Tunnel Ahead (Near Central City), Painting as of September 30, 2023

On September 30th, I sketched the composition of this painting on the canvas, using my photo reference as a guide.  It came together pretty easily, which was a relief, because roads can be tricky.  Then I started applying paint.  To be continued. . . .

Tunnel Ahead (Photo Reference for Painting)

On September 29th, I began to prepare for the next painting, although I had not yet finished the last one. To make this photo reference, I found a picture that I took in June of 2018, during a trip to Colorado.  We were on our way to Central City, and at this point, were heading toward the tunnels that were part of the drive I had loved as a child.  To get this photo ready, I opened the image in Painter, on my computer. First, I cropped out the interior of the car. In the original photo, you can see that this is actually a divided highway, but I turned the other part of the road into trees.  There were several cars on the road, which I removed, along with some road signs.  Because my goal was just to get the composition I wanted, I left this pretty rough. The result is that it is easy to tell where I made changes.  Anyway, once I was happy with the changes, I printed out a copy of this digitally altered photo to use as my painting reference.

Above Dillon Lake (Painting as of September 28, 2023)

On September 28, I worked on this painting.  The biggest change was to the sky. Using my reference photo, I putting in cloud formations.  I refined some of the shapes of the patches of snow, and also applied color washes to the blue mountains. To be continued. . .

Above Dillon Lake (Painting as of September 27, 2023)

On September 27th, I worked on this painting for a while. I started painting the sky, and worked on the areas of snow above treeline.  I also worked on the color of the blue areas in the mountains.

Cheyenne Lake, Broadmoor (Colorado Springs), Acrylic Mixed Media Painting

On September 27, I returned to this painting.  I added some blue washes to the mountains to simplify the colors, and added a bit more blue to the water.  Then I was finally ready to say that it is finished. This painting, part of my solo show at Galatea, is also on Artsy.com

Above Dillon Lake (Painting as of September 26, 2023)

I started another painting on September 26th.  I sketched in the composition using my reference photo, and then painted in the main areas.  I worked on the forested hill in the foreground, trying to build texture.  I laid out the mountain shapes beyond that with shades of blue and green, and painted the highest mountain (above treeline) with purple and patches of white for the snow that remains even in July.  I didn't have time to paint the sky, but just sketched in where I wanted the clouds to be.  To be continued. . . .

April Snow, North of Boulder (Acrylic Mixed Media Painting)

 

Here is the painting, finished on September 26th.  At this point, final changes were minor, checking lines to make sure they extend to the borders of the painting, refining a few shapes.  (Post-script note: This painting, part of my solo show at Galatea Fine Art, sold at First Friday, and will soon be going to its new home.)

Above Dillon Lake (Painting Reference Photo)

 

On September 25th, although I was still finishing up a couple of paintings, it was time to prepare for the next painting.  In my photo album, I found a nice image of mountains in the background of a picture taken at Dillon Lake during a family trip to Colorado.  I scanned the photo and once it was in the computer, cropped it to capture the part I wanted.  I edited it for size, and then posterized it.

April Snow, North of Boulder (Painting as of September 24, 2023)

  

Here is my painting as it looked on September 24th.  I added some touches of brown and green to the foreground, to suggest vegetation.  I painting into the mountain again to soften the color, and added more pasted paper for the contour lines of the hills.  I started added a bit of blue to the third contour line.  Getting there. . .

April Snow, North of Boulder (Painting as of September 23, 2023)

Here is my painting as it looked at the end of the day on September 23rd.  I began painting into the shapes I had built up with pasted paper the previous day.  I painted the sun pink, and used some orange washes over the pink paper to echo the orange in the foreground. With my reference photo as a guide, I applied blue-green paint over the pasted paper.  I painted into  the hillside and the foreground, trying to capture some of the textures and colors suggested in the reference photo.  To be continued. . . .

April Snow, North of Boulder (Painting as of Sept. 22, 2023)

Here is how this painting looked at the end of the day on September 22.  I put extra time into it that day, and made a lot of progress.  I covered the sky with pink pasted paper, and covered the foreground with a pale yellow that is almost a neutral.  Then I established shadows on the mountains with two shades of blue, and the shapes of the foothills with pieces of gray paper. The mark for the sun is still blue, from the original sketch.  But it will soon change color. To be continued. . 

April Snow, North of Boulder (Painting as of September 21, 2023)

I managed to get this painting started on September 21, and this is how it looked at the end of the day.  Using my painting reference as a guide, I sketched out the composition on the board with some conte crayon, then went over it with some blue and green paint,  to set up a rough idea of where the basic lines would be.

Leaving Central City (Acrylic/Mixed Media Painting)

Here is my painting as it looked on September 21, 2023.  I cleaned up some of the lines,  added additional washes to adjust color the color, and added some darker greek to the foothills in the foreground to suggest depth.. Then I decided that it was finished.

