Saturday, November 30, 2019

Pikes Peak Daydream (Acrylic Watermedia)


This is the painting I have been working on, a "daydream" of Pikes Peak, inspired by a photo that I took during a trip to Colorado in March of 1979.  Today I made a lot of small changes, and finally am ready to call it finished.  Good thing, too, because tomorrow I plan to deliver it to Galatea Fine Arts in Boston for the December show.

Friday, November 29, 2019

Pikes Peak Day Dream (as of Nov. 29, 2019)



This is the painting I have been working on.  This is inspired by a photo of Pikes Peak that I took in March 2079. (My reference photo is posted here, Nov. 23.) Today I adjusted some lines that were bothering me and I think everything is where I want it to be. II am hoping to finish this tomorrow or maybe Saturday. 

Thursday, November 28, 2019

Big Family Dinner


This is an old family photo, a beat-up Polaroid  and I am not even sure where I came across it. Today I did some retouching to try to rescue this photo. I think it might have been taken at Thanksgiving.  This was taken in the 1960s in Pueblo in the house where I grew up, no doubt after my husband and I got married and moved to Boulder (which is why we aren't there.)  At the table are my mother-in-law, my husband's grandmother, my mother, my cousin Ronni and her husband, my cousin Vicki, my Aunt Edy and my Uncle Bob, my Uncle Al, my father, and my sister-in-law Mindy. And whoever was taking the picture. .  On the wall in the background: a collection of drawings that I did in high school.  My folks had them framed and hung on the wall.  I think that may have been the first time anything of mine had been framed and it blew me away that they did that (still does). Today I am (still) thankful for my parents and their encouragement, for the committee that raised me, for aunts, uncles, cousins, and life-long friends who have become part of our family.  

Wednesday, November 27, 2019

Pikes Peak Daydream (as of Nov. 27, 2019)


I worked on this painting again today.  My inspiration is a photo of Pikes Peak that I took in March of 1979, during a trip to Colorado. (My reference photo is posted here on Nov. 23.)  Today I added color to the sky and to the foliage in the foreground.  I also changed some of the lines of the mountains.  I made progress today, but there is more to do.  I hope to finish this in the next few days. . .

Tuesday, November 26, 2019

Pikes Peak Daydream (as of Nov. 26, 2019)


I continued working on this painting today. This mountain landscape is inspired by a photo that I took back in March of 1979, during a trip to Colorado. (My reference photo is posted here, Nov. 23.) Today I tried to figure out where the lightest areas are.  Then I added some mid-range colors, taking the neutral brown of the photo a bit closer to pink.  (Colorado soil naturally has a red cast, and that is intensified at sunrise and sunset.)  To be continued. . .

Monday, November 25, 2019

Pikes Peak Daydream (as of Nov. 25, 2019)


This is the painting I started yesterday, acrylic used with water on Aquabord.  I am working from a photo that I took during a visit to Colorado during March of 1979.  This morning, I started added the darkest areas, first blue and then purple. To be continued. . . 

Sunday, November 24, 2019

Pikes Peak Daydream (as of Nov. 24, 2019)


I started a new painting today. This morning I worked on the composition using blue monochrome (apart from the sun!).  I am using the reference photo (posted yesterday) as a guide and inspiration. This is all I had time to do today, but it always feels good to get started.  This is acrylic used as watermedia, on aquabord 16 x 20 inches.

Saturday, November 23, 2019

Pikes Peak (Digitally Edited)


Yesterday I posted a photo of Pikes Peak that I took during a visit to Colorado in March of 1979.  I decided to use that photo as a reference for my next painting, but I needed to make some changes. First, I did some cropping to get the image into an 8 x 10 format. (My painting will be 16 x 20).  To get there and still have the composition I wanted, I decided to add space (50 pixels) to the bottom of the image.  I then filled it that new blank space by copying and pasting some of the sagebrush at the bottom of the image.  I went over it with some digital pastel.  I may reduce the amount of that pattern in the painting by cutting through it with a diagonal line, but at least I have something to start with.  I also simplified the foreground by covering the buildings with white to look like snow.  Then I posterized the whole image, not just because I like the look of that effect (which I do) but also because it helps me to see the shapes and colors. I will print this out to use as my reference photo.

Friday, November 22, 2019

Pikes Peak (March 1979)


Next up, more paintings of mountains!  Today I started going through my photo albums, looking for reference paintings.  I cropped this image out of a photo that I took during a trip to Colorado in March, 1979.  (The original photo showed a big sign announcing "Pikes Peak"; what you see here was in the background.)

Thursday, November 21, 2019

House on Signal Mountain (Acrylic Painting)



Today I worked on this house portrait.  (My reference photo is posted here on September 16.)  I reworked the stairs, toned down the purple a bit, and added the shadow of the railing.  I lightened the lawn a bit more and straightened some lines of the cast shadows.  I toned down the blue shadows in the trees behind the house.  What is left to do: I need to seal the edges (paint the sides of the canvas) and as I do that, I will fix any mistakes I see.  But I am ready to say that this is the painting, this is finished.

