"Shading is the answer"

"Inlet"
Acrylic on Canvas
8" x 10"
I have often looked at paintings and wondered "How on Earth did He/She do that?"
Lately I have been following Landscapes and have been amazed at the way the ground is painted, how the trees/bushes are separated and individual while they could seem to be all one.
At least for me they were turning out that way.
Well, today, I finally figured it out!
Shading!
Plain and simple shading.
In the ground in this painting I have Yellows/reds/greens and gray!
(And a whole lot of shading.)
The tree in the back is separated from the bush and that bush is separated from the one in the foreground by the stream and shading as well.
And again, a whole lot of colour!
Maybe I am learning.
There are some things I look at and love, but have no desire to paint!
There are others that I strive to learn.
I like painting, and I hope it shows.
'Cause, you really can teach "Old Dogs" New tricks!
~~Kathleen

And we are six and in grade one!

Already for school
Shaughn speaking with his other grandmother
First day in grade one!


This year my grandson began classes in the "Real School"
Grade one in the main building. He has already been given the honour of having one of the shovels hanging on his BIGGER than everyone elses' coat hook.
I gather the shovels (three I think) are in grade one so the snow on the sidewalk can be removed (with the caretakers assistance of course) by volunteer grade oners!
He is an astute Little Man, and believes that if you follow the rules, you will do well.
(A trait instilled in him by his Mother & Father.)
He wants to be able to read better, is not crazy about Math, and still hates colouring!
He will try his best, as, again he knows hard work has its' rewards.
(Doing his "Chores" every night nets him a Quarter per chore which is paid every Saturday!)
His chore money is saved until he has enough to purchase something that he wants very much. He MUST earn all his money, and this weeks shopping trip netted him a Lego Star-Wars fighter with a unique four armed creature.
$23.00 in all, and he worked & saved every penny.
I think he is on the right track.
Mind you, he "Is" my grandson, and I see no faults in him, that is a job for his parents, not me.
~~Muggle

"And Sloane makes three"

"And Sloane makes three"
Acrylics on canvas
8" X 12"
Sometimes the very best things in life are not evident!
The things we cannot see in a painting are what makes it whole.
This is my niece on her honeymoon walking to the beach in Italy.
Her new husband is following her, (taking her picture)
I saw the original photograph and thought
"How like Ainslie this is"
She is a determined woman, a smart woman, and a beautiful woman!"
And I love her.
I wish her and Julian a lifetime of sunshine and sandy beaches.
And they will have them
because
They work hard for what they want.
~~Kathleen

"Getting it right!"

Full Painting

Close-up
This is a partial close-up of my latest work. It belongs to a series that I call Botanicals.
The challenge of letting the idea flow to a canvas is great.
Composition/size/colour/ style all have to be taken into consideration.
While the process (after completion) seems easy, the intensity of
"Getting it right"
is always there.
(Full painting is just above)
An artist is never satisfied with her work, even after it is supposedly finished.
Something always looks like it could be clearer/deeper/more defined and added to.

Saying "It is done" is a form of getting it right, and when you not only say It is done, and then leave it alone for good,
you have accomplished a work of art.

Stopping at the right time is crucial.
Hopefully I have learned this.
I have a lot of beginnings in my life every day.
Very few ends, as life tends to go on.
Here's to digging in your heels and saying
"ENOUGH"
Once in a while it is not a bad thing to do!
~~Kathleen

"Euphorbia Waringiae"

"Euphorbia Waringiae"
16" X 20"
Acrylics on canvas
I am working on this right now.
It will be a companion work to go with
"Papaya" & "Split Leaf Philodendron"
(Both featured elsewhere in this blog)
I have always wanted to do a series of like minded paintings.
Actually, I am thrilled at how wonderfully these works are turning out.
Maybe I have found a niche?
No matter I am enjoying, and that is what counts.
The only interruption has been the making of a wee tiny Light saber
(Darth Vaders none-the-less) for my grandson to replace one that mysteriously got lost.
Darth must have a Red Light saber! So now he does, and my abilities have now increased ten-fold in one little mans eyes!
One might say that beauty is in the eye of the beholder in all seriousness.
At this point in his life, my art means absolutely nothing to him.
But
I CAN MAKE LIGHT SABERS!
Now that is an accomplishment.
Be happy everyone
It is not what we think about what we do that is important.
It is how we make those that we love feel that really counts.
At least it is to me.
~~Kathleen

