Daily Painter's Theme: Outside of the Box

The Theme Day for April on DailyPainters.com is 'Outside of the Box'. We were to paint something that was out of the ordinary for us. I gave it some thought and some of my ideas were to paint a portrait or use another medium....but I ran out of time for those options so the next most 'outside of the box' thing for me would be to paint in an abstract way. Sticking to my Spring theme I tried some abstracts loosely based on beds of colorful azaleas. I call these little 5x7 paintings 'Azaleas Outside the Box'. For each one I did an alcohol wash underpainting but managed to cover them up in all but the top painting which turned out to be my favorite.

Low Country Spring

'Low Country Spring' 8x10 pastel

Last year for spring break we went down to Harbor Island South Carolina. We had terrible weather and Caitlin was sick the whole time but I did get some photos! The azaleas were in bloom and we would pass this big group of azaleas at the base of some trees dripping in moss. It was beautiful! I am working on azaleas. I haven't painted them in

I'm Published!

I wanted to share that my painting 'Wildwood Nights' appears in Blicks Art Materials Catalogue 2009 edition. When I was asked for the use of the image back in the Fall I thought it was just for an ad flyer so it was a nice surprise when my friend saw it in the catalogue. I also have a painting being used on the cover of McGraw-Hill's 9th grade Literature series. I can't wait to see how that will look!

Mountain Haybales

'Morning in the Mountains' 8x10 pastel

Today's painting is the demo I did for my class today. We talked about using underpaintings for our pastel paintings. Our focus today was on doing a complementary color underpainting. I chose this scene because it was very green and I felt that the complementary colors would help give the greens some variation and life.

Redbud Trees Spring Painting

'Redbuds after the Rain' 11x14 pastel

I just got back from a very nice day in Blue Ridge Georgia with friends. We had paintings on display at the Southeastern Pastel Society member open show and tonight was the opening. I was so proud of Susan and Elaine who had their work in their first show. The paintings looked great and I know this is the first of many! About this painting.....it was another that went through transformations. There was just so much information in the photo and all I really wanted to capture was the color of redbuds and not to be distracted by all of the other trees and bushes. I had to wipe out the background a few times to get it to where I really wanted.

Forsythia in Bloom

'Forsythia in Bloom' 8x10 pastel

I don't have any forsythia growing in my yard but if I did it would be the wild and free kind. I don't care for the bushes that are trimmed into neat little shrubs. They just don't seem to be as happy as their wild neighbors!

Colors for Spring

These are the pastels I used for the painting below and the one I am about to post. For my next Spring painting I have some new pastels. I went 'shopping' in my spare pastel collection and found some exciting new colors. What I usually do when I get new pastels is break a piece off for my box and store the rest....so I have hundreds of spare pastels that I just end up forgetting about. I had a great time picking out some fresh colors that I don't normally use. Can't wait to get painting!

Spring in the Southeast Pastel Painting

'Simply Spring' 8x10 pastel

Here is my second painting in my new Spring series. I have a stack of reference photos that are calling out to be painted. It is my goal to capture the colors and freshness of the spring landscape. It is a challenge because here in the Southeast we are blessed with so many flowering trees and sbrubs. The riot of color can be unreal at times....so I will try to simplify and do this season justice. I painted this on white Wallis paper instead of my usual grey with hopes it would give me a lighter feeling.

Dogwood Blossoms

'Dogwood Trio' 5x7 pastel

I am ready for Spring! I have a several ideas I want to paint all with a Spring theme. I have to paint my cherry trees and I want to revisit some photos I took a few years ago at Callaway Gardens of the azaleas. So much to paint and just not enough time! This painting is done on LaCarte paper.

Poppies

'Poppy Daydreams' 8x10 pastel

Today's painting is from my head. It didn't start out as a poppy painting....far from it. It went through so many revisions I lost track. This piece of Wallis paper really held it's own. I started out trying to paint a forest scene. It was all greens so I did a complementary color underpainting. I wasn't happy with how it was going and I brushed it out completely twice, I also tried fixing the bottom layer...still hated it. I brushed it out once again and decided to make it a field of tulips....no luck with that one either. I don't like to waste a good piece of paper or give up on a painting so the poppies came to life. I still have to figure out a way to try the forest again!

I had a request for a closer look at the charts I prepared for my cloud and sky class. I want to thank Deborah Secor for her excellent instruction on creating 'lively' greys on wetcanvas.com. Making my own greys instead of reaching for the 'ready made' grey makes a big difference when painitng clouds. I encourage you to go through your own pastels and make a chart so you can see all the greys you will be able to make. Not only is it fun, it is very helpful!

