"At Founders Park" (watercolor with white gouache; 9" x 9")

"At Founders Park" on my sketchbook page

Rick's demo of a "poster" figure study

My attempts at "poster" figure studies

Sunday's schedule was even more rigorous. For three hours, we had a model for our "poster" figure studies. Rick Weaver's main concern was most students' obsession with line drawing. We try to draw as precisely as we are capable of, then "color in." He would rather have us think in terms of color shapes. Color has four properties: hue (red, blue, yellow, etc.), chroma (color intensity), value (light and dark), and temperature (warm and cool). And the same color will appear differently, like a chameleon, depending on what surrounds it.  To paint in color is to play with fire.

Rick's answer was to do a series of "poster" figure studies.  The more, the better.  If you look at Rick's demo carefully, you will find eight color shapes: light and dark shapes for the head, hair, shirt, and background fabric.  We were told to "match" the overall color for each shape, being mindful of hue, chroma, value, and temperature.  Within each shape, there is a myriad of nuanced colors.  Forget those and come up with one color that describes the shape.  One should be able to tell the picture across the room as a woman with brown hair wearing a green shirt against an orange backdrop with a strong yellow light.  We did three of these quick studies.  The model came prepared with changes of clothes.

Rick doing a demo at Founders Park in Alexandria, VA

Rick's unfinished landscape demo

The view of winter bushes I chose to paint

After a quick lunch break, we went outside for a landscape exercise.  This is what I was hoping for, but didn't expect to happen.  How often do you get a perfect weather for outdoor painting in early December?  The fortune, however, favored us.  The warm late afternoon sun cast long cool shadows.  After watching Rick do a quick demo, we were given 45 minutes to do a plein-air landscape sketch.  Yes, really.  I painted the above scene, sitting on a small sketchbook, as the grass was wet and I didn't come prepared with a stool.  It took three minutes to set up the gear.  It would have taken 30 minutes to settle down to paint in oil! 

We returned to the classroom for the final parting words from Rick and goodbyes.  He said: do "poster" studies like a musician practices scales.  I took the workshop to learn to use watercolors like oils.  I learned that, and much more.  Thank you, Rick.

Reception for the Small Works Show at The Art League

Today was the reception for the Small Works Show at The Art League in Alexandria, VA.  As I mentioned in a previous entry, my painting, "Playing with Dandelion", has won the second place and already got sold.  My daughter, and also the model of the painting, took the picture of me shaking hands with the juror, Emily Conover. 

The premise of the show was that the image could not be larger than 48 square inches.  Emily Conover, who is an adjunct professor of painting and drawing at the University of Maryland, said that "composition, scale, and format become extremely important when working small.  You have to be very conscious of the composition."  She added that "several artists were successful in making their small works appear larger through strategic selection of format and scale, and use of an open composition."
 
I feel hugely honored.

Happy Veterans Day!

"Playing with Dandelion" (oil on linen; 4" x 5") sold



sold

I am so glad that I started a daily painting project.  Paint everyday--or at least try to--and upload the results on my website.  Some paintings were not so great, so I didn't even bother.  I learned what subjects work better in such a small format (initially I had limited myself to one format: 4 x 5").

When I had 20 paintings ready, my blog within the website went public, that is, Blogger became its host.  The new blog started out just with brief descriptions of the paintings.  Then I began to explore the medium of blog, which is supposed to be a web diary.  More and more entries became discussions and thoughts about my art adventure.  It is time-consuming, to be sure.  I could be painting instead of writing about art.  But writing has a way of clarifying muddled thoughts, and I hope to connect with other artists and art lovers with my words.

There is this wonderful art co-operative called The Art League in the Old Town in Alexandria, VA, which operates a gallery, school, and store.  They have monthly juried shows, which are very competitive.  As a watercolorist, I used to get accepted into these shows on a regular basis.  The best record was eight times in ten shows.  Ever since I switched to the opaque mediums, first acrylic, then oil, my performance plummeted.  I barely scraped by with three or four shows a year (if you make three shows, you become eligible for the non-juried bin gallery section and can sell art).  This year has been pretty grim.  The last time when my painting was juried in was May.  Even my stoic Scandinavian husband was getting worried.

Then, bingo, this month in which the gallery hosts two shows simultaneously--the small works and large works--my painting, "Playing with Dandelion" won the second place, obviously, in the small works show.  How about that!  I am thrilled.  I credit this honor to my daily painting project!