Almost Too Much To Write About

Last night, after spending the day in the studio, we went to the second "Meet The Artists Night" at Artomatic. Dennis was there, and we had a fairly good flow of folks wandering in and out of our space for a couple of hours. I was surprised by the comments. Some people were actually there because they admired our work from a previous visit, and wanted to say hello! I felt somewhat awkward and embarrassed and ended up babbling my head off, but we met a lot of interesting people and I got a photo of a beautiful 9-year old girl to use in the America series.

Two women artists from another corner of the 9th floor stopped by. They're working on a Drawing A Day project, and one of them, Nancy Snyder, was wearing a dress made from fabric printed with one of the drawings. The other artist is Crystal Parmele. Here's Nancy:

 Also on the 9th floor, some great whimsical sculptures by Sheila Godlock. I love these!

During an early lull in the action, I took photos of some of the comments in my guest book. Here's one page—

I can't get away from the Edward Hopper reference! I hear it all the time. Hopper was never one of my art heroes, and when there was an exhibition of his work at the East Wing several years ago, we went out of curiosity and I couldn't believe how dissimilar his work was from mine. Yet I hear it again and again— "Edward Hopper"!  :-)

So after the event, I took some reference photos of the Evening Star Restaurant in Del Ray, something I've been trying to do for over a year. This is for a series I plan to get back to once the show is hung— It's the Saturday Night series, the first one of which is J.P. Licks (now hanging in Gallery B in Bethesda). We also had a terrific dinner and even went for dessert.

Today I worked on 5 paintings, but panic is beginning to set in. Robert is nearly done, but now I think there are 9 that need a considerable amount of work. I should just chain myself to the easel, and have my husband bring meals down to me.

All That's Left Are The Sleeves

Oh, and a button. I completely missed the fact that there's a button placket.  Today's work:

Robert, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Last night I worked on this one, but eventually had to stop because I smeared the left side when I went to pick it up. So now I have to re-do the truck fender. But it's looking more finished every time.

Pershing Square, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

More Verticals

I put in a few more vertical lines this morning, meanwhile berating myself for not having thought of using the ruling pen (a practically obsolete graphic design tool) to draw the lines in. They would have been much more precise. Too late now! Anyway, I have to let this one dry for a while and then I'll go in and do the shading on the wall below the little electrical box.

Rita's, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

I've finished the plaid pattern on Robert's collar and cuffs, and put in a few details on the beard. And worked on the left side, where the sleeve meets the body. I would like to finish it today, but that's doubtful.

Finished!--- I Think---

I put the finishing touches on the Dance Floor painting this afternoon. Am now one step closer to getting everything done by the May deadline.

Everyone Is On The Dance Floor, © 2017 (click on image for larger view)

And I started those vertical lines on the side of the Rita's building. The thought of doing them has been weighing on me for a long time. And they take a long time. The brush— a very nice size #1 Winsor and Newton University round— has a good point, but of course the pressure from my hand increases as I lay down the fine lines, so I have to go back over their edges with a clean wet brush point to thin out the places that are too thick.

Rita's, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Closing In On Robert

A little more smoothing out on the right side hand, finishing the sleeves, the plaid pattern on the shirt, and the collar, and this one will be done. My cat has been driving me crazy by sitting right in back of me as I work and meowing piteously; it seems he doesn't mind my working in the big bright room upstairs, so I've moved four of the smaller paintings up here. Once he settles into his afternoon nap, I'll sneak back downstairs to work on Robert and Everyone Is On The Dance Floor.

Robert, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view) 

Pershing Square, and Another American

So after a break, I concentrated on the left side of Pershing Square, the street part just outside of the underpass. That left side is almost done.

Pershing Square, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Then I took a tour of the studio and the other room where I've placed everything that's going into the show. There are several paintings that I'm confident will be done in time for the show: Robert, the Dance Floor painting, On The Way, Reception From 5-9, and Whole Foods. That leaves 8 or 9 paintings that need some, or a lot, of work. I've got four more work days in April, and then 3 weeks in May.