Lavender Field with Poppies

'Lavender's Edge' 8x8 pastel

Here is the finished painting from the post below. Bits of the underpainting do peek through but I think if I had set the bottom layer with alcohol or turpenoid it wouldn't have gotten as mixed into the top layers. I do like the way it gave me a nice base to paint on though and I will try it some more. This is from a photo I took at the Purple Haze Lavender Farm in SequimmWashington.

Complementary Color Underpainting

I was flipping through an issue of the Artist magazine and came across an article by Michael Chesley Johnson on using a complementary color underpainting for pastels. I thought I'd try it the way he suggests. I used my analogous color wheel for this. Looking at my reference photo I took each color section and found it's complement on my wheel and used a Nupastel to block it in. What I failed to do but will do it on the next one is to make sure I matched the correct value as well as the correct complement. I rubbed in the pastel with my finger but next time I will use alcohol I think. I will post the finished painting next.

Cloud Demo

'Colorful Clouds' 10x10 pastel

Today's workshop on painting the sky and clouds went well. It was a fun day and everyone did some wonderful paintings. At the end of the class we played with a fun technique using a spray bottle of water. I will post the results later this week. Next workshop wil be on paintings the colors of Spring so I will be preparing for that over the next couple of weeks. This is the demo painting I did today. I was illustrating how to make colorful grays for the dark part of clouds. I compared our colorful gray with the grays from the box and the difference was amazing!

Clearing Sky in the Low Country

'Clearing Sky' 5x7 pastel

Painting a stormy or overcast sky can be even more of a challenge than a blur sky with white puffy clouds. I am trying to capture the look of a moody sky in this pastel. This was actually a stormy morning as the sun was just about to break through the clouds giving everything a bit of a glow.

Cloud and Sky Workshop

I am ready for my workshop on painting the sky and clouds. Here is a photo of my display table. I have a lot to share and I find that the visuals are helpful to me and my students. I'll report on the workshop tomorrow!

New Mexico Landscape

'Clearing Storm' 10x10 pastel

I am still on a mission to capture as many different skies as I can. The more I do, the more I want to do if that makes any sense. I am feeling the pull to move on though. My cherry trees are just about in full bloom and I took some pictures today....so I think I may be getting Spring Fever! This painting is on Wallis paper, Belgium mist.

Canyon Clouds

'Canyon Clouds' 8x10 pastel

It seems I have a series going now! I am painting clouds from photos I have taken from my travels. I am looking for a variety of cloud and skies and moods and I have a few more I'd like to try. This is fun!

Sunset over Miami

'Sunset over Miami' 8x10 pastel

Today's painting is another cloud study. I have gone through my pictures and printed out some great skies to paint. This one is from our recent cruise. I took the picture as the ship sailed from the port of Miami. The clouds were spectacular! I am having so much fun painting clouds.

Clouds over the Marsh

'Clouds over the Marsh' 11x14 pastel

I am getting ready for this Sunday's workshop on painting the sky and clouds. I am looking forward to sharing what I have learned. I have always enjoyed painting skies and clouds so learning more about the art and science of this important part of the landscape has been great! This painting is on Wallis Belgium Mist with no underpainting.

Cherry Blossoms aceo sold

My cherry trees are starting to bloom and I can't wait to get some photos. I have six trees and each year they get better and better. This little painitng is just 3.5 x 2.5 but I plan to do larger cherry tree paintings this spring!

Dance of the Wildflowers

'Dance of the Wildflowers' 16x20 pastel

Here is the finished painting. You can see some of the underpainting peeking through in places. Now that I am looking at it I do see some things I want to do...minor fixes. I did fix the cat painting too so all in all it was a productive weekend for me.

Underpainting with Alcohol wash

I have been wanting to try a larger meadow painting and today was the day! I decided to do a wild underpainting since the meadow was going to be so subtle and green. I used an Ampersand Pastelbord 16x20. I put down a layer of Nupastels using pinks, reds and oranges and washed it with rubbing alcohol. I didn't worry about drips. I didn't get any more work in progress shots but I wanted to share the underpainting.

Colorful Pears

'Colorful Pears' 5x7 pastel

I felt like painting some pears just for fun. Pears are my favorite fruit to paint. They seem to have so much personality. I'd like to do a series some day. I have a new meadow painting on the easel that I hope to paint today. Stay tuned!

First Encounter...update

'First Encounter' 18x24 pastel

Here is an update on my latest painting. I am giving it a rest until tomorrow. I know I need to work on the sun spots and window shadow but I need to take a break. I probably won't do any more to the cats unless something screams at me. I find that if I add too many layers I lose that fresh feel and it starts to get muddy. Let me know if you see anything that needs attention.

