Still painting….

 These two are done I think. Quinnie has a few proportional issues, but overall I’m happy with it. The encircled food is done. I added a little detail to the shallot but otherwise, it’s painted. I go back and forth about inking the pencil lines but right now that’s a no….

Here’s another sketch I worked on last week. I’m trying to work out a balance between drawing and painting, but maybe it changes with each subject.

Alan Spring 5

 I don’t know what else to do with this. If I spray it with permanent fixative it’ll have the effect I want but I won’t be able to change it. I’ll consider all suggestions but may act on none.

This is a little more than a quick sketch on hot press. There’s some gouache in there as well as a little white pastel. 

Just a few of my watercolor works.

 

Uncle Ken goes non-representational

 Just sick and tired of the tyranny of the real world and going to the world of just paint.  Doing four of these on 9x12 paper because I am not yet ready for 18x24.

This is the first in the series, so far so good, I think.

This is the second one and I am not so sure about the river running through it.

This is the third and right now it is going downhill.  Too much paint in the lower right so that it is hard to get the contrast I like.

This is the fourth and was coming along just fine until those viridian flowers(?) burst out into space.

April 27, 2024 — Elaine O.

This week, we make progress, despite some missteps and catastrophes. 

Mon Déjeuner à Versailles Avec Dave    14"x 11"

I spent the week afraid to spoil the view out the window. So I did color matching studies, value studies and all kinds of procrastination things. Finally I began, only to see major paint seepage under the taped off window edges. And, of course, that green is one of the most staining colors around. I think I salvaged that situation, only to notice that the sizing on the paper seems off. Can you see the badly behaved paint around all the edges? I think it's due to the age of the paper. Lesson: Use your paper! Don't save good paper until you're good enough.

My plan: go in boldly with the rest of the painting, knowing I'll probably do it again. After all, I have a small stash of paper to use up!

Just keep painting….

 Here’s a self portrait, a second attempt at at the vegetables, a cropped version of the first vegetable portrait, after Pat told me to go all out and ruin it, and  little sketch of my hydrangea tree. I think I’m exploring combining drawing and watercolor. Or maybe I’m just messing around…

Purple rain on the haunted house.

 I think the pummeling fists of the purple rain sway the light gauzy trees in an interesting way to make them sway in the symphony of the stormy night.  Others may think differently.

I am leaving out the horse and I am beginning to think of the couple as Adam and Eve and that may have some effect.  The subject of the image interests me less than the painting with blended dots.  Experimenting now with bigger dots because it is 18x24 papers.

April 20, 2024 — Elaine O.

I know this isn't an oil painting blog, but just this once, I have to share one. I just finished my very first oil painting! It took awhile but I'm pretty proud that a) I finished and b) it's not awful. So, here it is—a look down my street in autumn.

approx. 14" x 11"

And then, back to watercolor...and Paris. I'm beginning to paint last week's study. The key to this will be the dark/light interplay between indoors and out. I kept the view very light, but we'll see what happens when the darks go in.

Mon Déjeuner à Versailles Avec Dave    14"x 11"

PS—I don't think I'll really call it that. While My Lunch at Versailles with Dave is the actual truth, the painting will have a totally different vibe, so it'll need a different name.

Also, you can thank me for refraining from pontificating on my observations on the differences between oil and watercolor. You're welcome!

Alan Spring 4

 I finally finished my Alice Schille exercise. I didn’t like doing it in the beginning but I probably learned more from this than the other exercises. 

I was surprised to see that most of the other students did as well with this. It’s 7  X 10 on coldpress.

This is a fairly quick sketch of a house we walked by several times while on the Gulf.  I used a soluable ink on the trees which created some weird effects when I tried to control it.  The house was sketched with non-soluable ink. The washes were added after.  5 X 7 on hot press.

Still working on the Yupo version of the flowering aloe plant. I’m trying to let the colors naturally blend but the blooms run together if I go too fast. A lot of time waiting for things to dry as I’m putting down a lot of water to get things to blend right. I made the mistake of scratching out some stuff too early and now the paint won’t stay on the surface. 11 X 14. 

It’s coming along though. 

Do-over Time….

