Spring

This is a painting I did last year of some tulips in my garden.  I needed a little spring right now and browsed through my older paintings and thought these would fit the bill.  The daffodils are now up in the fields and I noticed some pickers yesterday.  Spring is coming!

The unexpected

Life works in funny ways... I went to lunch two weeks ago with a good friend and after lunch felt like I had eaten too much... blotted and uncomfortable.  By the time we reached her home I was being really sick to my stomach.  Naturally, we both thought I had eaten something that hadn't agreed with me.

I did have a slight pain between my shoulder blades but no other symptoms... luckily she thought of heart and took me to emergency.  Six days later I am back home with a new stent in the blocked artery.

My concern is for all of  us ladies ... my symptoms did not read heart attack to me.  No severe, crushing pain.. no pain in my chest, arm, jaw or down my arm...just nausea.  I was in total denial and was shocked when they admitted me and started meds right away.   Luckily we have a new heart hospital here in Victoria with the best of the best so I got great care.

I had no previous history of high blood pressure or high cholesterol.. go figure.

So dear friends, read up on heart attack symptoms that women experience - I have had heartburn for about a year and now they tell me it was angina pain.  Apparently, there is no difference in the symptoms. 

I will get back to painting soon.. I just have to get used to the medications, etc. before I hit the ground running :)

SUMMER WHITE

Rhodos are so delicate to capture on paper...this one I did from a photo taken last summer..

"Use what talents you possess; the woods would be very silent if no birds sang except those that sang best."– Henry Van Dyke

Beach Music

Bull whip kelp washes up on the beaches here after a storm.  I liked the rhythm of this clump.  This is mostly done in a negative manner.

Seagulls

This is a poured watercolour.  I masked the seagulls and then poured blue, red and green.    I did do a little more brush work in the water to give it some depth.   I don't use misket very often as I find it usually leaves a very hard edge but in this case I wanted the birds to be crisp.

Artists Gift Exchange

Every Christmas artists from Art Colony exchange gifts.  This lovely woven watercolor was done by Suzy Pal from Texas.  She paints two similar paintings and then cuts them into strips.  It certainly makes an effective painting.  I like it :)  My hummingbird painting went to Texas as well.

Happy New Year to all

Another fresh new year is here . . .


Another year to live!

To banish worry, doubt, and fear,

To love and laugh and give!

Merry Christmas to All

May the Spirit of Christmas fill your hearts as we remember the reason we celebrate.  Remember those less fortunate and enjoy your family at this time.

Baby Hummingbirds

This photo was taken quite a few years ago..and I have painted it once before.  I thought I would give it another try using a slightly different palette.  This is a quarter sheet of 300 cp Arches paper.

Remembrance Day in Canada and it always seems to rain...God's tears I guess.

November and December can be very grey, rainy days here on Vancouver Island but I keep reminding myself we need the November rains to fill up the streams so the salmon can get up to spawn.   It is quite a site to see so many salmon return and then die.  The banks are lined with eagles, etc. waiting for their meal.  Life and death scenario. 

The large old growth trees need the rain as well as our summers are very dry.  So I won't complain but keep busy at my paintings and teaching until the spring flowers peak through in January.

I bought some 250 lb. Bockingford Paper as it was a lot less than Arches.  I liked the way the paint layed on with the flowers but the background was a struggle.  It seemed to have a resist on it, or something similar, as I just could not get the paint to look good...so I guess I'll stick with arches.  It will be just fine for mixed media.

TRANQUILITY

This was painted using complimentary colours... orange against blue, red and green to see if it made the picture pop.  I was drawn to this photo because of the rays of light which I like.

Teaching, life, etc

I am now teaching 3 mornings a week which I absolutely love.  Seeing the smile on a beginner's face or the light in another's is such a treat.  Seeing water mingle on the paper and actually create something is always a magical thing.  One of my students has been with me for several years now and has become a dear friend.  I always tell them "painting has to be fun" and we do :)

Learning about color and mixing complementary colours to get your greys is always fun.  No more black in their palette. 

