Corrugated Cardboard Studies

Brought to class some corrugated cardboard that I thought I would gesso and use for some quick studies. Heleni suggested that I work directly with using gesso.  I felt much more at ease with these, probably because I thought of them just as studies and don't HAVE TO PERFECT.... which probably one of the reasons that they came out fresher.... this is an important attitude to develop in any painting...
I did have Heleni to stop me from overworking.... I am going to look more closely to the work of  Diane Mannion  I get blog updates and she usually shows her progression images...

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A bit about the second study....The reference for this is the from my favorite spa Hamei Yoav.... a view that I really love.... although Heleni calls these finished works.. I still call them studies...

 

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zoomed  in 

May try this zoomed in view!!!

Scenic coast-rocks and sea

 A bit of ranting:  Blogger is up to tricks, at least on Chrome.... one would think that they would work together because they both are under the Google umbrella...  but first grayed pages... then notices that I need to re log, and today NADA... with a code to address to the help forum.... HAHA...with Firefox things are working   

This is a close up of  previous study .  I am really not happy with this..much too fragmented.... in the first one which really is simplified, more of an under painting, is much better... can't seem to get from the fresh under painting to a more finished without messing the whole thing up.... I am going to give this another try....

First try

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Second Layer

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As usual I couldn't keep my hands off it so with the paint still a bit wet did a bit of finger smudging... so now I really have to work this again.... should find time.. another long holiday weekend!!!

Scenic California -more studies

It is so great to be going back to our "workshop" every Tuesday.... actually Tuesday is the best day.... even in the Bible "it was good" mentioned twice on the third day  .... making Tuesdays very special.....

Continuing doing studies, small works, from some of the references that I got from the workshop....  trying to see the BIG picture  rather than the details.   have decided that beginning October, hoping that the weather will be less hot, to do more outdoor work.... although the scenery isn't that grand.... it will be an extra challenge...

I am working with B&W photos so I have do the coloring from my head which I found VERY difficult.... times like these I wish I had an pad to bring to class....it was difficult to see the nuances and I know photos can be deceiving .

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The second, a close of the rock and sea, wasn't going the way I wanted... hope to to get it back on track....

Johnny

Johnny was our faithful companion for almost 17 years. My husband brought him home from Tel ha Shomer Hospital where someone had left/deserted him when he was about 7 months... He was a German Shepard mix and wouldn't come in the house... probably because he wasn't allowed in the wards at the hospital... so he became our yard dog.  This past spring we had to put him to sleep.... he had a hernia near his anal area , which after getting advise decided not to operate... but he was getting very feeble...and when he went on a hunger strike and wouldn't eat even when we tried to hand feed him we knew we couldn't put off the inevitable...

I started these portraits last June and finished them this past week at my workshop... Johnny I do so miss you!!!  30 x30 cm Oil on gessoed cardboard and cloth [gessoed] stretched on kappa board..
These were also painted mainly using the palette knife.

California Coast Sketch

This is another try using grays ,,, workshop #24 Richard Robinson using photo #2 from his references of the California coast.  I am calling this a oil sketch rather than a painting. I did this at my weekly workshop using just a B&W reference print.... Small format 21 x 28 and not as free as I would like... oil on 400 grm  sketch pad.

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Felt it needed tweaking and debated whether to go back with oils or oil crayons... oil crayons won out.... 

Don't think it made much of an improvement!!!

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Working with Grays Reference Photo 4

My first workshop from Richard Robinson  #24... Still trying to get a decent and not muddy painting... I realize I have much to learn using wet on wet.. Will be doing some studies uses warm and cool grays on 400 grm cartridge paper, this time I coated it with 2 coats of acrylic paint... think I put too much texture.... size A4  28 x 21.....
First attempt  with tonal colors...

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 Next painted and then scrubbed away with wet cleaners

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New strategy.... going to do some more drawing and premix the colors

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Final stage... not happy with it.. still too fragmented...too small a format for so much information... still getting bogged down with details not important... 

Fushia flower from WDE on Wet canvas

Seems its been a long and hot summer.... workshop vacation for two months.... hard to get motivated... no excuses ... with the  beginning of  September and maybe some relief from the heat I am trying to get back into the swing,,, and develop a little more creative discipline... Recently I bought a workshop #24 on pre-mixing grays by Richard Robinson. I love working with grays but my first attempt was really not a success... got too carried away and it was just too muddy and fragmented.... I did do  a wde challenge  hosted by Connie done also using grays.... done on 400 gram cartridge paper ,next time I will coat the paper with either gesso or acrylic paint.... it also was quite dull so did a bit of  oil pastels and blended it with some medium. Size 19 x 19 cm 

Did a tight crop to the Fushia Flower  

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 With added oil pastel 

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Doing another landscape from the references that I got with the workshop.... next post... still disappointed  but not giving in!!!