96 FANTASTIC PRINTS

A few days ago I received a fantastic box of tiny prints.... 96 of them.  They are Baren's 50th exchange prints.   100 print makers signed up and 96 of us   made 101 prints each and mailed them to Gayle Wohlken at who collated the collection and sent one of each out to the 96 participants.  They are ATC size which is 2 1/2" x 3 1/2".... all but 3 anyway.  Here  they are:



I've laid them out on my dining room table, sorted them out somewhat and, and enjoying showing them off to friend who stop by.  I find something new every time I look at them.

Gayle did a fantastic job of collating these prints and surprised us all with this lovely little box. You can see Gayle's prints here:  http://web.mac.com/g_wohlken/Site/Welcome.html  

I sure don't know whats going on when I'm trying to link.   I can't get them to work on my preview.  Can somebody give me a hint.  I give up.

If I don't get back here  before Christmas, I wish you all a very happy holiday.

ANOTHER TRIP TO JUNEAU

I've had to go to Juneau more times than usual this past year;  it seems I always have 2 or 3 appointments of one kind of another every month.  I was planning to go on the ferry last Monday but a bad storm kept the ferry from landing here so I flew in on Tuesday morning.  Whenever I fly in winter, I'm somewhat amazed that I've survived the trip. Often my head will hit the top of the small plane in turbulence and visibility isn't always optimal.   It is always beautiful though, especially when we fly through a valley over the Chilkats between Icy Strait and Lynn Canal.  Here's a photo looking more or less southeast. 

Besides the dentist, PT, and a couple of other appointments and shopping, I spent some fun time with my grand daughter, Alyssa.  Every year there is an open house at the Alaska governors mansion and this year I  was there when it happened, so Alyssa and I went.  We waited in the line that went around three sides of the mansion and were served cookies and cider while we stood in the cold for almost an hour, seeing and chatting with passing friends  and waiting for the next tray of cookies to come by.  Inside, we shook hands with Gov. Parnell and his wife and ate more cookies and goodies and toured the downstairs of the mansion which was beautifully decorated and full of music.

It always takes me a day or two to recover from Juneau..... the shopping and walking on concrete wears me out.   I had started a gouache painting before the trip and have worked on it some more since coming home but too much other stuff going on, so no new paintings to show.  I have a few sketches that may or may not get to my other blog this week.   

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A WINNER AND A PAINTING

After getting some very kind comments and emails after my last post, I decided to do a drawing for the little painting on Monday night and  the winner was Jyothi Sethu.  She lives in India and her  lovely art work is here.

I've been waiting to get something new before posting, and did finish a painting on Wednesday, but then couldn't find my cord to download my photos.  Finally found it and here is my painting:

Lamplugh Glacier  watercolor painting8x15"

This is from a photo I took last August when we took our boat up into Glacier Bay.  We also took a kayak, and Van dropped my friend Judy and me off in front of Lamplugh Glacier and we went ashore to the beach in front of the glacier.  I'm not sure if the water here is a tide pool of glacier melt.  The glacier is receding, but at least part of it is tidewater when the tide is high.   I really need to read up on them.... things are certainly changing up there.  There were icebergs in Icy Strait where our beach is 35 years ago when we moved here, but we don' t see icebergs now until we are almost to the glaciers.

GOING FORWARD

PEAR AND CUP watercolor and acrylic about 5x5"

TWO PEARS watercolor and acrylic about 5x5"

The above 2 paintings were originally one wide painting.  I painted the pears and the cup about a year ago and pulled it out of my drawer last week,  finished  it, then cut it in half. The background is done with acrylic and a hand carved  linoleum block. I put clear contact paper over the painting and cut the background off with a razor blade (carefully) and painted and stamped .  This is a technique I learned from Anne Bagby.  I also decorated a bunch of paper to use in collage or handmade books.


Either nobody came here in the last couple of weeks or if they did the didn't want my little gouache painting.... not one comment or email.  I even gave an extra week for the offer of a gift of the little painting.   I realize I don't get many people coming here, and I haven't been conversing much on other blogs lately, but still, its kind of embarrassing.  I thought about offering it again, maybe putting the offer in the title, or maybe offering another painting,  or even lie and say I had lots of emails and gave to so and so and go burn the painting, or maybe delete the whole post.  I think I'll just go forward and forget the whole incident.  No one will probably read this anyway so its forgotten.

Well, going forward.  I've been setting up a website, finally.  Maybe when I get that done, I'll stop putting anything here on this blog and go back to just the watercolor postcard one. 

OMG! MY100TH POST

ONYX RABBIT gouache painting 4"x4"

ANOTHER WINDOW VIEW  gouache painting 4"x5

I didn't realize this was my 100th post here until I was ready to publish.  It has taken me a long time to get here.  I started my other blog in 2006 and  have posted over 200 times..... never even noticed my 100th and 200th milestones there.  I started this blog in 2008.  Sometimes I've left one dormant while the posting on the other, lamenting why I have 2 blogs, but I always go back to the one left behind, just like I flip back and forth from one kind or subject of painting to another, always wanting to do it all. 

