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As I look out the window this morning to see tall cedars, douglas firs, and maple trees waving in the wind with rain as the atmospheric texture, I am thinking Fall has officially crept through the door of summer.  Dang.  I will miss the long light evenings for more party time outside.  Change is inevitable.  Thank God for that because I’ve been enjoying painting canoes from the Canoe Journey this last summer. It’s been productive to step aside from painting horses and explore colors and forms of canoes.

Just a few days before culminating in Nisqually, we had the honor of being present at the House of Awakened Culture festivities including seeing 72 canoes on the grass in Suquamish.  Apparently, on the second evening, and when many were gathered inside sharing, there was one canoe who was on its way but hadn’t arrived yet –  after dark!  The search party paddled out, found them, and brought them into safety.  GPS batteries must have run out.  I’m thinking that was a long night.

So the title of this post, Prints, is relevant here because I now have prints available of my recent canoe paintings. And the above paragraphs are an important part of the story behind the artwork.  If you are interested, email me.  Michele@horsepainter.com.

Looking South print size 19″ x 11.5″, $180.00, unframed.

Suquamish Welcoming print size 8.5″ x 10″ , $80.00, unframed.

 

 

Last night’s painting included paying attention to some darker values for impact and the amazing design work on the foreground canoes.

Check out my Art Classes tab for upcoming art retreat on October 1, 2016.

Enjoy your pre-Fall weather in the northwest today!

So here is some recent progress on a watercolor.  I find the beauty of the canoes absolutely captivating.  There are no words to explain how magical it is to see 72 canoes up on the lawn in front of the House of Awakened Culture.  I hope to captivate some of that magic with my paints on paper.

I will post more images as this painting develops.

I hope your summer is going well and that you have something or someone to feel grateful for. In 2008 I experienced a super cool splurge of abstractness.  Not sure that’s a word. I created about ten abstracts over the course of a few months.Yesterday in my studio I was revisiting a few abstracts and taking apart frames to freshen up the mats and clean the glass on both sides. Here are a few of those abstracts I am so grateful for because they make me happy in a way that only art can which means there are no adjectives to describe this feeling. None. These are watercolor with powdered chalk pastel.

 

Have you had the pleasure of being part of a Canoe Journey? In my community we get to observe and participate, somewhat, by sharing amazing meals, making new friends, and getting close and personal to the beautiful canoes from our region.  This year there were around 72 canoes on display in front of the House of Awakened Culture in Suquamish, WA.  I am in the process of painting a series from the images I took of these lovely canoes both during the welcoming on our beach and as they set on the grass in the sunshine.  This year I learned that buckets of water may be splashed on the canoe if it is hot outside so that the wood stays in tact.  I had the pleasure of meeting the man who crafted their canoe from a cedar tree 780 years old.  So beautiful. I enjoyed meeting and chatting with a woman named Shannon with the Cowlitz, shortly before the canoes headed to Alki Beach. Her daughter is wanting to attend Tacoma School of the Arts, which is where I have worked for the last 3 years so I got to tell her how wonderful it.  Talk about kismet.

Below you can see some of the spectacular canoes and a painting that I finished yesterday.

I am so excited to be teaching some summer drawing classes.  There are 4 spots left for Saturday July 23, 2:00-5:00 Liberty Bay Gallery, Poulsbo, on Front street.  This class is for teens and adults.  Please join us!  We would love to see you.  🙂 Below is an image that one of my students created last year in Beginning Illustration.

So far I believe the mix of values in my painting creates an effective framing for the dog, Bella, to shine.  So happy with this progress.  And no white paint!  Booyah. Bella will be shipped off to her human very soon. Still working on many details.  I will post the final painting very soon.  Thanks for checking in!

Actually the background for this painting landed on my fourth attempt. And I’m happy with the looseness yet legibility of the background.  Bella the dog is showing herself on my paper now. I’m excited about the progress and plan to spend the better part of  this day in the studio with the windows open and hearing the rain outside. Actually humidity offered by the rain will definitely help in my paper not drying so fast while I’m working!  Thanks rain.

The focus will be on attaining drawing skills or honing your present skills to take you to the next level. I am a certified Visual Arts Teacher and professional working artist who has a passion for empowering students through skills acquisition in a positive atmosphere.  Join us in a creative endeavor.

Where: Liberty Bay Gallery, 18830 Front St, Poulsbo, WA.

When: Saturday July 23, 2-5pm

How to sign up: Call or text Michele 206-940-3248

                                       Email: michele@horsepainter.com

Online at Schedulicity.com search ‘art classes’ for ‘Poulsbo’

Bring: Sketching supplies if you have them, sketchbook or drawing paper (8 ½” x 11” or larger)

More dates to come.

Mistakes and ugly paintings are so great.  This is what helps me to strive for and find new methods of applying paint to create what I see in my mind, on paper. I’m pretty excited about the results today for this background.  It’s just the beginning of course, but a heck of a lot better beginning that the first two attempts. There will be a dog in this painting, as it is a commission. She is black. My challenge overall is to watch my values so that they don’t get too dark.