Pink and Yellow Tulips (Posterized)

Pink and Yellow Tulips (Posterized)
Originally uploaded by randubnick

Tonight I used Painter to create this posterized version of the photo I posted yesterday, tulips on sale at BJ's. I took the original photo with my iPhone camera. (Well, snow is predicted for tonight, so sometimes you have to settle for spring in the grocery store.) The posterizing is subtle because the white highlights were emphasized too much when I did a lot of posterizing. Finally I realized that I could use color overlays to get rid of the white highlights that I didn't want.

Pink and Yellow Tulips in Cellophane

Pink and Yellow Tulips in Cellophane
Originally uploaded by randubnick

According to the calendar, it's officially spring, but here north of Boston, we've had wintry weather for the past two days. Yesterday we even had snow! So sometimes I look for signs of spring in the grocery store. Tonight during a BJs run, I saw some tulips on display, so I got my iPhone out and took some pictures. When I got back home, I loaded them into the computer and cropped this image out of the best of the pictures that I took tonight.

Pink Ocean Pink Sky (Oil Bar Painting Day 9)

Pink Ocean Pink Sky (Oil Bar Painting Day 9)
Originally uploaded by randubnick

This is my oil bar painting as it looks now. Today I added some more pink and purple tones to the area above the cloud formation. I scumbled the paint on in little dabs, trying to get the iridescent effect of a sky that is pink and blue at the same time. I now think that this painting is finished. I think I have taken this one as far as I can. Of course, as soon as I say that, I usually see something I want to change. But I will say it anyway. Besides, it is time to move on to the next painting.

Pink Sky Pink Ocean (Oil Bar Painting Day 8)

Pink Sky Pink Ocean (Oil Bar Painting Day 8)
Originally uploaded by randubnick

Today I worked on this oil bar painting, a landscape of the Atlantic Ocean at twilight. I am using a photograph that I took from Beverly's Lynch Park as a reference. I adjusted some of the colors and shapes in the cloud formation and in the sky above the clouds. I also added just a little definition to suggest the islands on the horizon line. I still call this a work in progress because I may make some changes, but at this point, I think they will be minor. I think this painting is close to being finished. And that's a good thing because I am getting ready to start another painting this week for a show that's coming up in May.

Pink Sky Pink Ocean (Oil Bar Painting Day 7)

Pink Sky Pink Ocean (Oil Bar Painting Day 7)
Originally uploaded by randubnick

This is my oil bar painting in progress, a landscape of the ocean and sky at twilight. Today I worked mainly on the sky above the cloud formation. I am using as a reference the photo that I took from Lynch Park here in Beverly, MA, and it is a very helpful tool as I struggle to get the colors right. I brought the saturation of the blue sky down, and mixed it with more white, gray, and purple tones. I also modified some of the shapes in the cloud formation. The sky above the clouds already looks better but there are still changes I plan to make.

Pattern with Hamentashen

Pattern with Hamentashen
Originally uploaded by randubnick

Purim is almost here, which inspired me to make this piece of digital art today. Last year I made a drawing of hamentashen (triangular cookies filled with jam), and used Painter to capture a pattern from the drawing. This afternoon, I used the pattern with Painter's pattern pen. I worked in digital chalk on yellow "canvas", then cropped to get this composition. Then I posterized the image, and here it is.

Pink Sky Pink Ocean (Oil Bar Painting Day 6)

Pink Sky Pink Ocean (Oil Bar Painting Day 6)
Originally uploaded by randubnick

I had a chance to work on this painting this morning. I am just beginning to feel like I might be on the right track. I have always been fascinated by the way the sky changes color or can seem to be several colors at once. And of course, the ocean reflects the colors in the sky while its own color shows through. Add the colors of twilight and you get a pretty complicated problem, or at least it seems complicated to me. Now that the basic composition is blocked in, I am using the reference photo (a picture that I took from Beverly's Lynch Park at twilight) to understand what is going on with the colors and shapes. (I posted a copy of the reference photo here last night.) This is detailed work, and slow going, but I feel like it is going to pay off.