The mornings are starting to get a little cool now and my roses probably won't open fully anymore.  The fall colours are lovely this year.  From my kitchen window I see the blue of the ocean and a tree with orange foliage which is such a wonderful scene - complimentary colours again~!

Take time to see the colours around you..

Colmar Canal - France

I took so many photos on our river cruise last year and have wanted to paint a few of them... This one just wasn't working so I decided to do a pen and ink.  I think it suits the subject better.

A BC Mountain scene..with a little fall colours.

Demonstration pieces from the Quiller workshop

Stephen Quiller is a master of colour theory.  I learned to make beautiful greys like the scene above and to impact of acrylics done with opposites on the colour wheel.

It was a great workshop!

Stephen Quiller Workshop

Wow!  I can tell you I will never look at a palette the same way again.  Quiller's color wheel is so cleverly designed that it is easy to see your complimentary colours and create these soft, beautiful greys that offset your "high note" color.

Here are a few of the demos he did:

Hurrah, I have my computer back...I was really lost without it.  I am sure people have tried to reach me unsuccessfully and I am sorry about that.

Steven Quiller Workshop

The Quiller workshop starts next Monday Oct. 17th.  I have never had such a response to a workshop before..I am still getting requests daily.  He did agree to give two workshops so it is going to be a very busy few weeks.

I am sure it will cover alot of colour theory which we all need.  I'll let you know how it goes and hopefully post a few pictures of his work.

This can only happen if I get my darn computer gets  back from Hewlett Packard  :*(  This has been such a trial getting the workshop finalized without my files.  Luckily I had most of it printed out.  This is a good reminder to BACKUP :)

Computer problems has shut me down for awhile.. still a few more weeks before it is fixed.  I have learned a lesson....keep backing up your work :(  Anyway, I have gone through the withdrawal symptoms.  One does get used to the little devil  hee..

I have two workshops coming up on October that I am facilitating and that has caused concern but hopefully I am pretty organized and things will just have to fall where they may.

I'll be back soon :)

We got a package of seeds from Butchart Gardens this winter and we scattered them in our flower beds...the poppies that came up were amazing..all frills and multi-layered.  We hope to keep some seeds for next year.

I think this article by Marion Boddy-Evans is a great idea and perhaps it might get  you started on the road to more creativity

Keeping a Painting Creativity Journal


What should you put in a creativity journal and why should you make one?

A painting creativity journal is a collection of the ideas you have and things that inspire you. It's a place to record ideas that you can't use immediately -- you may think you'll remember them, but one can't remember everything, so it's better to make a quick note and put it into your painting creativity journal. Don't think it's for only finished ideas or well-planned projects, it's definitely not! It's the place to record those quick thoughts before you get distracted, those images lurking in your brain, and for building up a personal image library.
Why Should I Create a Painting Creativity Journal, Won't I be Better Off Spending the Time Painting?

A painting creativity journal helps you organize your ideas, inspiration, and experiments, as you're keeping them in one spot. It's ideal for pulling out on those days when you're feeling uninspired, haven't got an idea for a painting that appeals to you, when you begin to worry you might be losing your creativity. There's nothing like looking through ideas, photographs, etc. that inspired you before to give you a fresh boost. If you date your entries, it's a way of keeping track of your artistic development, of seeing how your ideas have evolved and expanded. If you're mixing colors, make a record of what you've done so you can repeat it. (Start your journal with these Printable Art Journal Pages.)
How is a Painting Creativity Journal Different from a Sketchbook?

There's no reason a journal cannot also contain sketches, but some artists prefer to keep their sketchbooks 'pristine', without the other elements a painting creativity journal will have, such as thoughts you've written down, pages you've torn out of magazines, postcards, newspaper articles, notes you make about color mixing, etc. (See also: Best Painting Sketchbooks.

What's the Best Format for a Painting Creativity Journal?

