Wednesday, November 26, 2014

Happy Thanksgiving! (Plus, Plots and Plans)

"Persimmon on Purple"
8 x 8 inches, oil on canvas
Sold

Happy Happy Thanksgiving to all of you! I've been TBB (too busy to blog) for weeks - ok, ok, no I haven't, I've been TLB (the L is for Lazy...)
but I shouldn't be so hard on myself! 
...Right?

In fact, I've been busy plotting and planning.... First, a holiday open studio and sale, next weekend, December 6th. It's going to be at my best friend Gabriella's gorgeous studio (if you don't want to catch Studio Envy, consider staying away). We have a diverse group of artists, with ceramics, prints, paintings, handmade books, and even garden art. Snacks, drinks, deals, discounts (hint: on my table, there will be a $20 and under box). You should come. Here are the details.


I've also created - and updated - a new section of this blog: Workshops! Click the workshop tab at the top of the page, or (if you're reading this in your email - and I don't blame ya) just click here to see a list of my upcoming workshops and painting demonstrations.

2015, anyone?!?

Tuesday, November 11, 2014

Putting the 'Work' in Workshop!

 
 "Heavy Eyelids"
10 x 8 inches, oil on canvas, Zorn palette

I had a great three-day weekend, but I wasn't relaxing! Neither were the five intrepid students in my Zorn Palette Portrait workshop at Oregon Art Supply.

We painted from a different live model every day, doing 30 minute sketches, 1 hour studies, and 3+ hour paintings too. I can't say enough about the effort - and the improvement - these ladies showed. Check them (and their incredible paintings) out!


Below are my demos from the weekend. The center image was a 30-minute sketch, and the ones on either side took about two hours each.

One of my favorite things about teaching is how inspired I feel after a workshop - inspired to paint, inspired to teach more - exhausted and energized at the same time. 

The next session of Zorn Palette Portrait will be January 10-12th, 2015. Click the Workshop tab above for more info! 

Friday, November 7, 2014

Figure Painting, Figure Drawing

 "Maya, Nude"
14 x 11 inches, oil on canvas

Here is my figure painting from Tuesday night - my first time painting this lovely model. She'll also be modelling for my Zorn Palette Portrait workshop, which begins tomorrow. I know the students will love her calm, serious face as much as I did.

This will be my second time teaching Zorn Palette at Oregon Art Supply. (Here's my post about September's session.) I'm hoping to do it again in January, and the workshop is limited to five students - so if you think you'd like to join me, call today to reserve a spot! 541-683-2787.


 In other news: my sketchbook got some action this week! (Must be a full moon or something). Here's a 20 minute drawing:

 

Sunday, November 2, 2014

One More Coastal Still Life:

 "Tea by the Sea"
8 x 8 inches, oil on canvas
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This piece ends my week of coastal still lives. I loved immersing myself in the natural light of the beautiful studio I rented in Toledo. It's so incredible to take yourself out of your natural habitat once in a while. 

Here are all of the paintings I brought home:

Saturday, November 1, 2014

I Planned on Painting Fish....

 "Louis (the Fish)"
11 x 14 inches, oil on canvas
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Well, I thought it would be a no-brainer. Oregon coast...fishing boats everywhere....I should paint some fish, right?! Turns out, it's harder to procure a whole fish, on the coast, than I thought. 

Since I didn't arrive prepared to catch my own, there wasn't much available that wasn't filleted. I did have an interesting encounter with an enormous tuna in a walk-in freezer on highway 101 just south of Newport, but I balked at buying - mostly because that fish was large. Damn large.

I hate to tell you this, but I bought this sad little guy at Safeway. He's a Tilapia.


He gets his name from a favorite childrens book of mine, Louis the Fish

And here's a work-in-progress: