January 30 x 30 Challenge...Reflections

January 30 x 30 Challenge...Reflections

First thanks to Leslie Seata for making this all possible.... thanks to all the participants  ... seeing so much varied art work each day is awesome as well as inspiring.  Also thanks to Sea Dean for her art party!!!!

Decided to make 2 final collages...one for my references and one for the paintings !

Hope you all enjoyed  a brief  visit to my favorite spa. 

Posting the collages for those not interested in my bla bla ranting...

click to enlarge

References

click to enlarge

Here we are at the end of our January  30 paintings in 30 days.. This is the third 30 in 30 that I have taken part in.  In each one I learned a little more about my self and my habits and my goals.

Why am I doing this challenge

Can't put it better than Leslie:  The challenge is not about finishing 30 gallery quality "perfect" paintings. It's about getting in to the studio to try new things. It's about painting more often. It's about having fun and developing new habits! 

What am I learning

• Organization  this is key since as we are not only painting but scanning/photographing and blogging
• How to use my reference material .. cropping/editing/fiddling
• Learning more about my media... in this case my wax pastels
• Excepting my limitations and building on them 

Where am I headed

• More creativity
• Learning more about what I want to say and how to say it

Who give a Sh......

• I do!!!!

This month's challenge I chose to work in one type of format... Heavy brown paper... It was my second choice... wanted to work on heavy grey cardboard but local art store was out of stock. I also decided on the size 20 x 20 except for # 1 which was panoramic. Decided to work with a dry medium Neocolor wax pastels and pencils adding medium or not.  I chose a general theme my favorite spa Hamei Yoav which allowed me a wide amount of subject matter.

January 30 x 30 Challenge # 30 Gift Shop

January 30 x 30 Challenge  # 30  Gift Shop

This challenge was like traveling Waze...  you have now reached your destination  what a fabulous journey.. now to choose a new creative destination ....let you in on a secret... signed up for Leslie's February online class... so February's journey should be wonderful.... so bring on the flowers!!!!

Well who doesn't like browsing in a gift shop... all those creams and lotions, bathing suits and towel robes... colorful towels..

Took on more than I could chew.  I had a hard time simplifying the areas....wanted the essence of an overloaded shop but wanted simplicity as well    Put aside one which didn't work at all and started a different composition the other day and put it aside for tweaking today. In the spirit of ....

I want to thank all that looked at my work..and especially those that found the time to comment.. much appreciated... Hope you all enjoyed your trip to Hamei Yoav Spa !!!

20 x 20 Heavy Brown Paper Neocolor I wax pastels plus pencil work... This was done in several stages coloring + medium and drawing and more color.  Then felt it need some oomph so added color dipping the crayons in medium  and drawing... Did I pull it off???

Here is first stage

  First composition

January 30 x 30 Challenge # 29 Dining

January 30 x 30 Challenge  # 29 Dining

There is a big dining area , with synthetic grass, enclosed in heavy plastic in the winter and open in summer. There are lots of tables and chairs.... and an area for aerobics as well.  Through the door there is a small kiosk... heard they are  making 2 new restaurants. Happy appetite!!! First version both tables had blue cloths... changed the one to purple... felt it needed some warm color....

20 x 20 Heavy brown paper. Neocolor I wax pastels  plus medium and pencil work....

January 30 x 30 Challenge # 28 Dinnertime

January 30 x 30 Challenge  # 28 Dinnertime

Caretaker brought in a HUGE tray of goodies.... they get regular food as well... Geese and ducks diving in... the geese win out... cropped image liked the negative patterns as well as the geese.

20 x 20 Heavy brown paper. Neocolor I wax pastels plus pencil and medium.

January 30 x 30 Challenge # 27 Blocked View II

January 30 x 30 Challenge  # 27 Blocked View II

This is a close up of the blocked view. There is now construction going on that is blocking this view, See Post 7 Lost view.  I cropped in so close that the image was pixelated... I would really like to do this in a more abstract way.. its a bit trivial...suggestions welcome!!!

