Creative Endeavors: Libby Fife's Studio Blog

New Work: Bridge

2012-01-30T13:04:00.000-08:00

Bridge

9" x 12"

acrylic on canvas

I finished this up and wanted to post it. This is a view of one of two large and long bridges here in Calaveras and Tuolumne Counties. This particular bridge is the Parrott's Ferry Bridge and crosses the New Melones Reservoir. I am fairly certain that if you want to get from where I live to Columbia or Sonora one way or another you have to cross one of these two bridges. There may be another route but it is likely longer and a little more cumbersome.

Since I don't paint a lot of water this was challenging. I do wish I had some field notes for this particular aspect of the scene but I don't. You can bet that I do now though! I took some notes this morning on my walk at Hogan Lake. Similar idea. Nothing like some real life observation:)

OK, I have a couple of things going on this week and I hope to start a new painting. Hannah and I have a date with the vet and I have a date with the dentist. Let me know what you are up to if you can.

Libby

Sketches and Huskies-Ah...Rural Life...

2012-01-27T06:00:00.000-08:00

I did a little sketch of my quilt group ladies. As always, these are just for fun and not meant to offend anyone in their badness! (The sketches' badness not the peoples' badness.) I enjoy painting of course and one of the aspects that I like a lot is leaning about the different types of paint: the hues, the chroma, the other properties, etc. One of the most interesting aspects for me is the relative temperature of different hues. The above sketch is done with three blue colors: cerulean, phthalo, and ultramarine. They are all blue hues but each has a different color temp. The background is cerulean which is normally considered a warm blue. The purplish blue is ultramarine which some consider warm and some consider cool. The other blue is phthalo which many consider to be a warm blue. It is all relative though; placing one hue next to another can change the temperature perception too so that is an additional variable. My determination here is that there really are no rules with this, just perceptions. Just pick the right blue for what you think you want to say. No easy feat, that.

Now, what is going on here? We have huskies next door to us; 4 of them to be precise. We have worked to get them to be used to us (given them dog biscuits, talked nicely to them, etc.) and have done pretty well I suppose. Almost too well as you might guess from this photo. Doesn't that one husky look comfortable? He should since he is LAYING ON MY PROPERTY! What is wrong with this picture? Husky number 1 (let's call him The Baby Daddy since he fathered the newest husky next door and I figured this out through a process of gender elimination) is the dog in front ON MY PROPERTY. He is looking contentedly at Husky #2 on THE OTHER SIDE OF THE FENCE! The other shot shows the one of two ways that the dogs have been getting out, chiefly by digging a hole in the ground and scooting under the fence. Bored and neglected dogs will do that. The other way they have been getting out (and I know this might be shocking) is that the door to their enclosure has been LEFT OPEN! Imagine. And I am such a dolt too. When I called my neighbor to let him know that the dogs were out he didn't quite give the responses I was expecting. Hmmm... All the dogs have been out this week in one way or another. I looked out last night and one was drinking the water from a plastic box on my patio. Gotta love it I guess. At least they don't bark.

OK, off to work on my painting. I should be done this weekend and so will try to post then. Have a creative Friday and let me know what you are up to if you can.

Libby

Sketches, etc

2012-01-25T05:53:00.000-08:00

I know this sketch looks sloppy and crazy but let me explain! Mondays are sort of lost days for me. I do "office" work but mostly, I am off my game. This Monday was no exception and I was sort of lamenting the fact that I don't just sit down and "make art." There is always so much planning and involvement that it takes me several days to work up to starting a painting. Anyhow, I had just driven back from the post office and it was raining still. As I drove through a freak patch of scary fog, I rolled in to town and came upon the Cal Fire group who were doing some burning by the golf course. They burn down the weeds and such every year near the golf course and also near a housing development called Gold Creek. As I drove by, I was taken with the contrast of their(Cal Fire) orange and yellow fire jumpsuits and all of the other muted grays and yellows and greens form the surrounding brush and ensuing smoke from the fires. I went home and just jotted down my impressions real quick. I went back and they were still there but I really couldn't park close enough without alerting them to the fact that I was going to take their pictures and stand close to their trucks. I didn't think that would work.

So, I am not an abstract painter in a way that I would think of abstract painting but it feels like there is an idea here somehow.

Sketching, Painting:

In other news, I have started a new painting. It seems fairly straightforward but sometimes those are the ones that bite you in the rear. I also went for my walk yesterday and was thinking about all of the different shapes that appear in nature just kind of naturally (ha! ha!). And also how shapes join together to create larger shapes. Sketching the landscape (or figure I guess) can get reduced down to some easy starting points when you consider shapes only as opposed to worrying about smaller details like leaves and branches. If you can place the different shapes on your page in good proportion to one another, you can then think about adding details and refining the sketch. I was also looking at the shapes and contours of the land yesterday and how they all fit together like a puzzle. I like this photo above for an example of that idea.

OK, off to get started. Let me know what you are up to if you can.

Libby

At The Park: Take Two

2012-01-21T09:43:00.000-08:00

At The Park-Take 2!

I redid the shadows in the foreground after Rich and I had a discussion about shadows, the light source, and the contours of the ground. For all of the observing that I do, I don't always get things right so Rich's input was very helpful. One of the first things I learned about shadows was that they help to describe things: chiefly, the contours of the land and the objects that they fall on and the direction of the light source, i.e. overhead, to the side, etc. To him, the pattern of shadow wasn't reading "correctly." As I was trying to sleep last night, (we had a big noisy storm going), I thought about shadows in general. I can remember reading how Edward Hopper sometimes installed shadows whose source wasn't immediately apparent. Meaning that there was a shadow on something and you couldn't easily say why it was there or in that particular position but for his design idea, it made perfect sense. I have also read a lot about engineering your shadow and light patterns. Because I am learning though (and especially for this piece), I'd like this particular aspect of the composition to be accurate. Even if I choose to group my lights and shadows and omit or add, I still want them to make sense. So, I am happier now and thought I would post the results:)

Libby

New Work: At The Park

2012-01-20T09:18:00.000-08:00

At The Park

9" x 12" acrylic on canvas

*******updated pics with some corrections to follow Saturday, 1/21

I finished this one today, Friday. I am happy with the results but will let it sit for a little while and if something comes to me, a better idea, then I will change it.

Technical Stuff:

I knew it was going to be a challenging painting in the sense that there seemed to be a lot of details: benches, tables, shadows, groups of bushes, etc. In the end though, the details aren't what almost killed me. What got me nearly was the fact that every time I made a move, I had to make a counter move. Basic painting isn't that complicated. The process is essentially an endless series of corrections along with a few different principles. To begin with, adding something to the scene affects everything else that is already there and in turn, will affect whatever you add after that. Trying to anticipate this is a good approach to minimizing corrections but honestly, correcting as you go brings good and surprising results. Problem solving, for me, is one of the attractions of painting. The other idea that is pretty basic is the concept of adding and subtracting through the use of negative and positive space. The gazebo in the scene is a good example. Each time I worked on the trees behind it, I had to redo the space around those trees as well as the gazebo itself in order to keep it (the gazebo) in front. None of this is a problem or is complex to understand; it just "is." Lastly, I left out a bunch of stuff. All of the picnic benches in the distance for starters. I couldn't sort them out and in the end I just decided to ditch them and that it was OK to tell a different story about that park (minus the benches and the headache). I also consolidated the shadows which were scattered about. The scene looked "hectic" to me. I know of painters who can really swing a sun dappled scene but I am not one of them and that is OK with me too. The "cleaner" the scene, the happier I am.

More Technical Stuff:

The branches on the trees, especially in the back, gave me some problems. I installed them and they looked thick and silly. I just kept at them and got them looking just OK. I finally hit upon the idea of this little brush that I have. I bought it some time ago but couldn't figure out how to use it. It is super tiny and is angled. (It is in fact called an angled shader.) It was perfect for dry brushing on the tinier branches.

I also added another color to my palette. It is called nickel azo yellow. This yellow is transparent and mixes nicely with ultramarine blue to make a lovely shade of "garden" green; what I think of for grasses and ivys and really green types of bushes. The green is nice because unlike a green mixed with a cadmium yellow, which can be very intense if used in a lot of the painting, this green is more subtle but it still stands out without really screaming a whole bunch. I dulled it down with the pyrole red (a cooler red) and I like the results a lot. The yellow does need an opaque pigment with it (azo yellows are transparent) if you want to cover something. It does not mix cleanly with white, meaning that it makes kind of a radioactive "baby poop" yellow which I guess could be good for something that I haven't discovered yet.

Lastly, I saved my cadmiums (reds and yellows) for areas that I really wanted to stand out, like the tree in the foreground and the tips of the bushes. I did use them, mixed with other colors, in the light passages but tried to temper them. It was interesting to me to try and balance saturation levels throughout the painting.

I had a productive couple of studio days this week. It is raining and windy today and so I don't think I will be going out. I am seriously considering a cleaning day, including the windows. Crazy huh?

OK, thanks for reading and commenting.

Libby

Sketches/Colored Pencils

2012-01-18T06:22:00.000-08:00

I went to an art group meeting on Monday. As I was sitting there, I drew some sketches of people around me. The sketches were drawn on the handout that we were given. I did have my sketchbook in hand so I don't know why I didn't use that. I cut out the people and pasted them in my book this morning. (As always, the sketches are just for fun and aren't meant to make fun of anyone.) I keep thinking that I am a good candidate for colored pencils. I am attracted to the precision of the results and the different blending techniques and they would be great to travel with. The drawback for me though is that I have old lady hands and arms. My hands tend to hurt after too much fine motor movement. (I don't know what else to call this.) Same thing with my forearms and the tops of my arms. (I also think I am a good candidate for those rubber exercise bands.) Anyway, I just used colored pencils from the drugstore. They are a set of Crayolas and I suspect that they have a very high wax content and very little pigmentation. (Woe to the unsuspecting budding young artist whose Mom or Dad chooses these pencils!) I like the idea of this medium though and may look into it a little further. There are different techniques for using them which I don't know about yet (obviously, look at my sketches!) and it could be fun. I do have a book on botanical illustrations which talks a little bit about using pencils so who knows?

In the meantime though, I am still working on my painting for this week. I am hoping to be done by Friday and to post the results. Hope everyone is having a creative week so far. Thanks for reading and commenting.

Libby

Sketches: Murphys

2012-01-16T06:46:00.000-08:00

I was in Murphys again yesterday for a meeting with a new art group that I am hoping to join. I was a little early and so I sat in the parking lot of the winery which was essentially across the street from where I was headed. Should have gone in for a drink but they looked pretty busy. Anyway, I sketched the field across the way and then added some color this morning. At this point, I am way beyond the need for accuracy in any strict sort of a sense but am just more interested in catching the idea of where I have been. In my opinion, that is one of the functions of sketching in the first place.

This is someone that I met this week. I always get a little nervous showing sketches of actual people. I don't want them to be insulted or think that I am making fun of them somehow (because my sketches are so bad and cartooney!). I would hope that people know my sketching is just silly stuff. Anyway, this gentleman was rather intriguing to me so down he went in my sketchbook.

I started in on my painting yesterday. I'll work at it again today for a bit and then I am taking off to Sonora for another lunch and meeting. I have been busier this past week than I think I have been in a long time. I really am trying to make some effort here to meet people and get out. Just watch though. There won't be any activity for another long time:)

Let me know what you are up to if you can and thanks for reading and commenting. Have a creative Monday!

Libby

Out and About: Murphys

2012-01-14T05:19:00.000-08:00

On Friday I took a drive to the town of Murphys. Murphys is one of several "gold mining" towns in my area and probably one of the most well developed and visited. Ironstone Vineyards is here. I participated in their show last year and since I would like to try to get in again this year, it seemed natural to want to paint some typical Murphys scenes. The above view is of the Murphys Hotel. It has a very colorful history and is still a very active hotel and restaurant. Ostensibly I wanted a picture of that sign with the martini glass but I wasn't really able to get that shot.

This picture above is a slightly different view showing the street and corner along with the business across the street. As I was taking these photos I was not only thinking about composition but also about context. When I reviewed the photos I could see that some screamed "hotel" and some screamed "street scene" and some just kind of screamed in general. So often, like 99% of the time, I end up just capturing a picture of something and not really much else. I just record where I have been. So, I am trying to improve and be more thoughtful about how I put a scene together.

After being downtown, I motored up to Ironstone to have lunch. This has got to be the best kept secret in the county: 1/2 of a sandwich, a cup of soup and a glass of wine (a big glass) for just $10! You can't beat it, really. My purpose there though was to look for a picture that might be a quintessential and recognizable view of the facility. There is a pathway connecting the tasting room portion with the museum and other areas. The above shot shows part of that pathway headed to the museum. Most people who visit here would probably remember that car. I tried to include some elements that I thought were interesting. The shot may be a tic too busy. I don't know.

As I was leaving and feeling unsure as to whether or not I captured a good idea, I just happened to turn around as I was walking downstairs. This shot really appeals to me because of all of those lines going into the picture which I think creates a sense of depth. It seems too to be a good mix too of vertical and horizontal lines, a nice connection of light and shadow, and of course I love the red and green together. It is amazing to me just how often red and green show up together in nature. There is a lot about this photo that is occurring naturally that I find really interesting. The last thing too is that while this photo is of an Ironstone specific scene, I think it is just a nice scene in general. I want to paint something that is specific to my area but I also want to paint something that just might be enjoyable to look at even if you haven't been to this area.

I finished up at Ironstone and stopped at Chatom vineyards on the way home (pic above). We are wine club members and we had a shipment to pick up. One bottle is already gone!

As I was out and about yesterday, I was really conscious of the fact that I was talking to myself. A lot! I may be turning into that eccentric woman walking down the street and muttering to herself. This actually sort of fits in with where I live so I am not too worried. However, I got to thinking that if you spend a good portion of the day by yourself, actually liking to be with yourself is really important. I had a great time at Ironstone eating my lunch and sort of just staring into space and considering things. Having an active "interior" life is crucial. Honestly, if I found myself boring or tedious or something worse, I wouldn't know what to do! Maybe a good case of schizophrenia is the answer?

OK, hope everyone had a creative week. If you didn't see the Swingles piece I did, go back one post!

Libby

New Work: Swingin' By Swingles

2012-01-12T05:50:00.000-08:00

Swingin' By Swingles

9" x 12" acrylic on canvas

available: libbyfife@ymail.com

I finished this one up on Tuesday. I might slightly darken the shadow of the building or slightly lighten the foreground road. I am satisfied that there is enough of a contrast when the painting is viewed in person but the photograph doesn't quite reflect this. My SIL, who has driven past this business and the surrounding area many times, remarked that I really cleaned up that trailer park in the background! There is a hodge-podge of buildings and other stuff back there which I "edited." The sign was a real exercise in editing also but that is another story for another time. Suffice to say that I just love my little painting.

In other news, I have had a busier than normal week. I had lunch out with my SILs on Monday and an art date with a newish art buddy yesterday. We also ordered some more rugs for the house and so I dealt with all of that on Tuesday. The weather here has been beautiful but oddly warm and dry for January. It is concerning since the snow in the mountains, the rainwater seeping into the ground, and the filling of reservoirs is all really important for our arid state. It does mean though that I have been able to have the door open for fresh air and that I have continued to go for a walk at Lake Hogan wearing a minimal amount of layers:) I have a couple of other things to do today so I anticipate being out and about in more beautiful weather. Lastly, I have two art group meetings coming up so once I attend these I will report back. Weeks go by where I have nothing of any consequence planned and then all of a sudden, I have ten things at once. Go figure!

Hope everyone had a creative week. Thanks for visiting and leave a comment if you can.

Libby

PS-Technical note: I cheated a bit with this painting and initially used burnt sienna mixed with white to paint the building and the lettering. Normally, I use just a three color palette of red, blue, and yellow with warm and cool shades of each color. I may throw in Payne's gray because it is so lovely for painting cement and roadways but I am a firm believer in the unifying power of a limited palette. In any case, I went back to glaze my regular colors over the building and sign and I think that helped to pull everything together better.

Wrinkle Cove-Accepted at Delicato Vineyards Show

2012-01-09T05:21:00.000-08:00

The good news is that this painting, Wrinkle Cove, has been accepted into the 24th annual fine art show at Delicato Vineyards in Manteca, CA. I put the link to their site on my right hand sidebar at the top. Now that I have seen a full year's worth of local shows and events, I have a little plan mapped out for 2012. I am expecting to be accepted into a few shows and rejected from several others. Sounds good, right? There are a couple of art events that I plan on participating in also. The first one is coming up in March at Ironstone Vineyards. I had a booth in that one last year but traffic was slow, it rained, and I didn't sell anything. That show was quite a bit of food for thought though and prompted a change in my painting approach.

This brings me to my next idea which is a review of my painting that I have sort of been thinking about. The fabric painting of 2010 marks the beginning of my painting efforts. What I didn't know! Oy!! I could fill a book I think. I can see some common threads and some "improvement." I use that term loosely because I think a couple of the first paintings that I did (and sold) are quite nice and even though I made them early on before I acquired some other skills, those pieces made me happy while I was painting them. But knowing about a subject doesn't translate to doing or producing a nice painting. I think I have helped myself a lot by trying to learn some basic principles of design, looking at and analyzing artwork, and actually painting. I really just want to enjoy my hobby and not be embarrassed about having people look at my efforts. The best way to not be embarrassed I think is to learn as much as you can about your hobby; knowledge helps with the confidence level. I am still stymied when I see a piece of work that I like and want to emulate what I see. The better thought I think would be to note the ideas in the painting that I like and try to incorporate those ideas into my own work rather than copying something. So, just some thoughts for Monday:)

Thanks for reading and leave a comment if you can.

Libby

Sketch, Pics, and The Point of Departure

2012-01-06T04:50:00.000-08:00

The above sketch is for the painting that I am currently working on. As I was making the sketch, I had to think about that back right area. In my original photo that area is actually a trailer park with a hodge-podge of buildings, trees, and bushes. While the idea of a trailer park fits in with this area, it was just too fussy for me and detracted from what I was really interested in, namely the sign, the building, and the lines. I guess all I am saying is that in my opinion, not every feature can take center stage and there are lots of ways to "subordinate" items in your work. I would also mention something about the sketch. I use it as a guideline for important stuff like lines and the structure of buildings but I reserve the right to change things as I move along; sort of like "on the ground" editing. I also named the part of the process where I move away from the exact sketch to come up with a way to do something different. I call it "the point of departure." This is the most exciting part because I feel like I am drawing on a reserve of sorts of things that I have learned or seen; like I am drawing on a skill or stored up knowledge. Know what I mean?

Here is a shot of where I was on Wednesday. This is Murphys Park in Murphys of course! There are lots of little gold rush towns in my area and Murphys is one of the best developed and the most visited. People live there too of course and the side streets and park are as much of an attraction as the small downtown area. I took a seat at this picnic table to do a quick sketch. We are enjoying the mildest weather and as I sat there in the sun, I was almost too warm if that can be believed. Incidentally, I would like to make this picture into a painting. I am not quite sure if I can pull it off so something to chew on:)

Lastly, this is a shot of a part of my afternoon walk at Hogan Lake. There has been a lot of activity on this trail lately; partly due to the beautiful weather but also because of the New Year. I am willing to bet that more than one person is out here exercising because of a New Year's resolution! We''ll just see what happens when it starts to rain:)

OK, hope that everyone had a creative week. Let me know what you are up to if you can. Thanks for reading and commenting.

Libby

New Work: From The Rooftops

2012-01-03T14:01:00.000-08:00

From The Rooftops

8" x 10" acrylic on 3/4" profile canvas

I finished this up yesterday. I worked on it before and after becoming ill over the New Year's holiday. As I was laying in bed bemoaning my fate, all I could think about was this painting. Not in the sense that there was an urgency to finish it but that I just kept seeing the sketch and thinking about values, etc. You know how it is when you are ill; you aren't in your right mind exactly. I like the idea of it still though. I can see a few things to fix and a few things will just have to ride as is.

As I was working on it, I was remembering something that I had read. (I can't remember whose blog it was so I am sorry I can't quote the source.) The essence of the idea though is that when something is wrong with a painting, like you think there is something wrong, it is most often the value of something. (Assuming other factors are OK.) Typically in my own work, I either don't have a good range of values or more likely, my darks and lights aren't dark enough or light enough, respectively. I have seen this recently too with some quilts I have looked at-the values are just off and then the whole thing doesn't read right. And it isn't just a matter of what is in light or what is in shadow-there is just something off. So the next time your piece of art doesn't look right, remember to check your contrasts (darks and lights) and your value range. Just a thought.

