Surfing art websites on a cold night

One of the things I really like to do when I have time to sit with my laptop on my lap (as opposed to a cat) is to surf other artist's websites and blogs. A few of my favorites are Carol Marine, Karin Jurick and my sister Adele. Once I look through the blog posts I haven't read and check out their new paintings, I start clicking on the blogroll links and look at the other artists they link to. Some new favorites I found just tonight are Aaron Lifferth and Doug Braithwaite. Another artist Carol turned me on to in the workshop I took two weeks ago is Qaing Huang (pronounced Chong Wong).

There are certainly some incredible artists online! With the amount of artwork they sell, there must be lots of collectors out there as well.

I hate posting a blog post with no photo but I can't post someone else's work without their permission. How about a painting I did right after the workshop with Carol? For a person who doesn't like to draw, and who does primarily landscapes, this was a challenge!

New gallery reception in Keystone

A new gallery in Keystone called the Keystone Mountain Gallery shows some of my artwork. Last Friday Donna Causland, the owner, had a reception for artists and guests as we kicked off the Holiday Minature show. She did a great job getting PR in the local paper and had a good turnout. In the photo above, clay artist Sue Schmidt and her husband look around the gallery.

As we really enjoy getting together with other artists, Bonnie Norling Wakeman and I decided that we would like to organize a group of painters who will paint together on a regular basis. I paint weekly in the Breckenridge Arts District with friends, but would like to do it twice a week, and this time, a little closer to home. I will let you know where we end up doing it (Lake Dillon Art Center?) and what day or evening we decide on. If you would like to join us, let me know!

Fourth day of a five day workshop

This has been a busy week! All frustration is gone (I realized I have been using that word a lot lately, so no more....I have banished it from my vocabulary!)

The first photo was taken during the morning demo. Carol believes in doing what she calls the most "vulnerable" colors first, or the ones most likely to be contaminated with other colors. She started with the pale yellow of the apples. Her canvas is toned with umber, but that varies according to what she is painting. She sketches in with Burnt Umber.

We are learning lots in the workshop. Carol is a good teacher and has plenty of great information. Her paintings are amazing and if I can just do is 10% as well as she does, I will be happy. I have enjoyed her demos every morning. I did finally get a couple of apples done myself that looked respectable. The big difference between the way she paints and the way I do is that her paintings are very planned out, while mine tend to be pretty spontaneous and inituitive. Planning works better!

The painting in this second photo was done this morning and it is about 3/4 done here. It might be my favorite of the four she has done so far. On each of her paintings, the composition is well thought out and every brush stroke is considered, mixed and applied carefully. Most times she remixes her paint after every stroke and adds more medium. She paints very thinly and the medium spreads the paint nicely. She knows exactly what color she wants and she knows where she is putting it and why. That is the biggest thing I am taking away from this workshop, and when I use the information it should have an impact on my paintings. I remember in my workshop with Tim Deibler, he also stressed that no two brushstrokes be the same color, and here it is again. It must be something I should do more :)