New Classes for a New Year!

The Community College of Beaver County has jut announced upcoming classes, including my art classes!  I invite you to check the schedule here for:

• Art Journaling
• Pencil Drawing 1
• Pencil Drawing 2: Color and Shading
• Nature Art for Self Care
• Watercolor Spring Flowers

You can find these classes and more at https://ccbc.coursestorm.com/  and click on "Arts."

Give yourself the gift of creative time!  I hope to see you at an upcoming class!

Inspired by Roses

This time of year, as the days grow short and dim, a bouquet of roses in the Trader Joe's grocery store seems as nourishing as the organic Florida oranges the next aisle over.  

Placed in my favorite vase, they brought inspiration this morning.

I began with a sketch of a single blossom, and then the full bouquet.

And finished by playing with my new alcohol markers.

Taking time out to follow the lacy curves of country rose petals slows a person down, like mindfulness meditation.  

All that exists in the moment is your line and the ephemeral beauty of the flower. 

As you draw, you are connected to the essence of the flower, its natural vitality. 

What could be more life affirming in these cold, short days?

Hoping you get a break in the rush of the holidays to simply sketch & connect with nature.

Upcycled Affirmation Cards & a Book Review

I found fantastic inspiration in this book!

In Art Journal Art Journey, artist and journaler Nichole Rae shares her creative journaling process.  

The book includes a chapter on creating what Nichole calls an Inspirational Card Deck.  Using upcycled playing cards, Nichole collages typed & printed words, ephemera & stamped designs on the cards.  

I was hooked on the idea of making my own deck!

Nichole's book in hand, I visited the Pittsburgh Center for Creative Reuse, and purchased a fistful of playing cards, some old lined note paper, art postcards, and a variety of decorative papers.

Back in my studio, I took a dive into my collage box, and found painted papers, greeting card bits,maps and vintage office papers.  I collaged papers onto the playing cards, added affirmations and quotes I had typed up on my trusty Sears electric typewriter, decorated the cards with my own homemade stamps (made from corks & erasers) and washi tape.

Soon I had a deck of affirmation cards!

 I created a box sized just to fit them out of mat board and tape, and glued on some gorgeous decorative paper my dear friends gave me.

Now I have a little box of inspiration and uplift for myself.

These cards make lovely gifts to tuck into letters and cards to inspire those you love.

All of these papers, as well as the black-striped chartpak tape came from the Pittsburgh Center for Creative Reuse, my favorite art supply store!

The process was relaxing after a busy week, and I found the small card size made it easy to lay out a design quickly.

I hope you'll have a rummage for collage supplies, and create some of your own Inspirational Cards!

Color Journal Update

I have been working long hours lately, and find myself hungering for time to play with my art supplies.  One Friday evening recently, I tucked myself away in my studio with colorful markers and my watercolors.

I began with my Winsor & Newton watercolors in lemon yellow, Winsor blue and Hooker's green.  After those washes dried, I followed my intuition in exploring the positive and negative spaces of the page with Posca pens, Faber Castell black India ink pens, a white gel pen, & a set of inexpensive permanent markers. 

I have a voice within that says "Buy new art supplies, then you'll create masterpieces!"  

But I find that my old familiar pens and watercolors are friendly and inviting. And I can create endlessly with what I have.  

Why not dig out your favorite supplies and simply explore what they can do?  I hope you have a little play time soon!

Still Life Watercolor with a Ball Jar

The best subject to draw or paint is one you find fascinating and beautiful.  I use this Ball jar in my studio to hold water for my brushes, and I use it because I find it beautiful.

I wanted to practice painting its transparent, glassy, colorful form.  I began with a light pencil sketch, and laid in wet-in-wet washes of a variety of blues:  Prussian, Pthalo, and Cerulean. 

 I added in the cast shadow, and after the watercolor had dried, I added linework details with Faber Castell permanent black pens, and a Uniball white pen.

The final result was that I got to spend some time exploring watercolors and the way light passed through this gorgeous old jar.  I was pleased with the painting, but mostly, I was grateful for the time I got to spend creating with no other purpose in mind.

I find this sort of project to be healing and restorative after a busy day at work.  Peace resides in my art studio, and it feels grounding and like prayer to sit still and play with my art supplies.

I hope you spend some time playing with your art supplies soon!

Osher Figure Drawing with Amelia

Model Amelia started off our Osher Figure Drawing fall semester with a beautiful series of gesture poses that inspired the whole class.  Here are a few of my drawings of her artful poses.

Many thanks, Amelia!

