One More For The Old Year

It's kind of hit-or-miss as far as laying down the first layer of color; it always needs adjustment later on.

  The Hand Of The Artist, © 2018, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

That Strange Lull Between Christmas and New Year's

Usually time seems to slow down in the week after Christmas, and it's no different this year; in fact, because of the frigid weather gripping the east coast of the U.S., I feel even more immobilized than usual. All I want is to snuggle in my cozy chair with a good book and a mug of hot chocolate. But despite the fact that my hurt wrist isn't getting better (I'm probably going to have to see the doctor about that) I managed to stretch a canvas in preparation for the new work I want to start right after the New Year. Here it is on the easel, waiting for a couple of coats of gesso:

And here's the reference photo for what's going to go on it:

 Untitled, © 2018 (click on image for larger view)

The Last Painting Of 2017

I'm not sorry to see 2017 go out the door, but I did accomplish a lot and was more successful than I've ever been in terms of professional development. So here is the final painting of the year, of my old friend from high school, at a little trattoria in New York City.

  Meet You Any Time You Want, © 2017 (click on image for larger view)

The Sky Reflected In Water

I love this painting, but it takes a lot more concentration than you'd think. For one thing, I can't seem to mix the right blues! Some of them need to be lighter, others more intense. And the pinkish areas are to orange in some cases... I have a wonderful, well-used brush that caresses the paint onto the panel like it knows what it's doing, but placement of the soft-edged clouds is confusing in that sea of ever-changing blue. I'll give it another try in a few days after the current layer dries.

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

A Better Jeff

Last time I worked on this one, it looked awful! Now the Jeff image (on the right) looks more like him, though I still need to adjust some values and put in more detail around the eyes.

Eddie And Jeff, © 2017, (America series) work in progress (click on image for larger view)

A Couple Of Others

Also today:

Protective Coloration, © 2018, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

 

I worked on the figure.

 

  Study After A Maid Asleep, (Johannes Vermeer), © 2018, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

 

Ieva, America series, © 2018, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

 

Number 26

Several years ago, I had a job I loved: running a graphic design program at a community college. For most of it, I was able to work on my bliss in the off hours, and would typically paint about 25-30 pieces every year. But as time went on, the job became more demanding, and not only was I bringing work home on weekends, I was getting cranky and snarly whenever my husband suggested we see a movie or otherwise enjoy life. By the time the job and I parted ways, I was down to 2 paintings a year and very unhappy about that.

Following that, a doctoral program claimed a lot of my time, but once it was over I got back to the business of painting.  Since then I've completed well over 200 pieces, and here is the latest, finished today, and the 26th painting for 2017.

  Sometimes She Just Needed To Get Away, © 2017 (click on image for larger view)

The Giant Hand

Commission #2 features an artist's hand holding a paintbrush, and I felt more like working on it today than most of the other pieces waiting to be finished. The base layers always look rough, as they do here, but they provide the foundation to build new layers upon.

  The Hand Of The Artist, © 2018, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Also today, worked on the window on the right side:

Evening Star Café, © 2018, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Back To Work: Warming Up The Brushes

So, it's the day after. Our family has come and gone, and we had a wonderful time seeing everyone. We even went to a movie yesterday, and saw "The Shape Of Water," and I recommend it if you like fantasy films. But no spoilers— Now it's Tuesday, the sun is shining, and I'm trying to pick up where I left off.

This is almost done— the table and coffee cup are all that's left.

  Meet You Any Time You Want, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Stealing A Few Minutes For Painting

I've got family visiting, though there's a break right now as they've gone off to pick up some wine and whatnot. So I'm taking a few minutes to paint in some more of those annoying tile lines.

Protective Coloration, © 2018, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

 

The reason the right side looks bluer is because the light's coming in the window on that side of the room. 

Brick By Brick, Line By Line

I decided to paint the bricks in below the big picture windows, but will scuff them up a bit so they don't look mechanical. I added a few lines just below the porch roof to define the molding, sketched in a couple of bushes, and worked on the right side interior. It's coming together nicely.

Evening Star Café, © 2018, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Moving These Along

Will this ever be finished? Every time I look at it I see more raw edges that need to be refined, or places where I missed painting in the grout between the tiles.

