Wisconsin Memorial Park

Plein Air Sketch 7x5 acrylic. Sunny with a breeze today. A bit chilly in the shade.

Forest Home Cemetery Plein Air Sketch 5x7 acrylic on canvas

Another beautiful September Fall day.

Mukwonago River Between Hwy 83 & Main St.

A very pleasant day, high 60's, no wind, mostly sunny.

Dineen Park 5x7 acrylic on canvas

Painted with St John's Painting group. When I visited Dineen Park the circular pattern of the islands caught my eye.

Forest Home Cemetery Plein Air Sketch 5x7 acrylic on canvas

Another beautiful fall day, sunny and 70F.

Homemade Canvas Carrying Case made of Foamcore

My friend made these to carry her wet canvases. Very ingenious.

Mukwonago Park Trees Plein Air Sketch 5x7 acrylic on canvas

Today we went to Mukwonago Park. It was overcast but warm 70F. Then it became partly cloudy, then the last bit of time it became sunny. The contrast between sun & shade was very interesting.

Nielsen Frames

These frames were real easy to work with. You remove one end by loosening only 2 headless screws then slide the artwork in. Nice & deep so you can use foamcore as your spacers and backing if you wish. Here's a series of pictures illustrating the framing process with this type of frame.

A/C Art Association 62nd Annual Exhibit Fall 2010

I'm putting this 11 x 14 plein air oil pastel in this exhibit which runs from Monday Oct 4 - Friday Oct 29 at North Shore Bank, 5101 south 76th St. Greendale WI.

Note: I received a blue ribbon, best of show award - Annual Art Exhibit 2010 - AC Art Association

Here's the judge's comments for "Winter Feeding" Oil Pastel
"Beautiful use of oil paint in a different manner. suggestion of the images is often more impactual than telling the viewer everything - as you have done. A refreshing piece in its simplicity of paint." (I think the judge's name was Alice? Piatowski?) I couldn't find anything when I googled her.

Tradewind Products/ Griffin Gallery Wisconsin Pastel Artists Show

I went to Tradewind Products today because I needed a nice frame at a reasonable cost for my Griffin Gallery painting. Tradewind Products have very nice frames with the proper hanging hardware to hang a wire across. Plus they are very nice. The clerk? showed me how the clips come out and the direction that they are supposed to lay. Then he showed me how to take a flat head screwdriver to open up one side so I can slide in the mat & painting.

Tradewind Products is located at 2020 S. Kinnickinnic Ave, Milwaukee WI. I think their hours are M-F 9-4 and Sat 9-12. phone 414-482-2992 (I couldn't find a website for them.)

My 8x10 Guacamole Pastel Still-Life was accepted in the Wisconsin Pastel Artist's Fall show at Griffin Gallery. The show runs from Friday, October 1 - Saturday, November 27, 2010

For more info see:

• http://www.wisconsinpastelartists.com
• http://griffingalleryfineart.com/GriffinGalleryFineArt/Home.html

Dineen Park Plein Air Sketch 6x6 acrylic

Saw a turtle the size of a cereal bowl. Colors are starting to go towards fall.

Stacey Williams-NG demo at AC Art Association

Here's some info I found

• http://www.staceywilliamsng.com/blog
• http://www.wisconsinart.org/education/summer.aspx (She taught summer classes at WA museum of Wisconsin Art on Drawing Drapery and Fabric Folds.
• She also had a show at the Underwood Gallery http://www.underwoodgallery.com/

I like her paintings. They're very dramatic. She told us that she graduated BFA in graphics and worked as a creative director until 2005 when she quit to paint full time.

She gave us a sheet identifying the 7 basic folds per the Italian masters; Pipe or drop, Zigzag, spiral, Diaper, Half-Lock, Drop and Inert. She did 3 demos and was very fast.

She said it's important to draw what's underneath first then draw the drapery. A good exercise it to actually draw a still life than drape it.

You want to establish landmarks, darks, decide on hard and soft lines. Pick one spot to do great to key into the fabric type. Fabric looks more like fabric when it's drawn next to something that is not fabric. Need to indicate when drawing, gravity, how it hangs, its weight and where it clings. Lighter edges are in front. Exaggerate and make super dark shadows. When painting use different brush strokes for Fabric and not fabric. Vary your brush strokes all over the painting to create interest. Stripes define fabric, give it volume. When painting have your strokes follow the grain of the fabric. In one demo she used charcoal to define the shapes and shading then used a pencil to make the stripes. This demo made me want to draw cloth.

Wisconsin Pastel Artists Exhibition

This exhibition is a collaborative effort between
the Wisconsin Pastel Artists www.wisconsinpastelartists.com and
The Underwood Society of Fine Art Photographers http://www.theunderwoodsociety.com/ .

Artists have selected and interpreted stunning photos from the Underwood group.

Artists Reception: Thursday, Sept 16, 6-8pm

Exhibition: Sept 12 - Nov 11, 2010

Against the Flow, 14x11 pastel

Here's a piece I just finished for the Wisconsin Pastel Artists Show.

Charcoal Sketch

Really liked the model's hair!

Lincoln Park Sketch

Last week I was at Lincoln Park overlooking the river by the Pavilion. Water is down because Estabrook Dam is broken. Brush has grown along the edge of the river and in a few years you probably won't be able to see the river from the pavilion any more. Very windy, my hat kept blowing off. 5x7 acrylic on canvas.