Day 30 of the 30 in 30 challenge

10 x 8 inches, oil on canvas panel,"The Muses"Available at DPWs

The last day of 30 paintings in 30 days, thought it would be fun to share my Muses.  I have 2 troll dolls that sit on top of my easel, when I am frustrated all I have to do is look up and they always give me a smile.  The two little trolls are my reminder,  life is just too short to stress out over the little things.  Painting is fun!

Mary

Encaustic painting

Day 25 already!  

8x8 inchesAvailable at DPWs

     I think I have mentioned this before, I am an art supply junkie.  If there is something new I have to try it.  This one is painted with cold water soluble wax paint called Ceracolor.  I call it encaustic because it is wax, but you do not have to melt it.  Pretty cool to work with.

   I have work with tradition encaustic and enjoyed it, but it is complicated, with heating the wax, melting it to paint, scraping back into it, and doing that to every layer you work on.  With traditional encaustic you can create more texture than with the cold wax.  But, the Ceracolor paint is just plain easy, wet it, paint with it, and heat it only to seal it.  Kind of feel like I am cheating...almost:)

    The painting is a location in Parshallville Michigan, an old apple mill that is fun to visit in the Fall.  There are trails from the mill that travel a long the small river by the mill.  A nice place to walk, paint and photograph.  One word of warning, on a warm day in the Fall, there will be bees, they are drawn to the area, think it must be the smell of cider and doughnuts:)

Mary

Finding time to paint

Started this early with a rough acrylic underpainting.  Working with gesso and some magenta color is a quick and loose way of putting down a composition idea.

Purple Passion, 8x8 inches, Acrylic on canvas panelAvailable at DPWs

After canning up 6 quarts of garden veggie soup, I went back and added the green leaves and darker accents.  This was a multi tasking day:)
Mary

Oil painting today....

10 x 8 inches, oil on panel, "One In One Out"Available at DPWs

     Planned to do a lot more on finishing this paintings today,  but after spending some time just sitting and looking at it, decided there was not much I wanted to change.   As a painter I spend much of my time when painting just looking.  Looking at the subject, looking at the painting.  Think that is what I love about painting from life, there is a kind of meditation that goes with it.
    I realized that I really liked the soft feel this painting has so just a bit of glazing to bring up the color of the roses was all it needed today to call it done.
   Did the under painting with a new color Greenish umber by Utrecht,  really like the color for laying out the composition and also to create a dark neutral color for dark accents.

Mary

Painting from memory

Finished this 3rd week of 30 paintings in 30 days having some fun.  I have been painting a view I saw briefly while driving down a road.  One thing I learned from this is a memory is just an idea,  not a true reference.

Day 21....

6 x 6 on Ampersand panel

Day 20 and 19...

The 3 are available on my DPWs web site, pretty much just for the cost of the painting surface, thought it would be fun to just share the little experiments a t a fun price.

While I was having fun just had to do a little digital play also..

There is a web site called Collage.com that you can create collage collections from photos, another fun place to play:)

  Next week I plan to get a little more serious and finish each day some paintings that I have started.
I have a rule for myself, always have something in process, that way when I get up there is always something waiting for me to work on, it is a good way to keep painting everyday.
Mary

Day 18 ...already

I started the underpainting for this yesterday, and enjoyed finishing today painting at good friends studio.

"Tes for Two", Acrylic on canvas panel, 8 x 10 inchesAvailable at DPWs

This one of my many Teapots, ( I tend to collect them).  I did one underpainting in acrylic, and a second underpainting in oil that I may work on another day.  I always find it interesting how different oils and acrylic paintings look.  So it will be interesting to compare the two.

This is how this one started....

I like using orange for underpainting (adds a bit of a glow), also wanted to put down an idea for composition.   I change a bit from start to finish but still very happy with it.

Mary

Day 16 of 30 paintings in 30 days

Some flowers from my imagination today....

