Now it is working better!

Oh, yes, this is MUCH better.  Now, I'll put it away until tomorrow ... sun is getting low and I can't see it as well.

Do-Overs are allowed!

In my previous painting I forgot a very important teaching "you have to make the cake before you ice it" (quoted from Richard McKinley).  I did not establish the correct values and as I progressed I realized I was trying to adjust and it didn't work well.

So, I put the painting away, and brought out another paper.  Here is my second go at it...

Trying to capture sun on cactus in pastel

Here I am starting a new pastel from photos I took in Palm Desert.  I was enchanted by the low morning light hitting the Cholla cactus, creating a soft-looking halo against a dark background.  Although it looked soft - beware!  Cholla is covered with barbed needles you don't want to meet! 

I sure hope I can pull off this painting - I've been thinking about it for days (and even at night when I'm trying to go to sleep!)  You know you are in a creative mood when you get obscessed and excited about starting a painting and the blank paper doesn't intimidate you!

"Koi Pond" colored pencils and watercolor painting

12 x 9 colored pencil and watercolor

I actually liked the painting in the last post.  When I started adding to it today, I thought I blew it.  I lifted out some of the watercolor paint and blotted it with a paper towel and let it dry.  It left interesting textures.  So then I went in with Prismacolor colored pencils and used the textures as a guide as I did some negative painting.  The result is kind of abstract, yet it is still recognizable.  So, I leave it up to the viewer to see what they see - is it reflection of the sky and trees, or is it under the water?  Have fun!  Decide for yourself!

"Koi Pond" in progress - colored pencils and watercolor

I sure like to pick complicated subjects!  I guess I'm drawn to the challenge.  There are many layers in a pond - the surface reflection of what is above, the surface where the lilypads float and the fish break the water, the depth of the water and the layers of fish above other fish, and the bottom of the pond (if seen).  Then, there are the objects around the pond - in this case - the reeds in the foreground. 

I am having fun with this - I don't know how it will turn out, and that is OK with me.  For me, this painting is about the journey.

"Tawny Gold" pastel painting

9 x 12 pastel on LaCarte

This painting is soooo close to being done, maybe it is done, but I have to put it away before I tinker with it!  Tomorrow I will look at it and see what (if any) tiny touches are needed.  I am really happy with it.  I'm planning on entering it in a juried show.

Meanwhile, I think I'll tinker to my heart's delight on that watercolor on Aquabord!

Beginning of pastel painting of snow around the rabbit bush

This painting is from a photograph I took near home.  I never got around to painting rabbit bush at the peak of its blooming season in September!  Now it is like the bushes are freeze-dried and the yellow blossoms have faded to a beautiful tawny gold.  The snow melting in crawling shapes add an interesting change to the pebbly, sandy earth.

More on this tomorrow...