Tuesday, November 1, 2016

Six of Eight SOLD!

Art at the Mill  - Millford, VA

My first experience being juried and accepted into a show was a great success!  Art at The Mill ran for two weeks in October and of 8 paintings entered, these six found new homes:







Was thrilled that people liked my work enough to buy!!!

Monday, July 4, 2016

Miniature Painting

Grazing on the Dunes
3.5 x 7.5 inches
Acrylics on hardboard panel

So I've become enamored of miniature painting - which differs from just painting small. Miniature painting can have an image no larger than 25 square inches, and the objects portrayed no larger than 1/6 life size.  In addition, if one looks at these painting under a magnifying glass, you should be able to see as much detail as a 'regular' sized painting.   

Keeping Ships Safe
4x6 Inches
Acrylic on Sintra Panel

Another miniature that really tested my eyes. The difficulty of painting with a magnifying glass is getting used to judging distance. I'd find myself making strokes, but no paint going on - then realized the brush wasn't touching the painting. Have to learn how to see through a magnifying glass. 

Nom Nom
4x4 inches
Acrylic on Sintra Panel

Now this one is small at only 16 square inches, but would not actually qualify in a Miniature Painting Show because the squirrel in the painting is at least 2 inches. Are real squirrels bigger than 12 inches sitting up? No, so I would have had to paint the squirrel much smalle.  And I didn't want to because I like how he was framed in the branches. 




Thursday, June 30, 2016

Backstage Ballet



Backstage Ballet
8x10 in on panel

Reference photo by Linda Willason.
Brought back such wonderful memories of my childhood ballet recitals.

Thursday, June 23, 2016

Lazy Cat! Says Garfield

8x10 Acrylics on Hardboard Panel, Unframed


Proceeds benefit Kunzang Palyul Choling Temple Fund

Sunday, May 22, 2016

Seaside Miniature Art Show Ended

Seaside Art Gallery in Nags Head has an annual miniature art show. Unfortunately for me, none of mine sold. Fortunately for YOU, they are now available 'Direct From Artist' so no gallery commission built into the pricing.

All available at my Daily Paintworks Gallery online

water lily painting goldfish




Friday, May 20, 2016

Home Porch

front porch flower box
Home Porch
5x7 Acrylic on Sintra Panel
Unframed

Had a good learning experience with this one, in how to make the whites in the back shadows a cool white, and the shadows in the front a warm shadow. 

Artist babble.

Ultimately, it's a painting that makes me happy to look at. 

Available in my Daily Paintworks Gallery
(unless it's already sold)

Thursday, May 19, 2016

Baby Shoes on Pink

baby shoes painting
Baby Shoes on Pink
6x8 Acrylic on Hardboard Panel

I just went crazy over this reference photo, by Nancy Carter on Facebook Photos for Artists. Do they even make baby shoes like this anymore? 

Up for auction in my Daily Paintworks Gallery

Monday, May 16, 2016

Bluebird of Happiness

6x6 Acrylic on Hardboard Panel
Commission

What a thoughtful gift: someone wanted to give their 90+ year old mother-in-law a gift but there wasn't anything she really needed. Then she remembered how much she loves the Eastern Bluebirds that fly around her back yard, and asked if I could paint one for her. Waiting for the frame I ordered to arrive and then will await reports of her surprise and glee.

If you need a special, unique gift for someone, please consider commissioning a painting!

Saturday, April 2, 2016

Procrastination is My Middle Name

Things have been so busy lately, I get paintings finished and then don't get around to photographing them and posting them. So this morning had a few hours to do all the photography, cropping, color balancing and posting to Daily Paintworks. Pfew. So here they are, and they are up for auction on my DPW Gallery




Monday, March 7, 2016

Formal Training Continued.....

Haven't had much time to post here - adding two weekly classes to a full-time job has me pretty busy. This was a very interesting class, though, on color studies.  

Tom Semmes (instructor) set up the still life and had us paint just flat shapes of color (sorry, but forgot to take the photo before beginning modification of the wall shadow).


Second pass was to begin to modify each shape with different values, hues, and temperature. I understand now why so many say to "paint from life". There are SO many more color variations in live setups than in photographs.  Here is after second pass:
The photo cannot actually show all the colors in this as cameras average out tones. The light side of the "white" ball has yellows, pinks and reflected orange, for instance.  

