Over the past couple weeks, months really, I’ve been thinking about two things.  One is the start of a painting and the second is the color harmony of the painting.   Over the past year, I’ve been actually working on better control over the values in my painting, forcing me to think of temperature and color changes for expression. 

Making a Good Start

Let’s start first with the start of the painting.  I recently purchased “Still Life Live”, a 4 DVD set of demos (3 discs) and critiques (1 disc) by Joe Anna Arnett.  On this dvd set, Joe talks about starting the painting loosely and then reigning in on the painting as you work on it.  The focus is on the placement of the items in the composition and not so much on actually drawing each object.  I need to note here that you need to still have drawing skills and put in the time drawing to really accomplish the final beautiful painting with all the proportions correct.  This is just one way to start and it is very helpful making the transition from drawing each object and then staying in the paint by number lines.  Such a free experience to see this.  (click here to see a trailer of Joe Anna’s dvd set and order it…)

With that in mind, I decided to start my paintings a new way.  I wanted to control my values and I wanted to focus on my drawing. I wanted it to be right before I started painting,  having it totally figured out before I put that first color note on my canvas.  Here is a rather wonderful grey scale painting that I did and will be the focus of this blog/lesson.  This is Spock.  He is my little kitty (one of them and the bigger of the two–weighing 15 lbs and when he stretches up to let me know he is around (if I’m standing I’m about 5 ft. 7 3/4 inches tall) his front paws hit almost to the top of my hips!).  Notice that I’ve basically worked out my values and have worked out all of my drawing issues in this sketch.  This particular sketch, because I wanted to capture his attention gesture, took me a long while to get to this point.  But it was worth every minute!

Next  was the mixing of colors and painting the painting.  Here is the first version of this painting.  It is a 16 x 20 oil on canvasboard.  Notice the gesture of his attention.  The drawing is very good and the colors on the cat are wonderful!  The problem is, the background color.  It is fighting for the attention.  Spock is the star of this painting and the background, while nice color harmony, shouldn’t be fighting for my attention/competing with the cat.  So the question becomes, what should that background be to make people be drawn to this painting saying..”Wow–look at the cat!”.

 “Come Play With Me!”  16X20 Oil on Canvas

Try This Exercise

With many thanks to one of my mentors, Joe Anna Arnett, for her suggestion of this exercise to determine which background will make the cat pop off the canvas and beckon to the viewers.

Take old scrap canvases or some small study canvases and using the colors of the dominant figure in your composition, paint them on the canvas.  Don’t worry about each little detail and you can really just paint squares, triangles, cubes, spheres–whatever you need to do to get the colors in the approximate place.  Moreover, what is most important is the actual colors in the approximate placement on the canvas.

When you have the colors in place, work on your foreground and background colors.  Test which ones you like better.  For example, I did 3 quick (did not take me more than 20 minutes to do these) tests with 3 distinct colors for the background.   So let’s take a look!

Test 1

This test I went with a warmer beige color in the background.  To me, it is still competing and is too warm.  I quickly eliminated this one from consideration.  It just doesn’t work. 

Test 2

The background on this is a blue grey and is still in contention.  I wasn’t convinced that this was the winner yet, so I went on to test number 3.  

Test 3 
This quick study is speaking to me.  I’m liking the green/grey background and it is different enough from the grey below that it begins to provide a 3rd plane in the painting.  When it is all said and done, I will probably choose this color for the background.  It may vary a little in value, but it the basic color that attracts my eye.  For now though, I will put all of the paintings aside and not look at them for 3 or 4 days.  Then with a fresh eye, I will look at all 3 of these again.  The final decision will be made at that point and then I will change the background on Come Play With Me!

After I finished with this exercise I was in such a mood to paint and was having such fun just throwing paint around that I decided to do the grey scale of my next kitty painting.  This one is of Tigger Bear from a study I did previously.  What I love with this new process is that I am doing it all with a brush and paper towel in my hand….no pencil.  I tend to fight drawing, maybe a mental block, but put a brush in my hand and grey paint on my palette and I’ll work and work to get that drawing correct.  I enjoy it so much more than eraser and pencil in a sketch book.   Give these two methods a try and see how you feel about them.

Here’s My Tigger Bear…

Happy Holidays!!

And the very

Happy, Healthy and Properous New Year!!

After just returning form the Art in the Carolinas and the Rembrandt in America exhibit at the North Carolina Museum of Art, I so excited to be able to see another Master of art, Norman Rockwell.  What a way to end a year focused on improving my art knowledge, skill and understanding that to be able to attend in person two great shows!

