Category: Painting

Leap (year) * Illustration Friday

Post author By Jana Bouc
Post date February 29, 2008
14 Comments on Leap (year) * Illustration Friday

Four watercolors, framed together 24×32″ (Larger)

This week’s Illustration Friday challenge is “Leap” in honor of leap year, this February 29, 2008. But the paintings and sketches in this post were actually made twenty years ago. They were inspired by two dreams recorded in a 1988 dream sketchbook (below) and a class in color theory I was taking at the time, based on Joseph Albers work. The images include references to the seasons; times of day/night; the elements of water, fire, earth, and air; and tarot symbols.

The dreams that night were showing me a choice I needed to make in my life. Then as now I was fascinated by computers/technology and art (a perfect combination for an art blogger, no?). But my dreams pointed out how the time and energy I was spending on the computer tied me in knots and stole from my creativity.

Here is the image from the first dream that night: A computer tech “boiler room” full of electronics, miles of wires, computers, monitors, and icky nerds frantically, obsessively, working non-stop at their computers with no time to even look up. It was a nightmare really…full of tension.

In the next dream I left that scene and I was running free in a field and it felt really good.

And then, from a quote I’d heard somewhere, this image and words.

When I awoke I knew I had to make the choice for life, freedom, and art, and quit spending so much time at my computer.

I guess like anything else in life, it comes down to a matter of finding balance and making choices about what’s really important. If I remember to ask myself whether I’ll feel happier at the end of the day if I’ve spent my time drawing/painting or working on the computer, I usually know which to choose (Art!).

Tags Pen and Ink, People

Berkeley Drawing Outdoors/Landscape Painting Sketchbook Pages Watercolor

Mrs. Dalloway’s Bookstore, Berkeley

Post author By Jana Bouc
Post date February 25, 2008
14 Comments on Mrs. Dalloway’s Bookstore, Berkeley

Ink & Watercolor in Strathmore drawing sketchbook, 6×8″ (Larger)

After my dentist appointment today I took a walk up to College Avenue in the Elmwood district of Berkeley, foraging for lunch. I chose Ferrari’s Deli where I had a delicious grilled “Perugia” sandwich (roasted pork sirloin, black truffle butter and Asiago cheese on toasted ciabatta bread). I sat a sidewalk table to eat, with a view of Mrs. Dalloway’s bookstore across the street. Then I got out my sketchbook and started drawing, sad that I’d left my watercolors in my car, half a mile away.

I took a couple photos (fearing I wouldn’t remember all the colors, like the orange reflection of Ferrari’s awning appearing in Mrs. Dalloway’s windows) and then added the watercolor at home tonight. The paper in this sketchbook is not designed for wet media but works fine if you don’t overwork it. I like it because it’s just the right size, the paper is nice, especially for drawing, and quite inexpensive.

Tags Berkeley, Pen and Ink

Art theory Berkeley Drawing Outdoors/Landscape Sketchbook Pages Watercolor

North Berkeley Library & Freedom from Junk

Post author By Jana Bouc
Post date February 22, 2008
6 Comments on North Berkeley Library & Freedom from Junk

Ink and watercolor in 6×8″ Strathmore Drawing sketchbook (Larger)

This sketch is all about pausing in a busy day to sit and draw, taking advantage of a little sun between rainstorms, and enjoying feeling free. Until I began the sketch, I hadn’t realized how beautiful (and extraordinarily complicated) the landmark building (photo) of the North Berkeley Public Library is.

Freedom from stuff

My feeling of freedom came from filling three shopping bags with books I no longer needed and taking them to my favorite used book store, Black Oak Books. They gave me store credit for two-thirds of the books (which I promptly traded for three books I had on hold).

I could have sold the remaining bag of books on Amazon or at another used bookstore, but decided to just let them go. I dropped them off at the library as a donation and walked out empty handed, feeling quite pleased. Instead of rushing on to the next task, I plopped down on a bench and started sketching.

Now I have space on my bookshelves and room in my car (the three bags had been hogging my backseat for two weeks). And I love that wonderful spacious feeling that comes from removing clutter, whether physical or mental, from my life.

About the sketch: As you can see, my study of perspective hasn’t quite paid off yet. (The doors and windows slant the opposite direction from the roofline of the front wall). I drew with a purple Micron Pigma pen and then added watercolor at home. I tried to remember the colors of the walls but realized I didn’t pay enough attention to what was in light and in shadow. To practice using visual memory, I purposely didn’t take a photo or look at one on line.

