Birds of a Feather

I feel like I've done lots of birds recently... but these guys were just begging to get their portraits done. How could I resist?!

Among the Branches

A personal project related to the following quote: "The birds of the air nest by the waters; they sing among the branches." Psalm 104:12 NIV

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Orange Peaches

Well, this was really fun to paint. I'm increasingly torn between tight realism and playful abstraction... I hope this piece successfully marries the two. And here's part of the underdrawing and a close up for your enjoyment:



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The Owl

Another complicated still life. I love this owl and hope you do too! I think he's trying to process all the books he just read...

Summertime and a Cup of Tea

One of my most favourite painters is the woman impressionist Mary Cassatt.

My mom has a print of this painting which I've adored since childhood. It is called "Summertime". I enjoy the work because of the beautiful reflective quality of the water that echoes the mood of the ladies in the boat. I enjoy the textural brushwork, the repetition of the birds with variation in their style, the graphic nature of the boat coming into the frame, as well as the distance created by fuzzy trees at the shoreline and the more indistinct ducks. I also love how there is created the sense of strong outdoor light with a shadow under the younger girls hat. There is a real sense of the moment in this painting which I think makes it fresh even over a hundred years since it was created.



Another painting of hers which I saw in exhibit here in San Francisco last year, is "The Cup of Tea 2". Again I love the textural brushstrokes that get smaller in detail and more dainty as you look closer at the tea cup and her fingers placed so precisely. I love the sense of depth you get with the gestural flowers and the atmospheric brushwork beyond. I also enjoy her use of unexpected colors, like the strong red on the edges of her dress and at the edge of her nose. It's interesting even how the blues in the flowers behind are echoed in the blues on her glove. This piece utilizes the concept of overlapping in a small space to obtain depth. The edge of the chair is in front of the woman who is in front of the flower stand.

A New Creation

This piece was inspired by Hawaii and the beach... and maybe a butterfly stopped by?

This is also the first painting I completed solely with the new Winsor & Newton Artists' Acrylics. I was impressed first with the buttery consistency of the paint which reminds me of working with oils. Also as it has a slower drying time I was able to blend it more like I would with oils. Formerly to make the paint flow I would add more water, and I'm told this breaks down the pigment's tinting strength. With this painting I used less water as the paint itself flowed nicely.

The colors do seem pretty vivid though I still want to check out the darkness of the final painting as compared to the out of the tube hue. And although the paint dries slower than other acrylic brands I found within about a half hour of my final brush stroke the whole painting was dry. (I didn't use a hair dryer and I don't paint that thick).

Overall I was quite pleased and hope my local art stores will begin to carry this brand!

Self Portrait with Flower

One of the most meddlesome things about using acrylic is that it dries darker than when you first paint it, as the binder used in the paint shifts from white to transparent. This is an exercise I assigned myself to help see the subtle color shifts.

And this is part of my palette:



I just got some new Winsor & Newton Artists' Acrylics which claim to be brilliantly colored and not to shift darker as they dry, as they use a transparent binder. I'm looking forward to trying them out with my next few paintings... we'll see what happens!

Color Play

How many colors can you include in one still life? This was a fun exercise...

Hibiscus

Another still life... the reds were hard to control, but I had fun trying. Also, more texture play.

I love the hibiscus!

Aqua and Ochre

Working with a lighter tonal key and messing with textural effects.

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Texture Play

Fun with surface quality and color placement, this is a study for one of my thesis paintings.

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Matters of Decorum

So... this is my sink. And now it's art! Enjoy.

Reflective Grapes

A study of a reflective surface, this is acrylic on hardboard and the original size is 8"x10". Yum!

Alla Prima Apples

This was done with a limited palette all in one sitting. Now I have lots of apples to eat!

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Simple Black and White Compositions

Getting back into the swing of things this semester... these are some small studies in acrylic.

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Tomorrow I begin another semester's work on my thesis. Keep watching my Web site for new work. Thanks for your interest!

Her Regal Bearing

Beautiful tree bearing regal red flowers... high-quality reproductions for sale now on Imagekind.

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A Pirate's Tale

This is my final painting from my Situation and Environment class with Zhaoming Wu. I enjoyed pondering the subject's 'pirate-y' adventures as I painted.

On another note, although my paintings made the cut list for my school's Spring Show they didn't get hung. But there is some excellent work in the show, my favourite being a piece entitled Wednesday Afternoon by a classmate in the fine art field, Jeff Merrill. I also enjoyed seeing work by other Situation and Environment classmates: Swarupa Chavan, Fongwei Liu and Jonathan Ahn. Also, in the illustration field there's some great work by Jen Oaks, Santiago Casares, Forest Stearns and many others. I can't forget to mention my friend Stephanie Penland in the MFA graphic design department whose book arts project is on display.

Make sure you check out the show if you're in the Bay Area!

Spring Show 2009

Happy news: My artwork has made the cut and will (if space permits) be part of the elite Academy of Art University's Spring Show on display from May 21 - June 11 at 601 Brannan Street, San Francisco.

Opening Reception is May 21 at about 7 pm. The show continues 10 am - 6 pm until June 11 and is closed Sundays and holidays. Hope to see you there. Thanks!

View last year's show here.

Painting Jann Arden

So this is another painting I'm working on. The subject matter is Jann Arden in concert (one I attended in 2007 in Calgary) with her guitarists Russell Broom and Graham Powell. An amazing concert I hope to catch the spirit of in this painting!