Reference Photo for Pink Sky Pink Ocean with Strong Posterizing Effect

Reference Photo for Pink Sky Pink Ocean with Strong Posterizing Effect
Originally uploaded by randubnick

I didn't have a chance to paint today, but I am posting the reference photo that I mentioned in yesterday's post. This image began as a photo that I took at twilight in Beverly's Lynch Park, and I have been using it as a reference as I paint. I am not trying to create an exact copy of the photo, but what I am trying to capture is the play of colors on the water and in the sky. The similarity of the values and hues at twilight makes this a challenging painting despite the simplicity of the composition. Now that I have the general composition roughed in, I am paying closer attention to the shapes and colors in the photo so as to understand what the light is doing on the water and in the sky. I was already working from a lightly posterized photograph, but because the colors and subtle shapes are hard to discriminate in the photo, yesterday I used Painter software to create a version of the photo that is posterized with a strong effect. (Posterizing simplifies shapes and strengthens the demarcations between colors.) I played around with the posterizing levels to get a version with more visible demarcations but without distorting the color. (When I was younger, when I was drawing I used to throw my eyes in and out of focus at will to see the general patterns of colors and shapes. I am long past being able to do that now, but using a posterized photo helps me in similar ways.) As a bonus, the posterized reference photos can be interesting in their own right, and sometimes I even include them in art shows.

Pink Sky Pink Ocean (Oil Bar Painting Day 5)

Pink Sky Pink Ocean (Oil Bar Painting Day 5)
Originally uploaded by randubnick

This is an oil bar painting in progress. I didn't get a chance to work on it until after dinner, which isn't the best circumstance. But I was eager to work on it, so I did. I am working from a photograph that I took at Lynch Park, here in Beverly, MA. The sun was setting in the west, but it turned the eastern sky pink, and the water reflected the colors. I am now at the point of being able to work more closely from the photograph, using it as a reference for the the colors and shapes. The values and colors are so similar in this photo that it is hard to see what is going on. So earlier in the day, I created a version of the photo that is posterized at a high level, which simplifies shapes and colors. (I will post that too, maybe tomorrow or the next day). Despite working in artificial light, I felt like I was making progress tonight. So I also photographed it tonight (again, not ideal), but here it is. The low light makes it look at little darker than in the daytime.

Pink Sky Pink Ocean (Oil Bar Painting Day 4)

Pink Sky Pink Ocean (Oil Bar Painting Day 4)
Originally uploaded by randubnick

This afternoon, I worked on this painting, a view of the ocean at twilight. I am working from a photo that I took from Lynch Park here in Beverly. Today I added some dark tones to the water and to the sky below the clouds. I am still struggling to get similar colors above and below the horizon line, but I hope am getting there. However, it may appear that I am going backwards because the light on the water is now gone. But once I get the colors right, I will add light to the water again, as well as to the sky below the clouds. I didn't do anything to the sky above the clouds today, so if that part of the painting seems not to "match" the rest of the canvas, that is why. (Can you tell that it is a little frightening to post a painting in progress? Maybe it is scary for those watching, as well!) Today I also reworked the shapes in the cloud formation. Now I am happier with the way the clouds look.

Pink Sky Pink Ocean (Oil Bar Painting Day 3)

Pink Sky Pink Ocean (Oil Bar Painting Day 3)
Originally uploaded by randubnick

This is the oil bar painting I am working on as it looked when I finished painting this afternoon. Today I used a very dark blue oil bar to add some dark values and increase the contrast. I also modified some of the shapes in the cloud formation, and began working on the water. I am using the photo that I took as a reference for the colors (posted here last week). The composition is simple, but getting the colors right is complicated.

Pink Sky Pink Ocean (Oil Bar Painting Day 2)

Pink Sky Pink Ocean (Oil Bar Painting Day 2)
Originally uploaded by randubnick

This is an oil bar painting in process, a landscape roughly based on a photo of the ocean that I took from a beach here in Beverly. I started this painting yesterday, and progress seemed pretty fast. Today I revised the composition, moving the cloud formation down on the canvas. I also worked on getting some of the values to be darker. The result of that is less contrast, so at the moment, this image has less definition than it did yesterday. This might not look like progress, but I am making haste slowly. It is easier to correct the composition at the beginning.

