my90acres

Lucky Red 3

Posted on April 16, 2014 | 2 comments

Lucky Red 3 – final, oil on canvas, 18 x 24, Kit Miracle

This is the third in the Lucky Red series. Another jade dragon but not the same one that I posted last time. For some reason, this one took a lot longer. Not quite sure why. There is a fine line between painting every detail of the jade or emphasizing the shape of the dragon. I was having a little more trouble with conveying the sinuousness of the dragon than previously. There also weren’t as many distracting details but total focus on the dragon shape. Check out the link for the step-by-step links. https://my90acres.com/artwork/lucky-red-3-step-by-step/

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Posted in art, oil painting, painting instruction

Tagged kit miracle, lucky red, oil painting, painting instruction

Spring campfire

Posted on March 15, 2014 | Comments Off

It was a balmy spring day here. After the artic blast of a long winter, it felt great to bask in the sun, reading a book with a hot cup of tea. The peepers (frogs) were tuning up in the bottoms by the creek. My crocuses are finally in bloom and the promise of spring is not far off.

: Campfire with the full moon overhead.

Both of my boys were home today so tonight they decided to start a campfire and stretch out the evening. There is something primitive about gathering around a fire at night with other humans. It always grabs me in my innermost self.

A few toasted marshmallows. My granddaughter delighted with the “fireworks.” Our new puppy got tired and put himself to bed.

Country life is nice. Now I have to go shower the smoke out of my hair.

Two brothers.

Campfire fireworks.

How long have humans been gathering around a campfire?

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Posted in country living

Tagged camp fire, country living

Lucky Red 2

Posted on March 9, 2014 | Comments Off

Lucky Red 2 – final. 18 x 24, oil on canvas, Kit Miracle

In keeping with the red and good luck symbols, I created this still life after the first one. There are a couple of common elements to Lucky Red the first, such as, the bamboo plant and the small fish glass paperweight.

Here you see a large jade dragon signifying the year of the Dragon and a jade/silver/gold bracelet with the I-Ch’ing symbolizing Ta Yu or number 14. Unfortunately the bracelet wasn’t so lucky as it was damaged in a bike wreck. Humph! I also have a sleeping cat from Provence suggesting my name – and the cat sleeps with one eye open. The gold cup is from my mother and the tea is Yogi brand (Detox). I always like to incorporate a sense of humor or irony in my work if I can do it very subtly. The seashell doesn’t represent anything in particular; I just like it. And the red cloths for the background – one a kind of orangey-red batik and the other a medium dark red.

Lucky Red 2 – initial still life set up. Notice the peach gel to diffuse the light.

Lucky Red 2, initial drawing on the canvas

Lucky Red 2 – first washes

Lucky Red 2 – more blocking in major colors

Lucky Red 2 – adding more colors

Lucky Red 2 – step 6, adding more details, color corrections

Lucky Red 2 – adding more details. This is the 85% mark when all that is left is to tweak the details.

A view of the painting with the still life set up behind it.

Lucky Red 2 – cup detail. Notice how abstractly this gold cup is painted.

Lucky Red 2 – detail of shell. Notice how loose the brush strokes are. It is a real accomplishment to get the effect with just one pass.

Lucky Red 2 – detail, sleeping cat

Lucky Red 2 – final. 18 x 24, oil on canvas, Kit Miracle

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Posted in oil painting, painting instruction, still life

Tagged kit miracle, lucky red, oil painting, painting instruction, still life

Real or illusion?

Posted on March 2, 2014 | Comments Off

Many years ago I read that when Andrew Wyeth was complimented on the realism of his paintings that he responded, “All realistic art is an optical illusion. You’re taking paint, applying it to a two-dimensional surface and tricking the eye into believing that they’re seeing a real object.” Although this didn’t quite sink in at the time, over the years I’ve come to understand what he was saying.

When I paint a subject in a realistic manner, I am literally fooling the eye. My son was looking at the painting, Lucky Red, and went up close to examine it. After a while, he commented that there really wasn’t much there. I just laughed. “You’re right,” I said. “It’s all an optical illusion.”

While I admire artists who have the tenacity to paint every little hair on a rabbit, I really wonder why they are doing that. Isn’t the entire object of the painting to convey the mood and feeling of the artist? Personally I believe in letting the viewer become part of the painting by bringing their own knowledge and imagination to the work. The hard edges certainly define some critical points, but soft edges let one area slide into another, creating a cohesiveness that cannot be obtained photo realism. My personal opinion, anyway.

Go back and look at some of the original paintings that I’ve posted on here – Lucky Red, Grand Canyon at Moran Point, and Blue Bottles with Lemons. Then look at these close-up.

Detail – Lucky Red. Notice how abstractly the fish and seaweed are painted in this glass paperweight.

