Peaches and Cream

I took a colored pencil class Saturday, using someone else's pattern, I was so thrill with the new techniques I learned that I went home and tried a couple of semi-original pieces.

Actually, I took projects we had already done in my watercolor class (the one where we are now working in acrylics) and adapted the colored pencil techniques.

The peaches is the project we did in class. The open field of poppies and the pears are the projects I adapted.

I used paper I had on had rather than paper made for color pencils. The paper with the pears is a stonehenge multi use paper, the paper with the poppies is a fawn colored pastel paper. I think is was a bit to porous for colored pencils.

Ski Bum

It has been brought to my attention that I forgot to post the drawing I did of Paul skiing. So, here it is. I think it I started painting because I was so disappointed with my drawing skills. But comparing the two, it looks like I am a better drawer than I am a painter. It seems like the more I obsess the less able I become!

Poppy Fields

I had painting class last night. Last Wednesday we were given a choice between a vase of lilacs or a field of poppies. I chose the lilacs, but most of the class wanted to paint poppies.  That week I work on lilacs while the rest of the class worked on poppies. What I am trying to point out is the fact that while the teacher was demonstrating the techniques for poppies I was fervently creating lilacs.
This week the teacher demonstrated the next step for the poppies first. So, after I patiently waited I paid attention to the next step of creating poppies. Then I asked for my next step, and there was another gal that wanted to see the lilacs too, but she had not started, so my teacher asked me to work on the poppies while she catch Patty up to where I was.

Well, we never did get around to working on lilacs.  I only got my first step done toward creating poppies (laying in the dark colors). When my teacher came by she said that she liked it the way it was and I didn't have to lay in poppies if I didn't want too. She was probably thinking what I was thinking that I have a tendency to overwork pieces and I need to just stop once I have a pretty good painting.  I am posting a picture of my painting (the dark one with no poppies) and a picture of my reference painting (the one Judy painted in show us the technique).

I have a bunch of these little canvas panels (5x7) so I can always paint another picture with the poppies. Maybe, I will do a series.

Building Rome

It seems like I did spend a lot of time working on painting last week, but I don't have much to show, my pears are not finished and I am not sure I will be finishing. I might just paint another picture on top of them. I have moved on. I am working on a lilac painting right now, and after that I plan on painting a field of poppies.

I did buy a couple of pears to help with the pears, but they are such a different shape, I more or less used them just to see where the shadows fell.

I did manage to go to the Friends of the Aurora Public Library Outlet last weekend.  Aurora Library does not have a sale once a year like most libraries. They have an outlet that is opened Friday nights and Saturday mornings year round. I ended up spending $13.74 for books that were priced between fifty cents and a dollar. I bought two books that were in French and didn't realized it until I got home. I also have collected a lot of acrylics since we started painting with them in my class. I think the saying should be, "those who can't buy supplies."

I did say I might post my failure from last week, I am still embarrassed about how uncoordinated I am. For some reason I just don't seem able to get the technique no matter how often I try.  For me practice is not making perfect.

I must say I was more disappointed in the rocks than the trees. I did try painting the rocks in acrylics and that piece turned out better that the watercolors, but I don't have photograph of it. I also have a couple of drawings I did of Paul skiing that I don't have photos of so maybe I will post shots of the acrylic rocks and the drawing(s) of Paul skiing later. Actually,  now that I look at the photo of the rocks they look more unfinished that bad.

Back to the pears, right now for me the hardest part is the composition and one of the reason I don't like the pear painting is I don't like the composition. My teacher has a really nice composition of pears on the wall of her studio and I think the class wants to try that painting next, but it won't be our composition, I really shouldn't post it because whatever I come up with it will not look as good, but I am going to post because I want you to see how good she is and it also explains why I feel so inadequate.