I think its time to thank my followers and if anyone might like to own the Window View painting above, just comment on my blog or send me an email at: bogorchid  at gmail dot com.  I will do a drawing this weekend and mail to the winner.


And now to my orginal post:  I've been doing a few small paintings in the last couple of weeks.  Some attempts of something larger haven't gotten anywhere.  I probably need to start using a larger brush for the larger ones.  These are two that I like best.  The bottom one was done with just ultramarine blue and raw sienna and white gouache.



I'll be putting at least one of my other small paintings on my other blog.

FALL VIEW

                                               gouache 6" x 9"

I started this before going to Juneau the beginning of October and when I came back and finished it, much of the leaves were gone on the cottonwoods and willow.

A COUPLE OF LITTLE PAINTINGS

FAIRWEATHERS  4"x 9" gouache

 I started this at the beach and finished it at home.  This is part of the Fairweather range which we see when the weather is clear. I did this with a lot of underpainting.   Its smaller than the watercolor I did in my sketchbook on site but took about 6 times as much time.  I got Mount Fairweather (the one on the right larger than it appears here.  It is the tallest, but is farther away.

JOHN'S BATH HOUSE 4" X 5 1/2" watercolor

  John, a dear friend passed away last week in California and about 20 friends gather on Sunday at his cabin  to remember him .  I set on his deck and painted this, remembering other days enjoying his company while we painted together.

I've got some more things going in the studio, but today I'm taking the ferry to Juneau for a few days.

GETTING BACK IN THE GROOVE

Well, here I am weeks since I last posted.  Its been a busy month.  My show in Juneau went well.   I went on the ferry on the Wednesday before the first Friday (September 3)  opening to hang the show..... Aimee went in to help me and I couldn't have done it without her.    I had 39 pieces.  It was such a relief to get them hung.

Although it was a rainy night, which is pretty much par for most days and nights for the last couple of months, there were quite a crowd there.  Over the years, I've gotten to know a lot of people in Juneau and it was fun seeing some of them and meeting new folks.

A few days after the opening, I flew to Seattle for my one year check up..... happily still cancer free and I don't need to get checked out again for another year.  What a relief!  I"m so glad to have the uncertainty and check ups every 3 months over with. 

With a clean bill of health and the stress of my show behind me, I was anxious to get home and back in the studio, but a came down with an awful cold and spent much of the first week home recovering.  Finally got to studio last week and decided to do a little woodblock print.  Its for the 50 Baren exchange which I couldn't resist signing up for.

 

 This was a little gouache painting I did last month and used as a reference for the print.... also the view out my studio window.

 

Here is the print.  I had to make 100  of them for the exchange.  I mistakenly forgot to do a mirror image on my block and am still having a hard time getting use to it.  It is only 2 1/2  by 3 1/2.  It is mostly reduction.  I had to do an extra block for the light green area on the right which I didn't get dark enough the first time. 

As I mentioned before, its been a very rainy fall.  But today started out quite gorgeous and  I biked down to the beach after lunch to paint.   

The sun disappeared and it got pretty cold before I got much done.  

I did manage to draw and paint this in my sketch book.  I started a larger gouache which I'll try to finish in the studio tomorrow.

 

 

JUNEAU IN JUNE

watercolor 9 x 12

I'm still busy getting ready for my show next month and just framed this one which I did while in Juneau in June.  Its the second one I painted of the same view.

IRELAND LANDSCAPE WORKSHOP

I returned from a landscape paintng workshop in Ireland last week arranged and taught by Nina Weiss,  and it was marvelous. Nina is an excellent teacher and she really put together a a great trip.  We stayed in lovely inns, experienced beautiful and interesting landscapes and towns, ate delicious food, and listened to wonderful music.  And best of all, I learned a new way to paint.

 
The first couple of days we did black and white drawings, thinking of line and form , experimenting with different compositions of a scene. I decided to use gouache in the workshop  and Nina taught a method of using  underpainting, building up the forms with different values and colors.  Here are a couple of paintings I completed:

Garden in Clifden, gouache 9 x 5 1/2

View from Roundstone, gouache 6 x 9

I hadn't been working with gouache in about a year, and it was like starting over with the same difficulties that bugged me before, mostly the change in value as they dry on the paper.  And in addition, I was having a hard time mixing greens, as Nina discouraged me from using Thalo.  And the whole idea of underpainting was hard for me to grasp, but Nina led me through the process with patience and I really like some of the results. 