Pink Sky Pink Ocean (Oil Bar Painting Day 1)

Pink Sky Pink Ocean (Oil Bar Painting Day 1)
Originally uploaded by randubnick

This is an oil bar painting that I started today. This is a painting of the ocean as it looks around the time the sun goes down. For inspiration and as a general reference, I am using a picture that I took from Lynch Park, here in Beverly, MA. (See the image that I posted March 8.) I was interested in the light, the colors in the sky and on the water, and that dark blue horizon line. The colors are more subtle than the sunset in the west, but the light and colors are reflected on the water and in the eastern sky. What I managed to do today was just rough in a composition and the basic colors. This might look simple but I doubt that it will be easy. I already see things on the canvas that I want to modify. But I am very happy to be painting!

Books and Candle (Pastel Still Life)

Books and Candle (Pastel Still Life)
Originally uploaded by randubnick

This is a pastel still life that I came across today while I was straightening up my studio and making room to set up my easel so I can paint this weekend for an upcoming show. Of course I got distracted, and looked in some of my sketchbooks, which is where I found this drawing. I drew this picture at least five or six years ago, when I belonged to a drawing group that had weekly drawing sessions in members' homes. The still life set up was provided by that week's host. Today when I found this drawing, I checked and saw that I didn't have a photo of it, so I decided to take a picture and post it here tonight. Although there are things about this drawing that I would like to modify, such as the quirky composition, it was a good drawing "workout". It's clear that I spent a lot of time on the cut glass, but I think the books needed more attention. (We drew for two hours and that was it.) Perhaps this drawing is a candidate for another 'pastel make-over' at some point. . . .

Blue Spruce in Blue

Blue Spruce in Blue
Originally uploaded by randubnick

Here's another of the images I created yesterday while I was trying to remember how to work with layers in Painter. The photo is a picture of a blue spruce that I took on February 3rd, this time with a blue overlay.

Blue Spruce in Pink

Blue Spruce in Pink
Originally uploaded by randubnick

This is an image that I created from a photo today with my Painter program. Inspired by a demo that I saw this morning at the Apple store, I decided to try my hand at using layers in Painter. I used a photo of a blue spruce that I took on February 3rd. It has been a long time since I tried to use layers and the software has changed, so I really fumbled around a lot and didn't accomplish too much. But I will keep trying. Meanwhile, while I was trying to learn this new process, I created two images of the blue spruce tree. Here is one of them, with a pink cast.

Pink Sky from Lynch Park (Posterized)

Pink Sky from Lynch Park (Posterized)
Originally uploaded by randubnick

Today I was looking through my photos for images to use for oil bar paintings. I have a show coming up and I would like to add a few more paintings. I found a photo that I took back in May, 2009, a view of the Atlantic Ocean taken from a beach here in Beverly, MA. I am going to use this as the basis of the oil bar painting that I plan to start this week. This afternoon I opened Painter and made this posterized version of the photo. Posterizing makes the colors and shapes easier to see, so it helps for painting, but I also like the way it looks. Sometimes I display the posterized photos as well as my paintings (but in a separate area, not side-by-side). The image looks simple, but it is far more complex than it first appears. I am eager to get started.

Necklace with Wooden Beads

Necklace with Wooden Beads
Originally uploaded by randubnick

This is a necklace that I made today, assorted wooden beads on a leather cord with a magnetic clasp. Sometimes while I am making one necklace, I get an idea for another one. That is what happened in this case. Yesterday I made a pendant with a wooden circle. As I was looking through my beads to figure out what would go with it, I saw some wooden beads that I bought a couple of years ago at a bead store in Lake Placid. So today I started creating a necklace with those beads, which are very different because they are stained to show the wood grain, and in some cases, they are stained with other patterns. I added some other wooden beads, and put this necklace together. That sounds simple, but it wasn't. Even though I behaved myself this time and used a design board, I had to revise the design twice, and I also had to restring the whole thing because I had problems with the clasp. At that point I was very frustrated, but I was happy enough with the end result.

