Last of the Marigolds...

Marigolds and Grape, 8 x 10 oil on canvas panel

I picked flowers this morning for a small study. The set up is basic - leftover matboard serves as a dark background for the bright petals which I showcase in a little oil bottle from the kitchen counter. My grandmother's tablecloth offers a bright value to the surface of my dresser. The grape gives a nice dark value. I'm keeping to my idea of minimal brushstrokes or painting knife marks with these little paintings. FuN!

Off camera to the left I have a window with northern light. I like this lighting effect for the soft quality it offers the subject matter. It's constant in terms of the color and does not burn out areas of the composition. Some days I place subject matter in a shadow box made from a larger cardboard box. I cut a hole in the box just large enough for my light source to illuminate the darkened area and cast raking light over whatever I'm painting. This morning I placed things out this way because I only expected to work for a hour and fifteen. Sometimes the set up can take me a good hour to work out what with decisions on set up. It's good to just throw some things out at times and see what I get as a result - a less is more kind of thing.

This small work gets me ready for the day, and is my post for Day 21 of Leslie Saeta's 30 in 30 challenge. 

Enjoy the day all and thanks for stopping by. Please visit me at donnashiver.com 

Peace and Health

Set up with marigolds

Cone detail

Shape and Color...

 

I put together a study this morning for an acrylic class I'm teaching the next eight weeks. We're looking at basic forms, sphere, cone, cylinder and pyramid as they appear in everyday objects. We're using them to break down complex forms. Color theory is part of our discussion too, hence the color chart on the full panel pictured below.

My knowledge of acrylics is limited. In fact, I went into this class thinking I would be sharing information about oil painting. It's been enlightening... ;)

 

 

Cone made up of newsprint and color chart, acrylic on
8 x 10 canvas panel

 The cone image to the right is charcoal - a demo for a class in charcoal. It gave me the idea to
use this object as what I hope will be a fun exercise in acrylic.

I do a value study in charcoal before beginning a painting in oil. This set up for my charcoal class was about the economy of mark making - how to interpret the light and shadow, plus print with a direct light source using minimal marks.



Of course, this is still a cone and the light behaves in the same way it would with a regular cone shape. We have light and shadow that follows the shape: including the brightest bright, areas of mid-tone, the deeper core shadow and cast shadow with dark affects where the cone displaces space, a softening of the shadow as it moves away from the cone, and reflected light that shows up as a result of the surface of the table top the cone rests upon. I enjoyed the exercise - and I'm happy to say my charcoal students liked it very much. Good things. :)

Thanks for stopping by and be well...

Peace and Health,
Donna

Using Up Leftover Paint...

Mountain City using leftover paint, 6 x 6 oil on canvas panel

So I'm done with painting for the day and am left with a bit of color on my palette. It's seldom very much, but I don't want to waste the product. It's too costly for that, so I usually do one of two things with leftover paint. With knife in hand I might scrap up the remains of the day and store it in an empty tube purchased at the art store. These metal tubes are great for this and I can seal up the open end with pliers. The combination of all colors makes various warm and cool gray tones for future paintings. 

The other option is to pick up a small canvas  and do something minimal with the limited palette that remains. Here is one of these for today and my post for Leslie Saeta's 30 in 30 challenge, Day 19. I had folks visiting last week, and my teaching has started back after the summer months, so it's been several days since I posted. There are loads of great artists participating. Fun things....check it out here https://www.saetastudio.com/30-in-30.html

Value sketch in charcoal - preparation for oil painting

Want to share this lovely toned tan paper by Strathmore. I get these pads pretty often and enjoy the quality of the mark made against the paper. The tone is nice and would be great with a bit of white chalk to accent the brightest areas of highlight.

Thanks for stopping by and please visit me at donnashiver.com

Peace and Health all -  :)

Loading Up With Paint...

Lemon with Cherries, oil on 5 x 7 canvas

The painting knife is pretty great for loading up the paint to a surface. It often makes me think me think of the juicy texture involved with the process of icing a cake. While both are wonderful, of course we eat cake and paint a canvas. That said, there is a certain excitement that naturally goes with loading my painting knife with buttery paint, and moving it about the surface of my panel or canvas. It takes me to another place where control sort of goes hand in hand with a level of abandonment. :)

I look for shapes, light and dark patterns, keeping values in mind as they work with painterly applications of color. Once I get past the initial layer or two, there is a point where the acceptance of more paint just comes into play. Lemon with Cherries is an example of painting knife work and is my post for Day 14 of Leslie Saeta's 30 in 30 challenge.

