Barbara Benedetti Newton Artist's Journal

Please join me at my current art journal

2012-01-05T20:08:00.000-08:00

Just for fun, I googled myself and found many links to this OLD art journal. Please join me at my current art journal http://www.bbnewtonartjournal.blogspot.com

old journal test

2011-04-29T21:15:00.000-07:00

A year ago the email subscription feed to this blog quit working. Now, almost exactly one year later, the same thing has happened to my current art journal. Just thought I'd post to this old one to see if it somehow cured itself.

My Art Journal has moved

2010-06-30T08:32:00.000-07:00

Please join me at my new art journal location www.bbnewtonartjournal.blogspot.com

I've moved - please visit

2010-05-25T21:19:00.000-07:00

My Art Journal has moved to a new address. Please find my NEW Art Journal at http://www.bbnewtonartjournal.blogspot.com and subscribe or follow. Thanks!

Please come with me

2010-05-11T16:44:00.000-07:00

May 11, 2010
This blog has been having feed trouble... some subscribers still get postings by email, others haven't received one since April 14th. I've spent a lot of time trying to resolve the problem but have decided I'd rather be painting! For that reason, I'm starting a new art journal with a subscription that works.

I hope you've enjoyed my art journal and will continue with me at this new address http://www.bbnewtonartjournal.blogspot.com/
There is a subscription form there.

toothy

2010-05-06T15:51:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I was talking about working on the soft side of Canson Mi-Teintes paper. Today, I found this example of an early pastel where the more toothy side of the paper was used. The pattern of the paper surface adds another element to this little still life (which I cropped from a larger painting for this post). Click on the image to make it larger so you can really see the texture.

canson experiment

2010-05-05T12:33:00.000-07:00

This is the result of the Canson Mi-Teintes rework experiment. I brushed the old painting with mineral spirits, wiped it off and applied pastel. Wiped the whole thing off again and applied large areas of three colors to begin again. By now, the tooth of the paper was filled and the whole thing turned into a finger painting (I wear gloves). The dots are from me dipping my fingertips in the pastel dust tray and striking the paper randomly. Also, I painted this whole thing upside down. I didn't decide it belonged this way until I was finished.

Pastel Rework Queen

2010-05-04T09:19:00.000-07:00

When I began working in pastel I used Canson Mi-Teintes paper, usually working on the soft-side (the side with less tooth). I have a couple older paintings that I'm eyeing for rework. I think I must be the Pastel Rework Queen, having reworked many paintings on sanded surfaces but I've never tried reworking this surface. The image here is a small area of the painting...now, I'm thinking maybe I should just crop it instead of reworking.

carmel river

2010-04-30T16:20:00.000-07:00

I spent last week in Carmel, California in unseasonably cool weather. This painting is the first of a series of sandy/marshy shots of the Carmel River. It is a cool April morning in this scene but I also have reference photos of the same area that I took near sunset when everything was washed in pink.

tuesday's child

2010-04-14T17:18:00.000-07:00

I've been looking at this painting for a couple days and after a small adjustment in the lower right to remove a distracting bit of yellow, I'm declaring it done. It is Tuesday's Child.

slices - old and new

2010-04-13T09:21:00.000-07:00

It is a painting treasure hunt in my studio - I'm always looking for old pieces to rework. Yesterday, I came across an 18 x 24 inch (large-for-me) framed painting from 2006. Called "Grassland Journey," it was one of my early soft works. In review, the composition was not great and it was beyond relaxing into sleepy/snorey. I turned it upside down and am reworking it. I have included the "focal point slice" from each painting here - the old on the left and the rework, right. When I finish the reworked painting I'll post the whole painting here for you to see.

eight years later

2010-04-09T15:48:00.000-07:00

My first pastel painting was a still life of two plums. My second try at pastel in Spring 2002 was a view of our driveway. We still have the same driveway but my work has changed considerably. Almost exactly 8 years later, here is the scene again as I see it today in "The Good Road Home II."

one more month

2010-04-01T08:15:00.000-07:00

April is the final month for "Light in the Air," the current exhibit at Women Painters of Washington Gallery, 701 Fifth Avenue, Suite 310, Columbia Center Building, Seattle, WA. The next show, "Wonder!" will begin in May. To view the entire "Light in the Air" show online, CLICK HERE.

sweet creek

2010-03-30T22:20:00.000-07:00

Today's pastel is "Afternoon at Sweet Creek." A bright scene during these days of wind and rain in the Seattle area.

old painting, new look

2010-03-30T09:34:00.000-07:00

Two months ago I washed off and repainted a piece of Wallis for the third time. It became a dark and moody winter pond scene.

