Orange and Cherry Reflections

"Orange and Cherry Reflections"  8x8" Acrylic  Click to bid

This still life was set up for my Wednesday morning painting class, specifically to learn about dealing with the interesting reflections cast on a shiny metallic surface.  After class ended, I just had to jump in and paint it myself. 

A new summer session of 8 classes is beginning soon, and we are switching to Thursday mornings for painting, and Thursday afternoons for "Painterly Collage".  Below is a sample of the type of project that incorporates collage, acrylic gels, pastes and mediums, stamping, spraying and more. Working in a mixed media style is big fun, and I for one can't wait for class to begin. There is something very freeing about layering and mixed media, its a completely different approach than working only with paint and brushes. If you are local (NYC / Hudson River Valley), come join us!

"Heading Downtown"  18x24"  Mixed Media (SOLD)

Two Pears

Barbara's Pears  6x6"  acrylic  (SOLD)

Finally back from traveling and spending some time with my folks. The Syracuse workshop went great although we all wished it were longer. We have already begun planning a 5 day workshop in spring 2014 to cover more ground - namely color theory and color schemes.
Here is one of the demo paintings I did. I set up a simple still life and composed two value studies, using black, grey and white values to illustrate a big point about seeing values - namely that there are many ways to translate an image into a simple value structure. It's up to the artist to simplify and push the values one way or another to make the painting work. In otherwords, the artist is the designer, not the transcriber. I often push students to do more than one value study, to determine which ones work best, and to get them into the habit of doing what works - rather than copying what's there. (IMHO) designing the overall value structure is key to strong compositions!

Tulips and Cherries

Tulips and Cherries  Acrylic, 6x6"

This is a painting of the still life I set up for my Wednesday morning class. After the students left I decided to paint it myself. 

Today I'm leaving for about a week, to teach a workshop in Syracuse NY, my hometown. I'm looking forward to the workshop, as well as spending some time with my family!

New York City Impressions 2

City Impressions  2  Acrylic on WC Paper  14x14"

Another piece for the show... the view is from Soho looking North. I like working on paper, but when the time comes, I am not going to enjoy all the framing.

New York City Impressions

City Impressions 1  Acrylic on WC Paper 10x10"

I'm creating a lot of new work for my upcoming show in Provincetown at Simie Maryles Gallery. It starts on Labor Day weekend in September and will be up for a month. The entire show will be a collection of urban landscapes based on NYC. 

Only the Good Die Young

A Few Good 'Maters   Acrylic on Gessoboard  8x8"  $150  Buy Now  

Every artist knows that at a certain point you stop looking at your subject altogether, and just start giving the painting what it needs.  At that certain point, apparently, the far left tomato rolled off my table and landed near my right foot. Needless to say, the little guy got squished mercilessly, after posing so patiently. Well, life ain't fair. At least he was immortalized in paint -- a better fate than most tomatoes get!

The (dreaded) self-portrait

Self Portrait  Acrylic on Gessoboard, 8x10"

Egad, I have not done a self portrait since college. I mean really, who wants to stare at themselves for hours on end... it is not for the faint of heart. But alas, I couldn't avoid it any longer. I am in the home stretch of completing my third book, which is all step-by-step demos of various subjects and issues that painters encounter, such as painting glass and reflections, creating depth with color temperature, layering in glazes, experimenting with color, etc etc.  I've finished nine topics, and the very last one, which I have been avoiding like the plague was... you guessed it, the self-portrait. With my deadline closing in and my excuses running thin, I took a deep breath and faced it - er, me. It wasn't as painful as I expected (isn't that usually the case?) and I may even attempt a few more, now that I've gotten over the hump. One nice benefit of painting with the big brushes in a looser style -- I don't pay much attention to fine detail or, (ahem) lines and wrinkles.  When I squint to see the big shapes and the values, they all drop away so nicely!

