Traveling Artist, The Parthenon (Nashville)

Did you even know there’s a Parthenon in Nashville?  Nashville’s called the ‘Athens of the South,’ so they built a plaster Parthenon to celebrate.  It was so popular but plaster doesn’t last so they built this beautiful Parthenon exactly like the original!  It is truly beautiful.  Who knew? 

And can I just comment about the cirrus clouds? It seems like Nashville has an abundance of them.  Light, dry, breezy conditions.  Houston being so humid has an abundance of cumulus clouds, which I also love.  But we sure are enjoying the cool, fresh air and deep blue skies!

Remember, it’s exactly to scale.  Nice to see one that’s not been aged for thousands of years, huh? :)

Art Classes!

Now THAT is a lot of pencils, Bubba!  My students could look at just these ends and know each pencil’s purpose - light lines, super dark values, initial sketching, super-fine details, etc.  Can YOU? School starts SOON and I still have a couple slots open in almost all of my classes.  I teach in two locations, in The Woodlands - www.hisclasses.org; The Training Center - www.ttcclasses.com.  If you want a spot, let me know right away to get your spot.

Here are the links:

www.ttcclasses.com

And www.hisclasses.org

Paint Pouring Day!

Whew!  All day at it.  Today I spent the ENTIRE day doing paint pours!  I am excited to show you what I did, but right now... right now I have a rather large mess to clean up.  

Cool Watercolor Leaves

On this hot summer day what we need is a nice cool painting.  This watercolor of leaves fits the bill!  I went to a ‘Picasso Black and White’ exhibit which blew me away and this painting is one of the resultant pieces, giving my friend Pablo a nod.  In that exhibit they showed a lot of ‘negative space’ paintings he did... painting the background AROUND the subject.  I have learned to love this technique!  This one is for sale at colorcatstudios101.etsy.com.  Look me up!

colorcatstudios101.etsy.com

Here you have some nice closeups so you can really see the layers.  

Love these layers.  Such nice depth.  

Meet the Artist of This Blog!

Meet the artist of this crazy feed! Here I am waiting for a show in Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre in London, the only building in the city that is permitted to have a thatched roof, for obvious reasons.  We enjoyed two peerless shows whilst there.

 I’m in one of the balconies but you can look down to see that people still crowd around the stage, lean on the stage and stand shoulder to shoulder for the entire length of the show!  What a place.  

I also notice my gold earring(s). I lost one on that trip.  Came back Stateside and found a different sized gold hoop and wore them as a mismatched pair.  I’ve always felt that ‘life is short, you might as well mix up your jewelry!’ The next time we went to Europe I lost my last hoop! Maybe the next time we go I’ll find a pair, huh? :) 

Man, I miss those earrings.  Dang.

Creative Inspiration

This is so very true.  I’m wondering if other creatives feel the same way? There are so many things I’m interested in, so many things I want to learn, so many things I want to try.  There is always something I want to create and it takes time alone to think in order to produce.  And ya know what?  If you are good company with yourself, you’ll be good company for others as well. 

This is my own quote on a mixed media piece I did. ❤️ 

Mystery Painting Piece

Here’s another tiny section of my new mystery painting.  Can you tell what it is yet? My concentration for this piece was texture and color.  The plan was to lay down textures before anything else, and then I thinly glazed colors, one on top of the other so it would be as luminous as stained glass. I am a colorful girl after all! The big reveal will be tonight at 7:00.  To help you guess what it is, this painting is the mate to another, which you will already find on my website 

colorcatstudios101.etsy.com

This painting really is a celebration of color.  I love even this tiny section!  Stay tuned: I’m going to reveal the entire painting tonight.

Creative Inspiration

I believe that artists of every type are commissioned to speak for all of humankind. I myself feel a deep responsibility to use the gift, and sometimes receive comments that surprise me about how what I created has so deeply affected another person.  All I know is that if I’m true to myself and true to my God, then what I feel and create will touch others. 

I’ve also learned through the years that if I stay true to myself and true to my God and DON’T receive affirmation for my work, that’s okay too.  I know in my heart that I followed the call and did the work, and that’s what’s important.  (my quote is on a portion of one of my newest paintings).

And by the way, the INSPIRATION for this painting, of which you see a little portion, is a bag of grapefruit a friend gave me.  They had stems and leaves still attached and were gorgeous!!! I had to draw and paint them for DAYS before I could eat even one!