The golden Buddha is also painted very loosely. Notice the sparkles of the ribbon, too.

This Mediterranean glass paperweight is a mash of swirling colors. Again, the sparkles on the blue ribbon.

Notice the lost edges of this paperweight blending into the folds of the cloth.

This tree in Grand Canyon at Moran Point is very loosely painted when viewed in detail.

Again, the viewer’s eye is blending the colors in this yellow lemon.

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Posted in art, oil painting, painting instruction, still life

Tagged Arizona, art, kit miracle, moran point, oil painting, painting instruction, still life

Lucky Red

Posted on February 23, 2014 | 2 comments

I don’t know quite why I started this painting but it’s something that has been rolling around in my head for awhile. Sometimes I’ll think about a work for years before I get around to painting it.

Lucky Red is a challenge of red on red on red. Shiny and soft. Clear objects, reflective, see-through. Some of the symbols are pretty obvious. The lucky Buddha, three Chinese coins, a WINNING lottery ticket. Some are less obvious. The lucky bamboo plant. Two of the glass paperweights have fish swimming in them. Fish are a lucky Chinese symbol. And swirling throughout the still life is a lucky blue ribbon that I won at a holiday party. (Thank you, Joan!) Topping the set up off is another glass paperweight called Mediterranean which celebrated the completion of a bike ride through France several years ago.

We all have lucky symbols in our lives. What are yours?

Lucky Red – the initial still life set up

First step, drawing on the canvas

Second stage, blocking in major shapes

Third step, laying in base colors of the objects

Fourth stage. Almost finished.

What my palette looks like with a variety of reds. Using black to tone some of them down.

The painting compared with the still life. Notice the gel I have taped over the light.

Lucky Red, final. Oil on canvas, 18 x 24, Kit Miracle

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Posted in oil painting, painting instruction, still life

Tagged art, glass paperweight, kit miracle, lucky buddha, lucky red, oil painting, painting instruction, still life

Silver on Grey – Oil Painting

Posted on February 10, 2014 | Comments Off

Last week I posted my silver teapot find from the flea market. I just completed this oil painting to demonstrate the fun of dealing with reflections of shiny objects. This will probably become a favorite still life subject in the future.

Silver on Grey still life set up

Silver on Grey, oil on canvas 12 x 16, Kit Miracle

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Posted in oil painting, still life

Tagged kit miracle, oil painting, painting instruction, painting silver, still life

Tips for Setting Up A Still Life

Posted on February 2, 2014 | Comments Off

A flea market find, this silver teapot and sugar bowl cost less than $10.

I just purchased this silver-plated teapot and sugar bowl at a flea market for $10. It was heavily tarnished and wouldn’t be anything I would want to actually use, but it will make a great addition to my arsenal of items for still life set ups. To check out more recommendations, from how to set up, objects to consider, to my large cupboard of items, visit my page for Tips for Setting Up A Still Life.

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Posted in art, painting instruction, still life

Tagged art, kit miracle, painting instruction, still life

Sketching in New York

Posted on January 23, 2014 | 1 comment

The Three Graces at the Met

I was in New York last week. At the end of my trip, I had a few hours before I had to catch my plane so I went up to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. This is a favorite haunt of mine. Big surprise. This time, I decided to spend some time in some different areas. First I went to the Greek and Roman sculpture area. Very inspiring. I whipped out my small sketchbook that I always keep with me and practiced on these beautiful statues.

I believe that every artist should practice sketching as much as possible, daily at least. This is the artist’s equivalent to a musician practicing scales or an athlete throwing pitches. You should do it enough that capturing what you see before you becomes second nature.

I usually travel with at least a small sketchbook, a commercial permanent ink pen, and maybe a set of colored brush pens. I like Faber Castell shades of grey or their landscape package.

The subject doesn’t really matter although my sketches are usually just memory joggers. My hotel room, at dinner or the theatre, in the museum, on the street. Sometimes people will approach you to see what you are doing, however, most people won’t even notice. I’ve leaned up against buildings at night and have drawn street vendors on Times Square, stretch limos, the night buildings in fog. The drawing makes me “see.” There are many better draftsmen than me…but it works for me. Try it yourself. Also, check out Urban Sketchers for some real inspiration.

Aphrodite at the Met

Boy Wearing Wreath

Stephanos Youth

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Posted in art, pen and ink

Tagged art, kit miracle, metropolitan museum, pen and ink, sketching, three graces

My friend Bill

Posted on January 18, 2014 | Comments Off

Bill Whorrall – Artist Parking Only

Recently, I went up to visit my friend Bill Whorrall. Up – to me – means north. He lives a few counties over up in Martin County, a place nearly as rural as mine. Hills, rivers, woods, rock outcroppings and a good variety of interesting people.I’ve been acquainted with Bill for several years but have only gotten to really know him the past few years. He and his lovely wife (or as he describes her “the long-suffering Karen) live on a nice little homestead farm snuggled back into the hills overlooking their large garden and orchards, where they have their studios (she works in clay). So I had a little extra time over the holidays and wanted to kick around a few ideas with Bill. It was one of the most interesting days I’ve had in a long long time.