Pendant with Wood and Glass on Purple Leather Cord

Pendant with Wood and Glass on Purple Leather Cord
Originally uploaded by randubnick

I made this necklace today using a wooden circle, a green glass bead, and a purple leather cord. The basic idea is simple, and so is the construction, but getting a pleasing arrangements of shapes can be tricky. I tried a number of combinations before deciding on this one.

Neighborhood Winter Sports

Neighborhood Winter Sports
Originally uploaded by randubnick

This morning I decided to sketch an idea for a drawing that came to me during recent snow storms. This is from imagination, but is a composite inspired by neighborhood activities: the snow blowing up over the fence from one neighbor's snowblower and the kids sledding next door on a big mound of snow while Dad shovels. Their dog really does join in the fun! I added our little schipperke to the picture because she likes to slide downhill too, although she has never had a chance to try her skills on the big "ski slope" next door.

Window in New Studio

Window in New Studio
Originally uploaded by randubnick

This is a photograph that I took with my iPhone camera back on February 19 when my daughter and I toured the studio spaces at Porter Mill (formerly Red Brick). The building is going to reopen with art studios and we were picking out a space, hoping to get our first choice. We did, and today I can say officially that this will be our new studio, though move in isn't until May 1. This photo shows two of the windows, but it has six windows, and because it is on the top floor, has even more light. Tonight I cropped this image out of the original photo and used Painter to adjust the exposure.

Heart Shaped Box View of Back

Heart Shaped Box View of Back
Originally uploaded by randubnick

This is the collage and decoupage project I completed earlier in the week, a heart-shaped box covered with designs made from printed metallic ribbon. This photo shows a view of the back (underside) of the box. It is actually my favorite part, but least likely to be seen. I will miss working on this project. This project has taken much longer than I thought, so it has been an exercise in patience and perserverence. It has also been a kind of meditation on the possibility of creating something one small choice, one small action at a time. But that's true of all art projects, and it is time to move on to the next one.

Heart Shaped Box View of Inside of Lid

Heart Shaped Box View of Inside of Lid
Originally uploaded by randubnick

This is the collage and decoupage project that I finished a few days ago, a heart-shaped box covered with designs that I made from bits of printed metallic ribbon. This photo shows the inside of the lid. I used metallic gold-colored acryllic paint to cover the inside wall of the box top.

Heart Shaped Box View of Inside

Heart Shaped Box View of Inside
Originally uploaded by randubnick

This photo shows a view of the inside of the heart-shaped box, the collage and decoupage project that I finally finished over the weekend. The box once held a Mother's Day gift from my daughter. A friend gave me a some craft materials she no longer wanted, and among them was a bag of printed metallic ribbon. I used bits of that ribbon to create the designs that cover the surfaces.

Heart Shaped Box View of Top

Heart Shaped Box View of Top
Originally uploaded by randubnick

Yesterday I finally finished this collage and decoupage project, a heart-shaped box that I covered with decoupage and collage created from printed metallic ribbons. This photo shows a view of the top of the box.

Heart Shaped Box Finished February 26, 2011

Heart Shaped Box Finished February 26, 2011
Originally uploaded by randubnick

Today I finally finished this project, a heart-shaped box covered with collage and decoupage designs created from printed metallic ribbon. I finished all the cutting and pasting earlier in the week, and have been working on painting the inside wall of the box top, which I finished yesterday. I am happy with the texture, especially because it reflects the ribbon on the adjacent surface. Today I painted all of the exposed edged and patched and filled any gaps I could find. It was hard to get the paint to adhere to the surface of the box, so it took several coats, and there were four heart-shaped perimeters to do. I had dark gold and light gold craft paint, and experimented with the brush work till I got the look I wanted. I am happy to be finished with this project, and glad for how it turned out. It has taken quite a long time, but I will miss working on it.

