It's Fall and I Love It!

....and one more thing!  I have been captivated by Polyvore!  If you haven't tried it yet, it is an online collage/shopping site.  At the center is a painting of mine (for sale on Etsy) surrounded by images from the Polyvore site to compliment the theme.  Some of the images are to support the design and others are actual items for sale by others from many different sites.  Shopping and creativity in the same place!

It's Fall and I Love It! by joannaolson featuring wall art

Wall art
nordstrom.com

World Market wall art
worldmarket.com

Accent chair
brookstone.com

Fall Harvest by joannasart on Etsy
etsy.com

First Full Day of Fall?

NFS

I just realized how appropriate this painting is to be posting on the first full day of Fall.  The orange background really makes this little black and white cat

look like he's ready for Halloween.  He belongs with Chablis, whose portrait I posted last week.

Sweet Geraniums

I enjoyed painting the silver bowl with pears a few weeks ago and had looked forward to painting more silvery things.  I'm also conscious of the fact that it is now Fall and my geraniums will have to be protected from frost until I can bring them in.  So the cycle begins, cut, arrange, photograph and hopefully soon after, paint!
I'll post the proper photo after I've contemplated this one.

Revisiting Journals

Birds from my journal

Closeup of bird applique

I haven't worked in my journals for ages and seeing them again makes me want to MAKE the time!  It's not as if I haven't been creating art in the meantime, it's just that the journals are just for me and the freedom to experiment is so special that I could never part with them.  The second image is a recent drawing/painting on fabric for the pillows I made for the local aviary fundraising event this past weekend.   

And Here's Charlie

Charlie

So Charlie is one of two portraits completed last week.  I did ask about their names. Puppy was the other one.  A happy little dog with a crooked smile.

RED SHALLOTS

RED SHALLOTS

And this is the final image.  I am in danger of over working my small format paintings.  Lately I've been going back to them a day or two or three later.

Which defeats the purpose.  Start strong, stay strong and walk away!  I do like this one though.

Painted AND Sewn

A slight departure from my normal posts.  There is a fund raiser for our local Aviary called The Nichoir this weekend.  And I decided to paint and stitch some pillows for it.  

Handpainted on unprimed canvas and embellished with free form stitching.  The birds are appliqued onto the background.  This was very satisfying to do as I can expand on this many ways and I can indulge in my love for fabric and beautiful embroidery threads at the same time.

As experiments do, this lead to my stitching up some Fall leaves using wool, dupioni silk and organza.  I'll incorporate these into wool scarves, handmade bags and more pillows.  

On My Easel This Monday Morning

And I thought this one would be a walk in the park!  Lots of greys in the cloth
and a constant battle not to over work.    So it's time to put the brushes down and come back to it in a little while.

Nasturtiums and Chablis

September!  The beginning of my favourite season.  Already I've re-organized my digital files, cleaned up my studio, took many new photos of the late season flowers in the garden, and looking forward to new projects.  

The photo of Chablis (the cat) has just been finished.  And the photo below is one of many that I took this morning that will be part of my Fall line up. 

Where There's a Will....

NFS

It doesn't seem right that I don't know his name.  I will look into that.  This was the image I was referring to that I initially had trouble with...the small size and low dpi (dots per inch at only 72).  But I went back to it and worked it out.  I really had to guess that he was a very light blonde in strong sunlight with a lot of greeny blue ambient light on one side of him.  I realized that even if the clarity wasn't there, it would be like squinting and seeing only the major

elements.  I like it now.  As always there are little things I will go back and correct but otherwise I think I captured a good likeness.

And this was another cherished member of the family.  Easier to do.  I quite like how he turned out.  I never considered myself to be a dog portraitist but so far so good.

Yellow Rose with Berries

6" x 6" x 1.5"

Yellow Roses with Berries

$80

I took this photo with my iPad so I will re-shoot during tomorrow's daylight.

I am bad at not keeping my devices charged.  I like this one better than I thought I would.   You know how it is when you lose interest in a subject and yet I started it anyway.  The color is a bit garish in this image.  It's much nicer

in reality.

I just finished one of a pair of dog portraits and decided to fit this rose painting in between.  The original photo of the dog is a 2 inch 72 dpi image of a dog that is no longer so re-taking the photo is out of the question.  It was a challenge to paint all the nuances when it is so pixilated.  So I guess I needed

to paint an image with good references

....have just added the better photo.

Scissors and Ribbon

Scissors and Ribbon II

6" x 6" x 1.5"

$75

And then there were two......

Slightly out of focus so I will replace with a better photo.  Wish I had a patterned background for this one.  I think I will re-shoot this combination

with a lovely damask fabric I just recently bought.

And here is the theme as it is shaping up.  

Themes

Scissors and Thread

6" x 6" x 1.5"

$75

Up Next

These scissors have formed the center of my theme of sewing implements.

They are hand forged and made and work incredibly well.  I love gray and white and stripes so these two items will be used again and again.  I've just s tarted another and I have a feeling I'll like this one better.  It's a simpler start.  I sort of got lost in the detail of the wood grain and then decided to downplay it.

On My Easel

On My Easel  this morning.  Easing my way back to a series of small format paintings this week and the sewing series is one I wanted to continue with.

