Website down!

Upsetting news that my website will be down to probably the end of the year.  That means a ton of catch up work in January which I don't need!  So, since I decided to do the 30 paintings in 30 days challenge this coming January, I had to make some adjustments.  I was going to work in pastel, but, since I have so many K9's to do (which I'm shooting to have completed by then anyway...one can dream!), and two upcoming pastel commissions and two oil commissions, I found it only fitting to try something new...and work at my drawing table with pen & ink and possibly watercolor.  As much as I hate watercolor, I'll use it in a pinch, and this is a pinch.  I'm going to try new things.  Possibly loosen up a bit.  Purchased the supplies and it ran under $30, and that is a whole lot less than I spent on the last challenge.  I also discovered that I can ship the size work I'm going to do in a small box the post office carries for $5.95.  I have to work on a price now.  Something affordable so they all sell.  Nothing framed, but yes, matted.  Well, maybe framed if I find the right ones.  

Petra's portrait, step-by-step

There were many pictures of Petra, but this showed her intent "eye of the tiger" look, yet somehow a look of innocence all wrapped up in one.  The minute I saw this photo, I knew it was the one from which I was to create her portrait!

Here is the final portrait.

From the beginning.  Seeing her drawn in, I knew I was going to enjoy painting this portrait.

So I painted in the eyes, and nose, liked what I had, but, something told me I would rework both the eyes and nose more and more.  (I was right.)

This is the awkward stage that I hate to send to the owner/handler in an email because if they don't have an imagination, it could be hard for them to realize, all I'm doing is experimenting with color and testing what works.  I do explain it all, but they must wonder what on Earth is she doing to my dog?

So I keep going, and I like the ear a lot.

One good ear deserves another, yet, I'm not happy with those eyes, they look too much like staring.  I did begin to blend the colors, posted it on Facebook and got some nice reviews.  

I posted this on Facebook and everyone thought it was done...no, no, no!  That whole one side of her face wasn't done, and that was when I realized just how much the color of the paper was helping with the painting to my advantage!  

I pushed on, and reworked the nose, and then I concentrated more and more on the eyes.  I took away the large pupils I had in, and replaced them with glare and reflection, and smaller definition of a pupil and voilá, Petra was Petra!

I was really please with this portrait.  Such a pretty dog, so sad she had to leave this Earth so soon, but I got her down in infamy.  

Below is the step-by-step collage I make to send in an email to each officer so not only can they see it being created with an email step-by-step, but see it all in one place.  I love the mauve colors I chose for a frame.

Response from the officer?  

He wrote to me and said he was speechless.  

End of.  

Meet K9 Petra!

This was K9 Petra, 

and

here is her story, 

direct from her handler (daddy).

Petra came to the Colorado Springs Police Department with the hopes of being a patrol/narcotics canine officer.  She had a handler who did not see Petra's drive to be sufficient as a patrol/narcotics canine.  At times, a handler and canine do not have the bond to be a great team, therefore Petra was given to another handler within our department, who also handles another canine. Petra started to blossom with this handler, and became a canine that had a lot of potential. She did not have all of the tools that they were looking for to have her do patrol work, but the handler and department saw she had a high drive to hunt.  Therefore, she came to me to be trained and worked as a single purpose explosives detection dog. At the time, I was a first time canine handler, and did not know what to expect.  In the canine profession we call this " a green handler".  I was very green! They told me I needed to bond with Petra, by taking her home, and she would become part of my family.  I was still unsure, but within a couple of days I instantly felt the bond we had and she showed such great caring and affection for me and my family. We bonded so much that she became very protective of me, as well as my family! Then we began the training for Petra to be an explosives detection canine. She blossomed so well, she always had her nose to the ground and was always looking for the explosive odor. She was great, she had found her niche within the department and herself. She really made me look good as a brand new handler! I knew that we had created such a bond and felt that she basically stole my heart. I have had dogs as our house pets before, but with a police canine partner, it was different. I spent most of my day with her, and we would have done anything for each other. I finally understood the bond that officers have with their canine partners!  At home, Petra bonded fast with my family. She enjoyed playing with my home personal dog, and she became very attached to my wife and two sons. On our days off, we played ball in the back yard, and did a lot of walks. She had her days off, and that is when I wanted her to relax and be a pet and be home.  Of course on the work days, when I put on my black uniform and she saw me walking to the police cruiser, she would bark, spin around, jump, and was ready to go to work. I think she always had the look of where are you going without me?Unfortunately, I was only Petra’s handler for a couple of months, but it seemed so much longer, we were beginning to gel and become a great working team. Petra inspired me to be a better person, and taught me so many new skills as a police officer, and as a canine handler! When I lost Petra, I did not know if I was ever going to work another canine again, and if I did, how soon would it be before I was emotionally ready. Petra was a jewel, and impacted me so much that I felt she was my only partner I was ever supposed to be with. I took my time to grieve, and played it out in my head that Petra would want me to take on another canine partner, and continue the canine explosives detection program. The canine explosives program, for our department, was started by my sergeant and myself. We are both bomb technicians who saw the need for explosives canines after the Boston Marathon incident. We wanted to start the program and see it grow. When Petra passed away, we put the program in a time out, but realized after some time that we needed to continue this program and make it succeed with the other explosive detecting canine Belka, and my newest canine partner Britta. Britta was Petra’s original birth name before it was changed by her first canine handler. I wanted to pay respect to Petra by giving my new canine partner her original name! Petra would want me and my sergeant to see this canine explosives program grow and succeeded to the end, and that is what we are doing. 