So now I can see that my visual memory needs work, along with my perspective drawing. How great to know that there is no end to learning as an artist. I never have to worry about getting bored. Painting and learning are my two favorite things in life!

Tags Berkeley, Pen and Ink

Drawing Life in general Painting Plein Air Sketchbook Pages Watercolor

Ladies, Stand Up for Your Right to Pee Standing Up!

Post author By Jana Bouc
Post date February 21, 2008
57 Comments on Ladies, Stand Up for Your Right to Pee Standing Up!

Ink & watercolor, 7×10″ (Larger)

Plein air painting means spending the day out in nature … but what to do when nature calls and there’s no restroom? The guys can just face away, pee on a tree, and preserve their modesty. But we women have to find somewhere to squat with knickers around our ankles, fannies exposed.

After my first painful experience in this situation (too much coffee, no place to hide) I wondered what more experienced plein air painting women did. My research led me to the devices pictured above that allow women to pee standing up, without having to drop their drawers. All you have to do is unbutton and unzip your jeans enough to slip one of these nifty devices into position and you’re ready to “go” with no body parts exposed.

I practiced first at home, trying out all three of items illustrated above. My favorite is the purple one, called the Whiz. It’s reusable, works perfectly and lets women wee anywhere that men can (just remember not to pee into the wind). WhizBiz’s website recommends it for active women for hiking, snow activities, climbing. It is flexible and can be squished small for carrying. WhizBiz is in Australia but ships internationally. I received my order in about a week.

I also liked the Urinelle, which I ordered from Magellan’s travel supplies. They recommend it for foreign travel when bathrooms are unavailable or too nasty to use. The Urinelle is made from stiff paper and resembles a snow cone cup. They are disposable and can only be used once, which could get expensive since they cost a little over a dollar each (sold in packs of 6). They are very easy to pack or carry since they are flat until you open them for use.

Of the three I tried, the only one I did not like was the Caring Hands TravelMate (the blue one above). It is too small and not at enough of an angle and…well, I’ll spare the details except to say I’m glad I was testing it in the shower. I wrote to the company and asked for a refund but they didn’t respond.

Peeing standing up is so much fun! I keep a Urinelle in my purse and another in my car, just in case. When I go out painting I carry the Whiz in my backpack. It’s saved my fanny several times now.

Tags Pen and Ink, Plein Air

Landscape Oil Painting Outdoors/Landscape Painting Plein Air

Lake Temescal in oils, plein air

Post author By Jana Bouc
Post date February 18, 2008
7 Comments on Lake Temescal in oils, plein air

Oil on masonite panel, 8×10″ (Larger)

Sunday my painting class with Elio painted at a beautiful spot in the Oakland hills. Lake Temescal is actually a reservoir surrounded by trees, hills and park, just off Highway 24 and perched right on the Hayward earthquake fault. It was a lovely foggy morning when we arrived, and as the day progressed, the sun peeked out from behind clouds. Joggers, families, dogs and fisherman wandered by, also enjoying the springlike weather.

I’m happy that much of what I’ve been studying and learning about oil painting, perspective, color, landscape, composition, etc. is starting to make sense and I’m finding ways of working that feel good to me. I got a lot bolder with color in this painting, starting off painting freely with really strong colors, knowing that I could adjust and tone them down once I got everything blocked in.

I tried to make myself finish the painting within a 2-3 hour window so that I wouldn’t be painting a scene that had completely changed as the time passed and sun moved overhead.

Then Elio did a demonstration and explained how he using color temperature (going from a warm yellow green to a medium green to a cool blue green) to create the illusion of form and depth on a tree. The greens were pretty close in value but their color temperature changes really moved the warm part of the tree forward and the cool part back, making it look very round and full. The really cool part was that I understood what he doing and saying; previously it just seemed like magic.

Tags Plein Air

Animals Cartoon art Drawing Dreams Gouache People Sketchbook Pages

Dreaming: Beaches, buzzards, buffalo…

Post author By Jana Bouc
Post date February 16, 2008
11 Comments on Dreaming: Beaches, buzzards, buffalo…

All are ink & gouache in square sketchbook

I started my dreams Friday night (after a really crazy hectic work week) with a strange series of beach scenes. First a llama appeared in the surf and splashed its way out of the water.

