En Plein Air....Catch up

En plein air is a phrase borrowed from the French equivalent meaning "open (in full) air". It is particularly used to describe the act of painting outdoors, or  ("painting of the object(s) or what the eye actually sees"), where a painter reproduces the actual visual conditions seen at the time of the painting. This method contrasts with studio painting or academic rules.

(picture from @jannerobinson on instagram)

And this “en plein air” is what I’ve been up to lately.  Putting my house on the market last fall didn’t leave much time, energy and space to work on big projects before the house sold.  And lets just say….space has become an issue since the the house sold.  But alas…..where there’s a will there’s a way.

Saw this girl on pinterest…and decided to draw off of the monitor.

That hair was just fun to color!!

Only used watercolor here.

Then one day I had some time to kill, so I hung out at Starbucks.  Easier to draw ppl when their back is to you and you know you won’t get caught!! Haha

And another day I went back to Starbucks…..

On this day in Starbucks…not many people present…so I attempted to draw the above scene.

Lots of repetition going on here.

Then I ran out of time….Fun exercise!

Later…I hung out at Barnes and Noble.  This guy was cool….cuz he stuck around awhile.

On another visit to Barnes and Noble I was inspired to draw the people sitting in the café with me.

But….they didn’t stay long.  Frustrating!

This child holding his water bottle had very nice features.  And, I should’ve let his mouth be what it was in the earlier stages…but I got to tinkering!! And I did a number on his lips!  Note-to-Self…”Less is More”

I’ve been posting so much on Instagram lately and forgetting to document my art here.  It’s always better to get those pictures off my phone and organized on my computer.  Blogging helped me to do that.  I need to get back into that habit.


Happy New Year friends!!

Beach Week in Watercolor

Two weeks ago something clicked for me.  I wanted to sketch “on site”….”live”….”en plein air”.  So, I have gotten reacquainted with my little Koi watercolor travel set.



I knew I had to start somewhere, and it had to be colorful.  So I grabbed this crystal vase and put some colorful rocks in it and started to draw.  In watercolor…..I need to be looser / freer in my drawing. 



I’m trying to not bring out my pencil first….and start applying the watercolor directly onto the paper.  I have a tendency to be too exact!! …. and it’s a bit irritating!!



Did this one on break at work….about 20 minutes.



This one took a little longer, size is bigger and more details.



These ladies didn’t even know I was there (at Starbucks)…..I’m not too self-conscious so I can blend into the background rather easy.



I am notorious for falling asleep while driving….but this kept me occupied for a bit.  That road vibration doesn’t effect the watercolor application, but it does effect the .005 micro pen outlining at the end.



Another quick sketch done on the first day of vacation.  These don’t require a lot of thought or time.  30-45 minutes to lay down foundation then if I’m enjoying the sketch I’ll add more detail for another 20 min or so.



I had no binoculars so I had to guess on some of the house and deck features of these homes across the bay.



I liked this kitchen cabinet….so I drew it.  Perspective is all relative here!! Haha



Lots going on in this room.



Watching TV.



About 10 minutes in, I wondered why I bothered attempting this….but I just kept going, cuz there was nothing else I wanted to draw and I’m learning to quiet that internal critic.



Back to my favorite subject…people.  Goofed up the mouth on the far girl, then applied white out which made it only scarier.  Need to learn, less is more.

Brought three Danny Gregory books with me.  They will get you excited to try this type of art.

• An Illustrated Life
• Everyday Matters
• Art before Breakfast

She said she’d pose for me!  What a treat!  Helps to see things better.



He kept changing positions on me. 



Another perspective bust…but oh well!



Had to do something to keep the boredom at bay during our drive home….does not look like my husband but it does look like a man!!



And just for the fun of it….A selfie!!   Again….doesn’t look like me but that’s not the point.  The point is….I’ve...Got….To….Practice, wish me luck

Selfie…..Warhol-Style

I stopped in at the local art store because I wanted to try some gouache paint. (Similar to watercolor except it’s opaque).  It was suggested that I try this new product, so I bought it.  It’s acrylic so it dries with a satin finish…..and with these 4 colors I get to mix and make any color I want…..well….almost!



I seem to be my most willing subject when inspiration strikes…so off I went to get my main man to get a decent shot.  Then I posterized it.



Then I transferred the image onto 12” x 12” watercolor paper.



Mixed up a red acrylic with the Splash paints and put the yellow on straight.



Then brought in pink and orange.  I exaggerated some of the features with some add-on shapes.  (This looks like I’m applying make-up for Halloween)



Had a lot of fun in this area, changing the shapes and colors for the hair strands.



