Two Drawings, Mine and Someone Else’s

Hers

A drawing student brought in a photo she had taken, a challenging choice for a beginner. I tell my students, “Pick something you love, because you will be looking at it for a long time”. She loves this scene and worked very diligently. 

This is the result of her labors, and I think she did a wonderful job! (I removed her name because she didn’t ask to be on the World Wide Web, and I didn’t ask her permission.)

This is how it looks after I’ve photoshopped it for reproduction purposes, in case my student wants to have copies or cards printed.

Mine

For about five years, I have been working with a writer on a book about tuberculosis. It began as a local story about the TB hospital in Springville (here in Tulare County). When he started researching, the story grew into a different book, a massive project. Through it I have learned much more than I ever expected about “the white plague”, as opposed to “the black plague” (both of which refer to skin color associated with the disease, not race, so no need to get your knickers in a twist.)

The author came to me initially for some drawings for the Springville book, and upon further discussion, hired me to edit for him. We are finally reaching the end of the main text and are now gathering appropriate illustrations.

He couldn’t find a good photo of Virginia Poe (wife of Edgar), so he asked me to draw her from a rather gruesome photo (or painting?) taken shortly after she assumed room temperature.

Are you properly horrified? This fits with Edgar Allan Poe’s writings, doesn’t it? I haven’t read his work, but I learned plenty about him through the process of assisting with the writing of this book. I’ll stick with modern writers for my fiction.

Meanwhile, I think the background needs a little bit more work.

Okay, all better now. I also remembered to sign the drawing. 

 

 

Possibly Walking More Than Working

I really meant to paint. I started detailing this piece.

But holy guacamole, look at this day!

My walking buddy and I spotted some white rocks beneath the bridge. They got heavier as we got closer to home but we made it. 

I added them to my little eccentric project to be arranged later. The iris are starting to appear above the soil now.
Then I went back to work and finished this 10×20″ oil painting of Tulare County’s finest scenery.

Next, I went back to this 10×20″ painting.

Doesn’t look like much, but it was a little progress. Remember, no deadlines, no upcoming shows, no commissions, just the beautiful month of February in Tulare County.

A Little Work, A Little Walk, A Little More Work

While I am waiting to begin the murals at the giant church in Visalia, I have time to paint. However, I don’t have any deadlines, no upcoming shows, no commissions (there are a couple, but they are still in the conversation stage), and it has been BEE-YOO-TEE-FULL outside.

So, I work a little, walk a little, and work a little more.

When I am thinking about walking, it is a little bit hard to focus on detail. So, the detail on this 6×18″ oil painting of Tulare County’s best will have to wait. 

Let’s make like a tree and leaf.

Nothing in particular to photograph, just the same beautiful scenes of February in my Three Rivers neighborhood.

The elephant on Alta Peak is very clear, with a shadow making an ear and a rocky place making an eye. His back leg is significantly larger than his front. And there is Moro Rock.

A neighbor’s narcissus are in bloom. Mine are too, but I don’t want you to get too bored with the repetition here.

Back to work, Central California Artist!

This is 10×20″. Sawtooth is the peak on the left, and Homer’s Nose is visible on the right. 

I photographed this at an angle so you could see a bit of the reference photo minus the glare.

Nothing is finished after today’s disjointed painting attempts, but there was progress made, and February was enjoyed. Such a short month. Sigh.

Procrastination, Not Anticipation

Remember that song by Carly Simon “Anticipation”? I was singing that in my head the other day, but instead of “Anticipation is making me wait”, the words were “Procrastination is making me late”.The day was both cold and beautiful. I worked in the house where it was warm, wondering if anything was important enough to be in the workshop or studio where it was cold. If I was going to be cold, it was more appealing to go for a walk.

So, I did.

Then, I painted.

This one needed the mid-range hills detailed and a crop of oranges added, along with a wind machine.

This one needs everything.

Oops. Now it is dark and cold, time to go back into the house for the evening.

Procrastination would only be making me late if there were deadlines. 

Things Artists Have to Figure Out

I recently agreed to submit 5 pieces to an upcoming show in the Exeter Courthouse Gallery, now called CACHE. (Can’t remember what it stands for). The show is called “Locals Only”, and although I have never lived in Exeter, my studio was there for 9 years, so I qualify as a local.

This means I have to figure out what to submit. There are many things to take into consideration:

  1. Who will the audience be?
  2. Shall I submit oil, pencil, or both?
  3. Do I have any new oil paintings that I haven’t already shown at this gallery?
  4. Are they scanned or photographed, titled, and varnished?
  5. Do I have any new pencil pieces?
  6. How many are new? Oops, that means unframed.
  7. Do I have any frames and mats that will fit the new pencil pieces?
  8. Shall I unframe older pieces that haven’t sold and use those frames and mats for the new pieces?
  9. What shall I say about these pieces for the QR code that will allow a viewer to learn about them?
  10. Can I make the voice recording work?
  11. How will I sound like a knowledgeable confident artist rather than a silly newbie?
  12. How does one send a voice recording?
  13. How many of my current obsession (orange groves with foothills and the Sierra) is too many in the same show?
  14. What shall I title these pieces that all look similar? (Did Monet or Van Gogh or whoever it was just say “Haystack # Forty-eleven” or “Water Lilies # umpty-umpt”?)

These are drying in the sun; sure hope nothing natural befalls them. I’d better move them inside.

An artist could need a nap after all these difficult decisions.

 

I Have a Feeling that. . .

Are all these posts looking alike to you? (That’s a rhetorical question, one that I don’t want to hear the answer to.)

I decided that this 6×12″ painting is finished. “Citrus and the Sierra #forty-eleven”, perhaps?