Chinese Jade Pendant with Wood and Brass on Copper-Color Leather

Chinese Jade Pendant with Wood and Brass on Copper-Color Leather
Originally uploaded by randubnick

This is a necklace that I made this afternoon. I started with the color combination of the copper-colored leather cord and the Chinese jade disk. Then I added the big wooden bead and the little brass bead, tied the knots, adjusted the length a bit, and I was done.

Winter Daydream at Long Hill

Winter Daydream at Long Hill
Originally uploaded by randubnick

This is a digitally modified photograph that began with the picture of the main road at Long Hill Gardens that I posted here yesterday. I took the photo with my iPhone camera, and before I transferred the image to my computer, I made a duplicate and used the Camera Bag app to apply the Colorcross effect. I liked the crazy colors, but when I saw the image on my computer screen, I knew I had a problem: the photo was much too dark. I lightened the image as much as I could and I still had some interesting color, except for the sky, which had turned white. So I opened the image in Painter, intending only to fix the sky with a color overlay. But after I did that, I continued to experiment. (One of my painting teachers taught me that being forced to solve a problem is a good way to make art -- maybe because it gets you to think creatively.) In Painter, I could see that adjusting the lighting had meant losing definition along the road and in the tree branches. I tried an overall digital woodcut effect, but didn't like the result. But I realized that I could use the selection tool to apply the woodcut effect only to some of the tree branches, and that helped. Then I used the selection tool to add definition to some areas of the road with a combination of posterizing and woodcut effects. Finally, I hit some dark areas in the snow with digital airbrush. I liked the result, and here it is. Thanks, Prof. Daigle, wherever you are. You were right. I learned a lot tonight.

Long Hill Path in Winter (Posterized)

Long Hill Path in Winter (Posterized)
Originally uploaded by randubnick

It was sunny today, with temperatures in the thirties, so we went to Long Hill Gardens for a walk. The afternoon sunlight looked good on the snow, so I took some pictures. This is the tree-lined lane that leads from the entrance up to the main building. Tonight I cropped the original photo to get this composition, and used Painter to do some selective posterizing.

Heart Shaped Box as of February 21, 2011

Heart Shaped Box as of February 21, 2011
Originally uploaded by randubnick

This heart-shaped box is still a work in progress. Apart from minor fixes, I am finished with cutting and pasting bits of printed metallic ribbon. Now I am painting the inside wall of the box top. I got started yesterday, and at first I was nervous about getting paint on the collaged surfaces. I am using two different colors of gold metalic craft paint (acrylic) mixed with glossy medium to get very thin layers. I thought it might be difficult to get the paint to stick to the shiny surface of the box, and I was right. So I used thin layers, figuring that paint woul stick to paint, and that seems to work. After applying three very thin layers, I am starting to see results, but I think I will need two or three more layers to cover the surface (which would take about an hour altogether.) In this photo, you can still see the orange of the paste-board showing through. As I applied the paint, my vertical brush strokes created a natural pattern. With the third coat, I decided to try horizontal strokes over the vertical ones to get better coverage and in the process also realized that the horizontal and vertical marks would create a pattern that looks something like the texture of the woven metallic ribbon.

Looking Toward Salem From Lynch Park

Looking Toward Salem From Lynch Park
Originally uploaded by randubnick

This image started with one of the photos that I took at Lynch Park, during our recent and short-lived warm spell. I used my iPhone camera to take the picture, and then afterward used the Camera Bag app to apply the Cinema effect, which seemed to create some dramatic colors. Tonight I used iPhoto to adjust the contrast and lighting because the rocks were much darker than they appear in this image. Then I cropped the image to get this composition.

February Thaw (Digital Woodcut, Posterized)

February Thaw (Digital Woodcut, Posterized)
Originally uploaded by randubnick

This a posterized version of the image I posted yesterday, a digital woodcut created from a photo that I took at Lynch Park, here in Beverly, MA. Last night, I used Painter to clean up the photo (and the snow in the photo) with a digital airbrush, and then to transform it into a digital woodcut. I liked the woodcut, but suddenly wondered what would happen if I posterized a digital woodcut. I tried it, and this is the result. (This is something I had never tried before, so I am happy to have found a new process.) Anyway, I liked the result, so here it is.

