Wings Over Winecountry, Colleen's place (1 Viewer)

[colleenc]

thanks Mike,
Lucked into some caspian terns at Shollenberger, first time I've had a chance at them, they stayed quite a while ....flight sketches are from my photos, not good enough yet to catch that, next time I think I can....also last one is another attempt at the water-soluble pencil.

 

[gropperwinch]

Wow these are all fantastic, especially the last two, they look so 3D you could confuse them with a pop-out! And they are very realistic too. Loks like you've captured what's in the photos pretty darn well, but if you reckon you can do better by all means do, can't wait to see what they'll look like!

 

[colleenc]

The first time I draw a new bird ( since I've only been watching birds a year now almost all of them are new:-O) I can only get the general lines, but each time I see them I keep finding that there are subtle refinements to the generalizing so over time I begin to have better "eyes" ie my eyes are trained more to see what's there, and so the drawings unstiffen and get more life in them.

I can't really do what I aim for without drawing bunches, maybe a hundred or more. Like tennis, how many times do you have to practice hitting backhand before you can really get playing with it in your game in a flowing way?

One way Liam to get 3D is to think, not in terms of outline, but in terms of values of light and dark, this tends to be something innate to the artist, some think like draftsmen, all in line, some like me think in terms of painting, so look for forms in space with light and dark not edges. One of my teachers pointed out to me as an art student, that there are no fixed edges, those are mental constructs, really there is light and shade of forms in space and this is a subject that has taken me a lifetime to explore. I like soft edges, it's how I see the world, some like hard edges so they use more line than me. However if you close a hard line around a form it will automatically seem more flat.

 

[colleenc]

well this is a bird, so I'm going to post it, currently slugging it out trying to do this for a friend, with no clear reference, a good photo is a must for a portrait when I can't sit in front of the dog, and have him stay still for 4 hours while I try and get the likeness, but I don't have anything but a really blurry low light ref to work from where a flash has blown out all the eyes, until they are just black holes...not to mention the duck which I am trying my best to fake in somehow. don't ask why I said yes, its too long a story. Paul is defrosting a Mallard to photo to help me out...This will stay loose and more impressionistic, so if it passes it will be enough.

 

[mattybohan]

nice color and brushwork...

 

[Woody]

The first page of flight studies is smashin'. I can see a bit of Tim in there too.

Dog's coming on well, the area around the eyes especially. Good luck with the next stages.

Mike

 

[timwootton]

Love the lab Colleen - hope you're going to keep these fresh brushstrokes in the painting. No doubt getting a good ref for the duck will improve the whole somewhat - look forward to seeing this one finished.

 

[colleenc]

thanks Mike, if you see Mr. W in them, it's probably because I've spent countless hours studying his work trying to understand how to draw:-O, but I've poured over many artists posts here, and I'm sure they are all in my work too, and Mr. Busby as well. I've never been much good at drawing, so I need all the help I can get.

Tim, it's my plan, hope I can stick to it, to keep it loose, don't have enough detail to make it tight anyway...

 

[ed keeble]

thanks Mike, if you see Mr. W in them, it's probably because I've spent countless hours studying his work trying to understand how to draw:-O, but I've poured over many artists posts here, and I'm sure they are all in my work too, and Mr. Busby as well. I've never been much good at drawing, so I need all the help I can get.

Tim, it's my plan, hope I can stick to it, to keep it loose, don't have enough detail to make it tight anyway...

Great painting around the dog's head.

One the duck, might be worth making sure that (assuming it is dead..) the neck is extended and head and bill is definitely hanging straight down. It looks a bit perky currently like it might be plotting its escape- which I would not put past a wily Mallard..

 

[colleenc]

Thanks Ed , I 'll try and make it look more dead, :-O how funny after all this time of trying to make the birds more "lively"

here is the shot I have any comments are appreciated.

