These chine colle drypoints were some of the last prints made before the show. I was starting to feel comfortable enough with the new medium of drypoints that I could be more “me.” I was working the medium instead of it working me.
The image seems brief and simple, just a person putting on a robe, but don’t be fooled! I hired Janelle to model for me because she’s a dancer, and she has the loveliest ways of doing simple movements. I am most fascinated by the moments in between poses. I wanted to draw her putting on her robe, hoping to catch the fabric in movement and her body shifting just slightly. I caught just exactly the moment I was hoping for, but I in truth Janelle didn’t have a pretty silk robe, she had only a dirty grey hoodie belonging to her boyfriend, and she had to take it off and put it on an excessive number of times in order for me to feel like I had what I needed. I have – I kid you not – 703 images of Janelle putting on and taking off her boyfriend’s grey hoodie. And I was not using the rapid fire setting on a camera. That was just me, clicking the button when I saw something that might maybe turn into an artwork. Janelle didn’t mind, and neither did I. She just kept putting on and taking off her coat, talking about life and stuff. These are the absurdly lovely moments of working with models. Just quietly trying stuff, talking about thoughts and ideas. I enjoy spending time with a person. I appreciate the chance to study simple movements and how they go with each person’s personality, and form. I enjoy the time spent doing these ridiculously lovely things.
I adore the lines in this print, her accentuated contrapposto, and the addition of the chine-colle, Japanese designs on origami paper featuring Ukiyo-e prints of birds and geisha. I think the colors are lovely on the grey BFK.
[caption id=”attachment_12744″ align=”aligncenter” width=”601 Ruthie V, Mud Festival Peonies, 48×72″ oil on panel
My favorite painting to paint was Mud Festival Peonies. It’s large and bright, all happiness and play. This painting was a breakthrough into abstraction for me, something I’ve been wanting for a long time. It was also incredibly fun to paint! I stayed up a few nights to finish it, and I smiled all through the process, even when I had no idea what was happening. The painting is layered and rich with paint. There might be a dozen layers here. It’s etable.
Last weekend was our first annual Seattle Artist League Printmaker’s Show. On display were 30 pieces; beautiful displays of monotype, drypoint, linocut, woodcut and reductive woodcuts in black and white, and color. All of the prints were strong and interesting. Nikki has a way of getting good work out of people. We asked guests to compliment …
This is day 11 of our 30 day creative challenge! To learn more about this 30SAL challenge, click here. Today we have another “See and Respond” challenge. Take this example of a Mayan throne back piece for a king and queen and redesign it, inserting your own figures in relationship. Share your drawing on Instagram with …
[image_with_animation image_url=”9505″ alignment=”” animation=”None” box_shadow=”none” max_width=”100%”] This is the fifth part of a multi day series, sharing work by my beginning figure drawing classes. Many of these students have never taken a drawing class before, nearly all of them are new to figure drawing. Rather than learning one style, we study a different approach every …
Here’s another painter from the list of Carlos San Millan’s favorites: Mitchell Johnson. Johnson’s paintings take urban and suburban architecture and turns them into playful studies of color and shape. The shapes in his recent paintings are large, flat areas of pronounced color theory – almost resembling collage. Artist influences: Josef Albers, Morandi. Place influences: …
Some Pretty Paintings featured in the Cascadia Weekly
The image seems brief and simple, just a person putting on a robe, but don’t be fooled! I hired Janelle to model for me because she’s a dancer, and she has the loveliest ways of doing simple movements. I am most fascinated by the moments in between poses. I wanted to draw her putting on her robe, hoping to catch the fabric in movement and her body shifting just slightly. I caught just exactly the moment I was hoping for, but I in truth Janelle didn’t have a pretty silk robe, she had only a dirty grey hoodie belonging to her boyfriend, and she had to take it off and put it on an excessive number of times in order for me to feel like I had what I needed. I have – I kid you not – 703 images of Janelle putting on and taking off her boyfriend’s grey hoodie. And I was not using the rapid fire setting on a camera. That was just me, clicking the button when I saw something that might maybe turn into an artwork. Janelle didn’t mind, and neither did I. She just kept putting on and taking off her coat, talking about life and stuff. These are the absurdly lovely moments of working with models. Just quietly trying stuff, talking about thoughts and ideas. I enjoy spending time with a person. I appreciate the chance to study simple movements and how they go with each person’s personality, and form. I enjoy the time spent doing these ridiculously lovely things.
I adore the lines in this print, her accentuated contrapposto, and the addition of the chine-colle, Japanese designs on origami paper featuring Ukiyo-e prints of birds and geisha. I think the colors are lovely on the grey BFK.
[caption id=”attachment_12744″ align=”aligncenter” width=”601
Ruthie V, Mud Festival Peonies, 48×72″ oil on panel
My favorite painting to paint was Mud Festival Peonies. It’s large and bright, all happiness and play. This painting was a breakthrough into abstraction for me, something I’ve been wanting for a long time. It was also incredibly fun to paint! I stayed up a few nights to finish it, and I smiled all through the process, even when I had no idea what was happening. The painting is layered and rich with paint. There might be a dozen layers here. It’s etable.
Ruthie V, Cecily’s Peonies 36×36″ oil on panel
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Seattle Artist League Printmaker’s Show
Last weekend was our first annual Seattle Artist League Printmaker’s Show. On display were 30 pieces; beautiful displays of monotype, drypoint, linocut, woodcut and reductive woodcuts in black and white, and color. All of the prints were strong and interesting. Nikki has a way of getting good work out of people. We asked guests to compliment …
Day 11: Mayan Throne #30SAL
This is day 11 of our 30 day creative challenge! To learn more about this 30SAL challenge, click here. Today we have another “See and Respond” challenge. Take this example of a Mayan throne back piece for a king and queen and redesign it, inserting your own figures in relationship. Share your drawing on Instagram with …
Beginner’s Drawings That’ll Knock Your Socks Off (Part 5)
[image_with_animation image_url=”9505″ alignment=”” animation=”None” box_shadow=”none” max_width=”100%”] This is the fifth part of a multi day series, sharing work by my beginning figure drawing classes. Many of these students have never taken a drawing class before, nearly all of them are new to figure drawing. Rather than learning one style, we study a different approach every …
Mitchell Johnson
Here’s another painter from the list of Carlos San Millan’s favorites: Mitchell Johnson. Johnson’s paintings take urban and suburban architecture and turns them into playful studies of color and shape. The shapes in his recent paintings are large, flat areas of pronounced color theory – almost resembling collage. Artist influences: Josef Albers, Morandi. Place influences: …