Cracked Eggs & Ham

This silly painting was from the Daily Paintworks Challenge.The challenge this week? Painting a broken egg! When setting up this still life my original thought was "Green Eggs & Ham". However, after a few starts I discovered there is NO color green that makes an egg look appetizing.

 I also discovered that when working from real life props (like cracked, raw eggs) one should finish their painting in one sitting. Yuck! Now I'm off to Google the symptoms of Salmonella ;-)

Secret Recipe

Recipe for total bliss:

* pick or p/u fresh flowers
* arrange in a simple vase
* turn on classical music
* make a cup of tea
* lay out paint
* think less, listen more & let my brush dance

Dreaming of a Cool Day

My plan with this demo was to keep cool. The weather was supposed to be in the upper 80's and the since the building I was painting in has no AC I thought I would at least have a cool palette.

However,  I found these hollyhocks too complicated to demo a 2nd time as I needed to let the painting dry at different stages before continuing. I am going to try this process again (in my own studio) on other subjects as I liked the results. It's hard to see, but I got some of the texture in the background by laying in Asian papers as I painted, letting this dry and then collaging the pieces in place. 

Better than caffeine!

A demo from yesterday. I am enjoying sunflowers the past few days!

I'm getting more comfortable with painting in front of a crowd. A challenge has been switching from the right to left side of my brain as I paint, answer questions, then paint again. I'm learning to not elaborate or the painting dries to an awkward stage before I can get back to it.

Therapy or a Christmas card?

Yep, me painting textures with acrylic inks, watercolor crayons, candles(!), sandpaper, bamboo twigs for drawing, and loads of water. There are many ways to use these sheets of texture- for backgrounds, cards, etc. Personally I find the final product just an excuse as painting these are therapeutic and meditative. Well, maybe not in front of a State Fair crowd!

Another Day At The Fair

Day 5. I want to loosen up and have fun today. I slept better last night and that feels great!

Today's demos are about creating colorful 'starts' in watercolor and mixed media. I enjoy painting large sheets of color, designs & texture, then cutting these into smaller pieces to use as backgrounds for subsequent paintings. Occasionally a start sings by itself and becomes it's own painting.

Below are two practice 'starts' I painted earlier this week.

If it's 'On A Stick' they will come....

What I'm learning working at the fair:

1. People will eat almost anything on a stick!

2. Support local artists! After lugging my easel, art supplies and ME over a mile (uphill!) every day I realize those artists and their work don't just appear. They also set up, staff their own booths, do free demonstrations, etc.

3. I appreciate cooler weather

4. I appreciate rain that falls at the appropriate time :-)

5. Don't worry about painting in front of crowds. Stuff happens.

6. Sometimes a ponytail is the best way to style one's hair.

7. Baseball caps were a great invention.

8. Iowa tenderloins ROCK!

9. Fried ANYTHING smells great

10. Some things just go better with a beer

***Thanks for reading and following my work.

It's State Fair Time!

It's that time of year! I've been painting watercolor demos at the Iowa State Fair this past few days. This is a first for me as my painting is usually done plein-air, in my studio or in front of just a few students. I got up before 4AM the first morning to draw my subjects for my first day's demonstrations as I was nervous. I wasn't sleeping anyway!

I have lots of fun & humbling stories to tell about that day, the next, etc., but need to pack up for another art demonstration today. Yesterday I was surprised and excited as my 2nd demo (similar to the one above) sold as I finished painting! I have never sold a wet painting! Now, THAT was fun!