Soon after coming home I set to work trying to finish a third painting I had started.  The 2 above were done inside looking out windows.  But I began this 3rd one in a field in the wind.  After the easel blew over 3 times I worked in my lap.  I was also distracted by a lot of sheep wandering and being herded around me.  Working from my photo, I've come a long way in finishing it, but after scanning, I see a lot I need to still work on.

Since I'm having a show in Juneau first Friday in September, it dawned on me I'd better finish a couple of watercolor paintings I'd started before going to Ireland and start framing what I've done.   I was tempted to finish one of the watercolors in gouache, but decided I might goof it up, and I need more work for my show.  But I'm anxious to get back to the gouache.

 I've spent several days, getting what new work I have matted and just this morning called in an order for frames to Daniel Smith.  The guy said a little more than half way through my list  (33 in all) that this is the biggest frame order he's ever taken.  He said his brain was fried when finished.

 I'm sure glad to get that out of the way.  But the fun really begins when the frames come and I have to put them together.  I wish I had more larger paintings but as far as framing, I'm glad they are small.  I also wish I could afford a framer.

Its so good to be home.  The weather has been warm.  I forget how beautiful this place I live in is until I leave for a while.

STILL IN JUNEAU

Only a few days left and I'll be on a plane to Ireland, so I want to get one more post in before I leave.  I'm really not into blogging lately which is pretty obvious if anyone might actually ever come to read here.  I don't quite know why.  Its like a lot of creative things I do and then don't do.  Some I come back to and some I don't.  My  paper journal has also been full of gaps the last year.  This has happened  before in the many years I written and sketched in my journals, but   I always return, sometimes slowly, so maybe this is a beginning of a return.

I"m enjoying my stay in Juneau.  The boat is comfortable, the cat good company, and I'm close to town and can walk to the grocery store and the swimming pool .  I have Lee's car which gets me out the road easily and I have several friends here that I've spent enjoyable time with.   I've had some doctor appointments (good 9 month check up) and have been getting some physical therapy for my aging body.  

After much inertia, I finally got the oils out a couple of weeks ago and went outside.  I guess things are getting better after 4 sessions in different places, a little easier for sure.  I can't find my cord to load the camera to the computer, so I can't put them on here yet.   Maybe the reason that I'm finally writing here is that I am feeling something positive is coming from the effort.  And I am enjoying the process when I am actually doing them. 

 But I seem to have a barrier keeping me from taking my oils out by myself and working at an easel.  I just can't make myself do it.  I guess its being shy and feeling like the center of attention, and my work looks so bad.  I  don't have a problem going out with my stool and watercolors in my lap which I've done several times here in the last few weeks.    I did take the oils  once to one place by myself where I knew no people would be, but every little noise made me think of a bear eating me.  So my plein aire oil painting has been with other people. 

There is a group of painters that call themselves the plein rein painters here in Juneau who go out every Saturday and paint together and I joined them last Saturday, and have gone with my friend Michelle 3 other times.

The fact that my show will be in September hasn't seemed to have kicked in.  I really should  be working diligently on some pieces for the show all this month instead of struggling with the oils.  Or I should say more diligently.  I'm able to paint with watercolor on the boat that I'm staying on, using photos on my laptop, but  I  just forget how to paint for a while. Many hours here on the boat and outside have yielded nothing good.  I have really been painting terribly, but this week I finally have one piece for the show and am working on another that I think will turn out well.  

So, off to Ireland next week.  I'll be working with gouache.... would like to do oils, but don't want to lug all the stuff I'd need there.  I'll be back home in mid-July, and who knows, maybe anxious to get back to my blog.  I'd better be ready to do a few more pieces for my show.

Can't leave without at least one picture.  this I did a couple of months ago.

SUNSET  watercolor 14x14 inches

I'M BACK

I won't bore you with a bunch of excuses and reasons for my negligence here. I'll just get going again.

I'm in Juneau for most of this month, boat and cat sitting for my son who has gone south.  I offered to do so some time ago thinking it would be a week or 2, not 4 weeks.  For the first time in 30+ years, I will be away from home for most of the summer.  At the end of June I will be taking off for Ireland for a workshop with Nina Weiss.

The last 3 months have flown by.... and I was doing a lot of flying, coming to Juneau for dental and medical appointments. My painting output has not been good these last few months. Here is at least one that I like:

watercolor, about 20x12 inches

 

 

 

 

 

LONG OVERDUE

Oh my.  I'm taking the afternoon to put something on my blog and now I see that I never published what I started at the end of February..... telling about my rather unproductive month.  Here is some of what I wrote:

I spent about 2 weeks making some books for friends.... most of the time on the computer getting the pages to fit on the pages properly. They are gifts and so I don't want to put them here as I haven't sent them out yet.   My hope to do a postcard everyday has not succeeded.  But I have kept with my resolve to play my guitar  and get more exercise a good bit better.