February Thaw at Lynch Park (Digital Woodcut)

February Thaw at Lynch Park (Digital Woodcut)
Originally uploaded by randubnick

Yesterday we had a February thaw, with the high temperature at 59 degrees. Even though the snow is still piled up pretty high, it was a good day for a walk at Lynch Park. I haven't been to Lynch Park since our big snow storms. The city sends snow from the streets over to the parks in dump trucks, so the parking lot was full of great mounds of snow, making it hard to even tell where we were. But in the park itself, the paths were clear and we had a nice walk. It was great because lately it has been impossible to walk outside because of the ice and snow on the sidewalks. I took lots of pictures, in part because I didn't need gloves ,so it was easier to use the iPhone camera. This composition was one of the best shots from yesterday's walk. I liked the way the curves of the path echoed the curves of the shoreline. However, in the original photo, the snow banks next to the path are incredibly dirty. So tonight I opened the image in Painter and used digital airbrush to lighten the problem areas. Then I used Painter's woodcut effect, experimenting with the controls until I got what I wanted. After that, I made my final crop, and here it is. I also created a posterized version of this woodcut (never occurred to me to try that) and I plan to post it here tomorrow.

Heart Shaped Box as of February 17, 2011

Heart Shaped Box as of February 17, 2011
Originally uploaded by randubnick

This is a collage and decoupage project, a heart-shaped box that I am covering with decoupage and collage created with printed metallic ribbon. This project is still in progress, but it is almost finished. Yesterday I finally completed the red area (floor of the interior) by filling the remaining gaps with bits of red-orange ribbon. So now all the collage and decoupage is basically done, and the cutting and pasting is finished. (There are still some very tiny gaps I will fill with paint and a tiny brush.) So there is only one more major step, one more surface left to cover: the interior of the box top. I have decided to just paint it with gold-colored acrylic paint. That way, the box will close easily and I can avoid wear and tear of friction between two collaged surfaces. Then I will also paint any exposed edges, too. Painting is much faster than pasting bits of ribbon, so this last part should go quickly, and I am very nearly done.

Mountain Composition Actions

Mountain Composition Actions
Originally uploaded by randubnick

Yesterday I posted a sketch that I made on my iPad with the Brushes app. The image is four mountains, influenced by memories of the Rocky Mountains in Colorado. I was trying to learn how to use transparent layers of color to create the look of a watercolor. On the iPad, Brushes captures a stroke-by-stroke video as you draw, so if you press play, you can watch as I struggle to learn something new.

Mountain Composition

Mountain Composition
Originally uploaded by randubnick

This is a digital sketch made on my iPad with the Brushes app. Tonight I decided to try to "paint" with transparent layers of color, to get the color to behave something like watercolor paint. I have been able to do that with my Painter software, but Brushes behaves quite differently so there is definitely a learning curve. Tonight I felt like I was beginning to get the hang of it. Although I worked from my imagination, the shapes, color palette, and horizon line are all drawn from my memories of the Colorado Rocky Mountains. On the iPad, Brushes captures a stroke-by-stroke video as you draw. If I am able to post the video tomorrow, everyone can watch me struggle to make this work.

Heart Shaped Box (Detail of Interior)

Heart Shaped Box (Detail of Interior)
Originally uploaded by randubnick

Here is a close-up photo of the inside of the heart-shaped box, as it looked two days ago, when I finished the interior wall. (I say finished even though I know I may still see gaps that need to be fixed.) This photo shows the patterns I am making with bits of printed metallic ribbon. Today I worked for just thirty minutes on filling in gaps in the bright red area (floor of box). You can see some of the gaps in this photo. The process of filling in the gaps is very tedious, and the difference is hard to see, but as I close up gaps with bright red-orange ribbon, the intensity of the red will increase, so I will wait till I finish that area to post again. After that, I will use gold-colored acrylic paint on the inside wall of the lid, and on any remaining raw edges. So I think am close to finishing, which is good, because I need to start painting for a show this spring, and I could use the extra room in my studio.

