Art Every Day Month: Days 3, 4 & 5...

I had a full weekend of painting, intermingled only by doing some laundry, cooking, attending an art demo, entertaining and sleeping! I thoroughly enjoyed the time I spent painting, although I have to admit that my fingers and hands did not! The joys of finger painting and lots of hand washing!

In addition to painting, I also spent some time sketching, which was a lovely way to relax and end the weekend, and the end of Day 5. I will post some photos of my sketches another time. But here is my painting. The first photo shows what it looked like at the beginning of the weekend, and the second at the end after many hours of work.

The inspiration for this painting comes from what I learnt at Tracy Verdugo's Paint Mojo workshop that I attended back in June. I'm very, very pleased with how it's looking. I have a few tweaks to add and then it will be varnished and hung up in my loungeroom. I'm looking forward to doing another one soon too!

Derwent Demo...



Carol Lee Beckx and Dr. Manny

The Art Shed Brisbane hosted a Derwent product demo on Saturday with the very talented Carol Lee Beckx. While I am not a extensive pencil or crayon user, I've since been inspired to plan to purchase some of the products! I was asked to share what I learnt, so here goes, and please excuse the short and sharp sentences (I took copious amounts of notes that I'm working from here):

Derwent Watersoluble Sketching Pencils - made out of graphite and very good for adding outline to canvas. Rub over with water on a brush to remove line. Comes in three ypes. Carol did a sketch of Picasso and started using the lightest wash (HB) then moved to medium to add depth. She varied her pencil grip for rough sketching, definite lines, etc. It's best to sharpen pencils with a stanley knife for longer lead. More information on the pencils can be found here.

Tinted Charcoal Pencils - an easy to use charcoal without the mess. Colour on paper is different to what is in the pencil. Has a gritty feel. Not for precise drawing when wet but only when dry. Comes in earthy colours. Comes in a tin of 12. More information on the pencils can be found here.

Graphitint Pencils - tinted graphite pencils. More manageable than charcoal and comes in more "normal" colour range. Softer than charcoal. Light water marks will retain pencil lines, but more wash will dissolve lines. Comes in tins of 12 and 24. More information on the pencils can be found here.

Inktense Pencils - I've been wanting to see a demo on Inktense pencils for a long time, so I was delighted that these were included! Inktense Pencils are intense ink based pencils that provide a vivid colour. Carol did a sketch while talking about the pencils, which was beautiful to watch. Pencils are used dry then water is added via brush or watercolour pen. Carol recommended that most of the sketch is put down before adding water. The pencils can be used on all-natural fabric, especially silk. Textile medium will help to retain vibrancy. Can put textile medium on fabric first and the add Inktense, or vice versa. Inktense can also be used on canvas. Put down a layer of gesso. Watercolour canvase is the best type of Inktense. Good for drawing blocks of colour, wetting it and then using as a watercolour on another sheet. Comes in tins on 12, 24, 36 and 72, and as you can tell from the amount of notes I took my most favourite product next to the Artbar, which is coming up! More information on the pencils can be found here.

Coloursoft Pencils - I didn't take any notes for this one, outside of the fact that they can be used for colouring in. Comes in tins of 12, 24, 36 and 72. More information on the pencils can be found here.

Inktense Blocks - the same as the pencils, but designed for larger work and no pencil lines. A lot of pigment for the money. More information on the blocks can be found here on the Derwent web-site.

Artbar - a water soluble wax, which has an additive that allows it to be soluble. I think I fell in love with these, in addition to the Inktense Pencils! The bars are triangular, which I love, and come in four colour groups of Brights, Pales, Earths and Darks. The bars are opaque and colours can be layered one on top of the other and a smudge stick, or finger, used to blend. Not good for use on textured paper as too much of the bar will be used up. A Shave & Save can be used to ensure that there is no wastage. Carol also used a water spray and a squirrel mop brush. The Artbar is available in a larger tin if using a lot. It can get sticky, especially in the heat. Carol advised that it's best to know what your composition piece will be before starting. More information on the bars can be found here on the Derwent web-site.

Carol will be holding a workshop on Sunday, 18 November from 9:30am until 2:30pm at the Art Shed where you can either try out her Derwent product range, or bring your own, and have a delightful day of art and colour. Please contact the Art Shed on 07 3846 1330 for details.

I thoroughly enjoyed learning about these products, and also watching Carol at work creating. One tip she did give the group was to spend 20 minutes a day sketching, whether inside or outside. I started last night, and plan to do a little each day to expand my scope and ideas for both my paintings and drawings.

Art Every Day Month: Day 2...

Time to sync with the northern hemisphere for Art Every Day Month. When posting earlier today I found out that the Creative Every Day theme for November is trees. How fascinating, I thought, given that I had just been in a meeting and was doodling trees...as you do! So, while it's not much of an effort for Day 2, this is it.

Paula xo

Art Every Day Month...

Well, it seems that October/November are the springboard months for me to get my "art" on each year. It's been a year since I picked up my pencils and paints again after a very long hiatus, and it's been three months since I last did any real art. I blame winter. Although Brisbane winters are not cold, as such, they are cooler and I did a lot of knitting, crocheting, reading and snuggling up under a blanket to keep warm.

But I'm back! And so is Art Every Day Month that is run by Leah over at Creative Every Day. And yes, I have something to share!

At the end of June I was blessed to attend a Paint Mojo weekend with the lovely and talented Tracy Verdugo. My effort after the weekend was a large canvas with some beautiful colours and shapes on it. You can see it here. I've struggled to know what to do with the painting since, but a few days ago I picked up my paints again and started adding to it. And here is the result:

I was going with an underwater theme but a friend saw a bird, so I've run with it. Plus, I love hummingbirds. I've only ever seen one in real life, and that was over five years ago in the States. I find them incredibly beautiful. I also love dragonflies, so it must be something with the hovering wings! I'm going to keep working on this painting over time and hope that I don't get too frustrated with it (I did last night) and I am patient with myself and it!

Another painting that I'm going to be working on is an ex-commission. Due to the rough middle of the year I had, I didn't do any work on this painting and thus the commission has falled through. But it's all good, as I am going to look into selling the painting, or gifting it.

So, these are my projects for Art Every Day Month. I may or may not create something new daily, but regardless I will be working on these two paintings.