:: What's the Value of that? ::

Sometimes when I become frustrated with my work or simply lack motivation I enjoy going back to the basics.  There is something rewarding in rendering a small wooden cube, a value strip or a sphere using graphite, charcoal or oil paint and making the objects look like what they are intended to look like.  

In Juliette Aristides book Lessons in Classical Drawing she writes, "Learning to separate light from shadow is an early and critical step for the creating of a strong image."

Every time I attempt to execute these exercises I'm surprised by how much more I recognize the value change.

Although I do feel they are better than the first time I tried them.  I always enjoy the practice of looking at the different values in simple objects. I will continue to practice the skill of observing and recording the values I see. Practice makes perfect, right? 

:: Local Spring Color ::

Grabbing, once again, from my pile of canvas boards to be recycled, I decided to see if I couldn't capture the beauty & colors of a neighbors Flowering Cherry.  I couldn't ... this year the blossoms were spectacular.

Spring  8" x 6", oil on canvas board,  2015, ©Nancy Van Blaricom

Attempting to take a decent photo of this work, one of the places I took it was outside on the deck rail. I think I like it in the outdoor setting.

:: Tree Study ::

Do you love evergreen trees as much as I do?

One thing I love about living in the Pacific Northwest is our abundance of trees.  I think I always took them for granted until I traveled to where there were very few.  Now I realize how fortunate I am to be surrounded by all this green.

I grabbed a canvas board from my stack of previously used and ready to be recycled canvases and decided to look more closely to these wonderful fir trees. Below a small study of the tippy top (not a technical term) of a local fir tree.

Fir Study, 8" x 6" oil on canvas panel, © Nancy Van Blaricom 

A few facts:

• With Washington's temperate climate, abundant precipitation, and fertile soils, Washington has some of the most productive forests in the world.
• Douglas fir is the worlds best timber producers and yields more timber than any other tree in North America.
• Forestry is a long term business, taking as much as 40 to 60 years to complete a harves and replanting, or forest management cycle.
• Douglas fir is the most important lumber tree in the U.S., also used for plywood, Christmas trees, paper and paper products.

:: What should I have done? ::

I often look at one of my older paintings and ask myself 'what was I thinking', or better yet, 'why didn't I think more about how to achieve what my expectations' were for this painting.

A few days ago I was looking through some old photos of past paintings and came upon this little oil painting of a bunny.   For such a small painting, it is 6" x 6", there is so many things wrong with it that I can learn from.

Looking at it now with fresh eyes I can see there is no sense of depth.

The foreground even though its in shadow, should be warmer than the background ... remember, warm advances, cool recedes.  As the path recedes it should get cooler in color temperature as well as the yellows in the grasses. A cool layer of blue glazed across them would help them to recede more. The color temperature is wrong. Also, there needs to be some color snuck into the path even though its in the shade.

The foreground grasses even though they are in shadow I could have added more value variation so that the tall grasses visually come forward, and maybe exaggerate the texture of the grass in the foreground, reduce the texture in the middle ground and really obscure it in the background.

In the tall grasses forward I could possibly have added some darker values ... almost as dark as the bunny, that way, the bunny would be more anchored to the foreground and the viewer.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
As I continue to paint, I'm happy to say, the more I learn.
I enjoy revisiting these older works and thinking about how I could change them, or how I could paint a similar piece to make it a better painting.

Do you ever go back to see how you could improve a past work and ask yourself 'what should I have done?'

H A P P Y  E A S T E R

:: Tumwater Fall Park ::

Tumwater Falls Park, 8" x 6" oil on canvas, ©Nancy Van Blaricom

SOLD

Sorry about the glare...

I've had such fun with this painting .... attempting to paint the rapidly moving water and capture the different colors I was seeing.  They all should be this fun.

I'm finding I also enjoy doing some value studies and sketches in my 

sketchbook before I get down to the fun of the oil painting.  

 Value study in oils ...