Meanwhile, I continue to work on the America series in my (haha) spare time in the evenings. This young lady was a visitor at the Artomatic "Meet The Artists" night event, and she was such an amazing representation of the freedom of the American woman (complete with natural hair and a bottle of beer in her hand— the 9th floor at Artomatic, where Dennis and I have our room, is not far from the bar, and half our visitors were drinking beer that night) that I had to paint her. I think she's just perfect.

Veronica, © 2017, (America series) work in progress

More work on the schedule for tonight, mostly taping off blocks of tiles and painting nice clean edges on
Protective Coloration.

One Down, Thirteen To Go

If I want to get all of these paintings finished by the third week in May, I have to get to it. This morning I  reworked those three areas on Conversation that I've mentioned in an earlier post, and though I am already beginning to think I could improve them even more, it's time to move on. Conversation is in a good place now, and if I really want to, and have the time before the show, I can come back to it.

Conversation, © 2017, (click on image for larger view)

Then I moved on to this one: finally sketched in the images in the mirror (my own head, and the camera with which I'm taking the reference photo, plus the painting "Shadow Study" on the opposite wall), then put in the plate of lemons in the foreground and worked a bit on the pearl necklace. There's still some work to be done, but at least I'm withing hailing distance of finishing.

Reception From 5-9, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Fixing Past Mistakes

Well, not so much mistakes as areas I thought I could do a better job on... The three figures in Conversation have always bothered me. The woman's arm just looked wrong; the hand on the man on the left always strikes me as having more fingers than it should (though it doesn't), and the waiter in the background should have the folds and shadows on his shirt finished in a more believable way.

This morning I redrew the arm holding the cell phone. It's not done yet, but at least it looks better. I think originally the arm was just too long. Sorry for the glare— it's another dank dismal day and I had to go with the room lighting.

 Conversation, © 2017, detail, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Next I refined the details on the camera— but now it looks like the lens is coming out of the camera body on an angle! This is what happens when I listen to the news while painting.

Coffee With Andi, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

I worked on this one, as well. And again, one of the limbs was drawn too long, in this case, the leg.

He Knew Better Than To Keep Her Waiting, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Showers In The Evening

That's the forecast for the next two nights. Today was murky, dark, dank, dismal, and generally miserable.

More right side work on this one:

Coffee With Andi © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

And then the problem of the background on this painting:

 Everyone Is On The Dance Floor, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)



 I was advised to bring the background figures up out of the darkness a little, but all I did was screw it up. Right after taking this photo I scrubbed out most of what I'd done. I did adjust the tablecloth color to some satisfaction, though, and will leave that alone. And I fixed the handle on the mug.

Scary Little Letters

I've been avoiding the issue of painting the tiny little letters on the Rita's sign, partly because that Blue Black background is drying v-e-r-y slowly, but mostly because I'm terrified of screwing it up. However, the date for the show is looming, so this morning I just went for it, measuring out the x-height of the letterforms and drawing in 5mm-spaced guidelines. It seems to have worked out okay so far, I need to go back in again after the letters dry and sharpen them up.

Rita's, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Meanwhile, one of those assertive mixing cups on the counter had to come out:

Bartending, Mt. Washington, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

And, I got a bit further on this one this morning:

Fashion Forward, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Now, time for a break.

Weekend Reflections

Every now and then something unexpected happens to throw me off track. In this case, it was an email from a former neighbor, telling me how saddened he was by the death of my neighbor across the street (a nice man who always treated me as though I was smart enough to understand what he was talking about in our conversations in his driveway), SIX MONTHS AGO. I had no idea. I wondered why I hadn't seen him, but it was the cold weather season and I figured he was traveling for work, as he was usually doing.