20 x 20 Heavy Brown paper. Neocolor I wax pastels plus medium.

January 30 x 30 Challenge # 26 Mineral Showers

January 30 x 30 Challenge  # 26 Mineral Showers

These are no usual showers... these are heavy streams of sulfur and other mineral water.   This painting is from my imagination ... forgot to take photos there... You can stand or sit and direct the stream of hot water where you want a message... your head, shoulders,knees etc... There is also a cold stream of regular water for a refreshing shower.... not recommended in the winter months... There is a huge window facing the outside drainage pool... with all that steam who can see!!!

20 x 20 Heavy brown paper. Neocolor I wax pastels plus pencils and medium.

January 30 x 30 Challenge #25 Going Walking

January 30 x 30 Challenge  # Going Walking

I took a lot of geese and ducks photos... Luckily many were taken with my Canon G11 so I have good  HD raw files to work with for cropping and then blurring..First I crop the image to the size of the format. Then sometimes I make another letter to blur to see the main areas. Then sometimes I have to move stuff like the goose on the right was moved in closer.  This is a cropped version of three geese probably running away from me at the time.  I find the geese so human like with their expressions.  This was done with a sketch which I brush down with liquin then I sketched dry. See progress image...

20 x 20 Heavy brown paper. Neocolor I wax pastels with pencils and medium.

Finished  

Preliminary sketch before medium

I wanted to scan after the medium was applied and dried... oops forgot!!!

January 30 x 30 Challenge # 24 Standing Pool

January 30 x 30 Challenge  # 24 Standing Pool

This is the view of the large standing pool,  Water comes up to you shoulders... of course how tall you are...The further wall has a cascade of water for a wonderful water message...  There are a few islands to lean on .  Actually the pole of the railing was right in the middle of the couple which I moved over to the left.
Figuring what to put in and WHAT to leave out is important.

20 x 20 Heavy brown paper. Neocolor I wax pastels and pencils and medium.

Sketch before Liquin

January 30 x 30 Challenge # 23 More Bathers

January 30 x 30 Challenge  # 23 More Bathers

More bathers in a the pools....  Loved the special lighting that came from the windows.  May have exaggerated but I have a licence in my pocket!!

20 x 20 cm Heavy brown paper.  Neocolor I wax pastels and pencils.  Here again I made an under painting of the main areas and used  liquin medium. I may have crayoned in while it was wet and then drew in more details when it dried.

January 30 x 30 Challenge # 22 Sauna Stove

January 30 x 30 Challenge  # 22 Sauna Stove

I can't believe it  three weeks have flown by.... we're into the last stretch of the challenge.  Now to make our own challenge and continue the creativity...

Another in the spirit of painting... Simple stove in the sauna.... lighting was bad so photo showed weird coloring patterns... maybe not a bad thing...

20 x 20 Heavy brown paper. Neocolor wax pastels plus pencils.

January 30 x 30 Challenge # 21 Breakfast

January 30 x 30 Challenge  # 21 Breakfast

Time for a snack... A row of what were once swings but now stabilized picnic tables..a jumble of chairs with towels and robes ..having a good read between bathes. This woman was really inquisitive why I taking a picture...I worked this differently... simplified the background shapes and colored in an abstract fashion,,, used medium to smooth the background.. then when dry sketched with pencils and crayons.

20 x 20 cm  Heavy brown paper  Neocolor I wax crayons plus pencils.

January 30 x 30 Challenge # 20 Tasty

January 30 x 30 Challenge  # 20  Tasty

Another goofy goose.... this guy think a piece of carton could be tasty!!!

20 x 20 cm heavy brown paper. Neocolor I wax pastels plus pencils and medium.

January 30 x 30 Challenge # 19 Crocs

January 30 x 30 Challenge  # 19 Crocs

Just a pair of Crocs waiting by the pool!! Lighting made interesting patterns..