At the time, just this morning, I thought this was funny. I have an email in my inbox that I haven't answered in about two weeks. This is even a long time for me. Oh, and I guess I should work on drawing boxes. And myself.

Mondays and Tuesdays:

Don't know why I argue with myself about this but Mondays and Tuesdays are best treated as "office" and housekeeping days. Art just doesn't precisely happen for some reason. Anyone else have this sort of issue?

OK, off for my walk. I am taking my sketchbook along too so we will see how that goes.

Thanks for reading and leave a comment if you can.

Libby

Sketch-New Work

2011-12-30T04:51:00.000-08:00

So, instead of a finished painting or even one in progress, I have my sketch. I decided to turn my previous sketch into a painting and so went ahead and got a master line sketch together. I call it this because I can photocopy it and rearrange the lights and the darks without having to re do the entire drawing. I can look at different arrangements all at once also, again without having to redo the sketch. Now, if I wanted to add or rearrange elements I could just make note of that too and do it while I am painting.

I did start the painting which I will show later. I wasn't feeling as confidant about it yesterday so I am hoping for a change today. And in other news, I did meet the owner of The Pickle Patch (please see previous painting and post). She confirmed for me that the house that the restaurant is in was built in 1939 and is on a site which at one time, was the outskirts of town. It still really is actually. There are other little bungalows like it in the area and I would guess that they were all this type of "war time" housing. Very similar to where I grew up in San Leandro. The owner indicated that there is information displayed on the wall regarding the previous owners. I never noticed it so when I go back for lunch I will check it out!

OK, hope everyone had a creative week. Let me know what you are up to if you can.

Libby

New Work: Pickle Patch Deli

2011-12-26T10:06:00.000-08:00

Pickle Patch Deli

9" x 12"

I finished this one up yesterday. At least I think I did! It took a little while to paint this one and it is possible that I may go back in for some touch ups.

This painting was worked in sections and uses a limited color palette. The painting started as a sketch which I kept clean in order to refer to during my sessions. Very helpful. The best part though of this process is the technological component of painting that I discovered. I know that a lot of people paint by looking at a picture on their computer monitor; nothing wrong with that but I have a hard time getting a good look at the image this way. So, I took my USB stick and plugged it into the TV in my studio. I was able to look at the larger image from a distance while I was painting. For close up work, I just referred to my sketch or the print out of my picture. The whole thing worked really well.

OK, I am off for a walk. Let me know what you think if you can.

Libby

Happy Holidays

2011-12-24T05:36:00.000-08:00

Original Watercolor Joe Annunziato

My girlfriend's husband semi retired some time ago. She has told the story several times about how one day, a package arrived for her husband, Joe. The package was a get-started watercolor kit. He took up this hobby, has taken classes, and I think does lovely work. I always get a kick out of the story too because my friend says she had no inkling that he was even interested in this sort of thing. You just never know.

Merry Christmas to everyone. Hope that the holidays are good and meaningful.

Libby

Dressed Up For The Holidays...

2011-12-21T09:24:00.000-08:00

OK, I guess I have a thing for this sign. I drove by it again the other day and noticed that they gave the steer (?) some antlers. I mean, someone had to get up on a ladder or something to do this. Crazy.

Here is what I am really doing though. Sunday and Monday were a total FAIL with regard to the painting. Poor planning doesn't ever get me anywhere, especially when it is coupled with being impatient. So, rather than bang my head against the wall, I brought the painting to enough of a finish and then stopped.

Yesterday I did some thinkin' and decided on a new idea. The above sketch is my initial line drawing for the next painting. I love most of the landscapes that I have done so far but my best results I think have been when there is some kind of structure in the scene, like a house or barn or something. The line drawing is a good way to start when there are a lot of architectural elements involved: lines of perspective, size of and placement of objects, and getting a general feel for the subject are all important things. Once the drawing is transferred to the canvas, then things that aren't working can be tweaked and refined. I can always refer back to my drawing if need be which can't happen if I drew directly on the canvas-this is one of the benefits. But really, the line drawing helps me to get an idea of problems in advance even if the initial drawing isn't perfect.

The next thing after transferring the drawing will be to check out the light and shadow groups and assign some initial values. Again, as I start painting, I can adjust all of this but I at least have a bit of a road map to follow as I am working.

OK, that is it for that. I have also been thinking a lot about this whole Cubism/Precisionism thing. I am so interested in it and would love for this style to be an offshoot of my regular painting. There is this bridge between realist art and abstract art; Precisionism and some aspects of Cubism address this gradual break down of traditional elements of perspective. The whole shift is fascinating to me.

Thanks for reading and leave a comment if you can.

Libby

Sunrise Monday:)

2011-12-19T05:53:00.000-08:00

Good morning! I took the above shot late last week as I was out and about. This view is just outside of our main intersection in town. There is a nice, safe spot to pull over and this is the view you get. Isn't that spectacular? Well, except for the cyclone fence and all, I think it is very inspiring:)

I did this sketch earlier in the month and am showing it now because although I have a painting in process, I don't want to show it. But I do want to show something so here it is. What attracted me to this scene was the geometric arrangement of shapes. Though I didn't do well with my values, I like the idea of this arrangement. This one is also done using the acrylic paint along with the matte medium for fluidity. The paint becomes very translucent and you can layer colors this way. It is super tedious though and time consuming and I haven't really gotten the hang of it yet. I like the obvious brushstrokes though; it is just a time consuming process.

OK, what is on tap for today? The painting! I started in on it yesterday and had to back off of the direction I was going in. I am liking this gray scale under painting process and reverted to this yesterday as I could see that the painting was rapidly going south. Somehow, adding color right away doesn't always work for me especially if they are colors that I don't normally use and to my eyes, look unnatural. So, we will just see what happens today.

OK, thanks for reading and commenting. Let me know what you are up to.

Libby

There's Somethin' There

2011-12-16T04:25:00.000-08:00

sketch-San Andreas hangar

I have been telling myself all week that, "There's somethin' there." And I do think there is most times with some of the ideas that I have. But what I am learning, really learning for the first time, is that it is OK to a) take some time to mull ideas over and b) discard ideas if they don't work or are too difficult and c) accept that not every idea is a winner. Oh, and did I mention to have some patience? Take the above sketch for instance. Please, take it! Not at all what I thought I was going to do but when I finished I was glad to have the idea on paper. It gave me something to look at without committing to a whole painting. The strong linear element of the side of the hangar and the colorful shadows of the hangar itself are what is interesting to me. Most of the photos I took featured the road and hangar or the hangar and the other group of buildings. It was just confusing or turned out to be just a group of buildings. This one to me seemed the most interesting and I thought featured the hangar in the best way. The fence line is great, emphasizes the depth, and I like the weeds in the foreground. But maybe I want to back up a bit and shoot upwards. The hangar sits off to the side of the road and down from it, so your angle is kind of including a lowered ground for the hangar and a higher ground for the road. Sort of tricky. So, I am going back out one more time to see if I can get things straight and if I can't, I am movin' on!

Much more successful this week was the luncheon with my quilting group. Those ladies are awesome! We had lots of great food, wine, and champagne (doesn't everyone drink champagne for breakfast?) and visited prior to the lunch itself. Sitting down to a meal with the group is a wonderful treat and of course, our hostess has a beautiful home. It did rain on me on the way down but surprisingly, everyone on the road was well behaved. A Christmas miracle if ever there was one!

OK, hope everyone had a successful and creative week. Thanks for reading and leave a comment if you can.

Libby

PS-Some great news too. I sold The Trestle (the painting of the cement railroad trestle) and received some lovely feedback from the buyer, my former workmate and my current friend. Does that sound right? Anyhow, I am glad the painting went to a good home.

Church On The Corner-New Work

2011-12-12T04:58:00.000-08:00

Church On The Corner

11" x 14" Acrylic on 3/4" canvas

available: libbyfife@ymail.com

I finished this one up yesterday. It took longer than I expected. When I start these things I tend to look at sections; the number of sections to work kind of tells me how long it may take to complete the painting. Everything in good time though; there is no hurry here for this.

I thought I might show this one in progress. I started with a gray scale painting using 4 values plus the option of some white areas. I could see right away when I finished that I was going to have a very "high key" kind of a painting-lots of light values. That was fine since I really wanted a morning kind of feel. The other thing that came up was the white building. So far to date, portraying a white building in shadow has been my biggest challenge. Everything in shadow is darker than anything in the light, including the color white. And white isn't white; there are colors there to be dealt with whether the white is in shadow or in light. I decided that the white building with sunlight on it was the way to go. Anyway, I am learning.

The above shot was as of Sunday. The staircase was an issue. I have learned a lot of solid concepts, some of which are really transferable to any art form practically. Everything is made up of a shape. Square, rectangle, circle, etc. Shapes go together to form larger shapes and then larger forms. Shapes can also be picked apart to get down to a more finite and accurate rendition of the object. Incidentally, I think the reason sometimes that people think they don't know how to draw is because they don't know where to start. They want to draw the outline of something. (This is my problem.) Recognizing how things are built, that they are built on shapes all in relation to one another, is one of the first steps in learning how to sketch and draw. Anyway, I got down to business with that staircase and once I saw what it was, that it was sort of a parallelogram with a triangle, I was able to paint it. And lastly, at some point you have to be finished otherwise the tweaking and fiddling could go on endlessly. I am not suggesting that you accept shoddy work but instead bring it (the work) to a point where you are satisfied that it meets your current skill level, learn from it, and move on.

OK, I am off for more coffee. I am having a sort of "office" day today: finances, Xmas cards, sketching, idea forming and firming up. Let me know what you are up to and thanks for reading.

Libby

Out and About: San Andreas and Linden

2011-12-09T06:45:00.000-08:00

On Wednesday I headed out to get my haircut. On my way out I pass through the town of Linden where there is a whole lotta agricultural stuff going on: peaches, pears, walnuts, almonds, you name it-they grow it. All of the leaves have fallen off the trees and been blown away. The bare branches and the patterns that the rows of trees make is just as exciting to me as an orchard of fully leafed trees. I was so taken with this shot above-the colors and the patterns really caught my eye.

This second shot is of my favorite lunch spot in San Andreas. I had lunch with my SIL earlier in the week and when we were finished, I stayed behind to take some photos. This was really the best of the bunch; It seems to me to have a lot of linear elements in addition to that shaft of sunlight. This particular view is of the back of the property where there are a group of buildings and places to eat. That shade is a welcome thing during the summer when it is hot.

OK, I am still working on my painting that I started earlier this week. I really do enjoy the detail work because it causes me to slow down and concentrate. Also, being a procedure oriented person, following one step at a time is a good way for me to work.

OK, hope everyone had a creative week. If you haven't done so, check out the previous post here. I still have a couple of card sets available.

Libby

Card Sets Available: Such a Deal!

2011-12-08T05:42:00.000-08:00

Group A (Above) 3 sets available

Group B (Above) 3 sets available

UPDATE: I have two sets available now for each group

OK, I am feeling Christmasey! I have two photo card sets available, group A and group B. I have 3 sets available for each grouping. Here is the rundown:

(7) designs for each group

card size is 4.25" x 5.5"

image size varies but is approx. 3" x 5"

linen like finish, cream envelopes and white cards

Photos on cards either have a glossy or matte finish

$13 + 5$ USPS for each set; US contiguous states only

Excluding shipping, that is $1.85 per card and less than $20 for a great gift!

If the shipping is less, I will refund you.

Payment is through PayPal-I send you an "invoice" and once payment is received, I ship your cards. Just send me an email saying which one you want, group A or group B. Each card is individually packaged in a clear sealed envelope and wrapped with what else? An orange ribbon! Even if you don't want one, tell your friends, tell your neighbors. Just tell someone! The cards are lovely, based on my original artwork, and are a handmade item. What could be better?

Thanks for reading.

Libby

Another 'ism

2011-12-07T07:14:00.000-08:00

The above sketch is based on a piece by Charles Demuth. He was a water colorist and later, an oil painter, during the early part of the twentieth century. He was a Precisionist-an offshoot of the Cubist Movement-and focused his work on industrial themes done in this abstract, Cubist style. The movement is actually called Precisionism. I love'isms of any sort and there are a bunch of them in art. I was quite taken with his paintings and so copied one in order to learn about what he might have been doing.

The above sketch is from my photo of San Andreas. Doing these sketches is helpful for me. I can see sometimes if there really is a painting there or not.

OK, I am off to get a real haircut today. Don't even ask, I just can't get in to it. Truly. I am also working on a painting. I have the gray scale painting done and it looks good. I am determined to work on my values and not be all over the map with stuff. (Though I think I have done OK so far to date.) Let me know what you are up to.

Libby

What a Scream!

2011-12-05T05:04:00.000-08:00

I love that I gave myself muscular legs and tiny feet. This sketch was prompted by something written by another artist. She mentioned in a comment that she was a "shape painter." I have been trying to put a name to what she does, to at least understand her paintings, and I thought that phrase summed it up and also described part of what I am after in my own work. That comment though, sent me off on a tangent to learn more about shapes and forms. That reading sent me off to learn more about perspective. I later went out to take some photos and when I got back and reviewed them with Rich, (The Master Photographer), he said they all sucked. Or rather, he just wasn't enthusiastic about them. At all. That sent me back to my book on photography. Then I was back out with Rich and we were looking at possible locations with potential. And then I came home and went to bed! Cripes, I make myself nuts sometimes with all that I want to learn and what happens sometimes when I am not as self disciplined as I need to be. The sketch describes that; she is off and running!

I think this one is priceless. You know it is me because I am wearing orange, right? Edvard Munch was one of the forerunners of Expressionist work and was also a print maker. I saw some of his etchings at an exhibit in San Francisco and I sort of dismissed them as being dark, dreary, and Norwegian! I wish I had paid more attention, dope that I am, because his use of light and shadow would now be something to examine more closely. Anyhow, I had a great time with this sketch and learned about the original painting at the same time. Much parodied and copied, the painting has been stolen I believe on occasion. The link to Munch above is worth the read. What a, ahem, colorful life.

OK, off and running! I should have named the blog that I guess. Hope everyone has a creative Monday and thanks for reading and commenting.

Libby

Train Trestle

2011-12-02T04:16:00.000-08:00

Train Trestle

9" x 12"

Acrylic on canvas

sold***

This one was finished up on Wednesday. This train trestle is on highway 49 (I believe) outside of San Andreas. I am running errands today so I will verify that! In any case, the cement support was built by the Calaveras Cement Co in 1936. The Calaveras Cement Co was instrumental in supplying the cement for such projects as the Pardee Dam Reservoir here in Valley Springs. They are now the Lehigh Southwest Cement Co and do projects all over the state of CA. The railroad came to San Andreas at one point so that cement could be delivered to various spots in the county and elsewhere. Lehigh has a short timeline of history on their page here. It was interesting to see how the company has evolved over the years.

For this particular piece, I did work from my field notes for similar paintings and I also used a photo taken earlier in the Fall. While we do have a lot of trees that change color in an overt way, it is the oak trees that really catch my attention. You have to really be looking to see that they change form a blue/gray/green to a more brown/red/gold color. There is a high point for it also which I think peaked in about September, fairly early on. Good thing too that I did this painting now because the wind swooped in and blew away much of the existing foliage.

I did use my previous sketch as a guide for doing this painting. The sketch was helpful since I had already thought about some of the forms and color choices earlier. I was able to make some alterations and of course the application of heavier acrylic gives it a different feel than the sketch, which used a watered down version of acrylic paint. Good stuff and pretty instructive.

In other news, I went to The Haggin yesterday and I will write about that next week. I also did a couple of sketches that I will be blogging about in the next couple of days. I am casting about for another painting; nothing fixed yet in my mind but I will be thinking about things today.

Hope everyone had a creative week. Let me know what you are up to if you can.

Libby

Wall of Goodness and Some Meat

2011-11-30T04:05:00.000-08:00

The studio in our Concord home started out as a spare bedroom and so it had a bed in it. We gave that bed away and I bought this twin bed pictured here. The bed is great when I just want to lie down for a quick nap, say on the weekend when Rich is puttering around in the yard. Half of an hour is the perfect amount of time. While I semi-doze, I am pondering things. I love to look at my "painting wall." It makes me really happy to see these paintings all grouped together. They are mine, for better or for worse, and I made them. I learned how to make them; I taught myself. Isn't that just amazing?

This picture is because I am a dork! I love this giant cow that sits and rotates atop of the Swingle Meat Co. in Jackson. These folks are no shrinking violets with regard to proclaiming their love of meat. That giant cow says it all I think. Apart from my ambivalence about eating meat, I think this sign and building are so retro somehow. And how smart are they too because I can see this sign right from the highway. One of these days I'm going in there...or I'm going to paint that cow. Something.

Lastly, I was out and about yesterday doing my grocery shopping. I admit that I am always thinking about painting or being creative or something to do with these two things; especially when doing other things that I don't really want to be doing. Somehow, switching to a mundane task like grocery shopping or driving frees up my mind and I find that having such an "open field" for thinking really brings in some ideas. It occurred to me that a non concentrated effort of allowing my mind to sort of roam freely allows for more idea generating, problem solving, and being generally positive. This free thinking also generates some nutso stuff. As I was driving yesterday, I looked at the lines of telephone poles on the road. They looked like humans with their arms outstretched to heaven. I then went into Salvador Dali mode and pictured a sketch with humans in all sorts of poses, holding up the phone wires. Crazy!

OK, one more day to finish the painting I am working on. There is a lot of precision type work so I am moving carefully. Good stuff so tune in Friday for the finished piece if you can.

Libby

Sketch and Out and About

2011-11-28T04:53:00.000-08:00

I was out and about on Saturday morning, trying to get some ideas for paintings or sketches. The above shot is of a side street in the town of San Andreas, which is just up the road from me. The weather was foggy when I left home but was clear as a bell the minute that I got to the edge of town. Crazy, but our area is like that. Had I gone further down the road to the next town it might have been foggy again.

The above sketch is of a B&B over in Sutter Creek which is a town across the river in the next county. Rich took the picture and in looking at it now, I like the grouping of all of those forms. B&B's to me are supposed to be cozy so the picture made me think of that. And clearly, I need to work on my perspective lines and sketching! (Which is what I am trying to do.)

I really had a pretty good five days. Rich was at home, I had my family over, and we puttered around the rest of the time. I finished my "picture book" on Hopper, did some sketching, took some color and design notes while out and about, and started a new painting. This time when I can pick and choose what I want to do is a blessing; I realized this as I was driving around this weekend. There is this freedom that I don't think a lot of people have. It is hard not to be grateful.

OK, off to get more coffee. I have got to clean out the fridge. Too many leftovers not going anywhere makes me crazy! Hope everyone has a creative day today.

Libby

New Sketch/Acrylic Paint Info.

2011-11-25T09:09:00.000-08:00

So, I am feeling a little experimental and at odds these days with my painting. Finding your own style is tough I suspect for many of us. In looking around, there are many, many ways to create a painting or any work of art for that matter. It is fortunate to have so much history and information to draw upon, but it is also extremely frustrating at times if you don't have a singular vision about your artwork. So many ideas and options do create opportunities however. You just have to look for them.

An opportunity came up this last week for me. I have seen a lot of ink and color wash type work lately and of course my sketches for the most part are done in ink with color added later. I also happened across a couple of artists who use acrylic paint but thin it down with mediums and water and use it much as you would conventional watercolors. I don't know squat all about working with watercolors but I do know that there can be the successive layering of washes to get deeper colors and there can be color blending, like yellow and blue to make green. So, trying something like the above seemed like a good idea. The sketch is done with pen and washes of acrylic paint mixed with matte medium (a semi opaque medium) and water. The delicacy of the washes and resulting colors are very appealing and of course the pen work makes it graphic looking. These are two things that I really like.

Acrylics are very versatile but I sometimes hate handling them-they can be goopey and plastickey. I also dislike all of the "gimicky" things that can be done with them-I have my limit on it- but I know people employ lots of techniques to great effect. I am not knocking that at all. Figuring out though how to layer washes of acrylic paint might be the key to working with this medium. I have done a little of it and it just requires some patience and planning. My tendency is to want to put down the final color first thing or at least get the color and value right the first time. That doesn't always work and I have gotten some great surprises through layering and dry brushing-I just need to remember this when I begin painting.

OK, leave me a comment if you can and thanks for reading.

Libby

One Way To Rock?????