Time to put more layers on the 12×16″. Normally I paint back to front, meaning I start with the parts that are farthest away in real life. This day I started with the closest items instead.

After putting detail on the closer trees, I moved to the row of trees that is next, trying to make the perspective look believable.

That looks right to me now.

So Tucker and I sat back and studied the painting. It caused me to do more work on the mountains, not photographed yet because you prolly won’t know the difference. Yes, I wrote “prolly”. The green hills need a lot of attention too. Oops, one of those trees looks like a fuzzy green ball. 

I have a feeling that I will be working on this one for awhile.

Slowly Painting Tulare County’s Best Scenes

This 12×16″ unfinished painting has been spoken for, so it is taking precedence over the other unfinished paintings.

The printed photos arrived from Shutterfly. Sometimes it is easier to paint from the laptop; sometimes it is easier to paint from printed photos. I haven’t evaluated why this is so. I do know that it is really difficult to photograph the shiny print.

Here you can see that the mountains are taking shape. I might keep adding layers, tightening up the detail to match the photo even more. But, in painting, the things that are farthest away are supposed to have less detail than the things that are closer. On the other hand, the most detailed areas are where your eye goes first in a painting.

What is more important—the Sierra Nevada or the citrus groves?(Don’t answer that unless your initials are MBW)

Those green hills have a lot of details, but I am not planning on counting the distant oak trees or boulders.

This is enough for this layer today.

The correct colors were mixed up, ready to go on the palette, so it was efficient to use the paint for the next canvas. This one is 6×12″.

The day ended with a fistful of paintbrushes to wash. For a couple of weeks, instead of washing them each day, I just wrapped them in a plastic bag and put them in the freezer. Eventually, I run out of the brushes I like and then the brushwashing vacation ends.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, GLB!!

Three Edges, Two Layers, One Finish

That title is a description of a whole day of painting.

Trail Guy started the furnace in the painting workshop, turned on the fan to move the warm air to the opposite end of the room where the easels are, and shut the doors to keep the warmth in and the cats out. They were invited to be in, but if you know anything about cats, you know how much they hate closed doors. (Trail Guy turned on the furnace for me because it makes a big POPPPHWHOOOFSSSHH! when starting and sometimes blows out the pilot light.)

Let’s move on before I add more letters to the noise the furnace makes.

It was a brilliantly sunny day, so much that I could not see the computer screen or take good photos of my progress. But, it is warm by the easels in the sun before the furnace does its job. So, I just worked with what I’ve got. . . what? You want me to build an actual studio?? Not a chance.

See the brilliant sunshine?

Pippin liked being inside before he figured out that the doors were closed.

Someone (Hi BW) asked for the 12×16″ painting, so I started there.

Hi Pippin.

Sky first.

Work downward and forward, saving the closest things for last. Not everyone paints this way, but since it is the way I first learned and it ain’t broke, I ain’t fixin’ it.

Next!

Layer, by layer. Same deal, top to bottom, back to front.

I felt like a cog in a wheel, a factory worker. So, I decided to do a 6×12″ from beginning to end. (That is the smallest size canvas in this series of Tulare County citrus with mountains scenery.)

Sky first, moving forward, ridge by ridge.

 

Detail is so engrossing that I forgot to photograph the steps.

This looks pretty good, but not good enough. Remember, I am a pencil artist, and I draw with my paintbrush. (So there, Art World snobs.)

This looked good enough to sign. So, I did. 

There was still time for another layer on this other 6×12″ canvas. 

With the leftover sky paint, I covered edges on three more canvases. Of course there wasn’t enough, so I had to squeeze out about four more times.

I could add that to the title. Four Squeezes, Three Edges, Two Layers, One Finished.

Nah. Trail Guy turned off the heater and I am ready to move into the house.

A Little More Paint

In my time of waiting to begin those murals, I have grown accustomed to lots of free time. This includes errands, taking walks, baking bread, helping friends (so many friends in a tough spot all at the same time), reading, knitting, yardening, and just working a little bit every day, but only a little bit.

One day I started on this 10×20″ painting that shows the mountains from Sawtooth on the left to Homer’s Nose on the right. I condensed the distance and faked some mountains, probably just left out others. (My excuses: the photo was blurry and there were clouds; besides, almost no one cares.)

Sky first (no photo of that because my camera battery needed a recharge), mountains second, foothills third.

Fourth, start on the distant groves.

Fifth, keep working down to the lower/closer groves.

Oops, gotta go! Errands: library book available, delivering the very last calendar to the friend who was in a convalescent hospital with a thieving front desk, taking bread to a couple of friends. (When life is hard for people, bake and deliver bread; it sort of helps.)

Good thing there are no pressing deadlines right now. Helped a friend find songs and burn a CD for her husband’s memorial service (lots of friends with troubles. . . sigh.)

In my next pass over this canvas, I will add detail to the mountains, foothills, distant trees, orange trees, etc. I hope my friends get breaks from these awful things soon. It is a good thing to have the time and resources to help where and when I can.

A Little Walk and A Little Paint

The end of January gave us some brilliant days. Instead of just planting myself in front of the easels, I went for a walk first. I haven’t been on this walk for many months and was thrilled by all the greenery and flowing (and standing) water. When we moved to Three Rivers 24 years ago, there wasn’t much traffic here, either bicycle or foot. Now it is rare to be alone out there, and usually we run into someone we know. There are many more trails, added steps on steep areas, new corrals, and a few maintained bridges.

When we got home, I was very pleased to see some bulbs sprouting out in the afternoon sunshine. The ones in shade haven’t yet emerged.

GET TO WORK!!

I painted until I was almost frozen. It was a fine fine day of enjoying the beauty of January in Three Rivers, the best place to live in Tulare County (unless you prefer conveniences).