Who says whitening strips don't work on your teeth?? Clarity-wise, this is the best of the totem poles photos in Heritage Park. From Ketchikan, we went to Skagway, cruised Glacier Bay, Valdez, Seward, Kodiak, Juneau, Sitka, Victoria, and back to Vancouver.
The Ketchikan guide advised that this was a Man of Honor, he was responsible for saving a village and the villagers honored him by carving this totem pole. There is no one above him and no one below - he was solely responsible. This is a rare event. Please note that I took this photo just before the deluge of rain. By the way, did you know that if your digital camera gets wet, you can put it in a bag of rice, close the bag, and in the morning, your camera will work again? It seems that the rice absorbs all of the moisture and condensation overnight. And you thought I didn't learn anything in Alaska....
Lar and I just returned from a month of traveling. We drove from Arizona to board the Tahitian Princess in Vancouver, BC for a 14-day Alaskan cruise. I took this photo at the Heritage Totem Pole Park just outside of Ketchikan, AK. I wanted to concentrate on totem poles because my next watercolor series will focus on the figures in the poles. The weather was cold, wet, foggy, and lots of rain, so photography inexperience really comes out of the woodwork here. Not being able to use flash on interior shots really blew my opportunity to get great images that were stored inside. Please don't feel sorry for me because the weather was so cold, wet, foggy and rainy...I live in Arizona. I loved dressing in seven layers and wearing a coat and gloves. After living/working as an ex-pat in Mayfair, London, England, I enjoyed being in a maritime climate again. "Dry heat" is for the cactus wrens!!
When I saw these two pieces of art I was taken with their stark simplicity of pattern and color. This is the first of many paintings where the background is unadorned and dark. It is black....it is American Journey Brown Derby....numerous washes give it a rich, dark, appearance with depth. It is simply framed, with no mat.
Sometimes pottery speaks to you...the blanket cradles the pottery on a table and the lighting was so soft and comforting. My paintbrush had a life of its own. It is a small painting (11x15) and framed in a large silver frame with no matting. It is striking in the home of a private collector.
This is a collection of old Santa Ana Pottery and this is actually the second painting that I did of these fab pots! I loved the colors and the old designs and this was really a wonderful learning tools to create values and contours. Thanks to the guidance of Susan Roper and Barb Lang, I am really proud of this piece. It was sold to a private collector shortly after completion.
I wanted to do a review of my early work and my progression -- for better or worse. I started doing paintings in series and, in an effort, to keep track of how many paintings I was doing, I numbered them. So, #70 is my 70th painting. These are gourds that had faint facial features painted on them and they reminded me a group of disgruntled old men.
Awesome example of how a "wannabe" artist can mess up "loose, flowing, colors imitating a shape". Stay tuned for future efforts!
Clay Lady in Blue in still in the works. It needs deeper values around the face, neck and leg. This is watercolor on 400# rough Windsor Newton paper, which really soaks up color. The shadow on the forehead (created by her robe) doesn't seem to fit -- so am open to suggestions. The seed pottery texturing was accomplished by floating raw sugar in pools of water; the texturing on the blue robe was created by sprinkling Kosher salt, letting it dry, brushing it off and then lightly sanding.
This is an experimental painting done on 400# rough press paper. The paper absorbs color quickly and bleeds into dry area....a very challenging situation if you are a control freak! I combined 4 photos and it appears that there are competing patterns that don't "gel well" as well as a monotony of color. So, I am keeping the painting attached to the "gatorboard"; reviewing periodically; using my transparency sheet to add color or more intense values; and then will photo again for decision purposes. If anyone has comments and/or suggestions, I would welcome any input.
This watercolor represents 3 generations of pottery from the Zia Pueblo - 1800s - 1920s - 1980s. It was a study for me to view how much (or little) the designs changed on using birds. This is painted on 300# cold press paper, which did not absorb colors to give a soft, sueded effect. When I tried sanding the paper to age the appearance of the pottery, it lifted all of the color and the finish on the paper. When attempting to soften the edges of the 1980s pot, the colors turned into mud. Although I am not particularly pleased with the results of this piece, I like the subject and patterns enough that I am going to try painting on 300# hot press paper. Wish me luck!
