MY ART
I was too shy to enroll in art courses when I was growing up, but I always loved the idea of recreating my view of the world. I mistakenly thought that either you "had it", or you didn't. Other kids seemed to have this innate ability; I didn't, and that's all there was to it. I wonder now how I could have been so dumb, but there it is! In my 30s I picked up Betty Edwards's Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain. I was utterly flabbergasted to discover that all I really needed to be able to draw accurately...was to be able to SEE! Alas, at that time in my life I had so many other diversions - raising a child and keeping a house and gardens and all thing attendant to those efforts - that I abandoned my discovery for almost two more decades. Finally, nearing age 50, I enrolled in a brief Introduction to Watercolor course at a local high school. Although it taught me nothing of technical importance, the course was invaluable in giving me the confidence to learn from experimentation. When my mother died unexpectedly that summer, painting was my greatest solace.
I joined a local art group that September. In April of 1999, I participated in my first art show and sale. With 131 entries, there was a First Place award in each category, and seven Judge's Choice awards distributed among all the entries. My elation was boundless when I discovered that one of my four entries, 'Pink Poppies', had been awarded a Judge's Choice award. Some of the other entrants were undoubtedly disappointed, but no one could have been more surprised than I! (In fact, I was certain the judge had hung the ribbon on the wrong painting!) The judge, whom I had never met, obviously found something of merit in my crude rendering of a fragile subject. It was just the incentive I needed. It may be the only ribbon I will ever receive, but the thrill will last my lifetime.
If you want to see technically flawless and brilliantly creative painting, you are at the wrong web site! My efforts are strictly those of an amateur - but that is the whole point. We all begin at roughly the same place, and it is better to start late than not at all. I used to be embarrassed to have my work seen, until I realized that most who would criticize have not themselves come so far and have no concept of the artistic process.
View some of my paintings. Unless otherwise noted, all are 10 1/2" x 15", framed to 16" x 20". Pictures will be added as available, so please check back again!
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This is my award-winning entry in my first art show. Beginner's luck, no doubt, but it was wonderfully encouraging. I spoke with the judge after the show. He said he liked the "Oriental feel" it had, particularly the silky look of the background. I almost didn't enter it because I thought I had ruined the background through repeated washes and scrubbings. I think I accidentally learned a new technique! |
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This was one of my first paintings, done in 1998. I titled it "Fence in Autumn".
I believe that art is a window to the soul; what the artist paints and how he paints it (as well as how the viewer responds to a piece of art) is a reflection of how he views the world and life itself. Does he believe that reality is knowable? That happiness is man's proper condition?
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"Cows at Pasture" was done later in my first year.
I try to render my subjects realistically; my goal is to someday be skilled enough to paint life as it ought to be. I do not regard nature as malevolent and man as ignoble.
So-called "modern art" - blobs of amorphous color and unrecognizable forms - is foisted upon us as the highest expression of creativity and a style to admire and emulate. I defend an artist's right to free expression, but also my right to call his work an offense to vision!
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This painting was also done in my first year. 'Solitary Pursuit' was intended as a quiet self-portrait. It actually sold at the art group's annual show and sale! It was purchased by a man who is obviously NOT a severe critic. Okay, okay, it was my father. (I'm still trying to convince him that he needs glasses.) |
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"Quietly, May" In my second year, I have begun to develop a "feel" for the medium. It is impossible to convey my sense of awe at having rendered the rocks so realistically!
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My favorite work is that of Adolphe William Bouguereau (1825-1905). His sense of life was benevolent and joyful, and his paintings are luminous and brilliant. He painted a sensuous, beautiful world befitting the best of mankind. His work was became quite obscure after his death (in fact, his name is absent from many 20th century art history books), but his work gained the favor of collectors in the late 1980s and is now frequently available as prints. (For an interesting insight into why a person desires to possess a particular work of art, follow this link to artist Sylvia Bokor's essay, Owning a Work of Art.)
UPDATE, May 2000. The art group's annual art show and sale in April was, again, positive and inspiring for me. I placed five entries: four watercolors and a photograph. For the second year in a row, one of my entries was awarded a ribbon. "Waiting" was a winter scene of two garden benches in a snowy garden nook. Not only did it earn a ribbon, it was purchased by a total stranger who had no sense of obligation. My work generated numerous positive responses. (I admit it, I lurked inconspicuously nearby to eavesdrop on conversations of the viewers!) My photo entry, a lucky portrait of my cat, also sold.
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This was a big surprise: "Oriental Lilies" also sold at the April 2000 Show. I had sent this photo to my aunt in Texas, who called and asked my dad to purchase the painting by proxy. (I love my family!)
Unfortunately, as with most of these images, the color is way off. The lilies are, in fact, a luscious raspberry pink. Sigh. |
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"Wallflower" was painted in April 2000 and was another entry in the art show. Following the show I decided the background left much to be desired. In an attempt to improve it, the background turned to "mud" and I considered the painting ruined. Several months later, more out of curiosity than anything, I attempted to salvage it with soft pastels. This is the result. I am now in the process of learning to paint with pastels - another great adventure! |
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"Split Rock Lighthouse, Lake Superior" was painted in May 2000. I never realized how beautiful snow is until I tried to paint it - such subtlety! The water was fun, too.