Sketch in my sketchbook.  

Around the Corner

I had posted this last week but decided even though I knew the tree was leaning toward the sun, in real life, it looks better in the painting to have it growing straight. I worked on it a bit more and was able to photograph it to re-post.

Around the Corner,  oil on canvas,  8" X 6",  ©2015, Nancy Van Blaricom

I thought it might be interesting to see how I came about painting this little scene.

I took the reference photo while we were coming home from shopping one day last fall.  Just as we were about to turn a corner I saw this setting.  I liked seeing the sun on the distant trees and the dark of the shade in the nearby trees.

In the bottom photos you see my studies from January .

I did thumbnail pencil sketch and immediately decided that I had centered the tree.  Then the oil study. I didn't do much better with the tree but I did like the varying heights that made the composition better.

From here I remembered what I liked about the scene in the first place, which was the sun in the distance and the shade in the foreground.

Maybe it was the journey I took to get to the end results, but,  I'm happy with this one.

Annette Bay Sheep

Whew, yes, I've finally finished this larger (for me its larger) painting that I had started around the first of December.  My goal was to finish it by the end of January and today I finished it enough to take a quick photo and post it. That was close ... tomorrow is February.

I still need to varnish it and do a little better job of photographing it, but for now its done and I can get started on a few smaller paintings I've been wanting to attempt.

Annette Bay Sheep, 24" x 36", oil on canvas,  © 2015, Nancy Van Blaricom

The reference photo for this painting came from one of our many boating trips to British Columbia.  

We had anchored in this little bay before but I had never noticed any animals, but, this time I noticed in the back of the bay a flock of sheep grazing.  I have always loved that photo and swore I'd one day paint it.   

Below are a few shots of the painting in progress:

Progression shots of Annette Bay Sheep

A Little Birdie Told Me ...

The other day while going through some paintings I had in the studio I found this one that I painted back in 2013.  Now, after finding it again, I think I would like to paint a few more of this cute little bird in different positions.  I like both the bird and the painting more each time I see them.

A Little Birdie Told Me,  oil on paper, ©Nancy Van Blaricom

Ohhh, goodie

Oh goodie, look what came in the mail today?
I have way too many art books, but, with all the rave reviews Carol Marine is receiving on her book I just had to have it. It looks amazing ...

:: January ::

January is more than half over and although I've been working pretty hard on a large project I'm not quiet ready to share it with you. So instead I'll share a few value studies I've been working on. I guess I'll never become an expert at getting my values correct unless I do more studies like these.

The top photo was done in oil and I got out my value scale and really looked at a photo, numbering them as I saw them. The second photo, the pencil sketch, I was feeling pretty good about until I compared it to the more accurate oil study. I think it might be hard to tell these are from the same reference source.

All in all, I'm hoping to do more of these studies and see if I can't improve my value handling better.

What about you, do you ever do value studies?

4" x 6"  value oil sketch on gessoed paper

2" x 2.5" pencil value sketch

Happy Holidays

Black Cap Chickadee, 3.5" x 6", Graphite ©2014, Nancy Van Blaricom

:: December Happenings ::

 Last Saturday … the first Saturday after Thanksgiving, the annual Holiday House Bazaar once again opened the doors to start off the Holiday season.  This is usually the only event I participate during the year and its always something I look forward to.  I love that old friends drop by and I have the opportunity to make new friends.  Such fun !

This year the traffic seemed steady from the time the doors opened and vendors were kept busy until the doors closed.  Aside from all the many items for sale the community hall (where the bazaar takes place)  had a small menu where you were able to buy some soups, sandwiches, salads and coffee.

The fun day was topped off when the two paintings  below sold.
The top painting has always been a favorite.  This is a very poor photo, but even so, I love the light on the water.

The one thing that I wanted to capture when I painted the two paintings below was the light.  Finding a way to paint how I saw a particular moment.  Was it a cool day or was it a warm day, where was the sun at?  Was the wind blowing … all things that make a painting memorable to me.

