September 14, 2019

Some of us were away, getting in the last bits of summer vacation. But for those of us in town, it was a delightful and productive day. Elaine T. finished her exquisite portrait of her mother, waiting until the very end to add the face (it was a nail-biter). Fortunately, the face was as perfect as the rest of the painting. Look closely and admire the lovely textures everywhere—the filmy curtains and flowered drapes, the lush carpet, plush damask chair and satin gown. Also notice how well Elaine describes atmosphere. You sense her regal serenity and know that this is a quintessential '40's scene. All in all, another masterpiece! Speaking of which.... keep reading to the end for our newest feature, Masterpiece Series.

Equally imposing is Ken's latest in his series of portraits based on Julia Cameron's photography. He's strengthened the background and worked on the dress. He's also worked on her eyes to better indicate that they are closed. Don't you love the rich deep colors?

Susan is also painting an atmospheric portrait. Here's she's framed the girl in the yellow scarf with the "angel" tree and its shadow. The girl is mourning the death of her mother and we feel the tree protecting her. Actually, it's the tree that is the subject of this painting and it's beautifully done.

And now for something completely different. Sara intended to paint this child on the beach with the same high contrast and bright colors as the paintings above—going for the feel of bright sun on a beach. Instead, she's done this sweet little painting. It feels like an impressionist painting with some of the loveliest, most delicate color blends. Zoom in and see for yourself.

Yes, it's another "baby on the beach." Elaine O. finished her study from last week and did three more quick ones to finalize color choices and to fine-tune the background. If you're wondering, she's going to start the actual painting using the skin colors and background in the small bottom study. The background is bluer, lighter and less contrasty, keeping the focus on the baby's face.

Diana crammed a lot of painting into one session. She begins with her official "plaid"...

...before doing some color matching (top below) and moving on to the basic color wheel (bottom below). She's done her wheel colors in a grid, but those are definitely the colors, all derived from the primary three.

And then Diana begins her big color wheel (with tints, tones and shades). Come back and see it finished. These are very valuable.

 Finally, we put on our magic glitter slippers to take us to our latest feature.  Actually, these are Pat's shoes, but they work beautifully to move us to....

 Masterpiece Series

We promised a new feature and this is it! We're going to feature one artist each week, showing a series they have done.... either in a row or over the course of years (like Sara's annual self-portraits). Today's artist is Elaine T. who spotlighted three subjects she has returned to over many years. Unfortunately, we have a slight problem—we forgot to take photos of the paintings we enjoyed. So we'll start with the ones we have and hope we can get photos later.

First up, the Kiddieland series. We don't have all of them here, but she's painted the carousel horses, the sign itself (the actual painting is much cooler than this. We'll post it, we promise!), bumper cars, rockets and more. These paintings are full of joyful color and exuberant brushwork and make us all smile when we see them. They capture the essence of the Kiddieland experience for those of us lucky enough to remember.

Elaine T. also keeps returning to nature. She's an avid camper and has spent many a day at the Kohler Andrae Park. She's drawn to trees and stumps, as you can see. These are particularly well observed and are distinct portraits of a particular stump over time, whether a monochromatic value study or a full painting. Over the years, you can watch them break down and decay.

In this series are also some beachfront paintings with waves washing ashore. We hope to present them too, in the future. And we'd also like to present the last series, featuring a painting of a Nazi Zombie from the movie Dead Snow. It's an intriguing portrait, painted with skill and humor. We don't know what to call the series, but it's also a theme Elaine T. returns to again and again—offbeat pop culture.

Over all the series, we notice a common thread. Elaine T. is an incredible painter, no doubt, but a signature feature is her ability to imbue even the most mundane subject with a sense of time, place and atmosphere. You know exactly where you are and you sense something is about to happen. You feel the atmosphere of the place. This is a rare and wonderful skill.

We'll alert you if/when we get more pictures. You'll want to see them, we promise!