Meg's Leg

"Meg's Leg"
8" x 8"
Graphite on paper
Meg was a model in the life drawing session I'm taking in an art center near where I live.  Even though the pose was comfortable for Meg, the only thing I really nailed was her left leg.  

When the opportunity presented itself, I saw the merit in attending the open studio, without an instructor. I've never done this before. I'm entirely new to drawing the figure from life. I wasn't classically trained. At this late stage of my life I'm trying the things I missed when I pursued chemistry rather than art.

Carol

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Rose Wild Rose

"Rose Wild Rose"
7" x 7"
Pastel on paper
I found a bush of wild roses during the season and shot some photos of the blooms. I did't know these simple flowers would be perfect for me to try my first pastel of a rose... not too many petals. I have one warm pink pastel, a red and an orange so there was a lot of mixing of color to get what I was seeing in my photo. Good practice, I suppose.  

I met with the Princeton Brush representatives today. They're going to send some additional brushes to me so I don't have to use just one. They would like me to be fluent in Catalyst before they film me in a few weeks.  It was a productive and fun meeting.

Carol

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Love Stamp, Lamp and Lace

"Love Stamp, Lamp and Lace"
16" x 12"
Watercolor on paper



















I found this painting in my archives while I was cleaning my studio these past couple of days.  It's a watercolor from when that was the only medium I knew. Today I know a few more ways to express myself. 

I'm cleaning instead of painting because a crew from the Princeton Artist Brush Company of Princeton, New Jersey is coming to my studio on Thursday to meet me, see my studio space and prepare to make a video of me painting with their Catalyst paintbrush.  I raved about their #4 Polytip Bristle brush a couple of weeks ago and the adventure began right about then.  I'll let you know how it turns out.

Carol

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English Walled Garden

"English Walled Garden"
7" x 10"
Pastel on paper
I painted at the Chicago Botanic Gardens this morning. The light was brilliant, the air was autumnal, and it was a beautiful day to be there.  Plein air doesn't get better than this.  

I'm learning as I go with this wonderful medium.  And I'm so thankful I didn't ignore the opportunity to explore it.  I have to thank my friend Ken Lutgen for inspiring me during a plein air session earlier this summer.  He doesn't even know it's entirely his fault.

Carol

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Neighborly

"Neighborly"
5" x 7"
Pastel on paper
I had a tree, you had some rope and I tumbled for you the afternoon we constructed our swing. We soared and sang and laughed on that swing until you moved away.  

I'm testing my abilities with pastel on paper.  Tonight's challenge was to make fine lines using thick sticks.  I seem to have done it.  I particularly enjoyed making the wire on the fence.  

Carol

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Sundown

"Sundown"
6" x 6"
Oil on hardboard 
There aren't too many evenings when the sky hands us a platter of primary colours, but this evening was one of them. I enjoyed the brief moments of this show of colour before dark.

I had these colors on my palette and wanted to use them before they crusted-over. It's a pretty dramatic red, yellow, blue sky painting.  One I'll add to my collection.

Carol

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Wave Good-bye

"Wave Good-bye"
6" x 8"
Pastel on paper
I found a photo of a wave that appealed to me for its colour and shape. I'm not comfortable with waves that are this large, but I like them when they're dry and stopped mid-curl, like this one.  

Pastel seems to be a part of my life now. I guess I'd better take a lesson or two to see if I'm doing it right.

Carol

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Blithe Spirit

"Blithe Spirit"
16" x 20"
Oil on wrapped canvas 
A trip to my local farmers' market showcased the season's brightest and best of the season. Yet the cabbages were not the colors I wanted, so I imagined one in something other than ... green.  

Actually, I didn't have to imagine this one, I photoshopped a green one and made her outrageously colorful and whimsical.  I painted her petals without the veins then added them when I was sure I wouldn't back out of my decision.  I'm kind of liking it.  Now I wish I had some bacon, I'd fry it up and make a nice warm dinner for tonight.  

Carol

Pines in the Fog

"Pines in the Fog"
5" x 5"
Oil on hardboard
Morning was about to burn off the fog that had hugged a stand of pines throughout the night. It wasn't much, but the breath of moisture that the low-slung cloud afforded sustained those living things another day.

I derived quite a bit of pleasure as I made up this little painting. I've been to a place like this, all crunchy and parched, and recalled it through the tip bristles of my brush.

Carol

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Sunday With Daniel

"Sunday With Daniel"
9" x 12"
Pastel on paper
I went with my painting pals to the Daniel Wright Woods again, but this time, instead of taking my oil paints, I brought a box of pastels and a pad of colored paper. I began painting on the textured side of a sheet and hated it. I untaped it, folded it and stuffed it into my Ed Hardy backpack.  I flipped the paper to the smoother side and redrew what I had already planned. The guys had a good head start on me, but I managed to finish all but a few waterlilies by quitting time.  

I'm enjoying pastels about as much as any medium I've tried.  Even though I've posted others, this is my second pastel painting.

Carol

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The Tempest

"The Tempest"
16" x 20"
Acrylic on wrapped canvas
I felt compelled to paint something tempestuous tonight, so I put a large canvas on my easel and squeezed out a limited palette of acrylic paints. I directed my frustrated bewilderment into this very fluid and tumultuous piece, and within two hours I felt a lot better.  

I like how this turned out, so I'm going to try it in oil, possibly tomorrow.

Carol

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Daniel Wright, Overcast

"Daniel Wright, Overcast"
12" x 9"
Pastel on paper



















Autumn made an appearance at the woods today. For the most part, the trees and shrubs have settled into their final, seasonal selection of green, but one shrub had already tried on her fall attire. She wore it proudly, despite the warning that she'd also probably be the first to lose her fancy garb. 

I sat at pond-side with my pastels on a small table next to me to capture the essence of the woods on this overcast day. One of my friends will be going back to Arizona, so this was his last hurrah for the season.

Carol

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Me

"Me"
12" x 9"
Pencil on paper



















It was the sixties — now I'm IN my sixties!  I wanted a bentwood rocker and the only way to get the money for it was to join a band and dance ...  at the Playmore Ballroom in Fort Dodge, Iowa. One night of dancing paid for the chair.  I was a go-go girl and loved every minute of it. 

This is a piece to satisfy the Dailypaintworks "Paint Yourself Young" Challenge.  Fortunately, I have photos of me at this age that were taken by a photographer in the art department at the TV station where I worked.

Carol

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Oceanside Beach at Sunset

"Oceanside Beach at Sunset"
6" x 9"
Pastel on paper
There were lots of people still on the beach as the sun dipped into the Pacific. The wet sand reflected pink as the foamy surf receded.  How different from the rocky, cold beaches of Lake Michigan I'm accustomed to.  

 Pastel number four. I'm learning a lot with each attempt at making art with these chubby, sticks of product.

Carol

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