Waldo Canyon Wildfire (Acrylic Watermedia) at Galatea Fine Art

Today we drove into Boston because was time to collect my painting, which has been on display at Galatea Fine Arts in the "Heroes and Villains" show, closing today.  Although I had seen the show via virtual opening on Zoom, I hadn't seen it in person.  Some of the art was still on the walls, so I took a quick look, and they were even better in person.  This was also my first chance to see my own painting hung for the show, so before I took it down, I took a quick photograph.  

December Snow (with Prisma filter)

It is "wicked cold" as they say in Boston and we are expected more snow in a few days. Here is a picture that I took on December 22, after our last big snow storm. I added a Prisma filter. For some reason, I didn't post this before, so I edited it today and here it is.

Kalimba and Lexi (Edited Photo for Painting Reference)

I am getting ready for my next project, painting a double portrait of these two lovely greyhounds.  The owners' original photograph captured this great pose.  Today I used Painter to simplify the background. I added a bit of posterizing effect for texture and to "cover my tracks". I also cropped the image to get this composition.  This also helped me to think about the format, which is probably going to be square.

January Snow (with Prisma filter)

We are having some lovely, quite reasonable snow.  I took some pictures yesterday, and added a Prisma filter to this one.  Posting to celebrate the beauty of trees, especially today. (It is Tu B'shvat, Jewish arbor day).

Reposting: A Year for a Tree (Video)

Back in 2015, I created this little animation on my iPad.  I am reposting today in celebration of Tu B'shvat.  This is one of my favorite Jewish holidays, a new year for trees!  As a child, I loved the idea! What fun! But as time passed, I learned to take the idea more seriously. We need to value trees, plant them, and take care of them, so they can continue to take care of us.     

Secret Project (Closeup of Dog)

Yesterday I posted the final version of the double portrait I have been working on.  Here is a closeup of the same painting, taken when I finally achieved a likeness of our little dog. 

Secret Project (Double Portrait)

Today I worked on this double portrait.  I revised the hands, and repainted the hood on the jacket.  Then I did some basic cleanup near the edges.  Now I am ready to say this painting is finished, although I will still fix any problems that I notice.  What is left: paint the edges and add wire, and then send it off it its new owners. This is mixed media: acrylic paint with a bit of conte crayon.

Secret Project (as of January 24, 2021)

I worked on this project this afternoon.  I focussed on the background, adding some more yellow, and then used an opaque wash to get that mint-green color back while softening the details.  I also made a lot of small corrections (the folds of the hood, the shadows on the bench, etc.), which I have learned to recognize as signs that I am almost finished.  Almost.  To be continued. . . 

Secret Project (as of January 23, 2021)

This is my double portrait as it looks today.  I am getting close to finished.  Last night, I made a small change in the dog's face, and improved the likeness quite a bit. Today, apart from adding a touch of brown wash to the dog's fur, I worked exclusively on the background. I don't want the background to be too specific or detailed. My goal today was to add a bit more contrast so the figures would stand out.  I am also trying to gently suggest the surroundings (which are wetlands near Danvers, MA), The colors look more subdued than in yesterday's image,  largely because of the time of day that I took the photo. To be continued. . . .

Secret Project (as of January 22, 2021)

I returned to this double portrait today.  I worked on some details on the faces just a bit, and but spent most of the time on the background, especially the bench.

Secret Project (as of January 21, 2020)

I did a little more work on this double portrait today.  I worked on the faces and did some more work on the background, which is a wetlands near  Danvers, MA.  This is getting close to finished. . .

 

Secret Project (as of January 19, 2021)

Here is my double portrait as it looked yesterday, January 19.  I continued work on the dog's face, and worked out the composition for the background.

Secret Project (as of January 18, 2021)

Here is my double portrait as it looked yesterday.  I am still making adjustments to the face of the dog, and beginning to suggest the background, which is wetlands near Danvers, MA.

Secret Project (as of January 17, 2021)

Here is my secret project as it looked yesterday, January 17, 2021.  This is a double portrait in acrylic on canvas. Still a little work to do on "likeness", but with a light touch so as not to loose what I already have.  More to go on background and clothing.

Secret Project (as of January 16, 2021)

I have been working on this project for a couple of weeks.  It is going to be a gift.  I am starting to post this from the point that I got permission, which was yesterday. So here is how my double portrait looked as of yesterday, January 16th.  

Reposting: Transformational Drawings Set 2 (Hung for Open Studios)

For the past week or so, I have been posting a set of small drawings. I recently came across them in my home studio while looking for something else. I call these "transformational drawings" because I made them from an unfinished painting that I cut up into nine pieces.  Here is the set as they looked in 2007, pinned up on the studio wall at Porter Mill. I plan to frame them up and hang them in the studio again, to replace Set 1, which was sold a couple of years ago.

