"Odds and Ends" 7

Forgot needed upload the finish to this little one, so here it is...

"Crafting Creation" 3

And the wood grain of the box is now done as well, leaving only the dome yet to finish...  then will add a few beans along the shelf, and get the background wall, also to be wood grain...

For a time had contemplated adding another object to the left side, but other than the beans, this will not be necessary - the theme/title originally was in reference to the coffee grinder alone, and so it will stand, as adding a, say, cup, would only cliche the rendering, not increase the metaphorical relations... 

"Crafting Creation" 2

Turning again to this, have begun the grinder - getting the handle down, and beginning the wood grain of the cabinet...

"Odds and Ends" 6

The shelf is now done, leaving just the back ground left to render - then smoothing out a few areas here and there...

"Odds and Ends" 5

The apple is now done, tho may go darker and more deep purple, to difference it from the cherries - but will wait until the rest of the rendering is done...

"Odds and Ends" 4

Turning to the pear now, getting it done with lemon yellow, true green, olive green, and dark umber added to the stem...

"Odds and Ends" 3

Except for the back ground, which will comprise the violet blue, tuscan red, and dark green [making a layered black], this is the grisaille for the rest of this rendering - showing the pear and apple, and the shelf ring markings...

"Odds and Ends" 2

Am doing something a wee different than usual - using violet blue as the grisaille... the left cherry is, of course, with black cherry over, along with white for the highlight, and poppy red added over the black cherry...  the middle is poppy red overlaying, and the right cherry is scarlet lake overlaying...   the stems are olive green, and canary yellow, with dark umber streaks [all overlaying, of course, the violet blue grisaille]...  the dead stems and seeds are primarily dark umber over the grisaille, along with a touch of the canary yellow and olive green on the stems...

"Odds and Ends" 1

Did some fiddling and managed to get the image to show a wee better than previous tries, so here's what the rendering will be - three cherries on the left, one of which will be dark, stems and seeds on the right, and a couple of pears behind, all on a wooden shelf...  5"x7" on Stonehenge paper, and will be colored pencil as medium...

"Crafting Creation"

In the meantime, here is the progress on this rendering - got the shelf down, and next is the coffee grinder...  keep in mind this is a grisaille am presently working on, in prussian blue, on a 16"x20" acid free foam board....  eventually it will be a full color rendering using acrylic inks...

"Odds and Ends"

While have begun work on another pen and ink rendering [Crafting the Creation], am also beginning work on another colored pencil rendering...  and yes, is another cherry one, tho intend other fruits in the background, in part to fill vertical space, as well as adding to the 'odds' of it all...  will post a photo when have something with more visibility than the faint outlines on the stonehenge paper [5"x7"...

"Contemplation"

My Xmas card design for this year...

"Consequence" FINISHED

24"X18" acrylic inks on primed canvas sheet...

"Consequence" 9...

And the blue grisaille is done...
And yes, just the prussian blue was used - the cyan will begin the coloring layerings, specifically on the flowers...

"Consequence" 8...

After some delays, have finished the b/w section of this, and now can begin the coloring of the floral...   will first do a grisaille using prussian blue and process cyan...

Fair Exposure...

 A  good crowd at the Temple Terrace Arts Festival this year, and much interest in my works and mediums used - tho no sales... still, consider it all a success as expanded awareness of the mediums as per fine art, and approval of my techniques and themescapings...

"Consequence" 7...

And it is now at this point...   one can now see the beginning of outlines of the floral...

"Consequence" 6...

Almost done with this part - just the bit on the left...  then filling in the rest of the wall - THEN on with coloring the floral...

"Consequence" 5...

Advancing the concrete wall...

"Consequence" 4...

And here's the rest of the siding done...

"Consequence" 3...

The first siding is done, and am now on the second...

"Consequence" 2...

The Faucet proper is now done, along with the shading of the siding...

"Consequence" - the 'master'...

Actually, it still needs crisping on the faucet, getting each side mirror the other, then be ready for the transferring - but at least this is the idea in mind, adding the chipping siding paint, and the irregularities of the concrete wall...

"Consequence" is next...

Am at present working out the 'master' from which will transfer and thus begin this rendering - a head-on view of a faucet outdoors, one from the wall, with a couple of sidings seen above, and concrete around it, with iris-like flowering in front, to be in color, with the rest b/w... another 24"x18" acrylic inks on canvas...

The Myth of Gift...

One of the often given comments about not just my art, but of so many others, is that the ability of being an artist is a 'gift'... it is nothing of the kind... tho meant, am sure, as a compliment, it is actually a putting down of the efforts and intensity of each and every artist to pursue that endeavor to the best of abilities - and it is the same with ANY endeavoring that produces quality and innovative results... a human being is, properly, an integrated being, and one of such complexity that, among all other aspects of life, choices have to be made to be able to exist as that integrated being - and among these choices is the one of what endeavoring one is to concentrate on, which purposefulness of living is to be the laser instead of the bulb diffusing light in all directions... further, it is not just that choosing, which is in many respects reflecting innate differences of the individual, but the direction of learning the 'how' to achieving that quality of endeavoring - itself containing aspects of the difference between individuals... some, for instance, are more acute in their seeing, such to be able to direct their hand to rendering with increasing skill what is visually seen... others need books to help clue this aspect of seeing, or the aspect of being able to direct the hand... still others come to prefer actually dealing with others who already possess this skill - AND SKILL IT IS, developed with whatever degree of easiness or difficulty necessary to the artist involved... however the uniqueness of the individual in particular abilities, these are natural aspect of identity of the individual, and only present, as it were, the 'starting gate' from which whatever future endeavoring results - and it is the effort of the artist in securing these results which all in all determine the quality of results, not any supposed handing down of some 'freebie'...

