30 in 30

Last day!!!
30th painting in 30 days :)

"A Web of Thought', 8 x 6 inches, Acrylic on panel

                                                                                                 Available at DPWs
Decided something fun and different for today!
Mary
Schiros_Art

Sending some Michigan to Texas

Day 28

Decided to send day 28 to an art collector, a wonderful women in Texas that has collected several of my paintings.  When someone is kind enough to follow and support your work, they deserve an extra surprise once in a while.  So a little of Michigan is headed to Texas :)
   Hard to believe there are only 3 more days left, this 30 paintings in 30 days has gone by fast!
Mary
Schiros_Art

Ideas from many directions

Day 27, and just decided to have some fun.

"Seesaw"  Acrylic on canvas panel, 5 x 7 inches

                                                                                           Available at DPWs
     I did some drawing a few days ago of faces, focusing on the  asymmetry of features.  I find it interesting to look at a person's face and notice differences from one side to the other.  Most obvious is usually the eyes.  If you don't want people to feel uneasy by staring at them, try pausing a TV show and study those faces.  Raise your hand up, and block one side of the face from view, then do that to the other side.  Sometimes it will look almost like two different people.
     Many years ago I made my living as a hair stylist, and learned right away never try to balance a hair cut by measuring the distance from the ears, trust me people's ears not level, and sometimes it is amazing the difference.
    One of my favorite painters is Pablo  Picasso, thought  he would be a good muse for this painting.
Mary
Schiros_Art

Surprise Ending

Day 26 of 30 paintings in 30 days, and it started out  rough, but ended ok...

Acrylic, "A Pose",  10 x 8 inches on canvas panel

                                                                                         Available at DPWs
This painting started out life as a tree, a simple tree.  What started out as a simple painting tumbled out of control.  Got up early and had a small sketch I planned to quickly paint for today's painting.  It started out well but did that mistake that happens, went too far and lost the original idea.

where I started

Still interesting

A point to far

Should have stopped here, I wanted it abstract and colorful,  did I?  No...
Got to this point and just wasn't happy.  While it was still wet dumped some pinks and iridescent paints on it, scraped in some texture, and start over.  Love what I ended up with, so sometimes a failure and change of direction is a good thing!
Mary
Schiros_Art

Light and Dark

Day 22, thought about skipping to painting to today, but this daily painting is really becoming a habit.  Trying to avoid my paint brushes just did not feel right.

"Fire Fade", 6 x 6 inches, Acrylic on wood panel

                                                                                                                Available at DPWs
I started this painting focusing on the light and dark to capture a setting sun over a lake.  A site I know very well living in Michigan.  As I worked on it I realized it is not just the light, dark, or fire like colors, the size and shapes are just as important.  The bright light distorts objects.  Branches tend to twist and warp in the light.  This one of those things you see but don't see.  Feel like a my eyes opened a little wider today.
Mary
Schiros_Art

Day 21

I needed a break for flowers today, decided an abstract landscape was just the ticket!

12 x 12 inches, acrylic on wood panel

Available at DPWs

Working on wood instead of canvas is a nice change, wood has a smoother surface that the paint quickly glides over.  When working with quick fluid brush marks that I like for abstract work a smooth surface is perfect. 
Mary
Schiros_Art

Follow up

Ok Day 19 ....
One more floral, and if you saw yesterdays post I had a canvas panel left that had been used a place to mix paint, well I did use that for today's painting.....

"Dawn" Acrylic, 12 x 9 inches

                                                                                             Available at DPWs
A little different than it looked yesterday....

You know what they say a little bit of paint can give things a whole new look!

Mary
Schiros_Art 

Different method, different beginning

Acrylics,  watercolor,  and oil paints are all paints, usually applied with a paint brush, a like?  Yes and no.  
The mediums to blend them are different, the way they flow onto the canvas have very different feels.  But also the very start of a painting can be very different depending on the paint you plan to use.
With oils I usually tone a canvas and start the painting neutral in color, think of only the light and dark areas.
With watercolor the surface is white and first colors are soft washes, leaving my lightest areas bare with the white of the paper showing.  
With acrylic, there is a wildness to the beginnings of a painting, often a bold color, wild splats of paint, that eventually gets molded into something fairly normal.  The last couple of paintings actually began life as the previous day's paint palette.  I used a canvas panel to mix my paint one. At the end of the painting section the last colors are used to shape an idea out on the panel to work on at the next section.
   Palette from yesterday....

               This is where today's painting started.
And this is where my panel being used for a palette ended, which might be where I start a new painting.

Mary
Schiros_Art
 
 

Fun before work

I got up today determined to get some work done,  my pear trees are loaded  with fruit.  They need to get picked, cleaned, peeled, chopped and canned.
    So what did I do?   Painted a picture of course.

 

                                                                                                                  Available at DPWs

 Day 17 of 30 in 30

Mary
Schiros_Art

Day 15

Today is cold and raining, beginning of a typical Michigan fall season.  Needed something to change my mood today.  Thought about how happy I am when spring comes and painted to that idea.  The subject came to mind quickly; Magnolia tree flowers.