20 x 20 Heavy brown paper. Neocolor I wax pastels plus pencils and medium.

January 30 x 30 Challenge # 18 Pitta

January 30 x 30 Challenge  # 18  Pitta

When returning to our table we noticed a group of sparrows had pushed our piece of pitta bread and were having a feast under the table.   By the time I got my camera out they were pushing it like a hockey pug around the floor.... synthetic grass..!!!! I am learning what NOT to do... Spread some liquin on the paper   and tried to draw on that... not a good idea... will try liquin after the drawing ...

20 x 20 Heavy brown paper. Neocolor I wax pastels plus pencils

January 30 x 30 Challenge # 17 Relaxing

January 30 x 30 Challenge  # 17 Relaxing

Besides the sulfa pools there are two Jacuzzi pools and three saunas. One a steam sauna and two dry saunas.... so this series wouldn't be complete without a sauna image ... wow did this photo come out all blurred.Learning to deal with them
Sending you all some delicious warmth..Come and join us!!!!

20 x 20 Heavy brown paper. Neocolor I wax pastels and wax pencils

January 30 x 30 Challenge # 16 A Snooze

January 30 x 30 Challenge  # 16 A Snooze

Here we are in the second half of the Leslie's 30 in 30 challenge. Some of Leslie's quotes in her post really hit home. So I have posted them here.

 Painting daily is becoming more of a habit than a task. More fun than stressful. 

I don't care if every painting isn't perfect. This month is all about the journey. The destination will come. But I never guessed the journey would be so much fun! 

Yes I am having fun even though I know that the paintings/sketches are NOT perfect... I have learned so much about these wax pastels in these 2 weeks than the years that I have been using them for sketches.... I am becoming more organized so that I have less stress and more fun!!! Yes painting/sketching is My Journey!!!

Well here is one of those NOT so perfect ones.   I am still having trouble photographing in public especially strangers... this was shot from afar, smartphone capture, that I cropped.  She/he looks awkward and in the photo as well.... have to do some practice in figures foreshortened.....so in the spirit of!!!!!

20 x 20 Heavy brown paper....Neocolor I wax pastels plus pencils.  I have started to sketch with some Rembrandt polycolor pencils that are oiled based and work well with the wax crayons.

January 30 x 30 Challenge # 15 Lonely Sparrow

January 30 x 30 Challenge  # 15  Lonely Sparrow

Found this little fellow on the rafter in the large eating area, all his friends probably found some leftovers....sort of liked the composition of the no smoking sign and the rafter.

20 x 20 cm heavy brown paper Neocolor I wax pastels..

January 30 x 30 Challenge # 14 Silhouettes

January 30 x 30 Challenge  # 14 Silhouettes

A very underexposed photo showed the bathers in silhouette with pools in the background. Tried to get the effect of steam that was coming from the pools.. I liked the effect of B&W in the foreground with a little color in the background...

20 x 20 Heavy brown paper neocolor I wax pastels and pencil

January 30 x 30 Challenge # 13 Foliage

January 30 x 30 Challenge  # 13 Foliage

There are lots of potted plants with foliage around the spa.  I am still not used to taking pictures with my smartphone and found this reference that I didn't know I took.  Liked the patterns the foliage made and the hidden figure to the right.

20 x 20 cm Heavy brown paper neocolor wax pastels. Used medium and a wash pencil.

January 30 x 30 Challenge # 12 Pedicure

January 30 x 30 Challenge  # 12  Pedicure

Have you ever had a "fish pedicure"?  Well here is your chance!!! I have never tried it.  It certainly looks weird.  Well maybe someday I will give it a try...  The photos I took were really dark and blurry so Photoshop and imagination to the rescue..

20 x 20 Heavy brown paper Neocolor I wax pastels plus Derwent wash pencil.

Reference after PS