Me and My Dad, October 91 (with Prisma filter)

Found this while looking through photo albums for more mountain images to paint.  I cropped this out of one of them (at the Broadmoor), and added Prisma's "Aqua" filter.  Wish there had been more time with him. 

April Snow, North of Boulder (Photo Reference for Painting)

On September 20, I was getting ready to start another painting.  I cropped this image from the background of a family photo. Then I opened the image in Painter and simplified the foreground, turning rooftops of suburban houses into a field.

Leaving Central City (Painting as of September 19, 2023)

Here is this painting as it looked on September 19, 2023.  I began to fine-tune the colors, using washes in shades of blue and green.  The goal was to make each of the mountain areas distinct, but related. And I then I mixed up some silver and pink and very carefully painted the lines of the road. Almost done. . .

Leaving Central City (Painting as of September 18, 2028)

I worked on this painting again on September 18th, and here is how it looked when I was finished for the day.  I began to have more fun with this. I added another layer of paint to the green hills in the foreground. I added pasted paper to the road and painted the guard rail with silver paint. I also added pasted paper to the mountains in the far distance.  To be continued. . .

Leaving Central City (Painting as of September 17, 2023)

I continued to work on "Leaving Central City", and this is how it looked on September 17, 2023.  I repainted the road and guardrails. I straightened out some of the lines, being careful not to lose the perspective..  I mixed some silver into the paint for the road. I repainted the hills in the foreground with a more saturated sage green, and added some pasted paper to represent dark shrubbery. To be continued. . . .

Cheyenne Lake, Broadmoor (Colorado Springs) as of September 17, 2023

Here is my painting as of September 17.  I continued to fine-tune it.  Here, the biggest change is that I used yellow-green on the foliage across the lake, to create more resonance with the foliage in the foreground. I was still trying to strengthen the composition by reducing the number of colors and simplifying the shapes.  To be continued. . .

Cheyenne Lake, Broadmoor (Colorado Springs), Painting as of September 16, 2023

Although I was working on another painting ("Leaving Central City"), this painting of Cheyenne Lake was still in my studio, and I worked some more on it as well.  I added more blue to the water to create depth, I painted back into the foliage along the water as well as the foothills.  My goal was to simplify the colors and strengthen the shapes..  At this point, I thought the painting was stronger, but not yet finished.  To be continued. . . .

Still Life with Apples and Honey (Drawing replay video)

I recently posted a digital drawing that I made for Rosh Hashanah. I used the Procreate app on my iPad, which captures a video replay as you draw.  But this time, for some reason the replay stopped a bit too soon, before I had finished the drawing. I kept on drawing, but the video replay didn't capture what I was doing. Maybe I accidentally turned off the video replay switch while I was drawing.  I was disappointed, but I decided to just use iMovie to combine the unfinished replay I had with the finished version of the drawing. Things go wrong In art (and in life), but the question is "can I fix this?" So here is my imperfect video, repaired for Rosh Hashanah, a good start for the new year. 

 

Leaving Central City (Painting as of September 16, 2023)

I continued work on this painting and here it is as it looked on September 16, 2023.  Using my reference photo as a guide, I revised the shape of the mountains in the distance, and added the snow. I began to paint the sky with a first layer of blue.  I use some watercolor techniques to produce texture on the mountains.  I added sage green to the hills in the foreground, and additional color to the mountains beyond.  I added more color to the road, being careful to maintain the perspective so the road would look right.  To be continued. . .

Leaving Central City (Painting as of September 15, 2023)

Here is my painting as it looked at the end of the day on September 15. This is based on a photo that I took during a trip to Colorado in 2018. I used acrylic paint to rough in some of the shapes with a general idea of the colors I wanted to use.  It's always a little tricky to try to paint a road, but I was happy with how this was going. 

Leaving Central City (Sketch on Canvas, Sept. 15, 2023)

Here is my painting as it looked just as I started it on September 15th.  Guided by my reference photo, I sketched in the composition with conte crayon, and then added a bit of color and water.  To be continued. . .

Still Life with Apples and Honey

Sending this out to wish everyone sweet days ahead, and to say "Happy New Year" to those celebrating Rosh Hashanah. I drew this digital still life on my iPad with the Procreate app

Leaving Central City (Reference for Painting)

This is a photo from our 2018 trip to Colorado. (We were traveling the state with the Brazilian couple that we met in Boulder in 1968. This was a 50th anniversary celebration for both couples and a celebration of 50 years of friendship.)  I cropped this image out of one of the photos I took as we left Central City.  I liked the layers of mountains and the curving road.  I had originally intended to include the poles, but decided against it.  This was the reference for the painting that is being used to advertise my solo show, opening November 3 at Galatea Fine Art.