Since January, every time I came across it on my new paintings blog it bothered me. Too dark, too moody, something discordant about the colors. Today I unframed it, added two transition colors - a muted pale green color (mostly on the left side) and a dusty blue (mostly across the horizon).

Also, and most importantly I think, I cropped the work into a little different scene. The red line shows the old parameters of the image, the lighter stroke shows the new crop. Once again, I'm not sure if this piece will survive. Time will tell. To see the before image, CLICK HERE. To see the piece as it is today, CLICK HERE

packing up

2010-03-28T14:49:00.000-07:00

Today I'm packing up 30 older pieces for a solo show at Olympic College Art Gallery, Bremerton, Washington. Many of the pieces are from my artist's collection, have been stored away and I haven't seen them for years. Most are colored pencil, from around the time I co-authored "Colored Pencil Solution Book." Each one brings back memories. Some are colored pencil with watercolor as I was trying to let go of colored pencil as my comfort medium. There is one called "Unchain my Heart" (from colored pencil). There are also a couple all watercolor pieces that I truly love. If you are in the area and enjoy colored pencil, please visit this show at the Olympic College Art Gallery during school hours March 29 through April 27, 2010

time to move on

2010-03-23T16:29:00.000-07:00

I needed a new pastel for the upcoming Wonder! show at Women Painters of Washington Gallery, Seattle. Completed "A Sense of Place II" today by painting over the original "Sense of Place" from a year ago. Time to move on, time to make room for new dreams.

plums in bloom

2010-03-22T10:57:00.000-07:00

Our plum trees are blooming in succession. First, the tree of small round yellow plums was a mass of white, now the large oblong yellow plum is flowering. The Italian prune trees (one of them from my childhood home) are still sleeping. Lots to paint around here as plants and trees awaken.

love the one you're with

2010-03-20T09:20:00.000-07:00

This is how it feels to be looking for the perfect retirement property. We have narrowed it down to a location, been hopeful, been discouraged, come up against obstacles, hopeful again. There are bright spots, doubts, confusion, temporary resolution. As in my painting of several days ago, "You are Here," I will appreciate the great parts of where we live now. Good advice: "Love the One You're With."

nothing but blue skies

2010-03-16T18:55:00.000-07:00

Another playful mixed media piece for spring. Better bigger, click to enlarge.

playing by the rules

2010-03-09T09:53:00.000-08:00

An old painting from 2005 revisited. The underlying grid work gave me security the first time around. Today, five years later, it just made me want to push it (break it up, skew it) but also to leave enough showing to look back and laugh at my then-self.

springing

2010-03-05T11:46:00.000-08:00

Suddenly, it is spring and everything is whacky. Yesterday was spent on a copyright infringement issue - someone copied one of my paintings for their own financial gain. As stress relief, I walk in my flower garden. Not much to see this time of year but I am amazed by the tenacity of green things popping up through heavy wet earth. Springing! Today's mixed media painting is called "Spring Madness;" the view outside my studio window.

small paintings and Dick's

2010-02-21T10:02:00.000-08:00

Delivered three small paintings yesterday for a show in Edmonds, WA. A beautiful, sunny day and a quick lunch at my old favorite, Dick's Drive In. Wow! I just found a website for Dick's complete with old music. CLICK HERE.

Robert Frosty?

2010-02-12T12:37:00.000-08:00

I wanted this to be another painting from the words of “The Road Not Taken” but it just kept looking like frost. Then, I received a comment on my last post from TJ. She referred to another poem, “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” which fits this better but maybe I was just thinking of Robert Frost(y).

in a yellow wood

2010-02-05T11:23:00.000-08:00

Robert Frost's poem, "The Road Not Taken" has had special meaning for me for many years. Recently, my 10 year old grandson memorized it for school. I was impressed and motivated to remember it for myself. I wondered if an old dog (me) could learn a new trick. I did it! Today, as I was attempting to find my way through this abstracted landscape, the words of the poem came back to me as inspiration.

third time's the charm?