Reposting: Transformational Drawing Set 2 Number 9

This is from Transformational Drawing Set 2, the ninth and last drawing. I created these small drawings from an abandoned painting that I cut into nine equal pieces.  I then drew into each piece, drawing a landscape that incorporated what ever marks happened to be on each piece.  It was a great exercise.  There is an earlier set, in which I transformed a painting of a figure into nine small landscapes.  I no longer have them because they were sold, but you can follow this link to see them: https://www.flickr.com/photos/randiart/albums/72157645108627234

Reposting: Transformational Drawing Set 2 Number 8

Here is the eighth of nine small drawings in this set of "Transformational Drawings," so-called because I cut up an unfinished painting into equal pieces, drew into them, and created these small drawings. I drew these in 2007.  There was an early set (Set 1), which I sold a few years ago.

Reposting: Transformational Drawings Set 2 Number 7

I am reposting a set of small drawings that I first published here in 2007.  I call them "transformational drawings" because I created them by cutting up an unfinished painting (acrylic on paper) into nine equal pieces. Then I drew into each piece with conte crayon, incorporating any marks or shapes already there. I recently came across these little drawings in my home studio.  I hope to frame them and take them to the Studio at Porter Mill, to replace my "Transformational Drawings Set 2," which was sold.

Reposting: Transformational Drawings Set 2 Number 6

This is the sixth of the nine small drawings that make up this set.  These drawings are approximately 5 x 7 inches.  I call them "Transformational Drawings" because I have cut up, drawn into, and transformed an unfinished painting into 9 small drawings.  This is my second set of transformational drawings. I recently came across them in my home studio; sometime soon I hope to frame them and take them to Porter Mill, to replace Set 1, which hung there for several years, until someone bought all nine drawings at Open Studios. Here's a link to Set 1, in case you would like to see:  https://www.flickr.com/photos/randiart/albums/72157645108627234

Reposting: Transformational Drawing Set 2 Number

This is the fifth in a set of 9 small drawings (approximately 5 x 6). I call them transformational drawings because I cut up an abandoned painting that I had started, and drew into to each piece to create a small landscape with conte crayon.  I drew these back in 2007, but recently came across them while cleaning my home studio.  I had set them aside last year to frame; I plan to hang them in our studio at Porter Mill, to replace the earlier Transformational Drawings Set 1, which hung in the studio until someone purchased the whole set at an Open Studio.  

Reposting: Transformational Drawing Set 2 Number 4

This is the fourth in a set of 9 drawings that I made from an unfinished painting that I cut into 9 equal pieces.  I drew these in 2007, but recently came across them in my home studio and decided to post them again.  I hope to frame these and hang them in the studio at Porter Mill, to replace set 1, which I sold a few years ago. Anyway, in this one, it is easy to see the mountain silhouette that was part of the unfinished painting.  

Reposting: Transformational Drawing Set 2 number 3

In 2007, I cut up a painting I had abandoned and used it to create 9 small drawings. (I called them transformation drawings.) I recently came across them in my home studio and am reposting them. This is the third drawing in this set.  There was an earlier Set 1, which was in my studio at Porter Mill, but was purchased a few years ago. You can see Set 1 here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/randiart/albums/72157645108627234

Reposting: Transformational Drawing Set 2 Number 2

I am reposting a set of small drawings that I made by cutting one of my abandoned paintings into 9 pieces and drawing in to each piece to create a series of new drawings.  In this case, I cut up an acrylic watermedia painting on paper and created small mixed media drawings, each approximately 5 x 7 inches. I originally posted this in 2007.  (My first set of transformational drawings was done a few years previous.)

Reposting: Transformational Drawing Set 2 Number 1

While looking for something else in my home studio, I recently found this set of small drawings (approximately 5 x 7 inches each) from 2007.  I call them "transformational drawings" because I start with an unfinished piece of work on paper, cut it into 9 pieces, and draw into each piece to create new (separate) works.  I am reposting them now because this is such a time of change and it seems fitting. This set tranformed an unfinished acrylic landscape to a set of 9 mixed media landscapes.   When I posted this back in 2007, I said, "The red sun and everything else in that rectangle at the top are pretty much as they were in the original acrylic painting . . . .First I added the horizontal and vertical pencil lines. Then I used conte crayon to draw in the line for the shape of the mountain. Then I drew into the shapes with conte crayon to get the colors I wanted."  The title of this piece says "Set 2" because I created an earlier set. Set 1 was made up of bright landscapes from an abandoned figure painting.  A couple of years ago, someone bought all of Set 1 off my studio wall at Porter Mill. I still miss Set 1, and am thinking of framing up Set 2.) If you want to see my first set of transformational drawings, click here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/randiart/albums/72157645108627234

