Bubble Planner

Another week, another weekly planner page! 

 

This week's inspiration came from looking at a variety of jar lids and other round items, and wondering what the page would look like if I traced them.  

I traced them with a pencil, then used India ink and a brush to create bubbles and swirls.  

I simply followed my intuition.

I recommend tuning into your intuition as a practice.  

 Kindly ask yourself what to do next in your art, and listen to the soft voice of your intuition -- not the noisy, judgmental voice of your inner critic, but the quiet suggestions that often sound unusual, unexpected or downright weird.  

Try those things.  

It's only paper, and you can make wonderful discoveries. 

It helps you to learn to trust your own artist's voice.

 Happy Creating!

Another week, another weekly planner page!  I had just bought a pile of pumpkins for my Pencil Drawing students at CCBC to draw, and had all these beautiful pumpkins in different shades and colors in my studio.  It was so much fun to sketch, ink and paint these little characters, with each one holding a day's summary of activities.

Do you have a favorite collection of objects in your home?  Why not draw them together?  You don't even have to make them part of a planner page!

Happy Creating!

Taking on My Hobgoblin Update: Painting Large

In this blog post, I shared the story of my inner critic's fear that painting large was "dangerous."

After writing about the subject in my daily journal, and then creating in my art journal, I plunged in and made this 24" x 30" painting.  

I am delighted to report that painting large is in some ways easier than painting small.  It allows freedom of motion as you paint, making sweeping motions more natural.

I started with this fiery orange-red underpainting to employ the power of color contrasts.

Orange and blue are opposites on the color wheel.  When you place them side-by-side, they create a vivid contrast that attracts the viewer's eye and creates a dynamic energy.

The beautiful thing about acrylic paint is that it dries quickly, so you can add layers on top of each other fairly quickly without mixing the two layers of paint.

I explained how I made this crow stamp in this post.

After making an enlarged copy of one of the prints, I transferred the photocopy to the painting using matte medium.

I applied a generous coat of matte medium to the face of the copy, stuck it down to the painting where I wanted it, and then pressed it firmly in place.  As I scraped excess goo out from between the two layers, I was careful not to get any matte medium on the back side of the copy.  That's important.

The next step is to let the matte medium dry.  When it's fully dry, spritz the paper with water and peel back the paper to reveal the image (in reverse).

You'll have to rub the last fibers of paper off of the image, and some parts of the image may come up with the paper if there was an air bubble in that spot.

I touched up a few spots on my crow with black paint.

Mixing matte medium with the acrylic paint allowed me to paint smooth, flowing letters and swirls.

The black & white contrasts appealed to my artist's eye.

As I painted, I tried to listen to the tiny voice of my intuition.  Of course, I had antsy moments in the creative process, wondering if it would all work out.  

We have a saying at my house, "Excite = Life."  If you're getting excited/nervous from time-to-time, then you are living your life fully and not shying from challenges. 

I played around with different designs underneath the crow, but didn't like the first attempt.  I removed the black squiggles with a paper towel wetted with rubbing alcohol, and tried again.

For touch-ups, I put a dab of acrylic paint and a blob of matte medium on an old membership card.  I mixed the two to make a smoother paint.  

Matte medium also slows the drying time of acrylic paint.  I used it after the painting was finished and dried as a clear top coat to protect the painting.

Old credit cards are useful for spreading paint onto a canvas using the broad side.  You can use the corners to scratch back into the paint while it's wet to make texture.

I finished, of course, by signing my name with a Posca paint pen.  

Always sign your work!  

Then place it where you can admire it

I hope you find ways to talk back to your inner critic.  It's incredibly empowering, and you end up with rich artwork!

Copyright Betsy Bangley 2024.  All rights reserved.

Campari Tomatoes in Watercolor

It's funny how inspiration & serendipity work together. You have dinner at a friend's home, and while enjoying the lively conversation and delicious food, her paintings catch your eye.  The way she captured the late summer in a watercolor of three small, homegrown apples makes you feel the September sunshine from the light reflecting off the apples.

The next day, a handful of salad tomatoes in the kitchen call out to be painted.  You pull out your paints and brushes, and while away a Sunday afternoon exploring, imagining summer, even though it's rainy and drab outside.

If you get swept away by a handful of ripe tomatoes, a good place to start is taking a reference photo of your still life.  In the hours ahead, while you paint, the lighting will change, & the tomatoes will eventually wilt. Having that reference photo captures the scene that sparked your painting.

A reference photo helps you decide on your composition.  You see your scene laid out inside a frame. You can see the negative space shape, the areas of high contrast in light and shadow, and the proportions of one object compared to another.

I began this painting with a pencil drawing of the scene, then lightened my pencil lines by rolling a kneaded eraser over the drawing to pick up some of the graphite.  Watercolor paints are transparent, and bold graphite lines will show through the finished painting.

I painted the tomatoes first. They were most important -- and most interesting -- to me.  I've learned to find the part of the scene that is most interesting and give that the most attention. It becomes the focal point of the painting.

After the tomatoes were complete, I painted the brown paper foreground, noticing the highlights and midtones, and the dark shadows under the tomatoes.  

I added the wooden box behind the fruits, and worked a little on the wood grain and old nails.  I had to be careful not to get too detailed. I love wood grain, but I don't want it to compete for attention with the tomatoes!

I decided that my shadows were too dense under the trio of tomatoes on the right, so I lightened them up, and unfortunately overdid it. That happens.