Used watercolor for a few of the colors here:  Blue, Orange, Pink and the green background…..I did NOT trust my ability to mix the acrylics properly.



When it was dry, I went in with my handy-dandy black XS Faber Castel marker to enhance.

Ta-da…now I have a new selfie…profile pic.  Yikes….and looking at this again, it looks like I have no nose!  I could rename this Voldemort-style!!

Interview with Artist….Janet Briggs

As much as I love to blog and frequent my own blog to see how my latest color-sketch dimensions are really playing out on a piece….I’ve become quite sick of me!!

To infuse this blog with some entertainment and creativity I’ve asked 5 artists from varying backgrounds to be interviewed throughout this month. I’m very excited about their work and their agreeing to be put on the spot here.



To conclude my October Interview series I’d like you to meet a very special Flickr-Blogger friend, Janet Briggs.  When I first found Janet she was participating in so many on-line art classes that she was a walking-talking-artsy advertisement.  She oozed creativity and color.  But where my twin (we share the same birthday) and I differ, is she is drawn to purple and I avoid purple at all costs.  She makes it work, and I make it muddy!

Without further ado, here’s Janet about Janet.

1. What word best describes your art/style?
I'm never sure how to describe my art. If I had to come up with one word it would have to be playful. I hope my art makes people smile and feel good. I'm not a very "heavy" person. I don't dig deep and think about what I'm creating as much as I just do it. I don't plan out my art. I just jump in and start playing.

 

2. What advice/quote do you respond best to?
I love the quote "art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time" by Thomas Merton. That's what happens to me when I'm making art. I find bits of myself I didn't know were there and I can completely lose myself in art.


                                         Georgia (above)

3. How has your work evolved?
I've always loved art but for a huge part of my life I convinced myself that I couldn't draw or paint. When I began drawing again back in the mid-90's it was mostly copying a face from a magazine...I didn't feel comfortable drawing something of my own creation. After taking many online classes and having the support of the online art community I now love to draw and paint. I keep several art journals going at once, and also several collages. Mixed media is perfect for me since I like to play with all sorts of art supplies. Now I'll try just about anything.



4. What interests do you have other than "art"?
Most of my interests are creative in some way...beading, crochet, knitting (at a beginner level!)...I love to read, and I love baking although I'm not an expert at it. I mostly bake to satisfy my sweet tooth. Walking is something I enjoy and this time of year is great for that. Getting out in nature is inspiring.



5. What is your favorite blog post or piece of art that you'd like to share?
I'm not sure I have a favorite blog post although I always have fun with my Academy Awards posts each year. I've been in such an art slump recently that I don't have anything new to share but one of my favorites is Calypso...and I also like Georgia.


                                    Calypso (above)

See what I mean about Janet?  Versatile! Colorful! Talented! Fun! Free-Spirit!  You know….we all have our role models and Janet is one of mine!  Thank you Janet for sharing your work and your art with us today. 

Please check out the links below which will lead you to more of Janet’s work.

website: http://jkbees.blogspot.com 
          or http://jkbeesartopia.blogspot.com
etsy: http://www.etsy.com/people/jkbees?ref=si_pr
twitter: http://twitter.com/jkbees
flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jkbees/
pinterest: http://pinterest.com/jkbees/

I splurged on this…..

 

 

 Last week when Artist- Rebecca Anthony put her Daisydoll Goddess Postcards up for sale I had to get them.  These are the most beautiful, most colorful, most interesting faces I’ve ever seen.  It was hard for me to pick my favorite, but the one pictured above would be on my Most Favorite List, Most Viewed List, Most Colorful List, Most Interesting List….yep, all my lists, she’d be there.  I was astounded to realize that Rebecca does all this by hand, with her paints.  When I first came across her faces, I thought she had used some photo-editing.  But no, that’s not the case.  She just has a super steady hand.  I adore her use of colors.  Probably because she seems to be a big fan of REDS & GREENS….just like me! 

She has made some really awesome things from her Goddess series.  Hairbrushes, pendants, postcards.  You’ve got to see for yourself, check out her etsy shop at www.daisydolls.etsy.com

And for your viewing pleasure, more pictures of Rebecca’s Daisydoll Goddess postcards.

 

I thought they’d look real nice hanging from my Ikea Deka Curtain Wires that I have hanging in my studio.

 

As an added bonus, you’ve got to see the back of these postcards.  This is the blueprint, if you will, of her faces.  Such a cool feature for Rebecca to include.  Because after she’s painted all those layers, it’s hard to see how these Goddesses got started.

Now, do you see what I mean?   Do you see what all of the fuss was about??