Whatchamacallit #8

                                                       Whatchamacallit,
                                     Acrylic, collage on paper, 9X12

We all have them, they're whatchamacallits, just crazy  ideas, paintings, do-dads. We're not sure what they are or what to do with them but there they are and sometime they just make us smile. This little painting has lots of layers that have been  rubbed, scribbled, stamped painted over and around. Even a little collage was added  for good measure. Sometimes it's just fun

to do something that's a little bit out of my comfort zone and put it out there for the world to see. How crazy is that?

Hammock on the Beach, #7

                                      Hammock on the Beach, 
                                    Acrylic on textured paper, 15 X 11

I feel like I've really accomplished something! 7 paintings in 7 days. It's so much fun to be painting regularly, it makes me wonder why I haven't kept up with it before. I guess life just gets in the way sometimes, and once I get away from painting every day it's harder to get back to it. 
This painting was from a photo I took at a resort in the Florida Keys. I think I've seen this scene pop up more than once. I've eliminated some palms that were in the original picture but left in the little island of mangroves off shore. It was certainly an inviting and idyllic spot, probably photographed hundreds of times. But each artist has their own interpretation and style of painting it. No two are alike. 

Challenge painting #6

                                                Ap"pear"antly, 
                                  Acrylic on textured background. 11X11

OK, I'll stop making any more puns about pears, at least for now. You can't see it on this photo but there is a lot of iridescence on the surface of this painting. I just thought it would be fun to add a little gold on the pears and a blue sheen to the background. This is very freeing to paint everyday and not be too concerned about whether it's perfect or not. Just get out the paper and the brushes and do it. I think pears are easier to paint in watercolor than in acrylic. Acrylic looks flat to me, and it's difficult not to get hard edges. I prefer the ability to soften some edges in watercolor.

Challenge paintings # 4 and 5

                                        New Year Angel 
                   Watercolor on gesso background, 7X15

I decided that the backgrounds I made of thinned gesso over old watercolor paintings would be a good canvas for my challenge paintings. It eliminates the need for a background and makes me stretch my imagination for subjects to be compatible with them. This New Year Angel is done in watercolor over the gesso. She is holding a basket of fruit to symbolize prosperity in the New Year. 

   Suddenly Ap"pears"   
       Acrylic and collage on gesso textured paper

Number 5 is another one done on gesso-textured paper. I love painting pears and this one seemed to fit right in that spot. The moon face in the upper right is a collage piece, the other areas were scraped and stamped into the gesso when it was wet. A friend looked at it after I painted it and said, "A pear suddenly appeared in the city". I guess the grid shapes do look like buildings. 

Painting Large

                             Message In An Aquarium
                Watercolor and collage, 22X30

We were encouraged to paint larger paintings at the Florida Watercolor Society convention last September. I have balked at the idea in the past because of the lack of space in my studio and the expense of framing a full sheet painting. But, I decided I was tired of having my small paintings hung in the corner so many times. I took the plunge and painted a full sheet painting. Not my first but the  first in a long time. I started with the background with lots of textural materials, papers, gauze and stamps then added the fish shapes when it was dry. I like the path of light from top to bottom with the implied connections to each side. It was fun to do and now I must get to the framing. Then on to another full sheet painting.

Two Paintings for the Challenge

                                             Waiting Lady  acrylic on paper

                                      Two Spoonbills, acrylic on paper

These are the first two paintings I posted on the 30 day challenge. I found that I had to use Google Chrome in order to get the download feature to work.  Check my last blog for the address of the 30 day challenge if you want to know more or to participate. I have another painting "in my camera" to post later for today's painting. This really takes commitment. I hope I'm up to the challenge.