Cat Painting Installment #5, Creating

Okay, here we go with Installment #5 spelling out how my creative mind came up with my recent cat painting and the steps I took to get ‘er done.  These four shots show the next set of layers into which I brought golds to pull those royal colors together.  You can see I used my handy dandy linoleum acanthus leaf stamp that I recently carved.  Now... we’re getting close to actually painting a cat!

For me, a painting has to hold my interest, just like music.  With all the layers of color and texture, I never tire of work like this! :)

Abraham Lincoln Quote

Abraham Lincoln quote on one of my embossed metal pieces.  It’s so true.  It doesn’t even matter what you choose to do (as long as it’s legal and you WANT it)!  Just go for it!

Yes, I photoshopped this piece to make it look cool, but honestly, I think it looks better the way it was!

Funny One Painting with Comic Strips

It’s so nice to have hired help to do the dusting.  And what is it about outdoor photography, anyway, that invites so many feline helpers?  Whatever it is, I’m glad for it.  They just want in the picture too. This piece, named ‘Funny One,’ is a mixed media piece into which I incorporated the good old funny papers - the comics.  All my favorites, of course. :). Always makes me smile. Available at 

colorcatstudios101.etsy.com

This sweet girl is always with me.  It’s no wonder she’s in the pic, she is a Maine Coone and follows me around like a dog.  That’s one of their character traits and what makes them so precious.  The faithfulness and companionship of a dog, the easy care and loving of a cat.

An Artist’s Body; Just Another Canvas

I consider my body just another canvas.  Here’s a good example. Sorry for the poor lighting, I look rather like a mannequin.  Ah, well.

Also, what I wear is an extension of my personality and each piece is telling.  First, the dress.  I’ve had it for a long time.  I don’t know why I first bought it, and have called it my ugly dress all this time.  Yet I continue to wear it and it’s always been a favorite.

The long amber strand is about 40” and I usually loop it around a couple times.  It was my mother’s, so it holds special meaning.

The velvet scarf which is a rich brown on one end and a deep red on the other was a find somewhere in the South of England in a little coffee shop.  Wanting coffee, I walked in and this Texas girl found two people, a clerk and a customer, discussing Texas food! It was a warm and welcoming shop with walnut cake, pea soup and a pile of sketchpads on a table into which anyone that had the desire could make an artistic entry.  Enjoying the atmosphere and conversation, I walked around to find the shop was also a kind of second-hand garage sale of sorts.  Draped over who knows what, I found this scarf for a mere four pounds, which I think was about six American dollars at the time.

You can see I’m wearing two scarves; the crazy black one with the dangling shapes I adore! Gary and I went to Florida a couple years ago and I scooped this up on one of the days he had to work all day and, oh, woe is me, I HAD to go shopping.  This scarf fits the weird bill and suits me just right.

The brass bracelet is honey comb shaped, and I bought it to remember the great times I have with my friend who has hives, our honey gathering and bee sting experience, of which we hope to have many more. ❤️ 

The wooden bead bracelet is actually a necklace that was my mother’s.  It’s olive wood from Israel and is also a symbol of her intrepid, adventurous personality.  She traveled internationally twice before dad realized she was having all the fun and decided to join her in her overseas voyages. This bracelet is very precious to me.

I purchased the ruby ring when I was maybe 23.  It’s been my friend all these years.

The gold band is a ring my dad found metal detecting.  It all began for him when we lived in Illinois and the county drained the community lake.  One of our friends had a metal detector and moved right in to the swimming beach finding probably 1,000 rings.  Some were cheap but being the first one to the beach he made a score of a whole lot of precious gems and metals.  Right there the metal detecting bug bit my dad.  He had an awful lot of fun doing this, always drew a crowd, and sometimes found some pretty nice stuff! All this to say, the jewelry from my parents is the most special of anything I’ve mentioned.

Oh yeah, the necklace with the big, glittery hunk o’ glass? True Value Hardware Store.  Where else? :)

Grand Ole Oprey Painting

An artist’s life is ALWAYS interesting, and one never knows what one will be doing next!  Here I recruited Melody of Refine Arts to help me paint the Grand Ole Oprey for a very special event the choir and orchestra had at church. What fun that was!  Ladders again.  It’s always ladders. #afraidofheightsoverhere

We only painted on paper that had been taped up.  VERY quick job for a temporary ‘installation.’ Yet I think it turned out really well for the time everyone spent on it!