Hope your December is going as well as mine is ….

Mail Call, 8"x 10" oil, © Nancy Van Blaricom
SOLD

Early Morning Light, 8" x 10"  oil, © Nancy Van Blaricom
SOLD

My booth is up on a stage where I can look down on a number of different vendors and customers.
A good time was had by all.  :-)

~ Book Review ~

Recently I downloaded The Art Forger on my Kindle to read on our travels. I normally prefer a good ol' paper book to hold in my hands but the Kindle served both an internet issue and being able to pack more than one book for the trip.

The book (novel) is based on a real art heist where a $500 million dollar worth of art was stolen from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston in 1990.

The main character, Claire Roth, is a professional artist who makes a living painting reproductions of famous paintings.  Very soon into the book Claire is asked by an art dealer to make a forgery of one of the Edgar Degas paintings that was stolen from the Gardner Museum. Claire knows this is not right, but, she is offered as part payment her own art show which is something she has longed for so decides to forge the painting.

I enjoyed the book mostly because it shares artistic details which, for me, made it an interesting read.  Also it's a bit of a mystery as well as a love story.  You also read about Isabella Stewart Gardner and her numerous artist friends of the 1800's.

If you haven't read this book yet and you enjoy reading novels about art you might think of picking this one up.

~ Photos of Fall & East Coast Travel ~

Hi everyone,

Recently we took a journey to the East coast and saw some amazing scenes of fall colors and I thought I'd share just a few of the photos I took.  Although I think we may have just missed the most vivid colors of the season it was still remarkable.

In no particular order:

This first photo is of the beautiful Acadia National Park.  Acadia was first established in February 1919.

I have heard of Acadia National Park for many years and finally was able to see it for myself.  There was artistic inspiration at every turn.  If you haven't been able to see it for yourself make sure and put in on your Must See List.

Pretty colors were to be seen in Bar Harbor also.  Can you believe I didn't hear one local person say Ba  Haba while I was there?

Halifax showed color at every turn.

In each town we visited we enjoyed many local displays of color.  This street scene in particular caught my eye as it was staged with urns, pumpkins, colorful fall mums and then the added touch of the bicycle. Isn't it pretty?

There was beautiful scenery everywhere we looked. Although I still have many photos to go through  I just wanted to share a few before I get busy with other things and this season turns to gray and wet winter weather.

Enjoy !

Cloud Studies #16, #17 & #18 & 19

I'm looking forward to attaching 16 or so of the cloud studies to a hard support and framing them altogether as one large study.  I'll keep you posted.

~ Cloud Studies #16, 17, 18 & 19 , each are on

4" x 6", oil on Gessoed watercolor paper 5 1/2" x 7 1/4"

Practicing brushstrokes ...

Yellow Tulip, 8" x 6", Oil on canvas, © 2014, Nancy Van Blaricom

While going through a box of props I found a bouquet of silk tulips that I had stored away. I decided I'd like to use one of them, just one single flower, to practice some brush work.  Thinking about using the whole bouquet just seemed too overwhelming at this time so I cut one tulip and began to paint this lone flower.

Although it wasn't a real flower or a whole bouquet I loved working on this painting.

By using the single tulip I was able to concentrate on how my brush was being loaded & where to place each stroke.  Also I took my time and attempted to look for warm and cool areas, soft and hard areas, contrasts in value - dark/light.

This was such fun to work on I just may be encouraged to see what else is in my prop box in the way of flowers….. maybe.

September's magic ....

Last Monday I took my camera on our walk and snapped a few photos of some colorful signs of autumn I am seeing here in the Northwest.

One lone maple leaf laying in the street.  Beautiful colors on a wet street.  Signs that it rained last night while I was sleeping.

A small maple in amongst the dry grasses with all the leaves turning beautiful gold, yellow and orange.  

