Recycling an Old Post

I wanted to share an old blog post I wrote nearly a year ago that you might enjoy again.  Go ahead and check it out!

CLICK HERE


I hope everyone is having a good day and week!!! Take care!

Sketch a Little, Think a Little

What a time this has been!  When the weather is this nice, good times are to be had!  We enjoyed a festival this weekend and a bunch of outside time.  Just before I put my son down for a nap we played in the water outside.  He has a little squirt bottle he enjoyed chasing me around with while he squirted water at me.  I hope you are enjoying your time with family and friends!  Also, happy belated Mother's Day!  It rained here so we didn't get to do what my husband wanted but I still didn't have to cook or clean all day!  Now that was nice!  I can not wait to see what he has in store for me now that it is nice out.

To continue on from last week's post about research, I hope you are sketching away on your ideas.  I worked a little today before my son starting chasing me around.  Here is an example of how I work:

This sketch isn't complete but a good start to what I am working on.  I think I want to do a mini series of butterflies but monochromatic in theme.  When I was talking about research I meant learn about the subject you plan to draw or paint.  I spent some time learning about butterflies and now I am sketching them.  The hard part about butterflies is that they are symmetrical which makes painting them with their wings open hard.  I might throw in a few closed wings to make that process simpler.  Notice the notes I take along with the sketch.  It helps remind myself of the thinking process I have as I sketch and brainstorm my finished product.  Problem solving through a painting starts at the very beginning and goes all the way to the very end.  Just watch some of my painting videos and you will see....I still kept working through problems.  

I hope you are enjoying working through your projects and having fun with this weather.  Remember to be the best artist you can be!

Research

I love this weather but the down side to it is having my car windows open.  It doesn't make sense does it?  Let me explain.  Right about lunch time I found myself driving around town with my windows open.  I passed a restaurant and BAM!  I smelled the delicious food cooking inside.  That is the downfall to this weather, I can smell all the wonderful cooking going on.  We have a rule in our house.  We can only watch cooking shows while we are eating.  If we are watching a food show about burgers and have not had dinner yet....we want burgers.  It has happened so many times that this rule we made went into effect.  I hope you have better self-control then we do when it comes to food.

Have you ever thought about what an artist does before they sit down and paint?  Or do you think they can just pop something out like it is nothing because they are an artist?  Many times people just write off my art like I can just create something at the drop of a hat.  It really is not that simple.  One of my favorite paintings I have created took months to do.  That does not just include the painting process.  I have to do studies.  Studies being pictures of the subject I want to paint, sketching over and over again to get the subject done just right, and thumbnail sketches to prepare the whole image before I put it on canvas.  A thumbnail sketch is pretty much what it sounds like, a small sketch of the intended finished product.  A lot of the time I will scale down the image's intended size so I can create the proper ratios in the image.  So, when I scale the image back up to the intended size, the dimensions and ratios look correct.  (Who would have thought an artist can sound all technical?).  Artists are problem solvers.  That is why art is so important for children to experience.  I find myself trying to solve problems in my art all the time.  How can I make this look right?  Why is that color not looking bright enough?  I need more space in this image, how can I achieve that?  This is why researching your painting before you paint it is so important.  I find myself thinking and working through an idea for months sometimes before I even sketch it out.  That is what I have been doing lately.  I find myself thinking of exactly what I want to do and how I am going to do it.  No artist starts a painting without some sort of planning and research first.  Do you have an idea?  Plan it out.  Research the subject.  Sketch.  Sketch some more.  When you think you sketched enough, sketch some more.  Then, start you painting.

I wish you luck in your research, and remember to be the best artist you can be!

Hold on to Your Hats!

Living in Kansas has been fun but when it comes to weather, it changes so much, it's hard to have fun.  When we first found out Kansas is where we were going to end up, we forgot that it was still a state.  Nothing happens in Kansas that usually makes big news.  We farm, we have tornadoes, and its the place Dorothy was from.  That was all we knew.  After being here for almost 5 years, I have learned what it was like to be a true American.  Being from Texas, you are Texan first and American second.  I was and am still a proud Texan.  You do not cover Texas history every year and then take it for a whole year not to be proud of your state.  I forgot what it was like to be proud of my country like Kansans do.  I will say though, weather here is something I will never get used to because it doesn't last long enough for you to get used to it.  Today is one of those days that scare me.  We have a storm coming that might bring tornadoes, well most likely will bring tornadoes.  As a huge fan of the movie "Twister" this can go either way for me.  I have always wanted to see a tornado but I also never want to see a tornado.  God's creation is astounding but can be scary at the same time.  Just before I sat down to write this blog, I got a bunch of stuff together to take if the tornado sirens sound.  I pray for safety for all my friends out there if anything happens.  Hold on to you hats!!!!