2011-11-23T04:49:00.000-08:00

Is there really only one way to rock???

I did some practice type things yesterday. Not a finished painting and not a sketch so I guess something in between. I had started a painting on Sunday and it was such an unmitigated disaster that I nearly jumped out the window. It is the trees, it is always the trees with me. I can cope with all of the other stuff-values, composition, etc., but these damn trees! And I like landscapes so somethin's gotta give here. I admire the work of Carolee Clark, a contemporary abstract painter out of Oregon. Her style is simple and clean to me, especially her trees. Apart from paint handling and color choices, I wanted to get those trees straight in my mind. The above two "sketches" are based on her designs. I didn't want to duplicate what she does but understand maybe how she got there. The sketches were instructive to me and so I think the solution lies in them and I just have to keep working at things.

In other news, those sketches are painted on paper given to me by Beena. In the past I have hated using acrylics on paper because of the drag of the paint on the page. The paper sucks up the paint like a twenty-something kid raiding your fridge for beer. But I discovered yesterday that dry brushing does make for some great effects; much better than on canvas even. Not sure what this means for me but I will keep experimenting. I also ran across a DVD this morning by an artist named Charles Harrington. He works with acrylics but uses them as you would watercolors, layering from light to dark, etc. Acrylics are so versatile and can be used as you would watercolors. The finished results have a "lightness of touch" that some oil paintings or acrylic paintings tend to lack. There is also a degree of precision to be achieved with this method and I really like that. So, some more experimenting is in order! I am really drawn to more structured and graphic looking work, for lack of a better bunch of terms, and I am trying to work in this direction.

OK, big day today. Lots of cleaning and cooking and general ridiculousness. Rich is home for five days so let the mayhem begin. Happy Thanksgiving to everyone.

Libby

MLAA Meeting and Local Pics

2011-11-22T06:18:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I was out and about in the towns of Columbia and Sonora. They are right next to each other, Columbia being very small and Sonora being much larger with lots of services. The photo above is the backside of a group of buildings in Columbia State Park. I have become interested in arrangements of shapes and values which is why I took the above shot.

I was in that area to attend the Mother Lode Art Assoc. meeting with a gal that I met at the Columbia show earlier this year. Karen and I had a nice "tea" and then went off to the meeting. I was excited because Ray Roberts was there to demonstrate painting a portrait. Ray, and his wife Peggi, are local artists here in the county. They make their living selling their art and teaching others about painting; in other words they are professionals so I thought this was a big deal. As an added bonus to the day, Peggi was there as well. I have several of her instructional DVDs. She teaches the fundamentals and her instruction has been really helpful to me. But look below for what I bought:

The above pic is of a little group of gadgets that Peggi was selling. From the top left hand side, there is a mirror, a ruby value finder, and a proportional grid viewer thingey. They are all held together with a lanyard and why didn't I think of this??? How awesome. The mirror is for looking at your work backwards in order to get a fresh eye on your painting; the red plastic is for determining values; and the proportional grid is for situating your subject to make a thumbnail sketch in the field. You can then "grid up" your drawing to make a larger painting. There is also a 3 value gray scale on the side of it so you can determine saturation and value through comparison. It is a great idea because these three things are often scattered about my studio. Now they can be around my neck while I am painting and I don't have to root around for them. And Celeste, if you are reading, you are gonna want one of these!

Lastly, I drove home at about 3:30 or so. The whole day was a visual delight with the fall foliage and the back lighting on the way to the meeting. But on the way back, wow! It was spectacular. The sun was setting and the sky was lit up with this reddish light. The light was hitting the landscape and buildings and as I was driving, I could see how the color of the setting sun was influencing the local color of those objects. I passed by this powder blue group of buildings in Valley Springs. They were purple because of the red light from the sun. The above pic is of a part of the main drag in San Andreas. As I approached that group of buildings and squinted my vision down, the whole scene became a simple arrangement of light and dark. I did my best not to drive off the road and crash:)

OK, today I have to take Hannah back to the vet for more blood work. I hope to get something arty done and I have to make sure I am set for Thanksgiving. Wish me luck with the above.

Libby

Monday???

2011-11-21T05:57:00.000-08:00

Just a little sketch this morning from the weekend's activities. It is the familiar view of my front yard. I had some mixed results this weekend with the arty type stuff. I started a painting yesterday, thinking that I wanted to try out some ideas. This never quite works out so I don't know why I persist with this. I think a colored drawing of sorts would be better next time rather than working the ideas out on a painting. I have also been reading in the book that I bought about Edward Hopper. Just trying to do do a little something each day that pertains to painting.

Today I am off to Columbia to attend a meeting for the Mother Lode Art Association. I met a woman at the Columbia show that I participated in earlier this summer. I got in touch with her and will be meeting up with her today. I also have to get ready for Thanksgiving. The shopping is done but I am not in the right frame of mind; not even close.

OK, let me know what you are up to. Hope everyone has a creative Monday.

Libby

New Work: Autumn Field and Southworth Silo

2011-11-18T03:34:00.000-08:00

Autumn Field

11" x 14"

available: libbyfife@ymail.com

Try as I might, I just can't get a good photo of the above piece. The foreground is brighter than what is shown. Good thing photography isn't my hobby!

I probably wouldn't pick a subject like this again though I have been very attracted to this field for awhile. The side of the barn was sort of this glowing blue color and the field itself was lovely. I did learn about forms and volume for this one as well as expectations about perspective. I thought the rows of vines would be converging at a point in the distance on the canvas but when I looked that wasn't the case.

Southworth Silo

8" x 10"

available: libbyfife@ymail.com

For me, this piece was more successful though I didn't quite do what I had set out to do originally. This silo is down the road from the schoolhouse that I blogged about a couple of posts back. I liked that grouping of buildings and when I looked closer there seemed to be a little path to the back. The silo was quite old and the out buildings were kind of weather beaten. I am finding that I really enjoy taking something that looks kind of old or junky and making it in to something else-maybe something pretty if that is the right word.

I got all done with the above piece and realized that I hadn't done the exploring that I wanted to do. My goal was to keep the forms discrete (which I did) and to use color in each form a little bit more. I think make things more graphic looking. I will just try again. And I may fix that tree in the back since it seems like it may be sitting on that shed. Maybe darker to push it back?

In other news...

Learning to paint has been very challenging for me in every sense of the word. I started out with the painting because I thought I wasn't finding the right colors in fabrics-it was easier to just paint on the fabric. Wow! What I didn't know! That morphed into painting on canvas. It has taken me almost a year to find out that I actually enjoy this medium as a way to express myself. I realized yesterday when I was looking through work from earlier this year, that I have made some progress. Even I can see that. And even though I really like some of the pieces that I did early on, some were really bad! After finishing that field (the first piece shown), I realized also that apart from structuring those forms correctly, my biggest challenge that I still have to deal with is composition. My feeling is that you can reproduce what you see in a photo but that given arrangement of objects may not make an interesting painting. Didn't we learn that with the IT! challenge? I don't know really but I am giving this thought now as I am roaming around the countryside looking for ideas.

OK, today I am off to shop for Thanksgiving. I need a break! We had big trauma in the house yesterday because both cats went to the vet. On the way back, Hannah urinated in her carrier (she is old and incontinent at times) and then Toby, who wants to be like Hannah, urinated in his carrier. Honestly. With Thanksgiving nearly upon us, I am grateful for the garden hose, the washing machine, and the wood laminate and tile floors!

Have a creative Friday!

Libby

Much Boneheadedness...

2011-11-15T05:12:00.000-08:00

I was out and about yesterday gathering some notes for a new painting that I am working on. The above photo is on the way back and is a view down a lane where I assume are some homes. That line of trees goes all the way down and I thought that whoever planted them really had some foresight.

Now, here is what happened before I took that shot. I have noticed that the week prior to doing a show, I am fairly useless in an artistic kind of way. I had two fails last week on the heels of what I thought was a series of successful (for me) paintings. We also had some rain but I knew Monday and Tuesday would be clear. This new way of working, where I go out in the field to make observations, has been profitable and so I was eager to get out and about. I have a checklist of stuff that I need with me. I always have several bottles of water rolling around in the car and so I wasn't worried. I got all the way to my destination and guess what? No flippin' water! Did anyone hear me swearing? There isn't much to say about this-I can't paint without water. I was already half way to another destination and so motored on to that spot. It was across from a little store so I just shut up and got some water. At that point though I was frustrated and the spot that I had intended to work at wasn't what I wanted after all. I ended up pulling over at another spot which was better and then found the above spot as well. Not bad.

I did get started on my painting but by the afternoon, I was super frustrated. It is subject matter that I haven't tackled before (rows of grape vines) and I started to paint them and realized that I just didn't know how they were structured. I think this is why drawing might be frustrating for some people; how do you make something look like something? So, I sucked it up and drilled down to what I thought was happening with the vines. Every form has a shape: round, square, rectangular, oval, etc. In addition to shape, forms have volume and dimension. They aren't just flat. These rows of vines not only have a linear perspective but they are actually made up of roundish individual bushes with a spherical type of "volume" to them. And it isn't just the color hitting the tops that is important-the negative space of where the bushes meet to create shadow helps to bring the bushes to life and not just have them be flat spots of color. Now, if only I had seen this prior to. My boneheadedness knows no bounds...

OK, off for more coffee and painting. Hope everyone has a good Tuesday. Let me know what you are up to.

Libby

Still Life Study/Craft Show

2011-11-14T04:25:00.000-08:00

I hate to even show this but this is what I practiced at on Sunday. My big thing lately is painting the colors that I see both in light and in shadow. There is a painting school of thought which says to disregard value (painting to values/a gray scale) and instead, focus on color relationships. Colors influence each other and if you can identify the colors that you are seeing in each large mass and simply paint those, the painting will become readable on its own. This is my loose interpretation of this method of painting. It involves assessing and refining each mass and relating those masses through color which is what I try to do anyway. And identifying color is tough, it really is. But everything you see in the way of color in a landscape (or elsewhere) is relational; colors can be compared for saturation, temperature, depth, influence on each other, where they meet, and on and on. This works for quilting too so pay attention:) And if you are paying attention, I have been doing this with my color studies in the field, trying to identify base colors, saturation, and up till now, value.

So, I missed lots of stuff with this study but what was interesting to see was how each colored object played off of the other colored objects. The light really did influence things, causing the white material to have shades of pink and blue and yellow. The can affected the orange paper and the white pitcher. The yellow container cast a dulled yellowish shadow on the white pitcher. The light bulb itself has a bluish cast to it and I really didn't even touch on the temperature of the white in the pitcher. (Yellow is not always warm, if you can believe that. The light on the pitcher was warm and not cool.) It was an instructive afternoon. I am trying hard though to leave my strokes as is and not muddle everything. I do try to refine things. The other thing is cleaning your brush constantly to get good, clean strokes. I am not in the habit of doing that and I can see that it would help. All in all, I like what I am learning here so far. It makes sense to me and fits with how I like to do things. I don't know that I buy in to dismissing value but I am considering the concept.

In case anyone is wondering, the craft show was a bust for me. I knew it would be too not because my art sucks or the prices are wrong but because it was the wrong venue for me entirely. I learned that it is imperative to select a show where your work will fit in-paintings go with paintings and crocheted items and embellished Daisy Duke shorts belong with their own kind. At a craft show, people expect to see crafts. Fine art is not on the menu and as such, people give it a pass. And I am not knocking crafts OK? I love 'em. Oh, and I didn't really meet anyone from my own community (make contacts). I did talk with one gentleman who had written a Christian self-help book. He was interesting and is the husband of my bank teller. That was a positive experience.

OK, off to make more bad art. Let me know what you are up to.

Libby

Friday!!!!!

2011-11-11T04:22:00.000-08:00

For some reason, I really like this shot. Could be those long morning shadows. I like the idea of me out and about on a warm morning, gathering information for painting. I guess this would be a silly painting though; maybe only meaningful to me.

So, speaking of stuff that is meaningful, I thought I might relate this quick story. I think it is kind of uplifting. Several years ago, after being laid off from work, I was casting about for what to do with my time. I loved quilting and thought that joining a guild would be a great way to meet people. Well, I hate meeting people! I mean I like it but I hate doing it. I can manage it in small doses though so I contacted one of the ladies in charge of the social groups for my then quilting guild. I asked her if her mini group was accepting new members. She told me no but why didn't I come anyway? I did go. There were maybe 5 or 6 ladies there. Everyone was very nice and as I talked with them I learned two of them were from my hometown of San Leandro. The one lady, whose name I had forgotten, was mentioning people and places from San Leandro. I knew a lot of what she was saying and she finally asked me what my name was again. I told her my maiden name and as it turns out, she knows my parents. And I knew her! She had been a realtor in San Leandro and as far as I knew, everyone in San Leandro knew of her and her husband. Her last name is instantly recognizable to any longtime SL resident.

It really is a small world and now, this woman is my friend along with all of the other ladies in my group. I saw them yesterday and someone in the group mentioned that even though I had moved away I still came back to visit them; I must really like them right? Well, I do. I drove home thinking that you would have to twist both my arms off to get me to not visit with them anymore. It is a long drive but very worth it. When I got home I looked at my beautiful property in the warm afternoon light. I was so grateful to come home to what I have. It is a great life for me right now and I try to remember these small things which make up that life. So, today as you go about your business and if you have made it all the way through this post, try to remember these little things that add up to something larger. Remember that the whole is something greater than just its parts.

Libby

PS-there are several variations of that quote, all attributed to different sources. I cleaned it up to get it to say what I wanted.

New Work: Evergreen Schoolhouse

2011-11-10T04:10:00.000-08:00

School Days

gouache on paper 4" x 6"; 8" x 10" matted

available: libbyfife@ymail.com

I worked on this one yesterday as a sort of trial idea. These little studies are useful. When I start a painting I normally feel committed; the idea excites me and I know that I have a winner in my subject matter. I am interested in it somehow. Sometimes I just have an idea and not a winner. I like the idea of this little house but maybe not the composition and setting. This old schoolhouse is on private property so I can't just roam all around and take whatever shot I want. As it was, this was a drive by of sorts. So, it may just remain an idea. Incidentally, this little schoolhouse once served the students living in the town of Burson which is down the road from me. All six grades were taught in the one room and small little schools like this were the norm. Progress eventually intervened and these little one room schoolhouses were consolidated into the larger school district.

I wish the above photo really showed how lovely these birch trees are. I took this shot on Sunday and it was kind of gray and cloudy. I tried a little study of this shot but it was a big abysmal fail! I missed all kinds of stuff. For some reason when I use the gouache I forget lots of principles, for lack of a better term, that guide my acrylic paintings. My general sense is that since gouache is a watercolor you need to work light to dark and utilize a fixative in order to not blend colors (unless you want to). With acrylics, you work dark to light for the most part and if the paint is dry no blending takes place-no problem. So, two different parts of my pea brain are at work here.

I have been struggling with a couple of concepts. One is lighting. I have read about reducing the lighting situation to just four directions: top, side, front, and back. The effects are different and depending on your subject matter, one may be better than the other. Back lighting in particular is difficult for me to understand. I hit upon it the other day though in studying the work of Maynard Dixon. Back lighting throws the front subject into relief-makes it a silhouette of sorts and of course makes the background lighter, in general. The other stuff that I am struggling with is just stuff, the point being that I am kind of stuck. So, hopefully, I will be become unstuck!

OK, thanks for reading and commenting. Let me know what you are up to.

Libby

New Work: Meet Me At The Corner

2011-11-07T08:24:00.000-08:00

Meet Me At The Corner

8" x 10" acrylic on 3/4" profile canvas

available: libbyfife@ymail.com

Aren't I clever? This is The Corner Saloon in Clements and the title is Meet Me A The Corner. So witty.

I was out and about last week and took a trip to Clements. Clements is several towns west of me on highway 12. I don't get down in that direction that often anymore but I had noted on one of my earlier trips that there were some interesting buildings down there. I am happy with how this one turned out though I am not as thrilled with that shadow on the left but it is the light and the canvas causing it. I learned a little more about working with red both in light and shadow. When I was in the field I took some color notes. Back in the studio I was reminded that while many painters use Alizarin Crimson, which is a cool purple-ish red, I am not fond of it. I used it in the shadows but using it for the light passages wasn't a great idea. I switched things up to my new favorite red, pyrole red. You get some beautiful, clear colors with that.

OK, this week I have some ideas. There is a section of highway 26 with the most beautiful poplar trees. They are turning color right now and I was out and about yesterday taking some color notes for that scene. It has been gray around here but I am learning that a gray sky can be good. Shadow contrasts are nearly non existent but the saving grace is that what little color there is really stands out against all of that grayness. I am trying to look for the positives in what is available and not dwell on what isn't there.

OK, thanks for reading and commenting. Let me know what you are up to if you can.

Libby

New Work: Milton Hall

2011-11-04T04:56:00.000-07:00

Milton Hall 2

8" x 10"

acrylic on canvas: available

libbyfife@ymail.com

I do love this building for some reason. It has very clean lines (it is just a box after all) and it sits on this hill in the tiny town of Milton. The building was/is used for Freemason meetings and was originally in another town. The rail line going to the building's original location was never completed. The building was moved to its current location thereafter.

This particular version is based on my earlier study done on a smaller panel. Vertical formats such as this have a real advantage in my mind and I guess a lot of designing that goes into a painting is about creating space, depth, importance, and a sense of place. (There is more too but this is what springs to mind.) Editing is crucial not only for understanding the painting as a viewer but for understanding the painting as a painter:)

Here is a picture of my hallway. Just kidding! I recently purchased this watercolor from David Carlson, an artist in Utah. His link to his Etsy shop is here. There is a whole lot of art to purchase out there and since I always want to buy some of it I have to be discriminating. So, here is the story on this piece. David added me to his circle on Etsy. In order to add someone to my circle I check out their work. I love old buildings of most any sort and David had these paintings. He had a little story for them as well and in reading it, he loves old buildings too. He is trained as an architect and I think that shows in his work. Here is the clincher and why I now own this painting: David lives in Bountiful, Utah. Anyone ever see the movie, The Trip To Bountiful? It is a tear jerker about an older lady who wants to get back to her childhood home. She struggles to do this and finally gets there only to see that the town is deserted and the homes have been torn down or are abandoned. It kills me every time and is perhaps one of the reasons that buildings and houses have such an appeal for me. See the intersections??? Thanks David!!!

OK, I haven't posted much this week. I have a painting in process and have done some sketching. Stay tuned and I hope everyone had a creative week.

Libby

New Work: Wrinkle Cove

2011-11-01T05:47:00.000-07:00

Wrinkle Cove

9" x 12"

available: libbyfife@ymail.com

I worked on this one yesterday. I was back out at Hogan Lake at the Wrinkle Cove campground. The sunrise is really spectacular. However, in trying to capture that, the light changed on me in a matter of a minute or two. I can see where plein air painters might get frustrated or really have to have their tactics nailed down. How to deal with the changing light, especially in the morning and evening, would be important. I made some written references and actually started this painting on the scene in the car. I put down some color notes on the canvas and then finished up in the studio. Worked pretty well. I like this hybridized way of working-field notes combined with a studio finish.

The funny thing about this shot though is that on the far banks there is a port-a-potty set up. A person can fish or swim at the cove so facilities are needed. I chose to edit that out:)

Today I am looking for the next painting. I think I will be out and about but I have to gather up my location ideas first. I write them down so that I can refer back to my ideas. I am also on to this colorist thing. In a nutshell, the painter is comparatively evaluating the colors being seen (their saturation level and hue) rather than the values. All plane changes are based on color rather than value. This is a simplified explanation. (And accurate I hope.) It is a very different way of working from what I have learned so far. It is exciting though because I feel like some of the principles could mesh with my way of doing things.

OK, off to do the laundry. Thanks for reading and commenting.

Libby

New Work: Wrinkle Cove

2011-10-30T10:01:00.000-07:00

Wrinkle Cove

Image size 4" x 6"

mat size 8" x 10"

available: libbyfife@ymail.com

I was kind of on a roll this week. I completed two paintings (I haven't shown one yet) and this gouache study. The thing I like about painting is the idea of this unlimited potential of the medium being used. It is like Debra and her embroidery machine-you just don't know what is going to happen next! Gouache is an opaque watercolor-pure pigment suspended in water using an arabic gum as binder- something like that. The point being that it is a pure pigment, vibrant in intensity. If you use it straight out of the tube the colors are brilliant. If you dilute it down with water the colors are still strong but are softened by the effects that the water produces. I love that and so tried to work with that for the above piece. There is a real delicate quality to watercolors which I haven't properly appreciated till now. So, I am learning.

