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Lake Michigan: Symphony in Blue
Read more: Lake Michigan: Symphony in BlueI love painting water, and in this one, I wanted to play with the range of blues in the evening (I went semi-abstract). I used cobalt blue, ultramarine blue, cerulean blue, alizarin crimson, burnt sienna, cad. red light and titanium white; along with sap green and cad yellow light for the palette.
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Birds of Michigan: Blue Jay
Read more: Birds of Michigan: Blue JayIt’s snowing a lot today, and the Blue Jays are feeding on corn that gets scattered on the ground, as well as seeds the other birds drop from the three seed feeders on our front porch. I enjoy their color and curiosity, in spite of how aggressive they are. So, this inspired a painting: The…
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Birds of Michigan: Mourning Dove
Read more: Birds of Michigan: Mourning DoveI’m back to painting birds again, this is a mourning dove in golden light, sitting in the grass. I wish I could my photo here to look like the original painting; it’s a lot more washed out looking than the original on my easel (probably because of glare, etc.). I enjoyed painting this one; I love…
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Portrait Day 7
Read more: Portrait Day 7The portrait is finally done. For some reason, my camera picked up more yellow than is in the original. I added yet more details to the face, softened transitions, added more details to the dog’s fur. The pit bull was painted with raw umber, burnt sienna and ultramarine blue for darks; and yellow ochre, burnt…
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Portrait Day 3
Read more: Portrait Day 3Today, I added some highlights, shadows, and more detail, especially to the girl. I am also adding more colors to the dog’s coat. I am trying to keep my light consistent in the background and on the objects; it’s a warm mix of cad. yellow med., yellow ochre, and titanium white. It’s starting to come…
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Birds of Michigan: Greeting the Morning
Read more: Birds of Michigan: Greeting the MorningI love finches, because they add color and liveliness to the landscape. This painting catches a finch clinging to a twig as the morning light shines on him. I painted the grays with a mix of ultramarine blue, transparent oxide red, black and titanium white; I used these colors and added cadmium yellow for the…
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Birds of Michigan Series: Winter Partners
Read more: Birds of Michigan Series: Winter PartnersI love to paint birds, and winter scenes, so this painting combines these two. One is a sparrow, the other a chickadee. What I love about the sparrow is the fact that his posture reminds me of a “grumpy old man” sitting there on the bush. These guys came to the feeders last winter, and…
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Learning to Use a Palette Knife: Mountain Waterfall
Read more: Learning to Use a Palette Knife: Mountain WaterfallI am finally learning to use a palette knife for the first time. I like it, but realize it will take time to master using one. I particularly like the effects on rocks. So, I chose a rocky scene (one a friend shot in Colorado) for this landscape. Water is my favorite thing to paint,…
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Ferns
Read more: FernsOne thing I’ve discovered about living in Michigan that is VERY different from Texas is the ferns. They are everywhere, especially when you live in a state forest like I do. They grow like weeds here, but are pretty. I think that the ferns and moss (my lawn in the front is actually partially moss)…
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Yellow Iris
Read more: Yellow IrisLast spring, I took a picture of some iris in our garden; recently I finally got around to painting them. Here’s the picture:
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Michigan Bird Series: Female Cardinal
Read more: Michigan Bird Series: Female CardinalLast spring my roomate took a picture of a female cardinal in the snow (yes, there was snow until April here; I thought I had moved to the land where winter never ends by the end of my first Michigan winter!) As I mentioned before, I love cardinals, so I decided to paint here. I…
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Birds of Michigan Series: Chickadee
Read more: Birds of Michigan Series: ChickadeeA few days ago, I finished a painting of a chickadee. I love chickadees, because they are the ones that watch out for danger. We have a hawk nearby, and when the chickadees give the alarm, all the other birds go completely still until the most alert chickadee gives the “all’s clear” signal. Here he…