Silala's latest paintings

Leah's white flowers.

A very nice abstraction.

                                      Lisa's squirrel

Super fun. Lisa has captured the feeling perfectly.

Georgia's recent paintings.

Three recent beautiful, still life paintings

I love the glow in this one. Nicely done.

Lonna's lake with bright light.

I really like the clouds and the receding hills in this reworking of this piece. Lonna has added a great deal of depth and interest.

I've added just a few notes in Photoshop.

1. The light ray will impose on the clouds and hills behind it.

2. These clouds are really beautifully done.

3. Reflect the colors in the sky on the water.

4. Also, reflect the land forms near the surface of the lake.

The foreground is looking good and sets the stage nicely.

Lonna has made a much better painting than her photographis inspiration. Nice.

Lisa's Ssssplakoon

Lisa's super fun poster child for these stay at home times. I love how it looks like the first martini has started to take effect and how she is gripping her glass.

Below I've indicated the way that the liquid in the glass would work. The plane of the top of the drink tips up towards the back rim as the glass is tilted back. Notice also that the lower jaw is inside the back rim of the glass. I like the cool light on the nose and the reflected light in the eyes. I've added a highlight to the nose and eyes. Lisa, will you be adding whiskers?

1. Lisa and I had discussed having a warm side and a cool side of the raccoons head. The warm side may have gotten a little pink. I might use a subtle raw sienna-ish white. The color doesn't have to be dramatic. The value might be a little lighter in a few places on the warm side.

2. This indicates the plane of the liquid in the glass.

3. This shows the tilt of the glass.

Notice also that I've indicated a highlight on the rim of the glass and a slightly less intense one running down the glass on the dominant light side.

A super fun, charming painting.

Georgia's white flowers in a dark vase

Here is Georgia's beautiful still life with white flowers and a black vase. I love the barest indication of the vase. This and the leaves fading into the darkness pull us into the painting and create a sense of intimacy. The dark stage creates a dramatic setting for the white flowers. It's interesting in a piece with few very subtle colors to see how three small shapes of red can have an out-sized impact. Georgia has done a masterful job of using these red shapes to direct our eye around the picture. Notice the arc of the four flowers and the subtle counter angles the leaves take. This kind of a picture could easily be over rendered but Georgia relies more on studied indication over labored rendering to keep her painting fresh.

Georgia's photo reference and my few suggestions are below.

1. Though it's personal preference thing, I like the warm color of the wooden table in the photo. I think it adds warmth and I don't think it undermines the subtle red in the flowers that is so successful. It could even be a step darker than in the photo to be a little more subtle. I also like the angle of the shape in the photo on the table top and the way that a hint of the warm color of the table in seen to the right of the bottom flower.

2. I might just give the silhouette of the top of this flower a bit more character.

As I said, this is just a suggestion and Georgia's painting is fantastic either way.

Lonna's painting of a lake in bright light.

Here is Lonna's painting of a very difficult subject. I think that she's done a good job and with a few changes can get her piece to a place that can stay loose while adding depth and selling the lighting condition. She is working from a photo that is difficult to read. These kind of scenes can evoke emotional responses when viewed live but they are difficult to capture in a photograph let alone paint.

I like how Lonna has accentuated the shape of the hill seen faintly in the center of the photo. This light reflected on the water like this typically occurs with high clouds on a a bright day. This already blows things out a little and when the sun blasts through an opening in the clouds it creates an intense bright spot on the scene. I think that the edges of the transition from intense light to the surrounding areas where we can still se color and form are important to capture. In the photo we can see kind of ripple shapes. Also remember that the surface of the water is a flat plane and we can see the perspective on the surface with a vanishing point/ horizon line about halfway up the photo.

Here is a painting by Rockwell Kent who painted quite a lot in extreme northern latitudes. In this piece he captures a very similar lighting condition to Lonna's photo but gives us more information by not relying exclusively on a photo that has blown out most of the color and nuance. This is how I might approach her scene. Search for as much detail in the mountains and trees as possible and extrapolate. Notice the nice sense of depth Kent achieves by overlapping the mountains and utilizing atmospheric perspective. He has also given the water more color. Though it's not a high cloud day, that hot light would make seeing the color difficult. In plein air, in situations like that, I've found it's a good idea to look away from the lightest area and even to kind of shield your eyes to let them readjust and see color. Without the option of looking live one would have to use their memory and/or other shots of the scene. Notice in Kent's painting the very compressed transition from the colorful areas of the water to the bright light area and how there is still a little color in the bright area at the edges before the lightest bit at the center. Also to sell the effect, there are no other places in the painting where the light is that light.