Bill is well-known in the region but those who don’t know him well often think of him as an opinionated, outspoken crank and contrarian. He is. He is also one of the most innately creative people I know and is passionate about his work and many other things. He has a wonderful attraction for the ironic. Bill is a photographer, artist, sculptor, writer, poet, and one of the best art teachers in the country. That last is not an exaggeration. He was recently nominated for a nationally-known art teachers’ award although he would never tell you about it. He is very humble about his accomplishments. His students, both children and adults adore him. He is able to get his students to tap areas of creativity they didn’t even know they had.

After several hours talking about art and the state of the world, and a substantial lunch prepared by the lovely Karen, Bill voiced his frustration about updating his website. His web designer had disappeared. This is one of the few areas that Bill isn’t experienced in so I offered to come back and help him. I suggested that with his many creative talents that a blog would be a perfect venue for him. Currently, in addition to all his other work, he makes and prints his Billzines. These are wonderful handmade, hand-printed magazines that are only mailed to a few select recipients. I am happy to say that I am on that very short list now.

So I returned to Bill’s house the following week and help him set up a blog. It is called, of course, http://www.billzine.com He is now posting his own thoughts and rants, books, photography, ideas for art teachers, poetry and writing. Please take a few moments to visit his blog and website. www.billwhorrall.com I think you will be amazed at what he has accomplished in less than THREE WEEKS! Sheesh!

Another thing I should mention. Bill just turned 70 and will retire from teaching this year. Fortunately, he has agreed to teach for us at the arts center. Boy, are we lucky. Oh, yeah. One more thing. Bill is now legally blind. Please don’t feel sorry for him as he doesn’t feel sorry for himself. He can see somewhat and works at his computer with a big magnifying glass. He still paints and writes and photographs. As he said himself, even if he goes completely blind, he will still find some way to create. And he will.

Bill Whorrall in his studio

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Posted in books, country living

Tagged bill whorrall, billzine, blind artist, painting instruction, teaching

Bookstores and resolutions

Posted on January 16, 2014 | Comments Off

Books, my not-so-secret addiction

Recently my son was looking at a photo of me in my office at work and observed, “You know, Mom, it seems as if wherever you go, you always have piles of books around you.”

Guilty as charged.

I have made no secret of my special addiction to books in previous posts. I truly am. I get a rush when I walk into a bookstore or library. And hitting the BUY button Amazon must generate a feeling akin to a gambler who has just pulled the lever. I love the smell of books. The heft. Looking at pictures, turning pages, feeling the texture. Seeing piles and shelves full of my favorites makes me giddy with pleasure. The (yet) unread stories or the old friends and memories of where I acquired the book, where I read it, my thoughts about it.

The only real drawback with books is the sheer space they take up and how much they weigh. If you’ve ever had to move, you already have learned to pack books into small boxes.

Soooooo….I made a resolution not to buy any books this year. (I truly am overwhelmed.) That still leaves the library and my VINE selections. But…before the new year began, I visited my favorite real bookstore in Louisville. Anticipating spending at least an hour cruising the aisles, I was shocked when I walked in to see how much their book stock had dwindled. Their shelves were now filled with toys, games and puzzles. Gift items and cheap overstock books. But where were the REAL books? The poetry, the philosophy, art and musings? And I realized just then – in a most drastic way – that I was partly responsible for this book shrinkage. The demise of the brick and mortar bookstore.

I shop online for the lowest price, even for used books. I’ll frequently receive a “used” book which appears brand new and it only cost me a penny! (And, yes, I shop Goodwill online, too.)

But what is the future of bookstores if we all shop online or download to our e-readers? Where will our children and grandchildren experience the pure pleasure of fondling the tomes of authors across time and space? That they can actually possess for a mere few dollars?

I used to anticipate for an entire year my annual visit to Ann Arbor, home of the flagship store for Borders as well as many funky used book stores. I’d often wander in with determination and a list. It was a reader’s pleasure garden, a true emporium of knowledge. Well, Borders put up a good fight but we all know the end of that story.

So, my resolution has been amended to buy from and support real bookstores whenever I can. There are no more real bookstores in my little town but all the Google maps of the cities I visit are sure to be starred with my favorite haunts. I look forward to keeping this new resolution.

As for the other, well, it’s only the 16^th of the month and I’ve already broken it several times. Oh, well. Keeping authors employed, right?