Sometimes, one needs to venture outside their comfort zone. This is my departure from the comfort of pots and clay ladies. It is colorful and bright, full sheet on 300# paper and float matted on a full sheet of dark bisque matboard. Cheap Joe's American Journey watercolors, which I use exclusively, are such rich colors and delightful to play around with. I was able to use full strength, then sand, then use diluted strength to bring out definition. It was critiqued by one of my art groups, Vanguard Artists, and I was pleased with the response and how I was able to further define values using their critique suggestions.
My "art sister" and wonderful friend, Susan Roper, took this photo as one of the Art Chix shows in Sun City Grand. Art Chix consists of 10 artists, all presently domiciled in Sun City Grand - a fantastic resort style community in Arizona, and we have approximately 8 shows a year. 
Clay Lady I
A very contemporary sculpt piece 22x30 on 300# paper. Lots of experimenting with curves and shadows.
This one of a series of 4 clay ladies that I have done thus far. While touring the ceramics club in Sun City West, there was a member doing these marvelous little clay women sculptures. When I asked if I could photograph for future paintings, she was very gracious and gave me permission to do so. The little pots that accompany these clay ladies are actually Maria Ortez pottery that she purchased on a tour to Mexico. The interesting and challenging part of doing these paintings is that they are not painted, they are thrown on a wheel and then shaped with the hair, facial features, hands, feet, and folds of the fabric. The sculptor is pleased with the results, and the artist feels challenged enough to continue more attempts with using values to define shapes.
Again, 11x15 on 200# paper -- this painting convinces me that I should probably stick to painting pottery. This more closely resembles the actual photograph and while it was fun, it was also frustrating. I still cannot do the feet and the tails were not swishing the was I envisioned. The 3 young students, however, were winners!!
An experiment in "camp" painting. 11x15 on 200# paper. 3 students just finishing their successful dressage event and waiting for the scores. I painted another of this group from photo provided, but wanted to have a different take on this one. I believe it would really look great in a greeting card.
Nightscape Series #170 -This is a 22x30 watercolor on 300# paper - one of the first I have done where I have a landscape background. From the top down, I used several washes (the stars are where I lifted my Frisket coating) and did some additional lifting with my brush as the sky meets the mountain ridges. I originally intended to submit the finished product for a corporate international holiday card, but could not satisfy my vision of how the horses feet should be shown. As you can see, I opted not to show the feet at all. This is also my first attempts to show facial features and body contours. I thought it would also be my last, but the challenge of "trying to get it right" is too much.
"Badger" of my Kachina Collection - watercolor 22x30 on 300# paper and float matted on 30x40 expresso brown matboard. This is my best version of dry brush over numerous dried washes, as well as the sanding to give a sueded leather look on the footware. It also gave me an excellent opportunity to experiment with the wood pedestal on which Badger is standing. Many observers felt that I should have included a background in the collection to avoid making it look like illustration art, but my intent was to have total focus on the kachina.
"Horned Owl" of my Kachina Collection of watercolors. Painted on 22x30 300# paper, it is float matted on 30x40 dark brown matboard and framed in black frame. This watercolor has numerous washes and is sanded between dried washes to give the effect of sueded leather around the shoulders and ankles. Although it doesn't show up well in the photo, the necklace and armband are painted in
"Speckled Corn" is a juried piece from my Kachina Collection of watercolors. 22x30 on 300# paper, this is interesting because of the dry brush process that I used over numerous dried washes. It is float matted on a 32x40 dark brown mattboard and then framed in a small black wooden frame. When several of these are exhibited together, they are quite striking.
and won an Honorable Mention in an Arizona juried show. In reviewing and doing a self-critique, I believe I could have intensified the shadows - making the individual pottery designs stand out.
This was an unusual painting for me to do. I combined three photos to make this watercolor on 300# paper. Because I wanted an unusual texture on the big pot, I painted it in a series of some 30 washes and used sandpaper inbetween the dried washes. I was pleased with the results, but later thought I should have applied the same technique to the small pot and the blanket. This painting (22x30) is now in a private collection, but I am just starting a similar watercolor using 400# paper. Will keep you posted on my results.
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