Purple Poppies in Batik

I like to keep a few sheets of rice paper in my sketch bag, for those impromptu paintings in the field. This is Kozo rice paper, which is long fibered and stronger than some of the others I use. When it comes to adding watercolor to the India ink, I must use a soft watercolor brush instead of my water brushpens.  While perfect for my khadi paper, they cause damage to the surface of the rice paper very quickly.  My watercolor pans are wonderful here, the high pigment really pops.  This is only the second time I've used those paints in this application, and I love the results!  I wax and add the final batik color back at home.  Painting number 1633 inn 1633 days.  Now to get ready for Family Game Night!

Poppies at the Lake

With so much painting, I often switch from one medium to another at the drop of a hat, although it has been years since I've used Golden Open acrylics. I found them too tacky before, sticking even months later!  So,  I abandoned them after one plein air event, without seriously working with them. This time,  I added one Liquitex heavy bodied acrylic and a regular gel medium to the mix, ensuring good curing. It worked like a dream,  and I was able to control the drying.  Opens used by themselves take forever to dry,  and I like to work faster than that!  I purchased mine when they first came out, and they may well have adjusted their formula since then.  I really had fun pushing that paint around with a knife - and I want to do more of that in the future,  but I'll never give up my oils!  Painting number 1606 in 1606 days :)

Memorial Day Poppies

In honor of all those who have served their country,  today I draw the beautiful poppies of the Overland Park Arboretum. They are truly spectacular this year!  The bright red orange ones were bursting at the very beginning of the plein air event.  Two days later the entire north side of Monet's garden was blooming with the tall,  purple poppies.  Just a few more days brought a riot of large, red carnation shaped poppies up and down the walkways!  The beauty is ever changing in the garden,  constantly creating new scenes for me to paint!  This drawing makes 1602 in 1602 days,  and what a wonderful day with family it has been!  

bid here

Rose Arbor and Poppies

Wowza!  This painting is the 1600th in 1600 days!  Truth be told, there are many others that have not been posted, too!  On this painting journey,  I've gotten faster, and bolder,  jumping into unknown mediums just for the thrill of it! I often do more than a painting a day now, and I'm drawing so much!  Who knew there were so many untried papers out there?  That very first step of "trying" to finish one painting each day was the beginning of a whole new world for me,  one where I could lose myself with reckless abandon in all things art.  My thirst for knowledge is unquenchable, and I am only limited by my imagination.  Want to improve your art skills?  Try a painting a day.  It might just change your life.

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Tower Clematis in ink

As I look for compositions to paint, I wander around the garden with pen and paper in hand.  If I feel a subject may be worthy of paint, I first draw it in pen and ink.  With this one,  the light changed too quickly, and I was unable to paint it.  So the scene stands in ink. I really love this fabulous handmade paper,  although my artist friends do not like working with it!  It has ruined me for all other papers - I love it that much!  This drawing makes 1599 in 1599 days!  You know what tomorrow means.........1600!

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Butterfly and Poppies

After 5 pen and ink drawings and a complex garden painting,  these remarkable poppies called me back.  They were one of my first drawings of the day, but the rose arbor called louder!  These poppies look very much like giant red carnations - on poppy stems!  They have really opened in the last two days, and even the butterflies noticed!  It was so fun to revel in the gardens today,  especially after the prairie and old town Overland Park yesterday.  There is such a peace here - and oh the aroma of blooms in the air!  This also happened to be Art Mob day,  so I was painting in both capacities.  A very full day,  indeed!  Painting number 1598 in 1598 days!

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Poppies Pink

Poppies Pink
Watercolor on paper, 9x6

Today finds me playing around with the loose colors of pink poppies in watercolor.  Quite a few of the poppies in my front bed did not return this spring - but thankfully, I found them surviving in an outlying bed.  My poppies are the old fashioned variety, started from a neighbor up the road a bid who lives in her grandmother’s house.  My starts are from her grandmother’s poppies.  I love that!  This painting is the 1199th in 1199 days.

Through the Poppies

Through the Poppies
Oil on canvas panel, 5x7
purchase here

Today finds me dreaming of garden landscapes and peaceful walks through the blooms.  We moved our fourth child to college today, and it is bittersweet. She is such a bright and shiny star - her whole future spreading out before her feet.  We miss her already, and her puppy wanders from room to room, anxiously waiting.  So, looking for some art therapy today - I return to my paints.  Choosing to work small, I am not painting from any reference (as I usually do).  I am not concerned with colors or values, the process of expressing is my solace. Strokes made with brush and palette knife, this painting is my 957th in 957 days.

Path in Poppy Fields

Path in Poppy Fields
Oil on canvas, 6x9
purchase here

Some days, I actually have paintings playing out in my mind while I go about my daily duties.  Driving to the gym, license bureau, to weights and robotics, with scenes unfolding before my eyes.  It is SO hard to keep my mind on my tasks!  It is as if I have been on "auto pilot", and keep coming back to reality with a snap!  I could hardly decide where to begin once I did get to my easel - there are three landscapes uppermost in my mind this day!  Deciding on this one first, I sure hope I can get to at least one more later.  I am working up a small piece with plans to enlarge to 24x36.  I would have just painted large to begin with, but I don't yet have the wood cut....and time is limited today.  I brushed in the whole underpainting, and have added the thick, juicy paint with a couple of palette knives.  I may need to pull a few more cool tones down into the poppy fields, but for now I am letting it rest.  This painting makes 926 in 926 days.

