Journal 52 - Week 25

This weeks prompt was 'Questions and Answers' 

Here is my page, done quickly outside before the rain came pouring down!

Not all the questions ask show up in the photo...but those are questions I have often pondered....

Journal 52: Weeks 12, 17, 18, 19, 21 & 22

A few more pages from my Journal 52

My intention with these pages is to not spend to long thinking about what to do, but rather doing...

Week 12:  Inspiration Board.

This is not what I originally intended, but seeing some feathers and leaves on the grass gave me the 'inspiration' for this week.

Prompt here.

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Week 17:  Treasure 

Prompt here

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Week 18:  Observations

While sitting outside one afternoon.

Prompt here.

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Week 19:  Outside In

Prompt here.

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Week 21: Top Ten Lists

The first ten things that came into my head.

Prompt here

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Week 22: Wings

Prompt here.

Art Class Weeks 12 & 13

'Sophie' is finished and I am now trying to find a mount for the picture so I can send it to NZ.  I would like to get it framed, but it just adds to much to the weight and cost of postage to the parcel unfortunately.  

I will take a final photo once mounted...and hopefully capture the true colours.  On a whole I am really pleased with this painting and really hope my Mum and Dad like it.  I am not overly happy with the back end, but some of that will be covered with the mount anyway.  I want to get it posted early next week as I want it to arrive in time for Mum's birthday.

This week I spent most of my time staring at a blank canvas...the class tutor wanted me to paint a scene with a Chinese Pagoda in it, but I find those straight lines and buildings really difficult and my heart wasn't in it.  Try as I might I just wasn't happy with anything I came up with.  

In the end so I didn't go home with a blank canvas I decided to paint a bird.

This was done in about the last half hour I think.

It is painted from a photo I took of a shag on a rock in Whangarei.  Interestingly, having just put this photo on here, I can see things that I need to add to the painting.  I had printed it out on paper, but some of the detail was missed.

So thirteen weeks into my very first ever art classes having not painted or drawn since I was at primary school - I didn't take Art at secondary school as it was an 'optional' subject and I chose to take Woodwork and Music instead - I can say I am rather enjoying the experience.  On a whole it is something I can do that doesn't hurt too much...sometimes it is a bit problematic when I am having a flare up, but as the class is quite relaxed, I can get up, move around, stand or sit and paint and sometimes I swap hands I am painting with to give my right hand and arm a rest.

Art Class Week 11 & Roses in the Garden.

I continued working on 'Sophie' at art group today and think I am making reasonable progress.

This painting is to be a gift for my Mum and Dad, so I hope it will be good enough that they will like it.

Meanwhile my little wooden doll 'Hitty Madge' has been working on her own art ;-)

These are some of the paintings she has produced so far.

'Out of Dawn'

'The Jetty'

'Over the Serpentine'

Not bad for a wooden doll eh?

Sometimes a little bit of madness is needed to cope with continual daily pain, especially as it has been spectacularly bad today.

We had a spectacular short lasting storm this afternoon, the wind blew, the rain poured down and the thunder and lightening clashed. A little while later the sun is out again!

This rose 'Happy Birthday' hasn't flowered for years.  My MIL told me it was because a 'sucker' was growing up and to cut it off....fortunately I ignored her well meaning advice and it has an abundance of buds on it this year and is starting to look glorious.

Designer Sunset is about to bloom.

Brother Cadfael is another lovely rose with a gorgeous fragrance

This gorgeous fragrant rose 'Korresia'  is one of my favourites.  

Purple Tiger is looking good.

My first ever iris is flowering as well!  

'Iris Nibelungen'

Art Class - Weeks 7 & 8

A couple of weeks ago at art it was suggested we try a painting 'in the style of....'  I started with a few ideas, but then I think it became more my style and certainly not like the artist we were supposed to be emulating!

I sketched a few things on the canvas...

...and started painting....hmmm. this is when I realised that I really didn't have a clue about what I was doing.

Or why!

Not one of my best birds that is for sure.

This is how it was left last week.

I guess it is a form of symbolism, of loss...with the sun setting.

