Village Gallery Art Challenge Finished Canvases

Nature inspires my artwork and for this challenge I thought of the changing seasons in my garden.  Winter reminds me of hibernation, turning inward.

Spring welcomes a feeling of rebirth and renewal.

Summer flourishes with blossoms and growth under the sun.

Autumn brings in the harvest and a time to let go.

Come see the exhibit May 7 to May 31.  For more information, check The Village Gallery of Art website.

Village Gallery Art Challenge Process

Nature inspires my artwork.  For the art challenge at The Village Gallery of Art, I thought of my garden with each changing season.  I like to create by adding layers of collage papers, ink,  line and paint.  The layers add mystery and texture to each piece.  I thought you'd like to see the layers one step at a time. The first layer is collaged paper-

The second layer is a painted wash.  Then, I added a stenciled floral design and a dark strip to tie the four pieces together-

Another painted white wash-

A free form splash of acrylic ink-

My favorite part of creating is seeing how each layer adds to the piece. The next post will show the last layer of collage, line and paint- the finished product.  Yesterday, I took my canvases to the gallery.  Next Sunday, all the artists' work will be hung and the show opens May 7th.  One-hundred artists participated in the challenge this year.

Janet Takahashi's Artful Sketchbook Journaling Workshop

Last weekend, I took a "Artful Sketchbook Journaling' workshop from Janet Takahashi  sponsored by the Portland Society for Calligraphy.  I felt like I needed a refresher course to learn some new techniques and ways to incorporate text along side my sketches.

One exercise that helped me to revisit my tools to see which are water soluble or not.  It made me want to use different pens and pencils more and not rely on the same tools all the time- to give my sketches more variety in line, texture and value.

Here's her ideas for adding texture and gradation of values to add interest to drawings.

 Another tip I'll use is to lay down paint (yellow, blue and red) first leaving white ares and sketch on top.

Using this same technique, I painted the apple and lemon first, sketched on top the the lemon with waterproof pen and used a Stabilo water soluble red pencil to add texture to the apple.

Now, I have a new perspective with some different tools and ideas.  With the warmer weather, I'll be outside sketching and enjoying the sunshine.

Check out Portland Society for Calligraphy New Website

The Portland Society for Calligraphy  updated their website.  It includes upcoming workshops and a gallery of member calligraphic artwork.  Fellow Portland Art Collective and PSC member, Suzie Wolfer, created this piece-