Looking into the green trees and huckleberry bushes you notice the gold leaves as the start their journey for the winter months.

My last photo was one I took while we were off on our boat this last week.  Plenty of seals were sunbathing on the beach as we went by.  A beautiful array of colors as the morning sun warmed the seals and the trees.

I love how my surroundings are changing slowly to fall.  How about you?

The hiatus is over ….

I have to admit I never thought I'd take such a long break from my blog.  I've noticed a number of my favorite bloggers have also taken some time off this summer.  Hmmm, wonder what all this means ... Surely blogging isn't going by the wayside. I think we all just got busy and let our creativity come and go without talking about it on our blogs, what do you think?

So, are you on my blog as apposed to just reading it in a feed? If you are on my blog you can see my new header?  I'm in the process of making some changes on the blog.  I'm thinking about deleting some old unnecessary blog posts as well as doing some organizing just to freshen it up a bit.

Anyway, lets talk painting .....

Harley, 8" x 10", watercolor on Arches 140 lb cold press
© Nancy Van Blaricom

My latest commission was a portrait of this handsome Chesapeake Bay Retriever.  His name was Harley and he was as big as a Harley Davidson motorcycle, lol.  Harley was born on September 11, 2001.  Right, yes he was born on that 9/11.  Not an easy birthday to forget.  Harley's portrait was commissioned by a dear friend of Harley's owners a couple of weeks before Harley passed away. We 

decided at that time to continue on with the commission believing they would love receiving it.  

When I take on a commission I always tell those who are ordering it that I will try but there is no guarantee. Especially with a pet portrait ... they are so personal. I usually feel added pressure to make sure and catch the personality of the beloved pet, that occasionally it just doesn't come and I need to let it go. Fortunately Harley came about pretty easily after some no pressure sketching. 

I had previously taken a number of photos of Harley.  Some photos were of him where he turned his back to me ... thats what the first sketch you see is about, Harley's head from the back, just to learn some of his mannerisms.  Next I got out the watercolors and sketched him in the headshot that was picked for this commission.  Just loose brush work deciding on the values. Then, one more sketch in a sketchbook just to get the feel of where I was going to go with this.  By this time I was feeling pretty comfortable with Harley and proceeded with my painting.

Prep sketches for Harley, various sizes, © Nancy Van Blaricom

Since the owners received their portrait of Harley they have both personally thanked me and told me how much they appreciate this portrait, saying I had really captured him.  

It doesn't get better than that.

He will be missed sorely by many of those who knew him.  As big as he was, and he was a big boy, he was their baby.  R.I.P. Harley.

Cloud Study #15

~ Cloud Study #15~

4" x 6", oil on Gessoed watercolor paper 5 1/2" x 7 1/4"

A friend sent me a beautiful morning sky photo.  That photo was the reference I used … my cloud study does not do the beautiful sky photo justice.  One day ... one day I will get better at painting skies with beautiful colors in them.

..............................

Happy Spring ...

Today, the first day of Spring, we are fortunate to have sun and daffodils.
Here in the Northwest we've been told that our summer will be warmer than normal. But, for now it is just perfect.

Hope the first day of spring is as superb as ours.

Cloud Study #13 & #14

Have you noticed I've been missing?  Although I have been thinking and reading 'art' I wasn't in the mood to paint.  I guess I was just wanting a break.  But .... I'm back today with a few more of my Cloud Studies. The top photo was from a reference photo taken in the summer.  I  loved painting this one.  I can almost feel that summer day.

~ Cloud Study #13 ~

4" x 6", oil on Gessoed watercolor paper 5 1/2" x 7 1/4"

The top photo was from a reference photo taken in the summer.  I  loved painting this one.  I can almost feel that summer day.

~ Cloud Study #14 ~

4" x 6", oil on Gessoed watercolor paper 5 1/2" x 7 1/4"

This second reference was from a more recent photo taken when we were experiencing one of our colder days with snow on the ground.