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This painting, titled "Air Hamlet", was commissioned in July 2000. I tried to capture the grace and enthusiasm of a basenji on the lure. The painting itself is much better than this photo shows: the field behind the dog is actually the yellow-green of a sun-washed field, the sky is blue, and there are shadows and details not evident here. Painting for someone else was a nerve-wracking challenge, but I learned a lot from the experience.
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"Colorado Home" was commissioned by a Florida woman to represent her husband's birthplace near Denver. (It also served as a rural post office at the time he lived there.) I never had a desire to draw a truck, let alone paint one, but it was an interesting challenge. Painting the perfect blue sky was most satisfying aspect of this exercise. It's harder than you think! |
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"Idyll", painted in January 2001. This is one painting that will definitely be entered in the April 2001 art show. I didn't make any huge mistakes that I had to fret over trying to fix. Either I got lucky, or I'm getting better! |
A Tale of a Failed Painting...
Being not only self-taught, but recently self-taught, there are facets of painting that I have barely begun to explore. There is so much more to painting than knowing a few techniques. The success of a painting rests in no small part upon how colors interact as they are perceived by the viewer. This painting is a case in point. I knew there was something going terribly wrong here, but had no idea what it was.
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By the time I figured out that the colors were wrong, I had gone beyond the point of no return. With watercolors, it is impossible to recapture the white of the paper once it is lost, and you can't go from dark to light. No matter what I tried, the painting went from bad to worse. A very pale background behind the rooster would have helped him to stand out and would have avoided the clashing shades of green. The painting was aborted before completion. |
My paintings, thus far, have been "intuitive" as regards hue and value, but I can see that I will save myself a lot of frustration (not to mention paper and paint!) by studying color theory! I really hate it when some elements of a painting are so satisfying but, of necessity, end up in my Little Drawer of Horrors!
UPDATE, June 2002. Oops, did you notice a lapse? I missed almost an entire year due to health issues. (Getting old is not for sissies!) I continued to paint, but didn't accomplish as much as I should have.
The April 2001 show was, initially, a disappointment. I entered four paintings, including Idyll, which I thought was my best to date. The judge did not agree! In fact, the judge said that all she could see was repetitive shapes and two dark triangles! Her opinion is not without merit, of course; as an artist of some renown, and a holder of advanced degrees in the subject, she had better know a whole lot about color theory and such. That said, I still like my painting exactly as it is! I never intended for the subject to be identified and appreciated from 100 feet, and if one is close enough to recognize the canoe, he will also recognize the offending dark triangles as the shadowed side of a triangle of land, and its dark reflection on the water. I came away from the show without a ribbon, true, but also with the realization that MY satisfaction is far more important than any judge's opinion of it. I am the judge who really matters!
I had little to enter in the April 2002 show. I had to withdraw "Fishes Three" at the last minute because I ruined it in the finishing touches. "Winter Light" was a watercolor entry, and "Sun Dog" was my entry in the photography division. Well, again, no ribbons - but both entries sold!
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'Winter Light' was a larger version of my 2001 Christmas card. When completed and framed, I saw this painting every morning from January through April. The photo simply does not do it justice. It seemed to glow from within, and it imbued me with a feeling of utter tranquility. The woman who purchased it told me that she kept going back to look at it and finally said, "If I have to keep going back to see it, I need to own it." That's how I felt about it, too! |
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"Got It!" was painted in May 2002. Based on a photograph by Donald MacMillan of Tampa, Florida, the subject is a Basenji named Congo. (Congo is exceptional. Basenjis typically regard water as Dracula regards sunlight!) This painting was fun, though I'm not 100% satisfied with it. Perhaps it will be entered in the next show...or maybe I'll try painting it one more time. |
I do not paint much during the summer months because it is usually too hot. Watercolors are most often used with the support in a horizontal position (except those times when gravity is useful to distribute a wash), and sweat tends to run down my chin onto the paper. (Maybe I need to experiment to see if this can be used in a novel technique, hmmm?) With the cooler temperatures of autumn, I am back in the groove. The paintings below will be entered in the Spring 2003 art show and sale.
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"Red Barn in Snow" was painted in November 2002. It, too, was based upon a photo, but I am unable to credit the photographer because I have no idea who it was. (If anyone recognizes this scene, please let me know so I can give credit where due!) It turned out well enough to make prints of for use as my holiday card. |
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And yet ANOTHER painting based upon a photo by someone else. Don MacMillan was kind enough to allow me to use this pic, too. The frothy water was an interesting challenge and turned out to be loads of fun. Also painted in November 2002, I call it "Splash". |
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This one was fun, but it presented some interesting challenges, as well. This summer I discovered a cracked and faded sepia photograph of my great-grandmother's brother in front of his home in Castellana del Bifurno, Italy, ca 1908. My immediate thought was, "Gee, I wish it were in color." Now it is! Because the photo was in such dreadful condition, I had to invent all the detail. I daresay Uncle Leonardo would not recognize himself, but I think he would approve. I think I captured his spirit. |
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