A monthly Challenge

Yep, this little painting is part of a regular monthly challenge @ Wet Canvas.
Every month we are given a different photograph and if we choose to,
we paint it..
It is so interesting to see the different styles/ways and techniques we all use to achieve our goal.
The real challenge for me, is that I promised myself that I would paint every different strokes photograph with my Art knives until I complete a painting that looks somewhat like the original reference.
This month I didn't do all that badly, and am rather pleased with what I accomplished.
It is not a work of art! but, it is a beginning
and I will do better next month (I hope)
~~Kathleen
(Who thinks that no matter where you are in life, new roads are exciting places to explore)

I think it is done....

"Papaya"
Acrylics on canvas
16" X 20"

....But then again, no painting is ever really finished in an artists eyes!
Seems everything needs tweaking, a glob of paint here, a new line there.
But it is important to know with anything that we do that there is a time to call it done!

Without ever saying,
"I am done this now!"
we would never get the chance to enjoy our work.
We would never be able to share our accomplishments with everyone.
We would never be able to move on to new challenges and endeavors!
So I am done this painting now.
I do hope it pleases you!
~~Kathleen
(Who is already thinking about her next challenge)

What is the "Pot of GOLD" really?

I watched a spectacular rainbow the other evening.

It began behind my daughters home and ended up landing right atop
the neighbours barn (3/4 mile away).
Now was the pot of gold the Farmers barn?
In this day and age when Farmers struggle to keep their farms, one wonders
if most people realize their plight?
Do any of us think about farmers when we eat much of the abundance on our
tables?
Do we realize that being that they are on the bottom of marketing chain,
that they receive the least of anyone for the food they produce?

Do most people realize what one Harvester/seeder/combine costs now?
How about pest control, Government standards set up to protect you the consumer?
How much more today do these regulations cost the farmer?
Their income has not risen per unit in many years, because as they may get paid more as opposed to ten years ago, the operating costs have risen 100-fold.
So Maybe the neighbour farmer has a Pot of Gold in his barn!
If so, he sure worked hard for it!

If you ate today....Hug a Farmer!
~~Kathleen

Brothers and families

I have three brothers.
I love them all so much.
They are Kind, intelligent and thoughtful.
And they all have daughters two of them have sons!


My older brother just attended his daughters wedding In Connecticut.
One wonders about the thoughts of a father when his precious little girl gets married.
One wonders about the pride of looking at a little girl as a woman and hoping that all will be good in her new world!
One wonders.
Especially when thousands of miles separate them.


Another brother has two girls & one son, and is now a grandfather to five little ones (four girls and one little boy)
He is as well a father/grandfather of exceptional qualities.
Loving,kind and gentle.
He loves his children and his family as a whole unit.
Nothing separates his love for his children


The third brother has one daughter, and he has just become a first time grandfather. Big, burly and gentle as a lamb when he holds his newest little girl.

I love my brothers, all three of them are educated,kind,compassionate men.
All of them are full of love laughter and kindness.
All of them have worked very hard all their life.

I am the luckiest of sisters.
I have three brothers and each and every one of them is a wonderful man!
I love you guys, you all have always inspired me.
~~Kathleen

Excitement with a new project.

"Papaya"
Acrylic on canvas
16" X 20"

I have begun a new painting.
Yep, the excitement is there. When I begin something new, everything from the size of the canvas to the colours is all encompassing in my mind constantly. Quite often the beginning process will take me about a week.
I think of an idea, brush it off and say "No way!" to myself.
Next thing I know it is back in my mind, and I am mulling over the potential/possibilities in my mind. Again, I brush it off. I pass my painting area, and check out the sizes of canvas I have on my shelf, and think "Weeeeel Maybe" and again brush it off. I browse Google for ideas, start a rough sketch in Paint, and think
"Heck this may just work."
I leave it alone, all the while it is in the back of my mind. Then I get serious, and start to accept/reject ideas, colours and shape and form.