It has been a real mixed bag too this week. I have tried to make a couple of contacts and the results have been poor (though enlightening). I did have good success with my painting which is nice and received a lot of positive feedback (also nice). I received a couple of encouraging emails. One of the good things that happened this week was getting clarification on a definition that I have been struggling with. Someone called me a "colorist" when I first began painting. Up until a day or two ago I simply didn't understand what this meant. (And how it applied to what this person saw in my painting.) I ran into a good source though on Henry Hensche and his teachings. Knowing your art history with regard to movements and philosophies is important to understanding your own goals in painting (and to understanding painting in general). You can't get away from the past. So, I have been studying and re reading some of my books purchased early on. I don't know where any of this new information might lead me but I guess I will find out eventually:)

Thanks for reading and commenting. Hope everyone is having a good weekend.

Libby

New Work: Good Samaritan Church

2011-10-28T05:21:00.000-07:00

Good Samaritan Church

11" x 14" Original acrylic painting on 3/4" canvas

available: libbyfife@ymail.com

I admit to being inordinately pleased with myself. (Probably more than I should be but what the heck!) This one turned out just as I wanted it to right down to the shadow pattern. I sat in the church parking lot to make my color and composition notes and I saw lots of people coming and going; it was a Saturday and I assume people were coming for bible study and what not. The weather is still clear but cool here and the early morning in this lot seemed to have a "blue and green" feeling to it. There is a giant cross on the front of the church (and why not?) and I really wanted to highlight that part. What a lucky congregation this must be-they have a beautiful facility in which to worship. I hope I did that concept justice.

This piece was a challenge. I painted it section by section which worked out for me. Most painters I have seen so far paint the canvas as a whole, working out the relationships of the parts as they go along. I think that my note taking and approach worked just fine here and that the sections of the paintings are well related through the color scheme. The shadow pattern was a real surprise because when I finished I could see that the patterns reflected the trees that were off camera, so to speak. I really liked the idea of an unseen presence, if that makes sense.

OK, I am off to have some more coffee and make the oatmeal. It is oatmeal time now because of the cooler weather:) Thanks for reading and commenting.

Libby

New Work: Sheep Ranch Store

2011-10-26T14:48:00.000-07:00

Shadow/light study

8.5" x 11.5"

Available: libbyfife@ymail.com

Something that has been difficult to learn has been how to treat lights and shadows in a painting. There is a big deal over separating the two but just how to do that is a technical issue that is pretty large (for me anyway). Colors, values, details, hard or soft edges-they all come in to play. Do you brighten your lights with color or darken your shadows with black or a contrasting color? Are your shadows cool or warm? What color do you see in them? I have some news here: shadows are not just gray or black. Darkening you colors with black doesn't always work out either. (I know it works for people, I do. I just haven't had it work out yet.) Lights are also difficult. Just adding white doesn't always translate to something realistic. Adding white can deaden a color pretty quick too. What to do? Well, do some studies!

The above study was a challenge for me because of the colors that would somehow need to be made into shadows or lightened in some way. Reds in particular are difficult. Darkening them is no problem but lightening them up? Well, the color red in light isn't really pink which is what you might get by adding white. You can add yellow but if you add too much then you get orange of course (which could be OK). I ended up doing a combination of things-lightening with white, brightening with yellow, and dulling down a bit with blue/yellow. I am sure there are other things to do too. Darkening the white was also a challenge. I made a kind of gray-green for the white in shadow. It may be the same value as one of the light areas but I think it "reads" shadow anyhow because of that dull gray-green color and because it is surrounded by an obvious shadow. The blues were tough too especially since I chose a limited palette of cool versions of colors: pyrole red, ultramarine blue, and cad yellow medium (actually a warm yellow+ yellow ochre). Again, the color of blue in light and shadow are right next to each other so I think things work. Lastly, I chose to do a continuous section of shadow and a continuous section of light. I think that helps also. I didn't care what the actual light and shadow pattern was since there was nothing in the composition that would actually indicate what might be casting these shadows. As it was, I did add black in the mix and was immediately unhappy. I repainted and re glazed and while the value separation may be debatable, I think things work well enough for me right now.

The exercise was helpful and I got a fun painting out of it too. I have other shots like this that can be cropped so that I can manipulate shadow/light proportions and just focus on color mixing, color relationships, and values. You could just paint cubes or spheres also, the point being to practice ideas and concepts.

OK, thanks for reading and commenting.

Libby

New Work: Pardee Dam

2011-10-21T04:56:00.000-07:00

Pardee Dam
11" x 14"
Acrylic on 3/4" profile canvas
available: libbyfife@ymail.com

I finished this one up on Tuesday. I was happy with the problem solving that I did so I feel like I am progressing in acquiring some different skills.

I have a funny story too about talking to myself while working. (It is probably only funny to me but I will tell it anyway.) As part of my "studying" I look at a lot of paintings both online and in person. What I have noticed, particularly about landscapes, is that they can all look the same after awhile. In order to differentiate between things, I look for what I call "the hand of the maker." These are little tell tale signs that might reveal something about the artist. Sort of like handwriting or hand quilting. Because I tend to mix things up in my head though I started calling this "the hand of Elthelberta", thinking that I was remembering a gothic mystery and that I was just being funny. And don't you just love Google? I searched the phrase and as it turns out it is the title of a Thomas Hardy novel. (This is where I must have heard it before-I do like Thomas Hardy novels.) I also got it into my head that the main character in the novel was a seamstress/embroiderer. She is actually a widowed governess who attracts several suitors, all after her "hand" in marriage and you can see maybe where the "hand of the maker" (I thought she made her living with her hands) and "hand in marriage" might get crossed in my little pea brain! Anyway, long story short (as if that is possible right?), when I am painting now and get stuck, I try to remember about the hand of Ethelberta-my own individual mark making or "hand of the maker."

That was a long and silly story! Thanks for reading and commenting. Hope everyone had a good week.
Libby

New Work: Autumn's Last Light

2011-10-19T06:34:00.000-07:00

Autumn's Last Light

image size 4" x 6"

I worked on this one Sunday. Just continuing the idea of the light coming through the trees.

I have another painting that I finished up this morning. I will be posting that on Friday so check back if you can. I have a funny story to go with it too:)

Thanks for reading and commenting.

Libby

Sketch, Out and About, and Notes

2011-10-17T05:43:00.000-07:00

First up is a new sketch of the train depot. I have quite a few different shots from this particular angle. I think I have determined that while I love the back end of the building I may need to go at it from a different side. So, since the station is so close to where I am, I will just go on back and see what I can see. I did learn a little bit about using the gouache as more of a watercolor type paint (which it is anyway). I got in to the "blotting" of the wet paper to remove paint and re add paint or to create other effects. As far as I can tell, watercolors are a lot about layering and effects.

This is where I went Friday on my out and about adventure. This is the Mokelumne river and I was standing right on the banks. There is a section of the highway between Amador and Calaveras Counties where you can pull off, go under a bridge, and access the river. It is just gorgeous and I couldn't get over how clear the water is here. I didn't show this shot, but I took a pic of the water right next to where I was standing. I could see down to the bottom and got a look at the rocks and everything. I don't know how to describe it but I got an idea of the "volume" of the water if that makes any sense.

These last two pics are just to show what I was up to yesterday and what I am learning about. I was back at the Pardee dam turnout to take some color notes. It was a little overcast and there was quite an array of cloud formations in the sky. I tried mixing some colors to represent what I was seeing in the clouds. My scan sort of sucks but you can get the idea that the clouds aren't just gray. I also assigned values to the clouds and the clear sky. Incidentally, I think I have my value scale reversed. Higher numbers represent lighter values and visa versa so I have my numbers backwards. Whatever; you get the idea.

That second pic shows the little grid that I devised. The landscape is full of stuff-trees, rocks, hills, bushes, fences, you name it. Just sorting out what is there is a chore much less figuring out color and value. So, I am interested in 3 things when I am looking at the scene: what is the overall value of the object or section, what is the saturation level of the colors that I am seeing, and what is the base color? As an example, in the scene I was looking at yesterday, I focused in on the farthest hillside and the trees. Apart from whatever else I am going to do with that hillside, I can at least identify this much to get me started. The base color for the trees is a blue color. (When I paint it I know that my greens will tend to be more on the blue side than yellow side.) The color is low in saturation-it is dulled down and not bright. Lastly, in comparison to everything else these trees felt like a mid level value-a medium if you will-and maybe a 4 or 5 value.

It isn't that I want to follow a formula here but I am learning and I need some guidelines. And the amount of information and concepts to keep track of can be overwhelming. So, I want to whittle things down to what I am interested in as far as planning goes. My field notes have been helpful. While I am creative, I am not imaginative so the notes help. And please don't write in to debate with me about this! Everyone has their own process:):):)
OK, hope everyone has a creative Monday. Thanks for reading and commenting.
Libby

New Work: Olive Orchard Road

2011-10-14T04:23:00.000-07:00

Olive Orchard Rd
8" x 10" original acrylic painting
3/4" profile canvas
available: libbyfife@ymail.com
$65 + $10 USPS

This one was started and finished yesterday. I "designed" this one as I went along which was kind of nerve wracking for me. My preference is to have the whole thing sketched out and to know where to place all of the objects, etc. A little editing is fine but a whole rework kills me! In the end, I pulled it together (enough for me anyway) and I am happy with the results.

I had another view of this area in mind-a section of the road showing this field, the road, and the distant mountain. The whole thing was framed by this tree in front which I thought was going to be a great idea. When I started to really look at it the whole painting became about THE TREE. So, I may go back to this area and take another look at composing that view. I really do think there is something there for me.

So, I want to share something that has helped me. I get stuck a lot as I am painting. By stuck I mean that I tend to think that I don't know what I am doing or don't know how to fix something or that I will never be any good. It is frustrating and discouraging-two things I don't want to experience when I am trying to be creative and enjoy myself. Here is what I have been doing for awhile now that really helps. Instead of telling myself (out loud) that I don't know what I am doing (feeling a bit fraudulent I guess), I ask myself what it is that I do know how to do. My experience here is that if I step back and take a minute to think about what I have learned and retained I actually have an idea of what to do and can go forward rather than beat myself up. Concentrating on what I do know how to do makes the painting start to flow again and takes away my anxiety. Give it a try next time you are stuck with anything. I bet you do know something:)

I sure hope everyone had a creative week. Thanks for reading and commenting.
Libby

New Work: Burson Rd Morning

2011-10-11T10:30:00.000-07:00

Burson Road Morning
4.5" x 6.5" gouache on coldpress watercolor paper
available: libbyfife@ymail.com
$35 + $10 USPS shipping

I finished this one up this morning. I took a ride on Sunday morning and came upon this road. The shadows were perfect for what I wanted. As I was taking pictures on the same road but further down, two dogs came running down the hillside to say "hello." Actually, they may have been coming to take a chunk out of my leg but I prefer to be optimistic about this. This is the country you know:)

OK, I am working on a value sketch for the next painting. I have an idea about this other section of road that I was driving on Sunday so I will see what I can do with that.

OK, let me know what you are up to and thanks for reading and commenting.
Libby

Barking Up The Wrong Tree

2011-10-08T13:02:00.000-07:00

I am the dog some days. Voluntarily and even though I know better. The Internet is such a great resource but is one big giant crapshoot as far as I can tell. Incidentally, here is the origin of the phrase.

Hope everyone is having a great Saturday.

Libby

New Work: Fiddleneck Boat Launch

2011-10-07T05:35:00.000-07:00

Fiddleneck Boat Launch-Hogan Lake
11" x 14" acrylic on 3/4" raised canvas
available: libbyfife@ymail.com

I finished this one up yesterday. I tried to do some different things with the lighting: making parts of the foreground the lightest element and trying to make the sky darker than I normally would. I have read lots of times and in several places that because the sky is the source of light, it is generally the lightest part of the painting. My observations tell me that this is generally true. I would make a distinction though between lightest and brightest. There could be things elsewhere on the landscape that are more saturated in color and appear to be lighter than the sky. I have also seen the sky be really dark and the landscape be very light. So, I would just guess that it is up to me what to make light and dark. I also used a limited palette: cad red light, cad yellow medium, and ultramarine blue. Limiting your colors while out and about is super useful and so since I did that for my color/field notes, I continued on with it for the final painting. I really couldn't say why the photo appears to be "striated." My guess is the macro mode on my camera in the sunlight isn't a good combo.

Mr. Toad Makes a Visit:
OK, so here was what was on my back patio two days ago. He scared me too since I wasn't expecting to see him when I reached for the hose which is right next to where he is sitting. He is about the size of my hand which, from stem to stern, is about 6" x 3.5". I don't know his fate; he hopped away during the night. I hope the little guy makes it.

And lastly, what is going on here? Toby hopped in to the sink this morning. I knew it was only a matter of time before this happened. He is licking the cat food dish (gross) and it is nuts because his other dish of fresh cat food was sitting on the floor at his feeding station. He is just the oddest cat I have ever had in my home. And just as a general rule of thumb, we don't let the cats do anything dangerous including jumping onto or into the stove or anywhere up on the kitchen sink, including the sink itself. Gotta watch the little buggers every minute.

I hope everyone had a creative week. We have had some crazy weather-rain this week and now it is supposed to heat back up again for next week. Welcome to the foothills!

Thanks for reading and commenting,
Libby

Sketches and Notes

2011-10-04T15:08:00.000-07:00

The above two shots are of Hogan Lake. This is the Fiddleneck boat launch area. I was out and about on Tuesday in the afternoon. I haven't been feeling well and haven't gotten much of anything done. I can only do things in short little bursts of time before I need to lay down. (Or is that lie down?) I did think I could show what I have been doing in the way of "research."

The last two shots are my field notes. One of the problems for me in working from photos is the "literalness" of things. Photos can be flat or just bad! I haven't the experience to just mix colors from memory or solve complex design problems. I like to observe the color and then mix a swatch showing the value and saturation. Photos can alter values, making things darker or lighter. They can also alter color. The pic on the left shows some different value plans based on a simple image of the lake. I massed all of my masses (ha ha!) and reduced things to just three shapes and three values. The lower right hand corner shows some dark shapes in front, a light foreground, and a medium background. This was essentially how I saw things. So, just thinking broadly, you can mix things up with regard to value depending on the type of mood that you want to create and where you want your focus to be. That second pic shows my notes from my recent San Andreas painting. The conditions and colors are similar to what I saw yesterday and so I feel that I can use those notes for any painting I want to produce from this Hogan Lake series of photos. This is useful information too for anyone reading who makes quilts. The same ideas apply.

The other thing from yesterday was that I took a bunch of suckey photos before I figured out what to do. I want good shots featuring foreground, mid ground, and distant elements. I am also trying to get proportions of sky and ground right-more sky or more ground, etc. I ended up moving around and going back and forth. I inadvertently caught a shot with the rocks, the road, and the trees. I looked at the photo and realized that it was much more dynamic than any of the other shots that I took. The curving and leading lines of the road and the rocks, the idea that I captured a little something in all three spaces, and then the vertical uprights of the trees all made for a better composition (to me). That pic on the right incidentally is a good idea but not as strong in my mind. I found that just moving around and thinking before I clicked really helped.

Until recently, my picture taking skills have been very basic: just point and shoot to capture an image. Working from a bad photo though isn't easy. Garbage in, garbage out. If your photo is a stinker to begin with, nothing else can save your composition I think.

I guess the upshot of all of this is that I am finally starting to understand about some design principles that are a little harder for me to grasp. Using color isn't easy but it is easier for me to get a hold on than the concept of "rhythm" in design. Rhythm, in my mind anyway, involves the motion of lines and shapes: repetition, variance of shape, vertical and horizontal lines, transition between different shapes, and a static scene versus an energetic scene. I have said before that I look at a lot of artwork. Color draws you in but then what else is there to hold you? I think it is these other elements that now get my attention. I am starting to be able to identify a strong composition which draws me in as opposed to just being attracted to color (not that there is anything wrong with that).

It is all learning and I am heartened when I read that someone whose work I admire is struggling too. It isn't fun for me to read about how someone is just a genius and they have always "gotten" it especially when I can see that their work maybe isn't as strong as they think. (This is probably a subjective point so please don't write in to debate it-I haven't the energy.) To me, that isn't reality at all. So, keeping on making those errors and mistakes and writing about it. It all helps:)

OK, this was a long one. Thanks for reading and commenting if you hung in there:)

Libby

Guild Show and Out and About

2011-10-03T06:44:00.000-07:00

Good Morning! I was out and about on Friday down at Hogan Lake. The sun hadn't yet crested over the hillside and was beginning to light up the lake. Really pretty stuff.

We went to Plymouth on Saturday. It is about 40 minutes away in the next county (Amador). The local guild was having a show and I had an urge to see some quilts. Plus, I am not going to lie, there are a lot of wineries over there too. This was a small show but pretty well lit and overall, a nice venue. I was really pleased to see a fair amount of hand quilting. I was dismayed though to see some poor machine quilting. I get about the learning curve and am OK with that but I would guess that whoever was doing the quilting was just in a hurry. Too bad really. There was a whole section devoted to Amish style quilts which was nice. There were several quilts which had dimensional items on them (there must have been a class) and then there were a few pieces where I just shook my head. One piece had quite a bit of lint and threads on it. If I had hung that quilt I would have cleaned that stuff off. Another piece was a very cute idea. The maker had fussy cut a square of fabric featuring these little paper dolls. Unfortunately, rather than cutting the dolls themselves out, she just cut a square of fabric featuring the doll. So, some dolls were off center, etc. You could see the rest of the pattern of the fabric though (truncated limbs, torsos, and heads of the other dolls). I sure would have done that differently. The maker was standing right there too so I am glad that I didn't open my big mouth:) To each his own I guess.

Isn't this terribly artistic? Ha Ha! We had a lovely picnic at a winery despite the busyness of the weekend. This is crush time here in CA and so there was an event in the valley which made the wineries crowded and ridiculous. We managed to suck down a fair amount of wine, however.

Lastly, I awoke with a colossally stiff neck yesterday. I didn't get much done but did manage to organize the studio. We have been here a year now and I have managed to slob up the place quite nicely so a little re organization and cleaning is in order.

Alright. Hope everyone has a creative Monday. Let me know what you are up to if you can.

Libby

New Work: Hillside Study 2

2011-09-30T14:12:00.000-07:00

Hillside Study 2
5" x 7" acrylic on hardboard
available: libbyfife@ymail.com
$35 + $10 USPS

I worked on this one in the afternoon today. It is another interpretation of our hillside. This time, I went ahead with an evening idea. We really get the most spectacular sunsets and I watch them but I am a little too tired at that point to paint anything. So, I take notes and photos and rely on the other color mixing exercises that I do in order to get the colors and values for the evening feel that I want.

In addition to me working out an idea, this is also a submission for a DPW challenge. You can see that here. The idea was to tone your canvas using a color that you wouldn't normally use and to let that color poke through the painting (which was to have an Autumnal theme). I toned the board with cadmium yellow medium and yellow ochre. I probably wouldn't do that again. I thought it would be useful for expressing the idea of the trees being back lit-I don't think I achieved that. The under color did seem to warm up the cooler colors like the blues and purples. There are a lot of variables, really. For example, I used a warm red and a warm yellow and a cool blue to mix all of my colors. This limited palette has been super helpful lately especially when I am out and about taking color notes. I feel like I can get all of the colors that I need. That could change though as we get into Winter and Spring. Anyhow.

OK, if anyone is listening:) Hope everyone had a creative week. Thanks for reading and commenting.

Libby

New Work: Pardee Dam and The Thinkin' Spot

2011-09-28T04:35:00.000-07:00

Pardee Dam Morning
8" x 10" acrylic on 3/4" profile canvas
available: libbyfife@ymail.com
$65 + $10 USPS shipping

I worked on this one Monday-Wednesday. I was out at the dam on Monday and made some color notes. This bridge (there are two) is the second one on the Calaveras side and there is a pull over spot where I was sitting. The bridge has metering lights to direct one way traffic; there can only be one car at a time on this section. That is Pardee reservoir in the distance. The dam and reservoir have a great history. The dam was built to supply water to the East Bay and was a new project for the recently formed EBMUD (East Bay Municipal Utility District). In any case, I think I am done with this one though I make tweak that left hand light standard a bit.