2010-01-25T18:58:00.000-08:00

Marshy pond on a dark rainy morning. Also, the third painting on this piece of Wallis paper. The previous two paintings hung around the studio unframed until they bugged me so much I had to hose them off. We'll see if this one survives...
Two months later...about 95% of it survived. A 5% rework and recrop. See my post of 3/30/10.

horse ranch pond

2010-01-22T06:20:00.000-08:00

In our search for retirement property, my husband and I visited a 10 acre horse ranch with pond. It isn't the right place for us but I got some good reference photos that rainy morning.

red surprise

2010-01-21T15:30:00.000-08:00

Today when I unframed a 2008 pastel painting to shoot a digital image of it, I discovered I had painted on red Canson paper. Now I think the painting is more interesting unframed.

too sweet

2010-01-20T10:59:00.000-08:00

This painting has been on my easel for several days while I have been busy with other things. I just want it off. So, though it feels too sweet, I'm calling it done.

snowscape

2010-01-12T11:39:00.000-08:00

A fresh coat of paint over another old painting from the March 2009 series. Below is the original painting of marshland, water, and mountains in the distance. At right is how it looked turned upside down before I started painting over it.

big brush, white paint

2010-01-10T22:00:00.001-08:00

Find an old painting, turn it upside down, load your brush with thin white oil paint and paint over the entire surface of the old painting. If the ghosty image that remains suggests anything to you, emphasize it with additional color (or more white). In this case, a water scene became a snow scene.

blobs of oil paint

2010-01-08T12:22:00.000-08:00

Another day of training myself to use more paint. A palette knife helps in applying big blobs - well, they're big to me. Others would laugh. Also finally remembered to clean my metal thinner containers and add fresh Gamsol odorless mineral spirits. Today's painting was more fun than frustration.

paint on, paint off

2010-01-07T17:59:00.000-08:00

A year ago I was just beginning to experiment in oil landscapes. When I look at those paintings now, I see a need for more texture. Today I painted over the first of those old images.

For 3 hours I applied paint to the canvas panel, scraped it off, scooped up all the paint blobs on my palette, applied those, scraped them off, squeezed out new paint, mixed color, applied paint...over and over. Frustrating and fun. It took all afternoon to paint "Reason to Believe," a 9 x 12 inch textured impression of a northwest meadow.

shipped today

2010-01-05T20:36:00.000-08:00

Today I shipped my painting to the International Association of Pastel Societies (IAPS) 15th Juried Exhibition. This is the first time I've entered this show and to be accepted is an honor. If you're near Brea, California, visit the gallery.

studio tour

2010-01-04T16:55:00.000-08:00

I'm always interested to see where other artists work, aren't you? The idea to post photos of my studio motivated me to tidy up for the year of painting ahead. If you post photos of where you make art, please let me know. Happy painting!

My wet-media painting station with Soltek easel.

Studio entry.

Desk and computer area as well as my collection of art by other artists, family treasures and photos.

Flat files for paper storage with framed painting storage below

Paintings awaiting framing are hung from pants/skirt hangers

Pastel station with my Mabef easel.

My cozy gas fire. Paper mache masks were made by my son when he was in grade school.

Round oak table top and big work table with mat cutter.

cleaning and shredding

2010-01-03T08:36:00.000-08:00

It's that time of year again...studio cleaning and old document shredding. I started yesterday in the southeast corner cupboard/bookshelf behind my paint station and will continue along all walls, then to the big worktable in the middle. When I'm done, I'll post a little Studio Tour.

year end favorites

2009-12-30T13:58:00.000-08:00

The Christmas tree is down, excess cookies are in the freezer and I'm looking forward to a new year in my studio. Spent the morning working on 2009 taxes but when Fed Ex brought a studio delivery, it was a good time to stop, have a cup of mocha, and share a few favorite things with you.

• Richard Schmid's new book, "The Landscapes." By page 43 of 268, I was on visual overload. This is a big book to savor.

• Cezanne #72 Champagne Silver Frame, from Art Ready Frames. Beautiful frames at good prices. Owner, Linda, is a pleasure to do business with - and she owns one of my paintings!

• Clairefontaine Pastelmat paper. As I spend more time with my first painting on Pastelmat, my appreciation for the surface grows. Areas are simplified - was it because of the paper? You can order Pastelmat from Dakota Art Pastels.

Happy New Year!

frozen

2009-12-13T12:21:00.000-08:00

Our pond has appeared in my paintings before but never as a solid - still frozen by our record cold streak. This is my first painting on new Clairefontaine Pastelmat paper. A big reduction in pastel dust. The paper is available from Dakota Art Pastels.

wild iris

2009-12-10T19:39:00.000-08:00

Record breaking cold temperatures in the Seattle area. A good time to paint wild iris in bloom.

relationships

2009-12-09T20:46:00.000-08:00

Back to the exciting challenge of non representational art. Playing with relationships of color, value, shape, texture, movement. Right brain work. Fun!

got rust?

