Sunday Life Drawing III

Vince Fazio 18x24 charcoal on paper $55

Another view of the same pose. Tricky perspective and forshortening. Fun to figure out. Looking forward to my upcoming workshop at the Arts Center. "Drawing Without Fear" We have 6 enrolled so it will be a nice class but there is still plenty of room for more.

Betsey Nelson - Arizona Strip

Betsey Nelson Arizona Strip 6x8 $350
This is the second small piece from an extended painting trip. Several pieces were done at this spot. It was a good exercise to see the changes as the sun was setting so that the changes could be noted and then pushed so the pieces could reflect the differences.

Michael Chesley Johnson - Bernard Pier

I recently taught a workshop in Acadia National Park in Maine. One day, we went out to Bernard, a quaint fishing village on Mount Desert Island. The light was overall cool, which made for some very warm shadows. You don't often see this in nature on a sunny day. I "pushed" the warmth in the shadows a bit to include some lovely oranges and reds.



"Bernard Pier"
9x12, pastel
$100+$5 shipping

Carol Marine - "Big Red"

Carol Marine - "Big Red" - 6x8in. - bid

I've been doing a series of these beautiful, red flowers. I particularly like the red/turquoise color scheme and find myself using it for most of them. Red and turquoise are compliments according to the Munsell Wheel, which I first learned about in the Harley Brown book, "Eternal Truths for Every Artist" (no longer in print). It's a very interesting wheel.

Sunday Life Drawing

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Vince Fazio 18x24 charcoal on paper $55

A twenty-minute life drawing session. This is done at an open studio drawing opportunity we have on Sundays at the arts center. It is such a popular session that we had to create a waitlist on which I am an alternate...so every once in a while I get a call inviting me to come in...Charcoal is one of my favorite mediums, it is so flexible. In my workshop "Drawing Witout Fear" we spend at least an entire day working on gray paper with charcoal and white pastel for a few highlights. Coming up November, sign up now...see my blog for more drawing samples...

Betsey Nelson - Losing Light

Betsey Nelson 6x8 oil on canvas board $350

This was done on a painting trip with several other artists. To minamize the decision factor for picking the painting spots we decided that if one of us was interested in a view we would all paint at least a 6x8. The trip became a visual diary and we probably learned more doing lots of small quick paintings rather than only a few larger pieces and we probably took more chances knowing that it was 'just" a small painting.

Robert Burridge - Tree Study #2

My favorite time of year is autumn, when the leaves turn blazing colors. With this quick tree study, my goal was to showcase a line of glowing trees. My challenge was to use the color in an effective way - and have only one tree be the "star." 

This painting started off as a "mess" and I did negative shape painting to create the treeline first,  then I pushed back the background trees with darker color, then added the brightest colors to the center front tree to create the depth. 

Original acrylic painting on paper, 10x10 $275 + 25 shipping/handling

Carol Marine - "Line for the Show"

Carol Marine - "Line for the Show" - 6"x8" - oil - bid

I got these peppers from a farm share deal we participate in here (Austin). The taste is a bit zingy but they are great to paint! I really loved the colors, especially the bits of blue in the shadows. I get that effect from shining a spot light on my setup that has a yellow cast to it (even though it's a "daylight" bulb), and then having a bit of "white" light bouncing around, lightening up the shadows a bit and turning them blue.

La Terraza

Vince Fazio 12x16 oil on canvas panel $350

This was a lovely morning on one of the terraces at the Villa in Italy where we do our plein air workshops. Next year in Sept 2009 we are offering two different weeks in Italy with Robert Burridge!

Betsey Nelson-Sedona Fall Light

Betsey Nelson edona Fall Light 8x10 oil $460

With plein air festivals in full swing i thought a plein air piece was a good idea.

Even though Sedona's plein air festival held Ocvt.19th-26th will probably not have this silver light of late fall the light can change quickly so the best defense is thoughtful approach and though a quick painting, not a hurried one. Working too fast just multiplies your mistakes but, still we seem to need to learn that again and again.

Robert Burridge - Pear Still Life

I love painting pears - I have been painting them for years. And I always seem to do a Pear Demo and assignment on the first day of my "Loosen Up" Workshops. I start off with the pure shape of a circle with a triangle on top - kind of like a jack-in-the-box. I create the voluptuous, figurative shape by putting lights against darks. In the case of this still life, the background on the left side is the darkest and the light source is hitting the pear at its fullest against the dark background. The right side of the pear - because it is more in the shadow, is darker than the background on the right side. So it doesn't look like it's floating, I always place the pear on a table and I always place a shadow to anchor it. I try not to place the pear in the center of the painting; it's more interesting to have my subject slightly offset. The final stroke of color is the "WOW!" I like creating small surprises - in this painting the surprise color is a kiss of hot pink Opera by Holbein. What gives it a wow is the extended color, glowing on the pear as well as the table. Pulls it all together. 

Original acrylic painting on paper, quarter sheet (11" x 14") - $450 + $20 shipping/handling.

www.RobertBurridge.com

 

Michael Chesley Johnson - Autumn Splendor

In my mind, there's nothing finer than painting in the autumn. I love to be out on a warm afternoon when the grasshoppers are singing their last songs and the sun sets a golden fire in the fields. This week, I went to one of my favorite wet areas, a marsh near Eagle Hill Bog, to paint the marsh grasses. The trick was to make the grasses incandescent. I kept the shadowed parts of the grasses red and warm, warmer than the sunlit tops, and then made sure the highlights on the tops were the brightest extreme in the painting.

"Autumn Splendor" 8x10, oil, en plein air

$150+$5 shipping

www.MichaelChesleyJohnson.com

Carol Marine - "Getting On?"

Carol Marine - "Getting On?" - 6x6in. - bid

I am in Santa Fe at the moment teaching a workshop. Today is the last day and so far we have had a blast! I've got a great group - very enthousiastic. Check out my blog for photos.

Italia!

Vince Fazio 6x8 oil on canvas panel $100

This is the first painting I did at the Villa where we hosted the workshop with Randall Sexton and Marcia Burtt. We had a great group of painters who worked rain and shine. Though the first day was kind of gray and overcast it can bring out the local colors in a strong way. This painting was done by starting with oversaturated color and adding white into it as needed with a larger rather than smaller brush. More from italy in the next few posts!

Betsey Nelson- Head Study II

Betsey Nelson 12x10 $360

This is a second head study done of the same man in Head Study I (see earlier blog posting). Again same principles apply just a more "finished" study. But does it say anymore than the other?