Anyway, that took the wind out of my sails, so to speak. Things are depressing enough in the Age of Trump. I've had troubled dreams for the past two nights; one involving a man I used to work with who died of a heart attack after an unusually stressful work day years ago. But I did get back into the studio late this afternoon to work on Fashion Forward, and mostly on the reflections on the right side.

Fashion Forward, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Coffee With A Friend

I took some time off this morning to meet an artist friend at a coffee shop in town. I hadn't seen her for several months, since she's been out of the state, and it was really good to be able to talk with another woman artist about all things painting. But then it was time to get back to work.

This one is another that I've resuscitated from the painting graveyard where it's been languishing for a while. I like the contrast between the grubbily dressed guy and the mannequin in the store window who seems distressed at the guy's attire. It needs a lot of street reflections on the far right side, but I made some progress this afternoon.

Fashion Forward, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Now, this next one, though— I just cannot get a handle on it. The reference photo is blurry (well, it is a scene in a bar) but I liked that about it, originally, and thought I could do something energetic-looking, in a looser style. That's always been my downfall. So I am struggling with it and who knows whether it'll eventually work.

Bartending, Baltimore, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Bartending, Mt. Washington

This is another one that I haven't worked on for a while. I took out the can of pineapple juice that had been on the left, clarified the martinis, and evened out the counter.

Bartending, Mt. Washington, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Something I Haven't Worked On In A Year

Aside from the panic about having the paintings done in time for the upcoming show, there is the satisfaction of knowing that I'll finally finish some of the pieces that have been gathering cobwebs. Case in point, the painting below, which always produces feelings of fear whenever I look at it. So I end up avoiding it. This morning I had to just buckle down and concentrate on the figure, and now I feel relieved that it's finally moving forward.

He Knew Better Than To Keep Her Waiting, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Also went back to this one to continue working on the hands and sleeves.

Robert, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Now it is time to take a break from painting and look into marketing for the show.

More Work

It's now a little after 7 p.m., and I'm finally ready to just put my feet up and relax. I've got a small restaurant interior propped up against the wall across the room, just begging to be worked on, but fortunately it's too wet to handle.

More on Robert: put in some folds on the arm on the right side.

Robert, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Here's the last painting of the day.

Pershing Square, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Robert's Hand

...still needs work, but it's moving apace.

Robert, (detail) © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Buckling Down

Well, the terror of not having all the pieces ready for the show has set in, so I've hit the ground running, as they say, this morning in the studio. I worked on four pieces before noon. My gallery owner came to the studio yesterday and looked at the pieces I have available, some old and some new work, and decided on something like 22 of them. Fourteen need work! So—

Rita's, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

I am dismayed that it looks blotchy in this photo; in real life the transitions look smoother.  Once I get the vertical lines in on the building, and put in the street lights and signs in the background, it will be much better. BUT— then there's that type on the signage!

Whole Foods, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Took care of some of those sloppily painted vertical lines that define the windows. And a little figure work on the right side panels.

Reception From 5-9, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Berries— added lots more berries. They need highlights to make them look round, but I wanted to get them in as clusters on the branches so they wouldn't look so artificially placed. Still need to define that plate of lemon slices in the foreground.

On The Way, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

I've NEVER been happy with the way the clouds looked in this one, so have obliterated them and started over. It's better already.

Taking a break now for a bite to eat, then it's back to work.

Atmospheric Perspective

One age-old rule of realist painting is that as things recede into the background, they get lighter and bluer. It's a trick of the atmosphere. I added some blue glazes to the buildings on the right, but made the trim on the buildings on the left too bright. I'll have to tone them down next time.

Also worked on the tree-shadowed, dappled street, and some of the foliage.

Coffee With Andi © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

One More Session Left On This One

Getting really close.The handle on that mug, bottom left corner, is badly drawn and has to be resolved. I want to slightly darken the face of the man in the upper left. And I'm still not happy with the way the tablecloth changes color. But I think the next time I sit down to work on this piece will be the last!