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Reposting: "November" (Oil Pastel)


This is a drawing that I did some years ago, using oil pastel.  This drawing came to mind today, maybe because I have been watching the last of the yellow and orange leaves getting ready to fall.

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

House on Signal Mountain (as of Nov. 19, 2019)


I am working on finishing this project, a "house portrait" that I am painting.  I am using a reference photo (posted here September 16). Today I used a pale yellow wash to lighten the color of the lawn.  I added some shadows to the windows. Then I used a ruler to check and correct some of the lines.  I am just trying to correct small errors at this point.  I hope to finish this soon (maybe tomorrow). . . .

Monday, November 18, 2019

House on Signal Mountain (as of Nov. 18, 2019)


This is the house portrait I have been working on, as it looks today.  I am painting this from a photograph, posted here September 16.  Yesterday I worked on evening out the colors on the lawn.  This is better, but I might want to make the yellow-green just a bit lighter.  I am close to finishing this, but need to straighten out a few lines, make sure everything is neat, and fix some small details.  Almost there.  To be continued. . . .

Sunday, November 17, 2019

Blueberry Leaves Turn Red (with Prisma filter)


Yesterday's post was a photo of blueberry leaves turning red, a spectacular annual event that takes place just outside my back door.  Here is the same photo, this time with a Prisma filter.

Saturday, November 16, 2019

Blueberry Leaves Turn Red


The blueberry leaves are turning bright red, just outside my back door.  Today I remembered to take a picture, before they are gone.  I also created a version of this photo with a Prisma filter, and I plan to post it tomorrow.

Friday, November 15, 2019

House on Signal Mountain (as of Nov. 15, 2019)


This is the painting I have been working on, a house portrait based on a photo.  (The reference photo is posted here on September 16th.)  Today I fixed a shadow that has been puzzling me (on the right-hand side of the painting).  And I added some shadows to the trees behind the house.  By the time I was finished working on this, it was 4:30.  The color looks a little different today: I didn't want to take a picture under a light bulb, so I photographed the painting outside.  I am hoping to finish this painting soon.  There are some things I need to fix, but it won't be long now.  

Thursday, November 14, 2019

House on Signal Mountain (as of Nov. 14, 2019)


This morning I continued work on this painting, a "house portrait" that I am painting from a photograph. (You can see my reference photo posted here September 16.)  Today I worked on the trees in the background, behind the house.  I added a touch of green foliage, which works because the photo that I am using was taken in late March.

Wednesday, November 13, 2019

Through a Window in Boston (with Prisma filter)


This image started with a picture that I took while I was at Galatea Gallery, looking out the window at Boston's SOWA neighborhood.  I added the Prisma filter and cropped the original image to get this composition.

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

House on Signal Mountain (As of Nov. 12, 2019)


This morning I worked on this painting, a "house portrait" based on a photograph. (My reference photo is posted here, September 16.) Today I worked on the tree trunk, lightening the shadows and adding highlights.  I also added some yellow highlights to the front of the house. Then I repainted the sky, trying to make the color more even before I paint in the tree branches. Getting there. . .

Monday, November 11, 2019

Dad in Florida (A Soldier's Love Letter)


It's Veteran's Day so I was looking for a World War II photo of my father.  He was from Brooklyn, but after enlisting, was briefly stationed in Pueblo, Colorado, where he met and married my mother, a few months before he would go to Europe. I usually look for war-time photos in the album mom kept,  beginning with their courtship and marriage in Pueblo,  including photos that he sent back from overseas.  But today I also looked in the boxes of my dad's photos that my cousin Rori sent me last year, photos that he had kept with him for years.  I was really looking for photos of Europe today, so nearly really passed this one over. I had seen it before, and from other photos in my mom's album, had concluded that my father must have been stationed in Florida right leaving for Europe.  Before casting this photo aside, I turned it over to see if it was dated, and to my surprise, on the back found a love letter to my mother, written in Spanish. 
     My father studied Spanish in school, and he loved it. (When I was a child, he later would read me articles in the Spanish Reader's Digest, and became the go-to person for Spanish-speaking customers in our family furniture store in Pueblo.) Did my mother know Spanish? No, maybe a bit of French. But I am sure that she loved the fact that he spoke Spanish. But I know she loved my father enough to find a way to figure it out.
     Well, I fell in love with this letter, so I am posting this.  This wasn't at all what I was looking for today, and I was thinking it might not be the best choice for Veteran's Day.  But courage in war is about putting what you love on the line.  My father found love shortly before leaving to do his bit against the Nazis in World War II was ironic, potentially tragic,  and somehow raised the stakes for loss. My parents didn't know the future, and the fact that my father he found love on the road to war made his path all the more courageous, if you ask me.  
     People live on in what they pass along, how they are remembered.  My father passed on his love of music, his love of languages, and most important, his kindness and openhearted nature.  And his courage in the face of tyranny, an example I think about more and more.  His memory is always a blessing for me, as was his life.
    So here is the text of his letter in Spanish and in English (my translation):  
"To Ruth
      Para que tu puedes recordarme. He buscado las palabras para escrtir qui, pero sin exito. Tu tienes un corazon de oro, y nuestros mentes viajar par il mismo camino, que nunca estoy tan feliz como cuando estoy contigo, y el salido de tu compania es con mas dolor que perder el diente Esta no basta. Tu sabes lo que quiero decir.
                               Sinceramente,
                               Hy"

