Fall is coming!

We are having our first Fall weather day today.  So I thought I would post this Sycamore tree leaf that I found floating in a stream.  I just love Sycamore trees.  They are so beautiful year round.

A New Week

Last week ended on a disappointing note for me but I've had a really wonderful weekend and I'm ready to start anew.  I took two paintings in to the State Fair competition.  I know there isn't a lot of payoff in that but I really need to get more comfortable with competing.  My husband purchased a daily sketchbook for me at the art museum.  I'm already enjoying it.  I had forgotten the pure pleasure in the quick imperfect sketch.  Not that perfection is ever something I have to worry about, it is definitely freeing to not worry about what someone else is going to think of it.

Today I'm pulling out one of the older drawings.  I look back at some of them and wonder how I had the nerve to keep going.  But then I look at others and say, yeah, that's why I kept going.

I tried and tried to get this lion to wake up so I could get an upright photo of him.  He insisted on his cat nap and so that's how I painted him.

A little Whine with that Cheese?

Now I'm going to whine about what I'm cheesed off about.  It's hard sometimes to take critique, especially when you've worked so hard on something.  It's easier to take it when you feel that there is no malice and that it is well intended.  Like the critique I got here on the worker piece.  I got good advice and I took it.  Then I took the piece to class for critique and grade.

Everyone of my classmates made really good comments about it and then the teacher asked... Does anyone see anything wrong with it?  Fair question, right?  Long silence, no one wanted to say anything.  Again fair enough, be kind.  When the silence continued, the teacher said, "Come on, out with it, Kate really wants to hear what else you have to say."  Now I'm starting to think that's not so nice.  But still no one said anything.  Finally, she turned to me and said, "I know I told you not to do too much detail in the face but you really should have taken some close up shots and done more detail in the face."

Am I wrong in feeling a little sting with that?  Anyway, that's my cheese and my whine.  Again, thank you to everyone who critiqued on here and gave me really wonderful advice that helped me produce a piece that wow'd everyone except my teacher.  I have no intention of letting a little snarkiness get in the way of my goals.

Art Project revised

So here he is again, I didn't make his head actually bigger.  I made his chin a little bigger and made his collar and shoulder bump smaller.

First Major Art Project of this Semester

I haven't posted in about a week but I finally got this project near finished.  It's a good thing too since it is due on Thursday.  Now I can sit back and look at it for a little while and think about what needs to be tweaked.

Critiques and comments are welcome but be fast about it so I can fix it before I turn it in! 

Prayers are answered!

I was whining last time about missing color and wouldn't you know it?  From my lips to God's ears!  Yesterday the art teacher said we could bring a dry color medium and good paper to class and do something new!  My pastel box is going to get to travel.  Yay me!

I love drawing children on the beach.  I call this one Isaac because it reminds me of a quote by Isaac Newton.  “I was like a boy playing on the sea-shore, and diverting myself now and then finding a smoother pebble or a prettier shell than ordinary, whilst the great ocean of truth lay all undiscovered before me.”

Have a blessed day!

I Miss Color

In my drawing classes, so far we are using colored Canson Mi Tientes and charcoal and white.  I sure miss color.  It's easy to say, well just do color at home but my lame excuse is, by the time I do my school work and housework, I don't have time to do color. 

So today I'm posting a past experiment with oil pastels.  This is on standard Strathmore Pastel paper.  I love the rich colors and the ease it went onto the paper.  The blending was so easy and it was still easy to come back and put unblended highlights on top.  I'll be doing more with it when I have more time, when I can prioritize it and make more time.  I love experimenting with new mediums and papers.  I want to try it all!

I need to say a word about photo resources.  The photo resource for this painting came from www.wetcanvas.com.  If you don't know about them, they are a great resource for peer input, lessons, advice and critique, not to mention photos submitted by other artists for your free use.  Of course, some are free-r than others in that they won't mind if you sell the work and others just want you to use their photos for practice.  It's always good practice to respect someone else's copyright and give credit where it's due.