Possibilities...

This is more in the way of ideas for possible renderings to be... there is, of course, the other coconut one, "Breakout", which is a fallen coconut which has cracked part of its shell off, exposing the 'inner being'... then there is a small still life idea called "Odds and Ends", which is a trio of cherries, one being darker than the others, another larger, and some pits and stems to the side... the one theme/titled "Consequence", of the faucet on the outside building wall, with an iris-like flowering in front, the flowering being in color, the rest all detailed b/w... "72 Virgins" is a long shot, but still possible, being a shelf with an opened box of boxed lures, there being 72 of them of course...

And there is the Xmas card one yet to be finalized - the mouse, lugging a red sack behind him, struggling thru the snow imprint of the Claus boot, and theme/titled "In His Steps"...

So - plenty to play with to the end of the year, or at least end of this and perhaps next month...

Fertile Lands... 14

And I have made an end of it...

and it is now called -

Fertile Worlds...

Fertile Lands... 13

And a wee further along in this -

Fertile Lands... 12

With other matters finally at an end, can at last get on with finishing this long overdue rendering - thus getting more of the sky on the right side stippled...

"Nut House" - WIP - 11

Finally finished...  and officially now called "Gossip"...

Fertile Lands... 11

And slowly stippling my way across this, dot by dot by dot...

"Nut House" - WIP - 10-B

In case ye wondering why no shadows on some of the coconuts, consider that the left one is in front [see it slightly overhanging the rock], the one next to it is thus behind, so no shadowing there, and the one in the middle is of course way back... on the right, the 'youngster' is out front, with the other behind just enough to avoid casting to the gossip busybiddies... one of the reasons why love doing eye level renderings...

"Nut House" - WIP - 10

Returning to this "Gossip" rendering, am doing the back ground, using the same colors as when did the foreground grasses - but this time using them as a sort of blurred vegetation of some distance behind...

Fertile Lands... 10

And am on my way with the stippling of the sky, using the process cyan ink...

"Nut House" - WIP - 9

Defining the rock more, as well as the grass blades, using the slate grey, and cool grey 20 and 90%... with the dark green for the blades...

"Nut House" - WIP - 8

As can be seen, have decided to use a flat stone as the shelf for these, and set it all in the outdoors [as seen with the grasses at the bottom]... am using cool greys - 10, 20, 30, 60%, and slate grey, blue slate, celadon green, yellow chartruse, marine green, and dark green... there is more to be done defining the stone edge, but this is the general idea for now...

"Nut House" - WIP - 7

One this last one, have added the use of 20% french grey, as there is more of the side to the light than the others...  there is, of course, more refinement to be done on these shells...  the 10% remains as the highlight areas, with the 20% being outside that yet still in the light - the 50% being into the shade, and the 90% being the deep parts of the shade areas...

"Nut House" - WIP - 6

Working now on the left-most one...  note these are not finished renderings, that more smoothing and crafting of the ferrules will be done...

"Nut House" - WIP - 5

Going at last into the gossip corner, have gotten the rearmost of the group...   one thing noticed since beginning this is that perhaps a better theme/title would actually be in order - "Gossip"...   will decide by the time all the rendering is done...

Fertile Lands... 9

And this, with the sky and touching ups yet to do on the isles, is the semi finished mural...

"Nut House" - WIP - 4

Further layering with the china blue...   next is to begin layering with the french greys, as did with the one on the far right...

"Nut House" - WIP - 3

Beginning to layer in the base china blue color for the other coconuts, especially the rear one of this trio...  [that is the original pencil sketch seen over on the left side, the newsprint seen from under the illoboard - was using that for the shading guide for the 'faces', as this is essentially from my imagination, and thus why did that shading in the original sketch so to keep it in mind]

Fertile Lands... 8

Been working on this, as well as the Nut House, getting into the leaves now, doing the color washes, then detailing with the sap green over the base blue area for the darker areas, and emerald green for the light areas...

A close-up, showing the detailing better...

"Nut House" - WIP - 2b

I follow up with putty beige, while adding more 50% and 90% french grey [the latter especially over the blue, and in drawing out the lines of the coconut shell linear indentation along the axis to the rear]... while outside in the sun, the shell may present itself in greys more cold, indoors is another matter - so french greys and the putty beige are used...

"Nut House" - WIP - 2

As with the first one, the base shade color on this and the rest is china blue...   note there is more line direction, as with the shells being so linear [regardless of their deformities], there is no need to do circular in the laying on of the color [this one anyway]...   there is more of the shading here to do, but needs 'see' in my mind how and where the curving begins the shade areas, as this is an angled as well as deformed shell...

The lit area, for the first layering, instead of using light umber, am using french grey - 50% for the medium lit, 10% for the high lit, and 90% for the shaded areas...

"Nut House" - WIP - Baby

First layered the shade area with china blue, as this is not a dark object and thus not need the deepness of an indigo blue...   then used light umber for the lit area...

Then, using a circular motion, tho keeping with the linearness of the obloid, deepened the refinement of the curve into shade, as well as defining the linearness - seen in progress -

and done......

Then a layering of chocolate...

Spanish orange and sand in the lit area...

Refinement of the chocolate...

And with a final layering, this time of dark umber in the deepest shade areas, 'baby' is finished...  further refinements, including adding more 'hairyness' and totally removing any 'white' areas showing bits of the illoboard, will be done when the others are finished...