2009-12-07T09:24:00.000-08:00

In between paintings, here's something to do: write a how-to article, as I did about rust, on the How To Do Just About Everything site. Click on the little images to make them bigger. Take a look.

snowfall

2009-12-05T16:49:00.000-08:00

Our Washington weather is crispy but no sign of snow at this elevation. The reference photo for "Snowfall" is from a walk to the Post Office in January 2007.

end of the road

2009-12-04T14:33:00.000-08:00

This is the end of the Road Show series for now. After looking at hundreds of road trip reference photos, I think it’s a case of “I guess you had to be there.” Very few photos are as interesting as I remember the actual places to be. A fun week of painting though.

sagey blue

2009-12-03T12:42:00.000-08:00

Love the sagey blue roadside brush of early April in Eastern Washington. The lower right corner shows the watercolor foundation making crazy patterns...I like that a lot. Click "Road Show: Eastern Washington" image to enlarge.

stop and zoom

2009-12-02T10:44:00.000-08:00

Second in the Road Show series is Tanglewood Creek. We pulled over and zoomed in to shoot the reference photo for this intimate roadside scene.

road show #1

2009-11-30T21:02:00.000-08:00

For years I’ve been taking reference photos out the window of a moving vehicle. Many are completely useless: lots of telephone poles, other vehicles and roadside guard rails. But a few can be used as inspiration. This is the first of my Road Show series. “November,” pastel on paper 7 x 11 inches.

website update

2009-11-21T17:55:00.000-08:00

My website has just undergone its yearly update thanks to

Kay Dewar of Dewar Design. Please take a look!
GO to Barbara's Website

november editorial

2009-11-13T21:15:00.000-08:00

This month, I was honored to be asked to contribute an editorial for the Northwest Pastel Society. I began to write about WHY WE PAINT but ended up talking about bottles. Read the editorial and then look around the site. Penny Chadwell has created a beautiful and informative web presence for the organization.

out of control

2009-11-12T17:42:00.000-08:00

I’m beginning to believe that if I paint from the heart, I don’t have much control over the end result. This was meant to be an abstract based on the composition of “Sky View Path” but it just kept leaning toward literal. I love how it looks unframed because the brick color of the paper and the lively strokes show. To see how “Passage” looks framed, CLICK HERE.

a change of seasons

2009-11-06T16:37:00.000-08:00

It's Friday; I don't know where the week went. Today's painting is inspired by our weather - a storm last night and a rainy day today. As with this painting (reading left to right), the fall color in the trees has moved to the ground. "A Change of Seasons."

red easel

2009-11-05T14:07:00.000-08:00

A nice surprise this morning: my work has been included in the November 2009 newsletter on Red Easel.
Mary Susan Vaughn, a professional visual artist, created Red Easel as a place for artists to connect, show their work, talk about art and find art-related information.

fourth in the series

2009-11-01T12:24:00.000-08:00

Fourth in this series is "Sky View Path," same size as the previous painting, image 9.5 x 16 inches framed to 18 x 24 inches. I found two double, off-white mats in the studio, the motivation for this horizontal format.

a different format

2009-10-30T17:00:00.000-07:00

Third in the Sky View series is "Sky View Wildflowers." Working in a series is interesting. The artist has a chance to fully explore the elements of the scene by painting them many times. The constants from painting to painting then become somewhat intuitive.

best of america pastel artists, vol. II

2009-10-28T21:52:00.000-07:00

I almost forgot this good news. Two of my paintings are included in the new book, Best of America Pastel Artists, Vol. II, due out this month. Just ordered my copy. Click on the image to enlarge.

fall color

2009-10-23T21:12:00.000-07:00

The second painting I was working on earlier in the week escaped the hose...at least for now. This is "Fall Color," one of those beautiful rock walls along the highway to Eastern Washington. Pastel on paper, 19 x 14.5 inches.

sky view afternoon

2009-10-21T13:19:00.000-07:00

The second pastel in the sky view series is Sky View Afternoon, 14 x 14 inches. I started this painting yesterday and by bedtime wasn't sure of its future. Began again this morning, outside it was dark and pouring down rain. Now it is a sunny fall afternoon and I'm calling this painting done

the OK parts

2009-10-20T18:30:00.000-07:00

Worked on two paintings all day today. Forgot to make a dental appointment, call about a flu shot, mail a check out and schedule car service. These strips show the OK parts of each painting (I won't show you the not OK parts). These parts will stay unless I have a "hose-'em-off" attack tomorrow.

