October | 2024 | my90acres

Dancing Shadows, Junipers trees at the Grand Canyon, south rim, near the eastern side. I love the shadows and the southwestern colors. 24 x 30, framed.

The Grand Canyon in Arizona is one of my favorite places to visit. When I first went out there about a decade ago, as with most visitors, I was astounded by the beauty of the place, not to mention the size. It’s overwhelming.

That first visit gave me plenty of subject matter for painting. I love the colors, just the sheer beauty of the place. I know I’m not alone in this feeling. I’ve been back a few times and never get tired of the scenery.

Dancing Shadows, detail. Notice the impressionistic variations in the paint.

This painting focuses on the shadows of the juniper trees on the south rim of the Canyon, towards the eastern side. I loved the play of light and shadow, the colors of the earth, shadows and plants. I could probably paint there a hundred years and never run out of something interesting to see.

I featured this particular painting in a how-to posting about a decade ago. I just came across it while looking for something else in my studio. Check it out at this link. https://my90acres.com/artwork/junipers-at-grand-canyon-demonstration/

Remember, everything in my Etsy shop is 35% off through December 4th. https://www.etsy.com/shop/KitMiracleArt?ref=l2-shop-info-name

Autumn is here and we were introduced to a new artist, Pablo Picasso. I recently taught a free children’s art class at the little Birdseye library. Picasso was so famous and painted in such a variety of styles over the decades that I thought there would be something for everyone. And there was.

Always getting in the spirit of the class with Picasso stripes and beret.

These free children’s art classes are designed for kids ages 8 to 14 but we actually had a four year old (with grandma) up to a sixteen year old. It’s 25 miles to town so the idea is to offer some fun art activities for this rural area.

In this case, I always enjoy trying to channel the featured artist, at least in dress. I gave a brief introduction to Picasso, why he was important, and some discussion of his changing styles over the years. The kids were very receptive. Although I offered a few projects which focused on emulating the artist, they were actually free to create their own paintings. I love the variety of work they came up with.

Capturing the cubist idea of viewing a face from both front and side

Hummm….the northern lights with hearts. I think Picasso would have loved this.

We’ll do some self-portraits at the next class in November. I’ll look forward to what the kids come up with. All materials are included. Call the library to register as the class size is limited. https://jdcpl.us/birdseye-library/