This is how I will probably leave it today.

As an experiment it was interesting.

Pencil rolls - packing

I've made a little progress on getting myself organised for my upcoming trip down under.

These pencil rolls were on special for a very good price on Amazon and I thought they would be perfect for the job.  I only ordered one to start with but I was so pleased I ordered another so I have one for both sets of watercolour pencils

I've got a smallish sketchbook as I am hoping to spend some time working on my art while away.  What better country to be inspired in than New Zealand?

Just need to remember to add the pencil sharpener...if only I could remember that 'safe place' I put it!

I've got a great pile of nature, and natural history books for my Dad that I have picked up over the last couple of years...so not much room for actual clothing by the time I have added my art gear, camera tripod, etc...

Only three more sleeps and I will be off!

Art Class - Week 6

I'm a bit late posting this.  On Thursday I did some experimenting, trying to decide whether to take a small watercolour paint set with me to NZ or just my water colour pencils, or both!   I also managed to get a little acrylic painting done as well, trying something quite different this time.  My family weren't so impressed by  my attempt at a boat on the water!  I did try to explain it wasn't finished yet and I hadn't spent a lot of time on it, and when I showed them the picture I was painting from they did agree that it was 'similar'...hmmmm

Both need more work, but not sure I will get time before I set off for NZ at the end of the week.

Art Class - Week 5

We had a surprise visitor at our art class this week and an artist had come to talk about using different media and textures in our art.  She had various examples to show us of her own work and that of other artists, she also had some supplies such as rock salt, tissue, corrugated card, bubble wrap, cling film, cut up credit cards, modelling paste and much more that we could use to experiment with. 

I only did a couple of small pieces, which were quite basic, as I wanted to continue working on the bird painting I had started last week, but I have come away with some ideas and some handouts of different examples.

I love the colours in this.

This looked better before it was dry - interesting that there is a clear dividing line in a couple of places as I had thought I had completely wet the paper all over first, but obviously not.  

Now on to my bird painting

This is as far as I had got the week before.

This is how it is coming along.

Looking out into the garden this wet afternoon...

Mr Blackbird is busy.  Loving the water droplets on his back.

Birds & Art Class - Week 4

Rain, rain and yet more rain!  Everything is soggy wet, grey and generally miserable, however, a little brightness can appear if you just look.  I find joy in watching the birds go about their business and today was not disappointing as I spied a little Dunnock foraging in the grass around where the birds feeders are.

The little Blue Tits are always a delight and are seen everyday and never fail to bring a smile to my face as I watch them feeding on the nuts.

Today was my fourth art class and I took along my textured painting to do some more work on it.

Well actually I wasn't convinced I wanted to do any more to it, but the teacher thought I ought to...I reluctantly agreed, after all that is why I am going to learn something!  While there I thought I had made some improvements, but looking at the two pictures now, I am not so convinced!

 I still don't like it, but my younger son has and said he would like it so he can probably have it.

Of course it is hard to show on here and does look better from a distance.

I started my next rather ambitious project which is to paint a bird...I have sketch them before and used water colour pencils but not acrylics so this should be interesting.  I didn't get a lot of time as it was right at the end of the lesson so it is just a start.

Third Art Class

Well I am not sure I want to show what I did this week.  We worked on our textured board that we made last week and whilst I enjoyed experimenting I really do not like what I produced at all.  I think it is too abstract to me (either that or just a plain mess!) The result does not really match the picture I was trying to 'copy'  I did learn a little about mixing colours though which was useful.  It can probably do with a lot more work on it yet, but in reality I am not sure I am going to bother.  

My Second Art Class

I went to my second art class today and had a chance to venture into painting with acrylic paints.  I haven't really painted since I left school and I have never used acrylics before so this was indeed a learning experience. I have certainly never tried painting scenery before!   I feel I 'messed' it up a bit, but will leave well enough alone now and hopefully have learnt something for next time.

Of course it looks better from a distance....a long distance!

We also prepared a board for some textured painting that we will start next week.  This involved painting PVA glue over the board and then layering with tissue paper.