The first image is the drawing and composing the layout of the canvas. Then the next is laying in the value pattern and color choices. The original canvas is 22"x28" horizontal. Something I've noticed as I've been painting is that I need cooler reds and purples in order to get the right light on the stage and where it's reflecting on Jann's back. I'm enjoying trying to capture each person's attitude in their gesture and proportion, as well as color.



Original available for purchase.

Michael Dudash

I love this painting entitled "Mary M" by inspirational artist Michael Dudash. See more and buy prints on his Imagekind page here.

After the Dance

Just completed this oil on canvas painting today in class! I had lots of fun so I hope you enjoy it.

Thesis Development

This is a page straight out of my directed study journal where I'm annotating the development of my thesis. This is some sketching for an illustration of Sarah from Hebrews 11:11

In Progress 2

Here he is again! This time I've blocked in some color and refined the values some more. I think the reflected light is going to be fun in this piece as it bounces back and forth between the boards and the figure. Hope you're enjoying watching my process.

Until next time, peace.

Kerne Erickson

I recently bought a set of postcards painted by this artist. I was reluctant to send them as I fell in love with their retro look and soft colors featuring various travel destinations in Hawaii. Then I realized that Erickson does other images I've seen too... like this San Francisco image:



I may have to purchase some larger prints... love, love, love!

In Progress

An oil painting in progress for my Situation and Environment class with Zhaoming Wu. This is the first stage. The line drawing is done with a small flat brush and then I blocked in the major values with a large flat brush. The paint I used is a mixture of ultramarine blue and van dyke brown. I 'watered down' the paint with Gamsol to cover large areas thinly.

I've started using Gamsol as a medium instead of Turpentine or Turpenoid because it has almost no smell compared to others and is much easier on the environment. In addition it much less flammable. So far I'm liking it as it feels thinner and more like painting with water than a medium.

Purple Ruler

A painting from my Situation and Environment class. Oil on Linen. 20x24. I call it "Purple Ruler". :)

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Razzauti, Roman and Rahab

So I wandered through a couple galleries in Lahaina while I relaxed on Spring Break... I really enjoyed the work of Andrea Razzauti. I'm inspired by his refined drawings and beautiful colours. His work is on display in the Lahaina Galleries (there's a sister one here in San Francisco). This is his "In Toscana".

I also enjoyed another artist's work on display next door at Sargents and was inspired by his story: Roman Czerwinski.

Now back to my thesis! Here's a couple of conceptual thumbnails for my book which is in progress...

Self Portrait with Bridge

A Self-Portait with the Golden Gate Bridge... to practice painting in Photoshop.

A Detached Ear

Another day's work... playing with warms and cools in acrylic.

Original available for purchase.

Oteino

All in a day's work... Oteino's head scarf is straight from Ghana.



Original oil painting available for purchase.

Inspiration

I can't stop looking at impressionists lately, especially Mary Cassatt. I love the energetic brush strokes and unexpected uses of colour. Today I'm studying this beautiful painting by Claude Monet from 1875, "Woman with Parasol":

www.bethanyillustrates.com

My new website is now done with lots of recent artwork uploaded. Take a look around:

Bulletin

View a nice comment on my portraiture by Grant over at Veer here.

Boots

So, I'm back at school for Spring 2009... and this is my first painting. It's 16"x20" oil on canvas limited to a monochromatic color palette with titanium white for the lights and ultramarine blue / raw sienna mixed for the darks:



Also, I'm endeavoring to get my website back up and revamped before my thesis begins stealing my time away. Almost there... keep watching! www.bethanyillustrates.com

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Calgary's Skyline

This is a recently commissioned oil painting I just finished. Calgary's skyline with the new LRT design in the foreground:



And, for interest's sake, here is the initial pencil sketch:

Oh Canadia!

Been on winter break for the last couple of weeks, recharging my batteries and trying not to freeze back in Calgary, Canada! Lots of time spent with family, friends, dogs and hot tubs. I may have picked up my Mom's still good 40-year-old oil paints for a day or two as well.

Side note: I found this amazing lamp at Canadian Tire. I didn't realize I liked Canadiana until I moved away. Who knew!?

Nelly Furtado

This is one of my first forays into painting portraiture digitally. Hopefully she's recognizable!

BTW, I'll be updating my website in January. Keep checking back: www.bethanyillustrates.com

Lenny Kravitz

This is a celebrity portrait that I completed recently. It connects to Lenny's self-proclaimed "Love Revolution".

I have to admit, I love his music.

A Work in Progress

I finally bought an easel... the "Weston Full French Easel". I like it as I can fold it up and put it away when I'm not using it. Here it is in action with a recent painting in progress...

Oh, look!

My flying pig made it to the front page of IMAGEKIND! Toot, toot...

Also, my portraiture is featured on VEER's portfolio pages!

Purchasing Prints

Check out my greeting card gallery on IMAGEKIND, I've just uploaded some new images!

Today's Notes

Across the Universe

A narrative illustration responding to the Beatle's song "Across the Universe":

"Words are flying out like
endless rain into a paper cup
They slither while they pass
They slip away across the universe
Pools of sorrow waves of joy
are drifting thorough my open mind
Possessing and caressing me

Jai guru deva om
Nothing's gonna change my world."

The Secret Garden

This is a sketch I'm working on painting digitally right now... for the book "The Secret Garden" in my digital painting class. It was a favourite story of mine growing up, and I remember listening to a dramatized version on audio cassette.