Protective Coloration, © 2018, work in progress (click on image for larger view)  

Ieva, America series, © 2018, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

The tunic's still a bit tacky, so I worked on the facial features, and while it's better, it's still just an approximation of Ieva.

Two More

Last ones for the day:

  Meet You Any Time You Want, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Ten days from now if things aren't finished I'll have to change the copyright dates to 2018.

  Study After A Maid Asleep, (Johannes Vermeer), work in progress (click on image for larger view)

The pattern on the tablecloth/rug is really nasty.

The Calm Before The Storm

I'm supposed to be putting up decorations and wrapping gifts right now, but here are the results of the morning's work:

  Sometimes She Just Needed To Get Away, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

As usual, as I worked I kept finding areas that I want to enhance. So this won't be done this week. I want to do some blue and green glazing on the water, and the ripples on the right side above the breakers need to be finished.

 The commissioned piece has been picked up, and I have two more to do! The show will be in April of 2019, so there's plenty of time to work on them. Nevertheless, it is nice to be paid, and my recent art supply buying sprees make it a priority to get at least one of the commissions done soon. Here's the photo I'm working from, complete with glare on the protective plastic sleeve:

I'm tentatively calling it "The Hand Of The Artist."

Family starts to arrive Friday!

Faces Around The Table

Glare on the left side obscures the shadows on the leftmost face. I should work on the table reflections next. Still plenty to do on this one.

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

The Tricky Turquoise Tunic

What the America series needs is a shot of color, and this tunic fits the bill. I'm trying different hues in an effort to get it right though; it's a light, saturated turquoise. I've tried a number of pigments— everything from Phthalo Turquoise to Sennelier's Azure Blue to Holbein's Blue Grey mixed with various yellows. So far, nothing has worked until this morning when I tried Winsor & Newton's Manganese Blue with Holbein's Lemon Yellow Light. Manganese is a vivid, intense, deep Caribbean Sea blue, sometimes overwhelming the palette, best used sparingly. But this is all shop talk. Here's where the Ieva piece stands at the moment:

Ieva, America series, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

The tunic's made of linen, so that makes it fun to paint. There are attendant problems: a slight transparency, a stiffer drape than most garments, and a tendency to wrinkle. And of course it has a lightweight, gauzy quality. I think what I've got so far still needs to go lighter and a bit more toward the green side of turquoise.

A Better Image of The America Series

This is more like the way I intend to display it when it's done. Again, it's going to end up being a total of 25, 36, or maybe even 49 paintings. The backgrounds will be a uniform beige-grey, I think.

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

The Little Vermeer

Coming along nicely; I note that in the original he had a sort of highlight around the head to set it off from the shadow on the wall.

  Study After A Maid Asleep, (Johannes Vermeer), work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Worked on this last night while watching (or listening to, anyway) the deliciously creepy movie "What Lies Beneath" on TV.

This Will Have Ducks

I'd thought I was done for the day, but this was beckoning to me from across the room. It's fun to work on.

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

Nearly Done

The feet need work, and I've got to put back the painted-over wave shadows at the top. And little bits here and there. But I hope to have it done before the holidays.

  Sometimes She Just Needed To Get Away, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

And One Last One For The Evening

Moving the daylight lamp up from the basement studio several months ago was a good idea, since it allows me to work at night. This has a lot of glare on it from the lamp, and I know I can do a better job on the nose, but so far, so good.

  Meet You Any Time You Want, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

And this is the water-based oils. I'm starting to see possibilities with them now; they're forcing me to paint differently.

...And Some Art Work

Spent the afternoon working on minute details on Evening Star. Things you'd never notice, yet they add to the believability of the piece:

Reflection in transom window above the door.

Evening Star Café, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

 This painting is coming along pretty well.

This one needs some work, particularly on Jeff, though he looks much more human than he did in the last iteration.

Eddie And Jeff, © 2017, (America series) work in progress (click on image for larger view)

I've also dropped his shoulder, so he looks more relaxed. In the original photo, he was resting his arm on a nearby railing, so I've redrawn it a couple of times.