A little bit left to do to balance lights and darks and tweak colors.

Distractions

Nothing like adopting a pair of puppies to be a major distraction!  However they are six months old and do need a lot of attention in their formative months.  But.....my mind is starting to focus on the next paintings I'd love to do.

So I did manage to prep 4 canvases and will try and get some painting done today.

Petunias Revisited

Petunias Revisited

6" x 6" x 1.5" 

Oil on Wood Cradled Panel

$90.00

This is the last stage before I put the finishing touches.  Photographing it and even posting it here before really calling it finished helps me to see the areas that need tweaking and right now, although I really like the flower in the lower right corner I see that the interior of the flower is too vibrant and should be slightly less saturated...
This is from a series of photographs I took last year and I painted one other of this series with a higher view point.  I thought it was worth revisiting.  From the 3 foot square painting of the last post to the diminutive 6" square, it wasn't quite the adjustment I thought it might take.  The two and a half hours breezed by compared to the time it took to complete the last one.

Nearing Completion

                                      Pears in Silver Bowl on blue Gingham
                                        36" square on stretched canvas

Finished!....for now.  I'm at that super critical stage and can't seem to turn it off.  But if I had to walk away from it now, I think it's finished......

nearing completion

Trying not to get too attached to this one but I do love the ochre and blue color theme.  But it was commissioned so I won't have it too much longer.  I feel the need to add another twiggy branch coming out of the vase to fill in that upper left corner.  The pear on the right needs to be shaped and a little softening of the edges on the pear on the left.  And then the final punches of hilights on the silver bowl.  I love that part.

Shaping Up

When working at this size (36" square) and seeing it start to evolve, it's a real test of patience in wanting to see it come together faster.  But, brushes have to be cleaned, the palette needs to be scraped down and re-oganized.  In the meantime, dozens of little bits of information jump out at you that you didn't see before.  But that's what it's like in the home stretch.  Taking that time to let it sink in and plan your next move is important.  I'll probably do a little bit later today but otherwise will have to wait until tomorrow when I start the day a little more refreshed. (It's in the 90's outside!)

Taking Shape

      

                           

 
















I'm back to the large formats that I enjoy doing this week.  The progression here is from the first sketch to the acrylic blocking in.  I had contemplated painting the whole canvas in acrylic but can't seem to get the depth and richness that oils give me.  So I switched and it's heading in the right direction.  I'm establishing the lights and darks but now I'm itching to get back to it to correct the contrasts.  All this in one day so I mustn't rush it and remember to step back a little more often.  Tomorrow I'll work on the interior of the bowl and the pears. The last image is a photograph that I tweaked in photoshop so the upper third of the image is painterly over the photograph.

Painting Variations

I'll be the first to admit that digital painting is not to be compared to the visual experience of paint on canvas but I am intrigued.  Having a large compilation of photos that I've taken to be used for more traditional media I sometimes get lost in the experimentation of all the wonderful apps and programs that are available.  Being able to create my own brushes and switch between them on a whim is too good to ignore.

I have been spending my time doing more design work meant for textiles lately so this is how I've satisfied my painting urge.  Tomorrow I'm picking up my order of wood cradled panels and I'll be painting my heart out once again.

Digital Playtime

Funny,the busier I am, the more likely I am to turn around and do something completely different.  Photoshop is so much fun!  And a good way to practice

color theory.  These are sketches I did in pencil and layered with photoshop brushes.   These will be printed on fabric (after I've played around some more).  : > )

Deliciously Pink (finished)

Oil on wood cradled panel

6" x 6" x 1.5"

$80

Pink tulips finished.  Looking forward to starting the next.  

From sketch to fabric....

I've had a lot of fun practicing my sketching over the past year and uploading them to fabric printing companies (there are several).  A local restaurant

commissioned me to create a fabric to use on their benches and it was just

completed last week.  So nice to see it come together.

Deliciously Pink

All's quiet on the blogger homefront but not for long.  I just returned from a

wonderful nine day trip to Paris.  My daughter (a wedding photographer) and I

took many photos.  She visited Versailles and I took the train to Giverny.  We

shopped, took more photos and enjoyed picking and choosing from numerous

boulangeries, charcuteries, patisseries (especially patisseries), fromageries and of course, wine shops to cap off our days.

But...it's nice to be home too.  Timing was perfect as the lilacs and wisteria in Paris were just peaking and now they are just in the midst of blooming here.

I missed starting my day painting though and am just about to finish this one.

The leaves have to be finished, the background needs some work and then it will be just about done.  Lilacs should be next but I have to figure out how to

paint all those little florets without overworking.  We'll see!

Seeing Red

6 x 6 inches

Oil on Wood Panel

Love the vibrancy of red tulips.   It's been a long winter and we're probably a good two weeks behind schedule with patches of snow still lingering.  How lucky are we artists to be able to immerse ourselves in color on even the dreariest of days.  

The part I like best about this painting is the lower left corner (funny enough)

simply because in the pursuit of training myself to loosen up, I return to bad habits so easily like puttering with small brushes.  The very qualities I admire in other paintings are the loose, energetic brush strokes.  Simply changing to a much larger brush gave me that energy I was looking for.