Seahorse 5

Last night was the opening of our show at the Douro-Dummer Library Art Gallery. The Peterborough County Warden gave a short speech and opened the show which was fairly well attended with around 40 people coming out to see the exhibit.

Today it is pouring rain and cool 51F (10.6C) with the high to be 58F(14.4C).

I thought I would like to spend the day drawing and decided that I would like to do a sketch of a seahorse hidden in among  some seaweed.

Once I had the seahorse completed, it was time to start placing the sea grasses around the seahorse.

I started by putting in the seaweed to the right of the seahorse.

This was followed by the one behind the seahorse and the one it had its tail wrapped around.

Lastly, I added a couple more to the left side of the seahorse.

Opening Night at the Douro-Dummer Library Art Gallery

Tonight is the opening night at the Douro-Dummer Library Art Gallery for the Helen Shepard and Guests Penny Little and Susan Sydney.














We were quite pleased with the turnout for the opening having over 40 people in attendance.














Most of the people stayed until closing time and a few didn't want to leave the show even then as they were having and enjoyable time.














If you have a chance to come out to see the show it runs through until 24 October 2015.

Setting up the Show at the Douro Dummer Library Art Gallery

This morning while I was out walking the dog it finally started raining and since I got soaking wet I didn't bother to change until after I finished the barn chores. But with the temperature at 76F (25.6C) and the humidity making it feel like 91F (32.8C) so I didn't feel chilled. Hopefully today will be the last day of humidity.

The three of us were going to meet at the Library Gallery at 3:00 to hang our paintings. My friend Helen was already there with her husband, Herb and their son Gord who is always an invaluable help at the art shows.

While we waited for Penny to show up, Helen and I discussed how to hang the show so that our works would go well together.














We decided that since all of us painted in watercolour, as well as in either oil or acrylic that we would have one of the main walls with watercolours and the other with oils and acrylics, so the watercolour paintings would not be overpowered.

In the front area on the wall by the computers there are three spaces between the windows where each of us could hang one painting. I took the narrowest space and that is where I put the leather carving.















There is also a cabinet between the two rows of computers where you can hang one painting on the cabinet door and depending on the size you can place up to five paintings on the top. Helen had a long painting that would be ideal for the cabinet door so we put that one there as a starting point.

There is also an additional space over top of the bookshelf which is seen as you enter the library through the front door.















When Penny arrived she wanted each of us to have our own section and Helen should have the one long wall, she would take the area over the book shelf in the main library area and that everyone should have a painting on the other wall and I could have the rest; since to me it didn't matter that is what we did.

Before I started to sort my paintings I wanted to get the far section completed where each of us would have a painting.













As it turned out Penny gave me her two abstract paintings which we stacked one over the other and since I had a couple of abstracts that would go with hers they were put beside each other and I picked out a lovely painting of leaves by Helen that would continue the earth tones along the wall.

I helped Helen arrange her paintings on the long wall and Gord helped her hang them while I put my pieces out along the opposite wall, where I felt they would look best.













Then Gord came over to help me hang the remainder of my paintings, which took very little time and we finished hanging the front area by stacking two of Penny's paintings on one side of the window and putting one of Helen's on the opposite side of the far window.

Helen and Penny shared the top of the computer cabinet and Penny took the area over the front book shelf as well as getting an easel to put up even more of her artwork in the front vestibule.

The opening for the show is on Friday 11 September 2015 from 7:00-8:00pm. all are welcome to join us, the show will continue through to 24 October 2015.

Bath Time

Today was another hot 87F (30.6C) and humid 103F (39.4C) day and also the first meeting of the Buckhorn Tuesday Painting Group.

I decided that I was going to complete this painting of the rubber duck complete with a towel, bath oil and bars of soap that I have been working on for quite some time (see posts on 11 and 16 July and 28 December 2014, 21 January, 08 February, 24 May, 23 July and 17 August 2015).

One of the first things I had to do was fix the bottom of the bath oil bottle. I mixed up a dark blue and removed the little bubbles at the base of the bath oil by putting in a shadow.












Now it was time to finish the sea shell container that held the bars of soap.

The inside of the shell was various mixes of greys made from French ultramarine blue and burnt sienna.

For the outside of the shell, the markings were painted with pure burnt sienna and the shadows with more of the grey mix but more to the brown tones.

This original 6-1/2" x 11” watercolour painting when framed will be available for $175.00.

Thank you for taking the time to visit my blog and enjoy the artwork.

Shady Place 1

It is unbelievably hot for the first week in September with the temperature reaching 91F (32.8C) and with the humidity making it feel like 106F (41.1C).

I spent the morning on the front porch and did this drawing of the main trunk of the big willow tree on the front lawn.















The tree just by itself was too stark, so I added a couple of cows around the base of the tree settling in for an afternoon in a shady place chewing their cud.

I may add another couple of cows, but I will leave that choice for another day.

OSWOA - Moonlit Forest 1

It is very hot 93F (33.9C) and humid 107F (41.7C) for the last day of the Kawartha Arts Festival. But we are fortunate that there is a little bit of a breeze blowing that is keeping it bearable inside the building.

Today I worked on this painting that I had started last year (see post on 08 May 14).

It didn't need a lot of work and I wanted to complete it while at the show.

I started with the main birch tree and added the markings onto the trunk with various mixtures of burnt sienna and French ultramarine blue.

I added some grasses into the bottom of the painted with raw sienna leaving some of the background colour showing.

Next I added a little French ultramarine blue to the raw sienna and painted in more of the grasses.

If you would like more information about OSWOA please go to my post on 12 March 2010.

The OSWOA shown here is an original watercolour painting using Artist quality Winsor & Newton paint on 140lb. Arches 100% rag, acid free watercolour paper. It is priced at $40.00 and sold unframed.

ACEO - Foggy Day 1 and 2

Today is the first day of the Kawartha Arts Festival and it was very busy in the morning and once the heat 84F (28.9C) and humidity 102F (38.9C) crept up the crowds slowed down considerably.

I was fortunate with being in the agricultural building that there was a slight cross breeze going through the building.

I started with the two foggy paintings that had had worked on earlier this year (see posts on 17 March 2013 and 21 July 2015).

For the first one I decided to have it as a pine forest shrouded by the fog.

Foggy Day 1

I used mainly Antwerp blue and burnt sienna for the distant pines and gradually added French ultramarine blue and raw sienna to the closer pine trees.

The foreground rocks were painted with the dark pine colour with a little alizarin crimson added to the mix.














Foggy Day 2

For the second one I made it a hardwood forest in late autumn just before the snow covers the ground.

The tree trunks were painted with various mixtures of French ultramarine blue and burnt sienna lightening the colour as the trees went further back in the painting.

The ACEO shown here are all original watercolour paintings using Artist quality Winsor & Newton paint on 300lb. Arches 100% rag, acid free watercolour paper. They are priced at $20.00 each and sold unframed.

If you would like more information about ACEO please go to my post on 11 March 2010.