Tag Archives: watercolor

Great Smoky Mountains in Autumn

Posted on October 1, 2023 | Comments Off

A watercolor / pen and ink sketch from our cabin.

We were able to get away to visit the Great Smoky Mountains this past week and meet up with some old friends. The cabin we rented had an unbelievable view but the park itself was well worth the trip. I haven’t visited it for years. Of course, the towns outside the park had grown a bit (A LOT!) but the natural beauty of the park is still impressive.

Morning view of the mountains from our cabin.

As the most visited National Park in the country, it’s amazing how well-maintained it is. We took a ride through two parts of the park during the week and were able to get out to enjoy the views and visit some historical buildings. I would have loved to just park and paint the scenery but I’m sure our friends wouldn’t appreciate watching me paint for a couple of hours. Well, maybe next time.

The Ephraim Bales cabin (and other buildings).

We took the Newfound Gap Road tour first and had a picnic lunch by the river. Since we had plenty of time, we then drove down to Cades Cove. That was an adventure. Although we avoided the weekend crowd of leaf-lookers, we got stuck in a miles-long traffic jam of cars inching forward. The road is one lane and one way. There was no indication of what was causing the delay. People were getting out of their cars and walking past us. We came to find out that there were supposedly some bears in a tree up ahead. Although we didn’t see any of those bears, we did see a mama and cub run across the road in front of us before we got to the traffic jam. There was also a plein air painting event going on, too. Added to the people who were trying to spot the bears in the tree, it was a little chaotic.

Cades Cove, Smoky Mountains. We had plenty of time to view the scenery since we were stuck in a traffic jam.

Anyway, it was a beautiful day for a drive and a picnic.

Although not the oldest national park, Great Smoky Mountain National Park, admission is free and there are plenty of activities for people of all ages. But I wouldn’t recommend approaching any wild bears. They’re not pets and they can move very quickly. As my granddaughter remarked when we told her about the crowds of bear watchers, are you kidding me?!

All these people thought there were bears up in the tree but we didn’t see any.

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Posted in landscape, travel

Tagged autumn, black bears, great smoky mountains, kit miracle, landscape, mountains, national park, pen and ink, rivers, travel, watercolor

Painting small

Posted on March 19, 2023 | Comments Off

Let’s face it. There are few people who are not inspired when they walk into a museum or cathedral and face a giant painting depicting a well-known scene. I have been brought to tears when I’ve been overwhelmed with some exhibits.

But that is not always the case. Most people cannot accommodate a wall-size painting or afford one. But that doesn’t mean that we don’t like real art nonetheless.

A typical variety of colorful flowers, 4.5 x 6.5 to be matted to 8 x 10

Over the years I have created and sold paintings of many sizes. Some pretty large ones but most have been medium size. And I’ve sold a whole lot of small pieces.

There are pros and cons with creating small paintings. On one hand, larger paintings are immensely fun to create, taking that large brush and swishing it across a wall-size canvas. But they are also much more difficult to sell due to the size.

Small painting have many advantages, too. They are a good way to try out new ideas, materials and techniques. They are very portable. You can just pick them up and move them around your home, or transport them easily. They are also economical to create since they use less materials.

Vertical tulips in various colors, to be matted to 8 x 10.

I’ve used small paintings to make preliminary compositions and try out various mediums. Some of the mediums that I’ve used are drawing, watercolor, pen and ink, acrylic, oil, etching, collage and prints. The most common has been watercolor with pen and ink overlay for the details. These are usually on medium weight (140 pound) imported watercolor paper.

Small paintings were also my bread and butter when I used to travel the country for art show, earning back the booth fees and traveling expenses. At one time, I painted a series of over forty different fruits, vegetables and flowers, each hand-painted and individually matted. These were all 4 x 6, matted to 8 x 10, and either framed or inserted into glassine envelopes. I initially hand-cut the mats but eventually found sources for ready-cut mats, backs and the envelopes. This made the whole process so much more efficient.

Ready-cut mats, backs, and bags from Clear Bags. Also, check out Ready-cut mats.

These days, the primary size of the small paintings are 4.5 x 6.5 plus a border for matting. Very easy to assemble. BUT…I also create 4 x 6 size painted postcards. These are so fun. I cut out a bunch, maybe 100 of that size. I take them with me on my travels, make quick original sketches, and then mail them back to friends. Surprisingly, all of the postcards have arrived safely at their destinations and my friends are so surprised.

