Catching Up

Wow, I can't believe it's been 2 weeks since I've posted anything.  I've been pouring all of my energy into writing the book and have had none left to do anything else.

For instance, I went to painting class on Monday and managed to paint: green.

It was kind of fun just to paint with no rhyme nor reason, but I'm not sure I had to go to painting class to do it.

I had 2 very successful Zentangle 101 classes and started a Zendala class. I love getting people excited about Zentangle.  I had one lady share that 30+ years ago, as a freshman in college, she had her "teacher" tell her that he would give her a 'B' in the class if she promised to never take another art class!  I am so grateful that she took the chance to come to one of my Zentangle classes because she is now getting back her confidence in art.  What an honor to be a part of that.  It really makes me angry when I hear stories like that. Clearly, the fault was on the teacher not being able to teach, but it totally destroyed her confidence. Can you tell from this mosaic which is done by the "art failure?"

I think they all show wonderful creativity. 

It has been a stressful couple of days, so I really needed to tangle, just to save my sanity.  The Diva challenge this week was to 8s-parte-dos by Jane Eileen. I admit I've tried this one before and didn't have the focus to do it successfully. I had similar difficulty with this one, but covered up most of the poorly drawn lines with extra patterns.  It reminds me of some of the fancy screens we saw in Istanbul.  

Finally, I wanted to share what I did from art class last week. I was in a mood to do something light and fun.  Nothing makes me smile more than our geese, so I painted them.  They are pure white on the outside, but have the most colorful personality that I just had to paint them to show that.  

Hope you all have a very creative next week.

--Cris

Getting There

Happy Paint Party Friday!
I've been painting like crazy for the last 2 weeks.  It is helping me stay sane as I have had a sick child, injured husband, houseguests, and the beginning of a new book.
Two weeks ago, I painted this for my brother-in-law.

It is by far my favorite work so far.  The only thing I don't like is that I didn't take the original photo.  I hate working from someone else's art.  It was really hard to give this one away.  It was even worse because I forgot to take a good picture before he took it home.  I guess I have a reason for a trip to Michigan.
The last week, I've been trying to capture Mendenhall Glacier on canvas.  It's tricker than usual because I'm trying to combine 4 different photos.

I had something that was going along pretty well:

I should have just finished the little island in the foreground and called it done. But I was so fascinated by the mist that I really wanted to see if I could capture it.

Even though I really like my sky, I think I should have left well enough alone because now I have a Caribbean blue sea in mistyAlaska.
 
So, I have 2 questions for those kind people who've stayed with me so far.

1) Should I try and change the color of the water to match the sky or put back my blue sky and paint out the mist?

2) Should I paint in the tourists over by the waterfall?

Thanks for visiting. Happy PPF.

Blind String and No Strings

This week's Diva challenge, once again, fits surprisingly well with other art I've been making. The challenge this week is to draw a string "blind."  As in, close your eyes and just draw.  I did this and then challenged myself to only use tangles that are on my Zentangle temporary tattoo.  In this case, I was limited to Poke Leaf, Flux, Umble, Purk, Pepper, Knightsbridge, and Rick's Paradox. If you've seen any of my work at all, you will know that I'm not a fan of any of these except for Purk and Flux. Surprisingly, even though I only spent about 20 minutes on this and used tangles I don't like very much, I do enjoy the result.


The idea of blind string goes very well with some other art I have been experimenting with.  I'm not sure these are technically Zentangle, but they are definitely repetitive patterns.  Some of them are done without a string at all.  Others, I drew a string and then made sure to draw over it to hide it.  I did all of these in 3 days.  I think I am hooked.  It may be time to open an Etsy store.  What do you think?  Would there be any interest in these?

Lines and Swirls

Leafy Things

Twirls and swirls

Coral Reef #1

Coral Reef #2

Coral with Pink

Flowy 

Coral with Color

Twirls & Swirls #2

Lines with Stippling

Trying Something New

When we were at the beach, we stopped in the QVC outlet and I found an oil-painting kit for only $8: Expressive painting with Anne-Marie Esson. I bought it and had so much fun with it that I am kicking myself for not buying 5 of them.  My nephew accused me of "cheating" since I copied someone else's work. My other nephew liked the painting so much that I ended up giving it to him.

I waited for two days so I could add some more layers, but the humidity was so high that it never fully dried.

