Illustration Friday - Shadow

Pasture Gate

9 x 6 inches

water soluble graphite and colored pencil 

on watercolor board

This is just a quick color and value sketch for an image that I would like to turn into a small oil painting.  I find a little pre-planning helps immensely.  This gate is just up the road from my house and on this particular day, the play of light and shadow created beautiful elongated patterns.  For me the most interesting times of day for shadows are early morning and late afternoon, but it is also the most fleeting.  The sun seems to move more quickly when it is near the horizon.  For this reason I am a strong proponent of carrying a camera in order to capture references of this magical part of the day.  I also like use the computer to desaturate my studies to make sure the composition holds up based on value in addition to color.  It is a good idea to do this with paintings while they are progressing as well.

Here is an example of this study in grey scale.  I think it is still fairly successful.  Time to get busy painting!

Illustration Friday - Winter

Walking in a Minion Wonderland!

Do you know that it is virtually impossible to purchase any kind of merchandise from the movie "Despicable Me"?  My husband is a five year old when it comes to Christmas.  All he wanted wanted was minions for his desk at work and there are none to be found anywhere.  Its not that people are snatching them up, its that none were ever made in the first place.  Soooo...loving wife that I am, I produced these three out of polymer clay just in time for Christmas.  I had to bar my husband from my studio and swear my son to secrecy, but they turned out to be a rather big hit.  Add a bit of wintry background, a couple of snowballs, and I ended up with a IF entry to boot.

Missed Opportunities, Baking and the Holidays!

We have one more week of school before the end of the semester and Christmas break.  Kids and teachers are anxious for the R and R.  I have been completely remiss in participating in Illustration Friday, but I still mull over ideas every week when the email with the new word arrives.  This last week I even went so far as to photograph my Schleich Mammoths for the word "prehistoric" while waiting on dinner with Todd at Dairy Queen.  I had good intentions to turn them into an illustration, but alas....well, I hate excuses, especially my own.

On the tastier side, I spent much of yesterday researching wedding cakes for my daughter Bailey.  This (of course) gave me a strong hankering for something tasty and sweet.  Since I was awake this morning at the usual 5:00 am, I got up and made an absolutely yummy carrot cake.  I had two pieces of it for breakfast and I am now in a diabetic coma.   I hate to cook, but I love to bake.  Other people love you when you bake, so it is a much more positive and indulgent experience.  Below is the end result of my morning labors in the kitchen.  Cakes are so pretty, even if you don't have the appropriate stands and plates to display them on (which I don't).

Happy Holidays everyone!  The nature girl in me has decided to celebrate winter solstice on December 21st.  I would love to hear from anyone who has a tradition of celebrating this celestial event.  Please leave a comment about what traditions you observe and the symbolic meanings behind them.