You can see that this was a quick job.  I used to be a perfectionist.  I learned a long time ago that you do the best work you can in the amount of time you have.  We had very little time for this and it was for a one-night event.  It fit the bill perfectly and I think it turned out great.

This is how the final looked under lights.  

Drawing of Piglet

School is IN SESSION! Drawing 101 in all classes to start the year right!  Here’s my five minute in-class demo teaching beginning drawing. This involves space, line, texture and values.  Enough for one day. Piglet!  He could be better, but hey, five minutes!

Fun Mail!

Don’t we all just love to get fun stuff in the mail? You, too, can get fun stuff, but first you have to ORDER it!  Outgoing!!! Get on my website and find something fun to find in your mailbox besides bills and junk mail. #reallycoolartcancometoyoutoo!

Art Teacher Preparations

Remember your teachers, people, because we spend August working like crazy people whilst you are laying around the pool. I’ve laid up $1,000.00 worth of supplies (you’re welcome, Jerry’s Artarama) so far in preparation for my classes.  A couple classes are full, but I still have a bit of room in my others.  Teaching in The Woodlands and in Conroe.  For formal homeschool classes in all subjects, check us out at:

www.hisclasses.org

 (The Woodlands)

And,

www.ttcclasses.com

(Conroe)

And by the way, if you are looking for a FABULOUS pencil, find those big Jet Blacks at Jerry’s.  LOVE.

Artist’s Flatlay in Studio

I’ve done quite a lot of layouts, always in a single color.  This time I decided to celebrate the color wheel and just lay down those colors (sorry, purple, I owe you one.) Of note, gorgeous ribbons one of my students gave me on a cool gift, my metal embossed seahorse mounted on a box and a colorful swag I recently made which I toss over all kinds of things to brighten things up and celebrate. Oh, and my coolest ever striped purse from Target. And my cheap sunglasses.  (These be no rhinestone shades.)

Self Portrait, Part the Fourth

Well, here we go again! Find my three previous posts down below this within the past few days.  I’m continuing my self portrait, as described by this stack of books. Oops... I chose the wrong pic - me and my son... and it’s too good to delete, so... this picture is of me and my son! We just finished having lunch at the BIGGEST RESTAURANT IN TEXAS, The Oasis, on beautiful Lake Travis. :)

Now, back to the self portrait... let’s see if I can do better ...

Here we are. All right, I’m moving my way downward, and have arrived at Bernini. Oh, Bernini, how I love you! I was so excited to meet your work in person when we were in Roma, and my love for you has not dimmed! Michelangelo did a great work.  You built upon that work. You took the idea of his gorgeous figures further by adding emotion and muscle tension. Your sculptures are alive with emotion and feeling, right down to their very toes! I love this book as well because, well, it’s a Phaidon book, and Phaidon knows how to do things right.  You can count on Phaidon to produce beautiful stuff.  It even smells good.  Don’t you just love a book that smells good?  Also, I use this book almost every year in my art classes.  Soo handy for so many reasons.

The Complete Van Gogh.  I love his work. I sympathize with his lot in life, which, try as he would he could not seem to improve.  That he could create such beauty - it’s just a wonderful thing.  Also he’s Dutch.  So am I. We Dutch artists have to stick together.  Visiting the Van Gogh museum in Amsterdam, home of MY PEOPLE is a memory that I cherish.

Down on the far right you see a little Latin dictionary.  I know I already covered Latin earlier, but Latin is really just so important to me, that it’s an ongoing thing. Just today I was reading semi-historical fiction about 14th century Norway, and so much Latin comes up in it.  It’s everywhere, and nice to understand it when it comes along.

Enough for this post! We are getting there! I believe I now have four books and a wooden toad left to explain.  See ya in Part the Fifth!

Self Portrait, Part the Third

All right, this is the third post in my self-portrait reveal.  Last time I ended with James Herriot, so we begin with the next book:

Latin Roots you say? Stupor Mundi! Yes! I have long been fascinated with languages and done serious study before each of our European travels. Wherever we went, I always had learned enough to get directions, exchange money, read signs, get to the right airport gate and essentially live and thrive.  But Latin, oh how I love thee! For years I studied and taught our three oldest kids (those weird homeschoolers, you know) Latin. Our oldest says it was the best thing he learned in high school and it has ever so greatly enriched our lives.  As the base of our language it will never be dead - but even so, its boundaries are far beyond that.  Not to mention the fact that it made learning any other language easy! I also chose this book because it’s representative of our 26 years of homeschooling our four kids.