Inspiration from an Old Stump

Out on a hike with my Nikon D-70s, I found this battered stump just as I was returning to my car at sunset.  The vibrant moss and the wild tangle of vines caught my eye, and I snapped a photo.

At home, I downloaded the file to my computer and set up my studio for painting.

I made a quick pencil sketch, and broke out my gouache paints.  Gouache is like watercolor paint, but opaque if you keep it thick. 

I love taping off the margins on a nature journal page, and then setting to work laying in the colors -- big areas first, then delving into the delightful details.

Of course, I picked out the details I liked and painted the rest in generalities.  At the end, that's the beauty -- we get to focus on the parts of the scene that inspire us.  We're not creating another photograph, but a painting.  And in that painting, we express our artist's eye & our spirit.  

May you get to follow your artist's eye and express your spirit soon!

Figure Drawing with Model Melissa

Recently, I had the opportunity to draw model Melissa, who created lovely poses, like this semi-reclining scene.  The diagonal lines, the artful use of a folding fan, and the beautiful shapes created within the pose, like her foreshortened thigh made this pose a delight to draw.  

Many thanks to model Melissa!

Vintage Art Supplies

What is it about vintage art supplies that thrills me?  I get swept away into idealism and nostalgia for the materials I remember from my childhood, when I spent endless happy hours drawing, painting, and creating in a messy state of wonder. 

The price is usually cheaper than modern materials, and the quality is often much better.  And, I like to think that forgotten art materials feel pride and delight in being used for their intended purpose rather than being left to gather dust, or worse,  dumped in the landfill.  

They want to be found by someone who will love them and make art with them!

 

A week ago, I found a box of 72 Koh-I-Noor graphite leads at the Pittsburgh Center for Creative Reuse.  A half gross of professional grade 4B leads, just waiting to create amazing drawings! All for $12. A bargain!

At 3mm thick, the graphite leads wouldn't fit into any mechanical pencil I had.  An internet search led me to a vintage mechanical pencil on ebay, for $12. 

It arrived on Black Friday, and I excitedly ripped into the package, and loaded it up with a lead.  There's a magic to new art supplies.  With the winds of excitement blowing you along, you freely explore all the different types of marks your new tool can make. There is no right or wrong, just discovery and play.

And this is the best approach for art making with any supply -- no expectations, only explorations and experiments.

I began making sketches, and discovered that the thick lead created wonderful masses of tone when I turned it on its side (above).

I could sharpen the tip with a sandpaper sharpener or even a regular pencil sharpener, and get fine lines. 

The 4B graphite created dark tones, but also seemed quite strong and stiff, able to take a fair bit of pressure from the side.

I set out with my pencil and sketchbook, and found barnwood, winter weeds, and songbirds outdoors to sketch.

And at the end of the explorations, I had a journal filling with sketches, and a pencil that seemed happy to be back to work.  

I hope you get a chance to test out some art supplies -- vintage or modern -- soon!

October Color!

Autumn color never lasts as long as I wish.  I'm always trying to gather up the colors in artworks while they last.

The campground at my state park closed last week.  I took advantage of the quiet space to spend an afternoon there, painting from the comfort of a picnic table.  The brilliant foliage against the dark trunks and limbs drew my eye, and I raced to capture as much of the scene as I could before the light left and the washes dried.

Happy Autumn!

Watercolor Lessons with Yelena Lamm

In my most recent lesson with Yelena Lamm, we worked on a small subject-- a simple yellow rose.  Using a photograph for reference, or really as a starting point, we briefly sketched out our composition, then began with the bold yellow tones of the flower, adding layers of orange, and letting that dry before painting in the green sepals & stem.  

Yelena talked about controlling our edges -- allowing some to dry into crisp lines, but keeping most of them soft.  Even edges that I would think of as defined, like the ends of the yellow petals at the top right of the flower, worked as loose, watery borders.  Now when I paint, I think about edges -- about carefully softening the boundaries of each wash, and allowing only a few to dry hard.  It's easier to work seamlessly into a dried wash with a soft edge than to deal with layer upon layer of hard-bordered washes.

A light has turned on inside my head, and I feel grateful to go forward with this new knowledge.  

I hope you get a chance to take a class this autumn.  It can open new pathways for creative expression and thought!

Adding Pop to a Watercolor Scene

Earlier this year, I painted these Cosmos blooms as a watercolor class demonstration.  I made a quick  pencil sketch of the flowers and splashed in watercolors, finishing by adding color to the negative space.  I wanted my students to see the steps in creating a watercolor painting.

After class, rather than discard the sketch, I worked on it a bit.  I wanted the loose scene to pop a bit more, so I sketched in areas with my Inktense watercolor pencils.  Touching a wet brush into the Inktense area smoothed the color into a wash, but left the original pencil strokes visible.  