Since, wind is a fact later today, I was thinking about all the things that will be blown away.  I personally would love if all the weeds in my flower beds would blow away but since those suckers are in there good (trust me, I know), what will blow away?  I was admiring this picture yesterday and thought with my luck, I would paint this and the wind would blow away my fence.

Painting on empty spaces can be beautiful and add just that little bit more of beauty to a dull space.  This time last year we put up a fence around our backyard that needs some color.  I am 80% tempted to go out this summer and paint something on it.  If I do, I might end up having to paint everyone else's fence too.  I'll see what happens but first, I need to see if my fence will survive the storm.

Take care friends and remember to be the best artist you can be!!

Why Buy Local Art?

Today feels like spring.  It is just beautiful out!  I can not say it enough, this is my favorite time of year.  This week is an exciting but sad week.  My son is turning 2!  I am so excited at the little boy he has become.  The energy that never ends, the curiosity about everything, and the smiles he gives when he sees me or accomplishes something new.  But....he is growing up!  He is not staying my little boy forever like I would love.  This time two years ago he was on his way into my arms and now he is too big for my arms.  Oh how time flies!!!

I am pretty sure I have covered this topic before, but it is an important one to talk about as an artist.  Local art is more then just something pretty to hang on your wall.  It is funding someone's passion, encouraging their love of creating.  The rare times people purchase my art, I get so motivated to create more thinking that someone out there likes what I am doing.  The argument will always be that artist create art not for money but for the love of art.  This statement is true but no artist would deny that excitement they get when someone purchases their art.  A few weeks ago, I sold a painting.  It was the first in a long time.  I did not realize how much I missed the feeling of wrapping up a painting to deliver to someone else.  It is a wonderful feeling.  To know that my painting that was stored away in a dark corner of my house got to see the light of day in someone's home.  Local art can bring personality to a home that no commercially made art can.  I refuse to hang commercially made art in my home.  To me, it makes my home a house that might as well have anyone living in it.  I loose that personality that my family has created for our home.  Every piece of artwork has a reason for being on my wall, a story.  As an artist, I would love to be a part of your home's story.  So, go out and buy some local art.  I am not trying to force you to buy mine.  What I am trying to do is encourage you to buy something someone out their worked hard to create.  Something someone gave a little of their soul to make beautiful just for you.  Are you willing to let their story be a part of your's?

Remember to be the best artist you can be!

Here is my Etsy shop in case you want to just at least look at what I am selling.

Rangoli

Spring is finally here!!  This is my favorite time of year, when everything seems to wake up from a long sleep.  I love the beauty and the life that is Spring.  Living in Kansas, it is usually windy.  Since it is Spring, the farmers have been control burning their fields to prepare for the new crop they will plant.  Since, it is windy, is smells like smoke....most of the time.



The other day I found myself watching a woman practicing Rangoli, and as I watched and heard the wind outside, I knew that this is a form of art I could never practice in Kansas.



Rangoli is a form of art or cultural practice done outside or in homes.  It is a design created with colored rice, dry flour, colored sand or flower petals.  It is usually done during Indian festivals to bring luck to whoever it is created for.  I have always loved learning about other cultures.  Learning what traditions others keep make me appreciate my own so much more.  I doubt many can argue against the complex designs that India produces as being extraordinary.



Even though the art I create is usually heavy in texture, I love delicate designs.  Using sand to create something so detailed and yet so delicate is fascinating to me.  I hope you enjoy the video I attached and the few pictures I found of many other Rangoli designs.



Do not forget I have an Etsy shop, you can see what I have HERE



Remember, to be the best artist you can be!

Water

I hope everyone had a wonderful spring break last week!  We took our son to Legoland and the Aquarium for the first time.  He had a blast but I really think he liked the Aquarium the most.  I hope everyone also has a lovely week in preparation for Easter this Sunday.  It is such a special time for us as we celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus!  Have a joyful time with your families.

My husband informed me yesterday that today is World Water Day.  A day to remind others that not everyone has fresh and clean drinking water.  This is something that I am thankful for as I do simple tasks as brushing my teeth or washing my hands.  We are a rich nation and I hope that we can solve the lack of clean water for the world.

Since we are talking about water, I was going to share some images I found of Japanese watercolor paintings.  If you are an avid reader, you know I am no expert on watercolor.  I love it, it's beautiful but I am not good at using watercolors.  It takes a lot of control over your medium and I am just not good at it, simple as that.  Even if I am not good at something, does not mean I can not enjoy it and admire those who are.  My sister has loved Japanese anime since high school.  So every once in awhile we would find ourselves admiring Japanese art together.  So, here are a few images I just happened to find:

I would also like to take the time to mention Brussels today.  My prayers and thoughts are with the families and friends of those who were hurt or killed in the cruel attacks that happened there today.