"Red on Violet"  8 x 8 inches, Acrylic on gallery wrap canvas.AVAILABLE AT DPWS

Wanted to play with some color and lines today.  Love painting on Gallery wrap canvas because you can carry the painting on to the sides, lets you have more than just a straight on view of the art,  And you do not have to frame it :)
Past the half way mark in the 30 in 30 challenge, feels good.
Mary

Day 13, Thirty paintings in thirty days

Another color threesome....

"Lime Light"  Acrylic on watercolor paper,  14 x 11

        I am finding it interesting how much variation in color can be done with just 3 colors and white.
The three today are Holbein Compose Rose,  Daniel Smith French Ultramarine, and Sennelier  Bright Yellow green.  
     The Bright yellow green is one of my favorites and I like the Sennelier brand the best.  There are colors that I will get only from one brand, just because that company seems to me to make the best version.  Cad. Orange I will only buy the Utrecht brand,  Utrecht produces many pure pigment colors.  Old Holland has a Violet Grey I just love. and Sennelier's yellow green is just right.  Some companies give odd names to colors, for example Holbein Compose Rose is actually a Naphthol red, and the yellow green is a mix of pigments.  If you want a quick place to see what the true pigment is in a color Dick Blick lists a tab "pigment info" for most of the colors and brands they sell, it is really helpful and I use it a lot, just for reference.
   The more you learn about color the easier it is to work with.
Mary

Some more red...

Finished up this painting this morning.....  Day 12 of 30 in 30

24 x 18 inches, acrylic on canvas, "The Bath"Available; original of print at FineArtAmerica

I know I am posting this late, but my day was busy with some of my favorite things: painting in the morning,  gardening in the afternoon, then canning in the evening.  Yes I like canning, something cool about growing your own food, putting it up for the Winter.  Kind of old fashioned but thats me.
    This painting I started at the open house for the Flint Institute of Arts, and it was painted with the same colors of the painting from yesterday. I worked on both paintings at the same time.  I find that working on 2 paintings will keep me from over working one.  I  taped several  1 and 2 minute gesture drawing on the wall in front of my easels and used them for reference.  One suggestion I can make is, if you ever have the chance to take life drawing please do.  There is no other form of drawing that will fine tune your skills as much as having to draw the human figure from life.
Mary

Always say yes

A tip I have learned along the way....
   When ask to participate in an art event, (that is free and does not involve giving away your work),
always say: "Yes, I would love to!"  and say it with a big heartfelt smile.  Now after your turn and walk away with that smile on your face, you can then panic, and think now what!  There is nothing that will get you to your easel and painting, faster than having a event to be in.  
   Wed. I had the fun of being one of the active painters, on display at the Flint Institute of Arts, Art school open house.  After jumping in and painting in public for a while now, I have learned it is very rewarding.  I get to do something I love, be around people and paint, just doesn't get any better than that.  Now if your thinking I just can not paint in public, you do not know until you try, and if you don't try you will never know...(kind of  loop there).  Yes it is scary the first time, and yes you may make mistakes, but people don't care, they will enjoy it even if you make a mess...really!
   Anyways, here is one of the 2 paintings from the open house...

28 x 22 inches, Acrylic on CanvasAvailable for sale or prints at Fineartamerica.com

Counting this as painting 11 of the 30 paintings in 30 days challenge, because I did finish it up today.
Also, it fits with this weeks theme, limited palette, but I did use 4 colors:  Capital Orange by Matisse (looks like a cad.red light) and Haymarket ( looks like an ochre yellow) also by Matisse.  These to are called background colors, because they are opaque and mat.  I love these paints because you can put down a lot of rich color quickly.  The other 2 colors were Golden's Ultramarine blue, and Holbein Aqua blue.
Happy painting
Mary

Painting and chatting, and two easels, hey I can multi-task :)

Three more colors...

