OPA National Exhibition

I am pleased to announce that my painting, Country Morning, was accepted into the 20th Annual National Juried Exhibition of Traditional Oils for Oil Painters of America.  The exhibit will be held at the Devin Galleries in Coeurd d' Alene, Idaho, June 10 - July 9, 2011.  I'm not sure that I will be able to attend the opening but for anybody who can attend, it is worth the trip.  In the past approximately 2,000 entries are viewed and juried for a national show and this year only about 170 were accepted.  I am deeply honored to be one of the few. For all my local friends, please come to the DeLand Art Fesitival and enjoy not only the art but the beautiful 80's weather.

Beginnings

   









 
                         After transferring the initial drawing onto canvas, I decided to execute the image of a white porcelain vase and a deep ruby red strawberry into values of gray--a grisaille.  The white vase was fairly straight forward but the strawberry was a different matter.  The bright green translucent leaves made me really compare the different areas to a gray scale that I borrowed from my husband's photography paraphernalia.  The shape of the vase looks off but it's because I shot the image on an angle to reduce the glare.  The exercise was powerful and I will use it with my students.  Try creating your own complete gray scale under-painting.  Then tell me all about YOUR experience.  I would really like to know what you found. If you E-mail me a photo of your grisaille, I will post it here with your credit line.  Comments are open and welcomed!

More Beginnings

I feel like I dropped the topic of the different techniques that artists use to begin a painting without writing about the indirect method.  It takes many forms but has one thing in common.  It is done in layers and stages so as to deal with each challenge separately. Most indirect painters begin with a drawing, either directly on the canvas or on a sheet of paper then transferred onto canvas.  After fixing the image, thin layers are applied and allowed to dry before another layer is applied.  This is a simplified explanation.  If you would like more details, there are many sites that demo this type of beginning.  I am attaching a sample from Sadie Valeri' s blog of a painting done in this method.  Her work is magnificent and she is truly a talented artist.