What Happened in Classes this Week?

In drawing and mixed media classes this week, among other things, we were working with little still lifes of fruits.  Of course it's hard to draw them without knowing how dark and/or light parts and pieces of them are.  So we started by testing the softness and hardness of various pencils and then creating value scales like the one below.  It goes from white on the left to black on the right with all the intermediate steps in value in between....

Then, using little fruits each person made a small study of apples and pears, trying to use the full range of values in their drawings....

It looks to me now like I could have gotten a bit darker in overall value....

In mixed media class we attempted to create a drawing of the same fruits using Prismacolor colored pencils in only process colors:  canary yellow, process red and aquamarine.  By mixing these three colored pencils,  you can create a full range of colors as in this drawing.  It requires some patience, layering one color on top of another, mixing them together to get just the right color and value.....

Above is my attempt--a challenging and interesting exercise in drawing....

Mixed Media Class

I've been teaching a couple of classes at ArtisTree in Woodstock this term.  In mixed media class we played around with templates and quotations, creating designs similar to the two examples I put together below, creating a "path" for the words.  The first is a quote from Alexander Calder....

"I Paint with Shapes"

9" x 12" - mixed media

The second example utilizes the same materials:  soft pencil on gessoed paper using shape templates and  masking tape and a variety of shading and line to create good contrast between dark and light.... 

"Art Consists in Drawing the Line Somewhere"

8 1/2" x 11" - mixed media

It's fun playing with new and familiar materials, using them in different ways....

A Summer Day

I just spent the afternoon working on finishing a plein aire painting from last summer, using the reference photo I took back then.  The great benefit to this is that, despite the fact that the field outside my studio window is white with snow,  I feel like I was out in that summer field for a couple of hours.  A kind of mini vacation on a January day in Vermont....

"Twin Trees"

9" x 12" - oil on canvas panel

I have two other unfinished plein aire landscapes and this was such a fun afternoon I predict they will be completed soon!

"Images of Irene"

This Friday, the exhibit "Images of Irene" will open at ArtisTree Community Arts Center and Gallery in Woodstock, VT on route 12 just north of downtown.  I hope if you are in the area on January 6th between 6 and 8 pm, you'll plan to attend the Opening!

This exhibit reflects the work of six community members, myself included, who participated in a photography class lead by Carla Kimball entitled "Telling Our Stories Through New Eyes".  Over the course of seven sessions at ArtisTree, students wove together photography, poetry and stories to chronicle each individual’s experience of Tropical Storm Irene. The exhibit presents both their visual and poetic narratives of the storm.  Through images and poems, the galleries will reflect the personal and universal expressions of Irene and its effect on ourselves, our communities and our land as well as examples derived from the new way of seeing the world through class exercises.


Photographs will be for sale by donation and proceeds will be donated to the Sustainable Woodstock Flood Relief Fund. The exhibition will be available for viewing Tuesday through Saturday, January 7-21st from 11am-2pm or by appointment. For more information about Sustainable Woodstock’s Flood Relief Fund visit www.sustainablewoodstock.org.

I hope that if you can't make it to the Opening on the 6th, you'll be able to visit the exhibit during Gallery hours through January 21st.

The Floral Print Calendar

Here are the images from my Floral Print Calendar.  I have attached them to the months they represent....

January is "Amaryllis and Paper White".

February is "Cyclamen and Snow Drop".

March is "Daffodil and Crocus".

 April is "Tulip and Pussy Willow".

May is "Trillium and Blood Root".

June is "Iris and Forsythia".

July is "Daisy and Bell Flower".

August is "Poppy and Sunflower".

September is "Lily and Morning Glory".

Both the front cover and October are "Foxglove and Black-Eyed Susan".

November is "Rose and Holly".

...and December is "Poinsettia and Berry".

I hope you enjoy these flowers as much as I do!  Both Pear and Floral Print calendars are $20 and note cards (which I posted last week) are $8 plus shipping.  Please email me if you're interested....

Pear Calendars

So, here are the images for the Pear calendar--$20 each plus postage--the resolution isn't great but this will give you an idea of what is in there.  Just click on the image to enlarge it.  If you would like ro order one, please email me. 

Next time, images from the Floral Print Calendar....

Note Cards are finished!

It's been a long time coming but finally I have finished two sets of note cards.  The first is a set of four floral prints....

and the second is a set of pear watercolors....

These images are taken from the pear watercolor and floral print calendars just off the presses.  It is an exciting departure for me--from fine arts into a bit of the commercial!  Hopefully they will be packaged and for sale in the area in the near future....