"Pink and Red DO match"

I am dedicating this entry to my Kindergarten Art Teacher who crushed my creative spirit when she declared that my construction paper flower with alternating pink and red pedals "did not match". I have never forgotten the disappointment I felt as a 5 year-old who was so proud of the work she had created. Now, pink and red is one of my favorite color combinations. I only wish I could go back and tell her... "Oh yes, pink and red DO match!"

Painting "light"

In most of my paintings, my goal is to achieve a sense of "light" that will add spirit to the subject. For me, good "light" grabs your attention and brings energy into the painting. I am drawn to paintings that use contrast and light to create a mood. In watercolor, the illusion of light is captured by painting around the light. That sense of light comes from achieving a contrast of values within the painting (the lightest value being the white of the surface). Using a range of color temperature contributes to this illusion as well. I also like to paint in a little light using touches of cool yellow (Hansa Yellow Lt) hinting at the idea of sun. I am at the midpoint for building the values in the above triptych (each section 12x12 on Ampersand Aquabord).

My Smallest Fan

How can I be expected to work under these conditions? Hee,hee...

...amazing I can get any work done.

Painting on Yupo, Workshop Day 3

Today I finished up my painting for the workshop demonstration. I worked around the flower, painting each pedal with an application of wet-into-wet paint, dropping in color, adding a dark maroon mix where needed and lifting out paint as needed to create form. To enhance the perspective of color, I used more neutral magenta and purples in the pedals behind and more intense magenta and whites for the forward shapes. I may add a few more details or dark shadows within the flower to finish. Once complete, I will use an aerosol varnish to seal the painting and then mat and frame the painting behind glass.

Magenta, Watercolor on Claybord, 8X8

"Stop the car" I tell my husband, driving out of our neighborhood enjoying one of first few days of spring with the kids. "Watch you doing, mommy?" asks my 3-yr-old. My six year old answers, "She is going to take pictures of the flowers." And I add, "I just saw my next painting." And so the conversation goes...
I take my camera everywhere. You never know when something will catch your attention and call to be a painting; everyday things that I may not have even noticed the day (or years) before. That day, it was a row of tulips(?); three lined up in a row dancing in the wind and sun, spotted in the landscaping at the corner motel exiting my neighborhood (an unusual place to find beautifully landscaped patches of blossoming tulips I would say). So, these flowers will be the subject for my next painting, a triptych watercolor on aquabord. Above my composition and color study of magenta.