 

I have been in law enforcement for approximately 15 years and have done a lot, and have seen a lot in my career. I enjoy my job and still look forward to coming to work every day; It has been a great 15 years. I can say the best part of my 15 years, is working with a canine, and mostly meeting and working with my girl Petra. I am very glad I was her last handler, and DAD! 

 

 

Shawn

Can this dog get any cuter?

Officer Shawn Mahon and his lovely Petra ready for work!

Rest in peace dear Petra, rest in peace.  

Just when you think "K9 Apollo" is completed, more is found to do.

This was K9 Apollo, a true hero.  

I'm working on his portrait using my normal methods of drawing, blocking in color, smearing, adding more color, working it and working it until I think it's done.  I also use an iPad to help me see things better.  I love that discovery, that I can zoom in to reveal more detail in my work.  It's drastically helped me!  

But, another way I've learned to improve my work is by using the program picmonkey.com

I like to use the collage feature where I can place my work next to the original, and for some reason, all the mistakes pop up, things I thought were okay, need more work, obvious things I should be seeing, come to light for me.  Again, it's helping me improve my work.  

Tools of the trade years ago meant using a magnifier glass, or enlarging a copy, then making the copy in color, even taking photographs or instant photos, but nowadays with the digital age, all you need is an iPad or a laptop to see your work so much easier.  Also, using programs like picmonkey which allows you to line your (what you think is finished) work, next to the original to see even more things that need changing, thus making your work better.  

Try it.  

Use your iPad.  Try Picmonkey, it's FREE!  

Click here to discover Picmonkey.  Play around with a photo that doesn't mean anything to you, you will suddenly get so hooked on that program!  

www.picmonkey.com

To return to my website, click here:

www.kathleenevekelly.com

You know you're busy when...

You know you're busy when you fail to have time to blog.  Since my last post in two months, I've created so many portraits I can't recall them all!  But I do know I did one cat because it's the second cat I've ever done, so that sticks out.

The K9 portraits roll in continuously, and I keep pushing them out, and the officers say the sweetest things after I put their precious partner down on paper.  (Love to make a cop cry.)  But it's a good cry.

I'm looking at more ways to get people to my website.  I believe that will be a quest for a long time!

I am going to approach the new lady at the Visual Arts Center about a possible radio show.  I can't do it at the house because I don't have a land line phone.  This is a dream of mine, and I want to make it come true.

Other than my artwork, applying myself to get a job teaching one day a week at the Visual Arts Center in Punta Gorda, Florida, there's not much I've done besides my artwork.  But that's okay, I'm focusing on my artwork.  That's the most important thing.

To return to my website, please click below:

www.kathleenevekelly.com

Collage of 30 Paintings in 30 Days!

I painted 30 paintings in the last 30 days.

How many did you paint?

MOULIN ROUGE!

