A Peony in three colors

A Peony in three colors. This is a larger one. It is 14x10 inches.

The March Big Giveaway winner is announced

That was super fun giveaway. Congratulations Rebecca. Now it is time for our regular monthly painting giveaway schedule. The next drawing will be May 30th. You must be signed up for my newsletter to be eligible to win. If you are receiving this blog than you are already on that list.

The Jo Mackenzie watercolor pet friend of the day is the collie superstar Glenn. I have painted him a few times because he makes my heart sing.

Smaller Dhalia

A smaller dahlia for today. But the strategy remains the same.This painting can be found HERE

Determination

Yesterday I painted a rough Dahlia. I was so disappointed. I knew I could do better. So I woke up this morning and painted like my life depended on it. This is a 14 x16 inch painting and I stand by it.
It was slow going but worth the effort. I needed to prove something to myself.
This is the first painting of the week. Let's gather no moss and keep going.

Shape Explorations

This is a shape exploration of a face I am quite familiar with.
I am looking for value shapes and connections.

El's Barn in two steps

Els Barn 

watercolor 

7.9x7.9 

matted 12x12 

 This painting can be found HERE

This photograph had a great underlying NOTAN pattern. Just based on that I knew this would work in my favor. Below are steps one and two. 

This strong pattern of dark shapes almost makes the painting complete on its own.

You can see some of my test "dabs" on the left . I tried to find a variety in the mid values.

Transformation

Transformation 

 I turned into a watercolor today. There were long minutes when the painting and I were "one". That was cool .

So far this week

This is what I have been working on so far this week.
I have much more to accomplish......More to come.

In Honor

Today I am painting in honor of Brenda Ferguson. She is an artist and fine role model. She died yesterday. I am painting my family in my attempt to process the loss. These are "heart " paintings.

People portraits

Em 

watercolor 

7.9x7.9 

Looking up 

watercolor 

7.9x7.9 

Looking Up

Looking up 

watercolor 

7.9x7.9 

This painting can be found HERE

I have been  taking a flower painting class but I think it is turning into a paint everything course. Suddenly I see so many connections and value shapes are becoming easier to see daily.

Skippy and Aub

Skippy and Aub.....The picture says it all!

Family of Roses

Family of Roses 

watercolor 

7.9x7.9 

matted 12x12 inches 

This painting can be found HERE

  

Form and Value in Three Steps

Form and Value 

watercolor 

7.9x7.9 

 matted 12x12 inches 

This painting can be found HERE

Step one..establish a dark background and interior value shapes

Step two...begin to build mid-tone values preserving the whites.

Darken some key areas and put in the lightest washes ..Step 3

A peony for you

A peony for you can be found HERE

Rainbow Flower

Rainbow Flower 

10x7 inches 

Watercolor 

This painting can be found HERE

Thank you to Lloyd Devereux Richards for all of these wonderful pictures of flower spikey forms.

Zinnia

Zinnia 

watercolor 

7x10 inches 

Matted 11x14 inches 

This painting can be purchased HERE

This weeks work

This weeks work at Jo Mackenzie watercolors.
Plus I began acupuncture ....I think it got the juices flowing.

A Pet Friend

I have not abandoned my pet friend responsibilities. Here is the Jo Mackenzie watercolor pet friend of the day. This one is for Cindy Plummer. It can be found HERE

It felt good to be in the arms of a pet friend again. It is hard to find the "face" on a peony.

First Blossom

First Blossom 

watercolor 

7.9x7.9  

matted 12x12 inches 

This painting can be found HERE

I am still finding the structure of peonies and the value shapes that make up that circular form.

Two Peony Dream

Two Peony Dream 

10x14 watercolor 

This painting can be purchased HERE

The past few days have been full of discovery. I am learning to layer better. I know this is something that will push me in a direction I have desired for a long time. 

What I have learned so far : 

A hair dryer is a studio necessity.

Emotional Beam

Emotional Beam 

watercolor 

7.9x7.9 

This painting can be found HERE. Now on to more shapes and value discoveries. 

I call this one the promise of spring and it can be found HERE

Peony Pride

Peony Pride 

watercolor 

7x10 inches 

This painting can be found HERE

Glowing Translation

I call this one Glowing Translation. Fancy name huh?
It can be found HERE


What I have learned so far......many layers in the background will give the desired darkness for an effective popcorn of a "pop".

The work of the week

I worked on a few 9x12 inch and 10x 14 inch pieces this week.

This was a very floral week.

Joyous Sounds

I call this one Joyous Sounds. That is what peonies are for me. Music for the eyes. This is a 9x12 inch painting and it can be found HERE

I felt a shift this week. I shift toward a more grateful place . I think the peonies might be responsible for this.

 The studio is blooming!

Make Up

Time for a change of pace.  I think this painting is still available. One similar to it is on my website HERE
The next free painting giveaway is coming soon. March 31st will be the day a new winner is selected.  You must be signed up for my newsletter to win.
Good luck to everybody and all the pet friends too. I will be getting back them very soon.

Big and Bold

Big and Bold 

Watercolor 

10x14 inches 

 

This shows how a paper bag and a peony are similar in many many ways. Form and shadow. 

This painting can be purchased  HERE

Paper Sack in Three Steps

Step one finding the underlying NOTAN pattern . Massing the darks.

Step two ..putting in the mid-tones. Trying to find color within those neutral values

Step 3....lightest washes and final adjustments.  

I call this one paper sack number two. I think  the strategy of following the three steps and choosing one dark and two lights worked well. More about that later...

Honor the Rose and an Art Tip

Compare these two paintings....( I'll wait).

The bottom one had its merits but overall the value range was all in the mid-tones. I needed to change that so I did with some washes to create some depth. So now Honor the Rose looks like the top one . It can be found HERE

And that is my art tip for the day. Create more of a value range whenever possible.