whats next (AKA buried treasure)

as I worked on organizing my art studio yesterday I came across more works in progress I'd like to concentrate on after them waiting patiently for a year or two.

some of the works are just interesting backgrounds, but three are dear to my heart and I'd love to get them on the wall instead of being thought of as cluttering the studio.

a soon to be rendition of my childhood homestead

from a photo of my daddy as a child with my grandmother

a sketch from a very cropped, very fuzzy 

but cherished photo of my grandmother and me at the beach.

hopefully I can do the memory some justice!

then I have my newest from my free reference site that I'll be working on;

and thats a look into my painting future!  it's now September and I have lots of personal house-type things I have planned before Christmas rolls around, some of which involves bringing my painting area back down to my studio instead of where the Christmas tree will be in the heart of the home.  I might be kind of cutting the expectations close- especially since I'm dealing with more health concerns which may or may not involve knee surgery.  I figure I have a selection of paintings to choose from if I get overwhelmed with the other life-stuff and the muse comes calling.

until later, 

Jenny

new paintings in the shop!

hi there!  as i promised (myself) we were able to get the barn painting and bouquet painting up this weekend.  i'm happy with how they both look!

New Hope Memories;

canvas print

notebook

cards

totes

and more items!

A Bouquet of Joy;

prints

throw pillow

travel mug

shirt

clock

and more!

i've been going back to older paintings to make them ready for the art show in february.  i'm currently working on a huge 40"x40" canvas that just wasn't as beautiful as it could be.

from way back at the beginning of my blog!

i used some of my favorite bold colors to liven up the lotus and leaves, spraying to create the dripping effect i love and lay it down to dry.

 adding more definition and shading 

to the lotus petals

 working on the dragonfly coloring 

and letting his wing drip

love how this detail pops!

you will be seeing this painting again.

until later,

jenny

barn painting

this piece was close to my heart.  my brother commissioned a painting of our childhood barn.  the one i played in during my growing-up years.  my childhood on the farm was magical, and i wanted to put that magic on the canvas for him.

my big sis and i with our pup, becky, in the barn

normally i don't paint commission work and that fact showed up in communication problems, anxiety, sleepless nights, and the amount of antacids i consumed.  my husband was my rock during some freak-out moments, talking me down many times.  i just want people to be happy, and my perfectionistic ways override the joy i feel when in the middle of my work.  as long as i was in the zone i was fine.  once back into mundane land i was a wreck.  i think i will continue painting for myself, and if someone loves a painting so much they want the original instead of a print i may sell it to them.

back in the old days

i decided to condense our farm into the canvas.  many, many acres of well loved land are depicted where we would not normally see it all.  i sketched in the back pasture, the river where i used to wade and have 'boat races' with pieces of wood the family hammered together, and our little farm road that goes to the back fields.

then i started painting the underpainting and background layers.

many layers and hours later and we are at completion!

to make this artwork even more magical for my brother, i included a word from a poetry book our dad wrote way back when, called "cape cod moods".  the word i chose to include was "peace".  i clipped it from one of the copies i have stashed, and included it in the clouds.

i brought the painting up to the living room to sit with it, just to make sure it was done-done, and pixel kitty gave it two paws up;

this is such an important painting to me.  i know my brother will cherish it for a lifetime, as it holds our childhood memories and our dads view of heaven on earth.

now to paint one for myself!

until later,
jenny

this and that

still working on my 21emBODY challenge where we celebrate our body with a painting for 21 days.

i left you with the unfinished back from march 8th;

i've since called it done;

march 9th was bones;

this one fought me till i called quits

march 10th was hands;

march 11th was feet.  i was gone most of the day, so did a quick sketch the night before thinking i'd paint the next day.  turns out the next day was just as full, so i let myself off the hook as far as painting.

march 12th was arms;

and yesterday was eyes.  i did it today.  i don't know what i was doing, i just went with it.  turned out kind of creepy, but thats ok.  i'm thinking dots are in order.

over the weekend my brother came to me with a commission on his mind!  he wants me to paint our childhood barn for his house, and i'm happy to oblige, as it's one of my favorite subjects.  i think i will be painting versions of our barn for years to come!  some of you might remember the mini i put onto my shop a bit ago. 

that was my first go at the barn on canvas, and it was credit card sized.  this one is going to be H.U.G.E and i can't wait to get my hands painty with it!  i'm waiting for the delivery of the canvas, but in the meantime i will hunt for more photos of the barn.  it had pine trees in front, in different states of maturity thru the years.  i also want the background in this painting to be more like our little valley, and might have to paint some of our beloved critters frolicking in the pasture.

i'm also getting more involved in sketching the face in preparation for doing more portraits.  the many classes i'm taking this year are so inspiring and i'm learning so much.  i've got a way to go, but i've come so far in the 2 years that i've been seriously painting.

here is the sketch i did yesterday of my granddaughter, serenity;

and with the photo reference;

it's off, but i can live with it for a first attempt

today's another big storm day.  supposed to get hammered by the snow gods with 12-24 inches!  the man is home from work and doing his snow-blowing duties today.   i've made some banana bread and will be making some spaghetti squash casserole.  i may paint, i may sketch, i may plan, or i may just watch movies all day.  who knows what a snow-day holds!

until later,

jenny