School Work...

Well, as I've mentioned before school is back in session for me. My last assignment just got posted. This is a still life class, so we're reviewing drawing techniques and going over the basic principles of good still lifes. I thought I would share a bit about how I work. Usually I start out with some thumbnails (the sketches) moving my subjects around a bit, looking for the best set up. I then sketch (with paint) on the canvas and complete the final painting from there. The top two thumbnail sketches have/are (see painting above) going to be paintings for assignments. I liked the perspective with the pears inside the bowl (photo posted) and I liked the way the shadows looked on the sketch with the banana. Drawing them out really fast like this, helps me to see what will work and what won't. Happy painting everyone!!!

Mail Art!!

I just love this mail art group that I've joined. Here are a couple of works of art I've recently received. There is something so cool about getting these little treasures in the mail instead of my usual bills!!! Thanks everyone!!!

Blogging is a small world!!!

On Saturday, I got to be a part of Nuts About The Von Liebig. It's sort of a "family day" with many cool things for kids and families to be a part of and it was free!! I was there doing some painting demonstrations. I have to tell you, it was so fun! I met some wonderful adults and kids and believe it or not a fellow blogger! Yep! I follow Mary Sheehan Winn's blog and she stopped by and recognized me! What are the odds! Mary is a member of the Fresh Daily painters and her work is just beautiful! You'll have to stop by and check out her blog. Mary thanks for stopping by to introduce yourself!

If you're wondering what the buttons are all about, I met some very cute "future artists" at family day. These girls made me a button to help remember my fun day. The kids on Saturday were just a riot. One youngster, while waiting in line to get his face painted, was watching me paint. I had just started blocking in my mountains with the palette knife. I asked him if he thought my mountains were any good. He thought about it a moment (probably deciding if he should tell the truth or not) and said no! LOL! It was so funny! I told him I would have to work on them! (Too bad I don't have him around to critique all of my work!! Ha!)

To check out Mary Sheehan Winn's Blog go to: www.marysheehanwinn.blogspot.com

The painting in today's photo is what we'll be doing in class at the Von Liebig Art Center on Saturday 2/12/2011.

My First Class in Florida!!!

I had a great time teaching my first class at the Von Liebig Art Center on Saturday! Thank you to my students!! You did an awesome job on your paintings!!! This photo is Cheryl and she has NEVER touched a paint brush in her life!! I just had to show off her work. Happy Painting everyone!!

The Von Liebig Art Center

I just had to post a photo of the Von Liebig Art Center here in Naples, Florida. I'll be teaching some classes here in the coming weeks. Everyone here has been so supportive and encouraging and I can't tell you how excited I am to be a part of this incredibly talented staff. The front of the building is beautiful, I had to post a photo of it (notice the palms and blue skies!!! Sorry all you folks in Kentucky weathering the snow & cold!!!). The studio they're allowing me to use is upstairs and the facility itself is in the heart of downtown Naples. Classes will be beginning soon and I'm scheduled to do a demo on Family day there in February. Excited can't begin to describe it!!!

Just a note to all of you awesome students in the Northern Kentucky area...thanks so much for your kind words and input about my new website. I miss you all and can't wait to start classes up again in April. Happy painting!!!

I have just launched my Webpage....

That's right! You can go to http://www.happytreesstudio.com/ to check out my new web page. Now, this is what I call "version 1.0". In other words, it's my first one, so it's pretty basic. I'm not even sure what I want my web page to be like at this point, so I'm sure changes will come in the future. Be sure to stop by and check it out!

A note about taking care of your brushes. Here we go...are you listening....TAKE CARE OF YOUR BRUSHES!! Ha! I have hundreds of brushes, mostly because I provide them for my classes. These brushes have lasted me a long time and still have a lot of life in them even though they get worked and worked. If you're using the Bob Ross Brushes, don't use the brush cleaner & conditioner on any of the larger ones. Only use it for the the fan/filbert/script liner. For my 1" & 2" landscape/blender brushes, I clean them by using thinner only. Same with the oval and round brushes. I also recommend storing them flat. Even when you wipe the thinner out of them, if you store them upright, small amounts of that thinner can run down into the metal part. Email me if you have any other questions about taking care of your brushes. It's worth a little extra work but your brushes will last and last.

Easy Seascapes...

This painting is a practice painting of an easy seascape. Now I know I tend to post some of the more complicated paintings here on the blog (and also teach them in my classes sometimes), but you really need to get the basic transparent wave down by doing these less complicated seascapes. Am I saying it takes practice? Oh yes!!! Now that doesn't mean that you can't paint something worth hanging on your wall while working on your technique. But don't be a "one hit wonder"! The idea is that YOU are in control of your brushes. That you can consistently produce the transparent wave whenever you want, wherever you want on the canvas, and facing it on any side, color etc. You're doing this because you love it right?! So paint, paint, paint!!! Once you're comfortable with this, you can move on to work on the more complicated stuff. Happy Painting!!!