I plan what I really want and just know that I will never be able to accomplish this!
I walk past my Easel and pop a canvas on it. Look at it, and wonder "Will it really work?"
And again I leave it for a while. I go back and if it is a subject that needs a background, I paint what I think will work with my minds eye and the finished painting.

Transferring the sketch is the next thing done. And again I leave it for a while.
Then, I begin to motor....I am relentless until I am finished. Time has no relevance, and Sleep patterns change, eating times vary and the painting becomes an obsession with me.
I take small breaks sporadically (usually play a computer game or something of the sort.)
I go back to the painting and am amazed as it unfolds! Some how, without fail everything lands where I want it to, and it is as if from my brain to my paintbrush there is a direct connection that allows no interuption in the flow. It kind of paints itself.

Now the amazing thing is that often, the end result has nothing to do with what my initial idea was.
But, I am always happy with the final work, and am at odds with myself in wonderment in trying to figure out just how I actually was able to accomplish this work of art!
Heres to new beginnings in our lives, and may the end results always be pleasing to you!
~~Kathleen

Another day another painting & more Gesso!

Well, I have begun another painting.

Yep, and I am not sure even already if I have begun it right.
So back to the Easel, and Gesso!
Now there are some tools in any trade that are considered mundane!
For a mechanic it may be.... a screwdriver....for a house painter....a brush and for a
secretary....a computer.
We all use these things and we tend to take them for granted.
For myself, an artist, my thing is Gesso!
I use it a lot. It is the great divider between right and wrong. It covers up mistakes, cleans canvas' and does a fine job of allowing one to begin anew if the original approach is all wrong.
Oftentimes we start a project and once we are into it, we realize that we are heading in the wrong direction.
Hopefully every person has a "GESSO" solution to these problems.

It is often not the finished product that has any meaning, but the path traveled to the end.
We all need some sort of Gesso in our lives, and if we are lucky our problems can be solved by using this product in one form or another.
When we hit a snag that will not allow us to correct our mistakes and gesso is not the answer, it is then time to re-think our approach and start anew.
Yep....toss out the old ideas, and start fresh!
Here is to fresh starts in your life.
May they all prove fruitful!
~~Kathleen

The plan begins to come together....

Well, my daughter has designed the invitations for the "Little Mans" birthday!
Back stage passes on which a lanyard will be attached so the guests can hang them around their necks.
Of course they are Laminated!
She has so often commented that she is not artistically inclined.
I think these took a fair bit of imagination.
What say you?
~~Kathleen

Some things are just so Pretty!

"Split Leaf Philodandum"
16X20"
Acrylics on canvas

I just finished this painting.
I have always wanted to do one like this, but never knew how the effect was achieved.
I do now....Glazing, lots and lotsa of glazing!
I am so pleased with myself.
See?
You can teach old dogs new tricks! :)

~~Kathleen

A work of art by an Inspired woman!

I have "known" Rachel for about two years now.
I have never met her,but, we have become very good internet friends.
Rachel is a photographer, she says she is not professional, I say maybe not!
But, what I see when I look at her photography is beauty, be it a bug a child a bird or the smoke of a candle the moment after it has been snuffed out.

She inspires me, and quite a few works of art that I have produced ("Rachels Hosta" for example) have been inspired by her photography. Rachel sees the world for me so very often!
Her lens points to and picks up a second in time that can leave a person breathless.

My friend Rachel has a serious disease, and it has not once stopped her from being the consummate Mother/Wife/Teacher/Photographer!
Rachel is a determined woman, a woman that sees beauty in the strangest places, records it, and shares it with the rest of us that are in awe of her work!