As a finishing touch, I added India ink from my Pentel ink brush pen, and Micron waterproof pen lines to contours I wanted to enhance.  I found an inexpensive frame from Goodwill Industries, and the finished piece now hangs in my home.

Why not try this technique for capturing the beauty of Autumn?!

Fall Foliage with Watercolors

 

Autumn has arrived at my home on Hawk's Hill, and I recently spent a morning painting the first splashes of color adorning our Grandmother Sugar Maple tree.  This ancient tree brings beauty to our lives in any season, but particularly this time of year.

My recent lessons with Pittsburgh artist Yelena Lamm taught me so much about how to approach painting landscapes, how to control edges, and how to see colors.  What a pleasure to dive into painting this scene with a new focus and new skills!  Many thanks to Yelena for her instruction and the inspiration it brought me.

Autumn is a great time to take a class and pick up new skills.  Art classes are a terrific way to bring focus to your art practice and to gain momentum -- and to connect with other artists.  

Click here for a link to my upcoming classes. I hope you'll join me for one!

Color Journal Update

I've been painting in my color journal over the last few weeks. 

When I have a little time, a few colors or materials I want to explore, and I want to simply sketch rather than create a full painting, my color journal is an easy place to play.

Sometimes I explore mark making with India ink.

Inspired by the color and shapes of pumpkins, I started this one with a white crayon, added India ink, and finished with layers of wet-in-wet watercolors. 

Other times, I layer different media -- here watercolor forms the lower layer, and after the paint dried, I added lines with a permanent fine line ink pen.

Each page is different.  Each page is low-risk, because I'm just exploring and doodling.  So picking up this journal and trying something new is easy.  And relaxing.

Give yourself the gift of time to play with colors.  

You don't need to buy new materials, just gather what you already have. 

Follow the small voice of your intuition.  

You'll be surprised at how creative that part of you is.

Fairy Lanterns

 
I found an inspiring Pinterest photo of a small jar covered in moss, natural materials and paper butterflies, and lit from within by flameless candles.

What a delightful way to admire the feathers and dead leaves that I collect! I bought the dried moss & butterflies, and used Aleene's Original Tacky Glue to fix everything on a plastic gellato jar. 

I made several lanterns with pint-sized salsa jars.  I found that I needed 2 or 3 battery-powered candles for the light to escape through the luscious moss. 

One of these fairy lanterns will be a great addition to my Renaissance Festival costume!

Art Journaling in my Trader Joe's Grocery Bag Journal

I often write a journal entry on a piece of lined paper as part of my art journaling page.  Making pockets to tuck these folded pages feels like play!  The above pocket design is created with book pages & watercolor paper decorated with Indanthrene Blue & Burnt Sienna watercolors and India ink.

I recently was inspired to try intuitive painting after watching this YouTube video by Jackie Schomburg.  When I finished, I realized my painting represents how I feel about the autumn and the coming winter -- a last celebration of the summer sun, warmth & color.  

Yin & yang.

Sometimes, I doodle in my art journal. 

I picked up some watercolor crayons in an art supply swap I held in one of my Osher classes, and played with them on gesso-covered pages.  I love the rich, bold colors and the way they blend with a wet brush!

An art journal is your space to explore whatever you desire -- from a new set of paints to the thoughts and feelings within you.  I hope you get a chance to play with art supplies just for self care soon!

Upcycled Art Journal from Trader Joe's Grocery Bags

I'm a big fan of Trader Joe's grocery store.  I love the staff, and the food! 

Over the last few years, I amassed a collection of their sturdy paper bags.  Determined to recycle them, I turned them into a journal.

I got the idea for creating a faux leather cover from an idea I saw in a YouTube video.  

I cut my paper bags into pages, wet them and crinkled them for some extra texture. 

After letting the pages dry, I sewed them into a journal and added a cover.

On the pages that have print, I gesso and paint over, or simply collage. Here I've used music sheeting and old book pages, acrylic paint, homemade stamps, and Sharpies.

I copied a wonderful "permission slip" from The Unexpected Gypsy.  It's helpful to write down your intention in a journal, and to remind yourself that you are allowed to create without judgement.

I love the brown craft paper surface of the unprinted pages. I can use white paint pens and black ink to contrast. I've sewn in a string of battery-powered lights to this page to remind myself that nurturing myself helps my inner light to shine.

The beauty of upcycled materials for me is that I've saved something from the landfill, so it feels like there's no pressure to make anything "pretty." 

A beautiful way to slip past perfectionism.

Why not create your own art journal from materials around the house?