Saturday, April 22, 2017

April 22, 2017

Happy Earth Day! And what better way to celebrate than to enjoy some corn paintings? Yes, we remembered to photograph Ken's paintings today! Here is the finished painting we promised you.


Having finished that, Ken continued in his series, combining corn and "the plan." Not to be confused with Pat's "plan," this involves doing something to the painting, then recording into a codified series of steps. He's done that below. Can you see the corn influence?


But Ken tired of the plan and decided to go back to the fresher feel of the original series. He's done a line drawing and zoomed in for a more closely cropped look at his last painting.....


... before doing a study of it. This is a small scale painting, preparatory to a larger, final painting.


And that's our theme for the day.... series and studies. Ellen paints another in her "Portraits of Mom and Dad" series. This time, they have a bright, sunny, 60's glow. This version has a distinct Peter Max vibe, but more complex and less linear.


Ellen continues with this version, which is cooler and more retro looking. Despite the more restrained palette (complementary blue and orange with a touch of red), it's still very vibrant and alive.


Elaine is also working on her series, "People I Don't Know." This portrait also uses a minimal palette (red, blue and yellow, plus a touch of gold). And yes, this is Captain Beefheart, but technically, Elaine doesn't know him personally so it counts!


If we are having a contest for who can use the fewest colors, Steve would be the winner! Here, he adds a second color. The vintage green is ground-up grey Hawaiian mud. And the skin is also ground up Hawaiian mud, but red. We love the look and feel of this and hope it turns into a series.


Bill finished his painting of Havana, Cuba. We can't say enough about the beauty of the buildings. And, of course, this is part of a series of vacation paintings. 


These Spanish rooftops are part of Bill's travel series. We love the colors, the perspective, and the unique vantage point.  Tune in next week to see the progress.


Madeleine is also painting a series of travel paintings. This is Quebec in winter. It feels sunny, but frosty, doesn't it? We particularly love the mountains, the shadows and the varied, but subtle shades of grey.


Part of the series, Madeleine paints a bird atop rocks in Spain. Quite a different feel, isn't it? The rocks are beautiful against the clear, flat sky. Again, come back to see the finished painting!


Sara is our Series Star. She regularly paints in series and often does multiple studies. Here is her second study of interior perspective. This time, she relies more on subtle color variations and less on sharp value changes. Look closely to see the lovely color gradations.


Here's a perfect series—daily painting. Sara has been doing daily sketch/paintings and this week's lot is unified even more by the use of yellow...


... from the forsythias....


...to the daffodils, perfectly set off against the blue glass vase. And look at the stems in the water in the vase! Beautifully observed.


Susan is also enamored of spring flowers. Here, she channels Van Gogh as she paints a view of her house, glimpsed through a neighbor's flower tree. Between the flowers and the sky color, this is the very essence of spring.


Tony has two series going this week. First, his cityscapes. He's captured the cool, grey feel of the sky and water in Finland. The bits of green stand out against the stone and draw our eye directly to the stone house.


And this is the beginning of a painting of Chicago, as seen from in front of the Art Institute. What was Tony doing there, you may ask?


Working on a new series... this time of drawings. Yes, Tony is taking a drawing class at the Art Institute. Here, he uses felt tips on this linear abstract.


Don't you love Tony's use of line to show depth?


And just to prove he's been there, Tony sketched this statue. We've all seen it and immediately recognized it.


Even Beth has done a series! Just by doing today's exercise, the three-way fruit, she has a series suitable for framing. If you don't remember, the exercise calls for her to paint the same subject three different ways.... very wet....


... very dry...


... and in a combination of wet and dry.


As lovely as each one is separately, don't they make a lovely triptych?


See you next week!

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