The Thinkin' Spot:

I made a little place for myself in the backyard. Nothing fancy; very serviceable. Right now the weather is absolutely perfect. Cool in the mornings and still hot in the afternoon (80 degrees or so) but perfectly lovely in the shade. The breeze comes up our hillside and helps to keep things cool. I have been going out here in the afternoons to think and just generally contemplate my navel, so to speak. Tonight is the beginning of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. The holiday involves some important things not the least of which is thinking. So I have my thinking cap on!

That second pic is a view down the hillside of our backyard, out across the neighbor's field, across highway 26, and then onto the side of the mountain. I have said it before: I have got to be the luckiest person around. During the winter this little spot will be different. The leaves from the oaks will mostly disappear. The grass will eventually turn green and grow like crazy as we get through winter and spring approaches. I am already thinking about shoes and undergarments that might keep me warm during the winter so that I can go outside comfortably. I know that our ACE Hardware store sells rubber boots which could be good for walking around in the wet grass and mud. I balked at the thermal underwear last year (price) but think that this year I will buy it. I need a hat and gloves also. I am always unprepared for the change of season so this year maybe I can get it together prior to.

OK, hope everyone has a creative Wednesday. Let me know what you are up to:)
Libby

Out and About, Sketch, and Some CA History

2011-09-26T06:24:00.000-07:00

I was out and about yesterday to do some sketching. I started at the old train station (now a shipping store) and had another look at the building. I have been reading about taking better photos in an effort to improve my painting. My VS train station piece wasn't terribly successful and I think one of the problems for me anyway was the composition. So, I took some more photos and some field notes and may try again.

I then tried driving to Pardee reservoir but got a little lost. Once I righted myself, I found the reservoir and parked in a little turn out prior to the 2nd bridge (coming from the Calaveras side). The Pardee dam, bridges, and reservoir have an interesting history. The dam is the dividing line between the two counties of Calaveras and Amador. The water from the dam is essential for the residents of the East Bay, where I grew up. George Pardee, whom the dam is named for, was a governor of our state during the early 1900's (at the time of the 1906 earthquake in SF). In short, much of the Western United States is arid with many parts being desert like. The effort to secure a continuous water source for a growing population is a constant theme in the state's history, both past and present. You just can't get away from it.

Anyhow, I have some other shots to show later. It really is a beautiful area. I did my sketch at home from my photos-I got pooped out after so much driving. I took the shot of the nails on the rock because of the colors. Someone gathered those nails up and made a little artistic display for anyone who cares to take a minute to stop and look. Very thoughtful and unexpected.

OK, I am off to do some more sketching and to take some color notes. The colors and landscape of this dam area interest me and so I am thinking about a painting.

If you are doing something creative or fun today let me know. Thanks for reading,

Libby

New Work and a Re-Do

2011-09-23T05:13:00.000-07:00

Freemason Hall Before Sunrise
5" x 7" acrylic on hardboard
available email: libbyfife@ymail.com
I am so taken with this new way of working that I did it again on Wednesday. I was out in Milton before the sun crested the hillside. (I am awake anyway-what am I doing that I am not outside doing this?) I was taking notes and making what I call "color swatches" which are just mixes of color that describe the hue, the saturation, and the value of what I think I am seeing. When painted next to each other and viewed as a group, you can get an idea for how your finished painting might look and feel. Anyhow, as I was sitting there, the side of the building all of a sudden lit up like a neon sign. It was like someone plugged the cord into the outlet and turned on the lights. It was incredible. One moment I had these soft and delicate colors and the next moment, I had this glorious pink and yellow light shining on the side of the building. The sky became more and more turquoise in color and the light got about 30 degrees more intense. Really AH-MAY-ZING as Huell Howser might say. So, the above piece is obviously before that incredible event.

I redid this one. My original plan was to have those back buildings in shadow with a pathway of light in front. Why I deviated from this I don't know. I do need to fix the side of that station though-looks kind of bulgey.

Ahem! Did we see this? Hello??? LOL!

OK, my Big Month of Busyness is almost over. Tomorrow is the Calaveras Arts studio tour. Everything I like to do in the Autumn fell on the same weekend this year. As a consequence and since I can't be in ten places at once I had to pick one place. The whole shootin' match will culminate next week for me with Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish new year. Oh, and I get my new crown put on too that day. Isn't that what everyone does to celebrate? Hope that everyone had a good week and thanks for reading.
Libby

New Work: Highway 49-San Andreas

2011-09-21T03:47:00.000-07:00

Highway 49: San Andreas

8" x 10" available: email libbyfife@ymail.com

I got excited Sunday morning as I was driving to Columbia (see previous post) and I snapped a photo (again) while I was driving. The sun was rising and the darkness was just starting to fall away as I watched my husband's little truck up in front of me on the road. I really wanted to just hold that feeling as long as possible in order to preserve the memory. So, naturally a painting seemed in order!

I started in on Monday with my idea. I thought, from my drive, that I knew about the values and colors. The sky is blue right? Wasn't I attracted to the golden color at the horizon? Those trees were really dark in value and blue and blah, blah, blah. Wrong!!!!! I laid the sky down which looked pretty good and then I was totally stalled on those trees. How can I represent them? Fortunately, I restrained myself and finished up the afternoon with just the sky and the road. I have a tendency to keep going and make wrong decisions which result in overpainting. I was stuck though.

What to do? I clearly didn't have any information other than my memory which is full of holes like a slice of Swiss cheese. No field notes, nothing, zippo, zilcho, zero, and nada. So, I went back out yesterday morning with my paints, etc. I realized that I didn't need the exact spot on the road where I had been and so I found a place to safely pull over and park. I got started with my observations and was surprised to learn some things: the sky is NOT blue at that point, the trees were not blue either, and the road was certainly not a flat gray color. Hmm. Values were a lot different as well. So, I took some notes and made some color swatches, comparing values and intensities to the real thing that I was observing. Part of the allure for me of the morning time is that things like shadows and colors are very "soft" still. Colors aren't fully turned on just yet. It was important to actually see this.

I went back to my studio and got busy. The painting fell together easily because of the observations that I did. I am not an imaginative person and don't have 40 years of plein air experience. At this point, my solutions to what something might look like are very limited. I need to see it to paint it. Photos are OK but really don't tell the whole story. Sitting there yesterday looking at the trees, I was surprised to see such a golden red-brown color at the edges. I played that up since it was so lovely. The sky at the horizon wasn't yellow so much as it was a yellow-orange color-almost a warmer golden yellow. And the sky was so not blue! Not even a lavender. It is so high key in value and is a warm white with warm blue and greenish undertones almost. Certainly it wasn't as bright as I had made it originally.

These are just my observations mind you and since everyone perceives things a little differently, the observations are really specific to what I saw. Plein air work is not for everyone, myself included probably, but my field notes along with my photos are obviously invaluable. I have been able to internalize some concepts and along with my direct observations, I am feeling a little better about knowing what to do when I paint.

This was a long story so thanks if you got through it. Hope everyone is having a creative Wednesday. If you have something fun going on let me know.

Libby

Columbia Show Wrap Up

2011-09-19T04:27:00.000-07:00

I had a pretty successful day yesterday in Columbia. What a super venue! The weather was perfect and the most important part was that I was on a shaded side street. The vendors received plenty of traffic and the shade was inviting to the people walking around. My setup worked perfectly and I think I looked professional. You can see my booth above. Apart from the show, the best part about yesterday was the ride up and the ride back. The morning and evening drives were roughly at the same hour-6:15 to about 6:30. I have never seen anything so glorious as that sunrise and sunset over the landscape. Honestly, (and I am not religious) I feel like my Creator was speaking to me and telling me to pay attention right now! It was that beautiful, truly.

The above four pieces went to the same collector and sold first thing in the morning. My customer is a teacher at the local college and in doing her master's degree, she spent time researching local architecture. So, she was drawn to the above pieces because of her interest in building styles. She is also a collector of local art and has quite an extensive group of paintings and other work. She also purchased the above two gouache studies. That really started my day on a positive note.

I had another customer come back later in the day for this gouache study. I really love this one and it seems like it went to a great home so that makes me very happy.

The cards were a big hit. What wasn't a hit and what surprised me was that the prints did not even generate any interest. I think though that I didn't present those correctly so I will try again in October at the next show.

There were three things that seemed to draw people in to the booth. To begin with, I had my cards and sign placed right outside the booth. People could stop at that display without having to commit to coming inside my tent. Going in the tent is intimidating I think (it is to me anyway); It is almost like you are committing yourself to buying something. The second thing and which was a recurrent comment was that the work looked "Impressionistic." I am guessing that this is a style many people can readily identify which is just fine with me. The third thing which was most gratifying was that people seemed to recognize the local places that I had painted. This makes sense since most people at the show are local. The landscapes were popular enough but the location of them is not easy to pinpoint; they could be anywhere in the county.

The above information is helpful to me. It sort of shows me too about why my DPW venue may not be working. Developing a following is the key here I think and I am guessing that one reason is those artists selling on DPW already have a following built up. (If that makes sense.)

I am very lucky. My husband helped me set up and break down my display. Some people didn't have this kind of assistance. Everyone that talked with me was very kind and complimentary. My BIL gave me some sales tips (he is a lifelong salesman) and my display looked professional. I think I finally had the right mix of products and prices too.

I had a couple of funny conversations. I always try to explain to people about what the work is made of: acrylics or gouache or what have you. Lots of people have painting experience of one sort or another so it feels to me like common ground for discussion (which is nice). One gentleman though, when I started to give an explanation, sort of stopped me and said that he, "knew about ART." I met two other gentleman who had very long knives strapped to their waists via a belt and holder. I had a good conversation with them about the making and possible uses of those knives. I had a dismaying discussion with another gentleman whose wife was a vendor. She had had a couple of her prints and cards stolen while at a show and also at a local store. Lastly, I spoke with another vendor who seemed to be in the same boat as me-how do you justify all of the time spent making art?

I had a productive day which is good. I do have to regroup and reorganize today so I better get busy. Thanks for reading and commenting. Hope everyone has a creative Monday.
Libby

New Work: Milton Masonic Hall

2011-09-16T04:02:00.000-07:00

Milton Masonic Hall, Milton CA
5" x 7"
available for purchase: libbyfife@ymail.com

Isn't the Internet wonderful?? I thought I was hallucinating when I was thinking of this building as the Oddfellows Hall. The Oddfellows are similar to the Freemasons I guess. You can read about it here. All I had to do was a search and up popped the info.

Anyway, this is a little study in the use of warm and cool colors to represent light and shadow. I divided up the color wheel and tried to use only cooler colors for the shadow areas and lighter color for the light areas. I am guessing that when your brain sees colors that are perceived as being "warm" that you almost automatically assume that they are in the light family. I ended up having to deepen the shadows and lighten the lights and then add the lightest and brightest highlights at the end. Because I am a novice I tend to correct throughout the process. Laying down the right color notes and values to begin with would be smart but sometimes the correction process produces other design ideas which work a little better. Anyway.

Hope everyone has a creative day today. I reworked another painting and will try and get a photo of that this afternoon when the light is best. Thanks for reading and commenting.
Libby

New Work: Take Two!

2011-09-15T06:00:00.000-07:00

Valley Springs Barn-Take 2

I added some color this morning to this piece from yesterday. I am learning that white and black on the palette have both benefits and drawbacks. Adding white to a color to lighten it can deaden that color and make the overall piece dull, especially if the whole canvas is filled with that dead effect and has no other mitigating factors (in my opinion). Adding black to a color to darken it is practically the kiss of death in my book too, especially in the early morning landscapes that I do. In my experience so far black is best left as an accent somewhere. Colors can be darkened in other ways and other tools used to create a darker mood. Anyhow, I digress.

I glazed color on to the train station. It seemed flat to me. In my mind there is a difference between subtlety and just flat out flatness. I worked on the sky a little also which was flat to me too. Lastly I glazed on a some warmer blue tones in the foreground. I think I like it better now.

General Interest:

I can't think of a way to put this altogether so I will do this in a "bulleted" kind of way.

* I added 2 new colors to my palette: cobalt blue and pyrrole red dark. Cobalt blue is somewhere between ultramarine blue and phthalo blue in terms of coolness. I was hoping for a replacement for my cerulean blue which I consider to be warmish in temperature. The jury is still out but so far the cobalt is a beautiful and clear coolish blue. Thanks to Rian for mentioning this color some time ago. The pyrrole red dark is meant to be a replacement for alizarin crimson which I don't really care for. The alizarin produces some very dull tones when mixed with other colors. Pyrrole red dark is INTENSE! A beautiful clear fire engine/lipstick red tending towards the cool side, a little goes a long way so be careful. I haven't used a lot of it but so far so good. Oh, and I added terra rosa too to the palette. It is an earthy red brown color that is coolish in temperature. It is similar to burnt sienna but with a slightly more bluish cast to it. Incidentally, next time you are fabric shopping try and pay close attention to the undertones of the fabric you are buying. Step back from the bolt also and try to guess what color you see the most of-its temperature, it relative darkness or lightness, and if it is bright or muddy. I think you will be surprised.

* I was thinking this morning about the merits of glazing color over other color. This has been a great tool for me to have picked up. Not only can you mix colors optically with the glazing right on the canvas, but the glaze itself has a reflective quality to it. (It is a transparent acrylic product after all.) I learned from my printing experiments last week that a reflective surface produces stronger colors and catches the eye a lot better than a matte surface. This could be useful. I also think this reflective quality is one of the reasons why my cards make my paintings look so much better. Those photos have a glossy finish to them. (It is that and the small format.) IF I were to make an art quilt today, you can bet your last buck that I would incorporate sheer fabric overlays somehow into the mix. I bet they would make even the most subtle of hues shine from a distance.

* I put my prints together yesterday. They are matted, backed with some mat board, and placed in a clear cellophane bag. It looks like a nice, neat product which is ready to be framed. I showed them to Rich (he was suitably complimentary) and he, I think, was trying to ask this question: If you could buy this print for a lower price, why buy the original? I know my answer to this question. To begin with, my paintings are priced in such a way as to make them affordable to lots of people. They are definitely in my price range so that is sort of my litmus test. I also priced the prints in an affordable way. I am guessing that buying an original piece of artwork could be intimidating somehow. I am also guessing that for this area, not everyone has $65 or $75 spare bucks to burn on a painting. So, I have the prints, smaller original pieces of art, and cards too. My point here is that I finally have a pretty good range of products in a wide variety of price points. Having several different options gives me some confidence in presenting my work. Now, as to whether or not any of this will sell, I am OK with whatever the outcome. My mindset is that I am trying, I am making a solid effort, and that is what has to matter in the end.

*Lastly, I owe a big shout out to Barbara. When I was first starting to sketch, she inadvertently introduced me to the concept of negative space. Negative space is the space around an object and is helpful when you are considering how the object is shaped. Negative space is big in design obviously but it actually led me to think much more about editing. I am finding out that editing is not so much about removing or adding as much as it is about the relationships between things that exist within the work you are making. When I am painting and considering changes, both additions and subtractions, I think about Barbara and ask myself about the impact of what one change will have on what lies around that change on the canvas. If I cut into this warm orange with a cool blue, what will happen? Can I change this shape by placing something next to it rather than trying to change the shape itself. See what I mean? Now if only I could edit my writing...

OK, this was a lot. Comment on whatever you want if you are still awake. Thanks for reading:)

Libby

New Work: Valley Springs Train Station

2011-09-14T06:03:00.000-07:00

Valley Springs Train Station
8" x 11" acrylic on 3/4" profile wrapped canvas

I think this one is finished though lately most things in my studio get a rework. As I learn new things I can sometimes incorporate those concepts into past paintings. A better photo is certainly in order too.

What is everyone up to?
Libby

Weekly Wrap Up

2011-09-10T04:01:00.000-07:00

Color Cards:

Recently, I sat down to learn a little bit more about the paint colors I use. Color has some inherent properties-value, brightness or dullness, and hue. (What color is it anyway?). I am always trying to see if I can accurately identify what color I am seeing and then think about value, both in terms of the color itself and the relation of that color to other objects surrounding it. I thought that if I evaluated each individual color that I use, I could bridge some gaps out in the field, so to speak. Not surprisingly darker hues have a higher value. I do my values from 1-9, 1 being the lightest and 9 being the darkest. I know people reverse this order too. Some colors are brighter than others too so even a lighter value may stand out from other colors. Also, I noticed that when I started mixing colors there was sort of a mathematical component to things: higher valued hues and lower valued hues, like blue and yellow, produced an overall lowered value. It could still be a saturated type of color but the value was diminished. Anyway, if I were going to buy fabric today I would keep this info in mind.

My Time At The Printing Shop:

I have spent some time recently delving in to the possibility of having some of my images printed. There are commercial printers, both small local businesses and larger chains like Kinkos. There are online sites which will make giclee prints for you on paper or canvas. (Giclee in this instance refers to the process of printing as well as the inks used and not just to a "reproduction".) Photos can be printed from places like Shutterfly or an inkjet printer can be purchased. Each option has its own limitations and benefits. My thought here is that I want to test the waters with selling these prints and so expensive options requiring a lot of upfront money are out for now.

What I did do these past couple of weeks is to go to two printers locally to see what is what. Yesterday's experience was enlightening. The printer made several prints for me on different surfaces of paper. Each image was a little different depending on the surface of the paper. The glossier white surface produced the best image because of the reflected light. I also learned about sizing images, DPI, and the size of the image in a dimensional way. He showed me some Pantone color cards. The same color printed on two different types of paper was remarkably different. All in all, I came away feeling pretty good about what can be obtained at a commercial printer.

Lastly:

There has been precious little art making happening this week. I did some sketches earlier in the week and yesterday I worked on cards and the above mentioned prints. I am going to participate in that show on the 18th and I have been in a bit of a lather. The prints are sort of the last piece of the product range puzzle. It is so easy to get side tracked with other non essential things that I find myself cleaning the corner of the bathroom instead of doing any arty type things. Anyway, just trying to reign in the madness.

OK, thanks for reading and commenting.

Libby

For Fun and Random Thoughts

2011-09-08T04:00:00.000-07:00

5" x 7" acrylic on Ampersand Aquaboard

After I spent the morning planning my next painting, I then turned my attention to this one. I needed something that I could just paint without thinking too much about. All of that thinkin' hurts my head!

I moved on to the piece above. I am trying out the DPW site and they have weekly painting challenges. One of the last ones was an exercise in mixing clean and fresh values. It is super easy to not pay attention to the paint that you are putting down on the canvas. You can just get overwhelmed or tired or distracted and just start grabbing already mixed colors off your palette, not considering if they are the right value for the passage that you are painting. The trick though for this challenge was to build the painting using rectangles of color. This isn't hard given that most of my brushes are brights, which are already sort of a square shape, but I could just see that the paintings would turn in to a pixelated nightmare. And looking at the entries there were indeed some pixelated paintings. Whatever. So, I did the above instead which is sort of a halfway compromise, no?

In other news, I have been doing some sketching outdoors. Looking at trees again and trying to figure things out. My husband was off work for four days (his birthday) and so I got a little off track. That happens and so now I am trying to get back in to the swing of things.

Yesterday as I was in my studio I was thinking about when I physically went to work, to a location, and was there for 10 hours (8 + 2 for commute). I had to be really organized to get things done during the day-I shopped before work or at lunch time and did my chores in the morning before work or on the weekend to be ready for the work week. Now, my time is so fluid that I find myself picking at my chores; they drag on endlessly and it seems I am always doing them. Also, I think people think that because I am a housewife that my time is uber flexible (and perhaps not very important). Well, I have some news here on this-not true! I am going to try to get back to being a little more "scheduled."

Thanks for reading and commenting. Hope everyone is having a creative week.

Libby

Small Study; Idea and Blog Link

2011-09-05T05:07:00.000-07:00

This is a scanned image so I apologize. It looks a little obnoxious in its brightness. I worked on this Sat. and Sun. It is after the style of Yoshiko Yamamoto. By "after the style", I mean my sketch here is based on the design and not her coloration. She is a contemporary printmaker living in No. CA and specializes in Arts and Crafts style prints. This little study for me was meant to help me in my quest to portray trees in a way that makes me happy and doesn't denigrate the fine spirit of the beautiful oak trees which I love so much. (Does that sound "arty" enough??? LOL!)

