Great Video on Creating Backgrounds for your Paintings...

I stayed up late last night, searching for youtube videos that sparked my interest, and I have another 2 videos here to share with you.  I often get questions about how I do my backgrounds, and as I haven't had a chance or time to do a video tutorial of my own, these videos, and the background technique that she shows is very similar to how I usually start my paintings and art journal pages.  There are a lot of ways to create a background, but this is a great representation of how to start! These videos were provided by Michael's Craft Store and the artist is Kathy Kromer...



I really like how she explains hiding the edges of the paper, and how to use darker colors to make things "receed" and lighter colors to make things "pop".  I have never used alcohol inks in my paintings either, so that's something new I learned from her and will have to give it a try soon!

I can't remember if she mentioned this or not, but something that's really important for me when building layers is to use more transparent mediums so that parts of your layers show through one another.  Some of my favorite supplies for doing this is Golden Fluid acrylics, Tim Holtz distress inks, and Golden Glaze Medium for using with my more heavy bodied acrylics.  I almost forgot about my InkTense colored pencils...they are a watercolor pencil that turns permanent once dry.  They are a great alternative/addition to using fluid acrylics if you don't have them.  You can also use any watercolor pencil or crayon, and instead of using water with them, just dip your brush in a glaze medium to spread the color and it will dry permanent...

That's it for now I guess.  My head is swimming with ideas at the moment, so I can't sit still any longer!  Hope you enjoy these videos, there is a lot to learn from them!

Love this Video!

I really wanted to share this video with all of you, as I'm finding I'm inspired more and more by watching how other artist's paint.  This is a beautiful mixed media piece and I just LOVE watching it all come together.  It's absolutely amazing and gorgeous! I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

This is done by an Italian artist by the name of Agnes Cecile (hope I got that right!) You can see more of her art and learn more about the artist here at her SHOP.



I just subscribed to her Youtube channel as well.  She has 15 different speed painting videos similar to this one.  I can't wait to watch them all!

Have a great weekend everyone!  It's Spring Break for us, so I may not post much over the next week, as I'll be running around with the kiddos!

29 Faces Challenge: Face #25

Yikes,  I'm behind again!  Here is face #25, she's not finished yet, but this is as far as she's going to get for now.  I have so many other fish to fry at the moment.  Her skin tone is a little dark, so I may try lightening that up a bit and I'll need to finish the background with some very minor tweaks.  She is done using mostly acrylic paint on a canvas panel.

I'm looking at her now that I've just uploaded her and she looks all grainy.  She doesn't look like that in iphoto, or in real life.  Not sure what I did there.  Must have been a scanning error, I'm not sure!

29 Faces Challenge: Face #15

I like my little houses stamp as you can see.  I use it a lot, like here at the bottom.  I started this page in my journal a long time ago to see what some new pastels I had purchased would look like.  Today I decided to paint a face over the background.  I couldn't get the gesso to completely cover the background, so there are different lines peaking through her face.  I've decided I like her that way.  So today's painting was started with pastels and I used the black micron pen and acrylic paints to finish it off.

I think my husband will be happy when this challenge is over!  I'm so obsessed with making sure I get something finished to post everyday that I've sort of been neglecting some of the usual housework...Oops!  I need to start selling some artwork so I can hire a housekeeper...Right?!*

29 Faces Challenge: Face # 11

This girl started out really bad, but she came together at the last minute after I dug through my stash of painted papers and paper scraps.  I have to remember that next time I get stuck.  Looking through all those papers really gave me inspiration.  Here she is, my bohemian girl...

She was created using prismacolor pencils, Pitt Artist Pens, H20 Watercolors, acrylic paint and a peacock feather stamp for the background.  Hand painted papers for her headband.

Great Advice..."How to Create a Consistant Body of Work" by Cedar Lee

I ran across this video by artist Cedar Lee on why it's important as an artist to create a consistant body of work.  I really like her viewpoint, and the fact that she addresses my issue of wanting to do everything under the sun!  Her opinion gave me some new insight into how I want my journey to progress.  Take a look...it's really worth viewing and listening to what she has to say.

Glam Girl: Last Lesson of the Doodles Unleashed Class...

Well, I have to say I'm sad to end this class, but have come away with a new bag of tricks!  In this lesson, it was suggested to use glitter glue (like stickles), but while I was in the dollar store yesterday I was admiring all the metalic and sparkly nail polishes and immediately thought how great they would look in a painting.  I don't wear nail polish, but I bought several colors and used a few in this painting.  I will be using them in my paintings from now on!  They give a great effect!

Hope everyone's week is going smoothly and that you can make time for creativity!

Doodles Unleashed: A Free Class with Traci Bautista

If you like to take online workshops and you have the time...this is a great workshop to sign up for and it's absolutely free!

(NOTE:  If you can't see the whole video, double click on it and you can see it full screen.  To exit the full screen video just click your escape button.)



You can go to StrathmoreArtist.Com and scroll down until you see the Strathmore 2012 Online Workshop Series box.  Click on it and you can register for 3 different workshops that Strathmore is putting on for free.  I can't tell you enough how great these workshops are.  Each instructor puts together a series of video lessons, downloadable PDF's and different discussions and forums to share your work, ask questions and meet other students.

Don't be shy!  These workshops are for all levels!

Last night I completed the first weeks lessons.  Here are the results...and for the most part I'm fairly happy with what  came up with, but I think when I have time I'll probably give it another go and try to be a little bit more original.

Step One:  Using found objects for background stencil patterns

Step Two:  Use Acrylic paints to further the development of  shapes

Step Three:  Use pens, india inks and oil pastels to doodle ...

Step Four: Final embellishing with white correction fluid pen!

Works in Progress...

Still working, or mainly "practicing" because I have so much to improve upon and learn!  Here are the products of my latest practice session.

The Beginning of a new work...

One of my biggest obstacles in painting is figuring out what I want to paint!  The more I agonize over what my subject matter should be, the less likely I am to paint anything at all.  It seems the more planned out I am, the more chance of my artwork being unsatisfactory to me.  In almost every instance, my best work comes when I remain UNFOCUSED and spontaneous.

This morning I sat on the floor with books, magazines and pictures of artwork I admire, trying (with no luck) to come up with an idea.  Every Wednesday I meet with another friend who paints.  She is an amazingly talented fine artist who can draw and paint just about anything.  She plans her work, does preliminary sketches etc...and she always produces something amazing! (Huge Sigh...) I simply can't do that!

So I finally accepted my "planning" limitations, threw some paint and three canvases, a few brushes and a bag full of paper scraps for collage into a bag and went on my merry way...with no plan....telling myself to remain focused on being unfocused (Ha!  makes sense doesn't it!).

I promised myself to not be critical and to just start slinging paint....and here is where I am at after an afternoon of painting.  It's by no means complete, and probably will look nothing like this when I'm finished...but I like where it's headed!  This "style" is nothing like what I usually paint and I would have never went this direction if I had a plan!  But so far it's working, and I have to remember to stay true to me.  Having no preconceived notions about what the outcome of a painting will look like, allows me to think outside the box (well at least the box MY mind lives in)!