Moulin Rouge in French means Red Mill.  The Moulin Rouge is the birthplace of the can-can dance, which was in turn introduced to cabarets across Europe.  Now, it's a tourist attraction but the club's decor still contains much of the romance of the fin de Siècle France.  (Which means end of the 19th century characteristics.)

Unlike all the other paintings I did in this series, I decided to "cheat" a little and work on this painting a little at a time.  I'm so glad I did that, because red, as I know can be a very tricky color, also, painting so small with so much detail in the photo can also prove to be counter productive.  So, here's the first stage.

Then I added some reds and yellows.  I also started the marque below the windmill.

Some time yesterday, I got to this point.  I didn't know if this painting was going to make it, I was intimidated a bit by all the detail that had to yet go in.  Normally I don't mind detail, I crave it, but when crunched with a time factor, pressure adds up.  

But I took my time, and got it finished.  Not only that, I completed the 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge.  I'm not one to normally get too stressed out when painting.  I figure, it's just a canvas, either throw it out to start fresh, or work it out, let the paint dry and keep working.  

The part I liked most about this painting was the marque under the windmill, I FUDGED it.  Haha!  I learned from a famous PBS watercolorist Bob Fagan how to create small people...trick is to not give them a neck.  (YIKES!)  But it works.  And the legs are just triangles, do not do feet.  (How do they walk?)  But it works.  Mind you, I'm not into watercolor, yet still, I learned something from him.  By the way, if you remember Bob Fagan, he was the one who did the lighthouses up in Michigan and he did a series on Sanibel painting beach scenes.  When I had my art supply store in Cape Coral, Florida, he used to teach there part time, and the women loved him, he was a lot of fun.  His classes were unique and I listened in on them from time to time, and we had a nice business relationship.  

Here is the original photo from which I worked.  We didn't go see a show, we just had a taxi driver take us there, but to get a taxi out of that place was a hassle.  Still yet, so glad I went and saw it!

Yes, I'd like to do this one larger...but no time soon, I have far too much work to do in the next few months, but perhaps one day!

So what did I gain from participating in this challenge?

1. I learned how certain paintings just are better large, and not every painting can be square shaped...landscapes are for a reason called landscapes...haha!

2. I learned you don't need so many brushes.  When I did keep track of which brushes I used, I see I have the same ones nearly all the time.  And I do like synthetic brushes best.  

3. Somehow Cerulean Blue makes it way into every painting I do...this one not the exception!  I think the only painting I didn't use Cerulean Blue was yesterday's "Honeymoon Rock", which was all in the yellow family.

4. I had fun picking out which photos to work from, and I'm glad I went with this theme of "Around the world in 30 Days" because it brought back the fun I had doing all that traveling.  I feel I did it at the right time in my life.  

5. I found that if I play French music when I'm painting the Eiffel Tower or other French scenes it helps.  Same goes with listening to Cuenca, Ecuador radio stations if I'm painting Ecuador!  When painting surf/coastal scenes, yes, I do play the sounds of waves...it just puts me in the mood...

6. I have a slew of paintings for shows, and/or, I have a slew of paintings to decide if I ever want to make them larger.

7.  I learned how to photograph my work when on a small easel and how to showcase it in a collage to show all sides and they look so pretty.  The paintings looked okay when you look at them from the front, but showing them on angles really enhanced them.  See below:

8. I've enjoyed and learned to make my housework less of a priority.  Sure I still cleaned, but did far less of it than I normally do.  I recently moved and although there are boxes out in the garage calling my name, I've been ignoring them, and I learned, they don't call out to my husband either, so why on Earth did I place such a priority on them?  They can wait!

9. I sharpened my self-discipline!  Well, to paint every day...just wish I could wake up in the morning and get my day going a lot earlier and not be such a late bird.  I did good at the beginning of the challenge, but as time went on, I slipped back into sleeping daytime, up nearly all night.  GRR.

10. I enjoyed posting every day, blogging and sharing this challenge with my new online group, which I also started during this month, which has doubled in membership while I was painting away! Below is a link to my art group on Facebook.

                      https://www.facebook.com/groups/1466582746952439/

Will I do this challenge again?  Well, if I do, I think I'll do it in pastels, as they store easier.  Try storing 30 paintings in a new home.  (I did it, but it's not easy.)

Oh, and I sold TWO paintings, hoping to sell more down the road.  Sometimes people have to think about it!