 

[timwootton]

Yes - I'd hazzard a guess that the mallard in the photo could still be alive. In your pic, I'd try to take away any suggestion of a highight in the bird's eye - just painting that area generally dark as in shadow could help - also the dog has hold of the bird's neck quite close to the head which (if birdy deady) is preventing the neck from hanging loose.
Of course you could paint the bird fully alive and, as Ed suggests, retain that element in the narrative for it to escape and fly to freedom . . . .

 

[colleenc]

thanks Tim, probably my subconscious desire that the bird is going to get away makes it look too alive....I'll close the eye and lose the detail down there.

 

[nickderry]

coming on very nicely - strong brushstrokes give a great atmosphere - the dead or alive dilemma is IMO nicely balanced, the uncertainty of it is a nice element. The lab is a beauty

 

[solitaryVSong]

Been too busy out enjoying the migration this week to post much. But now that I'm back inside I wanted to say that both the terns and the dog look very good. I'll leave it to experts though to finetune the duck's neck! Obviously they have some good thoughts regarding it..

 

[colleenc]

Nick, thanks, I'm making the duck dead, too awful to think it might be suffering and not dead yet....I hope I don't have to do anymore paintings like this....leave it to the many sporting dog artists....
Thanks Ken, sounds like you are having fun.
Started on the duck, how the heck I'm to balance this is beyond me, the duck so dark the dog so light and all going on in a small space... I closed the eye and ruffed up the feathers some.

 

[timwootton]

Looks dead now Colleen

 

[ed keeble]

nicely done- closed eye and ruffled feathers have put him to rest

 

[colleenc]

got a good look at the dog today, and when vol at the Bird Rescue Center, where I'm feeding baby birds during the season, I also saw a stuffed mallard which doesn't look much like the one I'm painting. so tomorrow I'll go at it again.

In the meantime I was on Wet Canvas oil painting thread and some one came up with a dandy idea for a cheap very light and simple plein aire box.

I took that idea and massaged it and came up with a dandy thing for less than $15 dollars. 9x12x and one inch deep.I have mine set up for watercolor, pastel, drawing and oil, all the media I use in the field, and one section holds all my drawing stuff pencils, graphtint, and charcoal....and the whole thing weighs 3.5 pounds fully loaded. I have put a tripod adapter on the bottom and a wire for an arm to hold it braced open. It will hold up to 8x10 or 9x12. Got the box here a heavy duty plastic portable "desk" .... and photos below show how it works....now I can really field sketch in any media I want without fuss and a bunch of stuff. I look forward to trying it out for oils...

Having all three at my finger tips is great for me, for others one or two media might be enough, and it will be lighter.... total cost was $22, compared to over a hundred for the professional kind....I used plastic, instead of metal, it was cheaper and not so likely to dent as the "forms holder" that Sid used, if you want the thread at wet canvas it is here(details of how it is made up, are on that thread) this fits in my backpack, and I keep it in the trunk of my car, now I will always have the media I want, and I hope this will help me capture my field work beyond my sketches...I'll fold the palette sheets for each painting and that will be good ref for color mixes.




photos in order...
box closed new
how it looked I trimmed the pocket down to hold brushes, and palette paper
box open for oil painting
center partition
box compartments

 

[colleenc]

guess what landed on the covered swimming pool next door to my cottage today and spent 20 min in full view 25' away so I could see all the colors and patterns, and it was even an overcast day so it's the same light I'm painting. He was a superb specimen in full color....I"ve got mine way too grey in the painting...


He must have thought this a very strange pond:-O Have to say I've lived here 5 years and never seen this happen and just had taken a moment to take something out to my car or would have missed it.

 

[colleenc]

getting close, but still don't have it yet, the likeness is just off a bit, mostly due to eyes, will let them dry some, and finish the nose, bird is done unless one of you lads complains....

BTW the drake called in his lady love and they splashed in the little puddle on top of the cover, and stayed resting for an hour, not even moving when my friend came out to garden close by...She's live here 40 years and has never see this happen.