Puppy Painting Update

I finally got back to my painting class for one night last week.  I was able to work a bit more on the body, face and background.  I haven't figured out how to paint the bottom background and shading yet...will have to see how that goes.  With my new job I haven't had much time for art this term.  : (

Naughty Puppy!

My darling puppy Ray decided that my glasses would make a really great chew toy!  He went to town and here's what is left of my glasses.  I was able to wear them for a few days, even with the crewed up temples and scratched lenses.  But then they split right down the middle of the bridge. 

I tried to order new frames online.  They were an old Guess brand and I found a pair for $75!  Then the company wrote that the frame is no longer being made.  So last night we went to Binyon's and I looked at the new Guess frames.

Luckily, I was able to find a new frame with the same lens dimensions as the old ones.  The guy was able to pop my lenses into the new frames and I was set!!! 

The new frames are purple on the exterior and blue on the interior.  They look kind of black, but not quite. 

So, all is forgiven. 

I did buy Ray some new doggie chew toys

Fall Painting and Ray 9 Months Old

It's been awhile since I've posted anything to my blog. Things have been busy with the beginning of fall term. I have a new job that is much busier than my previous job, so that's taking alot of time. I have lots to learn!

I'm not really taking a painting class this fall, but I can go in and paint with the rest of the class whenever I am able. I've only gone twice this year and here is my start. This is a painting of a cute Chihuahua from the dog park. I don't know her name, but I thought she would make a good subject! This is in oil, 12x16".

I'm also posting a picture of Ray. He was 9 months old on October 13th. He's 17-18 pounds.

Ray at 8 months old, A Graduate!

Ray Playing with Classmate in Puppy School

Here are my most recent pictures of Ray. They were taken on September 8, 2010.

You can see that his hair is almost grown out, he has alot of fringe around his face, his nose has grown longer. He's about 17 pounds. I'm not sure how tall he is now...I'll have to measure him again

He finished Puppy School and has learned: sit, shake, down, heel, leave it, watch me, walk on a leash. He doesn't DO them all the time but he's getting better, and he's gained alot of confidence!

 

Ray the Graduate

Ray at Dogpark - 7 1/2 months old

Here's Ray on August 29, 2010. I took him to the dog park and got a few shots. He's about 7 1/2 months here and is really getting his longer, adult coat. He's also got a really great tail!

I also took some pictures of his dog park friends. We go to a great park that has one area for big/active dogs and another area for shy/timid dogs. Ray goes the shy/timid area and plays with the other smaller, quieter dogs. Many of them are the little white foo-foo types (Malteses, Bichons, and many poodle mixes), which are pretty scrappy. I'm thinking of painting some of the dogs as my art projects for fall.

Ray on July 6, 2010 - 6 Months Old - in Sunriver

Here are pictures of Ray from July 6, 2010. He was almost 6 months old. Ray was born on January 13, 2010.

This was his first trip to Sunriver, in central Oregon. He loved playing in the tall grass and meeting neighbor dogs. He traveled in the car pretty well, but still got sick a few times.

We spent a whole week there, so he had time to adjust and did really well on his first trip!

Ray on June 27, 2010 - 5 1/2 months old - at Local Park

These are a few pictures of our new puppy Ray from June 27, 2010.

He was about 5 1/2 months old at this time, weighed about 13 pounds. Still soft and fluffy

The Big Island, June 2010

We went to the Big Island of Hawaii June 8-15th, stayed at the Hapuna Beach Prince Resort in an ocean front room. This was our view from the room, which was awesome! I didn't take alot of pictures on this trip because I took quite a few on previous trips.

Here are just a few shots of the beach, the snorkel entry area, the rocks, some hula and a pretty sky.

