherries and Lace below won the Still Life Challenge in the Fine Arts group - it had to be a still life with some red.  Please have a look at the other entries - some are simply fabulous, so I was quite surprised to read that my painting had placed first. No big prize, just "fame and glory" they said:-)

Cherries and Lace

Have a nice evening!

New WIP and another double feature on Red Bubble

Happy Valentine's Days everyone! I am celebrating by doing something for myself- I have spent the morning painting:-)
I finally seem to be getting out of my "procrastination" phase and putting brush to paper again with the aim of producing a painting and not just to playing. Here is the first stage of my new WIP: a dahlia that I photographed in Maine in late September last year. It's not the best reference, that at least it's my own and reminds me of a nice relaxing week near the ocean. At this point, I have put in a dark background and have painted the leaves; the leaves have a prominent role in this painting and this gives me the practice that I certainly need with painting leaves or anything green:-) I have also put in the local color of a few petals. This should be a fairly quick painting; it's small at about 8' X 11" to fit a 11" X 14" frame if it turns out ok.  I won't be trying to create  a "Wow" painting- I just want to have fun painting and getting back into a routine.

My Venetian painting are getting a lot of attention on Red Bubble these days. I have received another double feature for my Venetian Guardian! In the Painters Universe group and in the 100-500 views group.

Happy Valentine's Day!

A Double Feature in Red Bubble!

Wow! I think I should really go back to my "Memories in Venice" series. Two of my Venetian door paintings  from that series have just been featured in the group Time Gates on Red Bubble. The first painting is Venetian Guardian that I added just yesterday to my International Artists Gallery:

The second feature is of  Venetian Doorway, one of my favorite paintings, that is now sold and in a good home:-)  For both of these paintings, I used my own photos as reference. 

After my week of playing, I now have three paintings started: a second attempt at that posterized portrait, a small floral and a challenging  Venice scene. For two of these, I am trying out the Canson artboard with Arches watercolor paper...I will post what does not end up in the bin:-)

Ten days of playing:...not much to show for it:-(

I apologize for my absence from my blog in the past week or so. I have been busy with family matters ( preparing my mother's move to a retirement home in March) and simply playing with my paints. I really did not produce anything worth posting...I still don't, but will post one picture anyway:-): I combined an experiment with 300 lb paper with a poured study for a monochrome "posterized portrait" of one of my nieces. Unfortunately, in the process, I lost her nose, ruined her eyes and blackened a few of her teeth:-)

I will redo this posterized portrait, but will probably paint it instead of pouring it. What did I learn with this experiment:
- the 300 lb CP Arches paper is certainly sturdier for pouring
-but, I found that I required a more concentrated paint solution to get the values I have gotten with the 140 lb
-the masking (W&N) removed a lot of the color with it - I have not had such a problem in the past - was it the paper or the masking fluid???
- I started with a good sketch, but I ended up with a portrait with little resemblance to my niece: what happened? I know that I had made a masking error with the eyes, but thought I had fixed it:-(

Conclusion:  I have had success in the past with pouring with several colors on a 140lb CP paper. Pouring really blends the colors beautifully....However, there seems to be more disadvantages than advantages in pouring a "monochrome" painting.  Consequently, I intend to re-use my sketch eventually and paint ( not pour) this portrait. ...I hope that my niece will not check my blog and see this picture:-)

What else did  I play with during the week?
- adding fluid acrylic to a watercolor, adding  acrylic gloss medium to it to see the effect, looking at my hundreds of favorite photos in search of inspiration.

Tomorrow, I will get back to more serious painting!!!

I have to add that Red Bubble has honored me with another feature for my Garden Kaleidoscope ( Purple Clematis). Thank you, Red Bubble, You are good for my morale:-)

A Red Bubble feature for my Clematis

Red Bubble had a nice surprise for me this morning with this feature for my Clematis, Garden Kaleidoscope, that I have recently finished  Thank you, Red Bubble!
I have not started a new painting yet, but have been looking through and playing with my pictures. I think I need playing/experimenting time before I tackle another labor intensive painting:-)
Happy Sunday to all!

Thank you for your patience: Clematis finally finished!!!

The Clematis painting is finally finished!!! I almost tore it up ten times before it got done. But, I like it!

I want to thank you all for your great patience and encouragement during this painting which gave me tons of worries:-)

I even  framed it  ( temporarily) even though I will still go back to it in the next few days for the finishing touches. Framed it looks very much the way I saw it in my head. The only part that is totally different is the top dark portion in the middle - that was supposed to be a green leaf....but it looked horrible, so I glazed all kinds of layers of purple on top.

And now, I promise that my next painting will be a nice, easy one:-)

Clematis Update - Wip Part 5

Since have not had a chance to be at home very much during daylight hours in the past two days and I hate painting at night, I have not yet finished this Clematis. It is slow going...not sure if it is worth all this effort:-( It is not turning out the way I had seen it in my mind.

The picture was taken inside, near a window, on this very, very gray afternoon...so the colors are undoubtedly a bit off.

 As always, I love to hear your comments. Positive or negative, they keep me going!

