Weekend Retreat To The Beach

I know I have mentioned on my Famous Faces pages here on this blog that art is an escape for me. That seems more true now than it ever has been over the last few very rough weeks. I think the reason I am so particularly drawn to idealism in art, is because I get saturated and overwhelmed enough by life's realities. So in searching out a theme for my last few pieces, I naturally found my mind wandering back to an idyllic beach. This piece below, is how it looked when I last posted. And then, I brought a photo of it into Corel painter just to get a better idea of how my envisioned layout might look. Even the rough digital rendering below appeals a bit to me, which is enough to proceed.

Here below, is the idea set in motion after one pastel session of a few hours.

And here below, is how the piece currently looks.

And then I dragged an updated photo of it into Corel Painter one more time to see how I will potentially finish the piece (below). Again, the digital rendering tends to be rough but satisfactory enough that I will proceed. Even though this is a whimsical piece, I am careful in my execution. I think I have about two to three hours left on this. Face #500 that I started today, below, while substantially smaller than the above piece will also have a beach scene added into the background.  So, yes... a blissful beach somewhere that I can just forget my cares is what I seem to want to draw/paint! Until next time, day dream, have fun, and take care!

One Year Blog Anniversary

Faces #498 & #499, in progress

The 27th (yesterday) was my one year blog anniversary. The only reason I remember is because it is also my son's birthday, which is when I started this blog. So one year has gone by, and I am just one face shy of the half way mark to reaching my goal. Truthfully, I thought I'd be farther along by now. But beyond having a life outside this goal, it is not suffice to me if there is quantity and speed, but no quality or purpose of study in the work. This piece above is 19" by 25", in pastel. I am not sure what direction I will take it, theme-wise, should I continue with it. In the meantime, it has proven to be another study for me. I am still playing with the new pastels I received on my own birthday last month, as well as the Canson sheets (both of which I have been very pleased with)! I still haven't gotten around to using the gift certificate I also received on my birthday for more goodies at Dick Blick (art supplies)!!!

Until next time, take care!

Halloween Fun, Faces #487-#497

The Headless Horseman Diet. Guaranteed to help you shed a few pounds instantly...

BEFORE:

AFTER:

After watching some Clint Eastwood movies, Dracula decides to adopt a new catch phrase...

"Do you feel lucky? Well, do ya'?"

Because things were slow at the lab, Igor stayed home watching soap operas several days a week. After yet another night of being chased down by angry villagers, Frank N. Stein ducked into a Starbucks to have a coffee in peace. Bertha thinks long and hard before trading in her broom for a Hoover vacuum.

The "In-Crowd".

Hope you had a few laughs from this! Until next time, take care!

"Drama Club"

"Drama Club", study 19" by 25", pastel (faces #484-#486)

It has been almost two weeks since my last post. Because of the water damage done to my apartment by a recent storm, I am trying to arrange a move elsewhere which has taken up a lot of my already limited time. I was only able to complete the piece above in small increments at a time ( and I'm still not sure if it is finished). The blue area has some intricate textural line work which I have not been able to get to appear in a photograph. I'll try taking one without a flash...

Well, there's a close-up (above) that shows the detail a little better. The subtle nuances of the piece are much clearer in person. I have a few sketches I did which I will post next time. Until then, take care!

Faces #470-#483

I have been delaying a post with these because I knew I'd need a good chunk of time to photograph them, crop them to size, and upload them. But here they are. Some are pencil, some ink, one pastel. Not all, but the majority of these studies focus more on figure than face since I am trying to get away from smaller pieces, and do larger ones. I can also see I should move on to newsprint instead of sketchbooks for my studies, to work at a larger scale. We have had some really bad weather here in central Florida as of late. While not a tropical storm or hurricane, some of the wind, rain, and damage has been worse than the forecasted hurricanes and tropical storms that came through here in the past. The sun is out for the first time in four days, but the parking lot is full of shingles. The outgoing mailbox is lying on the lawn. I have had a box fan on a puddle from beneath the window sill to the center of my bedroom for three days. My backdoor is damaged from the wind ripping it out of my hand several times.  The winds got up to the high 70 mph range. There's still a lot of debris on the roads. Just a mess! Anyway... 

         Until next time, take care!

Face #469, Finished

I had a chance to work on this for the better part of the day. Aside for some minor touches, I think it's finished!

Autumn Nights, Face #469

I know I keep lapsing in my blogging, and have only been posting sporadically as of late. It's just such a busy time of year. And I haven't forgotten that I was going to post a bunch of sketches, but because there are so many, photographing them and uploading them is going to take a chunk of time I haven't gotten around to making. Anyway, I have been picking away at this painting. The first picture shows it as it is. The second pic shows it after I brought it into Corel Painter to audition the background to see if it will work out in the direction I want to take it. I have really enjoyed playing with this sheet of 19" by 25" Canson paper, as well as some new pastel sets I received on my birthday. Great fun when I have actually found the time to play! Hope all is well, and take care until next time!

Just A Few New Faces

I did a boatload of sketches since my last post, along with these color pieces. However, since I knew it would take a long time to upload them all, I've decided to break it into two posts. Above, are Faces #465-468. The first one was done with some new pastels I got for a birthday present. I really like this set I received! I got a lot of art related gifts, so I am excited for a chance to use them. And because it is now October, I am sure I will be doing some fun pieces with a Halloween theme! I know this is a short post, especially after being gone for almost two weeks. I will try to post more next time! Take care!