My First Portrait

I want to thank everyone for all of the great comments on my first PPF last week.  I had so much fun reading your comments, getting inspired by your artwork, and learning from your advice.  Sadly, Nemo is still stuck in his unfinished state.  But it's just because last weekend was my God-daughter's wedding.
Which meant that I was finally able to give them their gift: a portrait I painted of her and her new husband.  I've been working on this since January and couldn't wait to see if they'd like it.  They did!  Yay.
First, the inspiration photo, taken last year

And here is the result:

It's my first oil painting, but I am planning on doing more.
My daughter Birdie also painted portraits of their dogs to go with them.

Aren't they a beautiful family?

Tranquility - Creative Color Challenge

The colors and sample picture for the March Creative Color challenge were so beachy that I couldn't imagine painting anything else.  Especially since the theme is tranquility. My favorite place in the world is a beach.  Especially at sunrise or off-season when I get to share it with the wildlife instead of hoards of sunbathers.

I like how it looks, but it seemed a bit barren and lonely, with no real focal point.  I was afraid to ruin it by painting anything else, so I used Photoshop to put the birds from the watercolor wave to this one.  So, here is my new tranquil beach scene:

and the original:

Happy Art

Loved this week's Diva Challenge: Mardi Gras.  My first thought, was, "Ooh, sparkly and colorful."  This is something I love doing.  So here is my mixed media (Pigma pen, watercolor, Prismacolor pencil, Whispers marker, and Stickle) ZIA.  It makes me happy.

I also finished the watercolor seascape that I've been working on for a few weeks in my Monday night studio class at Art Garden Studios.  It also makes me very happy and reminds me of a wonderful trip to the beach.

Hope all of your art makes you happy and brings you good memories.  Thanks for stopping by.

Tedious?

Up close viewing is disabled :-)

This week's Diva challenge was to again tangle with our non-dominant hand.  Last year, I kept to simple tangles and really enjoyed the process.  This year, I decided that I wasn't going to allow my "handicap" stop me from doing the tangles I wanted.  I chose four of my favorites: Purk, BTL JUS, Crescent Moon, and Hollibaugh and began.  I figured if I took it slowly and focused, everything would turn out beautiful.  How foolish!

I had worked on this for about 45 minutes when one of my friends commented, "That looks tedious."  All I could think of to say was, "Yes, it is."  I then tried to explain about the Diva challenge and how the left hand is connected to the right brain, etc, but the damage was done.  This is one person who will probably never "get it."  Oh, well.  These are the same ladies who watch me tangle every week and after 4 weeks, this was the first comment anyone has made on what I was doing.

This challenge was an eye-opener for me in that I could really relate to those people who've told me, "I could never do that."  I know they COULD, but if their work isn't up to their own ideals, they wouldn't enjoy the process.  At least that is what I discovered.

Stamp Carving 101 Update

I find that the process of stamp carving gets me in the same state of mind as when I tangle.  I relax and lose all track of time.  It is only when I do a test print and see all of the uneven lines and extra bits that don't belong,  I'm frequently frustrated because my results do not meet my expectations.  By the time I "clean up" my stamps, there is practically nothing left any more and I wish I could go back to its previous state.  Just like with carving a flute, there is no eraser in stamp cutting.  

I really liked Julie's advice this week.  She said, "You have to accept the imperfections."  I think this is the mark of a good teacher.  Without even meeting me (since this is an online class), she was able to anticipate what my frustration would be and give us the advice we needed.

Art Class Advice Needed
One area of art that is pure fun with no frustrations (yet) is my painting class.  I finished my second flower, a daylily, and like it even better that my orchid.  I've decided to actually hang this, but I can't decide what color frame would be best. Thanks to the wonder of Photoshop, I was able to test a few out and I have it narrowed down to three choices.

purple?

off-white?

or deep red?

If you have a minute, could you please comment on which color you like best?  Thanks!

I hope you all have an art-filled, frustration-free weekend...  Cris

Really Tangled Up In Art

Lately, I've been even more tangled up in art than usual. I have been learning oil painting; I am still tangling; and I also started stamp carving. I'm not certain if the stamp carving could be considered art yet, but it certainly is fun.

My First Attempts at stamp carving.  At least I'm ready for Valentine's Day!

A Fengle Breaking Free!  Fly away little Fengle.

Diva Challenge #55.  Done in my sketchbook using a ballpoint pen with watercolor accents.

My Orchid in Oil

Fengle with Friends

Art Class

My daughter has taken art lessons from Juli Hess for years.  I finally decided to join her.  If you live in the Columbus area and want to uncover all of your art talents, join me on Monday nights at Art Garden Studios.  You won't be sorry.  Here's a picture I've been working on.  Can't wait to go tonight to finish it!