"Green Perch"  Acrylic on watercolor paperAvailable at DPWs

Today was a very busy day, but did one more color theme this morning.  Today I used a very scary color; Phthalo Blue, it was Daniel Smith brand, but brand really does not matter, Phthalo is a strong staining color by any brand.  The other two colors were Hansa Yellow Deep, and Quinacridone Violet both Daniel Smith brand.  The yellow was a strong enough color to mix with Phthalo, but I was surprised that the violet as transparent as it was.  I also use white, but do not count that as a color, just a color adjuster.
Sparrows were hanging on the sunflower stems, in between fighting over seeds, so this was a fast little painting.  For some reason the birds were not very good models, may have been because my cat was also watching them.
   After getting my morning painting done, I spent the afternoon at the Flint Institute of Art for an open house,  painting of course :)  So, all in all, this busy day was a lot of fun.  I plan to share the open house paintings tomorrow.
Mary

Color theme

"Tools of the Trade",  Acrylic 14 x 11 inchesAVAILABLE AT DPWS

Today my three colors are:Ultramarine Blue (Golden brand), Nickel Titanate Yellow (Daniel Smith), and Quinacridone Coral (Daniel Smith).  Picked these three just because they are colors I like, pretty simple reason, but why not? Thought I would mention the brands because different brands of paint are a little different.  Yesterday the Viridian green I used was Liquitex and I think it is a little less blue than other brands.
When I am planning these "harmony paintings" I pick the colors but also decide on one color being a dominate color, in this case it was the blue.  Probably will do another but using a different one of the group as dominate.  Called this Tools of the Trade, wine and paint brushes, why not:)

Mary

Second week of 30 paintings in 30 days

Acrylic on watercolor paperAvailable at DPWs

    Starting a a new theme this week.  Got the idea for this week from Mary Maxam .
The last show Artists helping artists, had 50 tips and one of them was picking just 3 colors for painting, ( a limited palette) to create color harmony.  Love the idea and plan to pick 3 different colors each day this week to paint with.
  The focus this week is color.  I will be picking 2 or 3 colors and white and painting.  Today's colors are Viridain, Indian yellow, and Cadmium red light.

This should be a fun week.
Mary

End of the first week...

Available at DPWs

Last sunflower, loved working on these all week.   Monday a new theme, and it will be about color.
Happy painting to all the 30 in 30 artists out there!
Mary

Day 6

Acrylic on watercolor paper, matted to 14 x 11 inches"A Star is Bottled"

The sunflowers in my yard are starting to hang heavy.  Glad I started the challenge with the first week  using sunflowers as my theme, pretty soon they will be mainly seeds.  Of the 6 painted so far think this one is my favorite.
Mary

Day 5 of 30 paintings in 30 days

Definitely  a Sunflower week .....

Acrylic on watercolor paper, Matted to 14 x 11 inchesAvailable at DPWs

After spending the summer painting outside with oils, I am really enjoying revisiting acrylic painting again.   I am painting on an Arches 140 lb watercolor block.  The block gives it an extra strong surface to work on, and keeps the paper flat.  Watercolor paper is not just for watercolors:)

Mary
Schiros-art.com

Day 4 of 30 paintings in 30 days

Decided to go a little more abstract (just a bit) with my sunflower....

!4 x 11 inches, acrylic on watercolor paper.
Can not decide if I am having more fun painting the sunflower, or painting the glass:)
Mary
Schiros-art

Day 3

"Sun Burst"  Acrylic on watercolor paper,  DPWs Auction

Day 3 of the the 30 paintings in 30 days Sept. challenge.  Experimenting a bit with the leaf colors.  I noticed in the sun the leaves seem to have a light blueish cast, so wanted to add that to this still-life.
Mary

Day 2.....

Thought I would share a photo, so you all can see why I am painting sunflowers this week:)

If you would like to use this photo as a subject to paint please do.

Day two of the 30 in 30 challenge, I clipped off a couple fallen sunflowers and have then in the house to paint....

Acrylic on watercolor paper. Avaialbe at DPWs

First day of 30 in 30

"At the Edges", Encaustic on canvas panel, 8 x 8 inches
AVAILABLE AT DPWS

This is painted with a new brand of paint called Ceracolors, that are water-soluble beeswax-based paint.
I refer to them as encaustic, because they are wax and pigment, but differ in that, they do not need to be melted to paint with.  
Hope you enjoy this little view of my garden.  These flowers will be my focus for the first week of Thirty Paintings in Thirty Days.
Mary