Red Roses (Posterized)

Red Roses (Posterized)
Originally uploaded by randubnick

It is fun to see all the flowers on display in the stores this time of year, a great contrast to the ice and snow still piled up outside. This image started with a photograph that I took with my iPhone over the weekend during a trip to Whole Foods. Although the iPhone camera faithfully captured the colors and lighting, unfortunately it also captured several labels, tags, and floral wire that I hadn't seen in my excitement over the flowers. Oh, well. If you wait for anything to be perfect (love, flowers, or just a photograph), you can end up waiting a long, long time. So tonight I opened the original photo in Painter and used digital pastel to draw over the unwanted items to make them disappear. I also used just a little cut-and-paste. Then I posterized the image a little bit, and cropped it to get this composition.

Heart Shaped Box as of February 13, 2011

Heart Shaped Box as of February 13, 2011
Originally uploaded by randubnick

This is a collage and decoupage project in progress, a heart-shaped box that I am covering with designs created from bits of printed metallic ribbon. Yesterday and again today, I have been working on finishing the inside wall of the box, filling in gaps. As the gaps get smaller, the work becomes more intense because it is hard to handle the tiny pieces of ribbon. Today I finally finished the inside wall, although no doubt I will find mistakes to fix. I feel like I might actually finish this project sometime this decade. What is still left to do: fill in remaining gaps on the red area in the interior of the box (which I started doing today, using bright red-orange pieces), and then finish the interior wall of the top of the box. At this point, I plan to paint that surface with gold paint. To be continued. . . .

Parrot Tulips in Cellophane

Parrot Tulips in Cellophane
Originally uploaded by randubnick

Even though I have become used to the weather here north of Boston, and even though I do love taking pictures of snow, I have to admit that this has been a challenging winter. The weather report says temperatures will warm up into the thirties this week, and I am already thinking about spring. Today I saw some tulips--only at the grocery store--but here north of Boston, you have to take signs of spring where you can find them. This was at Whole Foods, and the sign said "Parrot Tulips". The sign and the bright flowers made me smile, so I took a picture. Tonight I cropped this image from the original photograph.

Snow on Spruce and Dogwood

Snow on Spruce and Dogwood
Originally uploaded by randubnick

This is a photograph that I took last week, on the morning of February 8. We had some snow overnight, nothing much compared to some of recent snowstorms, but enough to dust the branches of the trees. I liked the contrast of the these two trees, so I took a picture. Tonight I cropped the original photo to get this composition.

Heart Shaped Box as of February 9, 2011

Heart Shaped Box as of February 9, 2011
Originally uploaded by randubnick

Yesterday I set aside an hour to work on this project. This heart-shaped box once held a Mother's Day gift from my daughter. Now I am covering it with collage and decoupage patterns created from printed metallic ribbons. (The ribbons are also recycled, given to me by a friend). I am still working on the interior wall of the box. At this point, I am filling in remaining gaps. I did pretty much run out of the pink, green, and blue pattern that I was using. So now I am using another pattern. It is also pink, but floral, so there are also bits of green in it. It blends in and I think I have enough of it to finish.

Inside Out MFA Courtyard Crop 2

Inside Out MFA Courtyard Crop 2
Originally uploaded by randubnick

This is another image cropped from the photo I took in the new courtyard in Boston's Museum of Fine Arts. I posterized the photograph using Painter. Then I did some close-in cropping to create compositions that are almost abstract. What I was after was the light, color, geometry, and of course, the play with interior and exterior space.

Inside Out MFA Courtyard Crop 1

Inside Out MFA Courtyard Crop 1
Originally uploaded by randubnick

Yesterday's post was a posterized and digitally edited photograph that I took on Sunday at Boston's Museum of Fine Arts. I was fascinated by the new courtyard, which plays with interior and exterior space. I especially liked the way the windows reflected other parts of the museum, creating a sense of double exposure. This is one of the compositions that I cropped out of the image that I posted here last night.