Waldo Canyon Wildfire (Acrylic Watermedia)

This is the final version of my painting of the 2012 Waldo Canyon Wildfire, near Colorado Springs.  On January 2, I thought this painting was finished.  I signed it, labeled it, and attached a wire to the back for hanging.  But on January 3, the day it was due to be delivered to Boston, I woke up thinking that I should add more gray, because all that smoke in the sky would have muted some of the colors.  As usual, I was afraid of ruining my work at the last minute (the Mr. Bean syndrome), and even though time was short, I decided to try.  I mixed up a gray (with cadmium red, pthalo green, and a little purple, and white, colors already in the painting) and applied it sparingly to some of the clouds, using rounded strokes to resemble like billowing smoke. I also used the gray as a wash over the hills in the foreground.  While I was at it, I use some white to extended some of the lines in the sky.  I was happy with the changes and I do think they improved the painting. This is acrylic paint, so it dried quickly, and we delivered the painting as scheduled to Galatea Fine Arts, where it is part of the special "Heroes and Villains" show.  (In this case,  the heroes are the firefighters who extinguished the fire and the villains are the people whose actions started it.)  That was Sunday. After the day we had today (Wednesday, January 6, 2021), the day that the doors of the capitol were breached, what I want to say is that small actions matter.  In art, it matters to take the extra step to improve your work if you can.  And in life, small actions matter, too.  You can start a fire, or you can prevent it.  You can cause a problem, or you can solve it.  You can stand for freedom and democracy, or you can tear it down.  Your actions matter, however small they might seem.

Waldo Canyon Wildfire (Acrylic Watermedia) as of January 2, 2021

My latest painting is a representation of the 2012 Waldo Canyon Wildfire, based on a photo that I took of the scene four years later, in 2016. Last month, when I decided to paint this scene, I added some digital "special effects" to my photo to create my painting reference (posted here December 22.)  So this is how my painting looked on January 2, just one day before it was due in Boston.*  That day, I was still adjusting the foreground shapes, and also muting the color.  Although I wanted to contrast living and dead vegetation, the greens in the foreground were too much, and I realized that the smoky sky would probably have modified the color anyway.  I also softened the shapes and colors in the sky.  When I took this photo of my painting, I was pretty happy with it, and anyway, it was due in Boston the next day.  So I removed the painter's tape that I use to protect the 2" birch frame (cradle) while I paint. I got out my toolkit and installed hardware and wire on the back. I labeled the back. I even signed it.  I thought I was done.  Until the next morning.  To be continued. . . .

*for a special "Heroes and Villains" show at Galatea Fine Art.  

Waldo Canyon Wildfire (Acrylic Watermedia) as of January 1, 2021

This is my painting of the Waldo Canyon Wildfire, as it looked on New Years Day.  At that point, I was feeling the pressure of time, knowing that the painting had to be delivered by January 3rd. I took a hard look at my painting reference (posted here December 22). I turned it upside down. I turned the painting upside down and worked on it.  I turned everything right-side up. I worked on the issue with the foreground shapes. Then I worked on the shapes in the sky. I added some blue tones to the mountain in the far distance.  It finally felt like I was getting somewhere. About time, too.

Waldo Canyon Wildfire (Acrylic Watermedia) as of December 31, 2020

This is my most recent project as it look a few days ago, back on December 31. This is my attempt to paint the 2012 Waldo Canyon Wildfire, which took place just four miles from Colorado Springs. It caused deaths, evacuations, and damage to forest that was still visible in 2016 when I saw the scene and took pictures. I went back to those photos recently when I decided to paint the wildfire for an exhibit.  After looking at news photos on line, I created my painting reference, adding fire and smoke to my photo with  digital pastel. (Painting reference posted here December 22.) On New Year's Eve Day, I was struggling with the shapes in the foreground, but adding more definition to sky and distant hills. To be continued. . . .

Waldo Canyon Wildfire (Acrylic Watermedia) as of December 30, 2020

Here's my latest painting as it looked a few days ago, on December 30.  The painting is of the Waldo Canyon Wildfire, which burned near Colorado Springs back in 2012.  Four years later, the burned out forest was still visible when I took a picture during a visit to Colorado in 2016. I recently turned that photo into a painting reference (posted here December 22), adding the colors of fire and smoke with digital pastel with my Painter program. At this point, I was struggling with the shapes in the foreground, and adding some shapes to the more distant mountains.  

Raccoons 2021 (Digital Drawing)

Yesterday I posted a little animation of raccoons welcoming 2021. I made it on my iPad with the Procreate app, which captures a stroke-by-stroke video as you draw.  Today's post is the digital drawing, also the last frame of the video, which I cleaned up a bit in Painter.