1. I might overlap the mountains. Give them a rhythm and reduce the contrast as they recede. As is the shapes of the mountain and clouds both slant down to the right. I think that a few shapes countering this can help keep us in the center of the painting.

2. I like that Lonna has given the clouds a little more body. In this lighting condition with high clouds the clouds tend to be long and not puffy but for the sake of the painting it's nice to have more interesting shapes. As I've quickly drawn here the cloud shape can be used to create an arrow down to the center of the lake.

3. Even if the tree area is a nearly uniform dark color I would consider taking the time to finish the tops as in the photo which indicate that they are fir trees. This provides a sense of scale as well as completeness. As is, the foliage could be bushes which changes the feel of the scale. I like how you've created a pocket for the light area with the foliage shape.

4. Just a note to focus on the areas of transition in the water as mentioned above. Also as the water is reflecting the sky, unless its reflecting the mountains near the shore. I might consider making the sky not so pink. The color in the photo is a tough one to capture. I might just make one up that's in the ball park that I like as long as it harmonizes with the rest of the picture.

In the photo notes below, First notice that I cropped the sky which results in a changed ratio. Dont forget that we always have the power to crop our photos to make the most interesting compositions. I find that just using a couple sheets of bond paper to move the borders is helpful.

1. If you look carefully at the raw photo you can see several layers of hills. I'd play those up.

2. I like that Lonna has given the clouds more shape than seen here. I'd consider making them relatively lighter to create more depth.

3. I might add more of a transition area. Don't forget the broken up edge to show a little chop on the water.

4.I mentioned the color above.

Barbara's red flowers and lemons.

Really nicely done Barbara. I think that you've made your painting stronger than the second iteration below. Notice the lighter green fabric and the more integrated shadow shape. The leaves on the left side of the arrangement are more varied and interesting. Notice also that Barbara painted the vase blue which not only is closer that the original image but separates it from the from the flowers well.

I've made just a few notes below.

1. I might consider breaking up the shadow on the ground plane. Cast shadows are typically darkerright under the object casting the shadow. It then lightens and softens as it gets further for the object casting the shadow. I've quickly illustrated this idea using several smaller shapes to emulate the kind of impressionist brush strokes that Barbara uses in other areas of her painting.

2. The bottom of the vase should be more rounded to sit properly on the table top.

3. I might consider putting a little more color back into the iris with a bit more variation.

Nicely done Barbara. You're diligent work is paying off and you're improving in leaps and bounds. I look forward to seeing what you do next.

Susan's wooded trail with walkers

Susan's painting captures a really nice moment. I like the loose painting and the fact that nothing is over rendered. It has the feel of a memory that we all might have. The set up of the light is really nicely done to highlight the walkers. Notice that the side light illuminates them and the shadow behind them and the very dark shape of the foliage in front of them sets the stage really, really well.

I did a very rough bit in Photoshop to reinforce the set up that Susan has created.  Explained below.

1. I knocked the value down a little further in just a few areas, including the thin tree trunk at the bottom left edge.

2. Here, the light parts of the shadow have been knocked down just a bit to unify the shadow on the path,  which in turn makes the lighted area around the walkers more prominent.

I think that Susan's painting works super well as it is. My few suggestions are only to reinforce what Susan has already.

Leah abstract landscape

Here is Leah's abstracted landscape. I really like the direction Leah is going with her abstract pieces.

Here is Leah's beautiful sunset photo.

1.These shapes might be a little sharp. These are action shapes relative to the more organic shapes in the rest of the painting.

2. Look out for tangents. The end of the tree shape ends at the edge of the yellow cloud shape. This flattens the picture plane. If that's Leah's intention, she would be in good company with Picasso and Braque. Just a note to be aware of the tangents.

3. I feel that these shapes may be a little complex. I might consider having areas of relatively simple shapes to offset the busier ones.

4. I might consider gradating the sky a little more from the warm lower section to up to the top behind the clouds.

Notice the linear quality of clouds. The warm up-lit cloud shapes are long and connected. The darker, rounder parts of the clouds, as pointed out in previous posts, are still lighter than the dark shapes of the objects on the ground plane.

1. Indicates the gradated sky.

2. Maybe a little more attention to the shapes of the mountains and distinctions in value between the cool near ground plane and middle ground hills.

