Chinese Lanterns

Done! This is my third Chinese lantern painting and now I feel I've done everything I want.  Pretty much love his one.  A closeup...

 

Another closeup...

 

Ooohhh.... I love this little section...

 

 Here you are! The entire painting! Love! For sale at  

colorcatstudios101.etsy.com

colorcatstudios101.etsy.com. Oh! There it is! Guess you'll have to buy it twice!

Oh, and here is a selfie I took this morning when I stumbled out of bed.  Bad hair day.

 

Feline Assistance

Getting that great feline help with my photography today....

 

Yep.  She's helpful, all right.

 

After all, SHE is a work of art, too!

My Palette

Today's palette.  Have a good day!

 

Me!

Yeppers.  Solo mio.

 

An Artist's Studio

The aftermath of a particularly frenzied spurt of creativity.

 

 

Wow.  I need to clean up myself, too!  This is my work hair.  I know. Bad.  

 

Artist's Studio

Tools of the trade.

 

Flowers! Golden Lace

I thought it appropriate to paint flowers named Golden Lace on a background covered in gold! I did the drawing itself in the sweltering 101 degree temps at my favorite nursery, Arbor Gate. Down in the beds with no breeze, I paid for this in sweat, but it was sure worth it.

Just finished! It can be yours at colorcatstudios101.etsy.com. Fresh and breezy, it will put you in your garden, without the sweat!

 

Man, I love this. Closeups...

 

 

 

If you know anyone needing cheering, this will do it.  Satisfied.

 

 

Zig Ziglar Quote

Zig Ziglar quote on my palette. So true! 

 

Big Ben for Sale

My 30x30" Big Ben painting has a strong atmospheric impact and a big physical presence! For sale at colorcatstudios101.etsy.com.

 

Lantern Painting for Sale!

Finally weeded out the good shots - see my previous post! 

A fun favorite from my @Etsy shop. Cheer up your home with this happy one. Locals, no shipping and a free studio tour!

Check it out at 

colorcatstudios101.etsy.com

 

Photographing Art

I've been at this a while today and now comes editing.  taking pics of the art once it's done is always a challenge.  Different lighting situations are needed for each individual painting and time of day.  I've taken all these, and now still have work to do!

Lots of editing.  Back door often has really good light...

 

Sometimes I don't get them square, then they're no good.

 

This one's not bad... 

 

Nice shoes...  I lay them all out and delete the ones without true colors before I bother to crop.

 

Having a hard time getting the correct reds.

Took this one because I like the dappled light. Nor this painting I was going for a breezy sky, but want to do another one with dappled light.

 

Not bad... Here I am reflected in the car... Nice colors... Not square...

Nice colors... Still not square...

 

Perfect! Uhh... maybe not...

 

Nice reds, but now the blues are a little dark...

 

Let's try again...  Standing on our bed... Nope.  Washed out.  Blah.

 

Well, I like the atmosphere of this one.  Too dark, but I might use a cropped part of it for something...

Now, it's time to delete some, and crop the rest so I can better compare.  May have to go back to the car outside and take more...

Okay,  bye for now.  I've got editing to do!

 

 

Danny Kaye Quote

Most definitely! Danny Kaye quote on my palette. . This is the palette I used for my Chinese lantern.

 

Chinese Lanterns

Here's my newest painting now for sale at colorcatstudios101.etsy.com, inspired by a recent Chinese festival we attended. Love these lanterns; so cheery!  I've got a number of shots here because it changes in different lighting situations.  The Chinese calligraphy is in gold.  Enjoy!

 

 

 

 

And of course the palettes I used to paint it! :)

 

 

 

I like the palettes, too!  Check out my website and buy yourself a new painting!

Chinese Calligraphy

Working out my Chinese calligraphy again.  Pencil before brush, since I'm so white..:/

Years ago I decided I wanted to learn Chinese.  I innocently stumbled into Borders and happened to meet a Chinese friend of mine.  When I told him of my plans, he laughed out loud.  He said, "Even the Chinese don't know Chinese!"

That has rung in my ears for about ten years now, and I never fail to chuckle when I think of it.  From what I've learned, he is correct.  However, I HAVE learned a lot of Chinese, learned the background and development of the beautiful characters, can take apart about 3% of the Chinese I see in daily life, and have gained a deep appreciation for this beautiful language. Simply having the basic understanding of the correct way to paint the calligraphy and understanding the beauty of simplicity and perfection in every stroke has made me a fuller person.

So - I have to admit, no, I don't know Chinese at all.  But I have been greatly enriched by my studies, and I guess that's all that's really important.

By the way, I draw my characters with a brush.  I used to use the bamboo pens, but had a pretty interesting accident with a dirty and very obstinate one, which got rammed up inside my shin resulting in a bad and prolonged walk with staph infection.  After that, I shuddered each time I saw a bamboo pen, and finally gave all mine away.  Good story, but one for another day.

Good Morning!

Good morning! An  artist's desk.  Today, what does YOUR desk look like?

 

London Calling

We were in London, in the Arab district going out for Japanese. I guess these are alliums of some sort.  This is actually a pretty telling photo of me.

 

Chinese Lanterns

Couldn't resist those little paper lanterns at a recent festival. Did a little sketch and couldn't let it go! I'll take some good photos soon.  Love!!

 

Raccoon!

Now I've got some good photos and wanted to let you see some nice closeups.  This adorable little fellow can be yours! Check colorcatstudios101.etsy.com for my paintings.

Here you are!!

 

 

 

 

Working it Out

This is one way I make color decisions before applying it to a painting . Layering and labeling. colorcatstudios101.etsy.com #colorcatstudios 

 

Closeup of my Lion Painting, 'King.'

Roar!! Here's a closeup of my lion painting, which is for sale at colorcatstudios101.etsy.com.  Love, love the colors in this one!

This is one powerful painting!

 

Pears Pears, PEARS!

 The season for pears! THESE pears are a cutaway of a larger painting I have for sale at colorcatstudios101.etsy.com