Good News

2009-10-19T18:11:00.000-07:00

Good News! Judge Lyle Silver selected my painting for the Bellevue Art & Frame Award. The public can attend the Artists’ Reception (1-4 PM) and Awards Ceremony (2:30 PM) Saturday October 24. Musical entertainment will be provided by the Redmond High School Chamber Orchestra. Admission is free and refreshments will be provided.Click on the card image to enlarge for address.

sky view meadow

2009-10-12T17:23:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday I was in the hills above Cle Elum, Washington. It was 36 degrees with a few flakes of snow. The far hills were a brilliant blue; the faded grasses and wildflowers were dry and windswept. All that neutral foliage just begging to be painted with a push of color - "Sky View Meadow" is the result of that trip.

waiting game

2009-10-08T20:12:00.000-07:00

Living in the present is sometimes difficult. I know the events of life have to play out in their own time. What I choose to do while waiting is of utmost importance. I don't want to look back at a period of time and realize that I was so preoccupied with what I hoped would happen (or not happen) that I missed the blessings of the present.

At 24.5 x 18.5 inches, this is my largest abstracted work in pastel to date. It was fun to have more space to explore relationships but the larger format also presented additional challenges. At one point I thought I might cut the painting into several smaller paintings. I had too many precious areas. I finally relinquished some to bring "Waiting Game" together.

high key sunday

2009-10-01T21:56:00.000-07:00

Another old painting wiped off and repainted. The small images show how the painting, "Sunday," looked after I wiped the pastel off with a sponge brush. On the left, you can see the ghost of a river scene. The image on the right is how it looked upside down before I began painting on it again. The paper is Arches 140 lb hot press watercolor with a pumice ground. Midway, I applied spray-fix to get more tooth but all it did was make an interesting speckled texture in the pastel. I left this painting in a relatively high-key value range; no more tooth to punch the darks. I'm calling it "Sunday Again."

featured artist

2009-09-30T21:18:00.000-07:00

I am honored to be the featured artist on the Northwest Pastel Society website.

One day it occurred to me that if I lived long enough and if I continued painting, I was destined to become an abstract painter. The thought startled me. Now it amuses me. I must be the least likely candidate to make such a change. At the moment, I view it as my creative evolution but there were times when I wondered what was happening to me...

If you have a few minutes, CLICK HERE to continue reading.

new interpretation

2009-09-20T14:38:00.000-07:00

Another old painting reinvented. A 2005 painting called River Walk - wiped off, turned upside down and painted again as River Walk II in a more abstracted style. Next week I'm going on a photo shoot, looking for scenes to paint this fall and winter in the Studio. Maybe the new reference photos will lead me back to painting in a more realistic manner...or maybe not.

please, not me...

2009-09-04T14:38:00.000-07:00

Paintings aren't safe here. I can almost hear them whispering,"Please, not me...leave me alone."

I'm in rework mode. Any painting that didn't make it through to framing (and some that did) are getting reworked. For pastels, that will mean a total wash-off with the garden hose. But today I'm playing with oil pastel on the 9x12 canvas panels I was painting early this year to acquaint myself with oil paint. "Celebrate" of 1/4/09 has become "Celebrate II" 9/4/09. Here's the little set of oil pastels I'm using. I want more colors.

cold start

2009-09-03T20:15:00.000-07:00

My weed eater has a switch called "Cold Start" - I flip it when I haven't used the weed eater for some time. Tonight as I was cleaning my studio, preparing for fall painting after summer break, I came across a little set of oil pastels. What better way to test my own cold start button than with a medium I've never used? Simply "Marsh." Oil pastel on canvas panel, 9 x 12 inches.

blue

2009-08-21T09:28:00.000-07:00

Stripped the wallpaper off and painted the downstairs bathroom - a beautiful muted blue-lavender color by Behr called Great Falls (UL-240-8). Then, on to this 20 x 20 inch acrylic in blue-green. Lots of blue paint in my life this August.

anita's garden with sun

2009-08-08T16:17:00.001-07:00

And finally, the afternoon painting with sun added.

two tinies

2009-08-05T21:04:00.001-07:00

Two tinies ( 5 x 7 inches each ) painted in pastel today at the Fourth Annual Artists' Retreat on Vashon Island. What fun! Forty six artists with easels and sketchbooks were tucked away in various parts of Anita Halstead's award-winning gardens or set up on the nearby beach. A cool, overcast morning didn't deter anyone but the sunny afternoon was welcome.

earthly ties

2009-08-03T21:35:00.000-07:00

Busy with some of my earthly ties today, I almost forgot to post this. The oven timer is going off for an apple crisp made from zucchini not apples. Yum. Acrylic on wood panel, 20 x 20 inches.

aha! (maybe)

