A Month of Left Handed Labor

Just a few of the January 30 paintings in 30 days results:

Thanks for sharing the journey.

P.S.  The paintings which have not yet sold will be available for the special price of $30 plus shipping on my

esty.com shop site here until February 10 when they will revert to their usual prices.

Shipping is extra.

Pink Dancers after Degas (Day #29)

Thinking about the Bath Series by Degas yesterday prompted me to get out my book of his pastels. Somehow it never mattered if his dancers had legs that were too long or unfinished arms...the viewers knew exactly the feeling and the mood he was trying to capture.  It has been a long time since I copied one of the masters so I decided that for day #29 I'd choose a Degas and see where it took me.  The "Pink Dancers" ( 33" high x 22.75" wide, pastel) looks like this:  (keep in mind that every repro changes the coloration slightly depending on where and how it is printed)

I elected to do it much smaller (5" x 5") and in a square format, not the one shown.  By this stage (1889-1900) Degas was no longer concerned about detail but about blurred forms and texture rich in color.  That huge dark "thing" chopping up a third of the painting bothers me...a lot.  The book I have calls it a "compositional audacity," a vertical dark that chops up the dancers and is presumed to be a tree.  My book also notes that at this age Degas was no longer attending live performances and was painting from memory.

preparation using pastels and pastel pencils

my version of "The Pink Dancers" after Degas

5 x 5 pastel on wallis paper

matted in white to a framable size of 12 x 9 BUY HERE

detail

Copying is an age-old teaching technique (one must acknowledge the original artist) and is not as easy as it sounds.  The beautiful affect of layering cool over warm has to be understood first to be able to be reproduced.  Some of the prep techniques are not even visible but critical to the end result.  And finally, this research assured me that if a huge technical error remains the critics can always refer to it as "compositional audacity." 

To see the work of others participating in the 30 in 30 day challenge click here. 

En Pointe: Day 26 of Colorful & Original Off Hand

I really wanted to try more ballet shoes...and mix it up a bit.  So, with a little help from Mr. Righty I managed to make some boards with this old sheet music on it.  (Actually it is amazing how much you can do without the help of the dominate hand when forced to...feet, elbows and available other objects do come into play!)

En Pointe

10 x 5 mixed media on board

$30.00 - frame and shipping additional

I started to leave it at pencil and well, you know me, more is more, so I just kept adding and in the end I had used acrylic, pencil, pen, pastel and collage.  Mixed Media.  It is all sealed up nice and tight and needs no glass.  Enjoy a few more pics....hubby home and wants a play date so I am off the computer!!

Send me an email if you know someone who would enjoy this small piece...no time to link to a sale spot yet!

Day #17 - Colorful...original?

Day # 17 

Everglades Farm

5" x 7" watercolor and ink on paper

Visiting the Everglades was almost like going to a foreign country even though I am a life-long Floridian.  The scenery was extraordinarily different and the tropical fruits were amazing...many I'd never seen or eaten before.  One night we were headed back to "civilization" for dinner when we spotted this scene in the rear view mirror. Of course we pulled over and began snapping photos.  The sun setting behind this very orderly palm farm was beautiful in its linear continuity.  My left hand is now tired of small pieces and wants a bigger challenge...this might have to reappear in a much larger format.  I am already planning some changes and additions.  Day 17 of off-hand, colorful, original art feels like a bit of an accomplishment.  Thanks for sharing.

see work of other participants at www.lesliesaeta.blogspot.com

Caught!

You caught me!  This blog is late by about 24 hours and there is a very good reason why: I'm having a little too much summer fun.  My painting has mostly been on my saint series so my out-of-the-studio activities have ranged from jaunts to NYC and DC to mountain hiking.  I've been making colorful little pot holders, mosaic stepping stones, and lamps (yes, wiring lamps!). So I'm like a kid out of school and have no profound tidbits from the art world to pass along.....

However......
I did want to share this cute reminder of what summer is all about.  I was foraging in a friend's studio recently and she had this laying on her desk ready to color in and fill out:

(click HERE to see how to get your own copy, its from pen & paint blog
my thanks to Cheri at artsymatilda)

It reminded me that if I don't write down a few of the fun goals I had for the summer (rent a canoe on Price Lake, swim in Elk River, hike part of the mtn to sea trail...) they wouldn't get done.
So I am sharing this with you in case you need to color in your own summer bucket list and get started checking them off.  After all, school is out and it is time to kick back and play a little...or a lot!

Cindy

Rescued!

There are several stages to any painting: the first is the idea in your head, all gorgeous and perfect and screaming to be put on paper; the last is the end when you lay down your tools and step back to see if you accomplished your mission.  After joining a farm co-op recently and getting deliveries of fresh produce every week, my head was swimming with ideas for beautifully painted vegetables.  These are organic and fresh-picked so they have all the beautiful flaws and odd sizes and gorgeous colors that come with home-grown.  So last week I pulled out the tiny carrots and the bundle of onions and sat down to create those masterpieces.

Several days later my veggies had gone limp and I still was not satisfied.  I think my error was right at the beginning when the layout of the vegetables did not adequately fill up my 8 x 6 space.  Had this been watercolor on paper, or pastel, all I would need to do is pull out the scissors and take a nip here and there to make a more pleasing arrangement of object and space.  But these were done on cradled board which could not be cut.

So I let them sit a while (and mourned the loss of the edibles).  Finally it occurred to me that I could totally change direction and fill up the space with something else: words.  At least it would be a relatively easy way to see if I could salvage the previous effort.  Checking on-line for short recipes I came up with two and decided to add them to the painting.  See what you think:

The recipes changed the entire look of the work and while it added some levity to the format I have decided that it was not a bad rescue.  I think they would be perfect in a kitchen or a hallway to such.

Each board is 8" x 6"

cradled with 1/2" edge painted green so

that no frames are needed

My goof can be your bargain: I'll sell the pair for $139.00

which INCLUDES shipping!

Just contact me: art@cindymichaud.com



Blast from the Past

My recent paintings of snow reminded my mother of one I did when I was 11 years old...and here it is!  In 1964 I had not even seen snow so why I chose to paint this scene is beyond me...and it must have been from a postcard because I feel certain those are not the Smokey Mountains in the background.  This is a large painting, about 18" high by almost 24" wide and was done before acrylic was even invented, I think we called this paint "casin."  For fun I decided to replicate it in pastel and, painting only from the original piece, here is what I came up with:

This rendition is only 5" x 7" and is done in pastel on paper.  You can see that I took some liberties with the composition, adding and subtracting a few things.  And today, a bazillion years later, I have seen snow and the Rocky Mountains.  But honestly, I'm not sure that my re-do is all that different in style and technique!  Perhaps I will date and sign this one and, in a few years, revisit it once again...might be interesting to observe the progress as time moves on.  In fact, I already see a few things I need to change (the camera does that) so I'll make some notes and, if we're all still here, send it out again in 10 years!!

p.s. Kudos to my then art teacher, Barbara Bassett, who made me so proud when I finished a piece...she instilled in me a love for creating that exists even today.  Wonder if I can find her on Facebook!?!!