"To Ruth
    So you can remember me.  I have searched for the words to write, but without success. You have a heart of gold and our minds travel the same way, that I am never so happy as when I am with you, and leaving your company is more painful than having a tooth pulled.  This is not enough.  You know what I want to say.
                               Sincerely,
                               Hy"



Sunday, November 10, 2019

House on Signal Mountain (as of Nov. 10, 2019)


Today I worked some more on this "house portrait," painting from a photo.  (My reference photo is posted here September 16.) I started by making some corrections to the structures of the house, moving things around just a bit. I think everything is in final position now, thought I need to clean up some lines and edges. Then I added cast shadows to the tree trunk in front of the house. The shadows look a bit extreme at the moment, but I am going to blend them in.  To be continued. . . .


Saturday, November 09, 2019

House on Signal Mountain (As of Nov. 9, 2019)


I continued working on this project today, a "house portrait" based on a photo.  (The reference photo is posted here, September 13.) At this point, I am making small corrections and working on details.  This afternoon, I worked on cast shadows on the stone wall and the shrub that is casting those shadows.  I worked on the other shrubs, too.  I made some corrections to the front of the house and added a porch railing. Next up: tree trunk in front of the house, and trees in the background, behind the house.

Friday, November 08, 2019

House on Signal Mountain (As of Nov. 8, 2019)


This afternoon, I did some work on this project. I am painting a "house portrait" from a photo (posted here September 18.  Today I made some corrections to the stairs, but mostly spent time on the stone wall and the shrubs. 

Thursday, November 07, 2019

View from Boston Window (with Prisma filter)


I spent most of today in Boston, gallery sitting at Galatea, in SOWA.  As a rain storm moved in, the light became interesting, so I took some pictures through the window.  I added a Prisma filter to this one, and cropped it to get  this composition.

Wednesday, November 06, 2019

House on Signal Mountain (As of Nov. 6, 2019)



This afternoon, I continued work on this project, a "house portrait" that I am painting from a photo.  Today I made a quick adjustment to a shadow that was making me nuts yesterday. Then I concentrated on the structures on front of the house, the roofline, windows, and vertical columns.  I used a straightedge to check lines, and changed the color of the windows to make the shadows green.  To be continued. . . .

Tuesday, November 05, 2019

House on Signal Mountain (As of Nov. 5, 2019)


Today I worked on this project for a while. This is a "house portrait" that I am painting from a photo (posted here September 18).  Using my reference photo, I focussed on two areas.  First, I made adjustments to the shape of the large cast shadow on the lower right.  It is a strange shape because it passes across a tree trunk.  I used a straight-edge and made some adjustments, but may need to do more.  Second, I reworked the stairs and sidewalk. Again, I used a straight-edge and tried to get the play of light and shadows. To be continued. . . .

Monday, November 04, 2019

View from Independence Park


Temperatures may be dropping soon, so even though it was windy and a bit chilly, we fit in a little walk near Independence Park, here in Beverly, MA.  I liked the way this tree looked against the water, so I took this picture looking.  You can see Lynch Park in the distance, as well as some of the nearby islands.

Sunday, November 03, 2019

House on Signal Mountain (As of Nov. 3, 2019)



Today I worked some more on "house portrait." I am working from a reference photo posted here September 16, 2019.  At this point, the composition is fine and the painting is progressing in terms of accuracy, though I continue to check and correct details.  Now I am working to refine textures and colors. Today I made some changes to the shapes of the shadows on the lawn (especially on the right side of the canvas).  I added some cast shadows on the tree trunk. And I worked on the color of the lawn, trying to find that soft yellow-green that I have seen in Tennessee. To be continued. . . .

Saturday, November 02, 2019

Al and Ruth (with Prisma filter)



This image began with an old childhood photo of my mother with her older brother, Al (aka Itzak), taken in Pueblo, Colorado.  The photo itself is large, oval, and printed on convex paper. It is currently in a box, but I hope to get it re-framed soon. Last spring, I created a digital file of the photo and retouched it (published here May 21) to include it in a slide show for my Aunt Edy's 100th birthday.  My mother was born on November 2, so for her birthday, I thought I would return to that photo.  I don't have too many childhood photos of my mom, and I particularly like this one. For today's version, I experimented with some Prisma filters added to the digital file.  This is the one I like best.

Friday, November 01, 2019

House on Signal Mountain (as of Nov. 1, 2019)

I worked on this project today, a "house portrait" that I am painting this from a photo,  posted here September 16.  The composition is pretty much as I intend it to be and the "underpainting" is pretty much there. Now to make the colors, textures, and lines look as good as possible. Today I started by smoothing out the background color for the sky, carrying it into the reflections in the windows.  I also mixed some light yellow, applied it to the stone wall, and began to apply it to the lighter areas of the wooden part of the house. To be continued. . .