First Encounter WIP

First Encounter is the working title for this painting. I have completed my 'road map' by laying in a few layers of darks and indicating the lights. The lighting was dramatic and I hope to capture that in the painting. Next I will continue building layers of color all over the painting. It's funny though because even as it is at this early stage, it is very much Tobi & Maya. I don't want to lose that so I will proceed carefully. This is 18x24 on LaCarte paper.

Wildflower Meadow with Red Poppies

'Meadow Dreams' 18x24 pastel

I love to paint this meadow and it was a lot of fun to paint it larger this time. I took work in progress photos and was pretty good in the beginning stages but them forgot as I got into the painting! This is on Wallis Belgium Mist. I am not officially out of big paper so I have to place an order today.

Maya the Siamese Cat

'Curious' 7x5 pastel

I have another larger painting on the easel that I am getting ready to start. It is based on one of my favorite photos of Maya and Tobi, my other seal point siamese. I did this small one of Maya as a study piece for the painting. I wanted to work out the colors I will use. There is some dramatic lighting in the photo and I wanted to caoture that mystery without the darks being lifeless. It will be a challenging painting.

The Magic Hour

'Fleeting Light' 18x24 pastel

This was one of those magical moments. We were in an unfamiliar place trying to find the beach. It was late afternoon and the light was fading quickly. We drove down a side street and were lucky to discover we had not only found the beach, but the light was just gorgeous. We jumped out of the car, cameras in hand and hurried to take some photos as the last of the light began to disappear. The clouds and distant sand were glowing with the warmth of the light. I think this has to be my favorite time of day and I wanted to capture this moment in a painting. This painting is 18x24 (large for me) on Wallis Belgium Mist paper. I used an assortment of Terry Ludwig and Diane Townsend pastels. The clouds are my own 'gray' mix that we will be talking about in my upcoming workshop on painting the sky.

Sanibel Island

About This Painting:
My favorite beach on Sanibel Island is Bowman's Beach. I never get tired of painting it!
Media: Pastel
Size: 5 in X 7 in (12.7 cm X 17.8 cm)
Price: $75 USD

How to Purchase:

Buy this painting on PayPal
Price: $75 USD
Or, send me an email

Lupines aceo

About This Painting:
Here is a close up of the Lupines. This one is a miniature aceo size. Thank you for viewing my pastels. I use the finest soft pastels on archival supports. Commissions welcome.

Media: Pastel
Size: 2.5 in X 3.5 in (6.4 cm X 8.9 cm)
Price: $39 USD

How to Purchase:

Buy this painting on PayPal
Price: $39 USD
Or, send me an email

Maine Lupines

'Maine Lupines'        5x7         pastel

I came across this beautiful field of Lupines on a walk last summer. I had seen them all around during our trip to Maine but we always seemed to be driving. This time I was close enough to really appreciate them.

The Road to Capitol Reef

'The Road to Capitol Reef' 8x10 pastel

Capitol Reef National Park is located in Utah. It is on the scenic route between Bryce Canyon and Moab, Utah. Many people just drive through or make a quick stop in the visitor's center. But it is a beautiful park and deserves a longer visit. I've been twice and have fond memories of hiking with my family and having lunch under the cottonwoods. I know I will be back again!

Sapphire Beach Palms

We had a picture perfect day at Sapphire Beach when we were recently visiting St. Thomas. I love Magen's Bay of course, but Sapphire has beautiful surprises....like this private cove lined with palm trees. I have lots of palm trees I want to paint from this trip! This painting is 5x7, pastel on Wallis paper.

Autumn Reflections

'Autumn Reflections' 8x10 pastel

Wednesday's theme on dailypainters.com is Reflections. This painting is a study I did for a large commission I will be starting soon. I am working closely with my collector to put his ideas in a painting. It will be 24x36 so it will be interesting to paint that large....especially after doing the minis!

Summer Birches ACEO

'Summer Birches' 3.5 x 2.5 pastel

Here is a closer view of this mini painting. It is a view of some birch trees on a trail in Acadia National Park in Maine. I enjoy seeing how I can simplify my subject so that is fits this small format.

Forest Windows....aceo pastel paintings

I had fun doing some ACEO's which are mini 2.5 x 3.5 paintings. These are all on Wallis paper and are from my photos. I started with one tree and it quickly became the theme of the day! I'll show close-ups of each one during this week's posts. I was tempted to paint a picture of my neighbor's snowman...yes we did have snow Sunday. I am really ready for spring and so I will save Mr. Snowman for next winter!

Colorado Cornflowers

'Colorado Blues' 8x10 pastel

I am back to Colorado for this painting. This is a scene from our visit to The Great Sand Dune National Park in Colorado. We had a fantastic cloud show one morning. The clouds were low in the sky and actually covered the dunes and were creating some unusual conditions at the dunes. I was enjoying this patch of blue wildflowers near the gas station of all places. They were the same beautiful color as the distant mountains!