There is no right or wrong format or rules about how to make a painting creativity journal, it's a totally personal choice. You might like to use an elegant, handbound journal or you may want to use a cheap ringbound notebook because then you won't feel inhibited about putting lots of stuff into it. You may want something small you can carry with you at all times. Think about what art materials you might use in your journal if you're going to sketch directly into it -- will it be pencil, pen, or watercolor -- and get a journal with paper that's suitable for this. Keep it by the side of the bed so you can jot down those creativity ideas that seem to like coming up when one's dozing in bed.
Personally I like to use a file (ringbinder) as then I can reorganize the pages easily, using file dividers to separate out different categories of material, and add in new material into the relevant section. If I'm collecting references for a painting that's still in the idea form, it's easy to keep it all together and to add any thumbnail sketches or preliminary drawings I might do. I use plastic sleeves for material that I can't easily stick onto a sheet of paper (e.g. feathers). A file also enables me to throw away material easily if, at some stage, I've either used the idea up or now think it's a terrible idea, as I find it very hard to tear out pages from a bound journal.
What Should I Put into a Painting Creativity Journal?

In short, everything and anything that inspires you:
•Quotes you enjoy. Possibly adding your thoughts about how you might turn this into a painting. (See Quotes from Artists for ideas.)

•Ideas for painting titles. The titles of paintings by other artists that you enjoyed.

•Sketches of interesting possible compositions.

•Postcards of paintings you loved when you visited a gallery. Any postcards you find inspiring.

•Articles or photographs you've torn from the newspaper or magazines.

•Write down the essence of any 'flashes of inspiration'.

•Quick sketches of an idea, with annotations or notes if you find this easier than sketching.

•A list of the paintings you've done, with an analysis or critique of what you think of it. Whether you were satisfied with the results or not, what you feel really works in it (or not), anything you feel you learned while creating it, what you want to try to achieve in your next painting.

•Notes on the technical aspects of your paintings. What palette you used in a particular painting; the results of colour mixing (including notes on how much of each color you used, not just which colors), how you achieved a particular effect.
•Start your journal with these Printable Art Journal Pages

I love painting negatively.  I have shown below on that was painted entirely by painting that way.  It is like painting the donut hole and around the donut leaving the donut as the background colour.  Here is another explanation.

The term negative space means background space. It's called negative space to distinguish it from the positive subject matter that occupies the center of interest. ...The term negative may confuse some readers because it implies a lack of importance. Yet shapes in the negative area have distinctive characteristics of their own, equal in importance to shapes in other areas."


-- David Friend,

This painting has a poured background so you have different colours int he background.  Mixing darker colours I "created" the lilies.  Try it, it is lots of fun!

Summer is now officially here.  The garden is overflowing with flowers at the moment and a good time to take reference photos for my collection.

  I see groups of people painting here along the shoreline and it always peaks my interest to get out there and paint plein aire..but I never seem to get around to it. 

Happy painting if you are one of those energetic people that get their act together.. I find I read more in the summer and paint in the winter.

YOU HERD WHAT?

We have so many sheep here on Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands and I realized I had never painted any.  This was a little scruffy bunch that I thought would be fun to do.

SUNFLOWER - Mixed Media

This is my demo from the Studio Tour.  I started out with just painting the sunflowers but decided to add some rice papers and texture.  It definitely has more zing.

"Keep your face to the sunshine

and you cannot see the shadow.

It's what sunflowers do."

by Helen Keller

STUDIO TOUR THIS WEEKEND

Getting all the gift items and paintings arranged for the weekend tour.  I thoroughly enjoy meeting everyone and they seem to enjoy the demonstration I do.  Children especially like to pull up a chair and watch which is great...it is never to early to get an interest.

I have two neighbours in the tour this year so that should make it a good stop..park and walk. 

Now let's hope the weather cooperates.

IRIS CONVENTION - VICTORIA BC

It has been very interesting meeting people from all over the world at this iris convention.  Here is a glimpse of my table.  There are 30 artists showing their artwork and it is always wonderful to meet other artists and network. 

Eight Gifts


That Don't Cost A Cent

~THE GIFT OF LISTENING~ But, you must REALLY listen. No interrupting, no daydreaming, no planning your response. Just listening.



~THE GIFT OF AFFECTION~ Be generous with appropriate hugs, kisses, pats on the back and handholds. Let these small actions demonstrate the love you have for family and friends.



~THE GIFT OF LAUGHTER~ Clip cartoons. Share articles and funny stories. Your gift will say, "I love to laugh with you."