Some of the tiniest paintings that I have created are 2 x 2 and 2 x 3. These are cute and fun but I have to specially cut the mats. Unless I want to order a bunch of ready-mades, I just don’t do that too often anymore.

A variety of teen-tiny, 2 x 2 and 2 x 3.

One thing that I would like to point out is that all of my small paintings are originals, not prints. If you are buying these on the market, make sure what you are getting. Many small paintings are digitally reproduced, either on paper or printed on canvas. The artist may add a swipe of paint in order to call them original but they’re not really. Just pay attention

I still enjoy making larger paintings, mostly for the challenge. But I would certainly recommend that you give small paintings a try. They’re great for experimenting with new ideas and compositions without having to put an excessive amount of time into them. And they can be attractively priced if you’re planning to sell them.

Good luck and let me know how they turn out if you experiment with this option.

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Posted in art, painting instruction, Uncategorized, watercolor

Tagged framing small paintings, kit miracle, painting instruction, painting small, pen and ink, watercolor

Waiting for spring

Posted on January 17, 2021 | 2 comments

We had a little over an inch of snow last night. The sight that greeted us this morning was so pretty. Every branch and plant was covered. Actually, it seems as if we haven’t had a heavy snow of several inches for a few years. Even though winter has been relatively mild – so far, I am already sick of the season. News exhaustion, tired of restrictions, worried about COVID. Missing my family.

The past few weeks since the holiday crush, I have been concentrating on finishing up my Breaking Bread series of paintings. These are middling to large, 24 x 30 paintings expressing my thoughts and observations of people eating together, or not as the case may be. A few are humorous but most are thought-provoking. Scenes we see every day or used to at least. But they are also mentally or emotionally draining.

I decided to take a little respite this week and paint something lighter. Think spring. Back to some small watercolors with pen and ink, even colored pencil added. Some florals and landscapes. Promises of things to come in a few months.

Landscape with spring daffodils. Watercolor, pen and ink, colored pencil on Arches paper. 10.5 x 13.5 Kit Miracle These naturalized daffodils are a delight to look at every spring. I didn’t plant them but always send thanks to the person who did.

The first one that I tackled was Spring Daffodils. This is a landscape of the naturalized daffodils in my yard. Sometimes they come up as early as mid-February but usually they’re not out in full force until March and April. It’s just such a peaceful scene with spring colors.

Purple Irises. Watercolor, pen and ink, colored pencil on Arches paper. 10.5 x 13.5 Kit Miracle

Another scene is of some of the purple irises out by the woodshed. I know that I planted these shortly after we moved here many years ago but can’t remember the name. It doesn’t really matter. I have many varieties of irises from light purple to deep purple, peach and white, and some more that I’ve forgotten. It’s always a pleasant surprise to see them explode in color in some out of the way place.

I’ll take another week “off” to paint some of these spring scenes. They have lightened my mood and inspired me during these dismal times. Then I’ll get back to the more serious series. I have four more paintings to complete before the big show in May and June.

I hope you have some activity to inspire you during these difficult times, too. Take care of yourselves.

2 Comments

Posted in country living, garden, landscape, watercolor

Tagged daffodils, flowers, irises, spring, watercolor

Plein air painting in watercolor – tips and tricks, part II

Posted on May 31, 2020 | Comments Off

Plein air at Patoka Lake.

It’s a great time to get outside and do a little plein air painting as the season turns from spring to summer here in the Northern hemisphere. It’s also a great way to socialize while keeping socially distant in this challenging time. Not to mention getting some fresh air and just enjoying the great outdoors.

In my last post, I discussed some of the background of plein air painting and some general tips. Today I’m going to elaborate on how to do plein air painting in watercolor.

This is my old Stanrite watercolor easel. The legs are adjustable and it will collapse to a pretty small package. The top tilts which is handy for watercolor since most painting is done horizontally. And it has two adjustable clips to secure your board. I’m not sure if this is made any more but grab one if you see it. This one is at least twenty years old and has proven to be very sturdy and reliable. Stanrite No 5, Watercolor

Plein air painting equipment can be as elaborate or as simple as you wish to make it. I tend to lean toward simple and light weight. Instead of using a French easel (which I find heavy and cumbersome), I like to use an aluminum watercolor easel (by Stanright). The easel has legs which expand to various heights and a top section which tilts to many angles. The top also has two clips for securing my watercolor board.