Wine Party Poppies

Wine Party Poppies
Acrylic on gallery wrapped canvas, 20x16
purchase here

Today is our 32nd wedding anniversary - it seems like just yesterday!  Where does the time go?  In a couple weeks, I will be teaching a Wine and Paint Party for my sorority - and this is the example for that event. Acrylics work best for this kind of event - drying quickly, and they allow glazing as needed.  I have chosen a composition that will be easy to follow with a glass of wine in one hand, brush in the other! The papery petals can be painted easily with large brush strokes. These wine and paint parties are SO fun - I can hardly wait!  This painting makes 900 in 900 days!  Wowza!

The Poetry of Poppies

The Poetry of Poppies
Acrylic over molding paste on wood panel, 14x11
Overland Park Arboretum - Stems - purchase here

I have struggled a bit with these poppies by the lake.  I've had them sitting on an easel - trying to decide if they were finished -or not!  The sketch was easy, the application of acrylic molding paste went smoothly, but then I am faced with just how to layer on the acrylics.  I am now so accustomed to my oils, that returning to the acrylics is daunting!  So, I begin slowly - glazing in the layers, beginning with the darks.  As I work, it becomes more fun, and eventually I am no longer thinking about the method - only about the color. These beauties were near the lake, but I was tempted to darken the background.......yet, I restrain myself!  Painting number 886 in 886 days.

in progress - it is here that I see how nicely a dark background would work.......

The Pleasure of Poppies

The Pleasure of Poppies
Oil on panel, 5x7
auction - bid here

I love the drama of red - red poppies, red roses, red anything!  Using my palette knife, I have added a stucco feel to the background by adding color on top of color with the long flat edge, barely skimming the surface.  For the reds of the petals, I have mainly used cad red light, with alizarin crimson and even burnt umber in the shadows.  Pulling the highlights from edge to base, I've used caucasian skin, cad yellow light, naples yellow and white.  I think I mixed a little cad orange in, too.  Cad orange is one of those colors that is a "must have" on my palette. It adds energy to a painting, even in the slightest amounts.  Not wanting to take the time to reload my greenish umber, I mixed my dark greens with cad yellow and black, which makes a rich, warm green pushing towards the olive.  The paint is rather thick today, I was really in the mood for texture!  It can be so rewarding to pull that paint on with a knife.  But practice makes perfect - the palette knife was very unnatural for me at first.  It took a lot of strokes before it felt natural, and a different knife will yield different results each time.  It is so important to know your tools - and get lots of painting in.  Each painting just gets more and more fun to paint! Painting number 815 in 815 days.

A Dream of Poppies

A Dream of Poppies
Oil on unstretched canvas, 4x6
auction - bid here

What a gorgeous day this has been!  My day has been so full that I could not get out to paint from life - though I have new forsythia starting to bloom, and I can hardly wait to get to it!  My forsythia paintings of last year met an untimely demise when our red lab puppy escaped from his kennel and licked ALL of the cad yellow paint from both surfaces!  I meant to go pack and repair the damage, but I never did get to it.  Perhaps I will fix them this year with fresh inspiration!  Feeling like painting in the red again - I have picked up brush and knife to express the glory of these poppies.  The baby plants are just now up in my flower beds, and I am planning to move some of the starts into new areas.  There bloom time is short, but their papery petals are amazing - and worth all the effort of getting them established.  It took me several different attempts to get these babies to grow and multiply, but now that they are - I am set!  For the loosely stroked highlight edges, I have used a worn and frazzled bristle brush.  Loading with paint, I pull it lightly from edge of petal toward base, lifting up as I progress.  This defines the edge as light would hit it, and gives it a wonderful texture, too. This is painting number 812 in 812 days.

Palette Knife Poppies

Palette Knife Poppies
Oil on panel, 5x7
original sold - print available here

Surprise!  Today I am getting crazy with the palette knife!  Mondays are always busy for me!  After starting the day at the gym, I then teach a morning porcelain class and an afternoon painting class.  Then comes my very small painting window, just before rushing off to pick Michael up from baseball practice.  Right after that, we have a meeting at the high school for baseball - fund-raising, I think.  SO, coming quickly to my easel, I select a small substrate - only 5x7 inches.  I quickly block in the masses with rather thick paint, and start defining the planes with my palette knife - yes, my plastic one.  Of all the wonderful metal knives I have, I still like the pliable nature of the plastic, and I prefer it.  I know it sounds crazy, but it is one of those little preferences that does not seem to change.  New on the palette today - Gamblin's Radiant Yellow.  What I like most about this color is how opaque it is!  It will truly sit right on top of a petal for that pop of color.  This is painting number 800 in 800 days!!  Hooray!  I will have to have a nice glass of wine - when I return from the baseball meeting!

