Tag: Oil Painting

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Flower Art Gardening Oil Painting Painting Plein Air Still Life

Pansies Plein Air

Pansies in Pitcher Plein Air, oil on panel 12x9"
Pansies in Pitcher Plein Air, oil on panel 12x9"

The weather was too perfect to paint indoors but I didn’t feel like driving anywhere. My next door neighbor was out pruning his pansies and he’d pulled out a whole bucketful he was about to put in the compost bin.  Voila! A perfect painting subject. I stuffed a big clump of the pansies into a pitcher and set them on a table in the backyard.

I’d made the pitcher as a gift for my friend Barbara in the late 70s when I was a ceramic artist and she was a silversmith. She’s now a brilliant and prolific ceramic artist herself and she recently gave me the pitcher back. She was no longer using it due to a leaky crack and a house full of her own ceramics. I’ve been enjoying using it in still life set ups while fondly remembering it being filled with Mimosas every year for the annual Easter egg hunt and brunch her family held every year while our kids were growing up.

I knew that time was very limited before the shade moved across the yard onto the table so I worked quickly and had a great time.

Here’ are a couple steps in the work in progress:

Pansies Plein Air WIP #1
Pansies Plein Air WIP #1
Pansies Plein Air WIP #2
Pansies Plein Air WIP #2
Categories
Bay Area Parks Landscape Marin County Oil Painting Outdoors/Landscape Painting Photos Places Plein Air

Cloudy Day on the Bay, View from China Camp

Cloudy Bay, View from China Camp, oil on panel, 9x12
Cloudy Bay, View from China Camp, oil on panel, 9x12"

When I first arrived at China Camp in San Rafael for our plein air paint-out, I decided to make the dramatic, dark clouds my subject. Except that once I’d completed a quick thumbnail sketch for composition, drew the main shapes on my panel, blocked in the colors of the sky, clouds, land, water… POOF! The sun came out, the clouds blew away, and the hills that were my darkest darks were now glowing with light.

Since the scene was now completely different I put the panel away and started another small study, which I might mess with a bit and post another time.

I planned to finish the first painting in the studio, from photos I took before everything changed. Of course later when I looked at the photos, they had none of the color and drama I’d seen and felt in person. So I tried to work from memory along with the photo, and eventually just let the painting tell me what it needed.

This is the original block-in with the painting barely started. I’d put the clouds in first, but after I’d blocked in the rest of the elements, realized they were way too dark.

China Camp View blocked in
China Camp View blocked in

And this is the photo of the scene, in which the colors are all wrong, and which mostly just confused me when trying to paint from it.

Photo of China Camp cloudy view
Photo of China Camp cloudy view

As a wonderful bonus to the pleasure of being out painting on a gorgeous day, my painting group had hired plein air painter Elio Camacho to lead a workshop for us that day. I used to study with Elio a couple years ago so it was great working with him again. He is such a generous teacher and brilliant artist. Everyone had rave reviews afterward and were very pleased with what they’d learned that day.

Categories
Landscape Oil Painting Outdoors/Landscape Painting Photos Plein Air

Shorebird Marsh in Corte Madera; new oil painting

Shorebird Marsh, Corte Madera, Oil painting, 9x12"
Shorebird Marsh, Corte Madera, Oil painting, 9x12"

A few weeks ago my plein air group met on a blistering hot day at a little shadeless park alongside a marsh that was right next to the noisy highway and a block from an upscale shopping center (Village Shopping Center in Corte Madera). Some watercolorists in the group set up at the shopping center but were kicked out for taking up outdoor tables meant for food court customers.

Reference photo
Reference photo

I was tempted to leave. The scene didn’t appeal to me, I was tired, it was hot, there was no shade or other facilities and the noise of the traffic was terrible. But I decided to give it a shot, and of course, as I started drawing I got more enthusiastic (“such cute hills” I said to myself, and listening to music with headphones helped block out the highway noise.

Initial sketch on panel
Initial sketch on panel

I stopped taking photos after the one below because I was trying to finish quickly as the temperature kept climbing. I nearly completed the painting on site before I started  feeling like I was getting sunstroke and had to pack up and head home, without even waiting for the critique.

Starting to block in color
Starting to block in color

I worked from the reference photo a bit in the studio but then just started addressing the painting’s needs instead of what was in the photo. I tried not to mess with the hills and trees that I’d painted on site because I liked the way they were loosely painted in.

Categories
Art supplies Drawing Flower Art Ink and watercolor wash Painting Photos photoshop Sketchbook Pages Still Life Watercolor

Hydrangeas: More Testing Fabriano Venezia Sketchbook

Hydrangeas in Pitcher, 9x11", ink & watercolor
Hydrangeas in Pitcher, 9x11", ink & watercolor

The first hydrangeas of the season provided an opportunity to try out ink and watercolor in the Fabriano Venezzia sketchbook I posted about yesterday. First I drew directly in ink and then tried painting the flower on the right by wetting the paper there, and painting into it.  I didn’t like the results and tried lifting off the paint with a tissue and was pleased and surprised that it came right off, leaving only a slight stain.  Then I painted back into the damp area and got the results I wanted and completed the rest of the painting working very loosely.