Next time a work of art catches your eye, stop!
Stop, and think about what went into the making of it.
Think about who it was that made you look and smile!
Think about a world without people that inspire us!

Thank-you Rachel, I just adore you!
Rachels photography can be viewed here:
http://dreamy5.deviantart.com/gallery/#_featured--3
~~Kathleen

It is very important when your six.....

.....To have the bestest birthday party ever,
Now, when I was a child many years ago, you would get (maybe) one present and a birthday cake after dinner. (We lived on a farm) Birthdays were almost a disappointment in our house.

Today extravaganzas are the rule!
And I agree.
Children are the most precious part of our lives, be it our children/grandchildren/nieces or nephews and the little friends of our loved ones.

One gift given at a birthday now would equal the total accumulation of a childhood of gifts for me.
And again I agree with the attitudes of today.
Childhood is to be celebrated.
And celebrate they do.
My grandson will be turning six in a couple of weeks, and his party has been in planning for at least two weeks already.

He, (Following his father) is an aficionado of the rock group KISS!
Yep, you heard me right.
He bops around with various guitars, (and with one shaped like Gene Simmons Axe that he and I made out of cardboard one day) singing strumming and pretending he is Gene Simmons!
He knows all the words, and is rather an expert on the bands doings from the inception.
Pop Quizzes about KISS are the rule in his home, and he always gets us!
I must admit that I actually have learned a lot more about KISS than I ever thought that I wanted to know.
But, on the other hand, I never had someone that I love as much as him question me about the band before either.

So he is having an "Alive "6"" tour themed birthday party.
(To this point KISS has only five Live albums, so Shaughns will be #6)
There will be guitars for everyone and an "Air Band", (Guitars are all blow up style)
Tee shirts with significant Kiss words embossed on them and the "Tour" appearance on the back.
Of course there will be the pool and cake drinks and, with a multitude of over-active six year old boys, one can only imagine the cacophony at his home that day!

Even the invitations will be done up in the style of "Backstage Passes" with an attached lanyard for hanging around their necks. (Laminated of course)

So you ask too much?
I don't think so. He is a little boy that adores his little brother and is so protective of him, that he sides with the little guy when their parents discipline him! (Hugging his tears away when the parents forcefully say "NO!")
He is helpful around the house (as much as a five going on six year old will be), he reads, never breaks his toys, and passed Kindergarten with flying colours!
(Almost never complained about homework, just colouring, which he really dislikes.)
He has learned how to swim this summer, and plays outside in his playhouse sharing his time on the slide and swings with his little brother.

I did not have a childhood.
My daughter and son-in-law are giving my grandson memories that are positive because he has earned the right to this every day. He does not get things just for asking, and he is often told no when he want something....responsible parenting with a whole lot of love kicked in!
I believe it is very important to be surprised beyond your wildest dreams on the occasion of your sixth birthday.....If for no other reason than, you were a wonderful five year old!
The front of his tee shirts will have the first picture above on the front of them.
~~Kathleen
Who loves when her grandsons have a birthday!

A New Work a New Style?

I have just finished a new painting.
"Mijima Pine"
30" X 30"
Acrylics on finished 1/4" MDF board
I used Golden Light Molding Paste for the rocks and texture.
What fun!
Hope you like it.
(as always for a larger view, click on the picture)

Look at this beauty!

(Click to enlarge)
A new idea!
Can be found here...
http://wordle.net/
Take any block of written words, insert, and a "Wordle"
is created.
The creator of this amazing little program has his own blog
here and is listed in my Blog list @ the bottom of this page.
The first is a Newsletter sent twice weekly by renowned artist
Robert Genn This one was based on the "Zen of Art"

And the second in which the words of a very accomplished artist and
mentor of many gave suggestions to someone re where they
are (and or want) to go with their art. (Thanks Howard)
Hope you enjoy using this great tool.
~~Kathleen

"Self Portrait "with commentary

Painted for a "Self-Portrait" challenge @ Wet Canvas Acrylics forum.
(Acrylics on canvas 8'X 10")

My comments re the unusual design:
"I had a very hard time with this, I do not look at myself"

"I see my hands, the Moon, my Grandsons, but I do not see me.