Dos Daffodils

 Dos Daffodils,  Acrylic on Gessoboard  8x10"  Click to Bid

I'm just getting settled back in after my trip to North Carolina and then immediately following, a quickie snowboarding trip to Vermont to enjoy the last vestiges of winter.
With Daffodils blooming everywhere, I set up a still life for my Wednesday morning class.  When class ended and everyone left, I had to indulge myself and paint them too. Good-bye Winter, hello Spring!

"Paint Fast, Loose and Bold" Workshop in Cary, NC

Fruit Gang 8x8" Acrylic on Gessoboard  (SOLD)

Pink Rose 8x6"  Acrylic on Canvas  Click to Bid

Just returned from Cary, NC where I taught a 3 day "How to Paint Fast, Loose and Bold" workshop. We covered a lot of ground! Here is a quick summary...

I spent the first day teaching and drilling in, the value of values, and how to be a designer of shapes, rather than a transcriber of what is there. In fact, I spent so much time on this topic that I was worried everyone was going to get bored. But the feedback I got from everyone afterwards was overwhelmingly a big 'thank you' for taking so much time to demonstrate over and over, how to create and "design" a strong value foundation. I loved hearing "I finally get it!!"

Next we did exercises in translating values to colors, interpreting greytones into wild and beautiful colors - departing completely from reality.

Then we practiced how to work with very large brushes. The fruit and flower demos were done using 2" brushes on small canvases - 8x8" and 6x8". I showed what to look for when buying a large brush and how to hold and maneuver it to get smaller shapes and fine lines. I often use just one large brush to do an entire painting.

After a 1 hour rose demo, in which I stated upfront that my goal was to edit out everything but the most important detail, I did a 25-stroke rose painting, using the 2" brush, and then had everyone do the same. The purpose of that exercise is learning brushwork and editing skills. Later in the day I did a quick demo on edges and transitioning from one color/value to the next - geared especially to the acrylic painters. Oil painters can easily blend by dragging their paint from one value to the next. Because acrylics dry so fast, transitioning methods are important to learn. 

We also worked FAST -- 15 minute paintings!  As is usually the case, the paintings whipped out in 15 minutes were actually better and bolder than the "longer" 45 minute paintings.  It's always fun to see the look on everyone's faces when they realize just how much they can accomplish in so short a time, once they have the important fundamentals in place.

One of the best parts of the workshop was the lunch at a nearby Italian restaurant, planned by my awesome hostess-with-the-mostest, Monica Linares. Getting to know everyone better, in a social setting is the icing on the cake, and always makes me wish the workshop were a few days longer. Just as we are all becoming friends, we are then saying goodbyes. I pointed out that its not too early to start thinking about re-connecting in Italy for my "Let's paint Tuscany Fast, Loose and Bold".  

Here's a picture of the group, at work and at play.  I sure hope our paths cross again, as hanging out with painters is always, in my book, the best!

Orange Juice and Strawberries

OJ and Strawberries  8x10"  Acrylic on panel

Although I painted this in acrylics, it was better suited for oils. Today the temperature went up over 80 degrees and my studio was preeetttty hot. Acrylics dry more quickly when the conditions are hot and dry. I don't have my AC hooked up yet so the minute the paint went down it dried. I normally have a bit more leeway.  Maybe its time to crack out the oils, for a nice seasonal change of pace...

To the Triboro - SOLD!

"To the Triboro"  44x43"  Acrylic on Canvas

Just got the news from my gallery in NY - SOLD.  Now I want to start painting larger again! And to think I just got a gig to paint 10 - yes TEN,  4"x4" paintings... anyone out there got a magnifying glass I could borrow?

Seductive Surfaces Workshop

Here are a few techniques from the 2 day "Seductive Surfaces" workshop I taught recently in Syracuse, NY. The participants did such beautiful work, I had a hard time choosing from all of their samples.  During the workshop we covered about 15 different acrylic techniques, which involved using a wide array of gels, pastes, mediums and paints.  

