experimental primary

these are getting to be a daily joy. spontaneous, dynamic. feels like aaahhh. pic probs, will try later.
imageshack link to the painting

and there it is. oil on yupo, 8x6"

experimental, ublue bsienna

more fun with tools. oil on yupo, 6x8"
m-u-s-t c-r-e-a-t-e m-o-r-e

experimental, pink

an experimental piece, fun on mon-day! oils on yupo, used a pastel tool to achieve the marbling. don't know if i will be able to repeat this ... the photo is a closeup, the full piece is 6x8"

beer bottle

unsatisfied with this, but must get on with life today. oil on yupo, 8x6"

me the overpainting 2

Some adjustments, the paint will be tacking up now, will have to wait for final session. This canvas had a good oil paint layer on it and the paint behaves differently on this surface, really seems to take advantage of it's oiliness. Some of the light bits, like along the right face, are glare.

me the overpainting 1

overpainting, feeling my way thru this. will need more work. have been watching Johnnie Lilidahl on the artist channel doing portraits, and it has helped me with this one.

me the underpainting

beginning a self portrait. oil on stretched linen, 14x11"

bright eyes

update to the bright eyes baby.
the photo is from wetcanvas.com

busy time

this was a busy work week, and an attempt to 'improve' my website resulted in 'toast', so had to spend hours fixing it. also added an artbyus.com link over on the right, because, ta da! i have joined the online auction artists. artbyus is a friendly site run by artists, prices are reasonable and the bidding is easy. not like that cutthroat last seconds software bidding stuff i have seen elsewhere.
I did tweak 'shauna' a little and posted the new picture to the previous post, 'bright eyes' needs a little more work b4 i post an update.

beautiful baby

a bright-eyed little cutie, don't have the name. unfinished. 9x12 graphite

leaves 06

strengthened some shadows. 20x16" oil on pintura canvas panel.

shauna

update with a few tweaks
update with the photo

a darling little girl named Shauna from wetcanvas ref image library. graphite, 12x9"

the real kurt

a friend asked me to post kurt's picture to see the likeness.
i think it is done, and finally, a pretty good likeness. graphite in the 12x9" sketchbook.

leaves, too

changed the concept, i am happier with this, tho it is unfinished. 20x16" oil on pintura canvas panel.

leaves

umm, i seem to have forgotten how to paint. a rather large mess at 20"x16". not sure what i will do with this, scrape or let dry and paint over. thick paint.

kurt the most

my latest kurt drawing is the closest to a likeness i have been able to achieve. may leave it at this.

12x9" graphite

kurt again

another frame ... getting a likeness requires sometimes subtle changes, and i am not there yet. it is challenging in a good way. feeling a little obsessed with drawing! graphite in the big sketchbook, 12x9"

kurt drawing

i have been wanting to do a painting of my brother, kurt, who died of leukemia in 93. i have been gathering photos of him and here's a test drawing. 12x9", graphite
geez, he coulda been the 'brawny' guy!

actress, from the toob

the toob can be utilized to practice people sketching. a little modigliani-esque, but she does look human. about 6x4", graphite

more sketching with e watson

practice. in the 9x12" sketchbook

potted palm, 2

another attempt at those fronds, still not gettin it but i had fun trying!
graphite, 12x9" sketchbook

potted palm

a quick study, want to do this one again, as i did not achieve the pattern i had in mind. lost the lights, erasing just doesn't bring them back.
9x7" graphite

used ie today, it worked!

another lesson with e watson

love the leaning telephone pole in the ref photo, these old buildings made a good subject. graphite, about 7x10"
firefox browser again, now a different weird problem. i posted and published using firefox, but today's post is not showing when i view blog in firefox, but it shows up in internet explorer.

eye sketch, firefox test

it was suggested that the firefox browser is working better with bloggers image uploading tool, so thought i'd try it. the bloggermeisters are working on the problem.
graphite, about 4x5". from weekly sketch thread at wetcanvas.com
firefox worked perfectly!

its a floor wax and a drawing subject

well, ya gotta let the floor finish dry between coats! drawing is a delightful way to take a break, and healthier than a donut.
9x7" graphite

imageshack.us image host.

drawing lesson with ernest watson

no kudos for me here, simply a copy of a lesson in ernest watson's book, 'course in pencil sketching' a compilation of 4 of his books published between 1956 and1978. he is the 'watson' of 'watson-guptill publishing', or was, ernest died in 1969. i really admire his style, bold but not heavy handed.
about 5x9", strathmore sketchbook.

still having probs with bloggers image uploader, i decided to try imageshack.us for this photo and it appears to be working.

crabapple flowers

my interpretation of a photo at wetcanvas, from the 'weekend drawing event' aug 18. oil on linen, about 8x6".

sunflower monoprint

blogger has been weird about uploading images, took a lot of tries to get these pix to show up.
a day for monoprint experiments.
top image, final print. stonehenge paper
second, transferred image on yupo, not working very well.
third is the attempt on linen, another miss.
bottom is the painted marker board.
should mention i had to repaint between tries.
at first i used a piece of glass to paint on, which i have used b4, but it broke when i pressed down. so switched to marker board, which works ok, but you can't see what's happening. need a piece of clear acrylic. each about 8x10", oil paint.

late summer diptych

i spent several hours on an abstract yesterday, but ultimately wiped it off. today i stepped up to the canvases, mixed some paint colors and applied with brush and knife; the painting seemed to tell me what it wanted! it's satisfying to work this way, as a spontaneous co-creator. oil on two 20x10" stretched linen gallery wrap canvases.

detail, negative drawing lesson

from an advanced drawing lesson class at WetCanvas! about 8x4", graphite on printer paper.

sketchbook page

a sketch for a possible painting. 12x9", graphite.

perspective!

drawing perspective is a difficult subject; i am studying and practicing and by jove i think i'm finally getting it!

artist reception

going to an artist's reception today at my local library. a number of new paintings were hung last week in the community room by members of our local art assn. i contributed "Old Red, (retired)", made some new business cards, and intend to do a little pr and networking. should be interesting!

motherfly?

not sure whether this is a butterfly or moth on a hydrangea. striking markings tho, and a fun subject. not carried to a high degree of finish and i think this is where it will stay; i resist trying to create perfection.
9x12", graphite.

palm and doorway

from the small sketchbook, a study from life. graphite, 9x7"

dad and baby

graphite, in the larger sketchbook, 9x12" from a photo at wetcanvas.com

acorns

i've got the drawing bug! graphite, 8.5x11" on card stock.

mountain stream, study of john singer sargent

here's my (semi) final, did a little touch up after i took this photo. i found that the yellow was important to the feeling of being there. oil on linen, 8.5x11"

underpainting, mountain stream, jss copy

the first layer on my usual mid gray gesso coated linen. approx 8.5x11" looks messy but i think it will work.

sketch for copy of jss

i'm copying 'mountain stream, tyrol' by john singer sargent, a master of masters whose brushwork is superb. thought i would first sketch to familiarize myself with the way he's laid things out.
graphite in the 7x9" sketchbook

violets in graphite

graphite exploration, unfinished. i overblended, but its fun to do and i got carried away! about 9x7" on printer paper.

g3 #2

a new painting of my canon g3, to compare to the one i did last year, posted on 7-31. oil on linen 6x8"

another oldie

a small painting i did about a year ago, but never made it to the blog. oil on gessoed w/c paper, about 6x8". will do a new one for comparison.

sketches

undated sketches from sometime in the last year. graphite, printer paper.

cat, 3 views

sketchbook page.
graphite, 9x7"