2009-08-02T10:21:00.000-07:00

After "Heat Wave," I began a painting to be called "Cooling Trend" but it evolved into "ties that bind...family ties...earthly ties..." I'm almost done but after looking at it for awhile I finally had an aha! moment - I think it needs a value change in one area. To confirm my suspicion, I looked at it in grayscale. I'll make few changes and post again when I'm done. For this post, I included a color strip so you can see the color palette.

irritation

2009-07-31T08:46:00.001-07:00

We have had record breaking, triple-digit high temperatures here in Washington State. If we ever build our retirement home, it will have air conditioning to deal with this rarity. I've been painting late at night when the Studio temperature is bearable. And so, the painting of "Heat Wave." This morning it is thirty five degrees cooler and I can look at this painting without my brain melting or sweat dripping into my eyes. Many things irritate me about this painting just as the relentless heat did. There are awkward junctions, too-bright colors and texture conflicts. I wonder if this painting will still irritate me in November? If so, it is successful.

A side-note: I have old journals written by my mother. Almost every entry has mention of the weather. Earlier this year I painted of our record-breaking wet spell with "Slow Slide into Pink." Am I becoming my mother?

art by the boys

2009-07-26T20:15:00.001-07:00

Our grandsons, ages 9 and 7 went home today after a week with us. We had lots of fun and made some art.

"I See You" 18 x 18 inches, acrylic on wood panel by Noah. To see Noah's previous work, CLICK HERE

"Untitled" 18 x 18 inches, acrylic on wood panel by Elias. To see Elias' previous work, CLICK HERE

breaking point in gray

2009-07-17T14:11:00.000-07:00

In my journal entry of about a month ago, I spoke of acknowledging passing thoughts while painting and of holding the thought, and of painting the thought.

The painting I'm posting today has been in the works for several days. Some parts were working, but some, not so much. When I was about to sand it off and start over, my friend, abstract artist Kristi Galindo Dyson, visited the Studio. She turned the painting upside down and on it's side and said "...that's not so bad." Well, since my husband can't find his belt sander anyway, I didn't sand it off. I painted on it sideways for most of today. A little progress but no real message. Then, I received a frustrating email, turned it "right side up" again and began to paint in earnest to express "Breaking Point."

A useful tool today was to take a photo of the painting-in-progress, turn it into a grayscale and study value and balance. When the painting was complete, I took another grayscale photo. Here they are, side by side, with the finished painting on the right. To see "Breaking Point" in color, CLICK HERE
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best of show

2009-07-16T22:33:00.000-07:00

WOW! I can hardly believe this award. The opening reception was held tonight. Lots of beautiful art. You can see the show online at the American Art Company website. The exhibition was juried and judged by well-known Florida artist, Greg Biolchini.

praise for my gesso brush

2009-07-14T16:15:00.001-07:00

I'm priming cradled wood panels for another series of acrylic abstractions and have to sing the praises of my new 3" Utrecht Gesso Brush. Before this brush, I spent a lot of time picking stray bristles out of gesso because I was using the least expensive brush I could find. Today's priming job was a pleasure.

to and fro

2009-07-12T19:35:00.001-07:00

This painting took longer to resolve than usual. Over several days, I worked planes back and forth. Quit. Pondered. Worked some more. I had several white-washing attacks and the words "hither, thither and yon" kept surfacing. I'm done with (tired of) the to-and-fro process of this work and am satisfied with the push and pull of color and textures. "Hither and Yon"

the edge of the earth

2009-07-07T20:39:00.001-07:00

Yesterday I painted all day. It is exhausting to stand and keep at it for so many hours. Early this morning, I adjusted a couple areas on this painting and am declaring it done (for now).

My husband came into the studio, looked at the painting and said, "Didn't I tell you to stay away from the edge of the earth?" The composition does suggest an abrupt change of terrain. A view of under earth/undersea, roots and bubbles. But, the trees are fall colors. Hence, the title, "Free Fall" for this experiment in acrylic.

new day dawning

2009-07-03T08:38:00.001-07:00

I love the soft edges, smooth passages of color, and the texture of one color dragged over another when working with pastel. But, I no longer love cutting mats and framing under glass. So, the goal is to paint in a medium that can be framed without glazing (glass or plexi) but manipulated to look like my pastel work.

I'm trying to do this with acrylic and what a mess! I started with a cradled wood painting panel. Two coats of white gesso then an ochre gesso underpainting. By the end of the day I had only three small areas I was satisfied with. I painted ochre acrylic over all the bad areas (which was most of the painting) then wondered why I did that and scraped it all off with a razor blade - right now to the white gesso in some spots - resulting in some nice texture.

