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Buttermilk Falls: #2
I bought the game Parks the other day, and was inspired by the artwork in the game. The cards contain images styled after the WPA posters for the National Parks that were created in the 1930’s. I was enamored by the designs and imagery, so I decided to try making something that fit into that […]
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Buttermilk Falls: #1
When I think about the past, everything is either polluted with a frenetic purple anxiety, or it’s a soft marigold mist of peaceful contentment. There doesn’t seem to be any in-between. I don’t know if this is peculiar to me, or if everyone has such a bipolar memory, but for me it seems all the […]
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Reflections in Water: #1
The other day, I watched Joseph Zbukvic’s “Rural France in Watercolor” for the thirsty-eleventh time. I figure it was more expensive than any other movie I’ve ever paid for, so I might as well watch it over and over and over… I decided to try his water lilly painting. It came out fairly nice, though […]
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Great Tree Off Cantongawa: #1
I am trying more and more now to find my voice. I look online and see paintings that I admire, and I find myself trying to paint like them. But, I don’t find much success with Joseph Zbukvic’s silvery greys. I am never restrained enough to implement Alvaro Castagnet’s flare of colors. I can’t get […]
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Depression: #1
I deal with chronic depression and anxiety. It’s a bitch. Recently, I decided I wanted to paint what I think it feels like. This is really hard to do, because depression feels different to me all the time. Sometimes, it feels like a wet slug on the back of my neck. Sometimes it feels like […]
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One Pigment Challenge: #1
I decided to challenge myself to paint something with just one pigment. If you want to join me, here’s the challenge: use one pigment, and one pigment only. That means the paint you choose must be a single pigment paint. You can use water, ox gall, masking fluid, whatever, but when you are finished there […]
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Market Heights: #1
Hey guys! I’m proud of a painting! I have been feeling pretty down about my paintings lately, because I’m not able to produce the paintings that I have in my mind. But… I keep moving. And tonight, the blind squirrel found a nut. Before I get into that, I guess I should show you the […]
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Back Yard: #1
I am regularly looking for something new to paint. When I want a new subject, it’s pretty common for me to get in the car, and drive out to look for something interesting. I end up in the rural areas around me, or at one of the reservoirs where I like to fish. The problem […]
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Master Study: Michal Jasiewicz, Part 2
I went into excruciating detail about my proposed process for recreating this painting by Michal Jasiewicz in the previous post. Today, I’ll explain how I took the lessons I learned from that exercise to try the painting a few more times, and experiment with different options. This was my first attempt. A few things I learned […]
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Master Study: Michal Jasiewicz – Part 1
A user on Reddit posted this image, asking how the artist (Michal Jasiewicz) achieved the effect on the distant cliffs. I am not sure how he accomplished it exactly, but I posted this as my best guess. I don’t know how they did it, but here’s what I would try. Forgive the over explanation, I […]
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Chickadee dee dee dee dee dee dee dee
I have always enjoyed watching birds. I’m not a “bird watcher” but I really do get a kick out of watching the greedy little bastards slobber at the bird feeder. I remember a field trip I went on as a kid. We went on a hike through the woods with a tour guide from the […]
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I’m Back
The holidays this year were really fun for me. I tend to be a bit of a homebody by default, so not having to go anywhere was actually pleasant for me. I really do miss everyone, and as much as I enjoy relaxing at home, I am sad that I didn’t get to see my […]
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Spiker Park Bridge: #1 & 2
I drive through a park on my way to drop off Norah at swim practice, and I pass the same park when I take Winne to dance class. After we cross a small bridge, I like to go straight where Rachel turns right. Every time I do, the girls tell me not to, because they […]
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Ray Hendershot Exercise-Stucco: #1
Continuing in my work through Ray Hendershot’s “Texture Techniques for Winning Watercolors” I worked on the Stucco Wall exercise yesterday. This exercise focused on using splatters of masking fluid, and splatters of pigment to create texture. I’ve used these particular techniques before, so I was pleasantly surprised to see how strongly these added to the […]
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Ray Hendershot Exercise, Fieldstone Building: #1
Yet another successful painting from Ray Hendershot’s “Texture Techniques for Winning Watercolors.” I was getting really down on myself recently because the paintings I was making were all turning out muddy and gross. This exercise helped me learn patience. The more I paint through this book, the more I learn about how to rely on […]
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Ray Hendershot Exercise, Clapboard Siding: #1
This weekend I decided I would take my own advice, and paint from the book. I decided to paint from one of the books that I have because trying to learn from my own failures has been pretty discouraging. I’m only about a quarter of the way through Ray Hendershot’s “Texture Techniques for Winning Watercolors” […]
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Datura Innoxia: #2
I have been painting. But I’ve been exceptionally bad at it lately. Out of the dozen or so paintings I have made in the past week or two, I have one that’s not sitting next to the firewood outside. (Watercolor paper makes a great fire starter by the way.) I’ll show you what I mean, […]
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Poplars at An Imagined Stream: #1
I have long been inspired by seeing Van Gogh’s “The Poplars at Saint-Rémy.” When you see photos of this painting, it looks almost drab, and lifeless. I don’t know if the Cleveland Museum of Art recently had it restored, or if the photos just simply can’t do it justice, but the painting in real life […]
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Nimisila C-6: #22
I know, I know… be done with it already. The thing is… I went to the store today looking for a frame for painting 21. It turns out, they are having a big sale on custom framing. So I decided I would get a custom frame made for it. But the problem is, I don’t […]
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TRuth Bader Ginsburg RIP
I was deeply saddened to hear that Ruth Bader Ginsburg passed away recently. My whole family celebrates RBG, we regularly play “I Dissent” an RBG-themed board game. We have a children’s book biography of her life that we have read several times. My youngest daughter even went as RBG for Halloween. I am deeply grateful […]
