"Curl"

Today for day four, I started rather late with my challenge of painting 30 paintings in 30 days, so I decided instead of oils, to do a pastel painting.  

All I wanted to do was a wave curling.

This is the start.

Refining the curl, background, under the wave area in the foreground. 

Here is what it looked like on the board as I was finishing it.

And here it is finished.   This was produced on a green sheet of vellum.  I have never worked on vellum before with pastels.  I decided to try something different.  I found it in my studio and didn't even realize I had it!  I thought I was picking up blue, until I put it under the light and saw it was green, but either color would have worked! 

This is 11" X 16". 

So what have I learned with the challenge today?  

1.  Don't let the day slip by.

2.  Be willing to try a new surface to try painting on!

3.  Turn on the music...time flies by and I seem to keep working that way.  

Day 3 of 30 painting challenge.

A day at the beach is not always a "day at the beach", sometimes the weather simply brews up a storm.  

Some of the prettiest storms (that sounds funny doesn't it?), I've witnessed in Florida.  You can be on the beach, and off in the distance, you see the rain under the clouds just pouring down but it's dry where you are.  That's why I called this painting, "Storm's a brewing".  

This is a 6" X 6" original oil painting.  This whole painting is from out of my head, I've seen so many cloud formations over water, perhaps I should concentrate on painting clouds over water.  I've learned something new with this challenge.  If I'm going to paint fast, paint what I love to paint.  I love painting clouds.  Guess I'll be doing more!  

Painting Two of Thirty!

This was actually step two.  Step one was to cover the oval canvas with an orange acrylic.

Put in some water.  I definitely do not like painting fast.

Here's the final painting.  

What am I learning with this process?  

1.  I don't like painting fast.

2.  I need to get my eyes checked, things are blurry.

3.  I am thinking of proving to myself how much I like painting things slow by painting all these or at least SOME of these paintings done the way I like to paint....and show the difference.  

This is a 5" X 7" oval oil painting.

It is painted on the side as well so there is no need for a frame!

I am number 198 in the challenge.  To see the other entries, click here:

http://lesliesaeta.blogspot.com

Painting number ONE of thirty in thirty days!

This is the first painting of thirty!  

Oils...4" X 4"

See this painting along with others on this link, I'm artist number 189 today.

http://lesliesaeta.blogspot.com

I tried a different approach with this painting.

I did an underpainting in orange acrylic.  

Orange being opposite of blue on the color wheel I though would make a good base.  

What I've learned from this challenge so far.

1.  I don't like painting fast (although I already know it, this confirms it).

2.  Glad I planned ahead.

3.  It's okay to try something new.

4.  Never use tape to make a horizon again...it leaves an indentation.

This is what it looked like during the process.  

Personal thoughts...I would rather paint quality than quantity.  I don't like the look of "rushed" work.  

I'm having some problems with my eyes, I need to see an eye doctor, things are blurry.  This is not good, I'm hoping I don't need surgery again.  

I finished TWO pastel paintings today!

These two pastels are approximately 8" X 10" each.  They are created on a velvet like surface.  Fun to have created them to get me motivated for my 30 day painting challenge starting tomorrow.  

Thirty day challenge...

I took this photo of these birds (with my phone) at the Lowrey Park Zoo in Tampa, Florida. 

I have no idea what type of birds they are.

My artist friend Diane Mannion asked me if I wanted to take part in a 30 day painting challenge.  I thought about it and finally said okay.  My theme will be seascapes.  A painting a day for thirty days.  

Can I do it?  

Where do these birds fit in?  

I can just visualize Diane and I talking about this challenge and the expressions on these birds are probably the expressions we had on our faces while discussing the challenge.

"ARE WE INSANE?"

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...wish us luck...and say a prayer, we need all the help we can get...

Cody

This is a painting of Cody.  Cody was a happy little 35 pound English Bulldog I use to have.  He loved the beach and to splash in the waves.  Yes, his head was this round! He had such a personality.  Like many bulldogs, he snored a lot due to his pushed in nose.  I have many fond memories of Cody.  Never saw a bulldog who loved water as much as he did.  

One time he was at the dog beach and he saw Labradors in the water swimming so he thought he would join them.  Mind you, you don't see many English Bulldogs his size on the beaches of Florida, so everyone was around him checking him out, and I was never far from him.  Cody went in bravely, until a wave overtook him, he shook his round little body a lot to rid himself of the water and suddenly he looked up at me as if to say, "What was that Mom?"  Everyone had a good chuckle and he loved the attention.  From that moment on, all he ever did was go up to his ankles!  

Here is Cody at the beach!

That orange neckband was a unit to keep him cool on a hot day.  

This is Cody when he was a puppy.  He never grew much more than that!

Here is Cody enjoying the last moments at the beach.  In halfway up his body!

He used to like to feel the water go back into the ocean.

This is the picture I painted from.  He was around the pool we had at the time, he's on river rock.

He was a pro at the beach...simply loved it.

I will do commissioned portraits of YOUR dog!  

Price is $400.  (It's a lot of work!)

Size?  12 X 12 inches, in oil.

Gallery wrapped canvas, and I will paint all around the sides so there is no need to frame it.