The butterflies were a lesson in how to use interference (and iridescent) paints to simulate the opalescent, shimmery effects found in nature. The center image shows a resist technique using polymer medium as a drawing tool, combined with acrylic fluid washes. The example at the right shows a combination of two techniques, sgraffito and glazing.  There is never enough time to cover all the techniques that are possible, because there are endless combinations that can be layered one over the other, to create new variations. Collaging with Skins, Image Transfers, Scumbling effects over Fiber paste, Sgraffito with Heavy Gels, washes over Acrylic Ground for Pastels, Sculptural texture with Light Molding Paste, layering with Glass Bead, feathering with OPEN paints... these are just the tip of the iceberg. 

However, we covered plenty. Most artists don't realize the creative doorways that burst open when they start combining various acrylic grounds and mediums, regardless of whether they are abstract or representational painters. One student mumbled as he was walking out the door - " my head is so full, I can't even talk." I think (hope) he meant that in a good way. 

Skinny Lady

"Skinny Lady", Acrylic

I've been prepping all week for my 3 day Seductive Surfaces Workshop in Syracuse, NY. I will be showing artists how to use gels, pastes and mediums in their artwork, to get very creative effects and exotic textures that can't be achieve with paint alone.  I created about 16 demo boards of various techniques to demonstrate.

A "skin" is another word for a dried acrylic film of paint, paste or gel. Often I look down at my palette while I'm working on a painting and think "my palette is more exciting than my painting!" So I let it dry completely, then peel it up and use it in bits and pieces, sometimes as bits of collage in paintings, I've even glued it to earrings to spice them up. My husband walked into my studio and I pointed at one of the demo boards that had a big multi-colored skin glued on, and he suggested it would be cooler if I turned it into "something". So I took the middle area and turned it into a woman's face. Vouila! Instant fashionable lady with matching hat and jacket. Skins - they're cool!

Links

Oops, someone pointed out to me that the link to the students' work didn't work... the link to click on is "Students Work 3-10-13" which is underneath the "Color Theory" book image, on the right hand side of this page...

Workshop Weekend

Pink Rose 1, 6x6" (45 minute demo) Acrylic (Click to Bid)

Pink Rose 2 (15 Minute Demo)  8x10" Acrylic  (Click to Bid)

This weekend I taught a 2 day "How to paint fast, loose and bold" workshop at my studio. In order to live up to what I am promising in the name, a certain amount of discomfort is involved. The workshop starts out pleasant enough, but I gradually keep turning up the heat, so to speak, with exercises that push everyone further and further out of their comfort zone. Towards the end of the workshop their brushes have grown larger while their time allowance per painting has shrunk exasperatingly small. It doesn't feel fair to inflict this torture on them, watching from the safety of the sidelines, so I jump in too, and we all feel the pain together. Such fun, eh? 

The ah-ha moment comes when they look in disbelief at the paintings they have created in a timeframe that previously seemed un-doable. In my experience the only way to grow, in painting or in life, is to push the envelope and reach for things that seem too hard. What makes a great workshop, from my standpoint? Seeing  the transition from doubt to confidence that happens when painters realize they "have what it takes" to reach their goals. Especially in those whom have not painted in many years, and leave inspired and enthusiastic. It is very rewarding, and a true win-win, as I learn just as much from my students as they learn from me. 

Posted on a another page are some of their paintings, many created in 15 minutes! (See the link "Students Work 3-10-13" on the right, under the "Color Theory" book. BTW, in case it's not obvious, the goal of painting fast is not to break speed records, but to cure "detailitis". Or in other words, learn how to edit out unnecessary detail. Oddly enough, it's much easier to paint every detail we see, than to simply.

I'll end this post with one of my favorite sayings, " Life begins at the end of your comfort zone".  

Upcoming Workshops:

Paint Fast, Loose and Bold in Tuscany (Expect plenty of red wine, italian feasts and chocolate ... you will feel no pain here).  Sign up before March 30 and save $125.

Paint Fast, Loose and Bold in North Carolina

Paint Fast, Loose and Bold in Carmel, CA - Fall 2013, Dates TBD

Demos, Demos and more...

