Tuesday, August 23, 2016

"Fair Friends" oil 8 x 8


Every year, I do a painting demo at the Marshfield Fair.  You can find me on the first Sunday hanging out upstairs in the main building.  The juxtaposition of inside and outside is always intriguing for me.  I chat away with children and adults.  The room is visually stimulating with beautiful quilts hanging from the rafters and a wide variety of handmade arts and crafts entered by the public. Check the Fair website for entry categories and dates in the exhibitor handbook each year.  
To the left, you can see how I blocked in this painting, with one dark and warm shape for the inside, and a cool yellow light shape for the outside space, along with the indication of some people in the doorway.  I may get back there this week for another painting day.. hope so.
 

Sunday, August 21, 2016

Collage - Make it Personal 10 x 10


 My very talented friend, Laura, took the plunge and opened her own shop a few months ago.  It is my "go to" destination for gifts, and recently a group of us joined Laura for a "make and take".  She runs two-hour classes in her shop studio.  We learned, laughed, exercised our creative selves, and came away with beautiful, personal collages. Laura has tons of material, and I brought a few things of my own to add. Must say, I almost swooned when I found ruler masking tape in her bins of supplies.  Here's her web site, Haven: Little Shop of Laura's.  You can schedule time in Laura's studio with a group up to 5, or she'll come to you for a larger gathering. She offers several different projects.  Trying to decide which one to do next....  

Friday, August 05, 2016

Monhegan Sketchbook "Christmas Cove"






Every year when I visit Monhegan, I spend some time down on the southern end of the island sitting on the rocks, surrounded by the sound of waves, wind, birds.  There is a peace and solitude to the spot I visit every year.  I went later in the day than usual, sat with my sketchbook and handed myself over to the rhythm.  
On the way back up the hill I built a cairn with a pair of island friends in mind.  I pray they can find their way back.

Thursday, August 04, 2016

Monhegan Sketchbook - August 4, 2016 "Views from the Deck"


Another glorious week up here on Monhegan Island; highlights include seeing the Aurora Borealis two nights in a row above the tree line looking north; a wonderful breeze every day so although it's warm in the sun, there is respite in the shade everywhere; a week with great friends filled with good conversation, good food, new card games, and the usual sensory joy.  Here are some sketches of the various views from the deck of the house where we stay.  Yesterday, I sketched to the sounds of trumpet practice filtering up from the village below.  

This has been a week of mixed feelings; relaxation, joy, wonder, and thankfulness contrasted with news that local friends of ours are facing a mighty struggle.  Concentrate your energies and prayers on a positive outcome for them during this time of transition, and excuse my intentional and necessary vagueness.  
Thank you for looking.  Thank you for your thoughts for our friends.

Monday, August 01, 2016

"Daisy Patch" oil 12 x 9




The theme for this month's Girls Just Wanna Paint challenge was "daisy".  I found a cool little patch of daisies nearby, and was just as interested in the depth of blue greens between and around the flowers themselves.  I decided to paint over an old still life study from years ago, thinking the underlying reds and oranges would work well with harmony of the daisies in the patch.

Here's the still life, to the left, placed vertically in my easel.  I began by blocking in the flowers in an arrangement that looked appealing, asymmetrical, yet balanced.  I added some stems, some stems to nowhere, and a few buds for balance.  After the stems and leaves were added, I completed the background with a variety of blues and greens, leaving some of the warmth of the original painting, which implies the warm dark spaces beneath the flowers where the sky can't reach.  

Check out the rest of the Girls Just Wanna Paint images for the month here.  Thanks for looking.

"Above Swim Beach" Monhegan Sketchbook 9 x 12

 Yesterday I perched in one of my favorite spots along the rocks above Swim Beach here on Monhegan.  There's a great space, nestled in the rocks with just the right surfaces for sitting, leaning, and laying out a small watercolor setup.  I always wanted a window seat in my bedroom as a girl; this has a lot of those same qualities; comfy, snug, good light, a view, and just remote enough to know what's happening nearby without being in the midst of it.  
And, I watched a gull through its entire "I snagged a crab, and this is how I eat it" routine; a few jab it-drop it-grab it-repeat cycles until the crab stopped wiggling; devour the inside; then eat the shell and claws in small chunks by crunching them up and swallowing them.  So interesting.  I really thought the gull would eat the tender innards.  (Definitely the first time I have used the word "innards" in a blog post; can't promise it will be the last).  
I added a couple of photos here of my sketch without watercolor and the finished piece with the subject in the distance.  
Another great afternoon.  Thanks for looking.