Everyone Is On The Dance Floor, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Fear Is A Great Motivator

Got a call from the gallery yesterday: Time for a show! Of course, this is great news; however, it means I must spend nearly every waking minute for the next six weeks painting, painting, painting. Several pieces are that far away from being finished. Here's what I worked on last night. I changed the middle grey color on the jacket to closely match the wall tiles, and did a lot of detail work on the plumbing fixtures on the left.

 Protective Coloration, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Whole Foods, Panels Three and Four

There were still some unfinished spots on the third window panel from the left, so I took care of those before moving on to Window Panel 4.

Whole Foods, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Started a small acrylic over the weekend. Acrylic always makes me crazy because of the streaking, but I'll post a pic of it in a few days when the next couple of coats smooth things out. Wondering if there's some sort of acrylic painting medium that might create better results.

Lightening Up the T-Shirt

It's time to stop working on the t-shirt before I start to overwork it. Same thing on the face, which needs a little blending on the right side cheek highlight and some definition around the eyes; otherwise, I ought to stop. The badge has to be better defined, as do the hands, but if I'm going to keep introducing new Americans into the series, I should finish at least this one!

Dion, © 2017, (America series) work in progress

Darkening the Storefront

The storefront on the right side of the picture plane was actually in shadow, and I had painted it in too bright a yellow, so I've darkened it today. Not sure if I like the change.

Coffee With Andi © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Also put a little detail in the right side window. Trying to get the cat to take a nap now; he sits right behind my painting stool and meows pitifully, then tries to lead me out of the studio. It's like having a two year old.

Another American

Here is a new entry in the America series.

Mehri, © 2017, (America series) work in progress

Tedious Work

I am burned out for today, I think. It's a gorgeous day; all of the dogwoods are blooming, and the sun is bright. Insects are buzzing in the yard. I spent a long time on some of the details on the left side of the table and am taking a break now. God, I wish I could get this painting finished.

Reception From 5-9, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

The Blue Shirt

I think the blue color of the shirt on the man on the right is working in much better harmony with the rest of the colors in this painting. If you look at earlier iterations, the shirt started out as a plaid, which is what he was actually wearing at the time, but I changed it to grey and now to blue. The blue relates to the art on the wall and the denim jacket of the young woman on the left. it still needs more detail in the folds, though, to look realistic.

Counterpoint, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Whole Foods, Third Panel

Moving across the picture plane; worked on that third panel, darkening sleeves, sharpening details. On to the next panel!

Whole Foods, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Also finished the first phase of painting in the checks on the blouse; some of them need to be darkened.

Coffee With Andi © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Reception Painting

Three years ago, I had a show at my local gallery, and this lovely person was stationing the wine and snacks table. I loved the image of her standing in front of the frames, and got pretty far with the painting before burning out completely on all the tiny details. Picked up on it again today; those berry branches still need a lot of berries, but I think the wine glasses on the back shelves are now done.

Reception From 5-9, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

SO much more left. The face and hands; the two trays; the wine bottles, the ice... Oh, and the little scene in the mirror.

Counterpoint

Worked on a number of places on this one this morning, most notably the hard and soft shadows on the wall art.

Counterpoint, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

From Saturday Night's "Meet The Artists" Event at Artomatic 2017

A shot of some of the visitors in Room 9616-9617. We had a good crowd all evening!

Artomatic 2017

Ellipses and Checks

I'm excited about being so close to finishing this one! Worked on making sure the elliptical rims of the glasses looked correctly drawn and added a few touch-up details here and there. It's gotten too wet for me to work on any more today, but I need to go back in and take care of that vase of flowers in the midsection, clean up a few more ellipses on the right side, and even out the tablecloth color. And then it's going to be done!

Everyone Is On The Dance Floor, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

I also painted in as many checks as I could on the blouse below; again, the problem is that when I've painted one area, it's easy to smear the just-finished paint when working on an adjacent area, so I'm going to leave this one alone for a day or two.

Coffee With Andi, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)