Monday, December 10, 2007

miss harmony


Wow - who stole November and how can it be only about 2 weeks until Christmas? Margot & I are preparing for a new show at the City Arts Factory in Orlando that opens on the 20th. The theme is shades of Black & White! This is definitely not a normal style for either of us so the challenge has been quite intriguing. Here is a portion of my entry. It is a reverse glass painting with a mixed media background.


What have you attempted lately out of your comfort zone?

Friday, October 26, 2007

Frog-O-Rama!



This is another element from the 7 Naughty Witches trunk designed by Bobbie Takashima. There are frogs of all shapes and sizes found in this design and this is one of my favorites. These little guys were just too much fun to paint!

I am off to a SCUBA trade show for the next few days and will return in November just in time to post some Christmas stuff. Until then, HAPPY HALLOWEEN AND TRICK OR TREAT!!

Monday, October 15, 2007

Watercolor class continued





Next we have Beth's finished work. Beth wanted to use Kathie George's design but wanted the layout configured differently. Part of the class was creating art to fit specific predetermined design parameters. This is only a really fancy way of saying we were using an existing frame size and wanted the art work to fit the available frame. Kathie's original design was resized, flipped & partially redrawn to fit into the design space.
The second photo shows Beth working with Prismacolor pencils during the embellishment phase. Here is Beth's completed framed piece - the mood of this painting is so different from Kathie's original.
How do you determine the size of your work of art? Do you create art to fit the size of a finishing technique or vice versa?

Wednesday, October 3, 2007

Watercolor Wonder





Continuing with images from Saturday's class, Judy and Nancy collaborated on a design layout featuring dragonflies. Once the wax was ironed off Judy's painting, she experimented with metallic paint and markers to embellish her painting. Since she brought a frame to class, we were able to get the finished painting matted & framed. Judy's finished painting resembled antique Japanese kimono fabric - delicate but graphic at the same time - simply stunning!!

Sunday, September 30, 2007

When you think you are done - maybe you aren't!






Several of my painting friends came over yesterday for a watercolor batik class. Little did they know, they were in for a more challenging painting session than they expected! We did not stop at the batik process. After the wax was removed, the real fun began. Everyone worked on a different design so the embellishment process sort of evolved as we went along.


This is Margot's painting at the end of the session. She has a bit more refining to do but it is looking gorgeous! Margot normally paints very soft so this much color was certainly brave of her. Once it is matted & framed I will get a photo posted.


More photos of the other pieces will be coming up soon!


And do I have the iris from the previous post completed? Of course not!! The embellishment process takes awhile but should be worth the wait. Until then....

Tuesday, September 25, 2007

New techniques & directions


Normally I paint in acrylics but was reintroduced to watercolor batik this summer. I signed up for a Kathie George seminar at the annual SDP convention and thoroughly enjoyed the class. It was so inspirational, I came home and started using my own designs with this technique. The technique is fairly easy and the application of wax layers means the finished design is a bit of a surprise. I am taking the process a bit further by incorporating metallic acrylics, Prismacolor pencils and/or chalk pastels along with stamping, etc. This photo shows my current piece with the wax ironed off and no further embellishment. I will post the finished piece for comparison in a day or so.


What new techniques have you recently tried?

Sunday, September 23, 2007

regifting with a twist


Today is a special birthday for my friend, Penny. She is a very creative and special "sister of the art" and her generosity knows no bounds. Penny's talents extend into fine dressmaker quality sewing and her love and appreciation of vintage sewing & lace, which we have both incorporated into our work at times. Over the years, she has shared many of her creative treasures with me and is always on the lookout for new junque that I can use in my artistic creations. Last year she gave me two wonderful teak trays. They were a bit worn and scratched in places but were very well made, and I knew they would be transformed and repurposed at some point in time. I brought them home and found a place to store them which was not an easy thing to do at all - my storage ability reached critical mass some time ago - but that is a post for another day.


While searching around the studio for a gift, I came across one of those trays and realized it would be perfect for my needs. What made it even better was I had already started the painting process. I used a lace pattern from one of Arlene Linton's wonderful books and painted the lace runner on a dark green background. The rose came from my garden and creates a bit of a trompe l'oeil effect.


The finished tray turned out great! Penny is sure to love it. And the best part for me? It is one more piece out of my studio!!


Happy Birthday Penny!!!

Friday, August 31, 2007

Bad Moon Rising



Halloween is a most favorite holiday and Margot and I wanted to do something special this year. I found a too cute Bobbie Takashima pattern at convention this year titled "7 Naughty Witches" and we decided to work together while creating our own "heirloom" pieces.


This style of painting is sooooo out of our comfort zone! We also never get to paint together just for the pleasure of it... usually we are working!!


Here is my little moon man. He is painted on canvas which was then cut down to size and glued into the tray bottom inside my trunk. It was easier to apply this way rather than trying to paint on the inside surface while struggling with the edges. He is painted in grayscale colors - the appearance of color on this photo is due to the flash. Color will be glazed on before he is complete!


What do you create just for the pleasure of creating?

Saturday, August 18, 2007

Travel Home


Traveling to far flung destinations is always enjoyable, but it is always good to return home. We have been away for a few days... the piles of laundry have been seen to and it's back to the daily routine. The big difference is bringing a fresher perspective to the creative process after a few days away. New vistas and experiences can't help but influence how we see the world and that is oftentimes reflected in what we choose to create. These experiences are added to our daily lives... sometimes in subtle ways... or not...



To me, one constant as a reminder of home has always been a magnolia. Being Southern born, the majesty of an old magnolia tree speaks to the heart. I created this design a number of years ago for a small trunk (the full design wraps all four sides as well as the top) but had the opportunity recently to rework the design a bit to fit a canvas for a private class I taught.



How does travel affect your creative process?

Thursday, August 2, 2007

Creative Sharing


After following quite a few blogs and being so inspired by all the wonderful creativity out there, this is a "dream space" for more of the same to share...