Shortly after that a gigantic fat buzzard with white fluffy feathers like a tutu zoomed down and picked at a dead seagull carcass.

Then a herd of huge buffalo chased by hunky hordes of horseback riders goes thundering through the surf: first north then south, then out of the water and up a hill. Then a helicopter (in first image) lands on the water and loads up with my co-workers. Those who don’t fit get into a boat and leave too.

Meanwhile it’s my first day on the job in a different department and I’m trying to print notes for how to use my cellphone and I’m trying to make it 2-sided to keep it in my wallet but I mess up the pages and then discover I have no computer to print from anyway.

Then a woman comes over and says she needs to measure my head size. She tells me how much smaller my head is than hers and says, “that’s just one of those things that happen at our age.” I’m wondering if my head is shrinking* and I also don’t think she’s my age, but then I can’t tell how old she really is.

* Hmmmm, maybe that last dream is telling me I need a good “head shrinker?” (as psychiatrists are called in the U.S.).

At first I thought there’s no way I can draw these dreams: I don’t know what buffalo and horses and buzzards look like in enough detail to draw them. Then I wondered, if I can see them so clearly in my dream, maybe all I have to do is look at the images I see in my mind when I remember the dream. If I can see it, I should be able to draw it. (Hah!)

I started sketching hesitantly in pencil but quickly realized I needed to just go for it with my pen instead as I usually do. It’s so much more fun to be adventurous and just see what comes out of the pen.

I was able to capture the buzzard, llama and horses close to how I saw them in my dream though not the riders who were all studly stuntmen/Indiana Jones type, not these wimpy riders. But I was hopeless at drawing the buffalo.

Maybe when I finish working on perspective I’ll switch to buffalo (not).

Tags Animals, Pen and Ink, People

Art theory Illustration Friday Sketchbook Pages Watercolor

Early Theory of Perspective

Post author By Jana Bouc
Post date February 15, 2008
11 Comments on Early Theory of Perspective

Early Theory of Perspective

The world is flat and ends at the horizon.
As you get closer to the horizon you get smaller and smaller until….
You fall off the edge and disappear…
And that’s why it’s called the “vanishing point.”

This week’s Illustration Friday challenge is the word “Theory.” Since I’ve been re-learning perspective and reading about the progression of artists’ attempts to create the illusion of depth and space, I thought I’d propose my own history of what the earliest thoughts about perspective might have been.

My continuing exploration of perspective has led to me making a fool of myself as I walk around, closing one eye and putting my hands up to match the angles on buildings and trees as I look for vanishing points and check how angles and lines relate to one another.

I tried to demonstrate to some co-workers as we went out foraging for lunch how the horizon is relative to the individual viewing it, not a fixed location. Nobody was going for it though, either trying to prove me wrong or having more important things to think about, like whether they were in the mood for soup or salad.

Here’s what my favorite book (so far) on perspective says about the horizon:

Eye level rises and falls with the level of your eye, wheher you are down near the floor, sitting, standing, in a tall building, or in an airplane. The eye-level plane extends an infinite distance in all directions and at a remote distance coincides with the horizon, which the eye level is often called.

I can’t really explain why this concept so intrigues me, but I just can’t get over it. I loved the way Brittney Gilbert, writer of CBS5.com’s blog “Eye on Blogs,” titled her link to my recent post: “The Horizon is You-Dependent.”

It just makes me wonder what other facts of life that I’ve taken for granted are only perceptual, not actual. Is reality completely subjective?

Tags Pen and Ink

Drawing Dreams Life in general Painting People Sketchbook Pages Watercolor

Dreams: Definitely not on the best dressed list

Post author By Jana Bouc
Post date February 9, 2008
11 Comments on Dreams: Definitely not on the best dressed list

Ink and watercolor in 5.5″ square sketchbook (larger)

Last night I dreamt first that I was shopping in Macy’s and a snooty salesman looked me up and down and made fun of what I was wearing. He offered to help me dress better and recommended $100 flip-flops with made of thin green nylon (like they make sleeping bags from) with criss-crossed shoelaces that held the flimsy things on your feet.

“The latest thing,” he told me. I wasn’t going for it.

Carrying on the poorly-dressed theme, the next dream was that I was wandering around Los Angeles, looking for a bus to Santa Monica (a suburb of LA where my mother lives) wearing only a large (but not large enough) shirt.

