Craving Summer and Exciting News!

Mahi Mahi tacos, margaritas, eating outdoors, painting outdoors.  I am CRAVING summer.  For the first time since my husband and I moved to Montana I am truly missing warm weather.  So, what happened today?  March 4th??  On Mardi Gras?

Photo hijacked from the interwebs, but if I had beads
and a mask, I would definitely make this today.

Snow.  

I had been wishing and wishing for more snow because it's been in the negatives with no snow and that is NO fun.  And then my mental capacity for dealing with more cold said "No More!" and - what happens? - I get exactly what I was previously wishing for!  Anyway, I have a feeling this is all coming at an appropriate time because I'm going to have quite a bit of painting to do in the next few months. (More on that in a second!)  But, this past month I've worked on a couple of small paintings and this one turned out particularly well I think.  I'm still working on my photography skills of water colors so the whites are not quite as bright as they should be, but, until I those skills improve or I get in my new fancy dancy scanner, here it is:

"Painted Hills"
9.5" x 9.5"
watercolor on 300 lb. paper

I've been wanting and wanting to paint this scene since we moved here and just didn't really get up the gumption until now.  Around sunset, the hills around here turn into this gorgeous gold and blue and orange.  It'll be a little bit until we see them again unless it warms up right away and melts the snow - but I have a bunch of photos so that I can keep this trend going.  I'm going to put some in the local museum's gift shop and see if I can sell any.

I've realized, too, that I need to keep up this blog quite a bit better than I do.  I was introduced to an awesome artist out of Summerville over Facebook and I'm really inspired by how she really gets her art out there and has a consistent social media presence.  On top of gorgeous paintings, of course.  (It worked on gaining my business!  I signed up for her 2015 workshop in Venice!!!!)  So, one of my goals is to put myself out there a bit more.  Her name is Helen Beacham and her website is www.helenkbeacham.com  if you would like to check out her work!  Anyway, I'm pretty sure that putting at least a few of my paintings out in the online world helped me get my latest job by letting people know that I'm still painting and out here - even in Montana!  So, I need to get on this.

And what is that newest job?!?!  I'm illustrating a children's book!!  32 beautifully illustrated pages coming up.  For real.  This will probably stay under wraps until everything goes to press, but I'm very excited to share it with all of you hopefully this summer!

So, thank you to everyone who's made it this far in the post.  And thank you to all of my wonderful friends who have expressed interest in commissions.  I'm thrilled to do this and your support means the world to me.  Having a cheering section in this endeavor makes everything so much more meaningful!  And for any one who is interested in commissions, please feel free to email me at any time and I can send you my pricing for various sizes.  So far, I keep hearing that my prices are really reasonable and there are options for framed pieces or just matted pieces if you already have the perfect frame!  

Happy Mardi Gras everyone!  Laissez les bon temps rouler!

Art musings: Lonesome Dove and "Father Onion"

Hello friends!   So, Thanksgiving was just last week, right?

Yes... Christmas, New Year's, the Epiphany have all passed without a peep or a painting from the blog here.  And I have no idea where all of that time went.

My husband and I went to his sister's house in western Montana and we had an awesome Christmas.  There were six kids and eight adults and, at times, three dogs.  I had a great time making our gifts that finally came together after large amounts of machine sewing, hand sewing, and old fashioned love.  (And for my craft-minded friends and those who wonder why they haven't seen more paintings here, I have some pictures of these sewing projects at the end of this post.)

So, up first....  what I'm working on now in the calm after the holidays:  It's a series of paintings that is bringing me a little closer to my familial culinary origins.  My mom's side of the family is from southern Louisiana and are Cajun through and through.  Onion, celery, and green bell peppers are called the "Holy Trinity" of Cajun cooking and a staple for almost all Cajun dishes.  So, here's the start to the three painting series:

"Father Onion"  (watercolor 5"x5")

       

I'm going to do two others to complete the "trinity" AND add to my kitchen's stock of vegetables.  Next up, "Celery Son" and "Bell Pepper Spirit" ;-) Anyone up for stuffed bell peppers for dinner?


I also had the awesome opportunity to do some sketches for a friend here in Montana as a part of a Christmas present for her husband.  Her husband is a fan of the '70s western miniseries Lonesome Dove and she commissioned me to do a few pencil sketches from different scenes in the movie.  These are not the greatest photos, but they went out of the house rather quickly after they were finished.  The Christmas Rush!!  I am working on one more for them that I will post when it's finished.

One of the early scenes in the movie, where they are crossing the river into Mexico.

The last scene in the movie where Augustus McCrae is returning to Lonesome Dove, Texas.

I have a couple of other things and projects brewing that I'm really excited about, but my New Year's goals are to:

          1.  Paint more

          2.  Get in Shape

          3.  Do a monthly update for the blog 

                    (I'd love to do them more often, but it takes me surprisingly long to write a blog post and upload photos.)

          4.  Volunteer and learn more about our area

                    (I've just started volunteering at the Mondak Heritage Center, so more on that in a future post! It's an awesome mix of preservation and art!)

And I hope that you will all enjoy keeping up with the arts portion of that.  I have big plans and hopes for this year!  Happy New Year everyone!

And for any of those who were interested in my crafting projects that I have had a ton of fun with...  here's a selection:

Top:  A pullover shirt made from 100% wool flannel that I sewed for my brother-in-law with a personalized coat hook loop!  Mountain Man Work Shirt from Missouri River Patterns  Bottom left:   To my Aunt Mary Lynn --  Those pecans you sent made the MOST delicious pecan pie for Christmas.  Love you!  Bottom right:  I have succeeded as a wife.  My husband loves his vintage 1947 Lionel Train set.  Even the light and the horn work!  