The next, William Morris. This book is full of his designs.  Pattern, color and texture.  He was a master. And color, pattern and texture are a never ending source of interest to me.

The Musee d-Orsay.  This great, peerless museum lies in the heart of Paris, across from le Louvre.  These two museums nod and smile at each other across the river in understanding, and I adore them both. This book also represents our travels and unquenchable curiousity.

Pucci begins where William Morris left off.  More color, texture and pattern.  Why two books that represent the same idea? I have no idea, but really to me it represents a continuation of the work as time passes into the modern age.

Enough! That’s all we can take for one post!  I’ll be back soon with .... Self Portrait, Part the Fourth.  See you then!

Self Portrait, Part Two

All right, here we go again! It seems that my self-portrait is, well, wordy, and I guess now’s as good a time as any to admit to you that this as well is one of my traits!

To pick up where we left off... my previous post ended after six books, and I’m working my way from top to bottom. 

Next, Designa.  Oh, Designa! A reference of classic design through the centuries, I have gone back to you again and again for years! I have become so rich because of you that each time I see you displayed in a bookstore I give a happy, contented sigh. You’re the best part of that Wooden Book bunch.

Soup for Supper? Yay! A children’s book with delightful illustrations that I’ve read to all our kids. I tried to buy it as we always used library books, but it was out of print.  Our oldest son actually found it - eureka - and gave me this most delightful gift! Now I have been reading it to my art students and this year had them copy some of Phyllis Root’s incredible work. Personally raising up a new generation of Phyllis Root lovers.

Okay, leaning on the stack, just trying to get into the picture, is Color.  Oh how I have loved this book.  When I get my art students busy creating I will often read to them.  Even with my high schoolers, if I say the phrase, “It’s story time!” they will give up a little cheer. Who doesn’t want to know that the color yellow used to be made from the urine of cows fed mango leaves, a beautiful purple or mauve was resultant from the massacre of millions of snails, or that wars were fought over a red made of bugs’ blood? Even today some of your makeup and some of the things you drink contain bugs’ blood.  It’s nice to know you’ve chosen organic.  :) And oh, how dearly I love the groans and horror rising from my students when they learn these wonderful things. Just makes me so happy.

Continuing downward we come to Bouguereau. Bouguereau is one of my favorite artists. Highly favored in his lifetime, his work fell out of favor when he died, and he was actually ‘rediscovered’ fairly recently.  Love, love love his work, and many artists I highly admire have also been inspired by him.

The Rembrandt. Note that it’s in Dutch. I picked this one up when we were in The Netherlands.  It represents several things.  He’s one of my Top Ten artists and he’s also Dutch.  As am I.  Two famous Dutch artists, right? :) I also chose the Dutch version because I love to figure out other languages. Call it a hobby.

A Passion for Colour.  This is one of the newest in my stack, but I cherish it.  I LOVE color!  This woman and I, yep... we’d be good friends.

Picasso Black and White.  A number of years ago the MFA Houston had this exhibit.  I thought, “...ah, Picasso.  But just black and white? They’ll probably have some little pencil drawings and some black crayon and it’ll be boring.” Oh my goodness I was so wrong! I went in planning on spending an hour and going to an appointment I had later on.  I staggered out after four or five hours totally missing my appointment and incredibly inspired! Those black and white paintings have given me a lifetime of inspiration!

Under that, Roger Dean’s Views.  Oh, Roger, Roger, Roger! How I have loved you since I was 16 and bought my first Yes album!  Your work! Your crazy, colorful, otherworldly abstract but totally representative work! Your analogous and complimentary colors.  I have both drooled over and been inspired by your artwork for all these years.  And I am very sorry and angry you didn’t win that lawsuit with the Avatar movie people stealing your inspiration as their own. Seriously. Anybody with brains could see you all over that movie.

Okay, one last book and I will post this so you can take a reading break! We end with James Herriot’s Treasury for Children.  We wore two of these out with our kids and I give this book now as baby gifts.  Anyone that knows anything about James Herriot will understand.

All right, that’s it for now.  You will find me working through the stack in my next post which will be Self Portrait, Part the Third.  See ya!