This one is acrylic on Ampersand Aquaboard. I talked about this product awhile back and am still trying to decide if I like it or not. It has a great tooth to it (texture). I did a base layer of paint which helped to cut down the glare of the white. I am learning that a larger brush is a little better for me. Starting with a smaller brush makes things fiddly looking-too many strokes, you get caught up in details, etc. Fiddly. Fussy. Not cohesive. I am also learning about the benefits of glazing which is basically adding a sheer wash of color in some way over another color. The effect is a deeper and richer looking color. Incidentally, Debra pointed out some textile work to me that uses this principle of glazing only with fabrics. It looked like the artist had used sheer fabrics to create layers of color. Very clever I thought.

I also wanted to mention about a blog that I follow, written by Kathryn Law who is a painter down in So. Cal. She is involved in an artist-in-residence project at Cabrillo National Monument Park. She will be documenting the park in paintings and one of her concepts is to explore the co-existence and benefits of natural and man made elements. Apart from really enjoying her work and her thoughtful posts, I started thinking about the purpose of painting. There are lots of reasons to want to portray something (no matter the medium or style) and I began to think about why I like landscape painting as opposed to still life or portraiture. I don't have a definitive answer but I know that I find my environment here soothing in some way. I am interested in the history of the place as well and I am in awe of the wide open spaces. I am beginning to think about how it may not matter about the style of the painting as much as maybe just the act of recording something through painting. Does that make sense I wonder? Anyway, check out Kathryn's last couple of posts to see her work and to maybe get a better explanation of what I am trying to get at.

OK, thanks for reading and commenting. Have a creative Labor Day:)
Libby

New Work: Morning Commute

2011-09-03T07:39:00.000-07:00

Morning Commute
11" x 14" Acrylic on 3/4" profile canvas
$75 + $15 shipping USPS see PayPal button below

I sure learned a lot with this one. I was really frustrated with the goopiness of the paint, even though this creamy and thick consistency is much desired by many painters. I was reading some posts on the Wet Canvas web site and just by accident I hit upon a discussion about the use of acrylic mediums in painting. I had the two mentioned mediums and so figured I really had nothing to lose by trying. The first medium is a slow dry medium designed to make your paint stay moist and workable for a longer period of time. This helps on the palette as well as being able to mix a color, apply it in several places, and then go back in with another color and blend with a brush. Oil painters can do this more easily since oils take longer to dry. The slow dry also allows for scumbling of paint which is taking your paint brush and sort of rubbing one color around and lifting off the base color a bit (loosely described). I also used a glazing medium to apply successive layers of paint for what I feel is a richer effect of color. Remember that acrylics are generally opaque (unless a medium is used or it is just a more transparent pigment). The more transparent your color, the more the base color can show through which adds some depth.

Anyway, I feel like I have a better handle on what I was doing wrong. Acrylics really are extremely versatile so it would be a shame to abandon them without exhausting the possibilities first. Not knowing how to effectively use the most basic of your materials really affects your confidence level! (Debra, are you listening??? LOL!)

Anyway, hope everyone has a creative and fun weekend. Thanks for reading and commenting.
Libby

Fab 50s Diner-Update

2011-09-02T11:06:00.000-07:00

This one has been bugging me ever since I finished it (supposedly finished). Apart from any technical design issues, I was super bothered by my painting job. I felt like I had just gotten all stabby with the brush and paint, if that makes any sense. I desperately wanted that wall and canopy to be smooth but also to have some depth which is why I had all those different brush strokes and color on there in the first place. It was guncky too. For those that don't know, guncky is a technical term for when you ineptly dry brush paint onto a surface that already has paint on it, all in an effort to be artistic. I went back in with color and an acrylic medium called "glaze." Glaze makes your opaque paint fairly transparent when you add it and allows you to paint multiple layers of whatever color you want. The color underneath will show through so you need to be careful. People successfully build up rich color this way. I redid the wall and canopy in light. It is a near miss as to whether or not the canopy in light is still lighter than the shaded part of the building. It is certainly a brighter color which I hope will help. Anyhow, one of Beena's comments reminded me again about the idea and importance of keeping your shadow dulled down while keeping your light areas brighter and more colorful. I try to use this combination but am not always successful. You can reverse that too incidentally if it suits.

Though I am not entirely thrilled, I am happier than I was. I want to keep working on my light and shadow patterns. I also think that I finished the other painting that I also showed today. Still assessing:)

Thanks for reading (again),

Libby

In Progress

2011-09-02T04:36:00.000-07:00

In Process: Milton Road 5?

I am always a little embarrassed to show stuff in process. There is a lot of clean up work here to do and a couple of road signs to add.

In the course of working on this painting, I have realized that I both love and hate acrylic paint. I started with acrylics because of painting on fabric. If there was no fabric in the mix, I might have just as easily chosen watercolors or oils. However, and I know this isn't true, but watercolors always seem a little anemic to me. I know it isn't true OK? Just feels like it. Oils are sort of expensive. They have the supreme advantage though of a long open working time-they sit on your palette and canvas and can be easily blended for quite awhile. Very useful when trying to create gradients of color. Acrylics can create this effect also but you need to approach things differently. Heavy body acrylics (as opposed to fluid acrylics) have a different feel to them also. I have heard it described as using Elmers glue with pigment. Very true. What I decided this week is that I am very sensitive to how the brush and paint feel in my hand as they are being applied to the canvas. I have mentioned that the gouache paints with the small brushes feel elegant somehow-like calligraphy pens compared to crayons. Using acrylics can feel like you are Fred Flintstone clomping around with your giant meat paw hands trying to drink from a dainty bone china cup. Great visual right? Well, it is true.

What do I do I wonder? And I could use some more paint as I am almost out of two crucial colors so you see where I am headed. My conclusion is that I am not using the acrylics correctly. They can be made more fluid. I can buy acrylics that are more fluid. I can use the slow dry retarder that I have. I can have patience. I can try different brushes. And on and on. My long drawn out point here is that it is easy to think that your frustration is caused by the product. (And maybe partly it is.) It is really my own hand and skill level and the tools I choose in combination with everything I have mentioned. So it is easy to think that switching to oils would be better and maybe it would but I haven't exhausted the variables with the acrylics yet. My skill set isn't there yet. Plus, the acrylics are so affordable.

Anyway, those are my thoughts. I should have the painting fixed up and ready to show shortly. In the meantime I hope everyone had a creative week. Thanks for reading and commenting.

Libby

Old Work and Local Color

2011-08-31T05:08:00.000-07:00

Have I ever shown this painting? Last summer I took a painting class while I was still living in Concord. It wasn't a structured class so much as it was a time to paint and have the instructor give feedback. That is good and bad. Good if you are an experienced artist but bad if you need actual instruction and guidance in the fundamentals of painting. (Whatever you think those are.) Anyhow, I did this painting and it took me a long time to finish, three weeks I think. I remember being supremely frustrated. I would work on and fix one area and then another area would need to be "fixed". It went on and on; it was interminable. My least favorite part is the shadows on the grass. My favorite part of the painting is the barn. It has a photographic feel to me. It was also my first lesson in the concept of "local color". Local color is the color that you think something should be based on your past experience with that object: trees are green, apples are red, barns are red, and the sky is blue. I am sorry to tell you though that this isn't the case. Look closely at things and you begin to see subtle nuances in color that will make you insane if you think about them too much. Oh, and for added joy objects next to each other influence each other and the colors you see. There is also your individual perception which adds to what you think you are seeing. It is enough to make a reasonably sane person nuts. How do you ever decide what color to paint something? That is a rhetorical question by the way-don't write in please to tell me how to do that!

I did learn in the class about using color to describe objects rather than value alone. Colors each have their own inherent value also so add that to the mix of stuff. As a quick aside to this, my loose understanding of colorist painters is that they use color to turn forms and advance the perception of value shifts as well as using color relationships to harmonize and energize a painting. I also learned about tangents: objects that touch one another or otherwise are cropped, truncated, fused, or distracting in some way. Incidentally, if you make art quilts (or whatever you want to call them) the same sorts of helpful hints apply with regard to local color, color choices and value, and tangents. My point is that I learned that a piece of art, no matter the medium, can be arranged and structured. You don't have to copy something verbatim or do what is expected unless of course you want to in which case, go for it!

OK, I got another false start on a painting yesterday. It is bound to happen. I am starting over again today. Wish me luck:)

Thanks for reading and commenting,

Libby

Gouache Study

2011-08-30T04:12:00.000-07:00

Small gouache study
5" x 7"

I feel a little funny about posting this (just in a mild ethical/unethical sort of way) but I do want to show my efforts. The above small study is based on this piece by Carolee Clark, who is a contemporary painter living and working in Oregon. I admire her work for several reasons. I enjoy her use of color but primarily, her depiction of forms is something that I would like to incorporate in to my own style. I don't know how else to describe her trees, houses, cars etc other than to say that they are very graphic-solid, discrete forms that are filled with color. There are soft and hard edges but each form contains its own color shifts to describe volume and form in the most simple and direct way as possible. As I write this, I realize it is the simplicity of her pieces which appeal so much to me.

Anyway, when I was painting these trees I learned some things about using my brushes. The brush goes up, down, and all around! Imagine. Moving the brush around in different ways produces some great results. It is especially true when using the gouache too. I have written before about how this is such an elegant medium. It is sort of akin to writing with a calligraphy pen versus writing with a crayon or some other huge, draggy writing implement.

My hope in doing this piece was to deconstruct those tree forms. How did Carolee get the trees to look like that? I have a tendency to overly complicate my trees. They end up looking so heavy and not in a good way either. When I look at some of the trees that I have done in the past, the best results for my eye are the trees that are the least complicated looking. I am not ever going to be a realist painter; not my goal.

OK, hope everyone has a creative Tuesday. Thanks for reading and commenting. Incidentally, where is everybody these days???
Libby

New Work: Fabulous 50's Diner

2011-08-29T04:46:00.000-07:00

Fabulous 50's Diner
8" x 10" acrylic on wrapped canvas
$65 + $10 USPS shipping-see PayPal button below

I picked away at this painting last week. I had gotten a false start on another angle of the restaurant and then abandoned that view in favor of a more direct look. Apart from The Elements of Design, part of painting for me (a really large part which I am only just beginning to understand) is this: composing a scene is exactly like writing a short essay. You can just write something straight up, as is, or you can really compose your essay. Arrange the main point and supporting points rather than just spitting back something verbatim, if that makes sense. Painting is the same way-take all of your elements and arrange them until the scene tells a little story, hopefully.

In any case, I wrote out a simple outline before I got started. Was there a main point and three supporting points? Yep! I did deviate at the end and made the sky a reddish-orange color which changed the whole feel of the piece. It made the sign stand out more as well which was good for me. I did learn though that a light colored object in shadow is difficult to deal with. The shadows maybe aren't as dark as you might guess, depending on what time of day it is. I felt my shadow values were really a lot lighter and this forced my light values to be even lighter than I had planned. Plus, the building is a lovely minty green color which is what attracted me to it in the first place. But, it is a pastel which further added to the feeling of the piece. Anyway, I found all this out which will be helpful for me next time. Incidentally, the little highlights were added after I thought I was finished. I put the piece on the mantle to look at it from a distance and as I did so, the light was streaming in from the front door and created those little spots in the foreground. That was an "ah ha" moment. I realized that I needed to add those little pops of light and also that I needed to make more of the scene in light as well.

Other than the above, I also did a little gouache painting that I will show tomorrow. I also did some sketching on Sunday. I am thinking about my next painting which I hope will be a larger landscape piece. It can be rather exciting to have so many wonderful options for being creative!

OK, hope everyone has a great Monday. Thanks for reading and commenting.
Libby
PS-I have not eaten at the above establishment-look for my review later on this week!

Out and About Friday

2011-08-27T11:38:00.000-07:00

This post should really be titled, "How I Squandered My Creativity and My Saturday Afternoon." Maybe I can get a shorter title working here? Rich is cleaning out the garage and came across the box with the carved ironwood figures. We have a few of these figures, purchased in Puerto Vallarta over the years. They aren't my favorite sort of thing but we have them. So, I walked out in to the living room and there was this elephant all of of sudden. I have been married for awhile so rather than get excited, I decided instead to go with the flow. Click on the photo to see how I coped.

This shot is on the way home from all points East. I pulled over into a church parking lot to take the shot. I never get tired of these views.

This little gem of an artistic display is buried on a side street in the town of Murphys. This county has some good and bad points. Anyway, click on the photo to see what is what. The wall features well known figures from the early history of California. The relief carvings are quite lovely. I was actually on my way to visit an art gallery and had to schlep back behind this building and around the back of another building to reach the gallery. When I finally got there, the sign posted said, "Closed. Gone to Burning Man. Back in two weeks." I think that about says it all for the support of the arts here in Calaveras County.

(Closeup of above)

On an unrelated note, I was walking back to my car when a Mennonite gentleman was headed in my direction. He had a typical Amish/Mennonite type outfit on: plain work shirt, plain pants, straw hat and beard. I was nearly in a private reverie over the simplicity of life when the above mentioned gentleman pulled out his I-phone and started texting, or whatever. Isn't there something wrong with this? Can't put my finger on it.

Lastly, I don't have a photo for this but while on my road trip yesterday I stopped off at my favorite antique store in Angels Camp. Every time I go in, the owner has music playing from the 50's and 60's. Sometimes there is swing or big band going. I always end up feeling a little nostalgic and wistful. (For what I don't know since I was born in 1970.) I made a day of it though and when I got home, I looked through my new book on Edward Hopper. Talk about nostalgia and wistfulness.

Hope everyone is having a good weekend. I know there is a Quilting Smackdown over at Debra's blog. Check it out if you can.

Thanks for reading and commenting,

Libby

PS-I will have pics of my finished painting on Monday!

In Process and Thoughts on Value

2011-08-26T04:16:00.000-07:00

I know I said I wasn't ever going to do this again. Well, I lied! I drove to my quilt meeting yesterday and the above shot is taken on The Altamont Pass. If you click on the photo, you can see the windmills off to the right. That bank of fog on the horizon is the Bay Area's natural air conditioning. Fog rolls in off of the coast (most of the time) and helps to keep the temps pretty moderate. Our area is too far inland with mountains blocking that fog. We do get a bit of the same action from the Delta but our own micro climate is different.

The above piece is in process. I felt I needed to show something art related here since this is my studio blog. I brought this painting a long way this week, little by little. On Monday, I started with a different angle of the building. So much depends on my frame of mind and patience level. Being in a hurry or feeling discouraged doesn't make for a good start. I should have seen right away that the angle I selected was too extreme; it just wasn't a good composition. Luckily, I had the presence of mind to stop and assess things. When I saw that it wouldn't work for me, I put the canvas aside and started over on a brand new canvas. I found out previously that for me, psychologically, gessoing over a bad start only makes for further bad starts. My friend Bonnie told me , when I complained about the lost time, that I had gleaned some valuable insight which was worth something in and of itself. Great point! I now have details to add: signage, color notes, correction of any angles, shadow and light corrections, etc.

I feel like I have learned a lot this week. The benefit of recognizing and abandoning a bad start is invaluable. For me, a mock gray scale painting is essential, along with my sketch. Awareness is key and I needed to ask myself honestly if the composition really worked for me-did I want to paint it?

Shadow and Light:

I am continuing to learn so much about light and shadow at the micro level. A pretty good explanation of the types of shadows can be found here. I have my training wheels on and am still learning how to keep these two things separate in terms of value. The rule of thumb, regardless of how much modeling of a form you choose to do, is this: objects in shadow, even lighter colors like white, are still darker than the darkest areas of color in the light family. I should also add that each hue right out of the tube has its own value and saturation level, making for even more variables. (Many painters model a form using color shifts alone.) As an example, say you are painting a white shirt on a person who is standing in shadow. There is also a part of the person's black tennis shoe that is in the light. Theoretically, the white shirt in shadow is darker than the black tennis shoe in the light. I should say, perceived to be darker. My challenge has been with buildings that are light in color-white, yellow, or even this pale blue green building that I am currently working on. I discovered that the light colored building in shade is just not as dark as I thought and that the value I selected for that then determines the value of my light areas, pushing those a lot higher.

I want to stress this point: my opinion is that there are all kinds of ways to look at this and not everyone will agree with me that this is how to make a painting "read" effectively or even how to make a good painting. There are so many factors that go in to the mix, and many, many approaches, that not everyone will agree on what is important or necessary. I would guess too, that many painters ignore the above "guideline" and approach things differently which is just fine. I would also surmise that if you talked to another painter, they will likely acknowledge the truth in this way of composing a painting. Perception is key and if the shaded side of a building is the same value as something in a lighted area the eye could register that as a flaw of sorts.

As a consequence of the above thoughts, (and also of being in the car for an extended period of time) I really had a look at things yesterday. It is good practice to look at light, shadow, and the colors that you see. Can you assign a value to the color and identify a hue? Can you compare colors in a group and say which is darker and lighter, which colors are saturated and which are dull? Can you look at a group of shadows and assign some values? It is extremely relevant for selecting fabric too. A quilt shop can be overwhelming and throw you in to sensory overload. I had this discussion with my quilt ladies yesterday about why some quilts work and why some don't. My friend, who is a very skilled seamstress, said that her quilts were well constructed but lacked life and vitality. The issue of being afraid to use color also came up (you know how I love that!). I don't know about my friend being unskilled in using color. Maybe she made something that pleased her and having the piece "pop" with color harmonies or saturated hues wasn't relevant. Maybe the piece "sang" in a very low key but effective way. I am really wary of set formulas (and the people who insist on them as the only way) though I see the benefit of using them. (Isn't that what I was describing above? A set formula for working with light and shadow?) When a person is learning about how to do something, guidelines are critical. Imagine trying to learn how to wire an electric outlet through trial and error. I am not suggesting that a bad painting will electrocute you somehow but fumbling around with no idea where to start is discouraging. So, some framework is helpful to getting started with learning.

OK, enough! Thanks for hanging in there and commenting I hope everyone has had a creative week!

Libby

New Work For Fun

2011-08-22T05:30:00.000-07:00

I hesitate to even show this; the colors aren't quite right and her hair looks dreadful. Nevertheless this is my work from the weekend. The deal here is that I premixed my base flesh color in a little jar. I decided to limit any modeling of the features and to only darken or lighten that base flesh color to show a little shadow or light. I want to keep things very simple. I also veered off from what I do with the landscapes that I paint. Normally, I have been using cooler and muted/grayed colors in the shadows and warmer, brighter colors in the lights. I tend to darken colors, not by adding black, but by adding the color's compliment or more of the same color or something like that. For this one, I decided just to lighten and darken the colors with white or black. And as usual, I had a hell of a time with her hands. It is OK though, I am alright, thanks for asking.

In other news, Rich is off today and tomorrow. Wish me luck. I had a whole bunch of stuff planned to write about but now, it doesn't seem as compelling. This week I am doing some things for my "artistic" growth. I have a couple of pieces that I am analyzing (work done by other artists) and will try to replicate the work or a part of it in order to a) see what they might have done and b) see if I can add my own spin to it. I have another painting planned too of another restaurant here in San Andreas. Oh, and by the way, I ate at the Patio Drive In on Friday. I did the painting a week or two ago if anyone reading remembers that. The hamburger and fries were sort of on the same level as In 'N Out Burger here in CA only not quite as good. I will just say that I perched on the edge of my seat, didn't touch anything like the table, and scrubbed the hell out of my hands when I got home. Enough said I think about that.

OK, thanks for reading and commenting. I hope everyone has a creative Monday.
Libby

New Work and Two Tips

2011-08-19T04:56:00.000-07:00

Milton Road 4
11" x 14" Acrylic painting on 3/4" wrapped canvas
see PayPal button below

I finished this one up yesterday. I had a whole day of doubt and mild frustration getting this one together. I don't do "messy' well. When the painting is sloppy to begin with it bothers me. I am having some trouble with paint coverage and am thinking about trying other brands. Anyhow, I got the painting to the "finishing" stage which is how I think of it when the small details start to go in. Working large to small is how I do things, trying not to hold on to precious details or sections if they don't fit in with the larger picture. The strong highlights don't show well in the photo I guess but they balance out the poles (along with the bottom tree shadows) well enough. I like the poles as is. Maybe I shouldn't talk about the making of the painting so much? Is it discouraging to read that?

The above piece is a little gouache study that I did earlier in the week. You know how I am with hands and feet so I thought I was going to do a whole week of hands to get better at things. Thus far there is only one study! I did cotton on to the bright idea of premixing a baseline flesh tone color. One of the issues of course is getting a consistent color. We will just see how that goes.

