Paintings Using Frisket

Hi Everyone!
I know I haven't painted in awhile...We all know that sometimes life just gets in the way, but I'm hoping that I will be more diligent in posting.
On an Art Group List that I'm on... Frisket .... was brought up and several were unfamiliar with the term.
Frisket is a rubber cement type of product that is mainly used with watercolor painting. The artist uses this to paint on the watercolor paper (or what ever surface being used) in areas that they want to remain white. Once it dries, the artist can then paint "washes" over their surface without fear of losing the white spaces under the frisket.
In my painting "The Lighthouse"(designed my artist Maureen Wallace ), I used frisket on the fence area and on the birds. After painting the forest, sky and rocks...I then gently rubbed the frisket off of my watercolor paper. Underneath, the paper was untouched by color. On the fence, I then went back and painted a little grey in and around the fence to look like shading. On the birds, I went back and put in shadows under the wings of the gulls flying in the sky and added a few shadows and color of the gulls on the rocks. I also made the waves in the water with it.


Here, I used frisket on these caladium leaves (designed by Cynthia Massey Parsons). We used it to keep the white color in the striping of the leaves. this one was a lot of fun and meant so much to me, as I used caladiums to decorate the church at our wedding. It was all we could find to bring in the pink, green and white colors along with green ferns and white petunias.(A long story for another time :o)


I also used it on this painting of the Holiday Poinsettia (again designed by Cynthia Massey Parsons). After removing the frisket here, I added some lighter washes in some of the white areas to push them back a little in the painting.

I hope this informations will help someone in the understanding of using the wonderful frisket product. Without it, keeping the white space in the painting is harder to control.
Have a Great Day!

More on PWFW

First off, I'll try to name everyone in order from left to right: Sowmya, BJ, MaryAnne, Donna, Robin, Cindi, Cindy, Haley, Dianne, Sheri, Kaleigh, and Jan.

I hope you like the previous pictures of our classes from our Fall PWFW a couple of weeks ago.As promised here are some more pictures ..these are from Sunday's classes.

Our first class of the day started with Donna teaching us to use Plaid's Folk Art HD (High Definition) paint...that Donna Dewberry and Prisilla Hauser first brought to our attention last year. This was a fun project..this paint is sort of rubbery..but it is FolkArt's version of using acrylics like oils.

Sheri next taught us to paint with acrylic on a ceramic plate with this wonderful little rooster pattern...Cindi, Jan and I used our Traditions Acrylic...we were stepping out of the box....LOL (I know he looks a little funny..it is like he has a pom=pom stuck on his "hiney-hoo" as my friend Beth would say... :-)

Sheri then taught us one of her "pet" projects called "Peek-A-Boo Kitty". This type of painting is harder than it looks...When painting fur, you have to be oh so careful to keep your strokes thin and fluid. Sheri has a real gift when painting their eyes...my kitty here looks a little menacing ..meow!

Our last class for the weekend was sort of exciting to me, in that I had never worked with this kind of paint before. It's called Genesis! It is an polymer based type of paint that doesn't dry until you "heat-set" it with a heat gun...the same type used in embossing for those of you familiar with doing that. The paint is kind of "pastie" and once you work it a little with your palette knife..it becomes the consistency of room temperature butter... vary pliable. You don't have to wait months for it to dry like oil and it doesn't dry too fast like most regular acrylics. I really enjoyed this class.
Well thanks to Sheri for putting this weekend on and a big thanks to all the teachers for making it a memorable experience. I can't wait for next year!

Class Pics from PWFW

Hi again! ! ! !
Here are the pictures from my PWFW weekend. I didn't finish the watercolor yet, but I had a lot of fun with the rose and the iris'.
Donna taught the Watercolor class on Saturday...It took longer than planned, but everyone had a GREAT time doing it.

Cindi taught us the Traditions Global method with the Lilac plaque. It is where you add extender to the Traditions acrylic paint and "cook" them until the water evaporates..then they are used as if they were oil paints.


Next Robin showed us how to decorate clear CD disks and make ornaments or wind chimes out of them...It was a fun "no-brainer" that allowed us to relax after a long day of painting...
I then confused everybodies minds with a lesson on "Right-brain vs. Left-brain" challanges...
After much laughter and tears of glee, we settled down to secretly make Sheri's birthday present and wrap a gift of products she had wanted from the Tradition's line. It was getting rather hilarious since Sherri was flitting all around us and had no idea what we were actually doing.....
I guess you had to be there :o)
Well, next year maybe you can! ! ! ! !>


Tomorrow..I'll share more pictures from our Sunday classes!
Until then.......

PWFW

Hello Everyone
Sorry I haven't written lately, but I've been a little under the weather...
I guess you are wondering what PWFW is ???? Well..it stands for Painting With Friends Weekend. Here are some pictures of that weekend. It was FANTASTIC! ! ! ! !

