Abstraction....

Having fun with a bit of abstracting....... this is why I take classes online because I am always learning about new products, approaches, and being stretched to try new things.  I think the bottom painting is the better attempt at abstracting.  When you are a literal thinker it is hard to lose all form!!

Studies in Neutral...

Hello...My name is Diana and I am a Color Addict!  So, this week in one of my online classes the lesson was with a 'limited palette'....horror music playing in the background!!!!  But all kidding aside, I love brown tone paintings and have been thinking I might need to tone down the saturated colors I use in my paintings.  I know this will not totally happen but I did really enjoy doing these two pieces.

Usually in a class, I take the new ideas, techniques, or whatever and apply them to a piece that reflects my body of work.  The lady in the white dress is in my art journal and purely for fun.  The top artwork is titled, 'Wholeness" and is a continuation of my orb series.

It was a fun week as you can observe.  FYI...the two online classes I participate in are, Let's Face It 2018, and Painting Your Heart and Soul 2018,...there are some incredible artists participating and some very good beginning artists.  The classes keep me humble and off the streets-two very good things..looking forward to the new classes ....xxoo Di

"The Moment of Surrender"

This painting was inspired by a class that I am taking in which a landscape was presented for us to do.  The main focus was on the sky.  When I started seeing a sky in my mind, I kept envisioning the moment when the spirit leaves a body.  And that image in my head was the birth of this painting.

First painting of the year!

Won't say much about this  because I posted this am...first picture of the year continuing the spiritual orb....I was thinking of the marriage ceremony when I created this....no title at this time.....

Have to love January....

I have come to love the month of January!  The holiday season comes to a close, the calendar opens up, the weather is chilly, and it is a perfect time to get back in the studio.

Every year I try to take an extraneous class, just for fun and enrichment.  Last year I took a class on portraits.  This year the class is about learning from the masters.  In fitting style, the first projects have to do with the renaissance.  So here is my spirit orb renaissance lady.  This was so much fun to do and I am really looking forward to the future classes.  The class is a facebook class and called Let's Face It 2018 for anyone interested in participating.  It is very well coordinated!

Of course, I am continually working on my current series and will post the works as I finish them.  There are several shows and prospects in line for this year, so back to work.  (but it is not really work if you love doing it...right?).

"The Impermanency of Life"

This is a piece that deals with the transitory nature of life.  Whether by man events, disease, or aging, we all terminate at some time.

The turquoise orbs I use frequently are my spirit symbols, and the ladder is the path through life in which (hopefully) we evolve to a higher self.

In this piece the orbs have opened and the the spirit transcends.  It was against my nature to leave so much open space but I think the way I painted this piece...says what I am trying to say.

Hopefully, anyway....forgive any typos, am rushing as I have a party to go to.... smiles, di

"Fisher Women of the Ice Lands"

This mixed media piece just makes me smile!  This artwork is in response to a class by Deb Weiers in which her piece was entitled, "Fish People of the Prairies".  I love her work and her piece is delightful.  Her style is more graphic than mine so of course they came out very different (other than thematically) from each other.  The differences in artist's styles and mark making is one of the things that make me love art and creating.  We all have our own voice.  What a celebration!

So, it really doesn't particularly fit with my usual work but it was so much fun to do.  Enjoy.

"Prayerful"

This is a redo of an older painting that I was never happy with.  When I am 'thinking' about what new work I want to start, sometimes I will work on an older painting that just never felt finished or too simple in its composition.  I think I am happy with this now...it ties in with what I have been doing lately and I think it is a pretty little piece.  It is only 9"x 12".  It is a gem.

"Sense the Presence"

This is actually a fairly large piece which I have titled, "Sense the Presence".  It measures 3'x4' and I love working this size.  The paintings themselves seem to have more importance when they are larger.  The smaller pieces are like gems and the the larger are the cornerstones for a series.  IMHO

Been on a cruise to Canada so now the holiday season is creeping up so my postings may slow down a bit until I can totally focus on painting in January.  I love January just for the reason that life slows down and studio time is not so hard to find.

Enjoy...di

"Art in America"

In my September 9th post, I wrote that I wanted to do a John Singer Sargent 'response painting'.  This is it.  I started with the plan to do a country person in a field but then I began reflecting.  Reflecting can be a good thing or a bad thing.  In this case, I think it was a good thing.  I thought how Sargent had painted high society and life in his time.  Now, in contrast, my time is a little different.....art is losing its importance especially with the masses, being cut from schools....etc.  So, this is my 'statement' on the status of the arts today...I will say no more!  I present to you, "Art in America".

"Angels behind the Garden Gate"

Hot off the easel...pushing myself to build more levels and visual textures.  Still staying with spiritual themes and using my angelic figures but building on the colors and using more spontaneity in the building of the layers.

I think you will probably be seeing several variations of this theme.  This one is 18"x24", acrylics on paper. The next one is going to be 3'x4'.  Feeling the need for big strokes.   Hope you like....Di

Busy Week in studio...

Busy week..this is a 10x14" piece, acrylic on paper and I have to say that I like it.  Hope you do also.  di-  short and sweet today :-).....