Inside Out at New MFA Courtyard (Posterized Photo)

Inside Out at New MFA Courtyard (Posterized Photo)
Originally uploaded by randubnick

This began with a photo that I took during yesterday's excursion to Boston's Museum of Fine Arts. I liked the new courtyard so I took some pictures. I liked the play of inside and outside and the reflections of the buildings on glass that created a sense of double exposure. Tonight I opened the original version of this photo in Painter and posterized it; I didn't want the figures to be recognizable images of the people I photographed, so I did some additional posterizing and applied digital chalk to change the figures. After I finished this image, I cropped out some additional close-ups from it, which I hope to post here soon.

View of Boston from Museum of Fine Arts

View of Boston from Museum of Fine Arts
Originally uploaded by randubnick

I took this photograph today during an excursion into Boston. My daughter and I went to the Museum of Fine Arts to have lunch and to see the new wing. Lunch was great, and we saw some beautiful exhibits. Today was full of surprises, and one of them was walking around a corner at of an exhibition in the new wing, opening a door, and suddenly finding myself in a glass-walled corridor, looking out at Boston skyline. I loved the play of inside/outside! This reminded me of a similar glass-walled corridor with an ocean view in Boston's Institute for Contemporary Art (ICA). Anyway, the light was amazing, so I took some pictures with my iPhone camera. This is the best of the photos. You can see the Prudential Center, as well as the John Hancock building, in the background. Apart from cropping the image to get this composition, I didn't do anything to it. The color is just as it came out of the camera.

Necklace with Incised Jade on Copper Leather Cord

Necklace with Incised Jade on Copper Leather Cord
Originally uploaded by randubnick

I made another necklace today, this time with incised Chinese jade and wooden beads on a copper-colored leather cord. Even though I had to undo and redo some knots (which isn't at all fun), I like this method because the knots become part of the design.

Sunlight on Snowy Branches (Posterized)

Sunlight on Snowy Branches (Posterized)
Originally uploaded by randubnick

Yesterday I posted an image of a winter rooftop, cropped from a photograph that I took yesterday. Today I went back to the originals in that set of photos, but this time I cropped out a different composition without the roof and showing more of the tree. Then I opened it in Painter and posterized it.

Winter Rooftop (Posterized Photo)

Winter Rooftop (Posterized Photo)
Originally uploaded by randubnick

After a two-day snow-storm, I spent time today running around town doing all the errands I hadn't been able to take care of for the past few days. Even though the sun was shining and the snow was beautiful, I didn't stop to take pictures. But the late afternoon light was wonderful, so I grabbed my iPhone camera. The subject matter was nothing special: a garage roof and some branches, but the sunlight on the snow was amazing. Tonight I cropped this image out of the original, and posterized it using Painter.

Necklace with Chinese Jade and Purple Beads

Necklace with Chinese Jade and Purple Beads
Originally uploaded by randubnick

I didn't plan to make jewelry today, but I was standing in my studio contemplating the huge amount of snow on the roof over my head, and noticed a small paper bag with some beads I bought last year. I saw the purple wooden beads in the bag, and I immediately remembered that I bought them to combine with Chinese jade. At that point, I was waiting around to answer the door (people coming with ladders to clear some snow off the gutters), so I decided to see if I could put a necklace together while I waited. So I laid the beads out on the design board, and started tying knots. Before you know it, I had snow cleared off the roof, worries gone, and a necklace finished.

Heart Shaped Box as of February 1, 2011

Heart Shaped Box as of February 1, 2011
Originally uploaded by randubnick

Here north of Boston, it's another day, another snowstorm. But today's weather meant an opportunity to work on this project for an hour. I am covering this heart-shaped box with collage and decoupage created from printed metallic ribbons. Today I continued to work on the inside wall of the box, which I am covering in a predominately pale pink pattern that also has dark pink, blue, and rose in it. At this point, I am filling in the gaps, which means the pieces are getting smaller and smaller, and so it becomes more time consuming to make the pieces fit. It isn't a race (good thing!), but I am glad to see progress.