New Hunt 126

 Here is the new Hunt, I'm hosting.  Does color catch your eye?  Looks like fun come on over and sketch from life with us.

 

Scavenger Hunt from Life #126: Aug 15 - Aug 23

Pine Green (something pine green, any tree)
Manatee gray (something gray or from the ocean)
Purple Heart
Robin Egg Blue
Denim
Eggplant
Cornflower
Blue Bell
Granny Smith Apple
Silver
Inchworm (sort of green or bug)
Timberwolf
Lavender
Shadow
Desert Sand
Salmon
Macaroni and Cheese (any food or creamy cheesy color)
Antique Brass
Copper
Fuzzy Fuzzy
Blush
Jazzberry Jam
Sunset Orange (something orange, landscape, etc.)
Mahogany
Brick Red
Laser Lemon

These are Crayola colors, have fun with associations and substitutions, I put a few ideas in ( ) to get you started.

 

I'm fixing my pastel from yesterday.  David said it didn't look like a round bowl.  Started the fix and messed up the bottom so working on it a bit more today.  Then I'll find a color to spark an idea!

 

 And by the way, look at past experiments in socialism:

You can vote your way into socialism but you cannot vote your way out!!

Challenge Entry - Regina Burchett

Regina Burchett entered the challenge to win a copy of Maggie Price's new book, "Painting Sunlight & Shadow with Pastels".  Regina's paints in a colorful and impressionistic style.  We have been painting buddies for several years.  (Posts on my blog) We met in Bastrop and have become artist friends that help and encourage each other.  Regina is a writer, too.  You can get her book, Friends of Orion, here.  She currently has several exhibits in Austin, Texas.   You can see her paintings in person or check out her work on her website and her blog.  This image will remain here on the Challenge Images tab/page above.

Regina Calton Burchett - Morning Light Inks Lake, pastel, 17.5  x 11.5 inches

Thanks, Regina!  I love the shadows and light in this painting.


For your chance to win the book you can send me an image of your painting or just comment on the original post.  

Win Maggie Price's New Book + Free Issue of Pastel Journal

Go to this previous post, on my blog, comment and win!  Just that easy.  It would be fun if you take the challenge to paint a painting, too.  But make it easy on yourself and just comment!  You can make a comment now, then add your painting to the gallery later, too.

Oil Paintings Church - Comment to Win

Win Maggie Price's new book, Painting Sunlight & Shadow with Pastels.  Check the side panel, PAINTING CHALLENGE,  or click here.  Get a digital copy of the Pastel Journal for entering.

One of the days when Sue was here, she wanted to paint with oils.  I have some Winsor-Newton Water Mixable ois with me in Angel Fire,  so we cracked them open.  She worked on painting some buffalo we had taken photos of  north of Questa.

I decided to do two small paintings of the church in Ranchos de Taos. The church has many interesting shapes and shadows.  I painted  smoothly without many brush strokes and with very little background.  I think this technique emphasizes the shapes and negative spaces.  Negative spaces are the shapes surrounding the main focus/object of your painting.

These are painted on cradled Gessobord.  I decided to paint the edges blue to make them more southwest looking.  I painted the edges with oils, too.

After I finished I wished I had painted the edges with acrylic paint so they would dry quicker.  Too late, now.  You can paint oil over acrylic paint but not vice versa.  The acrylic paint will not adhere to the oil.  The oil underneath will not dry.  Hopefully these two small paintings will be dry enough for the show on September 3 here in Angel Fire.  (See sidebar for show info)

Backside, Oil 6 x 6 inches 

Shadow Side, Oil 6 x 6 inches

Challenge and Chance to Win

You can win here!  Comment or join the challenge to win.  Get a free issue of the Pastel Journal for entering!

The Pastel Journal is promoting Maggie Price's new book, "Painting Sunlight and Shadows with Pastels".  I was offered the opportunity to submit a painting, with advice from the book, then share the challenge with you.

Maggie Price is the author of Painting Sunlight & Shadow with Pastels. Maggie is a co-founder and former editor of The Pastel Journal and is also the current president of the International Association of Pastel Societies.  Maggie's book is very informative with contributions from five pastelists. 


If you are a reader of the Pastel Journal  or have attended the International Association of Pastel Societies conventions, you have heard of her.  She is an amazing pastelist and very generous with her talent and time.