A Busy Couple Of Days

Well, the lead-up to the holidays is always a bit mad. This was a crazy week, though, with visits to the dentist, the art supply store, the tech store, two galleries, and the purchase, downloading, and completion of Tiffany Haddish's autobiography, "The Last Black Unicorn." Oh, and I sold the commissioned piece last night!

So, here's the exciting part. I have way too many paintings in the house, and the two galleries where I show my work can't handle the number of pieces I have. So I decided to look for a third gallery, hopefully in DC, so the clientele wouldn't be the same as the others. I've been looking at websites online, and thought the Susan Calloway Fine Art gallery looked very good; plus, they were showing realist work but not anything like mine. So I sent in an application, and after hearing back from them, took two pieces in on Wednesday. And I am very happy to announce that we have entered into an association.

Here's a photo of the gallery, on Wisconsin Avenue in Georgetown (DC):

Susan Calloway Fine Art
 #callowayfineart 

 

The Cost Of Doing Business

I've heard it, and my friends and gallery owners have heard it too; "So much?"
People seem to think that because we love what we do, our work should be cheap. They don't realize the investment we make— not just the years of study, art school tuition, supplies, workshops, books, supporting tech equipment— but also the time we spend trying out ideas, making mistakes, and honing our skills. Then our galleries take a percentage of any sale, which is fair— they make the sales, and there's rent and utilities to pay to provide a place for folks to come and see the work.

Well, after the trip north I sifted through the photos I'd taken, and there are a number of exciting possibilities for new works, both large and small. I cropped and resized some of the images and came up with a couple of pieces I'd like to get started on. Since panel is my preferred medium, I contacted the place that supplies me with custom panels, and the quote for them was quite reasonable... but the shipping cost alone was just under $150!

 

When I did the math for linen and stretchers, the cost was much more acceptable, especially since shipping was free and I can string out the purchase of stretcher bars over time. The linen roll arrived today. It's just under 350 smackers, but I'll be able to get several canvases out of it. The surface is about as smooth as you can expect of linen; it's "portrait" quality and already primed, so that'll make things easier. (Painting on unprimed linen isn't archival— the oil will eat away at the fabric over time.)

An added note: That commissioned piece I finished recently was done on a nicely cradled panel, which set me back 60 bucks before I even put the paint on it. There it is.

Thoughts On The Vermeer Show: The Quality Of Light

So, as I mentioned, my husband is not an artist. But he always has a thoughtful slant on any show we ever go to, and his comments last night on the Vermeer exhibit were interesting. I won't go into detail, as he had quite a lot to say and I hate to type, but the one comment that struck a chord was, "Compared to the other artists in the show, his stuff looks slightly out of focus." And that's what I like about it--- the dreaminess, the soft quality of the light.

He's right about the other painters— Metsu, ter Borch, Steen; so many hard edges, everything in sharp focus, faces and garments exquisitely modeled down to the last detail. You've never seen so much glorious satin! But the Vermeers have a hazy, spiritual quality. I'm trying to capture that with some wet-on-wet and glazing techniques, though it seems to take more than a single layer. Here's what I did today:

  Study After A Maid Asleep, (Johannes Vermeer), work in progress (click on image for larger view)

It's also going to take some very soft brushes.

How Can Such A Small Painting Take So Long To Do?

I am not enjoying the water-based oils. No matter how much water I mix with the paints, they always seem thick. You get the feeling that because of the high water content and the way they flow that they'll dry quickly, like acrylics, but that's not the case. They were a significant investment, though, so I need to find a landscape that can best utilize their characteristics and try to use them up.

  Sometimes She Just Needed To Get Away, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Meanwhile, I keep finding areas on this little painting that need readjustment or refining. I painted in a more accurate bluish color above the breakers line and changed the flow of the water just below it. The foaminess of the shallow water needs to be attended to; there are darker spots surrounded by lighter ones that need to be painted in. And it may be that the texture of the store-bought canvas is as much of a problem as the paint's viscosity.There's a lot of pull and drag, and I'm having trouble trying to paint hard edges.

I also reworked the sand. It looks more cohesive now.

And A Little Work In The Afternoon

  Meet You Any Time You Want, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

More painting tomorrow.

