#144 "David's Main Squeeze", oil, 16" x 20"

Djangofest is coming to Langley, and there will be an art show as well. The call went out for music related paintings. Coincidentally, the man who bought the condo below us is a musician. Along with organ and piano, he plays accordian. He practices sometimes in the yard below us and our evening meals are accompanied by music floating up to our deck. I asked if he would pose for a painting.....and he happily obliged. Of course he played as I snapped photos. All the neighbors came out to enjoy the concert. It is customary for accordian players to wear striped shirts. I love the stripes with the keys, and of course the red beret set it all off. I like the joyful feeling in this painting. The Ray for the Day (or is it Month?) is "David's Main Squeeze".

#143, "Barb's Eye View", oil, 18" x 24"

This view of Langley Village is from the window of my friend's apartment. I really enjoy this different perspective, the bright sunlight, and the shadows. I changed the colors on the buildings to make a more interesting painting. One of the fun things about being an artist is that you can make a more pleasing reality to suit your own sensibilities! The Ray for the Day is "Barb's Eye View".

#142 "Before the Rush", oil, 24" x 18"

I knew it had been a while since I posted, but it was shocking to see it has been over 3 months. I have been drawing and painting during this time, just not posting. I have also been overseeing the end of my Dad's life, remodeling a condo, and moving us permanently to wonderful Whidbey Island. As I write that I find it amazing that I have also been painting, and most certainly sketching. This painting is a study in value and monochromatic color scheme (yellows and golds) with a touch of the complement to give it a little punch. I love the tone and mood of this painting. It is a peaceful painting that I painted while in the middle of a storm of conflicting and difficult emotions. It was nice to have a place to go for some peace. The Ray for the Day is "Before the Rush".

#141, "The Proverbial Square Peg", oil, 6" x 6"

The assignment for this painting was to paint the major part of the painting using one color or analagous colors and a smidge of it's complement. Orange, yellow and red are my main colors, obviously. Someone in the class had this little turquoise cube and I could not resist setting it on top of that red bottle. Zing! What fun to paint! Again, painting the values and the shapes resulted in a clear bottle. Pure magic. Someone suggested that I must have been getting ready for my Mexico trip when I chose this color combo. I find it quite invigorating. The Ray for the Day is quite a long title for such a small painting: "The Proverbial Square Peg".

#140, "Eggs-etera", oil, 6" x 6"

Guess what? I discovered I can post ahead. So while I'm in Mexico you will be getting this post and the next one. I adore painting raw eggs and shells. What I learned while painting this one is that the yolks are actually a yellow shade of gray. The making of gray is the use of all 3 primaries plus white. Grays are getting very exciting for me and I will be using them more and more. It thrills me that if I just paint shapes and values (and don't think about eggs) that I end up with a painting with eggs and broken shells. This painting really tickles me. The Ray for the Day is "Eggs-etera".

#139, "Lemon with Your Tea?", oil, 6" x 6"

Okay. One more posting before I head for Mexico for 2 weeks.  I did this one on day 3 of the class. I am practicing seeing subtle transitions. The trick is in the paint mixing. I can see the values, but mixing the painting and matching the values is the tough part. Not only getting the value right, but getting the color right. Also I am practicing mixing each stroke separately from the last. This little teapot was harder to paint than it might seem. Especially with it's top askew.  The Ray for the Day is "Lemon with Your Tea?"

#138 "Day Two Exercises", oils, 6" x 6" squares

On Day Two Carol did another stunning demo and then talked about value. We toned our panels with burnt umber, choosing to tone it a dark, light or medium value. Then using a set up of our own choosing we used a paper towel to wipe the surface to reveal the values. We chose a dominant, secondary and "smidge" value. In the afternoon we divided our little 6" x 6" surfaces into 4 squares, chose an object, and had 10 minutes to paint the object in one of the squares. After each 10 minute period we wiped our palettes clean and started again. Seeing the value and mixing the color the right value is the challenge. Sounds easy? Easier for some than others. These exercises were fun and training us to see the nuances, transitions and then reproduce what we see. We were using only 3 primary colors (cad yellow light, cad red medium and ultramarine blue....all colors can be mixed with these. Well...occasionally using phalo blue and alizarin crimson) and white. The Ray for the Day is "Day Two Exercises".