Painting - when you are learning - is like trying to juggle cats and chew gum and walk backwards. You have to really look and think, is this piece darker or lighter? warmer or cooler? what is its shape?  Then you get into, not which colors, but which pigments (and they differ from brand of paint to brand of paint) mix well (or not) to get to the color you need.  Fun and exhausting.

A very valuable class for me.

Monday, February 15, 2016

Stillness - and Pantone Colors

9x12 inches, Acrylic on Sintra Panel
SOLD

I painted this as I'd had the photo reference a while - fell in love with it when I saw it on morguefile.com. Then Daily Paintworks 2016 Pantone Challenge came up and this photo came to mind immediately as I could see how I could use artistic license to change the colors to fit the Pantone 2016 colors of  Rose Quartz and Serenity. The photo had evoked a sense of serenity in me so it fit!




 




Misty Morning on the Lake

8x10 Acrylics on Wrapped Canvas
SOLD

This painting was based on a photo reference by John Edwards from Facebook Photos for Artists group.I fell in the love with the light and tranquility of the scene and was happy with the outcome. 

So was the buyer! She e-mailed me:

I was out of town all last week when it came so I didn't see it until Saturday night when I got home. It's great - everything I expected and more. I can't wait to see more of your work! - Sharon V.



 

Friday, February 5, 2016

Compass Atelier Class

Things have been crazy busy and then snowmageddon happened. So here's post on what's happening at the Compass Atelier class with instructor Tom Semmes.

Previous post showed the charcoal sketch so we could learn to 'see' what we were to paint. Then we painted a grayscale painting of the setup which (sorry) I forgot to photograph.  Last two weeks have been painting in color, using a limited palette of Titanium White, Cadmium Red, Cadmium Yellow Light and Pthalo Blue.  

First pass:
8x10 oils (That's Tom Semmes in the background)
Blocking in main color shapes.

Second class: refining
Like my pinwheel flowers? lol.  Obviously, needs a lot of work still but next week is on to a new project.

Have learned a lot so far so if you are looking for classes visit http://www.thecompassatelier.com/

Friday, January 15, 2016

Formal Training at Long Last

Finally have decided that I'm at a point where I need some one on one instruction. I've learned a lot, and am grateful to, the online classes I have taken, but there's only so much feedback you can get from these formats.

Discovered that there is an Atelier in my backyard, so to speak and have signed up for two classes with Tom Semmes.  Yesterday's class already has shown me this was the right move for me.

So if you are interested, you can follow along with me week to week.......

Class 1, Intro to Painting.

Tom prefers to teach in oils and like so many teachers says "because it's easier". I mostly paint in acrylics because I do NOT find oils easier, so now is my chance to learn why.

No paints came out in this class, though, as he begins (after all the housekeeping info any new class requires) by teaching us to see...shapes...darks...lights...not THINGS. Charcoal sketching a setup by "painting" the negative spaces/shapes. Then the THINGS appear.

This was the setup:


First sketch:

I began the sketch with that little trapezoid of light between the copper pot and the white vase. So then I ran out of room for the flowers! But he showed me with matboard corners that would still be a good way to paint it. Notice the well defined edges on the vertical box, because on the next sketch he gave me an aha! moment.

Second sketch:

This time we STARTED with the flowers and worked on the relationship of shapes between the objects. The AHA! moment he gave me was that he wiped the edge of the vertical box to make a lost edge and it demonstrated immediately how that made the light top of the box really pop and the whole thing became more interesting. Then he darkened the shadows on the vase and pot (those bold dark lines) to demonstrate how the lights/darks MAKE the painting. 

This is gonna be FUN. 

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Saturday, January 2, 2016

Deja Blue, Rottweiler

Deja Blue, Rottweiler
6x6 Acrylics on Panel
Commission - SOLD

Barn Under Big Sky

Barn Under Big Sky
8x10 Oil on Panel

There is a Facebook group called Photos for Artists with some of the most talented photographers! This one is inspired by a photo by Trevor Reeves.

Christmas Cabin

Christmas Cabin in Moonlight
11x14 Acrylic on Panel

SOLD
Painted as part of a class given by Johanne Vloothuis. Was harder than I'd expected!

Received e-mail from buyer:
Hi Elizabeth,

I wanted to tell you I received your painting today, and I am so happy with it.  I was pleasantly surprised that it was even prettier in person.  You did such a great job, I'm sure like you said the snow was very challenging and you did great.

Thank you so much for sending it so quickly. I love it.