Billy Goat

I drew this with the awesome Elegant Writer Pen for Inktober Day One! With a touch of a wet brush, the pinks and greens in the black ink emerge and flow, with a mind of their own. I added a dash of pink to his nose. ; )

subtlety

6x12" original watercolour painting

Here's another piece from my last portrait painting session, where we artists take turns sitting for each other. (It's surprisingly difficult to sit still for 25 minutes! If you try it, you'll have a whole new respect for life models.) 

I wanted to tie in the red shirt with the red glasses. I'm really happy with her expression but I'm feeling that the 6x12" size might just cut off people's shoulders, giving them a big looking head!

our fearless leader!

6x12" original watercolour

At our portrait session last weekend, I decided to create 6x12" paintings. Mostly because I had paper that size and I wanted to use it up. ; ) I drew a loose energetic line with charcoal pencil then added lots of fresh watercolour paint.

On most social media, like Facebook and Instagram, you can only post pics as a square. So, here's the complete painting.

cattails

$40 - 8x10"original watercolour painting.

I painted this sketch of cattails at the wonderful, very green, Corktown. Fellow pleinair painters and I set up our easels at this lovely lily pond, however it was the cattails that caught my eye. (Although fellow artists called them bulrushes). They actually remind my of my childhood since there were plenty of them in my neighbourhood and we always thought they were so cool!

Save the Date!

If you're in Toronto, this is the first of a few group art shows I'll be in before the holidays. Over 20 of artists in this one! Hope to see you there!!

free rein

SOLD

$80 - 8x10" original watercolour painting.

This fella' speaks for himself.

catching up on some thinking

 

$60 - 5x7"original watercolour painting with 8x10"mat

It's always nice to sit with a cup of tea and catch up on some thinking. Or in my case, some drawing... ; )

a couple of portraits

Two 11x14" watercolour pieces (with a couple of details) from my last life painting session. : )

today at life painting

 1 minute gesture painting

 2 minute gesture painting

5 minute painting

First day back at life painting! Here are a few paintings from today, of my favourite model. I used charcoal pencil to draw, added green and warm/cool reds, then a splash of turquoise. I tried to stay loose and as gestural as possible. Soooo fun. If you haven't tried drawing from life, I highly recommend it. You never know what might happen when you're under the time pressure.

a good read

$60 - 5x7"original watercolour painting with 8x10"mat

It was so nice to see someone reading a book at a local cafe this morning. Instead of having their nose in their phone. When I first started drawing I captured people reading all the time. Now, it's a rare treat.

climb

SOLD

$60 - 5x7"original watercolour painting with 8x10"mat

Not sure how this pic ended up so angled... but here's my drawing in my paintbox which sits on my lap. : )

Good 'ole Winsor Newton travel palette with my choice of tube paints squeezed out. I change and/or add colours as my style changes over the years. Although the warm cool staples remain the same. 

The path didn't go in that direction, but I added it since there was just so much greenery around the base of the little building. I know everyone says green is a difficult colour. Not sure that's true, it's just that there's always so much of it! I decided to call this one 'climb' for two reasons, the little ladder and because the flowers are climbing towards the sun. : )

charcoal and watercolour

Charcoal Drawing

Adding a second (and final) layer of watercolour

Some charcoal added to the shadow side

Last Tuesday's portrait night at Don Valley Art Club ended off our summer sessions just right. : )

I drew the model in charcoal, painted it with watercolour then brought it together with a layer of charcoal. The final charcoal, on the shadow side, didn't blend like I anticipated it would, I think because it was sitting on top of the watercolour. I like it, but I think it looks a bit 'rough' and I may save this technique for a male model next time. I'm happy that I played around and tried something different, which I guess is what it's all about...

breather

SOLD

$90 - original 5x10" OIL (!) painting on canvas.

This little flower decided to step aside for a little breather. ; )

So, I decided to return to oil painting! I painted in oil for a few years before making the decision to stick with watercolour. A decade later... I've decided to play with oil again. Just for a change. Nothing definite. ; )

I thought I'd start with this bright little set up of fresh flowers, working in my studio with natural backlighting. A bit rusty, but I'm happy with the backlit glow. : )

wildcat - step by step

First I drew the lion, from a photo reference on pixabay (free image site), with a 6B pencil, trying to be as loosey-goosey as possible. I do try to keep the structure of the subject while making big confident lines. 

Next, I start with the eyes. I like to paint them together, not one at a time because eyes work as a pair. It's easy to get off balance if you focus on only one eye, then the other. Work the eyes together. I don't finish the eyes though... just get some darks and lights in them. 

Working down the page, darks and lights, transparent and opaques. I never liked painting washes in watercolour. I can never get the washes dark enough and contrasty enough. I end up having to do many washes... I prefer this more direct approach.

The whiskers wrap around the muzzle, helping bring the mouth forward. Saving the highlights in the eyes as I finish them up. Then, a few calligraphy marks and... my friend is finished!

heading home with Saturday's shopping

$60 - original 5x7" watercolour painting with 8x10"mat for easy framing.

I'm really enjoying painting this 'Toronto People' series. Everyone is so interesting! ; )

bunny sip

$60 - original 8x10"watercolour painting 

Little stuffed bunny wants a sip too. ; )

summer boots

$60 - original 8x10" watercolour painting

This dude is enjoying a cold drink on a hot hot day!

first celebrity portrait

9x12" - charcoal drawing with watercolour

Well, as I stated in my last post, I've been working towards getting a likeness while still keeping things painterly. I'm not actually a huge fan of this celebrity (I leave you to guess who it is), he just has an interesting face. In fact, I google 'older men' images and he popped up, so I drew him. It seems easier to tell if I achieved a likeness by drawing people we all know... ; )

what's important in portraiture...

9x12"original watercolour

Well, I am very happy with this portrait despite not getting a likeness to the model this time. There is so much happening in portraiture painting that is interesting to me as an artist and simply getting a likeness isn't what makes portraits fascinating. On the other hand, of course capturing the person's features plays a role. The trick is balancing the two. 

So, I've decided to fill a sketchbook with pencil drawings that concentrate solely on getting a likeness to the model. I'm hoping the drawing practise will hone my skills, enough so I can forget about that practicality and go back to 'responding' to the model with watercolour paint. : )

portrait sketch

 9x12" original watercolour portrait. 
Lately I've been reading about Frank Reilly's approach to portrait, which is easy to read about it you just google him. It's a good structural way to look at portrait drawing, very informative. : )
Below is the pencil sketch before I started painting.

rail operator

8x8"original watercolour painting

I think my hard work, as I plug away at portraiture, is getting me closer to what I'm trying to achieve. Daily practise (or close to it) really is the answer.

Sunday Afternoon

I recently did some portrait drawings, pictured below, that have been waiting for a splash of watercolour! Today I finished one and got started on another. It's interesting how much the pencil drawing changes once watercolour is added. The first one below is this painting above! The next two are charcoal drawings.