~THE GIFT OF A WRITTEN NOTE~ It can be a simple "Thanks for the help" note, or a full sonnet. A brief, handwritten note may be remembered for a lifetime, and may even change a life.



~THE GIFT OF A COMPLIMENT~ A simple and sincere, "You look great in red," "You did a super job," or "That was a wonderful meal", can make someone's day.



~THE GIFT OF A FAVOR~ Every day, go out of your way to do something kind.



~THE GIFT OF SOLITUDE~ There are times when we want nothing better than to be left alone. Be sensitive to those times and give the gift of solitude to others.



~THE GIFT OF A CHEERFUL DISPOSITION~ The easiest way to feel good is to extend a kind word to someone, really it's not that hard to say, "Hello" or "Thank You."



And Don't Forget ~~



LOVE is A Gift We Can Give Every Day!!!

Getting everything packed up for the Iris Convention in Victoria starting Monday.  Apparently there are nearly 400 delegates coming plus 30 artisans with their work in the old Kipling Restaurant Area.  Should be gun.. I'll post pictures later.

SKIP LAWRENCE WORKSHOP -May 2012
  http://www.skiplawrence.com/paintings/paintings.html

This workshop is taking place next May here in Sidney, BC.  I still have room if you are interested.. Just email me at steinfatt@telus.net.

There will be over 300 delegates attending the Iris Convention in Victoria next weekend.  There will be 25 artists there with pottery, jewellery, painting, fabric art, etc.  It should be a  great venue.  If you are in Victoria head on down to the Empress Hotel and the artists are downstairs in the old Kipling Restaurant area. 

WORKSHOPS BY THE SEA - SIDNEY, BC

If you would like to visit a beautiful spot, learn a new skill or expand your existing ones I think our workshops are for you!

I try and keep the participants to around 15 or 16 so everyone in the class goes home having had a great experience.  Keeping  the classes to this size means you get a one on one teaching experience and the opportunity to interact with the other artists.  Learn by doing and learn by watching!  Demonstrations are usually held in the morning and the afternoons are used for you to put your new skills to work.

I have listed the upcoming workshops along the side of the blog. 

Our last workshop with Sharon Williams (Mixed Media) was terrific.  Sharon shared her knowledge, expertise and friendship with each of the classs members.   I recommend her if you are looking for a workshop leader.

Please contact me at steinfatt@telus.net for more information regarding costs or accommodations.

We are in the midst of a wonderful workshop with Sharon Williams' Mixed Media class.  Here she has shown us how to  make our own stamps to use on our work.

Sharon showed us to make a sheet of plain tissue paper into fabulous collage paper.  She dropped in her chosen colours and then injected a darker colour into the mix.  The tissue paper was placed on a white sheet of plastic bag .. once dry it can be peeled off and you have a fabulous piece of collage paper to use in your own art work.

I am facilitating the next workshop  May 9 to 12 - Mixed Media with Sharon Williams.  This will be a small class so everyone should get alot of attention.  I personally enjoy Mixed media so will be taking lots of notes.  I will share some pictures with you later.

I am also gearing  up for the Iris Convention that is taking place at the Empress Hotel in Victoria the end of this month.  Iris lovers from all over the world are coming and there will be approximately 25 artists selling their work.  I am sharing a table with my Fabric Artist friend Heather.  This is one busy month!  Plus I am away the long May weekend to California.

The Studio Tour is June 11 and 12 plus the start of Summer Artisan Show at the Community Arts Council Building in Tulista Park.  

I am so happy to tell you this painting won a Juror's Choice Award at our Saanich Peninsula Art show that is on this weekend.  This Art Club has over 200 members including painters, fabric artists, potters, carvers and put on a wonderful show every year.  All of the members pull together and really put on a first class showing.  It is always rewarding to receive an award.

SOLD

Alot of artists do small, daily paintings.  This is one I did yesterday.  I thought the bright spring green colour really popped in front of the darker everygreens.  A quick sketch of the coastline near me.