 Here is what the Pastel Journal  says about her new book:

"With Painting Sunlight & Shadow with Pastels, readers will learn to manipulate the effects of light and shadow to create beautiful, lifelike paintings. Author Maggie Price and her contributors give readers all of the tools and tips they need to be able to paint brilliant sunlight and multi-layered shadows in pastels in 13 complete step-by-step demonstrations, including landscapes, seascapes and manmade structures. Whether artists enjoy working outdoors or prefer painting from photographs, this book is loaded with insights into painting a wide variety of lighting situations, including how to paint scenes at various times of the day and at different altitudes."

And from the back cover:

• Master pastel artist Maggie Price shares techniques for painting beautiful light, rich shadows and convincing reflections.
• 13 step-by-step demonstrations tackle a diversity of lighting situations, encompassing various weather conditions and times of day.
• Five contributing artists explore different styles, approaches and subjects, including landscapes, water scenes and people.
• Concepts are demonstrated with pastel but are applicable to any medium. 

* * * * * * * * * * *

I found this book  full of instruction, how to paintings and beautiful pictures to inspire and help you paint better.  I will be reading it over again and again, I am sure.

I challenge those of you who follow my blog regularly and others who are interested to the following:

1. To enter, paint a pastel painting with light and shadows and e-mail me a copy which I will put on a page here on my blog (Tab at top of page).  Your work and link to your site will stay on this paintings page of my blog.  (I will keep a link to this post on the sidebar for quick reference, too.)
2. Or you can comment here on this post/entry in my blog.  Painting not required.
3. Contest will run through September 11, 2011
4. Those of you that enter will receive a digital copy of the Pastel Journal.
5. The winner, picked at random will receive a copy of Maggie's book.  Mailing is limited to the US, UK, Canada and Europe because of restrictions of the Pastel Journal.

You can see a digital preview of the book here.

If you can't wait to "win" your copy of the book, as readers of my blog, you can take 40% off the price with the code "Sunlight2011" at the NorthLightShop.com

* * * * * * * * * * *

It was definitely a challenge for me to do my painting.  With our move for the summer and visitors here in Angel Fire, I was limited on the time I could put into the painting.

I used Maggie's advice for doing thumbnails, underpainting and light for midday.  I had attended a workshop given by Liz Haywood-Sullivan in March of this year and was reminded in her contribution in this book of her ideas for the shadows and depth she demonstrated at the workshop.

I  started with a lighter value painting with the darks a couple of steps lighter than I usually do, but found that I do not have enough pastels in the very light colors to keep the painting that light.  I resorted to a palette more like my usual style to complete the painting.

I painted on a white Pastelbord, 9 x 12 inches,  perhaps if I had left the sky and path white in the underpainting, I could have kept the higher values.  Guess that means I need to have more pastels, right?

Here is my finished painting. (I will show the steps in a following post.)

Entrada, 9 x 12 inches, pastel on Pastelbord

I hope you have fun with this and we get many entries.  Chances will be good for winning the book.


**If you don't have a Google ID or one  of the ones listed, you  can comment anonymously(click on comments below) then either send me a private e-mail with your name or put "Joe from Scavenger Hunt" or "Joe from SW forum" or some way I can know who you are in the comment.  Good luck.

Holy Guacamole! - Pastel painting Challenge 1

I had a great time at the gallery today.  There were quite a few people downtown.  It was pretty cold, but the sun was out.  The high school photography class came in.  It is always fun to visit with the students.

I took on the challenge on Norma Wilson's blog.  We were to paint, Delicious.  Norma painted a cosmopolitan .. a drink not the magazine.  Linda Popple has taken up the challenge as well.

I imagined sweets from the bakery across the street, but I can't eat most of them.  Then I thought of chocolate.  I did have some chocolates in the candy jar.  But I decided on guacamole.

I went across to Anita's and asked the cashier for some guacamole to paint.  She looked at me in a questioning manner.  And, "Do you have a red plate?"  I also wanted it on a lettuce leaf to make it easier to paint, but they didn't have any.  So I came back to the gallery with guacamole on chopped lettuce in a styrofoam box.  I had some red plastic plates so adapted for the painting.  I didn't have dramatic lighting, so I just painted as it was.

I had a hard time trying to hurry so that I could eat the model.  I mentioned that with the grapes the other day, right?

So here you go, challenge number 1.  We shall see how many I get done!  I think I read that 200 is the goal.  Hmmmmmm.

Holy Guacamole!, Pastel on Pastelbord,  7 x 5 inches

Here was the model.  It was yummy!

This painting will be one of Jo's Notions, go here to buy or to look at other Notions.  $50, including shipping.  Sales tax applies to Texas purchasers.