January 28, 2017

Sorry for the delay in posting, but it's been a busy time for us, starting with exhibitions and openings. More about that later, though. We start with Madeleine's still life. There are so many things to love here–the patterning on the fabric and the cups, the background, the composition. And look at the contrast between the beautifully modeled pieces on the left and the flat perspective of the cloth and background.

Madeleine then knocked out this beautiful landscape under a daytime moon. You can tell it's Ireland by the lush greens in the foreground.

 Bill reworked last week's still life. Based on expert advice, he's added elements to bring the number to an odd number. We like this even better than ever, although we're not sure that the number of elements is what did it for us. We like the leading lines, the textures and the way our eyes are drawn to the focal point.

Ken is adding background to his "corn dress." It's definitely corn, but abstracted. It's colorful and "stripey" and we love it.

Ken's also started a new painting in his More Corn series. It looks pale and monochromatic right now, but keep watching for more of the color we love. And, if you like the paintings above, read on to find out where you can see more of  Ken, Madeleine and Bill's paintings in exhibition.

 Strangely enough, Steve is also one of our most colorful painters and he's also doing just a sketch. This is from a trip to Venice. It's going to be lovely with gondolas in the foreground and a golden morning sun between the background buildings.

Tony is painting a vacation scene too. These men are sitting and conversing somewhere in Greece. You can just see their story, can't you?   Now, we are just waiting for the tiles. We'll see if they are glazed or not (that's an inside joke—you don't need to get it).

 Here's another relationship story by Elaine. This painting is of two small boys with 3D glasses watching their computer. Strangely futuristic—but funny!

Even elephants have relationships, as we can see in Ellen's painting of an elephant family. She's using only two colors, but to great effect.

Moving to our newest students, we see a riot of color. Here is Vivianne's initial plaid with all the colors and two brushes.

Here's another color experiment where Vivianne beautifully combines a rainbow and a color wheel...

 ... before moving on to another experiment with color. We love the color "bricks" with the fine black outlines.

And here, Vivianne begins her "official" color wheel. We think she already has a great understanding of color. 

Same exercise, but with a very different vibe. Rommel adds licks of flame or feathers to his color wheel, making it very alive and active.

Here's the  second color wheel with tints, tones and shades. Again, Rommel adds brush marks to make the wheel spin.

Perhaps you're wondering why you haven't seen some of us in awhile. Well, in the case of Sara, it could be because she's been vacationing around the world. But she's taken her paints with her. Here are a few views from her sketchbook, starting with her Paris apartment entrance....

... and a view from her Paris apartment.

We're already jealous, even before she takes us to the Shakespeare bookstore.

Back from Paris, Sara sketches the Women's March—she was in Washington DC.

 

And then, she returned home and found equally scenic views from her windows. These are so lovely, you'd never know she wasn't feeling well.

And, as promised, here are some of our exhibitions you may want to visit. Mark your calendars!

The Corn Exhibit.  Ken will be having a show at Ten Cat. Drop by to see the art...and maybe play some pool. 

      Where:
      Ten Cat Tavern

      3931 N Ashland Ave, Chicago, IL

     When:
     January 22–March 15, 2017
  

Orange.  Bill and Madeleine are having an exhibit at Orange. Bill has watercolors; Madeleine has oils. Drop by for some food and some art.

      Where:
      Orange

      2431 N. Clark (north of Fullerton)
      Chicago, IL

     When:
     Ongoing through the end of February 

See you soon!