Back in Blue

Hello Blog. Remember me? I used to post here about my art. Then a funny thing happened. I started doing even more art and didn't take the time to blog. But now I'm back, at least for the moment. I'm still doing art, but the pace has slowed a bit as I'm in the midst of my academic year as a teacher and have less time for fun.

I'm taking Carla Sonheim's 2016 year long class, Y is for Yellow to help me stay inspired and motivated. Each lesson has a different theme beginning with a letter of the alphabet. For 'B' we painted in the style of Picasso's Blue Period using layers of watercolor and gel medium.  I haven't done much of this type of study and found it to be a wonderful exercise.

"Contemplative Woman in Blue" after Picasso

My version of Picasso's Mother and Child 1901

And my favorite painting from my blue period is this original portrait I did of my great great grandmother.

It feels good to back. I hope to post more soon. 

Growing Stronger, Updated

This is a piece I've been working for awhile. I started it in January and let it sit for awhile. To see what it looked like then, go here. The more I looked at her, the more I wanted to add more color. I love using the watercolor over gesso technique, but sometimes I want more color. I felt like I was putting her makeup on this morning as I dabbed some pan pastel color here and there! She may be done, or maybe not. I don't seem to be in a hurry with this one at all.

Thanks so much for visiting my blog today. I always appreciate your comments.

I'm linking this with the 29 Faces Challenge . Check it out to see some fabulous work from artists all around the world.

Pretty in Pastel

Here is another face drawn first with chalk pastel, then going in with pencil to add some detail. I really love the softness of the pastel. I'm right on schedule with the 29 Faces Challenge so far! Go take a look at some of the beautiful work being done in this challenge, or maybe even join in yourself!

Thanks so much for visiting!!

Ink Dropper Faces - Vintage Ladies

 I looked online for vintage ladies to draw this set of ink dropper sketches. Their elaborate hairstlyles and accessories are so fun to draw! This method of drawing can be challenging because it is hard to control what happens with the blobs of ink in the process. There are elements in each drawing that I'm happy with, and other areas that I like less, but I do love the dramatic quality of ink. 

Faces in Pastel

Even though I didn't really have time for it, I couldn't resist signing up for Carla Sonheim's Faces 101 Class during the last week in January. Carla's approach to teaching drawing is so creative and fun. One technique from the class I'm really enjoying is drawing with pastel, using an eraser to draw. Here is one effort done in pan pastel on black paper. 

I'd never worked with pan pastels before and I've discovered that I really enjoy drawing with them!
The next two were done using chalk pastels, along with a bit of pencil sketching to add some definition and detail.

Most of the drawing for these faces is done with your finger, then using eraser to "draw" and create highlights, as a face gradually emerges. I'd drawn with pastel before, but never felt comfortable with it and honestly thought I didn't like it. But now I know better! Even though my faces seem gloomy, I'm feeling happy inside to draw this way.

Thanks for visiting! I'm linking this to the 29 Faces Challenge hosted by Ayala Art.

Growing Stronger - Work in Progress

Another year has started, and I feel that I am getting closer to figuring out what I really want to do in my art. Over the past two years, I've been like a sponge, absorbing and learning all I can about mixed media and collage, as well as striving for a more abstract style in my work. I'm more confident about drawing again and finding ways to integrate drawing into my mixed media pieces. Drawing brings my process to the forefront, exposing all of the messy twists and turns of the process, giving an  expressive quality and depth that I like. The imperfections are interesting visually to me. I love creating a sense of mystery in my work, leaving at least part of the meaning up to the imagination of the viewer. I've been working on my painting, too, and find that sooner or later, I come back to watercolor. I'm using watercolor over gesso in this piece, along with collage.

For all of the reasons, I feel I am growing stronger as an artist, and that feels really good!

Face #20: Resist

Have you tried using a resist yet? Ayala asked this in a post on Facebook today, which reminded me that I hadn't tried using a resist. So thanks to Ayala for suggesting this. I love using crayon resists with watercolor. It's like magic when you paint over the crayon and the lines appear. I did use a reference for this face, which I am finding very helpful, even if I am not striving for realism or an exact likeness. As I worked on this face, I added shading and details with pencil and marker. The leaf shapes were an unexpected bonus in her hair that I couldn't, um, resist.  

Face #19: Pretty in Pastel?

I'll be honest -- this is not my favorite face that I've done this month, but here she is, #19. I used pastels, which I don't normally use to try something different. I was trying to do an abstract face and ended up with this sort of stylized face instead. I wouldn't mind it being a stylized face if that is what I was trying to do. Even so, I'm glad I experimented with something new. There is always value in the process, no matter how the product ends up. I actually cut her face out because I didn't like the right side at all. Then I put her on one of my new place mats to take her picture because it seemed to go nicely with the rest of the composition.

Face #18: Doe-eyed Abstract

Another attempt at an abstract face -- this one is a mixed media sketch in my sketchbook, beginning with ball point pen, then adding a bit of pencil, charcoal, and colored pencil. I kinda like her!

Ipad Portraits

Faces 15, 16, and 17 are sketches I did on my Ipad using the app, Paper by 53. I use stylus, but it's also possible to sketch just using your finger on the screen. It's a fun way to get some sketching in, especially if you're on the go and don't want to carry your art supplies with you.

