Where Flowers Grow

This piece is 8 x 10 and was done in pastels (actually Pan Pastels and pastel pencils) on Ampersand Pastelbord.  I started with a rather dreary picture of an abandoned house with gray skies and overgrown fields.  I originally planned to do it much like in the reference.  However, before I knew it, the old abandoned house was surrounded by overgrown fields and flowers with blue skies overhead!  First rule in art -- make it your own!!!

(Currently being auctioned at dailypaintworks.com)

Where Flowers Grow

Starting bid $45

A very recent piece

I had a reference picture of the bricks and the beautiful teal paint that I really wanted to incorporate into a picture.  I decided the gray cat was just what it needed.  This piece is 12 x 12 on wonderful Ampersand Pastelbord.  That has really become my favorite surface for colored pencils and pastels!

Alley Cat

$130

Happy New Year 2016!

Wow, last post was May 2013.  I am happy to announce that this blog will be alive and kicking going forward.  Over the last several weeks, I have made the transition to full-time artist!  My husband had originally, a few years ago, dubbed my art venture and my store on Etsy "23HourStudio", as we had figured out that with very careful planning, after work and everything else, I should be able to find 23 hours a week for my art.   Well, let's just say that was very wishful thinking.  While I have put my Etsy shop on hold since I found other avenues that are working better for me,  I thought I would change the name of my blog, but decided the name still fits.  Now, I can work 23 hours a DAY if I want!  You artists out there know what it's like when a piece is working so well and you just don't want to stop!

Anyway, I'm glad you found this blog and very sorry if you visited an inactive one in the past.  I will be doing my best to post several times a week.  My work can also be found on Vangoart, Daily Paintworks and Fineartamerica.  If you're in Maryland, my artwork can be seen at my booth at Sammy Girl Crafts at theTownMall in Westminster.  Next post soon!

Strange Birds

I am really loving doing colored pencil on Pastelmat!  It allows me just enough detail, but the texture doesn't let me get tooooo nitpicky.  These two "strange birds" are actually cassowaries.  Large, flightless birds, about the size of ostriches, which live in the rain forests of New Guinea and parts of Australia.  They are actually pretty solitary creatures, but I liked doing two together.  My model for this painting was actually a lone cassowary at a small zoo in rural Maryland.  This bird's rather odd appearance has always intrigued me on each visit to the zoo and on the last trip I snapped a few good references.  I thought its coloring and variety of textures would be a fun project (and it was!).  It's 11 x 14 on anthracite (soft black) Pastelmat.    

Strange Birds

11 x 14

The original of these two will be available in my Etsy shop and prints available on FineArtAmerica

 (links to the right)

The Butcher and His Wife (Max and Celia)

This was done from a very small black and white picture of my grandparents, Max and Celia, in front of the meat market/grocery store they owned in Washington, D.C. in the 40's-50's.  I have wanted to do this picture for a long time.  The first decision to make was whether to correct the spelling of my maiden name which actually ends in an "h" not a "k".  The sign maker got it wrong and gave them a discount instead of redoing it.  I decided it had to be kept a "k".  I did this on a piece of sand Canson Mi-Tientes board.  I specifically chose this more highly textured surface to avoid getting too terribly detailed with this drawing.  I know me, smooth paper would have allowed for too many details that I just didn't have in the reference I was working from.  It would have made me a crazy woman!  It's 14 x 8 inches.  I thought I wanted to go with a sepia look and completed the whole thing initially using only light umber, dark umber, cream and eggshell colored pencils.  Although they were much older by the time I was born and how I remember them, I feel really content that I captured the essence of them.  They have both been gone more than 30 years and I found myself missing them all over again as I looked down at them.  When I initially completed it, I thought it had turned out just fine technically, but not very lively.  Well, I decided it needed some color.  If they could add color to sepia photos, which used to be a very common practice, I could add color to my sepia drawing, right?  Out came the PanPastels. They went very nicely right over the colored pencil, even in areas where I had burnished somewhat, which was a happy surprise.  The end result is very different, but I think I like it.

 

Max and Celia

Colored Pencil and PanPastel on Mi-Tientes board

14 x 8 inches

 

Carole's Bike

Just a few days later, it's me again!  This was one of those I finished just recently.  This was done with my sister, Carole, in mind.  She has been after me for some time to complete a third "red transportation" piece.  She has copies of "Old Red" the truck and "Red Boat" and kept telling me I had to do a third red transportion piece to complete a trifecta.  Well, in my sister's honor, I present "Carole's Bike".  This was done in colored pencil on Pastelmat.  It is approximately 7 x 7.  I really liked using colored pencil on this surface.  I was able to layer endlessly and it gives the appearance of pastel with the ease of using my colored pencils!  The color of the Pastelmat was a dark charcoal (they call it anthracite) and it really seemed to make the colors pop; however, a little more difficult to scan according to my scanning and giclee pro, Amy!  Anyway, here it is . . .  . .

 

"Carole's Bike"

 

Carole likes to have prints not originals, so this piece will be available in my usual spots.  Stay tuned, I'll actually be posting something again tomorrow.  Woo-hoo, two days in a row!

 



Not quite a work of art, but . . . .

I did this a few weeks ago for my sweet little grandson who was born in January.  I guess you can guess he has a Dr. Seuss motif for his room.  Not quite a work of art, but it was fun, creative and done with a lot of love, so I'll go ahead and post it.  It was done with ink and colored pencil, borrowing and incorporating various characters with his name.  You get a bonus picture of the little cutie, too!

More artwork should be posted soon.  Just finished up a few things.  Thanks to those who have visited -- I'm trying, I'm trying!!