Clematis WIP 4 and Red Bubble Feature

Here is the 4th update of my clematis watercolor. It is coming along slowly, especially since I did not have a chance to paint at all yesterday.  I have touched up the center of the flower and have put in darks at the bottom of the center. (The picture was taken inside.) So far so good, I think. Do you agree?

I was quite pleased to learn that my Pink Peony had won a feature on Red Bubble in the group "Peony Perfection" which focuses more on photography than painting.

I hope that you are nice and warm...here in Ottawa it was -25 Celsius (minus 13 F) this morning and it will be -32Celsius overnight ( minus 26 F.). Brr...that's a bit chilly :-)

Clematis Update- WIP Part 3

I have worked some more on my Clematis. This picture was taken inside, but have adjusted the picture at least on my monitor.
About 2/3 of the colorful petals are done - the rest will be mostly mauves and purples with highlights. I will put some dark green in the upper right background. Opera would be the best color for some of the pinks, but I don't trust it since it is such a fugitive color.
 
Somehow, I feel very tentative about this painting...What do you think of it so far?

Clematis update WIP - Part 2

Here is what I have done so far on the clematis.I am not finding it an easy painting so far. I am having trouble getting the color effects I am after.

I took this picture inside near one of my windows ( reason for the shadows) - it is very sunny here in Ottawa today, but we are freezing - it was -25Celsius this morning ( minus 13 degrees F.) and it is now about minus 17 C. Brr.....Can you believe that the forecast for tomorrow is rain!

Still lots and lots of work.I won't be getting much more done today since I have to drive my daughter to the airport this afternoon: she was home for part of the weekend since her office in NYC is closed today for a holiday.

New work started - Clematis WIP Part 1

I have started a new watercolor floral: a clematis. My reference photo is from WetCanvas, but I have cropped it and intend to modify the colors significantly.  It will be fairly small, 11" X 14" on Arches 140 lb CP paper.

I have started with the heart of the flower and not the background as I usually do: I was really scared of those filaments criss-crossing and did not want to waste my time painting the entire painting first to find out that the center was a failure. At this point, the heart of the flower is almost done - will come back later to fine tune everything - I think that it is ok enough for me to continue with the painting. I hope that you agree.

The darks spots that you see are areas masked to preserve some highlights.

Have  a great week-end. We are having our first real  snow storm of the  year - it is very pretty, but the roads look very slippery.

Red Bubble Feature, final version and thank you!

Wow! The Red Bubble people are so supportive. Within minutes of posting my latest version of my Fuschias ( Garden Ballerinas), my painting was featured in one of the most respected groups of Red Bubble: Just Watercolours

Here is the final version of this painting: I followed your suggestion and toned down some of the highlights in order to focus more on the left bud.  I also darkened the two horizontal stems that distracted me and painted them dark reddish brown, as suggested by Rhonda.

Thank you all for your fresh eyes, support and friendship!

Fuschias -Completed for now

I have completed my Fuschias painting at least for the time being. As I am looking at the photo that I have taken, I see the need for some adjustments: for example, the horizontal stems at the center top portion are too light and are distracting.

What do I like about this painting or what did I enjoy about the process:
- I like the addition of the colors in the leaves.
-I really enjoyed working one petal at a time
-I enjoyed applying glazes on the petals - I am becoming more comfortable doing this.

What do I still find difficult:
- leaves and greens are not my strength

What do I want to work on:
- putting in a very dark and solid background is probably the easy way out
. I want to work on dark backgrounds that show more of a glow around the main subject

Remaining questions:
- is this painting too busy?
- are the highlights too distracting?
- are the colors clean enough especially in the large leaves? Should I have tried to apply more sections in one dark brushstroke rather than with so much layering?

I am looking forward to reading your thoughts about this.
I will eventually post for purchase it in my Artist International Gallery

First 2011 Post and Update 3 Fuschia WIP

Amazing...we are already getting used to saying "2011" instead of 2010, but Y2K seems almost like yesterday. How time goes by quickly!  Another good reason to plan our activities for the new year...if we don't know where we want to be in 12 months, how could we ever get there? In the next week or so, I will sit down and set my goals and priorities for the coming months.

I already have two resolutions concerning my artistic activities:

1. regain the risk-taking attitude I had when I first started to paint in watercolors.

Rhonda and Mollie commented on my last post and suggested that I use more colors. This made me realize that lately my work has not shown the bold use of colors that could often be found in my early works...Have I become too cautious and am not taking enough risks with color? After all, it's only paper and each painting should be a chance to push our own limits a bit more...
2. learn something totally new.

I have signed up for an online class called "Texture Town" which deals with creating textures in acrylics. I have  purchased some of the supplies and have watched most of the videos, but I have not yet started any of the exercises. I intend to start in about two weeks and hopefully I will have something to show on my blog soon after.

Meanwhile, I have worked some more on my Fuschia WIP and, as per resolution # 1, have added more colors especially in the leaves area - mostly violets and some blues as well as almost invisible hints of pink ( yes, I am still being careful). Does this improve the painting? I am not sure at all...is it now too busy? I think that up close it is more interesting....what do you think?

Please note that there are still some unpainted areas at the top. The next WIP should show the finished painting.