Another Plein Air.

 Blue Hound Farm. 11 X 14 "

La Carte, mixed soft pastels.

This Thursday we went for another Plein Air session and it happened to be another beautiful day.

Place where we were painting is called Blue Hound Farm. Great place with so much to see!..

Here is a painting I did there, like usually I ran out of time and had to finish it back home.

"Autumn Mosaic", mixed media WIP. Last update.

"Autumn Mosaic", 14 x 11" 

Mixed media on Ampersand pastel board

I finished "Autumn Mosaic" last night. I had a blast painting this one! No, this is nothing like me and my paintings, but probably it was a general idea - just try something totally new and see how it will turn out.

I love it. And I don't like it at all. I'm a very detail oriented girl that looking for classical realism and "Autumn Mosaic" is no such a thing. But i think it was a pretty successful try out for "as mixed media, as it gets". It is almost 40% egg tempera and another %40 oil pastel, but... we shouldn't forget about soft pastel too and some India ink.

Practically I put all my favorites in one painting...  pretty scary mix, but it is a Halloween after all! :-)

Autumn Mosaic. WIP. Update.

I'm having sooo lot of fun with this new painting!... AND I have a name for it now, how you can see it... All my tempera already dried, soft pastel sort of settled down, what didn't - I managed to shake off... Now it is a time for Oil pastel and some Neocolor Wax pastel. I also will do some brush work with solvent and some shaping and texturing with silicon shapers... Way to cool painting for me to be serious about this one. I think it is my mostly "Mixed" mixed media painting I ever had done!

Probably will take few more days to finish, since oil pastel is tricky to work with. Especially in this combination with not more not less, but soft pastel!

Picture 1. Some oil pastel applied. First stage.

Picture 2. More of Oil pastel layered, blended and shaped. Beginning of brush work with solvent.

Walking trail, mixed media, WIP.

 
WIP, Mixed media, 11x14" Ampersand pastel board.

Started working on my new project, what I'm planning to finish by the end of month. Reference photos was taken at Wildwood Nature preserve just yesterday.

I started with first layer/underpainting of egg tempera and Ink and so far this is how it looks like. (Somewhat scary, I know, but I promise it will be getting better!)

Chambersburg 25th Annual Miniature Art Exhibition 2009.

Today we got more good news. Two of my miniature paintings were accepted at Chambersburg 25th Annual Miniature Art  Juried Exhibition 2009 at Council for the Arts of Chambersburg.

This year show received 392 entries from 120 artists, however gallery can only accept 180 works, because of space issues. So I'm very pleased to see that my work will be included at this show. 

I'm planning to attend opening reception on November 5-th and very much looking forward to see some great paintings there. So exiting! 

Below: two of my works, that will be shown in Chambersburg.

Colors of Fall. Last update.

 Colors of Fall. 4 x 6 ".

Pastel, Ampersand pastel board.

Just like I planned, I finished this miniatures today. I used some extra soft pastels, some pastel pencils, silicon color shapers, solvent and size "0" sable brush to put my finishing touches on this work. here she is - another soft pastel miniature. 

Colors of Fall. WIP. Update.

Worked today some more with my fall mini. It is getting to be more and more painting, not a drawing.

I like how colors are coming and mixing together, almost like oil.

Pastels are using on this one are mostly my softest pastels: Schmincke , Sennelier and Kooh-I-Noor.

Since it is so small I might need another painting session to finish it, but not this night. Too late, good time to go to bed.

Wildwood Lake painting - last update.

All right, I can now move to another work. This is a last update for my painting of Wildwood Lake. I'm going to work on framing of it tomorrow, since it is really late now, time to go to bed.

Still think about right name for this one...

Colors of fall. WIP.

4 x 6", Ampersand pastel board.

This one I started last evening, just to take a brake from my swamp, and read what Adrianna has to say about it and think a little bit...

It will be another miniature painting, reference photo for it taken last fall, since I wanted to so something very bright and colors aren't just here yet...

So, here it is. It is small, bright, I'm trying some new tricks on branches... very interesting experiment. 

Should finish this one soon, but swamp will be, probably my first one to finish.

And after some more work:

Lowland painting is almost finished.

It took for me another evening of work and lot of thinking on how I want to finish it. Here is how it looks at this moment. I took a short brake from it and probably will be back to this work tonight.

And more York show news.

We went to York today for the opening ceremony.

It was totally great. Lot of wonderful art works, many interesting people and even some very good food! (one more surprise!).

Yes, "Awakening" took one  out of 10 awards of Excellence, what is amazing... out of 140 juried accepted works of art, my Oil Pastel was named like one of top 10. Oh, I'm so happy! Don't know what will be next, but feels like more work is going my way!..

Pat Koscienski was there too and introduced me and my family and friends to other artists. Thank You, Pat! Looking forward to see you again and paint together.

All over it was very interesting and pleasant experience. Should do it more often! :-)

Wildwood lake another update.

Finally this evening had some ore time to work on my painting. Today it just feels right. I like it. probably another one-two sessions and I can finish it.

Yesterday's Plein Air.

View on Rockville Bridge, 9 x 12"

La Carte, Mixed soft pastels and pastel pencils.

Yesterday had a chance to sneak out for some Plein Air painting with the group of great local artists.

Had a wonderful painting session, weather was perfect, light was perfect, everything was perfect, but timing... needed to rush  Irina to the job, right about when I was half-way done... So, painting took some finishing touch up after I was back home.

Thank you to Pat for inviting us to the group! It was great experience! Looking forward to see everybody again.

Swampy updates.

Nothing much, just another update on my painting of Wildwood lake. Hope to work on it some more today, since weather is that kind, that not much could be done outside. 

More news on York Art Association 2009 annual show.

I just found out, that not one, but all 3 of my paintings made it into this show.

It will run from October 11 to October 25  of 2009. 

http://www.yorkartassociation.org/mainsite/main.html

"Awakening" Oil Pastel gets Award of Excellence.

Last weekend we took 3 of my paintings to regional juried art show in York, Pa.

This afternoon I received a phone call from York, stating that my oil pastel "Awakening" just won Award of Excellence.

 

This is my first show season after 20 years of brake in serious art work, first juried show in United States and first (second, if count OP Society on-line show 2009) show with entering of my oil pastel. More to it, I started with OPs about 8 month ago. Everything has happened so rapid, I barely can believe it myself!

 

I know nothing how two my other works did, but it doesn't really matter at this point. Awakening was my very special work from very beginning of it and I'm extremely glad to know, that out of 3 represented at show, oil pastel was a one to be recognized as something special!

 

Just to remind everybody how this painting is look like, here is a link to its thread. I never managed to get a really good photo of it, but oh, well! Hope they have good lights in the show room! :-)

 

http://www.wetcanvas.com/forums/showthread.php?t=582003

One more update on my swamp!

Nothing much new, just some more work with the same very painting. look like I'm going to the right direction with it. I'm not on hurry, no reason. It will be done when time will be right. But i think it shouldn't take too long. Probably few more days. 

Wetlands WIP update #1.

Some more work on it from yesterday night. I better go and paint more now, if I want to see it finished sometime this month! :-)

Wetlands WIP.

Wildwood Lake.

12 X 12  " Ampersand pastel board,

mixed pastels and pastel pencils.

Yesterday I started working on my new project. This on will be similar to miniature of Wildwood Lake what I did last month, but bigger size and different format. Big version also will have no sky on it, just a blooming swamp.