"Let the Children Know No Sorrow"

This is a 'redo/finish' of a painting I started a long time ago.  I had never finished it but liked the three musicians and never threw the canvas away.  As the painting progressed (this time), I started to see where it was to go.  When finished, I knew in my soul that the title of the piece was, "Let the Children Know No Sorrow".  Times are so chaotic and divisive now that it is scary, sobering, and oppressive.  It is my hope that the children will not feel the weight of the world on their shoulders and that we as adults can correct and heal the world so that we can once again be proud of who we are and what we represent.  Sorrow has visited this planet many times through the ages but my hope is that the children can be enveloped in the joy of life.

This is probably not my best painting ever but it is a heartfelt one.  Namaste...di

to add a layer or not to layer....that is the question!

The reason this was a challenge is because at each stage of the painting I was so tempted to call it done!  I had to take the risk of ruining all that I had done and just hope that I liked the next layer better than the one I had just finished.  I am glad that I kept going and next time I probably need to push even further.  The trend in painting now, from what I have seen, is obsessively patterned and spattered images.  For me there is a fine line between complexity and just too much.  I am basically a simple soul. Not simple minded, hear, hear!

So this is this week's painting.  I am calling it, "Metro Girls".
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Who Knew????

This year has been a great year in my studio!  I have participated in two internet classes that have been exercising and honing my skills.  This piece is for a challenge to paint like John Sanger Sargent.

Now, Sargent, is by far one of my most respected idols.  His portrait work just blows me away (highly technical art verbiage).  I know this piece would probably have Sargent rolling over in his grave but I kind of like it.  It  has nothing in common with my other work but it was a great project to tackle.

Who knew...that I would ever do a 'formal' standing portrait of a male?  I think maybe I should do more (hmmmm).  To be honest, I was really looking for a picture of an old man in overalls to fit in with my 'style in Tennessee', and my sense of humor, but I settled for college boy instead.  Maybe next time a farmer....who knows....

This week...

I am looking rather crazy these days 'stylewise'....Normally I work on a series, but this year I have taken a year off to just explore.  I enrolled in a couple classes to make myself try new things and it has been a very productive year so far.  The classes have really refreshed my viewpoint, honed some skills, and let me see what is happening in that big internet art world out there. Now it is almost time to start another series.  I have until the first of next year (self determined) to decide on a theme for the next series. The hard part of doing a series is that one wants to do something different than what is currently being done.  Hmmmm, working on it, that is all I can say for now.

The above picture was this weeks assignment in a class that I am taking..have a blessed week!....bye

Everything is Coming Up Roses!

This week's exercise was roses!  Now, I love roses as much as the next girl so I had to go for it.  A 'pretty' stylized face, even made it onto the piece.  Not my usual style but it was really fun to create.  Maybe I will let this lady visit my village with all the imaginary characters.  She would like it there!  This is in my fancy journal (see below) so it will be in my book maybe forever.







The picture below will give you an idea where the new series is going.  Spirituality is always the theme in my work.  Fences are appearing along with the ladders, so we shall see where this journeys.  Think I need to lighten up the colors a little, as they are a bit intense.  Must be an intense time in my life.  Nahhhh.....

"Silencing the Mind"

This was an exercise in being expressive.  That is second nature to me when I paint, so I LOVED doing this.  I probably tightened it up a little too much.

I am titling this piece, "Silencing the Mind".  A special friend inspired it. She is a very spiritual, prayerful, and powerful embodiment.  So, this is in honor of her.

The colors in this piece are rather unusual but I do love to push the boundaries.  They work, I think, I hope...... :-).,......di

the good news, the bad news.....

The bad news is I had hoped to have at least 24 portraits done by this time, this year.  The good news is I have 12.  Can't be too hard on myself: knee replacement, tons of company, put up two shows, etc.  Life is life and I have to admit that I have painted some other paintings since the first of the year also...SOOO..I love me, cutting some slack, and keeping on, keeping on...  These are all inspired by different techniques so they are quite varied, which of course, is a good thing and a bad thing...hmmmmm

Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder.....

I am in a 'class' in which we are being challenged to create art pieces that are in our own 'style' but inspired by a master artist.  For the month of September we are doing Botticelli.  Of course, he is out of the Renaissance Period, where perfection and symmetry were revered.  I immediately thought of his great work "Primavera (Spring)" which has the three graces dancing in it.  NOW.... in my work, perfection is not found, I chose instead to revere wisdom, aging, and sisterhood...so that is where I went in a different direction.

The title of my piece is "Inverno" which is Italian for winter and I celebrate the later stages in life.  My figures are not elongated, nor perfection, yet they are kind and wise.  I stayed with a muted color palette referencing a later stage in life and Botticelli's three graces palette.  I chose not to make the women old but just more mature and less idealized.  In this piece I celebrate the ties that bind, the cords that interweave, and the connection among the sisterhood.

My 'style' utilizes simple shapes, layered color, and a narrative approach.  Hopefully, you can see a little of Botticelli's influence in there.

Thanks for listening.....Di