Clockwise from top left:  Two of my super cute nieces modeling they're new waterproof aprons;  my nephew's new sketchbook with cover and pencil holders (I will make these for sale if anybody's interested!  They fit the moleskine notebooks and button close on the front);  The winner as far as the nieces were concerned - The Wee Mouse in a Tin House;  and my nephew's work apron made from my husband's repurposed denim, scrap leather, and leather buckle and straps from a horse bridle.

Portraits Workshop with Mary Whyte and my painting from it!

Starstruck?  Mmm hmm.  That pretty much describes it.

This photo made it into the local paper!  

Her new book - favorite part of it - there are detailed photos of her paintings, like the skin on an arm or a face.  Really cool.

As far as I'm concerned, Mary Whyte is one of the best watercolorists working today.  Her paintings are just alive.  They're so emotional and connective and captivating.  And her subject matter in her recent exhibits examines the lives of hard working people in jobs that are slowly disappearing from our country and economy.  Something that just sort of tugs at my heartstrings.  I just find that when I'm looking at them, I wonder about the person's story.  It's not just a portrait of a girl tending beehives.  It's a life of learning a skill while you're friends are going to the movies or the mall.  But, there's no resentment in that, you can see the pride that she takes in doing her job.  Did her grandfather teach her this?  Where are they able to do this?  What beautiful flowers and types of pollen are feeding these bees?  Is this able to support her completely?  Does she even like the smell of honey?  And on and on and on.

Her workshops usually fill up really quickly, so when I was able to find out about one before they officially announced it, I was super excited to be able to sign up and go.  "To be able to go" was a little tougher than I thought.  It involved a nine hour drive across Montana to Bozeman, a flight from Bozeman to Charleston, then a drive from Charleston to Youngstown, OH (where the workshop was) and then a stand-by flight from Pittsburgh to Bozeman.  And then a drive back to Lambert.

But every second was completely worth it.  

Other terrifying part...  We were painting portraits in the middle (!!) of an open museum atrium.  Yes, that's an Andrew Wyeth across from me, there's a Mary Cassatt through that door and an Edward Hopper in the adjacent room.

First of all, it was completely out of my comfort zone.  The ONLY time I have ever painted ANY portrait was in high school and it was of my brother when he was a baby playing at the beach.  It turned out pretty good, but when it's been so long, you can't even think of whether or not you could do it again.  And, what do I find out after the workshop was paid for, it's a PORTRAIT ONLY workshop.  She has other workshops that work with landscapes and more across the board skills, so I assumed this would be what was going on.  So, I went in absolutely terrified.

But I wrote down every little tidbit of knowledge I could and tried to be fearless and I am happy with what I was able to achieve.  

My favorite things I learned:

1. Painting watercolors on an easel.  Have never done this!  Probably will never go back.  I've always painted before in only a slightly elevated position (like a drafting desk) or completely flat.
2. Mary paints her skin tones really with only three colors:  ultramarine blue, raw sienna, and quin. rose or permanent rose.  This was REALLY awesome to see her practice.
3. Quote of the Day "Nothing in these paintings is exactly what I saw but it's as close as I can exactly how I felt."
4. In determining your composition:  1. Pick a mother color - the majority of your painting should go back to that color scheme with accents.  2.  Then lines in your painting are very important - You should aim for either straight lines with a few curves or curved lines with a few straights.  3.  Focal points - place the greatest contrasts at these points, utilize complementary colors and have other features pointing towards that area.  (These things I kinda already knew, but are probably one of the harder things for me to put into practice.)

Another things I learned about was where to simplify.  I had tried loosely painting in the pattern on her shirt and I kept on trying to figure out why my composition was just not right.  I liked her face, hands, and the light on her veil and the background was okay.  But once she suggested scrubbing out the pattern it really just completely changed everything!

I've started on a few small paintings and hope to have those up soon to show everyone.  This workshop was just so great, I couldn't not share it!  Thank you Mom for everything and getting me to and from!  It was a great trip and I loved the time spent with you.  And on another thought, if you've made it this far.... the Butler Institute of Art in Youngstown, OH is crazy awesome.  They have an extremely impressive collection of paintings worth stopping at if you are passing through the area.

A Couple of Changes

One thing I have learned already in the process of getting my artwork out there is that the computer side of it is like herding cattle (when you don't know what you're doing).

(yes, this is actually a photo from our front yard of the guy who grazes his cattle on the land that we're renting.  He knows what he's doing.)

Somehow I can manage my way around a computer when it comes to graphics  ---  but not one that's connected to the internet!  When it comes to blogging and website making, I have a lot to learn.

I started out:

1. making a website on Wordpress.com by reformatting a blog, then 
2. switched to Wix because it was easier to upload pictures, then 
3. started a blog on Wix and realized it didn't have near as many features as Wordpress, then 
4. realized Wordpress didn't have what I wanted either and switched to Blogspot!

AHHHHHH!!!  Sort of ready to pull my hair out.  But I think we're all in order now.  This site is directly linked to my official website www.ameliaspade.com, so you shouldn't have any problems finding it.  And anyone who signed up to follow the blog on there will receive a feedburner request to be added to this one.  I'm so sorry for that extra step!  Totally my fault and inexperience at this computer mumbo jumbo.  When they start talking about code and html I just tune out.

Anyway, Thank you again for checking out my art blog!  I promise no more complainy internet posts!