Amazing Grace final

Well, I was able to get one more session on this drawing. It always seems that there is more I would do. I'd love to have had the time to get more of the subtlety across her chest and clavicles, but I will just have to settle for the finish I was able to accomplish with the limited time. What are your thoughts? Should I have left the drawing as it was before??

Portrait Drawing
charcoal on paper
24" x 18"

Women

I am honored to be included in a stellar compilation of women artists, that is being put together in the form of a blog, by Sadie J Valeri called Women Painting Women. She has picked a painting from my solo show Perceptions of Beauty, which was first shown at Sullivan Goss Gallery in 2006. This blog is a wonderful collection of female artists both known and lesser known but all skilled and deserving of recognition. Please visit the site often to see the ever growing list of talents and feel free to make suggestions as Sadie hopes this to be a collaborative effort.

Public Restroom

oil on panel

20" x 30"

Tough Day

Well, today was one of 'those' days. I lost my normal painting time because both the kids are home with a nasty cold, plus my little guy decided to put his own poop in his eye. And guess what happened. Yup, pink eye! We've all been avoiding the poor kid like the plague. So needless to say, it's been tough. But while Wyeth was down for a nap, I bribed my daughter into being a model by letting her play on PBSkids.org. It worked out really well, except for her way too intense for a four year old gaze.

Sienna

charcoal on paper

18" x 24"

Amazing Grace

I got the pleasure of drawing an amazing model yesterday at ArtSpace in Raleigh. It was a 3 hour session and she only took 2 breaks and each time managed to get right back into the same spot. She even had her eyes glued in place for that whole time. I may get one more 3 hour session on this drawing next weekend if the other artists in the group agree. There is definitely more I could do on this, but at the same time, I'm happy with what I was able to capture.

Portrait Drawing
charcoal on paper
24" x 18"

More Sugar

Well, this little still life is STILL in progress. I've been working more on cleaning up the whites both on the bowl and on parts of the lighter stripes of the fabric. It's definetly coming along. I've really enjoyed having the luxury of being able to take my time on this one. Maybe one more pass and this one will be wrapped up. Do any of you start slowing down as you get to the end of a painting, not wanting the fun to end? Or not knowing what you'll paint next?

Sugar Bowl
oil on panel
8" x 8"

Ink Gestures

So, I've been playing around with getting more fluidity into my gesture drawings. The other day, I found an old ink brush pen and thougth I'd bring it to my figure drawing group to give it a try. The other thing I found was a very small (about 5"x 8") pad of toned pastel paper which is meant to be taken out for plein air studies. Before when I had tried the brush pen, I had been using sort of slick papers, but this pastel paper has quite a tooth. The results were beautiful. I loved how the paper absorbed the ink quickly to a dull matte finish and I was able to get much more fluidity in my lines while still describing the form. The small scale was sort of off putting for me for awhile. I'm a stand up while painting or drawing kind of girl, so sitting with this thing in my lap was a bit uncomfortable at first. But I got the hang of it eventually and here are the results.

Washington DC

We just returned from a whirlwind trip to Washington, DC. We only spent two nights and had the kids with us, but we got to do and see so much. What an amazing place. I actually felt good about paying taxes while we were there. It feels good to know that our society does have some reverence for the Arts and over the years our country has accumulated some very impressive collections. We will need to return again soon. Below are some of my favorites. (see comments below for more info on each work)

In Progress

Well, this is a small painting I've been working on now for several weeks and it is slowly coming along. This is no where near complete, but I thought perhaps it might be worth sharing, regardless. I am trying to build up the texture of the spilt sugar and will add some glazing to give it more volume once I get the desired texture. Much more of the fabric to tackle and of course every time I set down to paint, I always see more in the little bowl. I get sucked into the reflections and subtle color and value shifts on that object. Wish the whites didn't look so 'dirty'. White seems to be the most challenging color to paint. I love a challenge!

Sugar Bowl

oil on panel

8" x 8"

Layered Drawing

So I found out today that my layered drawing 'Colin' got into a show called "PULP" at the Visual Art Exchange Gallery in Raleigh. This show was juried by Nicole Welch, Curator at the Contemporary Art Museum in Raleigh. The opening is this Friday night March 6th 6-9pm and runs through the 26th. Come out and enjoy some nice works on paper.

I should note that this is two separate drawings that are presented layered one on top of another. The bottom layer seems quite ghosted through the top sheet of vellum, but look closely and you'll see the heart has been rendered using sanguine, which gives this piece some nice color that I haven't explored before in my previous layered drawings.

Colin
charcoal and sanguine on layered vellum
20" x 30" ish

Painted Sketch

This painting was from a 'Long Pose' session at ArtSpace in Raleigh this weekend. The model happened to be Megan (same as drawings below). This is by no means a 'finished' painting, it was just an opportunity to observe and paint from life. I only had about 5 hours on this painting so you'll see quite a bit of the process showing thru. I find the composition a bit awkward with both hands falling off or too close to the picture plane. But I enjoyed painting it and I except this for what it's worth as just another opportunity to get better.

Megan Sketch

oil on panel

16"x 12"