A Snail's Tale ...

I believe I left our friend here ...

I did some thin washes of bright colors for an underpainting - alizarin crimson, aureolin and quin. burnt orange.

Then I started glazing and glazing and glazing, sometimes with the original colors, sometimes  with a dark brown. I did the same with the body - layers of different hues of green.

I have finally reached the stage where he has the appearance of being backlit by a soft light.  I still can hear the instructor, in one of the two sets of watercolor classes I took, saying "darker ... darker", every time she commented on my painting. I have a tendency to be tentative until prodded.

And I am still playing around with the geese, trying to bring a stronger focus to the goose with his wings out. I've gone over the entire background - geese and all - with a red-orange wash, and the other two geese in the daylight got a thin wash of cobalt blue. I may yet bring out some more intense shadows on the #1 goose, and do more with the ground.

Thank you for dropping by, and, as always, your comments are welcome. 

Some New Happenings ...

For the background, I floated in some WN cerulean blue, and stroked in a line of a dark blue-black under the snail.

Heading out to feed Bruno his breakfast, I noticed a snail on the patio. The light on the picnic table was so subtle, I put the snail up there and took some photos. After his modeling session, I put the snail out on the grass. 

I have painted thin washes of quin. burnt orange and indanthrone blue - VERY thin.

Here I've started with her eye, and placed the tan spots on her face.

A tentative start on the face ...

I was in a quandary as to how to paint the texture of her ears - all those kinks and curls - without painting each strand of hair. 

I think this looks quite realistic without being too fussy. I put pigment down with a round brush, in S-shaped strokes, and then go over them with a damp, flat brush.

On July 1, I joined an artists' cooperative gallery in Vancouver. There are eight other artists, and the gallery itself has a very good "feel" to it when you walk in. It is in a very funky, artsy area of Vancouver. I hope to gain some exposure and commissions, but if nothing else, I will definitely get more experience in the business side of the artist's life.

Thank you for dropping by, and your comments are always welcome!

News from the World of Goose, and a Few Starts on Krystie ...

I left the flock here ...

Today, I went over the background with an alizarin crimson wash, followed by an indanthrone blue one. 

Then I went over the background geese with the dark blue ...

... and darkened their eyes and bills, and put a bit of direct shadow on the foreground geese's legs.  I apologize for the changing colors of the photos. These I have posted are the closest I can get with the iPhoto application.

... I like this one 

I call this "the look of love".

I'm not sure about this one. It needs more work.  K. looks almost sulky here.  And Bruno the critic was here ... I took my sketchbook out to the field yesterday evening to work, as it was so muggy inside, and the Big Guy was mouthing the paper. We're getting a mild heat wave in B.C.

I thank you for dropping by, and your comments are always welcome!

The Geese Are Taking Off ...

The feet are there, and I am slowly giving form and depth to their bodies. The colors are quin. burnt orange, quin. coral, a lavender, cobalt blue and brown madder. I'm using warm, less intense colors to keep them light and fluffy.

I've darkened the inside of the shed ...

... and added a bit of a ground, which I'll touch up later. Apologies - the colors are brighter in the original. I think the dark blues and bright oranges are vying for the edit function's  attention.

Thank you for dropping by. Your comments are always welcome. 

When Is a Painting like a Good Book???

... when you are enjoying it so much, you never want it to end, but you want to know how it will finish. That's how I feel about this painting.

I've done  thin wash of indanthrone blue on everything inside the shed.  The colors I am using for the geese are quin. sienna, quin. burnt orange, quin. coral, brown madder, cobalt blue and ultramarine violet [I think - can't read the label].

I am keeping the brighter colors for the geese in the foreground.

Here I've painted w/w with indanthrone, quin. burnt orange and brown madder to suggest old wooden boards ... 

... and gone over it with indanthrone.

I've done some soft shadowing of the geese inside, and a w/w wash of the outside boards of the shed, using cobalt blue and quin. burnt orange. Thankfully,  there are many more hours of play-time left with this painting.  :)

Thank you for dropping by, and your comments are always welcome!

One Done and Some on the Go ...

I think I finally have this "quick" painting done. The shadows look credible. I just have to decide how to crop it - 6 x 8 inches or 6 x 6 inches, and then mount and varnish it. I thank you all who commented and offered advice - it was a help, and I appreciate it! 

Yes, another goose painting. They are all screaming out of their barn, happy to be outside. The above is the drawing I have put on the watercolor paper. I am doing a lot of color swatches, and will get to a value sketch today. 

One of the swatches ...

This is Kristie. Several months ago, I offered to do an animal portrait for a fund-raiser for the Pacific Riding for the Disabled. The portrait of Buddy was put on display as an example of my work. Yesterday, I got a call from the owner. I went over that afternoon, and had a lovely visit with both of them.  Many photos were taken, and I have some of the owner's photos as well, so now to get a great drawing done. Kristie is a beautiful American Cocker Spaniel, with the most incredibly deep, intelligent eyes.

This is it in my corner of the art world. I thank you for dropping by, and always welcome your comments!

Just Some Finishing Up This Week ...

SInce the last post, I have scrumbled and intensified the background, brightened the soles, and darkened some of the shadows around the laces. It looks stronger, but nothing like the drama-queen spike heels, but for these old beaters, it's a suitable finish.

I started a small painting of this clematis, think ing I would be done in a day. 

Four days later, the flower does not stand out like the photo. Maybe another round of glazing the background, and deepening the shadows on the flower???

And just because I needed to work on something, I did this quick sketch of a pit bull puppy with meltingly sweet eyes.
That's about it in my part of the art world. Have to move - working in the office today. Hopefully, I'll get some chicken, lamb and goat photos and sketches up later this week ...

Thank you for dropping by! Your comments are always a pleasure to read.