My favorite watercolor paper is d’Arches 140 pound cold press. For ease of transport, I cut the 22 x 30 inch sheets into quarters and attach them to a luan board which is a little larger. I find trying to paint outdoors on full size sheets of paper to be awkward but that is just my preference. Since the smaller paper is only about 11 x 15, it can easily be attached to the board by painter’s tape or clips and does not need to be stretched to prevent buckling.

Plein air watercolor equipment that I keep in my bag. See the list in the body of the post.

I usually keep a bag packed with items just for watercolor painting. I find this helps speed up the process of packing when I’m ready to get out of the house. The bag I use is a multi-pocket computer bag which I bought for $5 at a resale shop. It has a nice shoulder strap which is very comfortable and plenty of zippered compartments. I removed the extra padding.

The used computer bag that I use as a plein air bag for watercolor. I love the many zippered pockets and the comfortable, adjustable strap. I paid $5 for this at a resale shop. Then removed the foam padding.

A very big help to me is that I have color-coded index cards for each type of plein air painting that I do. This helps to remind me what I need to take just in case I have removed something from my bag.

My list of items to take in my watercolor bag are:

Easel

Chair / stool

Umbrella / bungees

Bag

Paper

Support

Clips

Watercolor travel palette (Mijello)

Brushes -assorted

Paints – assorted

Water and collapsible cup

Spray bottle

Pencils/pens

Sketch book

Tape / clips

Multi-tool / pliers

Paper towels / cloth rags

Sponge

Bug spray

Sunscreen

Hat

Camera / cell phone

Apron

Scissors / knife

Snacks

Business cards

Some folding green stuff (money)

Band-aids

Even with my list, I have forgotten items before. Once I forgot my collapsible water cup so I cut a spare water bottle in half. The bug spray will be really welcome if the mosquitoes or flies find you.

Various layers of clothing might be warranted if the weather is likely to change, as is a poncho, etc. I always keep a travel blanket in the car which I have found handy to wrap up in on particularly windy or chilly days. The bungees can be attached to your bag and easel to prevent it from flying away, or used to secure your umbrella to your chair for shade.

I usually use a small sketchbook to make thumbnail sketches but sometimes I’ll paint in a watercolor notebook. It’s important to be flexible and not get bummed out if you forget something. I have a friend who paints with sticks (and the results are amazing).

Depending upon where I’m painting, I might even take my Square-card reader…just in case a passerby decides that they must have that painting right then and there. Be prepared, I always say.

All in all, the whole kit – bag, easel, chair, etc., weighs about twenty pounds or less. Although I’ll throw some things into the car, I don’t always lug everything out. For instance, a rock, bench, log or wall might be the perfect seat so I can leave the chair. Maybe it’s too windy for an umbrella so that stays in the car, too. But I do like to have these things with me, just in case.

I have even been able to organize all my equipment into a couple of panniers for my bicycle. Then I can really tool around without even looking for a place to park.

Bike with panniers and equipment for plein air painting. I don’t do much of this anymore but I put thousands of miles on my bikes. With the distraction of cell phone usage now, it’s a little too scary to bike regular roads.

https://www.jerrysartarama.com/mijello-fusion-air-tight-watercolor-palettes

https://www.jerrysartarama.com/faber-castell-clic-and-go-cups-brushes

I can’t find the Stanrite No.5 Watercolor easel anywhere but there are some other makes available. I would opt for the light-weight aluminum over the wood. You might also be able to find a used one on Ebay.

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Posted in plein air, Uncategorized, watercolor

Tagged art, kit miracle, painting instruction, plein air, watercolor

Back to the River

Posted on April 26, 2020 | 2 comments

It’s still too early to do much planting although I have onions, snow peas, lettuce and kale growing. The garden is tilled but we have to wait another couple of weeks before planting the whole thing. We’ve done some trimming and tidying of the flowerbeds. The spring flowering shrubs are next.

Plein air painting along the Blue River in Southern Indiana. As you can see, my easel is actually sitting in the water. What we artists won’t do for our work!

Monday was beautiful and balmy. A perfect day to return to the Blue River for some more adventures. This time my husband brought his fishing gear and I brought my painting kit. It was so peaceful and quiet. A week since our last visit but I noticed changes. The redbuds are waning and the dogwoods are coming out.

Blue River, plein air painting. Acrylic, 11 x 14. That spring green will only last for a few weeks.

Bridge over the Blue River. Watercolor / pen and ink. Kit Miracle Created from photos taken on our previous visit last week.