I love these women! Another gouache study using versions of blue, red, and yellow. I don't like these scans so much; they really show more flaws than there are! The photo that this is based on is part of a lot of vintage photos that I bought from Etsy. It looked to me like the three women were probably at a shower of some sort; there is another photo with them standing around while presents are being opened. I think that one on the left looks like me!

Helpful Tips:

I wanted to pass along these two things which I use on a daily basis. The first thing is blue contractors' tape. I can't recommend the generic brand from ACE Hardware but I do recommend the slightly more expensive 3M brand. I use it to tape down my paper palette to the hardboard that I use to put my paints on while painting. I attach inspirational photos to the wall temporarily. I mask off areas of straight lines while painting (very useful for telephone poles!) and also mask off the borders on my gouache studies so I can get a clean edge while painting. I have also used it on the bed of my sewing machine to sew a straight line. Oh, and again I have masked off areas while painting on fabric. Works like a charm!

The other thing I use everyday is freezer paper. For those of you using acrylics to paint on fabric (DEBRA!!!) the shiny side makes a great palette for paint. As I mentioned above, I tape the paper, shiny side up, to a piece of 9" x 12" hardboard and use that as my painting palette. When I am done I just rip it off and throw it away. Acrylics down the drain are not good for my septic system or the environment!

Lastly:

I took a trip to my local printer yesterday to see about having some images of my paintings printed, with the idea of offering them for sale in my Etsy shop. My shop hopping on Etsy reveals that prints are a good seller; the prices for them are certainly better than some of the prices that people are charging for their paintings-holy cow! Anyhow, I wasn't impressed with the quality of the colors or the paper but I get the idea of the thing. I also learned about the size of the image needed, the ramifications of sending heavier card stock through a multi process printer (think paper jam), and the importance of having a very well edited photo to begin with (garbage in-garbage out). All in all it was time well spent. The bottom line for me on this one is some research: printer, paper, Internet services for printing, cost, and honestly whether or not I want to spend time doing this and how much time really are we talking about here? Lots of time I think. This last part is just me thinking out loud on the subject.

OK, thanks for getting all the way through if you made it to the end. Hope everyone has a creative Friday and thanks for reading.

Libby

Out and About: Columbia

2011-08-18T04:57:00.000-07:00

I took a trip to the little town of Columbia yesterday. I am participating in an art show there in September and so wanted to see the layout. Columbia is southeast of us about 45 minutes or so and is an old west gold mining attraction type of place (and a state park)-historic buildings, gold mining, old fashioned photos, and probably some taffy and fudge somewhere in there too. The above shot is of the New Melones Reservoir. You have to cross over the reservoir to get from here to there.I showed this earlier in the year and did a painting of it also. I think the reservoir is pretty full.

Here (above) is a shot of the bridge. I got out of the car to take the picture and it was as hot as blazes. Truly.

This one is for Debra. Rural graffiti? There is a little path down and if you are careful and don't go tumbling into the water (and assuming you weren't inebriated), you could easily get up to all kinds of nonsense underneath that bridge. If I was a teenager...:)

Ah, the glory of the septic system. I took this shot the other morning. Those two small green circular objects towards the back are the tops of the septic tank. You just never know where you might find some beauty.

This last shot is the front of my yard at the bottom near the street entrance. I couldn't quite capture it but let me tell you about the colors right now. Deep golden colored hills and oak trees that are a wonderful olive and blue combination, leaning now towards golden brown. Everything is sort of suffused with this reddish undertone, especially the grasses on the hillsides. And for anyone paying attention, that is a telephone poll in my front yard. Need I say more on that subject?

Alright. If you are reading and can come back and visit tomorrow, I have things to show for my art post. There are a couple of sketches and a painting! Oh boy!

Thanks for reading and commenting.

Libby

New Sketch and Commentary

2011-08-15T05:45:00.000-07:00

What am I doing? Can anyone guess what I am looking for?

I did have a fun time on Saturday with this little sketch. These gouache sketches sure are a lot different for me than the painting. For some reason I don't feel the self imposed pressure to be "painterly" and follow lots of rules in order to make a "good" painting. I am just having a good time. And please, don't write in to tell me that I should have a good time with the painting too. I do; it just feels a little different.

On another note. I like to look at other sites besides my own. I of course check out the content but I always look to see if there is an artist's statement. It is fascinating to me how people describe their work or art or whatever you want to call it. Sometimes I can see clearly what they are talking about; their art work reflects what they are thinking. Other times, I think, what? What are you saying? This does NOT translate for me. The one thing that always irritates me though is when the statement is written in the third person perspective. "Nancy does such and such." "Jenny knew she would be an artist from a young age." "Jerry is rather full of himself..." Know what I mean? I always want to know who the hell is speaking for them? Is there a disembodied voice offstage speaking to an audience or something? What is it? OK, I won't go on with the above. It just bugs, that's all.

Alright, I have some sketches to show this week and I want to start on a painting. What is everyone (all six of you I mean) up to this week?

Thanks for reading and commenting,
Libby

PS-You will never guess this but in the above sketch I am looking for my sense of humor.

PSS-Is anyone up for a Bad Art. Every Day month or week? You know, we all post our efforts for a given time period?

New Work and a Little Story

2011-08-12T04:38:00.000-07:00

The Road Out
8" x 10" Original Acrylic Painting
$65 + $10 shipping-see PayPal button below

I think I am done with this one. I may add a little brighter colors to the edge of the trees but other than that I think I said what I wanted to say. This is our road and the view is looking up towards the small intersection. Going down the hill you come to the intersection of my street and the highway. If you go right you can go towards town and all points east or west. If you go left you can head west and get the hell out of Dodge!

On Another Note:
I thought I might tell a little story. When I was a kid, my Mom tried to impart some art instruction to me. She had taken some classes at The College of Arts and Crafts in Berkeley (not sure of what it is called now) and still had her paints and brushes. My Mom is a crafty kind of person; she made bread dough ornaments (remember those?), she had done some paintings, and in general, if she saw something, she could probably "copy" it to some extent or at least figure out how to make it in some way. I had a watercolor set of course and paper and she bought me a painting instruction book. All of this at a time when looking back, I don't think we had a lot of money. Anyway, she explained to me that objects were generally darker at the edges and lighter in the middle. The effects of light shining on an object are more complex and varied than that of course but to a child you can only explain so far. Consequently all of my paintings were dark at the edges and lighter in the middle; many were outlined with pen and all featured very tight little forms. I still have some of these paintings too.

I can't honestly say that I remember being happily occupied for hours, painting or drawing or coloring. I have a very short attention span, even as an adult. Not a need for many different things to keep me going but I work best in short sprints. Artistic people frequently cite that, as a child, they were often engaged for hours on end in their chosen craft. I just don't remember being like that.

When I got to be a teenager, getting ready to apply to colleges, my Mom tried to make some suggestions. She suggested library science (that would have been perfect!), and of course she suggested art school. I had forgotten all about that until recently when I came across the brochure for the school. I think the school was down in So. Ca. For whatever reason, I insisted that I was going to get a degree in business so that I could get a "real" job to support myself. All I wanted to do was to be independent and leave the house. I lasted about five minutes in the business program at CSUH; while I have a good head for basic arithmetic and broad based financial concepts (I am a "big picture" kind of gal), I suck at most everything else that it business related. It bores me to tears actually, and that short attention span kicks in. So, I switched to Psychology and eventually earned my degree. I never once thought of switching to art as my major. And I could have. I worked in banking for many years which required no degree at all. Looking back and knowing what I know now, I honestly could have switched and it would have made no difference to my career path (such as it is). What a bummer.

Why the long story you ask? I wanted to mention that my Mom tried to help me when I was younger. Unfortunately, neither one of us knew how things would turn out; there was no way to predict that my degree choice would be irrelevant to what I did for a living. I think in many respects I went much farther than my Mom could have anticipated; I have an appreciation for art, both viewing it and making it and I don't think she thought that would happen. Lastly, to this day when I am painting, I still consider forms that are darker at the edges and lighter in the middle. Funny how one thing, even if it is limited, can stick in your mind. I have the joy and benefit now of a twenty plus year time span to look back and wonder about some choices I made regarding my schooling and career. If I had it to do over again I wonder if I would really choose an art degree over anything else?

Alright, enough of all of that. This is astounding to me: I am approaching 500 posts. I am thinking about a giveaway. Any thoughts on this?

Thanks for reading and commenting this week, especially if you made it through the above ridiculously long story.
Libby

Fun Sketch: Siblings

2011-08-09T06:41:00.000-07:00

Siblings

Gouache study sketch 4" x 6"

I worked on this one yesterday afternoon (and then after dinner, I admit). The original photo was taken at a wine dinner that we went to back in July. My husband and two SILS were standing in a semi circle. As I took their photo I sort of looked down towards the ground and saw their feet. I snapped that photo too for some reason. The perspective of the floor is a little crazy I guess and not accurate but since this is just for fun it kind of works for me. How about if I said that the floor represents the shifting and skewed nature of sibling relationships and interactions? Would that be more artistically palatable? LOL?

I also worked on a gray scale under painting yesterday for a new piece I am painting. I am trying to consider the composition prior to getting started on the painting. I can see it better on the canvas with just the 3 gray variables. I also did a small thumb sketch prior to the under painting. I won't be able to paint today which is good I think. I can sort of mull things over.

OK, off to get started. Hope everyone has a creative Tuesday and thanks for reading and commenting.
Libby

Blue Roses; Thomas Paquette Interview

2011-08-08T06:15:00.000-07:00

I don't paint flowers. I don't have anything against them ; I just haven't learned how to do it. This one was for the DPW challenge of painting from a black and white photo, concentrating on identifying values without color (a very valuable exercise). Incidentally, I also don't paint glass or glass windows. I also don't paint from photos without seeing the real deal or at least a color photo. Why did I do the challenge then, you might ask? There is value to me in learning what you don't know or maybe even what you don't want to do or how you don't want to do something. I don't have a ton of experience taking a black and white photo and turning it in to something. The artist offering up the challenge does this all day long, every day and she is also a print maker which adds to her skill level. So, will I never paint flowers again? I might, I might not. But I can say this much: I will be painting them from life and not from a grainy black and white photo.

I am really excited about this next thing. In previous posts, I have mentioned the work of Thomas Paquette. I check in with his site periodically to see what he has going on. He has added a Skype interview to his site and so on Sunday I sat down to listen to it. It is in 3 parts and isn't lengthy. If you can, follow the link above and have a listen. I think there is some valuable information there for any artist. Since I really admire his work, I took some notes as I was listening. I know that he turns his small gouache studies into larger oils but he also uses them in a way that I wouldn't have guessed. He indicates that when he is in the midst of painting and sees a problem to be solved, he might try and work out the solution in one of these small studies. I am turning that idea over in my mind to see how it might work. It sounds akin to writing down a standalone paragraph and seeing how it might sound in the larger context of several paragraphs. As I said, there is some super advice in the interview, especially about editing and reworking that I think can be generalized to different media as well as your own personality and ways of doing things. Great stuff and I seldom say this but I felt inspired and uplifted just when I needed a little boost. Do you think the guy would freak out if I showed up on his doorstep and request that he mentor me along for a bit? LOL!

Lastly, we took a drive to Murphys yesterday and visited two wineries. I just can't say how beautiful the weather was along with our landscape which is starting to look very autumnal. Everything seems to be suffused with a golden glow. No lie, I swear. I may try and post some photos later on this week. In the meantime, my sketchbook is full of notes and not too many sketches. I have a painting planned and a small gouache study planned. My quilt group is supposed to meet this week but it is looking a little iffy. So, we will see.

Hope everyone has a creative Monday. Thanks for reading and commenting.
Libby

Buttery, Sunny Goodness

2011-08-06T07:45:00.000-07:00

The two above pictures are just because. The top one is of Hannah on her little spot on the studio desk. The sun comes streaming in and then warms the spot all day. She is my old lady cat so she needs to be warm and comfortable. She also doesn't groom herself too much anymore so Mama has to do that for her:)

The second shot is of the spare bedroom. Buttery goodness! Those are the new nightstands from LL Bean along with the bedspread. That room gets the best light ever!

Hope everyone has a good weekend.

Libby

New Work: Patio Drive In

2011-08-05T05:17:00.000-07:00

Patio Drive In
8" x 10" acrylic on 3/4" profile canvas
contact me for purchase: libbyfife@ymail.com
also available @ Daily Paintworks

I live nearby to the town of San Andreas. It is just up the road in fact. This restaurant is on the main drag and I understand from the reviews that it is a pretty good place to eat. I drive by it a lot and have been interested in painting it. It wasn't easy to get a shot of the place since it is on a busy highway. I did get some photos and had a look at them to see how I might get inspired.

I completed the painting earlier this week but decided to add back in the telephone pole, the newspaper rack, and the potted plant. The place looked very lonely and I wanted to put the building in some sort of a "setting." I used an under painting in 3 values of gray and then added in colors to match those values. I adjusted things as I went. I used pastel pencils and a ruler to straighten things up and add spots of color. The pastel pencils are pretty forgiving if you use them lightly-lines can be "erased" and so it gives you an idea of what a possible change could look like without really committing to it. I was glad too that I added some things back in. It is amazing what the addition of just a few details will do.

OK, hope everyone had a creative week. I am still working on the pillows (sigh) and want to participate in the DPW challenge.
We will just see how things go. Thanks for reading and commenting this week.
Libby

PS-Had my hair cut (finallY) and mucking about with Picnik for the photo:)

Out and About: Bay Area

2011-08-04T04:47:00.000-07:00

I had errands to run in the Bay Area yesterday. I am always pressed for time when I go down there-I have to build in a 4 hour round trip chunk of time-and so I tried to be pretty efficient about how I did things. As I was sitting in the car at a light in the town of Walnut Creek, I was struck by all of the green. There are trees and bushes everywhere downtown and in fact, Walnut Creek and the surrounding area is pretty similar topographically to where I live now-oak trees, rolling hills etc. They just have way more tax money!

I took this shot as I was driving over the Altamont Pass and honestly, I almost didn't show it. I am so horribly against texting or talking on your cell phone (or anything else for that matter) while you are driving that I can't believe that I whipped out my camera, pointed blindly, and snapped this photo. I guess my stupid 20 year old self was driving! At any rate, those bleached hills and that powdery blue sky are just astounding to me. The Altamont connects the city of Livermore with the city of Tracy, roughly. This shot is taken going East. I take that to be a railroad trestle up ahead. There are cows grazing on these hills and a lot of windmills which produce energy of some sort.

Heading back towards home on 26, you can see the extreme contrast with where I was as compared to where I was headed. I feel like I have taken this shot at this spot before but I can't be sure. I do love the red orange of those poles against the green of that grass.

This looked like some kind of a meeting of high powered bovine executives. It is hard work being a cow here I think-hot, dry, wet, and way cold! Though not nearly as tough as their buddies out in the Midwest. These guys have the right idea though getting under that tree.

I turned down a side road to take this shot. The road went back into some orchards and more hills. There were ranches scattered about. I need to be careful because little roads like this that are not commonly travelled could easily turn in to a multiple banjo situation (did anyone see Deliverance???) and you want to watch where you go. I have a feeling that some of these folk in far out areas are a might be wary and are armed to boot! I made it home OK though and have some ideas for sketches and paintings:)

OK, I have a painting that I will be posting tomorrow. I have just a few details to add and then it will be ready for its closeup! Thanks for reading and commenting.
Libby

Re Do; Do Over: What The Heck!

2011-08-01T07:15:00.000-07:00

This is a redo of a painting that I did about a month ago. The original painting is in my header. I had the old painting up on my wall and every time that I looked at it I felt that it was somehow wrong for me. Because I already disliked it I felt that I had nothing to lose by painting over it. I read about this all the time too; paintings get scraped off or redone and nobody gets too excited by that. Anyhow, I have had autumn on my mind a lot and all of those colors that come with the season. I switched to a warmer group of yellow-greens and browns/oranges. I also added some pops of color to those trunks and branches though I am not sure you can see it in the photo. I changed the color of the sky a bit also. All in all, I am happier but am reminded of that line by the Nicolas Cage in Moonstruck (the movie with Cher and Nicolas Cage). It is the part where Cher goes to try and convince Nicolas Cage to come to the "wedding of his only brother" or something like that: "What's wrong can never be made right!" I don't know know but sometimes you just have to start over!

I hope everyone has a creative week. I have a painting that I would like to start, an idea or two for some sketches, and just some ideas or two in general! Thanks for reading and commenting.

Libby

New Work-Our Road 3

2011-07-30T05:44:00.000-07:00

Our Road 3

Image size 3" x 5"
available via PayPal; email libbyfife@ymail.com; $35 + $10 shipping

I had another go at this particular spot in the yard. This is the third finished piece for this particular view. It is a difficult view in my opinion because you are standing in the shade to look at that back hillside. The shadows on the ground where you are standing are scattered which can make things look spotty if you don't connect them (the shadows). The trees are filtering the light but are in darkness for the most part. It is pretty challenging to pull everything together. I still tried to make the shadow areas a neutral kind of color (neutrals being shades of gray and brown and even blue grayed down). I added some pure yellows at the back in the light area. I also lifted some color off with a little water and tissue paper. It is hard to see in the photo but this produces a great effect and then you have the added benefit of going back in to add additional, clean color notes. This paper by Fabriano is really nice too. You just have to treat it gently but be persistent.

I was out in the yard yesterday at this spot and was looking at the shadows on the ground. They are a beautiful shade of blue gray, more blue at the edges and darker gray as you look farther down the road. It is incredible to me the number of colors that you can see just sort of standing in one spot. Even more amazing is how often red and green show up together just naturally in the landscape. Lots of the foliage that is on our hillsides here is a red based color of some sort. Much of the greens that you see are a blue-based green or a yellow based green. There is one stretch of highway 26 right near my house where the red orange telephone poles contrast so nicely against these clear green notes of grass and bushes and trees. Great stuff.

In another sort of related note, my SIL and I visited the quilt shop in Jackson yesterday. The shop has a good selection of fabric but I have to admit that it was all screaming at me. The colors were so bright and so intense. You would have to look hard for any subtlety here. I know from observation that people are drawn to bright colors and high contrast. Not going anywhere with this line of thought but just kind of wondering about the screaming fabrics.

OK, hope everyone has a good weekend. Thanks for reading and commenting this week.
Libby

Museum Trip Run Down

2011-07-29T05:07:00.000-07:00

Before I get going on the museum run down I want to share the above effort. I tried a little paper cutting last week. My bb Judy featured a cut paper artist on her blog a little while back. Judy herself does this type of art too and so I wanted to try out something simple. Apart from the mechanics of cutting the paper this whole deal is a profound lesson in positive/negative image selection. Very instructive.

Museum Trip:

Last week I made a visit to the Crocker Museum in Sacramento. I have written about the museum before; it really is a little gem in downtown Sacramento. Before I talk about the art though I want to say that I got lost. As you approach Sacramento on I-5 there are a couple of big interchanges. You can head towards Reno, towards San Francisco and towards Redding-NE, W, and N, respectively (I think). There are several opportunities to do this. I missed the Redding part and so was well and truly headed to San Francisco before I could turn around. I got back to downtown Sac., exited and then got lost. This isn't easy to do since downtown is laid out logically with streets that are either designated by letters or numbers. There are many one way streets though so like in a cartoon, you could just go in circles and your mind would eventually explode.

I arrived there though. There are three ongoing exhibitions of American/French Impressionism. There was an entire exhibit devoted to Franz Bischoff. He is famous for his beautiful paintings of roses, both on canvas and on porcelain. Really gorgeous stuff (along with his landscapes) but the room was poorly lit. Such a bummer. The other two exhibits were in another room which was properly lighted and a lot better. There were examples of the Hudson River School and Ashcan School painters. Another section had a good representation of the Barbizon School and of course there was just some straight up impressionism-easily identified as such in a general way.

I don't want to get link crazy but if you Google the following names you can get an idea:

Louis Rittman: He used pure spots of color next to each other to define his forms (I guess he is classified as a colorist).

Colin Campbell Cooper: This guy is noted for his architectural scenes. Many of them were done in a very high key value (lighter tones) and were outstanding. His biography indicates he had training in architectural renderings.

Arthur Clifton Goodwin: I would have called this guy a tonalist. He had some amazing analogous color scheme types of painting done in a very low key (darker tones).