A few years ago, I blessed with a birthday present from Kevin Macpherson and Christopher Magadini.  We were in New York City and Kevin asked what I wanted for my birthday.  I told him that I wanted an escorted trip through the Impressionist are of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.  He agreed and then said that he thought Chris would be a great addition too!  Two Master artists escorting me and talking to me about past masters art….Now that’s a present I’ll never forget!!

I’ll also never forget how much more I appreciated the artist’s work.  Even artists who before this trip I wouldn’t give a second look too suddenly became a bit more familiar with the understanding provided by trained and artistic eyes.  That conversation between Kevin and Chris on–pick a painting-was so interesting and although at first I felt intimidated to add to it, after I made an observation overlooked by them on one painting, I was invited to share and speak up.  We spent hours in that museum and after a while others began to follow us trying to listen into our conversation and wondering what we were doing with this piece of transparent slide with one single straight line across the top.  They watched us as we turned that same square a number of different ways in the painting and discussed our findings.  I bet it was a scene that Rockwell would have laughed at and painted.

I plan on attending the Rockwell exhibit at the Dayton Art Institute and studying his fine work.  His use of color and shapes is one area I intend on studying in this paintings.  Of course there are his drawing skills and use of line to look over as well. There is also so much more…

Want to join me?  I don’t mind taking anyone through the exhibit so that you can get a little more in depth and personal with one of America’s favorite paintiner/illustrators.   Come read the Saturday Evening Post with me and learn a little more about Norman Rockwell.

Here’s the write up at the DAI’s website:

Dayton Art Institute–American Chronicles:

The Art of Norman Rockwell

If you are interested in joining me, either leave a comment below or drop me an email by filling out the contact me form on the site.  Looking forward to exploring the world of Norman Rockwell.

Happy Holidays!

We went to Art in the Carolinas last week and then scouted around the western part of North Carolina, visiting my friend Cynthia.  We found ourselves close to the Park toward the end of the day and drove up to Newfound Gap.  Here’s a video of the Gap at sunset.  Music provided by my good friend Wayne Johnson.  Turn your speakers up, sit back and relax…enjoy!

Time to Rest, 8×10  Oil on Canvas

Joe Anna Arnett has a wonderful new video set out called

“Still Life Live”.

Linda is thrilled and honored to announce that she will be working with

Multimedia Artboards

on their online marketing strategy.  Tom Carney of Multimedia Artboards contacted Linda to discuss the possibilities.  Linda will be meeting with Tom at the Art of the Carolinas to finalize some plans and work out a few other details.  Look for some exciting news coming soon in regards to those “little” details. 

In the meantime, visit Multimedia Artboards website to learn more about them.  

Welcome aboard Multimedia Artboards and Thanks!!

It’s been a busy time and then some down time thanks to a sinus infection! Yuck!

The last two days I’ve been in the studio and loving it.  The first painting was of my little red oak tree.  When I was suffering the stuffy head, congestion and fever of the cold I would go look out the window at this little fella.  I never realized before that my red oak was so colorful when it started to change color for the fall.  The sun caught it just right one morning and the yellow, orange, to dark red colors where both in sun and shadow.  It was just beautiful.   I knew I needed to capture it.

Here’s the finished painting….

You’d think it was a sugar maple, but it is a red oak.  Now, a few days later the majority of the tree has gone to a reddish brown and all the yellow and orange is pretty much gone.  I am glad I caught the process of this little oak changing color.  Each day was truly different.

Next I finished up a commission of one of my neice’s and nephew’s son, Caleb.  This is now drying and will be framed and shipped to them in  a few weeks.

Next up is another commission of another great nephew-Brayden.  I’m trying to capture this little guy’s fun-loving nature and un-ending energy.   Here’s the first study I did–only spent a little time on this–the main idea being to work out the composition and color.  I’ll also use these quick studies to determine what I like and dislike.  I won’t spend a lot of time on them and stop way before they would be considered a finished product.

I started with a full body study…but quickly abandoned it.  Not sure I really wanted to do so this…

I decided that I wanted something that would show more of Brayden’s face, so I did some cropping.  Brayden is constant motion–so much energy!  So this pose by him and the look on his face also reminds me of him saying–”Catch me if you can!”  So I wanted to get closer to the face!

Here’s the second study–a little closer but I’m thinking I still want to get closer…

It’s getting closer..but still need to play.  I’ll do a couple more–one being a head and should crop.  This is leading me to this compositon and will be the next subject of a quick study..

It was nice to throw some more paint around!  Stay tuned as I work through the commission.  I can almost hear his laughter in the studio above…but not quite there.

Joe Anna Arnett’s Painting Demonstration

Today, June 19th, we traveled down to Santa Fe to experience a painting demonstration by Passport and Palette Master Painter Joe Anna Arnett.   We started out a bit early, so that we could stop along the way to capture some of the beauty of the gorge just south of Taos.  It was coming up on noon, but we did manage to capture some of the shadows and colors before the flat light wiped the color out because of the mid-afternoon glare.