 

Nothing I like better than trying to recessitate a failed painting.i lightened and darkened this one and I think it came out with a little more flair….

A still life I started in class that has yet to recapture my attention….

I found this little sketchbook (4x6) that I bought maybe five years ago and decided I’d better start using before I can no longer paint that small! Inspired by Alan’s sketches, I sketched onsite in my backyard with pencil, painted and then inked the sketches. I used a .03 pen in the first one, the only waterproof pen I have, but it’s too fine for me. The second one is a non waterProof gel pen, which is too heavy imo.fyi Greeta, it is magnolia tree season here and they are glorious this year!
 

My Heavy Hand Could Have Sunk ‘Em

 

Those canes hanging off the boats are ropes. If only I’d known…..although ropes couldn’t have saved this one. I did another image to try again but my heart’s just not in it. 

Storm descends on the haunted house

Darkened the house and of course, as always, more dots.  Next is the sky, but don't worry, I have a plan, sorta.
 

April 13, 2024 — Elaine O.

So who is this shadowy man of mystery? Guesses range from 007 to a French philosopher holding forth in a cafe with a gauloise. Actually, it's Dave, lunching at Versailles. This is a rough color/value sketchbook study, meant to figure out the backlighting situation.

approx. 7" x 5"

Alan Spring 3

 Although I don’t know nuthin’ ‘bout boats this was the assignment in our class this week. I liked it. 

A little landscape painting of Front Beach. On 140# coldpress. 

Beginning of a Yupo painting of an Aloe plant in the backyard. This is just the “tea layer.”

Passing By

 Walking around town. 

Entrance to a large old house on a profusely planted lot. 

Mississippi is the Magnolia State, but the hot pink azalea is everywhere in Ocean Springs. 

Working, or overworking?

 I just subdued the basket shadow, which seems to make the painting work a little better. But this doesn’t have the ethereal nature of the earlier sketch. That seems to be the problem— I can’t capture the immediacy of my sketches in more thought-out paintings. But that’s probably a universal problem….I think I’m going to paint it one more time.

This is done. Since class I lightened the background and added more color to the flowers and stems and added the pattern to the white space. I like it.

I think this done too. I painted this in response to the painting above, which I did years ago. The earlier one is  a better painting imo. Maybe I will think about this one of Nora and see if I can paint it again to that level —or maybe I just need to frame it!

Summer Class for Watercolor

Summer class starts Sat. 9-noon, June 8 - July 27, 2024 (off July 3). 

 ADLTART 1003 - SC  (11727)  Watercolor Painting

 

The registration form is linked below

https://forms.office.com/r/F8g7fyrez0

Laura Smith, M.A.

Coordinator--Continuing Education

lsmith3@ccc.edu  773-907-4440

Follow us on Facebook, @TrumanContinuingEd

The Haunted House

 More of a shed really but does hold down the corner in contrast to those spotty trees which I hope that I can get some fury out of on this dark and stormy night.

Alan Spring 2

 A weird combo of sketches and paintings this week. 

After looking at Elaine’s lovely painting I realized that I had left the darker colors out. And, as I was looking at the actual tree, I realized that I had left the resurrection ferns off too. These ferns cover the larger branches giving them a softer feel. 

Outside our door blooms this lovely Fire Azalea so I did a small ink sketch of it and washed it with paint.

There are spiderworts all over the ward so I painted this on a Yupo trading card while I was waiting for something else to dry.

For fun I’m including a stained glass mosaic of Walter Anderson that hangs in his family’s shop in Ocean Springs. One of my favorite pieces. 

 

Back to urban sketching.  Here’s Biloxi as seen from the Cafe Beignet,

And here’s a quick sketch of Front Beach in Ocean Springs. 

Most of these are small sketches but I think I might make a real painting out of the beach scene.

April 6, 2024 — Elaine O.

I'm calling this finished! It's Monet's water lily pond as seen from a wisteria covered bridge. Although it appears less gray, wintery and rain-soaked than the day I visited, it has the lush, verdant feel I remember. So, I'm happy with it.

11" x 14"

And now, on to something else. Fair warning, though—I suspect I'm still not finished with memories of France.