This is a painting of the shoreline here on Vancouver Island.  I did an under painting of yellow and pink before I started which often gives it a nice glow.  I made the rocks quite colourful as they are  full of blues, pinks, oranges and different shades of grey/black. 

This is the picture rail I spoke about made from old quilting frames.  My friend that had this novel idea has her family pictures sitting on them.  I think it is quite clever and perhaps you have some of these in your garage or attic.  I think this is a wonderful way to keep family history going!

My neighbour has the most beautiful tree peony bushes and she graciously let me pick some to paint.  These blossoms are huge and have such soft, floppy petals.  This is a painting I did last year and it sold right away.. to my neighbour :)  As you know, I love to do negative painting and the bottom half is all done in that manner. 

While I was away I had a wonderful evening with old friends which is always a treat.  I noticed my hostess had used her grandmother's quilt frames as picture rails and they worked beautifully.  She had all of the family pictures along the rail which was very fitting.

I have never seen this before and I wish I had taken a picture as I think it was such a novel idea.

Very sad leaving my 99 year old mother yesterday, but you can see we got a laugh out of her when we asked her to say “sex” for the camera We had a good week together but I know she will be very lonely during the day. Unfortunately she is surrounded by mainly non-communicative patients. My sister visits in the evening so God Bless her.

We all reach a point when we have to face losing our Mother.  I am leaving for l0 days to help caregive my mother who will be 99 in June.  My sister has been caring the load and I am hoping to be of some help to both of them.

Sadly  it will be saying goodbye and naturally memories flood your mind - baking pies standing on a chair helping Mom roll out the pastry...sitting for hours in the choir loft as she practiced the hymns for Sunday service.  Mom played the pipe organ which always intrigued me.  All the little things Mothers and daughters do that you take for granted.   Mom may not know me  this visit but I am  taking my hymn book and since they say music is the last to go..if they don't kick me out of the nursing home..I plan on singing some old favourites.  I have been practicing :)

Since I suffer with fibromyalgia this probably will put me in a "flare" but I am going mentally prepared for that and have my anti inflammatory pills tucked into my suitcase.

Send me some prayers for strength and understanding and I know they will carry me through.

SOLD

OLD BARN - SALTSPRING ISLAND

This was painted on Frederix Watercolor Canvas. The advantage is you don’t have to use glass when framing but I found it very tricky to paint on. You had to lay your color down and leave it alone. If you put your brush on it again it lifts it off back to the canvas. This can be an advantage if you don’t like something but I like to blend on the paper and found that it didn’t work quite as well as regular paper

Tom Lynch who is a well known painter exclusively uses this canvas now in his workshops. I am sure with practice you would master the technique.

Alot of galleries shun watercolor due to the glare, especially in the Southern US where the light is so bright and houses have so many windows. This would be one way of getting around that.
I would certainly give it a try if you work in watercolors. You can buy regular canvases or a book of canvas sheets. You have to spray it when finished

Your talent is God's gift to you.


What you do with it is your gift back to God.



- Leo Buscaglia -

A few words that I liked and wanted to share with you all.

Living on the West Coast we don't get much snow but I remember it well :)  I was given this refernce photo to paint and I really enjoyed doing the birch trees.  The bare branches were more of a challenge and not sure they look quite right.  I painted some of them negatively and some I used misket.  I never like misket because they leave such a hard line.  Just today's exercise :)

The star magnolias are ready to burst open..these are a later variety.  I tried to capture a light, airy atmosphere as the blossoms are so delicate.  The leaves are very springlike with the yellow/green colour. 

A view across the Strait of Georgia here in Sidney, BC.  The sky was dark and brooding and after the last storm the logs are strewn atop an outcropping.

This is another poured painting.  I did a little bit more negative painting to create the actual lilies but I think you can see how the pour was done.  In this case I did have a photograph of  some lilies to follow.  I would suggest having a photo to go by when you first start.  After awhile I think you will just "see" a flower in the blobs of colour.  Give it a try and let me know how it goes.

Pouring watercolor is one method of getting loose, free flowing paintings.

