"Merry Christmas"

(unavailable)

"Merry Christmas!" This is certainly not an original greeting, but it is a Christmas card from our house to your house. My prayer is that all of you will have a wonderful Christmas.

As the last month of the year begins, I am "waxing" philosophical again. This is my 630th posting and I can now look back with a lot of hindsight about how art gets created. I most certainly have run the gamut of different techniques, especially in mixed media and now in oils.

What I have learned is that art is very much like playing the piano. The student determines the pace of learning by choosing how much time to practice. It really is that simple. The more time that is devoted to a particular skill, the faster the progress.

But there is another component. Observations and analysis need to be made on a continual basis in order to keep from practicing the same mistakes over and over again. And much to my sorrow, that can often take a very long time. Because of this unfortunate truth, it is very important to create something in your studio everyday. Otherwise, it can take years to learn what you need to learn.

I can name at least two or three things I learn every time I create a new piece. You will too, and here is the critical part. It is good to jot those things down in a journal. You will not remember what you did six months from now if you don't...in my case, it could be forgotten by tomorrow. This one discipline will keep you from making the same mistakes over and over again and also help you to continue to do whatever is working.   I have a rule...if something doesn't work, I quit doing it.   And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

"Fountains and Flowers"

(unavailable....in the collection of dee day)


"Fountains and flowers are natural companions for any celebration." Not all Christmas Eve celebrations happen with snow falling. Many happen in tropical climates which can also be very special even without the snow and evergreens. I was drawn to this image in the same context of Christmas because most of my teen years was spent in the Rio Grande Valley. This would have been a typical scene in a hotel or town square. In fact, I was in bermuda shorts on many of those Christmas celebrations. So whether you are enjoying snow or tropical plants, may your Christmas Eve be festive.

This photo was actually taken in a public square in Sedona, Az. I enjoyed zooming in at many different angles to get the best composition. This one happens to be my favorite because of the interesting division of space and the flower contrasted against the neutral color of the fountain.

If you like pointed pen techniques and like to frame a piece with some simple flourishing, one of the things I think about is allowing the flourish to begin from one edge...go off of the edge and reappear from another edge as though it were one continuous line. It is a wonderful way to practice your "press / release" technique and enjoy the process at the same time. I think all of us could learn lettering a lot quicker by just playing with the pen and enjoying the tactile sensations rather than always focusing on forming the letters immediately. Once you understand what the pen will do, it is much easier to learn the letters. It also helps to learn the form of the letter with pencil first because it is very difficult to struggle with the pen, ink, and form at the same time. If you absolutely know what the letter looks like (after much pencil practice and even tracing), it will be so much easier to then deal with the pen and ink (or gouache).

As you can see (or read), I have my "teacher hat" on today. I just have a tremendous desire for those of you who want to do well with your lettering to have success and be encouraged to pick up the pen often....like everyday. It takes courage and you have my full support. I do not despise "small beginnings" because everyone has to start somewhere. Just some more things to try or think about as we quickly approach a new year and new beginnings.

"A Rich Patina"

($40.00......mounted on a 1/8" depth clayboard panel)

"The birth of Christ was like fresh water creating a rich patina in time." Anywhere there is a fountain or water running over a surface, patina will gradually appear creating a rich texture. This image says that loud and clear and drives home the core concept of the quote. Christ indeed created a hugh paradigm shift with His birth. That is something to really think about.

There is no pouring medium on this photographic image. However, I did switch to a 90lb. hot press watercolor paper. Before printing the image, I wrote a couple of words with pencil and then bent the paper to allow only a small strip of the paper to touch my puddle of Walnut Ink. You can see it starting at the top left hand corner and going to the bottom. The image was then printed on my printer and sprayed 3x with Spray Acrylic Coating. Most inks and gouache will definitely bleed if you don't spray it well and dry in between coats.

The next step was to prepare the surface for writing. I've explained that process before so if you check the labels at the bottom of the post and look for "surface preparation", you will find those details.

It is rare to have a photographic image with this much patina and texture already there, but this was a glorious fountain I saw in Sedona, Az. When you want to print a photo like this and keep all of the details as sharp as possible...hot press paper will do that for you better than Arches Text Wove because there is literally no texture on this paper. It is as smooth as glass. It is not quite as forgiving as Text Wove, but if you're surface is prepared with gel matte medium, you will be able to remove any lettering mistakes. For instance, I started writing my first line of text on the second line and removed the first line completely. You would not know that if I hadn't told you.

The last thing you might want to notice is the excellent division of space that was in the image naturally and the placement of the lettering that provides a connection between the faucet and fountain bowl. All of these considerations are what bring a piece of art together. These are just a few more things to try or think about.

Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.