 

Along with brushes, rags and medium, I have a good supply of knives equipped with pointed tips, or shapes; some for spreading, and others that I use just because they help me cover large areas of canvas quickly with a mother color - like those I might use for greens in a landscape. My favorite knives have great flexibility and give nicely so I can apply paint, scrap it away in places, and push it into the surface to model or sculpt at will. Fun things...

Painting with knives offers various techniques. The following images show a few paintings I've worked using knives. Thanks for stopping by and Happy Painting! 

donnashiver.com

Being, Rocks and Water, Plein Air, oil on 8 x 10 canvas

November Morning, Plein Air, oil on 8 x 8 canvas

 

Grapes with Sunlight, oil on 7 x 5 canvas

 

Aspects of Daily Life...

Study with Oranges, detail from 24 x 18 - looking at vertical space

Today's post shows practice pieces - the first is detail from a 24 x 18 study with oranges, next is a sketch for my weekend charcoal class, and then a practice landscape sketch in acrylic for a painting class. Study with Oranges is my post for Day 13 of Leslie Saeta's 30 in 30 challenge. For more information on this event, here's the link
https://www.saetastudio.com/30-in-30-blog






 

I found this small coffee pot at our local thrift store. It look so nice with a single lemon that I worked up a charcoal study as preparation for my Saturday class this week. We always refer back to basic shapes, cone, cube, cylinder, pyramid and sphere when working a still life with direct light source. The facets on the side of the metal pot can be broken down as basic shapes within the basic shape of the pot - great! They also offer shading which helps define the structure of the object.

Coffee Pot with Lemon, study for an upcoming class in charcoal

 

 

 

 

Cartersville pasture, 6 x 8 acrylic on canvas paper

This small landscape is a practice acrylic work using the very few acrylic paints I own to date - a blue, yellow, umber and white. Two weeks ago I was asked to teach a painting class. I understood it would be a session in oil, but to my surprise everyone had purchased acrylics. It turns out this is an either or class and the students get to choose. Oil and Acrylic painting processes are similar and very, very different at the same time.

This said, I appreciate the opportunity to share what I do know and learn new things. It's a make it work time for me, and practice is my ally. Acrylic is a medium that I know very little about, so in order to create a class that people can learn from - including myself - I'm working to figure some things out with the very few acrylic paints I have on hand...talk about a limited palette, this is it.   :) 

Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the day all. Please visit me at donnashiver.com


Peace and Health

Asking Questions...

Morning Study - Coffee Press with Citrus, 10 x 8

 

I work to paint every day. This does not mean I complete every painting I begin. Some are wiped away and never seen again. A daily routine does give me time for practice with color, brushstrokes and thought process. I work toward completing paintings for sales, commissions and exhibitions. I ask myself questions because oil painting, like all things, takes time to work out.

Questions often start with "how do I paint this or that object?" "What is the mother color of that tree line?" "Does the color or value I'm looking at seem warm or cool?" And a big one..."How is it the world looks the way it does?" There are others but these come to mind.

Time restraints involved with daily paintings prevent me from overthinking. I work on the larger picture, form, shape, space, value. This process translates to painting outdoors when I must make the most of each brushstroke - painting economically to communicate a scene before the light shifts. I rely on small surfaces in these instances, working in 90 minute intervals. After this time frame, lighting changes are too great and I move on. I can return on a similar day and pick up the painting process, or begin a new painting.

So keeping in mind my idea to limit brushstrokes with these daily works, Coffee Press...is my post for Day 12 of Leslie Saeta's 30 in 30 challenge. This work was painted using brush and knife. The composition is based on the small letter j.

Antique Jug - color chart on 11 x 14 canvas paper

This photo shows how I might approach a subject in terms of color. I made up a color chart to better determine how to paint this large old jug. Love the character of this object so I did multiple charts. This is one example.


Thanks for stopping by and have a great day.

Please visit me at donnashiver.com

Peace and Health all -

Playing with Background & Like Values...

Study for White Bowl, oil on 10 x 10 primed wood panel

It's a teaching day for me, but I have these really lovely maple wood panels and have wanted to try an oil primer on them to see how well they will accept paint. Painting the background on this panel was fun. I prepped the wood by sanding and giving it two applications of oil primer. The surface accepted paint pretty well, but it took three layers to build up the surface paint.

The best fun to me was playing with transparent colors when painting the background. I enjoyed using rags and brushstrokes to push the Burnt Sienna and Umber about the surface. Some wood shows through and that's okay with me for this piece.

I'm using this one for Day 10 of Leslie Saeta's 30 in 30 challenge - time to pack up and head out. I hope you all have a good day and thanks for stopping by.

Please visit me at donnashiver.com

Peace and Health all - :)