Rose, 6x6" acrylic on Gessoboard  Click to bid

Demo city. I have been doing lots of demos. In January I was asked to write another book (to be published in fall 2013) and it will be comprised entirely of step-by-step painting demonstrations to illustrate various lessons. It has kept me very busy painting, but obviously, not blogging. I don't think the publisher would appreciate my posting the paintings before the book is published, so my daily blogging content is limited for this reason. 

Above is a rose demo painted during a recent workshop I taught. It was done on 6x6" panel, with a 2" brush. Students often don't see how it's possible to paint with such a large brush on such a small panel, until the actual demo. I do this as an example of an exercise that helps to loosen us up. As painters, we can tend towards tightening up over time, resulting in work that looks stiff and tired. Losing a bit of "control" can help get the painterly quality back in our work.

The workshop name is "How to Paint Fast, Loose and Bold". I will be teaching this in Cary, North Carolina, April 14 - 16.  If you want to expand your horizons further, join me in Tuscany for a full week of painting plein air July 17-24. I'm told that registrants before March 30 get a $125 discount.  Painting, wine, day trips, chocolate tasting parties... o la la!

Beat the Light NYC

Beat the Light NYC,  18x24" Acrylic

I've got NYC bikers on the brain lately. It's amazing how an upcoming show can squeeze paintings out of an artist in record time.  I had to create and frame this for an upcoming show that has a deadline of today, 5PM. Deadlines... the bain of my existence and the whip-cracker of my "to do" list.

Midtown Messengers

Midtown Messengers, 18x24" Acrylic on Paper 

I'm working on a series of NYC paintings in a larger format. This summer I have a show coming up at my gallery in Provincetown, Simie Maryles Gallery, and I've decided to create a new series of work. I had a blast painting this one - hope it shows. It seemed to paint itself... my job was to not to "get in it's way" by thinking too much. This is actually 18x24" but I cropped off the top of the chrysler building for the post, because it made the image so small you couldn't see much. I will attach a few details, which make me realize that there are several paintings within this painting. I suppose that summarizes why I love New York. Everywhere you set your sights is a painting waiting to happen!

Blue Glass Bottles

Blue Glass Bottles 8x8" Acrylic on Gessoboard  Click to buy

This week in class the focus is on painting glass and reflections.  Here's my class demo, some lovely colored bottles in cool blues and greens.

Here are some new workshops I will be teaching in 2013... please join us if you can!

Waverly Artists Group, North Carolina, April 14, 15 and 16... more information
Workshops at my studio, New York, Jan, Feb. March and April .... more information
Rising Sun, Indiana, June 15 & 16 ... contact
Tuscany, Italy, July 17 - 24 ... more information
Carmel Art Institute, California  Fall of 2013, date TBD

Ringing in the New Year

On new year's eve, I was the gal dressed to the nines sitting at the end of the bar - sketching furiously. My husband, a jazz musician, had a gig in "Campbell's Apartment" atop Grand Central Station which was the former private office and salon of 1920's tycoon, John W. Campbell. This art-deco jewel of  an apartment has since been and reborn as a chic cocktail lounge that is cited in the national media as one of "the best bars in America". I couldn't agree more. The decor was decadent, the mood festive, champagne flowed and noismakers crowwed.

As I pulled out my sketchbook and assessed my views, I immediately ran into the same old mental trips. On my right was the band, dressed in black tuxedos standing in front of a huge black antique safe.  The lighting was so low I could not distinguish the musicians and their instruments from the backdrop. If I shifted my view to the left, I had one blurred bartender working at the speed of sound, to service an entire room of party-ers. Both views felt too challenging. "...impossible...can't see enough...too much movement"...yada yada. Then the other voice kicked in... "stop your sniveling... make it work...just DO it". So I did, I sketched all night long, right into the new year.  I truly wanted to usher 2013 in, in a meaningful way, one that would set the tone for the rest of the year. This was the perfect, imperfect setting.  Take what I have and make it work. All year long. Yes, that's it! Happy New Year~