I see the art that I paint, what I sew and design, I see my family and am proud of them, and that is me.

At this time in my life I see myself as at peace with the world, free, happy, and contented.

Learning to be a good Buddhist is important to me.
So,

A non-traditional Self Portrait.

I hope that others see me this way as well.

'A person that loves, is loved, likes her lumpy body, and is happy in her own skin, and cares not what others think, when she dances naked underneath the moon.
~~Kathleen"

"The Sun,The Moon and the Stars on a Windy Day!"

A very rare attempt in doing an abstract.
Acrylics on canvasboard.
8"X 10"

The Woods in Front of the Lake"

The peacefulness of the Poplar trees fronting Lake Manitoba
Acrylics on Canvas
10" X 12"

"The Verger"

My first attempt at painting a face. Well, my first attempt at painting a detailed figure as well.
An old Verger speaking with a young lad in the side area of an old English Churchyard with theCemetery in the background.
Acrylics on Canvas
8" X 10"

"Blue River"

Painted when I was challenged to "Paint a landscape" using only two colours!
I used Blue & Brown. (while is not considered a colour)
24" X 24" on MDF board.

"Brisbane Harbour"

My first attempt at "Loose" painting.
Painted for "Different Strokes" competition @ Wet Canvas Acrylics forum
8" X 10" Canvas hardboard

"Moonlight Over Water"

moon,light,The cold beauty of Moonlight reflecting over water.
Acrylics on canvas
16"X 20"
Private collection

"Hardwood Tree Trunks, Japan"

My first attempt at colour without specific detail.
Acrylics on canvas board.
18" X 24"

"Little Boy, Big Lake"

My grandson on the shore of Lake Manitoba.
18" X 24"
Acrylics on canvas
(private collection)

"Boy on Dock"

Young boy contemplating his life on a floating dock.
Based on a photograph taken by his Father.
16" X 20"
Acrylics on Canvas

"The Woodpile"

The Woodpile at the lake.
Acrylics on Canvas
16" X 20"

Deleted

"Dreamys River"

Painted from a photograph taken by my wonderfully supportive friend Rachel.
Acrylics on canvas
16" X 20"
(Private collection)

"Falling Water"

Inspired by a Sulfur Spring in Hiroshima Japan.
Acrylics on canvas
16" X 20"
(Private collection)

"Morning Deer"

From a Photograph taken by Maura on Easter Sunday Morning.
This little guy was part of a herd of Deer in her yard.
He was looking in the back patio doors.
Acrylics on canvas
10" X 10"
(Private collection)

"A Still Life in Red"

My first attempt to do a monotone Still Life.
Not the best, but still an accomplishment that I like.
Acrylics on Canvas
8" X 10"

"Secret Garden"

Oh the joy of a child when they present their mother with a bouquet of Dandelions on Mothers Day!
Acrylics on Canvas
8" X 10"

This post has been deleted,

"Dogwood Blossoms"

I think that I did capture the delicacy of these beautiful flowers.
They are so fleeting, and so welcome in the Canadian Spring.
Acrylic on Canvas
8" X 8"

"Lady Carols Pelicans"

My first venture into something that was not a Still life/Landscape
From a Photograph provided by my friend Carol @ Wet Canvas Acrylics forum.
Taken @ the Sydney, Australia Zoo.
(Thanks Carol)

Acrylic on Canvas 10" X 10"
(Private collection)

"Looking In"

A painting Of a window encircled by Grape vines and Geraniums
A delightful painting that thrilled me when completed.
Acrylic on canvas 16" X 20"

The beginning.....

This will always be my favorite Painting.
As, it is the first one that I completed that had a professional look to it.
....A stand of Lodgepole Pines on the highway to Banff, Alberta, Canada.
All paintings here can be viewed in a larger size by clicking on the picture.
Acrylics on Canvas board
16" X 20"