Big Island Trip Sketch Book

 We went to the Big Island of Hawaii, June 8-15. We stayed at the Hapuna Prince Beach Resort. Here's my sketchbook of what we did:

Wednesday, June 9th

Had a GREAT SNORKEL - lots of fish & crystal clear water. Drove to Kona, shopped at Ross (our favorite store!) and found some bargains, had lunch at Don's Chinese, walked through downtown Kona (to the palace, the old church, the shops), swam at the hotel but water was rough, had drinks at the Reef Lounge and fed the feral cats (and a mongoose or two).

Thursday, June 10th

Had another GREAT SNORKEL in early morning, clear, calm, lots of fish. We drove to Hilo and saw all of the lush vegetation. We did some more shopping in Hilo at Ross & Macy's, looked around town. We've been there before, so didn't do any of the tourist stuff. I swam in the snorkel cove because the waves were high on the beach. In the evening we went to our lounge and then took the shuttle over to the Mauna Kea where they had hula.

Friday, June 11th

We went snorkeling again in the early morning - the water was more cloudy and wavy, but was still pretty good. Rick was bitten by mosquitos in the night and had welts all over his legs. We went to the King's Shops in Waikoloa and had lunch at Arnie's Clubhouse at the hotel. Afternoon swimming was GREAT. It was hula night at the lounge and we saw students from the local halau. Back in the room we went on a mosquito seeking mission to rid the room of insects.

Saturday, June 12th

We didn't snorkel today because it was wavy and Rick's mosquito welts were bothering him under the fins. We drove to Hawi on the north coast. The King Kamehameha statue was draped with leis from the holiday on Friday. I got a red garnet necklace at a cute jewelry shop. We had lunch at the Snack Shack (where we've gone several times before. Afternoon swimming.

Sunday, June 13th

Morning snorkeling was not very good today. It was wavy, windy and murky, though we did see three turtle! That was fun. Today we went to Waimea to look around. I wen to the bead shop and the Parker Ranch shops. We found out that feral cats who have been fixed have snipped ears to mark them! We'd noticed that a number of cats had notched ears and just thought they'd gotten in fights. There's a local group that spays and neuters the many, many area cats. In the afternoon I drove to the Shops at Mauna Lani and went through the Lahaina Gallery. I wanted to see their Darrell Hill paintings. Great afternoon swimming!!

Monday, June 14th

This was our last full day. Snorkeling was again wavy and cloudy, but we did see some turtles again. Had lunch at the Beach Bar and spent the afternoon reading, napping, and swimming! We didn't take the car out at all today.

Paintings from Spring Term

Here are the rest of my Spring term paintings. These are all in oils and I used the water soluble oil paints.

This is a painting of our Sheltie Jack who passed away in May. I used one of the recent photos I took of him. I started this one in blue, because his natural black color is so dark it's hard to differentiate the shades. I will also try a normal color painting of him.

This started out as splotches of all the "end of day" paints after class. I just swabbed the colors onto an extra canvas. At the end, I found a photo of an old guy and added him.

This was my frustration painting for the term. It's not what I wanted or intended, but I didn't know how to fix it. So, I'll leave it.

This is a painting I did from a painting workbook. I'll have to add the name later.

Saying Good Bye to Jack, Our Sheltie

On Wednesday, May 19, 2010, we said Good Bye to our dear friend Jack. He had been battling a back injury (possibly a slipped or bulging disc) and then he had additional organ problems that overwhelmed his ability to recover. He was with us for 12 years and 3 months, but it wasn't nearly long enough. We miss him so very much.

Jack was a rascal and a lover and a sweet, gentle spirit. He was barky and bratty sometimes. He ate cat poop out of the litter box and junk out of the garbage can. He herded the cats, much to their consternation. He never did quite earn his "Canine Good Citizen Award" and wasn't a very good host when company came over. 

Jack's favorite word was "GO" and he was up for anything. He went on cross country road trips with us, stayed in hotels and rode in elevators. He loved running on the ocean beaches.

Sunriver was a favorite place and he liked playing on the early morning golf course and sitting in the grass smelling the pine air. He learned how to camp.

He shopped at Pet Smart and Home Depot. He loved going to the dog park. He barked at the same noisy crow every morning.