A12 x 9 inches, Acrylic on canvas, "Spring in a Bottle"

 Available at DPWs

     Once I knew what to paint, I needed a plan.  Knowing there would be a lot of white and light shades in the painting, decided to use an opposite for the base; a black canvas.
     Wanting to have a softness to it, most of the painting was done by a technique called scrubbing.  Using a mainly a hog bristle brush the paint is put down with a scrubbing motion. 
 I would let one layer of color dry then scrub in the next. 
 Only a few fluid brush strokes were used here and there for detail.
   It is always good to have an idea and a plan of attack when you are painting:)
   Made it half way into the 30 paintings in 30 days Challenge!
Mary
Schiros_Art 

Day 12 painting

A quick post of today's painting, fresh from my garden to you!

12 x 9 inches, Acrylic, "As The Leaves Turn"

                                                                                      Available at DPWs

Also thought I would share a tip.  

 I put some of the paint on my caps, so I can quickly find colors I want when painting.  Save time when looking for colors.

Mary
Schiros_Art

Another day another painting

Day nine:

Oil on gallery wrap canvas, 8 x 8 inches, "A Lone"

                                           Available at DPWs
 
The tree sits in a field across from home.  
To paint this I picked that tree up and put it in the land I remember see while visiting California.  
It is fun to rearrange land in your mind, even better than rearranging the furniture at home :)

Mary
Schiros_Art

Water is not blue

Already day 8 of painting 30 paintings in 30 days

Color of Water, 12 x 9 inches, oil on canvas

                             Available at DPWs

With small bodies of water, like lakes and ponds, the color depends on the depth of the water, and what is growing in the water.  I noticed that often the color will appear brown, unless there is a strong reflection of light from the sky.  In the case of this pond there were a lot of lilies that were turning tan in color breaking down yet still floating. Fall is here and the nights are cool, so like the leaves on the trees the lilies turn color.  Interesting to keep in mind what is happening in nature when your painting nature.
Mary
Schiros_Art

Day 6 and 7 of 30 paintings in 30 days

"GreenLeaf" Acrylic on canvas, 12 x 9 inches

Day 6                                 Available at DPWs
        30 paintings in 30 days


Painting flowers are just a way to have a wonderful time. 
I always feel like I am in a giant play box of colors and shapes.  Day 6 “Green Leaf” is imaginary flowers play reds off of green.  

"A Bundle of Roses"  Acrylic on canvas. 12 x 6 inches

                                                Available at DPWs
 Day 7

I wanted to go more abstract, not defining the flowers as much but still creating the feel of a bundle of blooms.  

   Both of these were painted on color prepped canvas which actually made a wonderful foundation to work from.  If you want to see how I prep a canvas please check out my youtube video about canvas prep.

Mary

 Schiros_Art

My favorite Painting Park

Another day at the park....

Oil on cnavas, 9 x 12 inches

                                                                                               Available at DPWs
Calling it September Park.  
   Think this location will be my version of Monet's Lilly Pond, or Van Gogh's Wheat Fields.  It is close is home, has a great set up to paint, (covered tables).  Going to try and capture each season changes at the same spot.  So be forewarned will see a number of paintings of the pond.
Mary
Schiros_Art 

A sunset in the morning

Day 4, of 30 in 30.....

"Sunset 1"  Oil on wood, 6 x 6 inches

                      Available at DPWs

I am finding that painting in the morning is pretty good, surprising for a night owl like me.  I get up, grab my coffee, and start a painting.  This morning it was a sunset. why not.
   I like how this turned out, but when I was painting I
started thinking of other ways to do it.  Right now it is is balance of sky and land.  Plan to do a couple more, one with focus just on the sky, and another focusing on the land.
Mary
Schiros_Art 

Day 3

Day three of the 30 in 30 challenge.
   Needed a break form flowers today, so did a little figurative.

"Bedtime Prayer"  Acrylic on Canvas panel, 8 x 6 inches

                                                                    Available at DPWs

Named it "Bedtime Prayer".  The words to that prayer just kept going through my head the whole time I was painting. 
     Now I lay me down to sleep,
I pray the Lord my soul to keep,
If I shall die before I wake,
I pray the Lord my soul to take
Can not explain why, just the way my mind was working while I was painting, and thought I would share. 
   Will be added more of the paintings for this challenge on my 30 paintings in 30 days page of the blog. 

Mary
Schiros_Art  

day 2

Day 2 of 30 paintings in 30 days.

Blue bowl of Orange,  Acrylic on wood, 6 x 6 inches

                                                                 Available at DPWs
Can you tell I really like painting sunflowers?
Once a painting is done, and the photo filed, the fun does not stop.  Just had to play around in photo shop.  Think I will be adding them soon to my digital file on Fine Art America

Mary
Schiros_Art
 

day 1

Calendula, 5 x 7 inches, oil on canvas panel

                                                                    Available at DPWs
Day one of a new 30 paintings in 30 days challenge,
(Thanks Leslie Seata ).
Today was to beautiful to be inside, so I pulled a chair up a short distance from one of my gardens, and painted my Calendula (also know as common marigolds).  
   These flowers serve multi purpose, one they are pretty but best help keep bad bugs out of the veggies.
    After I painted them decided to snap some photos so you could get a real peek at my garden edges:)

had to sneak a Cosmos in just because..

 Hope everyone is having a great day!
Mary
Schiros_Art