As you can see, I had to set my easel in the water to get the view that I wanted. I nearly tipped in myself but this is the price an artist pays for the adventure of plein air painting. My husband got his line wet but not much luck until right at the end when he caught a nice bass. (He returned it to the river, of course.)

Fishing on the Blue River. My husband actually caught a nice bass but he released it. We peeled off our sweatshirts as the temps warmed up quickly. Spring is here!

Another wandering drive on the way home took us past a little greenhouse. Of course we stopped. Although we have some tomatoes and peppers started, I had to buy a few more. Hey, it’s that time of year. All you gardeners understand what I mean. (BTW, I was the only one at the greenhouse wearing a mask!) Later in the week the mice in the greenhouse started nibbling the plants. Dirty rottens! I wouldn’t have thought they would like nightshade plants but now I know they do.

So, that’s pretty much my week. Finished the plein air painting in the studio and did a watercolor/pen and ink of the bridge over the Blue. Some gardening. Reading. Oh, and cleaning the attic of my studio but that’s another story.

2 Comments

Posted in art, country living, plein air, plein air painting

Tagged acrylic, art, blue river, contemporary impressionist, country living, indiana, kit miracle, landscape, pen and ink, watercolor

One month’s art production

Posted on February 2, 2020 | 9 comments

A composite of my January art production. Four watercolors, five sunflower paintings, six tree drawings and three paintings for my new series focusing on food.

Since I retired from being a director of a multi-discipline arts center a couple of years ago, people are always asking me, What are you doing with your time these days? Or Are you still painting?

Sheesh, I was an artist before I was nearly anything else. Yes, I paint every day! That is really no exaggeration. Sometimes I’ll take a day to just goof off, read a book or go do some other fun stuff. Without guilt.

So I thought I’d look back at the month of January just to see how much art I really created for the month. These are the stats.

Red Rock Cliffs at Zion National Park, watercolor / pen and ink, 9.5 x 13.5, Kit Miracle I don’t remember what is the name of this group of rocks (there are so many in the park) but I was attracted to the contrast of the sunlight and shadows.

Four watercolor / pen and ink travel paintings. These sell well in one of my online shops and they’re fun to do.

Rosemary’s Sunflowers, 20 x 16, acrylic on canvas, Kit Miracle. This bright painting is one of five sunflower paintings that I completed in January. Love the loose brushwork and dazzling colors.

Five sunflower paintings, all acrylic on canvas. Various sizes from 8 x 8 to 20 x 16.

Maple, partial sketch. Faber Castell grey pens. 11 x 14, Kit Miracle. I first completed the whole tree, then decided to focus on this detail.

Six tree drawings. Trees are hard to do but winter is a great time to “see the bones.” I thought I’d give myself a challenge of doing one tree per week. We’ll see how that goes.

Room Service, 16 x 20, acrylic on canvas. Kit Miracle As the name implies, this is a meal that I ate in my room on one of my many business trips, this time to Kansas City. I was attracted to the muted colors with a little dash of color for the main entree.

Three paintings in a new series called “The Food We Eat.” They will all be paintings of food, a very popular subject. I just love the bright colors. And the challenge. I have thirty two paintings planned for this series. Or at least until I get bored.

In addition, I have been designing new print-on-demand products for one of my Etsy shops. So far, I’ve created about fifty. There are so many ideas but time is limited.

The drawings are not for sale; just for practice.

And the food paintings will be saved for a group display.

Plus time spent updating websites, blog, and social media.

Lest you think that I spend all of my time in the studio, that is not the case. I probably spend five or six hours a day, sometimes more, sometimes less. It’s not work really. I just get lost.

But, of course, January is a time of year with few garden demands. Although I could probably spend some more time cleaning the attic or going to the gym. But I’m happy.

And larger paintings require more time so not every month sees this kind of output.

But even when I was working full time, I was still able to squeeze in 15 to 20 hours a week in the studio. I guess it’s just all about priorities. Although I read a lot, I don’t watch much TV or waste too much time on social media.

If you want something bad enough, you’ll find the time.

9 Comments

Posted in contemporary impressionism, painting instruction

Tagged acrylic, art, contemporary impressionist, kit miracle, retirement, southwest, travel, watercolor

More paintings from the Snake River

Posted on November 10, 2019 | Comments Off

Snake River, Idaho, II, watercolor, pen and ink, Kit Miracle

Tomorrow (Veteran’s Day) is the final day of my landscape painting class. We have been using watercolor with pen and ink added for details. It’s been a great class but a little challenging for me. I usually like to include something man-made in a landscape painting to give it that human touch, as well as to provide scale.