Jack's favorite toys were tennis balls, a ratty stuffed frog, and a rolled up newspaper. He loved going on walks with Rick. He took great pride in learning tricks - he could balance a biscuit on his nose, toss it in the air and catch it in his mouth.

Throughout his life, Jack suffered from ligament and tendon problems.  He recovered from knee surgeries, endured acupuncture on a front leg, and was brave at the vet. In recent months, we noticed that he was sleeping more, hearing less, and moving more slowly. He didn't go flying off the sofa in full bark at every sound.

Jack was a great friend, a wonderful companion, a noble soul, a happy camper, the very best dog. We love him with all our hearts and our home is much quieter and way too empty without him (though we suspect the cats may be secretly pleased).

This is a recent picture of Jack after getting into blue paint while foraging in a bag of trash.

Breaking Up With God

We have a student art exhibit in the college gallery. There are lots of paintings, prints, sculptures, hangings, etc. In the center is this exhibit on a table that I find intriguing. It's a painted umbrella, hand, pen on a board that says:

Dear God,
This isn't working for me.
I just can't trust you anymore.
Thanks,
Chris

It sounds just like a break-up letter to me.

Puppy Paintings

 Here are two puppy paintings I'm working on for class. My friend has a great Bernese Mountain Dog. As a puppy she was real fluffy and cute, like a teddy bear. The first one I painted in blues and purples. The second in blues and greens.

These are both 8x10" in oil.

Two Test Paintings

This term I'm taking painting class again. I decided to try water soluble oil paints - they are alot different from acrylics in application and drying time, but have
water clean-up instead of turpentine.

Here are two small paintings I made recently. Both are from painting workshop books. The first is a copy of a snow scene from the book Oil Painting: The Workshop Experience by Ted Goerschner. When Rick saw it he said, "I don't know what that's supposed to be.....is it a swimming pool?" I think I still have a ways to go with the Impressionistic syle. In this painting I just tried to reproduce what the artist did. This is 8x10" in oil.

The second is my version of a cow painting from the book 60 Minutes to Better Painting by Craig Nelson. The idea of the book is to make quick paintings in 60 minutes or less in order to focus on the subject and not get bogged down in the details. This took me alot longer than 60 minutes and I did get bogged down in the details, but I see where he is going with his idea. I actually had to look up cow anatomy in order to figure out how the legs work. I have this cow on a bigger canvas in class and started this one as a study at home (since I've been home sick, I've been working on it and the other one is only half done). 8x10" in oil.

I've been staying home with a bad cold. All I've done is sleep, paint a bit, read some books, recharge my camera batteries, watch TV and take the dog out. It's a bore.

EP

Hawaii Paintings for Class

 Here are two paintings I completed during my Winter 2010 painting class. Both are reproductions of paintings that I saw in

Maui in December. I wanted to try to capture the colors and light of the originals.

This first is from Front Street in Lahaina. The original was painted by Larry Moore during a Maui Plein Air Event. I reproduced his painting called "On Front Street". His work is much lighter and airier than mine. And his is in oil. Mine is acrylic,
12x16".

It was a good exercise in using brighter colors and contrasts, and trying to work more with basic shapes instead of details. I'm a detail kind of person, so it's a challenge to be more expressionistic. I like that messier look, but it doesn't come naturally to me (except when it comes to housework and cleaning - then I'm plenty messy).

Here's Larry's website: www.larrymoorestudios.com/field_studies.html

The second painting below is a reproduction of an oil painting by Jan Bushart, another Hawaiian plein air artist. The original is called "The Workhorse", (referring to the tractor). She uses great colors and beautiful greens and blues in her paintings. Jan also uses wonderful loose brush strokes, which is something I need to learn.
Jan's website: http://curlyjan.fineartstudioonline.com/

I wish I could have purchased both originals. These were good learning exercises and are strictly for personal use. My copies pale in comparison with the originals.