In all, I washed out my brushes, scraped my palette and began again four times. I found myself applying color with a brush and immediately dragging it with my gloved fingers. Finger-painting with acrylic? I finally got this painting to a point that pleases me. I hope this is a new day dawning and that I become more skilled in making acrylic do what I want it to do. 18 x 18 inches

lost and found

2009-06-29T12:21:00.001-07:00

Another old painting revisited. When I unframed it, I found I had painted on La Carte paper, not my usual Wallis so I couldn't just hose it off. I brushed away as much pastel as I could and began again to create another abstracted landscape. Got lost a couple times but found my way back to my message for "Summer Song in Blue."

Last week I judged awards for the Olympia Art League's 2009 Juried Show. If you get a chance, see the show today through July 20, 2009 at Olympics West, 929 Trosper Road SW, Tumwater, Washington. A varied show with some nice surprises.

Happy Summer!

hold that thought

2009-06-15T20:17:00.001-07:00

Recently, Cathy Woo asked me to tell her about this new direction of my art. Writing an email response was an interesting exercise that gave me some insight into these mysterious abstracted landscapes.

I start each painting thinking about my feeling of the day. The work becomes about relating color to my feeling or state of mind. Ever tried to meditate? They say one should acknowledge the random thoughts that come floating by and then let them go. In these abstracted landscapes, I try to capture those thoughts to form an overlay of the primary emotion. That results in a visual expression of an in-and-out, back-and-forth exchange of emotions represented by colors, shapes, lines and textures in a sort of window-pane effect. When I think I've said what I wanted to say and I feel I've made the relationships interesting, I stop painting.

Cathy, so good with words as well as with paint, called my explanation "...structure to 'hang' the process on."

Today, I got interrupted when I was close to finishing this painting. All I could think of was "hold that thought!" I took a quick photograph of the piece to review on my computer display - a sort of distancing that works for me when I think I’m almost done.

Later, I went back to work without the review. I quickly lost sight of where I was going and then felt I had totally lost the message. After hours of additional work on it (with a Bob Dylan song in my head), I photographed it again. When I compared the two photos I was surprised to see the same message but now with more punch and spunk. This painting is called "From the West unto the East."

amused

2009-06-08T17:19:00.000-07:00

I've heard artists speak of following their muse. (definition: muse - the source of inspiration for a creative artist.) Today, I know the feeling. I have to paint what I have to paint. And for now, that means these abstracted landscapes. Having this feeling aMUSES me. Today's painting is titled "Foreseeable Future."

EAFA 2009 Members' Exhibit

2009-05-30T18:42:00.000-07:00

The Eastside Association of Fine Arts 2009 Member Show will open tomorrow. To see "A Far Country" and information about the show, CLICK HERE

slow slide into pink

2009-05-22T10:06:00.000-07:00

I've been looking at this painting for 3 days and am declaring it done. The subject and title might be about having had the fourth wettest May on record in the Pacific Northwest. But for the past few days we have been enjoying sunny, warm days with more of the same in the forecast. 13 x 14 inches, pastel on paper

surprising myself

2009-05-20T09:54:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I spent the day at the Women Painters of Washington Gallery in Seattle with artist, Kristi Galindo Dyson. She recently received a Best of Show award and, as we discussed abstract and field painting, I was surprised to find myself relating more fully than in past conversations. It made me realize how much my method of painting and my thinking has changed.

And so, today when I came across my posting dated January 28, 2008 on this blog, it made it smile because I have forgotten that feeling of only a year ago when I wrote, "I’m a big admirer of artists who start with an idea and paint it without reference photos or standing before the actual scene as they paint. However, that process doesn’t work for me."

out of the blue

2009-05-18T09:51:00.000-07:00

After finishing "Dream Catcher" last week, I expected my next painting to be similar - quiet, reflective and understated. So, when I read the Spring/Summer 2009 Pastel Society of the West Coast newsletter article by Margot Schulzke, "It's All a Matter of Focus" and her words of wisdom, "Much is said by not saying too much." it confirmed my recent art endeavors.

However, add a couple days of beautiful Washington weather, a grandson's soccer game, hours of weed eating, garden and yard work and something very different happened to the next painting. While the active busy days of summer begin, another part of my life is on hold. It's an exciting but sometimes confusing time.

hold on tight to your dreams

2009-05-10T15:05:00.000-07:00

This Mother's Day painting is another in my Sense of Place series: "Dream Catcher"

A nice surprise

2009-05-04T20:32:00.000-07:00

While browsing around tonight on some favorite websites, I was surprised to see my work posted on the Women Painters of Washington homepage. Many thanks to WPW Webmaster Kay Dewar.

chain of events

2009-05-04T11:59:00.000-07:00

In hind-sight, the chain of events to a goal or to the outcome of a state of affairs is sometimes surprising. I'm amazed that I'm abstracting my paintings these days. 12 x 12 inches, pastel

epiphany

2009-04-29T10:55:00.000-07:00

With no message in mind for the viewer as I painted this one, the image had a chance to evolve more directly through me - without all my usual filters of what I think will make a painting "successful." Playing with color, shapes and edges nourished me in a way unlike what I have formerly (three days ago) experienced when painting.

