It's Showtime: September 2021

Sunday, September 26, 2021

Almost done. Maybe make the legs thicker, the eyes a little more defined and just a hint of green on her exoskeleton. I'm pretty happy with her.

Saturday, September 25, 2021

Sara’s pics

Here’s the first version

Here’s the revised version. Definitely puts the focus on her instead of everything else. I’m going to try a bigger version when I return.

Obligatory tree thru the window painting. This deserves another shot too.

The inspiration was her official city portrait distributed with the utility bill notice, which looks fresh as if she just won the election & full of promise for the city. I noticed that her eyebrows defined her features unlike recent photo ops in newsprint where she always look busy & the eyebrows are missing. I felt I've got her likeness with the twinkle in her eyes & the challenging experiences of handling the city budget, police misconduct, aldermanic issues, crime, pandemic, are now reflected on the brand new lines & shadows of her face! May she have happier days in her administration!

Elaine O. — September 25, 2021

Finished! I know this looks like a candy box, but it fulfills my intent. I wanted to show my nostalgic feelings for this neighborhood school (before it closed and was taken over by a charter school). Much has changed, both physically and in terms of the entire culture and vibe. I'm actually considering doing a "before-and-after"...but I may just be inspired by Elaine T.'s monster painting. We'll see!

11" x 14"

elaine t / Sept. 25

Finished! It's feels like a Little Golden Books version of Frankenstein!

Sunday, September 19, 2021

elaine t / sept 19

I am so happy with the transparent, watery feeling I was able to maintain in this jellyfish!

To finish out the class time, I started something seasonal, from the original Frankenstein movie. Perhaps it should be titled "How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria?"

Sara’s pics

Well I hit the button and made them large but they don’t look any larger….Anyways I worked on this girl quite a bit today and would call her done, altho the composition looks a little busy - it doesn’t hold together the way I wanted it to.but the morning glories come together nicely…

End of summer for Alan

When you paint on Yupo you need something else to do while you wait for the paint to dry. This is a covered bridge in Michigan that I’m working on in my sketchbook. I’ll work on the negative spaces before I finish.

I found this shot of a drop of water and thought it would look good on Yupo. I still think it would but this isn’t it. I did like the background and the top of the splash but I lost the middle. I’ll keep working on this but I think that I need to start over.

I finished my Cosmo At The Lake portrait. I really like it but when I took the picture the light reflected off the fixative and placed the sun behind my head. I’ll retake the picture but I kind of liked it.

The ants go marching four by four

Now they have a tablecloth. or at any rate a compositional element

And for those who thought the earlier ants got overwhelmed by the table cloth here is one big lone ant.

Saturday, September 18, 2021

Elaine O. — September 18, 2021

I've begun this painting of a jewel of a neighborhood school that has since been taken over by a charter school... and the change is not for the better. This may be a bit of nostalgia...or it may be the start of a whole new series, Before They Were Gone. At any rate, I've got a ways to go, so I'll keep painting while humming "Don't it always seem to go that you don't know what you've got till it's gone..."

11" x 14"

Sunday, September 12, 2021

Alan on Alan

I still love the composition of the Cosmo at the lake. I’m still working on certain little things but I’m basically done. Watercolor on 140 lbs Arches cold press.

Back to Yupo. Love the way it moves.

I painted this lily on cold press but the colors on Yupo are so vibrant. The glow is good.

I deepened the colors for this guy and I like the painting better.

There were things I loved about the cold press version but I’m curious about the Yupo version. I’ll keep working on it but I’m liking the brightness. I almost feel like I should quit now so that I don’t screw it up……but I won’t

Sara’s stuff

A forest of birch trees and two guys….so great to see everyone and their Art in the flesh, so to speak….

The ants go marching three by three

This is the beginning of what I am thinking of as a picnic tablecloth, though basically it is just a compositional element. Some of the class feared that this might obscure the ants, but I think it may even enhance them. There is no way to find out without forging forward.

Saturday, September 11, 2021

Elaine O. — September 11, 2021

I have to admit that I was a little nervous about the first day of in-person school. But it was great to be back...in fact, it was like we never left. I couldn't decide on my next project/series, so I decided to grab a magazine cover and do a quick portrait. Here it is. While he's recognizable (I think), I've made him a little chubby, and for that I apologize. Lesson of the day? Measure before rushing in with the paint!

12" x 9"

We're back...and we welcome Beth and Christian!

It was great to be back today and see all the old familiar faces...okay half of the old familiar faces, since we all wore our masks. We'll continue to post individually so you can experience the artist and the art without a filter. Meanwhile, we have two new members we'd like to introduce you to. First is returning artist Beth. You may remember her from back in 2017-18 or so. She's been keeping busy with some plein air sketching.

And today, she began this view from her front porch. We love her loose, painterly style and are glad her new job frees up her Saturday mornings again.

We're also glad to welcome Christian. As you can see, he's no rank beginner! Here, for instance, are his color wheel and experiments with value ranges.

From there, he launched right into some "extra credit" work with this landscape. See what we mean about prior experience? His gradient sky and color blending around the sun are quite advanced.

And this beginning of a floral is a testament to his graphic sensibilities and love for complementary colors.

Welcome, Beth and Christian! You're in the right place!

Monday, September 6, 2021

The ants go marching two by two

The blue spikes are meant to represent vaguely petals around those yellow headed flowers.

Saturday, September 4, 2021

elaine t / Sept 4

I'm really looking forward to in-person classes next week!

I finished the pond. It does give me the peaceful feeling of being there

I started on a deep sea anglerfish. More darkness will go into the background, and probably a cyan highlight around the body. I may do some lifting on thr body to bring out the 3D feel. It's OK, but not quite the menace I'd like it to convey. I think a redo is in order. My son suggested I try doing it in Joan Cho's technique, which is to do a simple waterproof ink drawing, saturate sections of the paper with water, then touch a charged brush to the water and see what happens.