National Gallery Redux

My husband wanted to see the Vermeer show at the National Gallery, so we decided to go today before it got any more crowded. We figure the closer it gets to the final days of the show, the worse it's going to be. And my friend Dennis wanted a second go-around, too, so we invited him to meet us there. Since Hubby is a non-artist, it was good to have Dennis along to talk shop at lunch afterwards. And we got to take another trip on the light walk.

Show entrance; Dennis at right

Vermeer's A Lady Holding A Balance

I want one of these in my house. "Multiverse," Leo Villareal, 2008

The Status Of The America Series

A photo of the wall where the finished pieces are hanging in the studio— this isn't the way I plan to hang them for a professional show; I'll probably place them in a big square with an inch or two between them.
But these are the ones that are completed. I'm currently working on three more, with a plan to get to 25 total, or maybe 36, or even 49. We'll see how it goes.

America Series, © 2017, work in progress. Click on image for larger view.

Working In The Dungeon

The cat allowed me to work in the basement studio this morning! He showed up after a while and made a lot of noise, then gave up and left. So I was able to get some work done on this one, mainly drawing in the lines of the fire extinguisher, but a little paint application, too:

In Case Of Emergency, © 2017 (click on image for larger view)

Glazing

There are some areas on Evening Star that look too flat, so tonight I glazed over them with some Gamblin gel medium mixed with color. They have a little more depth now.

I also straightened out that wonky window at upper right and darkened a few of the red letters that are farther from the spot light.

Evening Star Café, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Meanwhile, here are Eddie and Jeff. Eddie looks better, but Jeff definitely needs some work:

Eddie And Jeff, © 2017, (America series) work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Facial Recognition, And A Tiny Sunset

At least my camera recognizes that there are faces in the painting; it puts frames around them when I take a photo! So that's encouraging.

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

It is shaping up. I'm trying to do the best job possible on the faces— after viewing some exquisite figure paintings in New York, I'm emboldened to be more adventurous with the greens and blues in the skin and to be even more aware of modeling the forms. The light source for this image is on the ceiling, and it spotlights just a few areas in the center-right, with light fall-off as you move away from it, so some of the faces are partially lit, and others are in shadow. I'm not sure that's coming across.

And I finished the little sunset painting. It's a mere 5" x 5", but it still took a lot of effort.

Tiny Sunset Over The Sound, © 2017 (click on image for larger view)

Crazy And Loose

Trying something new. The water based oils and a relatively inexpensive canvas are allowing me the freedom to experiment.

  Meet You Any Time You Want, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Progress

After putting this painting aside for a while, I brought it out a few days ago and have been assessing its problems. Things are much clearer after you've had time to mull them over, and in this case it was readily apparent what needed to be done. I darkened the "white" tiles around the periphery of the painting, lightened the ones near the light source, and replaced some horizontal lines that had been painted over.

 

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

 
Next, I'll need to work on the right side sink.

Painting And Planning

It was good to get back to painting today, and I got a lot done, starting with the little ocean painting:

  Sometimes She Just Needed To Get Away, © 2017, work in progress (click on image for larger view)

I added some shady spots on the beach sand, and mixed some blue into the color to reflect the sky. But now, despite the fact that there's a lot of those little ripply areas in the original photo, I wonder if I took it too far. Tightened up the detail on the figure as well. I am finding the water-based oil paint, which I'm using on this painting, to be annoyingly thick. And I'd like to do a larger version on panel— the texture of the canvas, as you can see in the painting, is also annoying.

  Study After A Maid Asleep, (Johannes Vermeer), work in progress (click on image for larger view)

 The bodice looks better; it's a lovely bronze satin in the original, and I'm trying to get it right. The tablecloth is tough, and is going to take some time. Meanwhile, I found some photos I took of the original painting in the Met several years ago, and those will help. Working from a pic on the web isn't necessarily accurate as far as color goes.

I worked on two of the America series paintings:

  Ieva, © 2017, (America series) work in progress (click on image for larger view)

Again, this looks nothing like her. Yet.

And:

José, © 2017, (America series) work in progress (click on image for larger view)

I took inventory of all the yet-to-be-painted canvases and panels lying around and am trying to assign images to them. Looks like 2018 is going to be chock-full of painting.