Summer School 2013-W30

So last week we sweltered, and now at the tail end of this week we are downright chilly.  A happy medium would be nice.  I wonder, what does the wildlife make of this erratic weather...  do they notice or care?  I will say, it sure is good weather for sleeping (late)!

Moving on, sometime ago I bought a book titled Pastel School and I decided this week it was about time to matriculate.  All the requisite materials were in stock at my in-house art supply store; with no other excuses available I took on lesson 1 — which is simple as you would expect.  One beautiful aspect of pastels is, unlike a paintbrush or drawing pencil, it's not essential that you begin by holding the right end.  Challenge accepted! 

Evidently, as lessons progress I'll learn assorted techniques until (voila!) I ultimately combine the small subjects from the assorted lessons into one gigantic still life.  But if I were you, I shouldn't hold my breath waiting to see that...  unless blue goes with what you're wearing.

Pastel School Study I

p.s. to my art mates out there...  I drew this picture.  That's right, drew it freehand from scratch, no transfer paper.  So there!

Duh Week 2013-W29

Lawsy! did we swelter this week, along with most of America.  After a very productive Monday, this became a week of few accomplishments.  Who wants to move fast — if at all — in such heat?  Yet what always surprises me is how the heat slows the brain as well.  Me feel stupid.  Hard make plan for paint.  In the face of diminished enthusiasm for anything on my painting to-do list, I recalled it was about time for another Propuesta... lazy, but nevertheless decisive.

The theme for Propuesta 7 is painting wet-in-wet; today's painting is just the warm-up exercise from the book (meh!), although I do like poppies.  I wish I'd had the brainpower to translate the steps in the plan instead of relying solely on the photos.  In August and September I'll do a couple more w-i-w paintings with subjects (and plans) more to my liking.  Meanwhile, here's what I cranked out as the ceiling fan whirred silently above me.

Propuesta 7:  Field Poppies

Buen Viaje 2013-W28

Or, Bon Voyage for you francophones.  One of our art mates is moving to Mexico soon to teach for a year, and we are gathering today for a send-off party that includes the gift of a small painting from each of us to take along.

I pondered quite a while about a subject, but eventually it occurred to me that — during a year immersed in Latino culture and peoples — seeing someone "all American" could be an interesting counterpoint.  (Although the actual subject is a British soccer player, but close enough.)

While painting, my mind wandered to thoughts about current demographic trends; I realized that one day this century, sooner not later, the typical all-American youth would be a Latino...  the very thought of which gets Rush Limbaugh and Glen Beck to foaming at the mouth.

Back in the day, the same kind of hysteria was aimed at the Irish and Italians and Swedes (to name a few) and that all seems to have worked out okay.  I'm confident America will still be pretty great, even when it has also become un poco más picante también.  Think about that while you enjoy today's painting!

Footballa

Not in Orange 2013-W27

Hello, hope you had a fantastic Canada Day or Independence Day or just any one excellent day this week, as applicable.  To my surprise, I got to enjoy our Chicago fireworks from the best open air "box seats" possible for the event.  That was a fun finish to my full week of festivals and et cetera.

Changing topics, back in Week 20 I wrote about my intention to burn off some orange paint...  the plan was to make a portrait of my friend Donna, but then I changed my mind at the last minute and did a quick sketch of Gustave Caillebotte instead.  And I used 0% orange to paint that one.

I felt Donna had gotten cheated though, so I forged ahead with her portrait this week.  It has plenty of orange paint but not in an overt way.  What came off the brush ended up much more illustrative than what I imagined at the start.  (P.S. I took liberties with her clothes and jewelry, the result being a little more Clintonian than Donna.)  I have warned her I might do another version, much less conventionally, now that I have a "safe" one in the bank.

In the meantime, here she is — a Woman of a Certain Age who is a defier, not a denier.  She is in Europe right now following Bruce Springsteen to a couple of his concerts.  Thus I'm pretty sure that by comparison with The Boss, the painting will not rock her world.  But I hope she and you all enjoy it moderately.

WCA:  Donna of Jersey