Sometimes, finding the Silver Lining in a situation happens before you realize there is a need to look for one.

a leap of faith

2009-04-28T12:23:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I took a leap of faith from my comfort zone to explore my sense of place in a more abstract manner (A Sense of Place-April). I went to bed wondering what had just happened to me but awoke in the middle of the night knowing I wanted to paint Happy Landing today.
12 x 12 inches.

baby-step into abstraction

2009-04-27T16:11:00.000-07:00

For many months, I've been thinking about "a sense of place" and how mine has evolved since childhood - and continues to change. I'm talking about a physical nesting place; the place we feel safe and content. And for me, perhaps more than for some others, a place that is visually pleasing.

Today's pastel painting is my first baby-step to abstract a sense of place. It was fun and my husband actually "got" it!

oil, pastel and colored pencil

2009-04-22T10:10:00.000-07:00

One of my sources of inspiration and support for the past 14 years has been an Artist Critique Group. Most of us started as colored pencil artists and many continue to work primarily in that medium. As always, I was amazed and inspired by their work at our meeting yesterday. It motivated me to finish this little piece that has been on my easel for a week. It began as an oil foundation on white Wallis paper. I added some pastel, a little colored pencil, and left the oil foundation to stand alone in the foreground.

restraint

2009-04-15T14:27:00.001-07:00

I read recently that failure can enhance your brain. When those with growth mind-sets (rather than fixed mind-sets) fail at a task, the brain enters a focused state and grows as it tries to solve the problem. I'm hoping that a couple days of frustration with this painting has enhanced my brain.

I began this painting with a fantastic reference photo that I took through a rain spattered window. The beautiful reference photo was the problem because I found myself trying to duplicate the scene. After hosing the pastel off 3 times, I started again, repeating the word RESTRAINT all the while I was working. I finally have a result I'm pleased with though it is nothing like the reference photo - and that's a good thing. 21 x 18 inches.

on, off, then on again

2009-04-12T13:38:00.001-07:00

I remember hearing of someone who painted 27 times on one piece of Wallis paper by washing the pastel off and starting again. I certainly hope I can become content with this piece of Wallis long before that number.

This painting was originally posted 1/23/09 both as the foundation and finished painting, "Winter Riverwalk." Since then, it has been sitting in my studio, bugging me. About a month ago I washed it off and today I began again. As in my post of 1/26/08, I turned it upside down for a fresh start. For now, I'm OK with this one. We'll see how long it lasts. See the upside down foundation below. This time I'm calling it "Charmed."

featured...yay!

2009-04-08T14:46:00.000-07:00

I am honored to have my painting, "Renaissance" selected for the show postcard of the upcoming Women Painters of Washington exhibit, "Summer Dreaming", beginning May 5, 2009 at the Women Painters of Washington Gallery, 3rd floor, Columbia Center Building, Seattle. The address is 701 5th Avenue, Seattle, WA 98104. Gallery hours are M-F 10AM - 4PM.

peas instead of pastel

2009-04-07T10:22:00.001-07:00

Beautiful, sunny, warm weather in Seattle area the past few days. I planted peas and transplanted daylilies instead of painting. Finally, here is the completed pastel painting on the foundation of my last post. 10.5 x 14 inches on gessoed Wallis paper.

award at wpw show

2009-04-02T21:39:00.000-07:00

A nice Artists' Reception for the 2009 Women Painters of Washington Members' Show tonight despite pouring rain. I was honored to receive the Elsie Weiner Award for "Beach Grass." The judge was Tom Jensen.

too many mediums...

2009-03-31T14:04:00.000-07:00

Today as I began the oil underpainting for a beach path scene in pastel, I was amazed to find an affinity for oil that I didn't know I had. It was so much fun to work in that medium again - I found myself painting longer than usual at the underpainting stage. It made me want to paint in oil again. Too many mediums, too little time.

#5 and the reference photo

2009-03-26T17:52:00.000-07:00

This time it is acrylic over an ochre gesso ground. I'd love to continue playing with this medium but I need to return to pastel for upcoming spring shows. I'm including the one reference photo used for this week's acrylic experiments.