I went the weekend of Sept 26 - 28.
One of the highpoints of this weekend was to meet my online teacher of my Traditions Art Education Studies..Yes..that's right! I met Cindi Estes! and one of my fellow classmates - Jan.
It was a weekend of meeting some wonderful ladies - who I've only conversed with on the computer. Here are both Cindi and Donna instructing us during class sessions.
We laughed and cried and painted, painted, painted! ! ! !
I'll share some of those pictures later this week... for now I'll share some of the group.

We also shared a birthday with the founder of this group - Sheri! She is a real "hoot"...She kept us laughing as well as making us all feel so welcomed!
I hope you enjoy the photos!

Looking Forward to PWFW...

As you can see, I haven't published a post in a while.... Life has just gotten in the way lately. BUT... that should change over the coming weeks.





I'm getting excited!!!!! Next week, I'm going for a PAINTING WEEKEND WITH FRIENDS aka PWFW! A group of us "ladies" are meeting for a weekend of friendship and painting! Yes, you heard me! PAINTING! ! ! ! !
Many of these ladies, I've never met...well...actually all of these ladies I've never met except for online...





I'm less than an hour away, but many are flying in or driving in from several states over...but we are all meeting to paint together. Many will be teaching little lessons and demos..





I will be teaching...right brain vs. left brain...and also where your features are in comparison to each other when doing a portrait. I just can't wait.. It will be a BLAST ! ! ! ! ! I just know.
For now I'll share some photos from my color theory class. It's the color wheel in everyday pictures...Red, Red-Orang, Orange, Yellow-Orange, Yellow, Yellow-Green, Green, Blue-Green, Blue, Blue-Violet, Violet, and Red-Violet... I hope you enjoy!

Bauernmalerei...?

Yes!.. that's the name of this type of traditional folk art. It originated in the Bavarian, Austrian and Swiss Alps. Bauernmalerei means "farmer painting" because traveling artists would sell their wares to the farmers along the countryside.
The painting would be about things in their lives such as flowers, farming, hunting and religion. These paintings would be depicted on furniture of all kinds including, headboards, tables, doors, dishes in order to decorate their home. The styles would vary from region to region, but all in all decorated their lives.
This is my first painted piece of Module B from the Traditions Education study. And a big "YEAH ME !" for finally catching up since March. Let's hope I do not get behind again.
I hope you enjoy the painting. I was never interested in stroke work before now. It sort of "growing" on me. Not to mention that the paint is all over me. LOL I get into my work! :o)
Enjoy

Can You Say "Cartouche" ?

LOL...That is what this painting is... a cartouche (car - 2 - sshhh) A cartouche is a painting that is framed by another design....... "contain the viewer's eye".
Artists in the Renaissance era made the cartouche (the frame) small in elements and light in color to draw your eye into the scene of the painting. Later during the Rococo period, the cartouche became more ornate and heavy. The cartouche itself became the viewers focal point.
For me, this was my lesson 10 of my education study of Module A... The study of HUE in color. I have GRADUATED ! ! ! ! Yeah! Me! ! ! !
I now begin the 10 lessons of Module B of the Traditions Education Program. I am very excited to begin this particular study. It still focuses on Color, but this time it's relationship of VALUE. Please click on the Jansen Traditions emblem at the right if you are interested in more information about Traditions' paints and the education program. TA TA for now!

A Rooster Morning...

It was definitely a "Rooster Morning" with this one. I couldn't sleep last night. All I could do was think of painting..so up I went back to my studio. I had so much fun. I had the TV on playing old movies as I brush mixed my night away. He is a cocky little rooster I have to say. . . strutting his stuff through out the night into the wee morning hours. We floated a little color here and floated a little color there, then we dry brushed our way through the blueberries and highlights! It was a delight. Finally the sun's smiling face bloomed into view!. . .Figuratively as well as literally. At that point the feisty rooster got a little attitude, as you can see because he was ready to crow! And crow he did!
That was my cue to wrap it up and off to bed I went...only 6:00am ..not bad for the wee morning hours!

Tomptes, Nissan's or Gnomes

Here is lesson 8 of my Traditions Education classes. These little people are called Tomptes and are of Scandinavian Folklore as well as decorative painting. The Norwegians called them Nissans and in Sweden they were called Gnomes. They were a favorite subject in traditional folklore and painting and can bring good luck or bad luck.
For example, if you lose your car keys...you can blame the Tomptes for losing them... or if you were suppose to do the dishes the night before and they were done when you got up...the good tomptes finished them for you.
I'm not sure if these tomptes are good or bad, but I hope you enjoy them on this festive tray. Thanks for looking!

Just Paint It! ......

