Lately in the Studio | No. 4

We’re back in the studio this week! It’s been a couple of weeks since I’ve updated you, per usual, so there’s quite a bit to catch up on.

Before we get into everything that’s new, I thought it was worth mentioning that I recently added a handful of new pieces to my shop, and there are more on the way. I sold a little over half of the work from my recent group exhibition, and I should have the remaining pieces back in a couple of weeks. I’ll add those to the shop as soon as I can.

As always, if you’d like to follow along in real time, I’d love to have you join me over on Substack. You can subscribe to Paint and Paper and receive an email whenever I publish something new. You can also follow along in the Substack feed, where I usually share once or twice a day. It’s a little more casual, almost like social media, and a fun place to share whatever I’m working on in the moment. I’d love to hang out with you there!

More Minis

First up, I started working on more of my mini paintings. This is part of a series I’m calling Boats, Birds, and Blooms. The paintings are either 2.5 by 3.5 inches or 3 by 3 inches.

The plan is to make 100 of them in total. (Hopefully more!) I think I have about 30 finished so far. My goal is to have them available for sale during the holiday season, sometime in November. I’m absolutely loving this project. These little paintings are so much fun to make.

At this point, I think I have more bloom paintings than anything else. They’re probably my favorite of the three subjects to paint. It’s not that I don’t enjoy the birds and boats (as I LOVE the finished results of those); it’s just that they require a little more time and concentration.

There isn’t quite as much freedom to be loose, make things up, and let the paint do its thing. Certain details need to be in the right place, or at least close enough to feel believable. Naturally, I keep finding myself reaching for more flowers.

I need to put a little more effort into catching up on the birds and boats. Well, that’s the plan anyway!

I also recorded a little time-lapse of myself painting one of the minis. I always think these are so fun to watch, so I thought you might enjoy seeing it. You can check it out below.

Plein Air at the Park

My plein air adventures continue, and coincidentally, the last two outings with my plein air group have taken place in parks. Painting alongside other people always makes the experience even more enjoyable.

For this outing, we visited a local park near my house. I chose a tree with a pond in the background. There are a few things about the finished painting that bother me, but it’s certainly not the worst thing I’ve ever made. Ha!

Since the park is so close to home, I’d really like to return and give the scene another try.

My favorite part of the painting is actually a tiny area near the upper-right corner. It’s a cluster of small marks suggesting the playground equipment in the distance. They’re easy to miss, but I really love how they turned out.

I wouldn’t mind creating a painting focused entirely on that little section. Maybe I will!

Most recently, my plein air group went to Frick Park and painted near one of the entrances. I like this one better. I think I still need to figure out some of the values and colors, but overall, it felt like a good attempt.

Best of Show

A couple of weekends ago, I traveled to Wheeling, West Virginia, to participate in a plein air paint-out. At the end of the event, I submitted one finished piece for the exhibition and competition.

The painting was inspired by the afternoon sunlight moving across an area of downtown Wheeling known as The Plaza. I loved the way the light hit the buildings and brought the entire scene to life.

When I attended the opening reception, I received a surprise I truly wasn’t expecting: My painting was awarded Best of Show!

I’m still having a hard time believing it. I feel incredibly humbled, grateful, and, I have to admit, a little proud too. It was such a wonderful and meaningful surprise.

Portrait Sketches

Most recently, I’ve started doing some portrait drawing through Zoom sessions. I learned about them through a fellow artist and friend, Peggi Kroll Roberts. (Who is sketched below.)

The sessions are called Drawing Is Free, and they’re held every Monday at noon Eastern. During the hour, participants on the Zoom call take turns posing while everyone else sketches them.

Each portrait lasts for the length of one song, so you only have about three or four minutes to work. That is very quick when you’re trying to draw a face!

I love it because there is absolutely no time to overthink anything. You simply have to start making marks and keep going. Honestly, that’s one of my favorite ways to create art. There’s no time for second-guessing every decision or letting my brain get too involved.

I’m not a portrait painter. In fact, I tend to avoid drawing people because they’re tough. But I do love some of the results. Of course, some are better than others, but that’s all part of the process.

I’ve participated in two sessions so far, and these are a few of my favorite sketches.

For the first session, I used Caran d’Ache Neocolor II crayons. For the second, I tried the Caran d’Ache Neoart 6901 wax oil pastels. I find the Neoart pastels a little more challenging because they’re chunkier and don’t come to a fine point, but I absolutely love their colors.

Either way, I’m looking forward to joining these sessions more often and seeing how my skills grow over time.

Using my New Sketchbook

I’ve also decided to start a new sketchbook. I may have mentioned it in my last Little Bits of Charm, but here is the one I recently bought.

I wanted something I could keep nearby, either on the dining room table or in the TV room, so it would always be easy to pick up.

I plan to stick mostly with ink and watercolor, although I may add a little Neocolor II here and there. The goal is to keep things quick, casual, and playful.

I want to sketch objects around me, like a cup of coffee, a few nearby flowers, or even a box of cereal (just simple things from everyday life). It gives me something creative to reach for instead of automatically picking up my phone and scrolling.

I’ve completed a few pages already, and I’m really enjoying it. Oh, and I love the actual sketchbook. Highly recommend!

That’s All, Folks!

And with that, I think I’d better wrap things up.

It didn’t seem like I did much art over the past couple of weeks, but apparently I’ve been quite busy. Funny how that works.

It has been so satisfying to dedicate more of my time to art and creativity in this way. I’ve been enjoying it so much, and it’s something I continually want to lean into more and more.

I hope you enjoyed following along and seeing what I’ve been up to in the studio. And if you enjoyed this post, I hope you’ll join me over on Substack for even more.

Until next time!