When we got to the part of the gorge where the Rio Grande River flows through (actually it does through the whole gorge–this is just where we went to take pictures) a group of adventurers were launching their rafts for a white river rafting experience.  Here’s a few pictures of the gorge with the river rapids and some of the rafts going through them.

We stopped on the way down for a great lunch at Chili’s and have to say that the Margarita Chicken with black beans and rice was absolutely mouth watering.  A must have if it is on the menu at a Chili’s near you.

Next came the big event we left Taos for!  Joe Anna Arnett treated us to a demo painting of Bombshell Peonies and yellow/orange roses.  A still life of live flowers from her garden!   Throughout the 3 hour long demonstartion, Joe Anna shared tips on painting and little sayings like..”Don’t know what to do, start with red, yellow and blue.”   She is a wonderful teacher and this was a great warm up for the week to come painting en plein aire here in the Taos area.

Joe Anna’s delicate touch and conversation with her flowers, palette and canvas is a beautiful, thought provoking journey to witness.  She
started with the background and how that influences and participates in conveying the feeling of your painting.  It’s sets the tone, and isn’t just there to fill out your painting.   But actually, the start of Joe Anna’s painting,( if any of you have been lucky enough to paint with her)  is the plan that she constructs through a pencil sketch, a value study and warm up paintings.  She did all these things the day prior to this demonstration, starting this demonstration with a quick pencil value study.

With her plan set and her willingness to stay open to the painting process, she started her painting in a very abstract way.  She let her value study and warm up paintings guide her intuitive spirit and her brush loosely added beautiful shapes of light and shadow to a cool toned canvas.  She mixed the colors of her “Bombshell Peonies”  and began to lay in the focal point of her painting.  She explained the importance of finding the center of your canvas so that you avoid it. The focal point of her painting not being in the center of the canvas.

After a short break, Joe Anna came back to finish out the painting.  As she worked she departed great tidbits of information about the colors she was mixing and the composition of the painting.  I quickly saw in the painting the importance of the placement of each rose in relation to the peonies and the suggestion of leaves and how the intricate linkages leads the eye through the painting.  In the finished painting, which I won’t post here out of respect for Joe Anna, there was a triangle between the focal point of the two peonies, back to a 3rd peony in shadow.  Below the white peonies was a second smaller
and less attention getting triangle between the 3 roses (two in the
center to the one in back.)  These two triangles form a counter flow to the peonies’ strong presence pointing to the left.   The placement of the roses beneath the focal point peonies direct your eye to the focal, all pointing to the stars of the painting.

This demonstration was not just simply a demonstration of painting
flowers.  It was a demonstration of all the fine technical information
needed to make a viewer walk over to your painting from across the
room.  It was a lesson is painting white–white in shadow, white in
light, white in the background and how you handle each without using
white paint straight out of the tube.  To often, the student doesn’t see that white isn’t white.  White is the playground for wonderful
reflective light…from cool tones in the shadow to warm tones in the
light.  The experience of Joe Anna’s painting career showed as she
tickled the canvas with delightful, luscious varying shades of white and never failing.

So much was learned and I’m so grateful to have seen Joe Anna paint.   And of course, it was so nice to get a couple great bear hugs from her hubby, James Asher.   It has been too long between visits with both these Master artists and it is so nice to feel their energy and experience their positive spirit.   Thank the stars that I can
experience their painting and personalities on Passport and Palette, not to mention seeing their wonderful works on their website.

To learn more about Joe Anna Arnett and James Asher, visit  their website.

Please see my post regarding the new class being offered at the Middletown Arts Center.  I’ll be teaching there and I’m looking for people like you who want to discover the world of Art!!

I’ve been thinking that I’d like to teach a beginner workshop and I’m
willing to travel to do so. I have been given so much by Kevin and Joe Anna, that I would love to pass on my knowledge and introduce others to the wonderful world of expressing yourself through color,
atmosphere, and well of course painting.

Play Date Conference

Having art in your life leads to so many other things–enjoying life, seeing nature in a whole new way, meeting a whole new circle of friends, and an appreciation of life in general.

Lily Pond in Queenstown Garden

What I’d love to share would be how to get started with a limited palette, understanding design shapes and learning to see this, some value study work and begin to understand color relationships. I’m thinking it could be a 2-3 day workshop. We could even throw in some business and marketing information too!

If you are interested, send me a message. If you are interested in
trying to organize a workshop for those in your area who are
beginners–I’ll be happy to work with you.

Gala Apple study