Hi guys!
Here is another little "ditty". I've join another painting list, but it is related to the Tradidions group. It's Art Apprentice Online! (AAO)... It is run by the oringinal teachers who helped develope the Traditions Education Program.
They are sooooooo much fun! Last week, they have started a activity called "Just Paint It"... They give us a subject ( ie: raspberry, blueberry, orange,...) and we "just paint it".. In any shape, paint, color, or form. they suggest a small surface (3 x 5, 4 x 6, 5 x 7, etc)...nothing very big. The idea is that "small" is not intimidating! It's just PAINT!.. no problem... Well it took me until this week to get mine done. LOL
It was fun and didn't take too long...I probably did it in under an hour. This weeks subject is the Bludberry. Not sure I'll get to this one...but it is a GREAT concept!
I hope you enjoy it!

McNaughton Roses

Hi everyone!
It is 4am and I'm off to bed..but I wanted to share with you what I've been working on ( and why I'm still up LOL )
I just completed a wooden placemat with a design my Maureen McNaughton. She is a "Big Brush"...she is a wel know decorative artish from Canada. I hope some day to take a class with her in person...but I was able to take this class online through the SDP (Society of Decorative Painters) website. I had had 60 days to complete the course, but as usualy I took it down to the wire...the last day to be able to review the class on the site is July 15th...so that's why I'm burning the midnight oil.. LOL
I hope you enjoy it! Maureen's folkart style is one of my favorite!

A Cottage Down the Lane

This is Lesson 7 of Module A of the Traditions Education Program. I have three more to go to complete the first course. We are due to start Mod. B on July 12, so I had better hurry. I hope you enjoy this one as well!


Happy 4th of July everyone! Please keep our service men and women in your prayers as they continue to fight for our freedom and independence both here and abroad.

My teach critiqued my painting and she noticed my fence rail had a bulge..so I fixed it and here is a picture of that LOl
She also said it was "heirloom" quality! ! ! I'm sooooo excited.. And the other girls brought tears to my eyes...in their generous praise...Thanks my dear friends

A Few More Roll By...

Thumbs up.....


Had to add a couple more pictures of clouds that I took last night before sunset.

As Clouds Roll By...

I've been taking pictures of everything lately...especially the clouds. Here are many views and most were taken through my car windshield, but the bright white, warms whites, soft greys and blues are all there....

These are some of the things we must see as artists to capture the hues and intensities with our brushes.

Taking these modules with Traditions Education Program has led me to look at nature a little differently lately. The greens of the grass and trees have so many varied colors..

The greens and blues of a countryside scene...are spectacular...you can see again the varied colors as well as the muted and greyed colors.
It is very eye opening to look at a leaf...to see it's vein...to see the subtle nuances of color..

Stop and take a lingering look next time you are out under the clouds...or by a stream...You may just see something SPECTACULAR too!

Dutch Flower Painting

Hi Everyone!
I GOT IT! ! ! ! ! ! "IT" being Paul Taylor's book "Dutch Flower Painting, 1600-1720". It is a very hard book to find and many used or rare book sellers are really over-pricing this marvelous book.
It became a "must have" when I joined the TRADTIONS LIST online for Decorative Painters. There I found many wonderful artists! One in particular is David Jansen, who is one of the creators of the new Tradition's line of acrylic paint. This paint is non-toxic and can emulate watercolor and oils as well as being used as traditional acrylics. We were all so inspired by David's paintings and his use of this new medium, that he offered to teach us how to paint a replica of an Old Dutch Master's painting

by Willem Van Aelst. David would quote to us about styles and symbolism from Paul Taylor's book. We all wanted one, but could not find one...except those $500.00 and up...
Well.....this last week(after many searches) , I found one online at Amazon.uk from Barrance Books. Sue the owner is a fabulous lady...at first the site would not let me buy it..due to some stipulations with international shipping, but she worked it out for me to get it and even contacted me by email...about the time when it would go back online so I could hopefully be ready to try and buy it before someone else got it. Lucky for me I figured out our time difference and was there to grab it up.
It arrived to day to much fanfare from me!
If you will look at my January 14th blog of this year you will see the Van Aelst painting that I will be attempting soon.
So, if any of you are going to England, please stop by Sue's bookstore...It's called Barrance Books, at Clarbert Cottage, in Water End, Stokenchurch Bucks. Give her a BIG hug for me and buy all the book you can from her! Thank you Sue!

Traditions Mod.A - Lesson 6

I'm baaaaccckkkk....!
Yes, it is almost 3am, but that is OK... as today I took some allergy medicine and it knocked me out all afternoon... But..more to the point..is that I finish yet another lesson tonight..or this morning..however you want to look at it... Just look at it! LOL
It was kinda fun...it went from a little dull, to quite pretty... I learned to mix some colors using a minimal pallette... I learned to tone colors to give the piece "harmony", using either its complementary color or an earth tone. I learned how to prepare and seal a tin surface vs. a wood surface.
This lesson also had me apply washes to lighten or darked an element in the piece, as in the "ball flowers"... And I also used extender to float color in shading and highlighting. Oh! And I also had fun with linework. I've always enjoyed the details of linework. I hope you enjoy this piece too! - The Country Tin Technique