I fixed the shadows.  Here's the finished painting, 

with a few other minor tweaks to the tomato on the right.

My biggest challenge in this painting was to control the edges of areas I had painted.  Each time I laid down paint, I had to decide whether I wanted a hard edge or a soft edge.  Soft edges had to be feathered out quickly and gently with a damp, clean brush. Otherwise, defined lines, like the edge between the bottom of the tomato and its shadow, would show everywhere I touched with a wet brush.

I got so absorbed in this painting, I forgot to eat lunch!  That's the power of art to sweep you away.

I post this with gratitude to my friend Beth for a lovely dinner and the inspiration of her vibrant paintings.

Wishing you many happy art explorations that sweep you away!

Copyright Betsy Bangley 2023. All rights reserved.

Whale and Dolphin Watching from the Queen Mary 2

As we neared Newfoundland, the visibility cleared and the seas calmed so that the water was free of whitecaps. We had seen dolphins over the past few days, but had heard that whales had also been spotted.

We climbed to the 11th deck, and watched from the outdoor observation area just below the bridge. I scanned the calm sea for the white spray of whales blowing and dolphins leaping out of the water.

We had the thrill of seeing both Humpback Whales and Dolphins soaring out of the water near the ship.

I felt a sense of kinship to the animals, and gratitude for them sharing a glimpse of themselves "flying" free in their ocean home.

My eyes were riveted to these rare scenes as they happened, so I didn't sketch at all until afterwards.  The dolphins were easier to sketch from memory, but the whales had bumps and fins that I was unfamiliar with, so I referred to the photos above.

I hope you will try your hand at creating from these photos!

Embarking on a Transatlantic Crossing!

On Friday, August 11th, we awoke to see that our ship, the Queen Mary 2, had come into port overnight.  What a thrilling sight!

We checked out of our hotel and walked our luggage down the streets of Southampton to the Mayflower Cruise Terminal, named for the historic Mayflower, which departed on August 16, 1620 from Southampton on her journey to the New World.  

After waiting in lines with other passengers, and going through the embarkation process, we settled in on board.

Our room. The little desk at right was where I painted scenes in my travel journal.

By evening, the ship was ready to sail from the port, and David and I knew where we wanted to spend this stage of our journey -- the deck 11 observation area directly below the bridge.

I spent the evening with a pencil in my hand, sketching the landscape and birds as quickly as I could.  

Leaving the port of Southampton

The Hamble Sea Scouts were out sailing in the Solent, the water between the mainland and the Isle of Wight, as we passed.

The harbor pilot had to navigate around a variety of sailboats, jetskis, and other leisure watercraft, as well as "The Brambles," a shallow bit of water opposite the Isle of Wight.  Our pilot expertly zig-zagged to get through this narrow bit of sea lane open to big ships.

We also saw this drone, and later found the footage of our ship's departure on YouTube: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jZvJPp16sWw

A castle on shore near Southampton.

One of the two Solent Forts, originally built to protect the port area from attack, and now rented out for events with luxury accommodations.

As the sun set, we entered the English Channel.  Looking  back towards the Isle of Wight and sunset.

We were glad to have spent our evening watching the adventure begin!

The dramatic scenery made for some amazing photographs.  Feel free to use any of these images for your creative practice.

Happy painting & sketching!

Travel to Southampton and the Isle of Wight

Leaving London, we hopped a train to the port city of Southampton.  

I had intended to paint the landscape from the train, but we traveled at such high speed, and the train was packed with riders. So, I just enjoyed the experience.

Arriving at our hotel, we stopped in the restaurant for lunch, and I sketched the scene outside the window while we waited.

Later, we walked around Southampton, and I snapped photos of the quaint old town scenery.

The next day, we took a ferry to the Isle of Wight and the town of Cowes, 

where I bought this giant scone.

We walked down to a pebble beach to eat our scone,

 and I took the opportunity to paint.

 I hope you'll make use of these photos of the scenery of southern England in your own creative way!

The Natural History Museum of London, part 3

Down the hall from Hintze Hall, the Images of Nature Gallery (NHM information link) displays natural images important to their time. The artworks on display are both artistically inspiring, and scientifically accurate. 

This oil painting of insects by Jan van Kessel the Elder is so rich with color and details, it drew me in to study its intricate beauty.

The drawing below by Bryan Kneale stopped me in my tracks. 

Kneale rendered the Giant Tortoise's skeleton so well that I can feel the weight of the shell.  At the same time, he conjured the noble life force that once animated these bones.

Further down the hall is the very modern Darwin Centre (NHM link here), where  I found a quiet exhibit exploring the importance of backyard wildlife.

Inspired by Jan van Kessel the Elder and Bryan Kneale, I made a page of sketches, including a live pigeon & magpie outside the museum where I waited to meet up with my husband at the end of the day.

If you'd like to be an armchair travel journaler, here are some photos from the Natural History Museum of London for you to create with:

A Gogotte, a naturally-occurring sand formation cemented in place with silica 28-33 million years ago in France.  Wouldn't this make a fascinating value study?

For more information about this specimen, you can visit the Joy of Museums Virtual Tour.

A Garden Tiger Moth (Arctia caja).

I've always found skeletons difficult to draw as I get lost in all the little bones.  

What if you took a bigger picture approach of this Giant Ground Sloth, beginning with a gesture of the larger shape, and adding shadows and light?  

For more information on this extinct mammal, and a better photo of it, here's a link to an article on the Natural History Museum of London's website. https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/what-was-megatherium.html

Happy sketching!