A 365 day art project… one drawing a day
But it survived. Aaaaaaand…. that is literally my most exciting news.
As I am still healthy (yay!!!) and a serious homebody, I’m not minding “lockdown” at all. But the days DO blur into each other. Clara did eat said bee, but she dropped it when I told her to. So the natural balance is restored. Maybe?
A school with no kids coming back (and it’s not summer break!) is sad. A tiny plastic horse waits for their return in the parking lot.
Life moves on!
Just a tiny Christmas card, going in a package I’m sending out…
These are the three pieces I entered. I’m not exactly sure why I chose the mermaid. I have a goldfish I like better.
This one is in a “floating” frame… clear glass around the print (that’s my floor tile showing through!) so, you’ll see whatever color the wall is behind the picture. I painted all of these just after I began using watercolor.
This one is probably my favorite, I don’t know why. Just a tulip, using schmincke potters pink, which I love.
This one… I THINK I painted it from a reference photo, but I am not completely sure… it was two years ago.
So really, applying for entrance into a juried exhibition isn’t such a big deal… anyone can do it. But the point is I never have before, and wouldn’t have now, except my friend Mandy challenges me to not just SAY I want to do stuff, but to actually DO it. Watching her say she’s going to do something, and then actually DO IT is very inspiring. Check out Mandy’s blog here. She’s talented, you’ll like it.
Also… Mandy’s submission for the competition was chosen!! YAY MANDY!!!!!
I’m not even sure what happened, but since the new year (and my heart incident!) I haven’t done much art. I’ve missed it, to be sure, but I have stayed busy with other things. But I’m trying to make it a habit again… plus… I have projects I’ve promised people that I need to get on with!
I used my “new” porcelain palette, FINALLY. New?? I got it this fall. A REALLY excellent price (I can’t remember where… I think Cheap Joe’s?? Like… under $20!! It’s big, with large wells, and a clear plastic cover to keep newfie hair out. -It tries, anyway) For some reason it just put me off. I think because it’s so large! (??) I had fun choosing colors, then never used it! Just stared at it on my drafting table as I did lots of other things. And watched old seasons of Survivor.
But this week I painted a birthday card for my sister, and made her a little heart origami bookmark, too (in JMU colors!)
I also had a “spring” swap due out (on swap-bot.com … if you enjoy crafting, arting, and pen pal-ing, check it out!) so I decorated this envelope:
(blocked out the addresses but you get the idea)
And finally, I started a project for a book illustration for my niece:
I did NOT use only my large porcelain palette for this… I also used my new Roman Szmal watercolors! but…that’s the next post!
“Stuff”… just bits I found on my walk yesterday… Getting out of this house during quarantine is nice… plus, my dr insists. 🙂 30 minutes of cardiac movement every(ish) day. Yesterday I noticed a big feather, the dying daffodils right by my door, and dandelions in different stages. It was nice to just walk, and breathe, and notice.
I used a little paint tin my friend Shelley sent me for Christmas. It is actually decorated like a Ouija board, and held mints, but she sent it with a list of colors recommended by…. someone professional online artist she respects. But I forget who…
Anywho…. the colors work really nicely together. So they were right. It is missing a few of my favorites go-to colors… but I didn’t need them, turns out. I’m listing the colors this other artist (I’m sorry I don’t have your name here) recommended, as well as what replacements I made in my set. I tried to match pigment numbers (which I googled for each brand) and actual colors as closely as possible.
The recommended colors:
WN (Winsor & Newton) Permanent Rose
DS (Daniel Smith) Pyrrol Scarlet
SCH (Schmincke) Transparent Orange
DS New Gamboge
WN Winsor Yellow
WN Quinacridone Magenta
WN Burnt Sienna
WN Paynes Gray
WN Cerulean Blue
DS Phthalo Yellow Green
WN Winsor Violet
WN French Ultramarine
WN Winsor Blue GS (green shade)
DS Ultramarine Turquoise
WN Permanent Sap Green
(I did this on the back of the swatch card, with the colors I ACTUALLY used. They don’t all look the same but are closer than you’d think, just some of my swatches are painted darker. I’m looking at you, Paynes Gray… I know mine is not neat and tidy like hers. She is a super pro at it)
I didn’t actually have exactly the colors and brands selected, but got as close as I could, because she had sent me a swatch card to match. Here’s what I changed out:
I used QoR Quin Magenta instead of WN Magenta
used a mixture of DS Burnt Sienna and Quin Burnt Orange for WN Burnt Sienna
used QoR Paynes Gray for WN Paynes Gray
used DS Cerulean Blue Chromium for WN Cerulean Blue
used a mixture of WN Ultramarine and QoR Quin Magenta for WN Winsor Violet
used DS Phthalo Blue GS instead of Winsor Blue GS
used a mixture of DS Ultramarine and DS Phthalo Green for DS Ultramarine Turquoise (the same way DS makes it)
used DS Sap Green for WN Permanent Sap Green.
(I had WN Permanent Rose, DS Pyrrole Scarlet, SCH Transparent Orange, DS New Gamboge, and WN Winsor Yellow)
I don’t generally use Paynes Gray… I use DS Bloodstone if I want a gray or black color and don’t want to mix one. I like its moodiness and granulation. I also include DS Buff Titanium, and DaVinci Red, and DS Green Apatite Genuine in most of my palettes. I’m going to keep this one the way it is for a while, and see if I miss them… I can always switch them out. Overall a very nice selection of colors, even if I did replace many.
(for the shadows i added a bit of the burnt sienna mix to the paynes gray… I like it)
Soooo…. how are you spending your quarantine?
ThreeSixFiveArt 