Poetic Poppies

Poetic Poppies
Oil on wood panel, 5x7
auction - bid here

So much of painting begins with a feeling.  This morning, the brush strokes rolled off the brush in soft, gentle waves.  With a very busy day ahead - full of family, cooking and cleaning, I needed a little quiet time to myself - to express.  Choosing a small size (as time is of the essence) I first look inside myself to see what I FEEL like painting.  I just painted poppies yesterday, bright, happy, cheerful blooms.  Today, feeling more withdrawn, I am looking for calm, gentle and delicate.  So, I am using the same subject matter but handling it in a more subdued way.  There is quite a bit of texture here, as I have used the palette knife throughout to push and pull the paint at my whim.  The palette is cooler and softer, and the composition is more airy than yesterday's poppies.  I think I will call this one done.  We are having Mike's birthday gathering today, so this little bit of painting time is my therapeutic "art fix" before jumping into the chaos.  It is simply relaxing to pull from within and create, and then go forth and pull together a family dinner.  It is like yoga with brushes and oils!  Where would I be without art?  Probably a loony bin.  Painting number 799 in 799 days - wowza, tomorrow makes 800!

A Passion for Poppies

A Passion for Poppies
Oil on panel, 7x5
sold

As I sketched this small painting out, this little excitement within me began to grow.  I composed this one in my mind, and with each stroke - I knew I was going to love it!  Its amazing how my recent petal work has helped to improve all of my florals!  The trick of pulling a stiff bristle brush from tip towards base with the highlight color worked beautifully here - really adding to the depth of the poppies!  The cool background sets the warm reds and yellow of the petals off - and the cool alizarin and reflective blues on those same petals balance out the painting.  I will definitely paint this one in a much larger format! Painting number 798 in 798 days!

Poppies Batik

Poppies Batik
Watercolor, ink, hot wax on masa, 5x8
purchase here

What a day!  After my pilates class this morning, I headed straight for Parkville - and have been painting there ever since!  I couldn't get my panels stamped until 10:00, so I couldn't start as early as I would have otherwise.  I knocked out three paintings today - one in midday sun, another done at sunset - and the final was a nocturne which I couldn't start until it was completely dark since I had no idea of where the good lighting would be.  It was a gorgeous day to be out painting - in the 70's, and warm even at night.  I can work like a machine when I need to - and this event is over in two days - which means I need to!   It was my intention to post one of those tonight, but alas - I didn't get images and have actually left them in the trunk for the night.  I am too tired to fight the giant puppy to get them in safely!  He is very nosy and would likely lick paint right off the surface of them - which he has done before!  So, I am posting this poppy painting that I did a couple of days ago.  It is kind of crazy with it's dreamlike brushwork and the way the batik process worked (which is always a surprise because it is so unpredictable).  At first, I didn't like it at all - but it is now growing on me.  Well, this crazy painting is 655 in as many days and now I am ready to fall into bed :)

Red Poppies

Red Poppies
Watercolor on paper, 5.5x4
Purchase Information

Today, I had a little trouble deciding what my subject matter should be.  After choosing a floral theme, I couldn't decide on which one - so I am painting four at the same time!  I found another watercolor block to paint on - this one in the small size of 5.5x4 inches.  It was among my vast supplies, but without a cover - so I don't know exactly what kind of paper it is.  I like painting on the blocks - no taping the paper to a surface for the painting process, the block simply holds the paper down on all sides.  This painting makes 599 in 599 days!  Tomorrow will be the 600th - wowza!

Helen's Poppies

Helen's Poppies
Watercolor on paper, 10.5x7

I had the most relaxing day painting in Fish Creek, Wisconsin. The winds were calm with temperatures mild - in the 60's and 70's.  I painted four paintings from this single location today!  This was the first of the day - a cheerful play of poppies!  Helen, the owner of this wonderful old home, was in the yard cutting fresh flowers to put into vases.  I did have to head for cover when a few sprinkles started to fall. Not a problem for oils - but certainly a problem for watercolor! I was soon able to finish and move on to another!  This is painting number 571 in 571 days :)

Poppy Parade

Poppy Parade
Acrylic over molding paste, 14x11
sold

This is just another bit of molding paste craziness from the arboretum!  I'm still not sure how I feel about this one, but here it is anyway.  After sketching the amazing poppies of Monet's Garden, I laid down those petals with the side of a long, slim palette knife.  It is fun to finally use some of my knife collection - it seems that I only use two of them, and all the others just sit idly by.  It is like training your hand to do something new - holding the knife differently and pulling the strokes down, or sideways, or turning the whole panel upside down!  The colors are a bit bolder than I normally use, and this is causing me to want to do some more glazing.  Yes, I am enjoying the quick drying time and the easy glazing of color than can be applied immediately of acrylics.  I am using Golden Opens, and I don't think I have added as much of the regular gel medium as last time, so this may be a little tacky for a while.  Oh well, live and learn.......and what better way than by experimenting?  This is painting number 519 in as many days.  Now, off to Michael's baseball game!