Lately In the Studio | No. 3

Hello! Hello! Welcome to this week’s Lately In the Studio.

The past few weeks have been a bit collage-heavy, which I’ve been enjoying. I have a couple of new finished pieces to share, along with one that is still in progress.

I’m also currently taking an online workshop that is all about color, and it is such a fun topic to explore. We have homework each week, so I’ve been able to slow down and think more carefully about the whats, the whys, and the decisions I’m making along the way. I absolutely love taking workshops. I enjoy the focus they give me, and they’re always a wonderful opportunity to connect with other artists.

So, let’s get into some of the work I’ve created over the past two weeks.

Sunflowers

I was really excited about how this one turned out. I’ve been exploring collage quite a bit this year, and it has become a fun and exciting way for me to create art.

You might remember that two weeks ago I created a peony piece on a canvas with the same size and orientation. I wanted to create a companion piece for it, and I think these sunflowers were exactly what I was hoping for!

Collage in Progress

I decided to keep the momentum going with another floral collage in the same size and orientation, but I’m struggling a bit to get into this one. It just isn’t flowing as easily as the others did.

Rather than forcing it, I’m taking a little pause. I’ll circle back when I’m feeling the flow again. Can you guess what kind of flower it will be? Let me know in the comments.

Collage Flowers

For this piece, I wanted to try another collage with a somewhat different subject—still flowers, of course, but this time arranged in a vase.

These were flowers I collected from my garden and placed in a small cup on my kitchen windowsill. (Kind of like this.) This one was a little tricky, but I eventually found my way through it and really love the finished piece. It feels a bit more abstract than some of the others, which I really like!

Plein Air in Wheeling, WV

This past weekend, I participated in a one-day plein air event in Wheeling, West Virginia. Wheeling happens to be the hometown of a friend I paint with here in Pittsburgh, so we had a fun day exploring and painting together.

A handful of us actually went down the day before to scope out possible locations since I had never been there. It was nice to discover a new city, spend time together, and grab dinner before the event.

This is the painting I completed and submitted. (Wish me luck!) I actually started another one, but I didn’t finish it. That turned out to be perfectly fine since we were only allowed to submit one painting for the judging and exhibition.

While I will always see room for improvement, I’m pleased with the piece I turned in. That feels good to say.

Greenhouse View

A few weeks ago, I started a new workshop with Anne Blair Brown, one of my favorite artists and teachers; she is just an all-around wonderful person. The workshop is all about color, which I’ve been loving. There is so much to explore and learn about this topic.

This painting was a combination of something I created with my plein air group and an assignment for the workshop. Unfortunately, it ended up being a pretty rough painting day for me. I struggled my way through the piece, and I still don’t love the results. I’m not even sure it is truly finished, and it probably never will be. I didn’t even really want to share it here, but good or bad, I think every painting has something to teach me.

That’s how these things go sometimes, so I’m chalking it up as a lesson learned.

I really loved this view looking through the two sheds, and I think there may still be potential here. I have reference photos, along with this initial painting, so I can always revisit the idea in the future.

Shopping for Flowers

I also completed this small study based on a reference photo I took of my mom last month while we were shopping for flowers. This is just a little 8×8.

This one was really tricky. I love the original photo and would eventually like to create a larger version of the painting, but I still have a few things to figure out. There are areas I didn’t get quite right and other things I would like to change.

I think it was smart to begin with a small study before diving into something larger. That is exactly what studies are for, after all.

Until Next Time

And that’s a wrap on my work from the past two weeks. There was other work happening behind the scenes, of course, but these were the pieces and experiences that felt most notable.

It has been so much fun sharing these little studio updates every other week. They have become a nice opportunity for me to pause, look back, and reflect on what I’ve been creating. I hope you’re enjoying them too!