Experimenting!

Uplifted   8x12 pastel    $125.

detail of marks and surface

As an artist, getting too comfy in your working ways leads to some ugly stuff--both artistically and mentally.    Add to it these very grey, cold days and yeah, I'm kinda grumpy.   But after a talk with a friend (hey you!) I decided it was time to do some experimenting.    

I love my subject matter, and love working in pastel.  So I changed how I was using the pastel and tried a different surface.   It left the finished painting more lively, with energy!   It also gave me an excuse to use some bright colors, which sure helped liven up such a dull afternoon. 

I used a hardboard and made my own surface preparation, gritty enough to hold layers of color; applied in such a way to leave some of this showing.   I love how some of the ochre surface shows thru the final piece.   I feel it adds energy and life!   It was also a lot of fun too!  

Sketching the winter away

ToostiePop   7x9 pastel   ready to frame $45.

One of my favorite things to do on an otherwise mundane evening is to go thru my reference photos.   As many others discover, that super scene you had to get a photo of falls flat in picture form.   And is why plein air is so great!    But, its been subzero and I ain't that tough!

   So I go thru them, fairly quickly.   If they are just another ho-hum average, they get deleted immediately.    If I cant' use them soon, no reason to hold onto a zillion photos I will never be able to find later.   Often its just a little part that I needed, i.e. a cloud that would be nice in a painting that's on the easel.   Keeping too many only clogs the works.    In the book Alla Prima, Richard Schmid suggests to use it immediately, so you can still feel the breeze, smell the air, etc.   Wait too long and its just another flat image.

I follow lots of blogs, one is from an artist I took a class from, Marla Baggetta.  (still using my notes from that one!  highly recommend!)  She had some book suggestions dealing with sketching, and I picked one that looked interesting.   And I'm really enjoying it!   Its not a how-to as much as a why....it showcases many artists with different styles, including Marla's, and what their thought processes are when sketching.  
 I dont' know many artists who don't mutter at times the need to sketch more, including myself.   Going quickly thru my photos, I make these super-fast thumbnail sketches in ballpoint pen.  (that's a Marla trick, and a good one)   Now I have a dozen or more ideas that are ready for me to get to work.   It sure beat watching more mindless tv too!