It takes a little planning as you need to have to leave some white of the paper. Wet your paper where you want color and decide the color scheme ahead of time. You get very clean, bright color this way as you are not disturbing the surface of the paper with a brush.
I took pure ultramarine blue and poured it down the paper…I added a little yellow in places which made the green. I then took permanent rose and poured over the blue. Do let the first color sit for awhile to get a rich colour. Now take a look at the paper and see if you can “find” a flower, object, or form.

In this instance the bird almost appeared immediately. I did darken around the edges of the bird to define it a little. I then tackled the white mass and decided it was the shape of a hydrangea and did little soft edges creating petals. I also did a some negative painting to create the stem.
Try to work on a small piece first rather than ruin a whole large piece of w/c paper. You can continue to pour between drying times to get the results you like. I did this one in 3 pours which left it luminous.

Another Victorian theme using rice papers and different textures to create the background.  Stamping is done into the wet gesso and rubbed with turquoise and gold.  I now have a collection with a Victorian theme which makes a nice grouping.

"Fear less, hope more; Eat less, chew more; Whine less, breathe more; Talk less, say more; Love more, and all good things will be yours". ~ Swedish Proverb

I found this wonderful saying this morning and thought "YES" so thought it was worth sharing.

Have a wonderful day!

TORN LOVE LETTER.. is the title of this mixed media piece.  I am on a collage roll...messy but fun.  The gold is a little more brilliant than the scan shows. 

I thought these two fairy collages would look great in a little girl's room once they are matted and framed.

With all the art shows coming up I took some of my recent work into get framed.  I picked up the yellow iris, purple iris and my Victorian Letters today.  I really like the way the Victorian Letters turned out. 

The end of April is the local Saanich Peninsula Arts & Crafts Show which is always a wonderful event.  We are allowed to put in 4 paintings so luckily I have these new ones to hang.  The end of May is the Iris Convention where I have a table, June is the Studio Tour and then the Artisans which goes until August.  It is wonderful to have such an active art community and we do have some fabulous artists living nearby. 

The Community Arts Council Building has a Quilt Show on now and they are so beautifully done and definitely works of art.  Quilting and Fibre Arts is very popular. 

I have also been doing some Art Trading Cards.  If anyone does these and would like to trade please let me know.  I have really enjoyed doing these mini art projects.

I call this Kimono Dreams.  It was created for a wedding gift for an upcoming wedding this summer.  The bride is Japanese and I thought I would create something featuring her culture.  Rice papers, painting, stamps

This is the companion piece to Victorian Letters.  This one was done on a canvas covering up a painting that just didn't make it!  A great way to use up old paintings. 

These are my latest gift items I have created from my recent iris paintings.  Trays, trivets, mousepads, coasters, notepads and cards...I thought you might like to see them ...

I think I should have been born in the Victorian era (rich of course). My husband and I spent a few hours over afternoon tea at the world famous Butchart Gardens Tea Room. These gardens are lovely in every season. The spring bulbs are opening and there is a carpet of snowdrops throughout. The high tea was absolutely decadent…ginger scones with devonshire cream, maple flavoured butter and jam. That was the starter…and then the wonderful tea tray arrived – hot little quiches, tuna in chutney, little pastries full of chicken, mushroom and cream..plus small pork pies…the second tier was small sandwiches of cucumber, smoked salmon and egg..the top tier had orange cream tarts with jam on top, chocolate mousse cake, little pink and white dainties with marzipan icing…. are you full yet?




The tea room was bursting with orchids, amaryllis, small little irises and other plants I couldn’t name.. absolutely delightful!



Oh I do love to be spoiled..all I needed was a huge hat with a feather, matching umbrella and a long dress of white sheer fabric……

After seeing it online, I decided to add some lettering behind the veil as I thought the yellow was too glaring for my liking.    I am calling it  VICTORIAN LETTERS

This is a quarter sheet featuring a woman writing a letter.  It certainly has an antique look about it.  This collage has many different textures.

Well this is the finished product.  I always see things I would like to change...I have been asked to make parts of the poppy a darker red which isn't a problem. 

I have been given a photo of poppies and daisies and asked to do a commission.  I have rather free range as long as it has red and blue.  A full sheet no less!  It is hard to see my pencil drawing.  I'll keep you up to date.