Aug
25
Yep, it’s the painting that is tiny – 5″ x 5″, not the house. AND, I’m painting a picture, not painting the house.
Ok, clarifications out of the way, I thought I would show you my latest painting and its progress! It’s 5″ x 5″, and it’s in the same format as the paintings I will be doing as part of my 100 Tiny Homes project. I’m experimenting with materials too. I’m trying to decide if I should use oil or acrylic paint. I prefer oils, but they have two big drawbacks: the solvents are toxic, and they take forever to dry.
I tried Artisan water soluble oils, and while I like them, I only like them with the mediums that make them take even longer to dry. I’ve been working with acrylics, and I’m getting better at it. Acrylics definitely work well for layering technique since they dries quickly. But, they dry a little too quickly sometimes. Next, I’m going to try out an acrylic medium that extends drying time a bit.
The first picture below is of my house. Yes, it is purple with red trim. No, I didn’t choose those colors, but I have come to love them! It’s ridiculously easy to give directions now! The second picture is a progression of my painting. I really had planned a couple more layers of color, but I fell in love with this version, so I stopped. It doesn’t look quite finished to me, but I know if I go one step further, it will be *too* finished. Anyone know what I mean? Does that happen to you?
Would you like a painting inspired by your home? Check out my Kickstarter 100 Tiny Homes project!
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Posted in Tiny House Project, artwork artwork houses
Jul
21
Hi there! Nope, I’m *NOT* abandoning this blog. I am absolutely keeping on. I’m also not abandoning the color theory exercises — I’m going to keep posting those as I do them. I’m just slow to work on the next set. I’ve been crazy busy with lots of good things — lots calligraphy needs here in Chattanooga right now! Plus, I’m working on setting up a calligraphy shop on Etsy (slow going, but I’ll let you know when I start to put the really cool stuff out there!). I have so many ideas, it’s hard to focus sometimes. My next project is one that was inspired by my hand painted business cards (I know, I couldn’t just let it go!), and will be a Kickstarter project – more on that soon!
Here’s the latest painting I’m working on. This is a view of the road in front of us as we drove to Sparta, TN for a Toyota Land Cruiser off-road event. My dear husband loves to drive his truck on rocky narrow roads through mud and trees. My son and I didn’t join up for that part of it, but instead went for dinner and the prize raffle. Little guy won a soccer ball in the raffle!
Now, I really like the composition of this painting. That works for me. I’m still not back in the painting groove yet, but getting a little better I think. I used acrylics for this painting because I wanted the layers to dry quickly, but deep down, I think oil is still my favorite. Make that oil with all the bad, nasty chemicals and turpentine! Back to the painting though… does anyone fall in love with their sketches, but end up hating the final paintings? I do. In fact, I generally hate finishing things for that very reason…
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Posted in artwork artwork
Jul
03
Nope, I didn’t get into the AVA exhibit. Even though I didn’t really think I would, I’m still pretty sad about it. I know the answer is to keep working all year, and apply again for 2011, but it’s tough to focus on that right now. Luckily, I have a lot of calligraphy projects coming up, and I’m working on an idea for Kickstarter.
As for painting, I’m going to keep on going with my color theory series (look for the complementary color exercises next week), and painting houses. I know that practice and repetition will help me improve.
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Posted in artwork, personal AVA