Cheyenne Lake, Broadmoor (Painting as of Sept. 14, 2023)

Here is my painting of Cheyenne Lake as it looked on September 14th.  The biggest change I made was to the shape of the shore in the lower right corner.  I made a few changes to the water and the shore line, to add depth, and also added more blue to the mountains in the background. To be continued. . .

Together (Double Portrait)

Here is the final version of the double portrait, finished earlier this week.  It is now on the way to its new home in Tennessee, and should get there today.

Cheyenne Lake, Broadmoor (Painting as of September 13, 2023)

Here is my painting of Cheyenne Lake at the Broadmoor as of September 13.  I began painting back in to the layers of pasted paper, using my reference photo as a guide.  To be continued. . .

Art in Transit: "Pencil Sketch for Double Portrait" and "Together (Double Portrait)

I took this photo yesterday, just before I packed up the painted portrait for mailing, and also tucked the pencil sketch into the package.  Now they are both in transit, on the way to Tennesse

Cheyenne Lake, Broadmoor (as of September 12, 2023)

My reference for this is a photo taken back in 1991, during a visit to Colorado. I met family and friends for lunch at the Broadmoor Hotel, and we walked along the lake behind the hotel. On September 12th, I began to paint this scene with acrylics in the morning, working from my reference photo, and in the afternoon, began to add pasted paper. Here is how it looked at the end of the day.  I believe this was my first attempt to use collaged paper to represent water.

Twin Towers from Brooklyn Bridge (with Prisma’s “Aqua”filter)

 In July of 2011, we walked over the Brooklyn Bridge and I took a picture of the Twin Towers. I didn’t know it would be my last photo of them and that they would be destroyed in a few months. Today I added Prisma’s “Aqua” filter to my 2011 photo, taken that last summer in July.

Cheyenne Lake, Broadmoor (Posterized) Painting Reference

This photo is one of the painting references I have been using. I have been painting mountains again, specifically the mountains of my home state of Colorado.  I am drawing on photos, some from old family albums, and some taken on trips back to my home state.  I cropped this from a photo that I took back in 1991 during a visit to Colorado to see friends and family.  We got together at the Broadmoor in Colorado Springs for lunch. This was taken from the hotel grounds, looking across Cheyenne like towards the mountains in the distance.

Together (Double Portrait) as of August 30, 2023

Here is my painting as of August 30th.  I continued to work on this double portrait as the likenesses continued to go in and out of focus and back again.  At this point, I began to try out an idea for the background: a big flowering tree where my son proposed.

My Dad at 21 (Rescued Photo)

This photo of my father was among a batch of pictures given to me by my Aunt Celia, a few years after my father's death.  I keep those photos in a little album, and this picture is usually inserted into the front of the album, to serva as a cover.  I was looking for a picture of my father today, and decided to take this one out of the album and scan it in to the computer.  It's a nice photo, this point had lots of deep cracks and small marks. I decided to see if I could rescue it.  Once I opened the image in iPhoto, I was able to fix the marks and small cracks, and once that was done, it was possible to enhance the contrast a bit. There is not much information on the back of the photo: just Feb 11 1929, Hy.  So my father was 21 at the time. I don't know who took this picture -- I wondered if it was my Uncle Ike. Possible, I guess, but it seems unlikely that they would have already known each other.   In any case, the photographer did a great job. It's nice to have this portrait of my father as a young man.  I am posting this today because he was born on August 28.

Together (Double Portrait) as of August 27, 2023

Here is the double portrait as of August 27, 2023.  I continued to work on the faces, and began to work on the clothing.

Together (Double Portrait) as of August 26, 2023

Here is the double portrait as it looked on August 26th.  During the preceeding days, I struggled to get to likeness for both portraits,  I measured my reference photo, I measured the canvas, I used multiple colors to mark changes, I turned the canvas upside-down, I looked at it in the mirror.  I opened the reference photo in painter and traced a rough outline of the main features, and then compare that to the painting.  All of these things helped, and at this point, my optimism returned as  l began to see two familiar faces on the canvas.  To be continued. . . .

Together (Double Portrait), sketch on canvas as of August 19, 2023

Here is the double portrait as it looked on August 19th.  I was already seeing a bit of likeness in both faces. This is still a sketch with conte crayon, blended to indicate shading.  I sketched in trees for the background.  I tend to use different colors of conte crayon to make it easy to see what I am doing as I make changes in a portrait. That helps me to see but can make the colors look a bit garish at this stage, so I have muted the saturation here for posting.