Face #14: Abstract Portrait

 Realistic faces are not easy to do well, nor are abstract faces for that matter! I really want to be able to do abstract faces. I'm not sure why. It's just what I want to do. So here is an attempt at an abstract face. I used a thick sharpie to outline shapes and then began painting, first with watercolor, then before I knew it, the acrylics were out again. I was keeping in mind the concept of suggesting dialog by having two figures in the painting as I learned in Diane Culhane's excellent between speech and silence class, hence the bird. I added a bit of collage again at the end, because I love collage, especially bits of text like this. I love languages, reading, poetry, and words, so I enjoy having bits of text in my pieces that give some interesting visual texture and hopefully create a bit of mystery as well.

Face #12 -- a pencil sketch

This is a pencil study, done in my sketchbook tonight after I decided that I need to do more serious practice of faces. I've been leaning toward abstraction and whimsy in my artwork recently, but I think that studying a face this way in pencil can help me draw abstract faces more convincingly as well. And I'm pretty happy with this face. I worked really hard to get the shape of the face right, and to get some shading that helped to add some dimension.

White-faced woman -- mixed media portrait

I've been participating in Ayala Art's 29 Faces Challenge this month. At this point, I am quite sure I will not make it to 29 faces this month. This is face #11. I drew and painted, drew and painted, ending up with a rather crazy, or shall we say expressionist palette. I am still finding my way with acrylics, alternately loving then hating them, but hopefully getting better as I practice more. Today's painting session was very enjoyable. I opened up my container of little collage scraps and found some fun pieces to add for some additional interest and fun.

Thanks so much for visiting my blog! 

Face #10: Mixed Media Portrait

This is a mixed media portrait on a wood panel that I started recently. I'm experimenting with drawing and acrylic together in this piece. So far, I'm happy with the lines, collage, and colors, but less happy with her face. The nose is better than some I've done, but her eyes aren't matching so I want to go back in and work on them some more. 

Sketching Fun

This sketch for Face #9 almost counts as two faces, doesn't it? I was playing around in my sketchbook with line at first, then adding facial features at different angles along with a bit of shading. I might go back in and work on creating layers...or not. It is just a sketch, after all. But spending time practicing sketching individual features looks like something I should do more often.

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Gel plate + Gel pen = Face #8

This is my face #8 for the 29 Faces Challenge and I have to say that I really like it! I did this one last summer on an index card. I was playing around with my gel plate, paint and a spray bottle. The textures turned out great. After it dried, I saw a face, just waiting for a few simple lines to bring it to life. My white gel pen turned out to be just right over the darker background. 

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Twilight Smile -- mixed media portrait

Twilight Smile
mixed media on paper
9" x 12"

  

This is one of the faces I painted for the 29 faces challenge (Face 7).  My obsession in this painting was creating layers - layers of stenciling, collage, stamping, washes until I was ready to draw a face. I did use a reference as I drew this woman, but I didn't worry too much about getting an exact likeness. I've doodled faces for most of my life, but I find that sometimes looking at real faces when I draw really helps me with getting the details and expression right. This woman's crooked half smile really appealed to me!

I'm also sharing this with Paint Party Friday.  Check it out to see some wonderful art and join in the fun. Thanks so much for visiting!!!

29 Faces 2013 -- 4, 5, 6

I'm playing catch-up in the 29 Faces Challenge again with some faces I did earlier in the year, January to be exact. These two faces all started with a journal I decided to make for myself at the beginning of the year, following a quest theme.

Since quests were big in medieval times, I found this lovely portrait of Eleonora of Toledo done by the artist Italian artist Agnolo di Cosimo in 1545 for the cover. I kept looking at her face and decided to sketch using Carla Sonheim's version of a Klee Transfer painting. In this method, you put a piece of carbon paper down on your paper, and draw blindly. The goal isn't a realistic drawing, but hopefully an interesting drawing. After doing the first carbon drawing, I added some color. 

She certainly looks much different than the original! I like parts of this drawing, but I hate that her nose is so long and her chin so small. Still, it was fun to play. After this one, I decided to try another one on a prepared background in my journal. Here is what the blind carbon sketch looks like before painting.

It's actually quite interesting how similar this drawing is to my first one, and how they both are so different from the original reference. But I like the proportions better in this one. Noses are just so hard, but I will keep trying!

After this step, I added some paint and pencil.

And here she is, Eleonora for the new millennium -- older and wiser, still pensive and serious, with perhaps a bit of attitude.

Thanks for visiting!

Another Face

Here is face #22; a little behind, and a little blue, but I am determined to finish my 29 faces. This one started as an eyedropper face on a sketchbook page I'd already sponged some blue paint on. I decided to go back in with charcoal and work for a realistic look. It's been years since I've worked much in charcoal, and it feels really great to be be using it again!

Mixed Media Face: Glimmer of a Smile

It's my birthday today, so I'm celebrating with Face #20. I'm all caught up at the moment. Hooray! So anyway, this is a mixed media face. Although I've been exploring mixed media over the past year, I've I've been resisting this style for some reason. One reason is that I feel it's a bit trendy, and I don't want to do something just because of that. I want to stay true to my own voice in my work. But probably the main reason is that I've been a little timid about using my own drawing in my work. When I studied art long ago, I was quite good at drawing, but then for many years, I didn't keep up with it. I never appreciated the value of consistent practice over time. When I started doing art seriously again, I realized that my drawing wasn't as good as I wanted it to be, and I was shy about putting in my artwork. It's been a great year, though here I am, with a glimmer of a smile, happy to feel I've been making progress.

(Friday 9/28 update -- I posted this last week for Ayala's 29 Faces project but I'm also sharing today with the wonderful artists at Paint Party Friday.)