3. These shapes could be broken down further for nuance but look for the big shapes first.

4. Maybe consider some slightly more organic shapes for the foreground tree branches.

Overall, I'd say that Leah is really on to something. I don't want my suggestions to be a distraction to her direction but to support er efforts.

Artist Ed Mell

I'm reviewing Leah's and Lonna's latest work and their paintings have inspired me to search for a few artists who are excellent at abstracting a variety of subject matter. Tonight, Ed Mell, an artist who reminds me of Leah's abstract paintings. I hope you all enjoy.

I hope you all realize that you can click on an image you get a larger view.

Heidi's flowers and still life.

Here is Heidi's original version of her outstanding still life of vegetables. I suggested adding more elements to the piece. Not necessarily all of the stuff in the photo but a bit more. I also suggested raising the bottom of the bottle a bit and maybe adding the warm orange dots.

Here is Heidi's revised version. I'm sorry but I think that the dots aren't quite working either rhythmically or scale-wise without additional elements. That's my fault as I wasn't specific about how to render them or what to look for. Unfortunately I can't tell what the marks are in the photo so I can't recommend how to paint them. And in this case I'd paint them out with the interesting dark blues Heidi had in her first painting.

1. Though the bottom of the bottle was raised up, Heidi might also consider making the shape of the the bottom of the bottle rounder.

2. and 3. Are suggestions to add just a few more elements if Heidi isn't too burned out on it.

I know how tedious painting all of these elements can be, especially when painted with the intense attention Heidi has painted them. I still think that Heidi's painting is beautifully done and very interesting as it was and I might only take out the red spots to get back to closer to the original if she doesn't want to continue working on it.

Heidi's new painting of of backyard chairs. It's very charming and it's the second painting submitted this week that reminds me of the post-impressionist, Nabis painters from the late 1800's and early 1900's'

I like the rhythm of the flowers and leaves in the rose bush and the colors overall are really nice.

I have just a few suggestions below.

3. I might evaluate the size relationship of the chairs to the roses using the large, lowest rose as a guide for comparison.

1. Also note the size of the lower part of the painting compared to the top part. The bottom part is closer to us and therefore larger in the picture plane.

2. Though the light yellow color in the top of the painting is beautiful. I feel it's pulling our attention more than any other shape in the painting. This is primarily due to the contrast to the dark trees up there. As we look at the photo we see that none of the trees in the background are as dark as the darkest areas of the leaves in the foreground. Also, the yellow shape is smaller and the intensity of the color is reduced.

In the photo below we notice,

1. that Ive trued up the horizon by rotating the photo. Heidi has done a nice job of this in her painting. This is just a reminder to everyone to do that before you start painting to make it easier on yourselves.

2. Heidi's flowers are nicely done. This is just a reminder for us all to think about the axis and direction of things like these flowers.

3. The grasses here tend to be bending in the same direction. I understand that's how they are. I might consider varying the spacing and bunching of them and maybe countering the angle of some of them to make them more interesting in the painting.

All of the scale and color issues are up to the artist. What was started with the painters of the last century, the loosening up and more expressive drawing and painting styles, is obviously now part of the language of all artists now. My suggestions are are intended to point out the basics of a more tradition approach to painting as I think that having an understanding of the basics and how to initially interpret the information before us gives us the tools to artfully deviate from strict representation in any way you as artists feel inspired to. That's all a long way of saying that if Heidi wants to make the chairs larger than they would appear normally or if she wants to paint the yellow area brighter and bolder than in nature, it's all good. In some cases pushing those things way more may be even better. It's all about intention.

I think that Heidi has a really good start on this painting and it won't take much to finish nicely.

Georgia's sunflower and green vase.

So beautifully done Georgia. Any comments I might have are kind of nitpicking. Georgia has taken the suggested feedback and created a piece that has so much more life than her photo. The integrity of the shapes of each petal is very well done without being too tight and integrate really well into the whole flower. There is a fantastic sense of volume in the vase and the grapes without being overly rendered. The lighting is really well done.

 

Here is Georgia's first pass. Well done but not quite the success of the new version.

So here's the nitpicking part.

1. I would suggest that going the last percent by cleaning up just a few edges. Here on the grapes check the roundness of the grapes, the one on the edge feels a bit flat.

2. This edge could be cleaned up. The nature of the object can dictate the edges. In this case, a refined, manufactured object calls for smoother edges than the wild natural flower.

3. A very small point but the darkest part of the shadow would be right under the front part of the vase.

Great job!