Together (Double Portrait), sketch on canvas as of August 17, 2023

I was finally able to get back to this project in mid-August, a little over 4 weeks since I fell and broke a bone in my right arm  (the radial head, which at first I miss-heard as Radio Head.) Anyway, by August 17, I had enough movement, control, and confidence in my right arm to return to this double portrait. I started by just roughing in the features with more conte crayon

Vine-Covered Shed (Digital Drawing as of August 15, 2023)

Here is my digital drawing as of August 15, 2023.  I had used layers in Procreate to trace elements from one of my photos, resulting in the drawing I posted here yesterday.  But then I decided that I wanted to adjust the composition, so I went back to Procreate, and extended the bushes in the foreground to the edge of the image. I also made a few minor changes,. Now I am happier with the composition. 

Vine-Covered Shed (Digital Drawing as of August 14, 2023)

Here is my digital drawing of the vine-covered shed as it looked on August 14th.  I used the Procreate app on my iPad for this drawing.  I have been spending some time trying to work out the best way to create line drawings from my photos.  This time, I used Procreate's layers and did some selective tracing to capture the lines I wanted to have in my drawing.  This was good practice because I have only rarely used layers.*  And for the first time, I used the "drawing assist" function to draw the straight lines of the building and roof.  (Seems fair, since you can't really use a ruler to draw on your eye pad.)  Anyway, I was happy enough with the result, but decided I wanted to make some changes to the composition. (To be continued.)

*It was also practice in general because as I am returning to drawing from last month's arm injury.

Vine-Covered Shed (Photo)

Late in October of last year, I took a photo of this little vine-covered shed that I noticed during a walk in the neighborhood.  I liked the lines and textures and thought I might like to do something with the photo some day.  Someday came yesterday when I decided to use the image as the basis for a line drawing.  To be continued. . .

Memories of the Mountains, Photo 2 (Porter Mill Vitrine Show 2023)

I am so grateful to Porter Mill for asking me to show my work again this year! Last Thursday, August 10, I delivered ten of my mountain landscapes to be hung in the big display window (vitrine) in the lobby of Porter Mill. By the next day, I received photos of how the display looks, and I was so pleased! This is the second of two photos. The exhibit will be up through September.

Memories of the Mountains, Photo 1 (Porter Mill Vitrine Show 2023)

I am very pleased to have been invited to show my mountain paintings at Porter Mill again this year!  Last Thursday (August 10), I delivered ten of my mountain landscapes to be hung in the big display window (the vitrine).  I wasn't able to stay to watch them be hung, but the next day, I received photos of the exhibit and I am very pleased with how they are displayed.  This is the first of two photos.  

Iris and Fence (Line Drawing from Photo)

Today I used Procreate to create this line drawing, based on one of my photos.

Rose of Sharon (Line Drawing from Photo)

Today I used another of my photos to create a line drawing, using layers in Procreate. This time I used my Apple pencil, so I could get more detail

Rose (Digital Outline Drawing from Photo)

I have been trying to figure out the best way to make a quick line drawing from a photo.  Here is one I did with my iPad. I imported my photo of a rose into Procreate, added a layer, and did some selective tracing with digital ink.  This is very rough because I didn't use my Apple pencil, which was not charged. So I used my finger as a stylus. Also I have a sore arm so didn't spend much time on this.  Nonetheless, I like the result. This is a very workable process

"Together (Double Portrait)", sketch on canvas as of July 13, 2023

In mid July, I finally had a chance to get this double portrait started.  I used conte crayon to make this sketch directly on the canvas.  This was a pretty promising start and I had some hope of possible completing the portrait before our trip to Tennessee at the beginning of August.  But the next day, I fractured a bone in my right arm, so I had to stop working on this for a while. I thought about trying to work on this with my left hand, but took the wiser course of waiting for my arm to heal first.  At least our trip wasn't ruined: we changed our plans for a road trip and booked airline tickets instead.  

"Gray Mountain, Pink Sky" Has a New Home!

Today I am reposting this photo of my painting, "Gray Mountain, Pink Sky," which now has new owners and a new home in upstate New York. 

Portrait of Vicki (Watercolor)

This is a portrait of my cousin Vicki,. We grew up together in an extended multifamily household,  were more or less raised as sisters, and nearly always dressed like twins. We learned to answer to each other's names. I painted this portrait back in 1965, when I was a junior in high school. You can see that I signed it "Randi Zagon," my maiden name.  I had a great high school art teacher, Robert Corty, but nevertheless you can see  that I had a lot to learn about portraits and figure drawing. (Well, I still do, There is always a lot to learn in art..) But my Aunt Edy loved this little portrait, and had it hanging on her wall.  I am posting this today in memory of my cousin Vicki, who passed away on June 30th.  It is now actually July 10, and I haven't posted anything since then ( I am back-dating this post), and so I thought I would resume posting with this.  May her memory be for a blessing, as was her life.

Morning Mountain (Colorado Springs) in "Summer Salon" show at Galatea

I am reposting my mixed media painting of morning in Colorado Springs because it is currently included in a group show titled "Summer Salon" at Galatea Fine Art. It will be on display through July. I am very happy to be included in this show. Here is how my painting looks on the wall.