Hudson River School: Sanford Gifford, William Trost Richards, and William Morris Hunt and many others. Seemed like a good representation. These guys were interested in depicting the landscape in an idealized and often romanticized way. The paintings are peaceful and you just sort of want to step into them and sit down. There were some examples of luminist paintings which are an offshoot of the Hudson River school. I guess there is controversy in labeling but in general, luminism deals with the effects of light and non-visible brush work. Impressionism as most people think of it deals with the effects of light, indefinite forms and visible brush strokes. That is just an extreme generalization and there are tons of variances.

On my way out I saw a large landscape by Birger Sandgren. He was in the Impressionist area and no wonder. I got up close to see all the different spots of color and thick brush work. He was influenced by Seurat. His work was highlighted by tiny flecks of thick color everywhere but within these very discrete and defined forms. This is my kind of guy! He was very taken with optical blending which is the placement of colors next to each other to produce an overall color effect.

Before I left, too, I visited with some of the permanent paintings. There is a Rockwell Kent and one by a man named Gottardo Piazzoni. He is worth the look up if only for his editing prowess. He believed that the two dimensionality of the canvas should be respected. Go Gottardo!

I had a great time and enjoyed a pretty good sandwich from the cafe. I enjoy going to museums and art shows enormously just as I enjoyed going to quilting shows when I quilted regularly. The following statements are my opinions and as such you as the reader (if anyone is reading) can take them or leave them. Please don't write in to debate with me. Learning new things as an adult is crucial. So far as I know this lifetime is it for me so I would like to absorb what I am interested in just as much as is possible. Since I enjoy being creative and painting in particular, I think that viewing all types of art work, both past and present, is instructive. It helps to develop your tastes and your aesthetic sensibilities. It makes your outlook just a little finer I think and I consider it part of my three pronged approach to being a self taught artist: building core skills, defining and redefining your style and objectives, and developing your tastes. So, all in all I had a good day.

OK, hope everyone had a creative week of one sort or another. Thanks for reading and commenting.
Libby

New Work: On The Way To Linden

2011-07-26T14:42:00.000-07:00

On The Way To Linden
11" x 14" original acrylic painting
contact for purchase: libbyfife@ ymail.com

I completed this one yesterday, again in one day which is unusual for me. I normally have to adjust for a couple days as I think about things. From a compositional standpoint, in my opinion, I went out of the box here. My focal point isn't exactly in the right spot and my largest fence post as well as the suggestion of some darker grasses are directly on the frame of the painting. It works for me though. When I took the photo I was so surprised at the angle and view that I got.

I tried out a couple of new things here. I tried to hit a wider range of values, not more values, but a wider range. I backed off on adding lots of different color notes for each passage and just added some bright notes at the back. It may not be completely obvious from the photo. I also considered the neutrality of some of the colors-the browns and grayed down colors of the darker passages (the shadows) and how the color at the back might play against that. A specific area of concentrated color against a neutral overall backdrop is an idea that I want to develop. Also of interest is: more concrete forms, the lines of the landscape, and obviously, those telephone poles. How those things come together and that they are there at all is interesting to me. Some of the land around me is so vast and empty and yet there are these ways of connecting people: phone lines, data lines, cell towers, roads, signs, intersections, etc.

OK, so I have other news but it will have to wait. I have the results from my museum trip (including some new artists), some guidance from my alter art ego, and a recurring noxious plant story. Sounds good right? Stay tuned and thanks for reading and commenting.
Libby

Pillow's Progress

2011-07-23T15:08:00.000-07:00

Did anyone really make it through Pilgrim's Progress? I didn't think so. My color choices here (go Huskies!) are a little inexplicable to me and come under the WTF heading I suppose. Nevertheless the gold and purple tones show up in the rug in the 2nd shot and so I decided to bring those forward. I do love that paisley fabric too I have to admit. But so unlike me. The quilt above the bed in the first photo also has gold tones in it so I am thinking things tie together. I made 5 pillows so far and they weren't tough to do. I went slowly, cut out all the different parts, and then just methodically sewed each one together. The sewing is a little therapeutic and allows my mind to wander to other things that I would rather be doing.

Update: I just completed 1 month of my involvement with Daily Paintworks. It is a slick little operation and truly I wish I had thought of it (isn't that the way?). The good part is the statistics that they show you for each posting: click throughs to the buy option, views of your blog, and views of your online gallery. Not surprisingly, I am under average for all three categories. The one that amazed me though was the views for the challenge that I just participated in. Fifty views and NO click throughs to my blog, my gallery, or to the buy option. I don't know what to make of it. I see people selling their art online; some of it is wonderful and some is just very average. I say average because if I can figure out what they are doing then it is average. In any case I do have two more months to go. It may need to be longer. I am always teetering on the verge of thinking that I need to sell my art in order to justify making it and since this road of thought is well travelled I would like to stay off of it.

What is everyone else doing this weekend?
Libby

New Work: Almost Blue

2011-07-22T01:32:00.000-07:00

Almost Blue

original gouache abstracted figure study

image size 4.25" x 6.25"

$35 + 10 shipping

available via PayPal; email libbyfife@ymail.com

This one is a submission for the Daily Paintworks challenge. The idea was to create a piece of art based on a piece of music. This one is based on the Elvis Costello song, Almost Blue. I have had the image of the woman for a while now and the song seemed to fit with her. In the photo she looks a little wistful. I tried to use mostly blues but added the purple and violet colors to make it Almost Blue.

New Work: Hillside Study

2011-07-20T07:41:00.000-07:00

Hillside Study
8" x 10"
email me for purchase: libbyfife@ymail.com

I wonder at what point I will be happy with my painting on a consistent basis? Maybe soon. I did make adjustments to the shadow pattern. It just looked too broken up to me and too stripey. I redid some things last night and this morning and now I am happy.

I think I will write a little more about this one later-I did learn some design related things. Right now I have to get crackin' so that I can go to the museum!
Thanks for reading and have a creative Wednesday,
Libby

Sketch For Painting

2011-07-19T05:11:00.000-07:00

OK, just thinking out loud here. When I got home yesterday I started in on this sketch for the next painting. One of my stumbling blocks is the sketch. I will do it and then wish that I had done it differently, having then to go in and erase a whole bunch. Or I will want to try out other value arrangements. Since a value plan is so crucial to me I really want to work it out prior to putting paint on the canvas. To conquer this, I created a pencil line drawing of the major shapes. I then photocopied it so I could color it in. By having just the line drawing, I can copy it repeatedly to do whatever plan I want. I am willing to change shapes on the fly but not value plans so much unless it just isn't working.

So, in my reference photo the light is spilling across the hillside. It does create an area of light but also some stripiness and spottiness. I am working to simplify shadow and light patterns here; a person could get caught up in this and then you would be on the path to a multi sun-dappled Impressionist situation which though I love it, makes me nuts. So, I want the light to graze the front of those back trees and the mid ground area (I decided). Here is the list of what I am thinking about:

* back row of trees to be bathed in a swath of light (as well as that ground area; limit the light though so as not to get stripey or to have the viewer's eye wander right off the page).

*try to connect back trees with trees directly in front to create one form/shape.

*do I really have 2/3's light family and 2/3's of one color idea? I will check this as I go I think.

*overall color idea to be a golden kind of thing-muted yellow ochre with some brighter yellow highlights

*analogous color scheme-blue to yellow/orange-not to orange!

*muted,cool shadows and brighter, warmer lights.

*the branch across the page is killing me so it may get partially covered. Simplify shadow on right foreground tree.

The best laid plans right? If I could just focus and pay attention I can do this. That involves knowing when to stop for the day. And it might seem like this is a structured way to paint but honestly, any painting involves a lot of planning. Don't argue with me, it does!

OK, hope everyone has a creative Tuesday (if that is possible). Thanks for reading and commenting.

Libby

PS-Kay, if you are reading, check the quote on Doonesbury today. Left side.

Quilting? In Calaveras?????

2011-07-18T06:40:00.000-07:00

I have had a real burst of energy for the past couple of days and have gotten motivated to finish decorating. To that end, I loosened my grip on some money (ha ha!) and went out Friday to purchase some furniture. One of the big issues was the vast expanse of wasted space in the master bedroom. Our house is beautiful and we are lucky to have it but it is a little oddly proportioned. The hall bath should be just a tic bigger and then the master bedroom/closet/bathroom could be a whole unit unto themselves. Crazy. So, there is a great sitting area in that bedroom and we really didn't have anything there. I got the table you see in the second photo and then swapped out the set of wicker chairs from the living room. The cushions got replaced on those chairs and I bought the fabric to recover those pillows. Lastly, I made the table runner that you see in the first photo. And now my nod to Debra!

Debra made the most awesome piece. Not only is it beautiful to look at but her method is very inspiring. I knew I couldn't do exactly what she did but I just adapted it to work for me (making it into a decorative piece as opposed to a concept piece). I took 1 inch strips, backing and batting, and started pinning those strips to the batting. I have always been interested in weaving fabric strips but have never tried it. Playing off that idea, I instead wove in some embroidery floss. And thanks to Beena, I had the beautiful pinkish batik fabric that you can see if you look closely. I admit to being super pleased with myself. I was thinking this morning that I am happy that I have these two creative skills, quilting and painting, and I am not sure what I would do otherwise, creatively speaking.

OK, off to get ready. My SIL and I are going to the quilt shop in Angels Camp this morning. I need the fusible fleece for the pillows. I also have a painting in mind for this week and want to do the sketch for that. I have an idea on the sketch to make it easier for me to make different versions with different value arrangements so stay tuned for that.

Thanks for reading and commenting,
Libby

Evil Decorating Plans and Fabric Excesses

2011-07-15T13:54:00.000-07:00

First of all, what in the Hell am I doing with this new fabric? And there is A LOT of it. The colors are better than my photo (of course) and fit nicely with my evil decorating plans! Neither Rich nor I like to buy furniture or decorate for some reason. So, we moved in here and while our home in Concord was well appointed and pretty comfy we haven't managed so far to get all homey here. In particular, the master bedroom looks like we just flop there at night without anything in the way of personal items or touches. So, I moved some things around and have made a list of just a few additional pieces of furniture and decorations that will be good. New pillow covers are on the list and this is what the fabric is for. The pile on the right is for the living room where we have sage and blue greens, muted maroon, and cream. The bedroom is getting touches of yellow and possibly that purple/mauve situation on the chairs. I have a new bedspread on order (thanks LL Bean and free shipping) and I replaced the cushions on the wicker chairs ('bout time!). I even bought a freakin' clock for the beautiful, beautiful fireplace mantel. There is still work to be done but I am at least trying here.

Just because. This is my neighbor's side yard. Not even his front yard but the side of his property.

Lastly, I have been behind every slow driver in four counties in the past two days. Honestly. I was so wound up by the time I arrived for my quilt meeting yesterday that I honked and swore at a squirrel. Well, he was about to get run over!

Hope everyone had a good week. Thanks for reading and commenting.

Libby

New Work-On The Road Again

2011-07-13T06:56:00.000-07:00

On The Road Again

8" x 10" acrylic painting on 3/4" canvas

see Pay Pal button below

We have a couple of highways here that go in different directions but have the same number designation. I think this is highway 26 going north towards Mokelumne Hill.
My main goal with this piece was to stick to 3 values with an additional highlight value (so 4 values) and to have one concentrated area of light. I also tried for an analogous color scheme (blue to orange-red) but realize that I honestly used more than half of the standard color wheel and also have sets of complimentary colors happening so whatever you want to call that is fine. I can't say that I overwhelmingly produced a feeling of one color family but I like the final results. So, I hit most of my goals and I feel pretty good. There is a lot of tightening up to be done still but I am feeling better and better all of the time. And since this is my hobby, that is what counts for me.

My ongoing method is to continually revise my process, revisit and revamp my goals, and incorporate or discard influences (edit myself in other words). Debra has been running her blog like a notebook which is a great idea. So here is my nod to that concept:

*work on concentrated areas of light and color played against more neutral areas of color.

*maintain large masses and whittle down to different and subtle color notes within masses

*maintain distinct forms with edge variation if possible

*simple arrangements, greater editing without sacrificing some realism

*tighter color schemes/varied color schemes-no reliance on local or realist color

So, those are my thoughts and I reserve the right to change them! Thanks for reading and commenting.
Libby

Sketch For New Work

2011-07-12T06:17:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I worked on a value sketch for a new painting. But that is not what the above pic is of. Why no sketch then from yesterday? Well, I got all bunched up in the afternoon with the sketch. I have a great photo of my BIL taken in Puerto Vallarta. He is standing on a huge outcropping of rocks and looking at a little whirlpool of water. He didn't know that I was photographing him while he was photographing the whirlpool. It was just one of those unrepeatable moments that I wanted to capture. But the rocks are crazy-full of values and what looks like a bunch of freakin' detail. It isn't hard; just simplify the shapes and simplify the values (average them out which I will talk about later). It was hard yesterday though. I should never start that kind of stuff in the afternoon. Never. Why don't I listen to myself?

Anyhow, I have gotten a grip this morning and have switched gears. I am going to try out a landscape instead while I am thinking about the rocks. While I am learning to do these value sketches and figuring out how to transfer them to the canvas, I am also working on a checklist of things that I want to cover in the painting: simplified value masses, color scheme, edges and lines, any focal point, light and shadow family, and so on and so forth (as my dad says). I just want to make sure I hit a couple of bullet points before I veer off the edge into experimentation. Creativity within structure is what I am after.

Incidentally, the above sketch is inspired by Carolee Clark who is one of the painters that I first started following when I became interested in painting. Most of what I have read about painting indicates that a simple value sketch is a good place to start. Carolee does this and shows this on her site. Rather than fumbledink around with complicated stuff (or worse yet, have no road map), I like the idea of a simplified value sketch. I have started including this in my process which is what the above sketch is all about.

Lastly, I am still working in my sketchbook. Mostly these days it is just notes to myself to keep track of what is going on. I get a little twisted up in a vortex of ridiculousness and some days I don't make much progress. Other days are more productive. Just how it goes. Oh, and as a non- sequitur the trees here are beginning to change color and it is starting to feel like late summer. Wow. I feel like I am trying to outrun the summer so that I don't arrive at winter too early (if that makes sense).

Hope everyone has a creative and productive day.
Libby

New Work-Unknown Palms

2011-07-11T05:23:00.000-07:00

Unknown Palms
gouache on cold press paper
image size 3.25" x 5.25"; mat size 8" x 10"
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I painted this over the weekend. The original reference photo came from a frame that I purchased at a thrift shop. I liked the photo so much, thought it was so artful, that I couldn't believe someone gave it up. I did switch up the colors, wanting to use the three primary colors as my starting point. I dialed them to the right though, changing blue to blue-green, red to red-purple, and yellow to yellow-orange. I think I was sort of successful with this and like the overall color idea that I got. I flubbed the boats though and couldn't quite recover. I think they turned out fine. All in all, I like the effect. For some reason I think there is a famous print of a beach and palm tree though I can't put my finger on the name of it. It seems to me that I have seen it and I know that I own a reproduction of it.

I also know that people are drawn to bright colors (I am too) and I know these colors are muted. I think the effect is kind of nostalgic. I am a little excited because I am starting to see the possibility of mixing things up. I have ideas about muted backgrounds and brighter focal points; studies done in one or two hues, and who knows what else. I feel like I have a little bit of learning under my belt which might enable me to experiment with impunity.

I am going to try this one again using the original photo colors as my guide. In the scene, there is much more going on that I edited out for terms of simplicity. With a slightly larger format I think I could include some more details.

OK, off for more coffee. Thanks for reading and commenting.
Libby

New Work-Melones Reservoir

2011-07-08T04:38:00.000-07:00

New Melones Reservoir
11" x 14"
Original acrylic painting on 3/4" canvas
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I started and finished the above painting yesterday. Except for the little gouache studies, I haven't done this with a larger painting (finished in one sitting). I started out as I normally do, filling in the sky first and then the darkest darks and shadow colors. There are several "procedures" for doing a painting that I have read about. The next move would have been to go on to the lightest lights but I jumped around and did my mid values along with the lights all at once and for each section as I came to it. I decided that this made better sense since I was doing a value change along with a slight temperature change and I sort of wanted to blend the mid value and light value as I was painting. People who work in oil can just blend because the paint stays wet. Acrylic is a little different so if you want to blend colors you have to work a little differently (as I am finding out). When I finished I was really happy and I knew that I was done.

The colors of this landscape look different from what I normally do. I think it looks a little retro somehow and I think that is because of the contrast and the colors. I recently learned about something called cross processing. It is a term used in photography where generally speaking you process one type of film in the chemicals that are intended for another type of film. There are other variables to manipulate such as exposure (over or under) but loosely speaking, you end up with a higher contrast result and the colors are sort of pushed to other limits-cool blues can turn to warm blues and cool greens can go quite yellow. Black and grays pop out with greater clarity of hue and the whole deal is really unexpected. I found out about this while editing some of my photos (using a photo software editing program) and I really liked the results. Since I am not interested in painting in a realistic way (I like other realist painting but just not for me right now), I thought this concept might be perfect for me. And while I can't always say that this will be what I do, I found that looking at the results of editing my photos showed me some other ways of using different colorways and contrast.

OK, today is all about cleaning and grocery shopping. And maybe the laundry. We are going to a dinner at a winery tomorrow so I don't want to muck around with the chores. Hope everyone had a creative week. Thanks for reading and commenting.
Libby

Thread, Thread, Thread.

2011-07-07T06:39:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I was in the Bay Area for a dental appointment which is why I have the non-art pic of Toby to show today. He likes to sit by the front door and just kind of chill. He also hopes to catch whatever crawls underneath the little gap at the bottom of the door. Just recently he caught a lizard, Larry I. Pretty good for an indoor cat, no? He currently has his sights set on Larry II.

My dental appointment was long, two hours, and so I was pressed for time when I finished up. I needed thread though to finish the binding on the baby quilt so I motored down to Danville, land of the eternally tanned and blond. After a pub lunch, (good food, very indifferent service), I walked across the street to the quilt shop where presumably, I hoped to find some thread. I got inside and looked around and did not see a typical thread display. So, I asked the owner where she kept the thread. She pointed to a teensy display on the counter of some pretty marginal stuff. Hmm, I thought, and asked her if this was the only thread. She responded that yes, it was, and that the upholstery shop across the street probably had some polyester threads available. Mind you, I had the binding sample in my hand. I told her that I wanted to sew the binding on my quilt. So, no thread for me! Oh, and I nearly was run over by One of The Eternally Tanned in her SUV while I was crossing the street. Guess I was in the way.

Just trying to be reasonable here and I concluded that probably most of the ladies who frequent the shop send out their quilts to be quilted. I would guess too then that there isn't a hell of a lot of hand quilting going on either and probably not a lot of traditional applique. What a bummer. Even my local quilt shop out here in the boonies has a good thread selection. Luckily for me, (and the recipient of the baby quilt), there was a new Joannes just down the road on my way out of the area. I bopped on in there, bought my thread, and was on my way home at the appointed time.

It is a little silly though to me about the thread. Within a 40 mile swath of easily traversed roadway, there are about 3 quilts shops and two Super Joannes. Two of those quilt shops are really well stocked, each having slightly different fabrics from each other. It goes without saying that the thread selection at both of those shops is pretty good. If you could pick and choose which shop to go to, wouldn't you as the shop owner be sure and stock your shop pretty broadly so that you could compete a little better? Just a thought.

OK, off to get the binding done and to work on my painting. It should be a degree or two cooler today too which will be nice. Thanks for reading and commenting.

Libby

Sketch-New Melones Reservoir

2011-07-06T04:27:00.000-07:00

So, I worked on this sketch yesterday. It was a challenge for me to a) identify the big shapes and stick to that plan and b) to not add details. As I look at the sketch now I am thinking about the pattern of lights and darks. It seems to me that I could eliminate that mid value on the foreground and create a path in with a lighter value connecting to the lighter value of the lake. The lighter value of the lake could continue up the sides of the two mountains that jut out into the water. The mountains in the back could have lighter highlights on top also to create a pattern that coincides with the other lights. My main thing here is to deviate from the photo; to not simply copy what I see. It was a bright sunny day when I took that shot and it was also the middle of the day. The sun would have been directly overhead so I am guessing that the light pattern would have been scattered at best. Just thinking out loud about what I want to draw attention to in this painting. So, back to the drawing board I think to tighten up the idea.

OK, I am off to the dentist today for a teeth cleaning and an exam. Very exciting stuff. I am also going to check out a quilt shop that I haven't been to in awhile. They have changed owners so it will be good to see what is new. I need thread for the binding of the baby quilt and then I will be finished.

Hope everyone has a creative Wednesday and thanks for reading and commenting.

Libby