The painting was easy compared to trying to get the image in the sketchbook scanned or photographed for posting. The image above was the result of clamping the edges of the sketchbook to photograph it (see below) and then using Photoshop’s Clone Stamp tool to “erase” the clamps and then using the Levels and Dodge tools to clean up the shadows caused by the paper buckling and some reflections from the light source.

Ready to photograph

I also tried scanning the page in the sketchbook but encountered the same problems I had yesterday with severe blurring plus shadow from the seam. I (want to) like this sketchbook, but preparing the images for posting is really a hassle. Even if I wasn’t working across the spread and just painted on one page I’d still have the problem with the shadow and blurring since it happens on the righthand page.

Scanned version, after touch-up
Scanned version, after major touch-up

Have you had this problem and solved it? I’d be so grateful for suggestions!

Hydrangeas and sketchbook
Hydrangeas and sketchbook
Categories
Drawing Oil Painting Painting Photos Still Life

Stripey Still Life with Lemon: The importance of getting the drawing right first

Stripey Still Life with Lemon
Stripey Still Life with Lemon, 10x8", oil on Gessobord

Getting the drawing right before beginning to paint is so important when trying to paint realistically. Although it’s theoretically easier to correct drawing errors with oil paint than watercolor, it’s still a lot less fun than painting with a good drawing. As you can see from the start of this painting below, I hadn’t quite nailed the elipse on the top of the pitcher before I started painting.

Stripey Still Life start
Stripey Still Life start

I wanted to get started with the painting quickly because I knew the leaves from the lemon tree were going to change wilt, even though I had inserted the stems in a little florist tube with water (and they did!). But by not getting the elipse on the top of the pitcher drawn correctly, I ended up redoing it over and over and finally giving up. I am happy with the way the fabric under the pitcher turned out, as well as the lemon and didn’t have to do any repainting on those areas, although I did change some of the fabric as I painted.

Stripey still life photo of set up
Stripey still life photo of set up with wilted leaves

On my next still life, I’m going to sketch the composition on tracing paper first, and then transfer it to the painting panel, rather than trying to sketch it on the panel. Maybe that will make the painting more fun and less of a struggle.

Win some, lose some, learn some, move on.

Categories
Berkeley Drawing Ink and watercolor wash Other Art Blogs I Read Painting People Photos Places Sketchbook Pages

Jana and Casey Do Berkeley

4th Street Jazz Festival- by Jana
4th Street Jazz Festival- by Jana
4th Street Jazz Festival by Casey
4th Street Jazz Festival-by Casey

Casey Toussaint and her son Paul are visiting from France and I had the pleasure of spending Sunday with them. After a quick visit to my house and studio, we headed down to the Berkeley Marina to cool off on an unseasonably hot day.

Casey & Paul on Berkeley Pier
Casey & Paul on Berkeley Pier

We walked to the end of Berkeley’s long pier on San Francisco Bay with views of the Golden Gate Bridge (which Paul wanted to see) and there was a wonderful cool breeze coming in off the ocean. Then we had a delicious lunch at Skates on the Bay, where we had a window seat and watched birds nesting under the eaves and sailboats tacking back and forth on the choppy bay.

Casey & Jana @ Skates
Casey & Jana @ Skates

On the way to our next stop (Dick Blick Art Supplies to pick up a large sketchbook to bring to the afternoon session of the  figure drawing marathon sponsored by the Bay Area Models Guild at Merritt College in Oakland) we passed Berkeley’s Fourth Street boutique/foodie shopping area. We saw that the street was blocked off with a sign, “Fourth Street Jazz Festival” and decided to nix the figure drawing and sketch at the festival instead.

Casey sketching at Peets Fourth Street
Casey sketching at Peets Fourth Street

We strolled the street and then settled at Peets Coffee for coffee and sketching where we did the two sketches at the top of the post. Casey works quickly, with wonderfully expressive lines, and got in a few more sketches from Peets:

4th Street people by Casey
4th Street people by Casey
More 4th St people by Casey
More 4th St people by Casey

After an hour or two we connected with Paul again, walked over to Blick’s for Casey’s art supply shopping and then headed to Telegraph Avenue and the University of California campus. Casey and I found a spot we wanted to sketch on campus so Paul headed back down Telegraph to Amoeba Records, a huge used CD/record store.

UC Campus building by Jana
UC Campus building by Jana
Jana's sketch and building
Jana's sketch and building
Casey's sketch of the building
Casey's sketch of the building

When we met Paul back at Amoeba a couple hours later, I was hungry and we decided to head out for dinner. We all felt like Mexican food so I took them to Solano Avenue’s Cactus Taqueria. Paul was quite impressed by the size of the burrito he was served, and took photos of it. I learned that servings are much smaller in French restaurants and that it takes 5 or 6 years of serious study before someone can become a baker. He was surprised that here all one need do to beome a baker is to open a bakery and start baking.