(larger)

I wasn’t terribly embarrassed by this partial nudity, having gotten used to it from all the time I’ve spent in previous dreams completely naked in public.

In real life, I don’t go out naked, though I did spend a summer nude in the early ’70s when I was 22, camping with 6 friends at a beautiful spot in the Siskiyou National Forest, 10 miles down a dirt road from the town of Happy Camp. The temperature in the afternoons reached 117 so nudity seemed pretty reasonable.

Running by our campsite was the perfectly named Clear Creek which fed into a wonderful swimming hole surrounded by huge boulders, perfect for lying on and diving off of.

We were the only ones there during the weekdays but on the weekends the occasional truckload of Native Americans from the nearby reservation would come out to swim or a family might camp for the weekend. The guys in our group would put on bathing suits when we had visitors but us hippie girls stayed au naturel for the duration and nobody seemed to mind.

Tags Pen and Ink, People

Art theory Oil Painting Other Art Blogs I Read Painting Photos Plein Air

Learning to See Color

Oil on panel, 9×12″ (Larger)

On Monday mornings I’m taking a painting class from Camille Przewodek in Petaluma. I first read about her on Ed Terpening’s blog and when I saw her absolutely stunning work I was thrilled to be able to study with her.

As I understand it, the focus of her class is learning to develop one’s ability to see light, atmosphere, and their effects on the subject one is painting and to develop the ability to interpret that in paint. Camille bases her teaching on Henry Hensche‘s, with whom she studied and then spent many years further expanding upon his work. Hensche was a student of Charles Hawthorne who was a student of William Merrit Chase, an American Impressionist who developed his color theories via his study of Monet‘s groundbreaking work.

Camille’s paintings are simply stunning. A slide show of her paintings brought tears to my eyes with their beauty…something that has only happened to me once before when I saw Renoir’s Luncheon of the Boating Party in person.

Newcomers to the class begin by doing plein air still life color studies of colored blocks. Using blocks simplifies the subject matter in order to focus on using changes in color hue and temperature to create the illusion of form and depth. There’s an explanation of this process in the book, Painting the Impressionist Landscape: Lessons in Interpreting Light and Color by Lois Griffel, who took over Hensche’s art school after he died.

Oil on panel, 9×12″ (larger)

Above is the first block study I did in class while everyone else was painting beautiful marshland. The process for doing the studies is to block in the masses with a palette knife, leaving white space between color areas, breaking each shape into two values: shade and light. You start with one color and move to the next, focusing on the relationship between each color and the next.

Elio Camacho, my other wonderful painting teacher, also strongly emphasizes the importance of the relationship between contiguous colors. They both explain that there’s no such thing as a “muddy” color—that the appearance of muddiness results from the relationship not being right between a color and it’s neighbor.

Oil on panel, 9×12″ (Larger)

The one above was done at home under a bright light, trying to simulate sunlight on a dark and rainy day. When I brought the original version of this painting to class for critique, Camille pointed out that blue cloth was too dark because in the bright light it shouldn’t be darker than the shadow on the white block so I worked on it some more, lightening the cloth. If you want to see how it looked before, and the steps in getting there, including the photo of the blocks, just click “continue reading” below.

Tags color study, Color Theory, impressionism, Oil Painting, Photos, Plein Air

Cartoon art Colored pencil art Life in general Sketchbook Pages Watercolor

Hamster Brain, Part Two

Ink, colored pencil & watercolor in 9×12 sketchbook (Larger)

In yesterday’s post I wrote about what I call “Hamster Brain” (when my mind gets stuck spinning in a hamster wheel of “shoulds” and I can’t figure out what to do next and so do nothing). I was going through an old sketchbook and found this illustration I did in 1999 on a similar day of “my brain on hamsters.”

When I read the journal entry it was interesting to see that I’d figured out back then what was really going: a fear of not having enough: not enough time, and maybe not enough talent or skill either as I faced the artist’s version of writer’s block…that icky fear that seems to come around when I finish one project and am faced with the blank canvas/sheet of paper. I’ve learned to encourage myself and turn off those critical voices but every once in awhile they sneak up and get me when I’m not looking.

Today was so much more enjoyable, even though it was pouring down rain. I did my errands, went to the gym, and painted. Sometimes it takes a hamster-brained day like yesterday to make me really appreciate an ordinary day that is joyous just by the absence of negativity and blocks.

Tags Pen and Ink