Most of the paintings we’ve done this class have been pure landscapes without any notion of a human in sight.

Tomorrow’s painting will involve a subject with a water feature. Looking through some of my thousand of photographs, I decided to add a water feature since this is pretty common to landscape paintings.

Here are two simple compositions of the Snake River in the southeast area of Idaho. The paintings are created with about five or six colors, but certainly less than eight.

Palisades Reservoir, Snake River, Idaho. Watercolor, pen and ink, Kit Miracle

One shows the reservoir lake as the viewer is looking into the sun. The other shows the Snake River with the sun at the back of the artist. Both are relatively simple landscapes but should be challenging for a class of beginners to try.

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Posted in landscape, painting instruction

Tagged art, contemporary impressionist, Idaho, kit miracle, painting instruction, pen and ink, Snake River, watercolor

Painting the Snake River

Posted on November 3, 2019 | Comments Off

Final, Snake River painting. The final step is to use some pen and ink to add some details but be careful not to add too much. I suggest that you zoom in on the image so you can get a better idea of what I’ve done. It’s really just a lot of scribbling and very loose calligraphy.

I mentioned last week that I’m teaching a watercolor landscape painting class. I let the class choose which subject they wanted to paint and they selected the colorful sunset. Well, it seemed easy but was a little more difficult than they thought. I’ve painted that scene three times and none of them have turned out exactly the same.

So, I thought I would try to find something a little easier for the class. One of my selections is this scene from a trip we took out West several years ago. This is the Snake River in Idaho near Palisades Reservoir. Such beautiful country out there.

Snake River, original photo upon which the painting was based. As you can see, I eliminated many of the shrubs in the foreground to better draw attention to the river and the mountain.

This is a classic landscape valley with pretty clouds and blue sky, a nice piney mountain, a river, and some trees up front leading us into the scene. I only used eight colors for this painting, three brushes, and my fade-proof ink pen. The paper is Arches, French-made of 100% cotton rag. The painting time was about two hours.

To see a step-by-step view of the process, click here or go to Artworks and scroll down to Snake River Landscape.

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Posted in landscape, painting instruction, travel, Uncategorized

Tagged art, Idaho, kit miracle, landscape, painting instruction, pen and ink, Snake River, watercolor

Juicing up your painting colors

Posted on October 27, 2019 | Comments Off

Bill’s Gate, Autumn, watercolor, pen and ink, Kit Miracle

I’m teaching a class in landscape painting, watercolor with pen and ink. Last week I asked the students which picture they preferred, the regular photo or the one with the juiced up colors. They all agreed that they liked the one with the brighter, more emphasized colors.

It is often a difficult choice for artists who paint in a realistic style, of whether to paint exactly what they see or to change things to suit themselves. I tend to change things to suit me. Personally, I like paintings with a little extra pop in color. Not to go garish, but to just add an extra emphasis.

Below are some comparisons between the original photos, the juiced up photos, and the final paintings.

Which do you prefer? Would love to hear your comments.

Autumn sunset photo before enhancement.

Autumn sunset with color saturation.

Autumn Sunset, painted with the enhanced colors. Watercolor, pen and ink, Kit Miracle

East field in fall, before enhancement.

East field in fall, after enhancement. I wanted to emphasize the warm autumn colors in the trees in the distance.

East Field in Autumn, watercolor, pen and ink, Kit Miracle

Florida Keys before color correction.

Florida Keys after photo saturation.

Florida Keys painted from the color saturated photo. The water down there is actually a turquoise color but it’s a great place to spend a morning in the shade.

Wickliffe Road without color enhancement.

Wickliffe Road, Watercolor, pen and ink, Kit Miracle

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Posted in art, landscape, painting instruction, watercolor

Tagged art, painting instruction, watercolor

Creating a painting from a sketch

Posted on July 14, 2019 | Comments Off

West Texas Big Sky, watercolor, pen and ink, 13.5 x 9.5, Kit Miracle

A few weeks ago I posted several sketches from my recent vacation. I’ve been working with those and some 1500 photos to create some fresh and lively watercolor / pen and ink paintings.

This is an example of a painting of the Big Sky country of West Texas. There is just something about the terrain and the brilliant blue sky with the white fluffy clouds that draws me. I’m not sure I quite captured the fluffy clouds receding into the distance but I like the colors.