Casey at UC Berkeley
Casey at UC Berkeley

As the sun was setting I drove them back to San Francisco. The fog had rolled in, ending the heat wave, and as we traveled across the Bay Bridge we had amazing views of San Francisco rising up out of the fog bank, sillouhetted by the setting sun. I drove really slowly across the bridge so Paul could take pictures and he got some great ones.

Categories
Art supplies Art theory Glass Lighting Oil Painting Painting Photos Still Life Studio

Painting a Still Life Using The Carder Method”

Still Life with Tangelo, oil on gessobord, 12x12"
Still Life with Tangelo, oil on gessobord, 12x12"

Inspired by Casey’s success with the Carder Method and frustrated with my own slow progress at oil painting, I bought the Carder Method video and  Color Checker tool. Below are step by step photos of my using the method to paint this still life, a brief review of the Carder Method and photos of my studio set up for working with it.

The Carder Method is designed to eliminate many of the problems that can make painting difficult. By creating an carefully lit, controlled environment, a painter can focus on learning to clearly see color and value differences while eliminating problems caused by variables such as changing light.

Click “Continue Reading” to see photos and read more….

Continue reading “Painting a Still Life Using The Carder Method””
Categories
Bay Area Parks Landscape Oil Painting Outdoors/Landscape Painting Places Plein Air

Martinez Waterfront Park Plein Air Step by Step

6. Martinez Waterfront Final version
6. Martinez Waterfront, oil, 8x8"

When my plein air group at Martinez Waterfront Park last Saturday I really enjoyed the painting process despite getting a late start. Then I tinkered in the studio, never one to leave well enough alone. Above is the final version and below are the steps I took to get there, recorded just for fun. First is the thumbnail sketch/value study:

1. Thumbnail, pencil
1. Thumbnail/value study

Then I blocked in the colors using really thin paint at the average color of each of the large shapes and planes or puzzle pieces as I like to think of them.  I was pleased to see I did the drawing pretty well, and was able to fit everything on the square panel in about the same proportions as I saw them and as in my thumbnail sketch.

Continue reading “Martinez Waterfront Park Plein Air Step by Step”
Categories
Ink and watercolor wash Life in general Sketchbook Pages

Are You a YES or a NO (or a Maybe)?

Are You a Yes or No? Ink & watercolor
Are You a YES or a NO? Ink & watercolor in Moleskine 5x7 wc notebook

What if, when you wanted to buy a car, you had to pick from three models,  a YES, a NO, or a MAYBE, depending on which kind of person you were. What if, along with gender, everyone was also designated as a YES or NO, based on their basic approach to life.

I thought of this while I was driving across town with a dear friend (whom I shall call X), and we were talking about things  going on in the world and in our lives. I turned to X, explained the YES/NO concept, and said, “I would be a YES and you’d be a NO, right?”

X said, “um…..Maybe,” which is X’s usual answer for many things. So for X, I added the third category, “Maybe.”

X is someone who will never admit to being happy, as if it would be dangerous to do so. When X rates a movie  on Netflix, or a transaction on eBay, X never gives the the full 5 stars. These things must be doled out carefully.

I’m just the opposite. I see myself as a person of big enthusiasms and gladly give 5 stars; I’m more likely to say I LOVE something than I like it. I love feeling happy and will gladly tell the world when I am.

Of course all this YESness has not always been to my advantage. There were many times in life when I  should have said NO, but didn’t. And maybe I should be more of a MAYBE, more careful, tentative, taking a long time to think things through, rather than jumping right in, throwing caution to the wind. But then I wouldn’t be me.

I wonder if other people see me as a YES. How do you see yourself? Are you a YES, a NO or a Maybe? Do you think your friends and family would agree? Do you think one is better than the other?

Categories
Animals Cartoon art Gouache International Fake Journal Month People Sketchbook Pages

More Fake Journal: “Who Am I” (Clues from Snoop Dog)

Who Am I According to Snoop Dog #1, Ink & Gouache
"Who Am I" according to Snoop Dog #1, Ink & Gouache

Continuing with International Fake Journal Month, and my (fake) search for my identity by listening to lyrics of songs titled “Who Am I.” Today my clues come from Snoop Doggy Dog’s (unlistenable, disgusting) song “Who Am I: What’s My Name.” According to his lyrics:

Now just throw your hands in the xxx  air
And wave the xxxs like ya just don’t care.

I step through the fog and I creep through the smog
cuz I’m Snoop Doggy (what?) Doggy (what?) Doggy [Dog].

The Biggest Nuts, Ink & Gouache
The Biggest Nuts, Ink & Gouache

Then he says:

“…with the biggest nuts and guess what?
He is I, and I am him, slim with the tilted brim.”

I listened to samples of Snoop’s catalog on Amazon while I was sketching and decided that he has an awful potty mouth, doesn’t make sense and therefore must discard his clues. Clearly, despite his claims, I am neither the one with the biggest nuts nor a dog.  But I loved throwing my hands in the air and waving ’em like I just don’t care.