My progress with the oils hasn't been going very well. 

about 8x8 inches water mixable oils

This is one of a few small oils that I've done, the only one worthy of putting here.

Bosc Pears   5x12 inches watercolor and gouache

And I found this in my photos, done sometime in December when I was trying to come up with something for a woodcut.  The color is different in this photo... the background gouache in the painting is more purple.  I think I like this blue better.

 I'm in Juneau now for the usual things here:  visiting my son and grand daughter, dentist, taxes, shopping, and will leave for Anchorage tomorrow for my 6 month check up.  

We've had a lot of cold weather this winter and it continues on.  Maybe after a few days in Anchorage, coming home to SE Alaska will feel like going to the tropics.

And now its almost the middle of March, home, but will be going back to Juneau in a couple of days.... and it was actually colder in SE Alaska than Anchorage when I came home.  All my tests were good in Anchorage, which was a big relief and I had a very enjoyable visit with a fabulous and inspirational artist, Wanda Seamster .  Our tax returns are filed and I had a good visit with family and friends in Juneau  But my dentist appointment there for a check up and cleaning resulted in 2 crowns so I have to go back  to finish up and also for another doctor appointment.
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After coming home I got out my old acrylic paints.  I had gotten pretty discouraged with my last few attempts with the oils  Several people have suggested I use acrylics instead of the water mixable oils if I want to avoid solvents.  I did some fish on a couple of fish-roe boxes.... kind of funky looking... and  discovered in the process that I definitely like the oils better.  The acrylics were hard to blend.... dried too fast.  I had something that makes them stay wet longer, but it had dried out..... has been years since I had tried acrylics.   I seem to be scared to start another oil, so started a watercolor yesterday.  It started out wrong and  got to a point of failure where I couldn't fix it.  Maybe tomorrow I'll get the nerve to start another oil painting.  But for the rest of today, its here with the laptop.

WETLANDS

We had a sunny day on Sunday and I got out and took some photos of what I've been working on.  The internet was out on Monday, I finally uploaded 2 of the images on Tuesday and her it is Thursday.  And of course all that I wrote on Tuesday isn't where I am now, so just a couple of paintings today. 

Wetlands  watercolor 13x20 inches

WETLANDS water mixable oils 10x10 inches

 

FIRST OIL PAINTING OF THE YEAR

Here it is the end of January already, and I only have one finished painting to put here.    And I am so behind with my computer stuff.  I have lots of emails to answer, my postcard postings are behind though at least I've done 6 each week, and my 2 woodblocks are done and the exchange ones off in the mail.  But new resolve for the next month to get more painting done.  I started a new oil and a larger than usual watercolor last week.  They are coming alone, but today I'm catching up on the internet.  After a lot of trouble earlier in the month, it has been working well lately.

 

9 x 12 inches, water mixable oil

This is a stand of mountain hemlock that I've painted several times before, more often with late summer sun making them glow. I need to work on the lower right side.  So often, I don't see the weak spots until I've put the photos here.

I seem to need a sunny day to get a decent image to put here, and we've had a few the last few days. Thankfully, I remembered to take this outside and take a picture yesterday, as it turned overcast again today and snow or rain is on its way. 

SMALL STUDIES

Last week, I finished another oil painting and  spent hours on one of the older ones. Maybe it will be dry outside today so I can take some photos.
  

Since the beginning of the year, I've been again posting my little watercolors and gouache on my other blog.  I'm pretty proud of myself for having a post for every day.... on Sundays I've given myself a day off and post an older image and I'm often a day or two late getting my posting on.  These are usually from life and  only one each day, but on  Saturday, inspire by blog postings by both Nathan Fowkes  and Sherrie York  I did the 3 mountain ones on this  page using images for reference from old slides that I had scanned , thinking more of finding a good composition than I usually do. I'm determined to keep doing more, trying different arrangements and view points.

Well, off to a new week.  I seem to have something else to do almost everyday that keeps me from spending the whole day in the studio. On Monday mornings I do a couple of hours at the local second hand store and I'm already late.

PEAR WOODCUT

PEAR  woodcut 11 x 5 inches

Wow, I switched to the new Blogger editor  (Maybe its not all that new, but I just found it) and can put a larger picture here.  I did but changed it because it was too big for the window. 

I finished  my other print and am somewhat pleased with it. It took a lot longer than I expected. I used 4 blocks, 3 were reduction, and I think there were 17 passes.  I ended up with an edition of 33 and a couple of artist proofs.  28 of them will be included in a Baren Forum exchange. 

The printing stuff is put away and I'm anxious to get back to the oils tomorrow.

WOODCUTS CONTINUE

I've been cutting and printing for over a week now. I finished printing the Year of the Rabbit yesterday. I used 2 blocks reductive. Had some problems with the trees, but like it otherwise.

Still working on the other print.... Its reduction with 4 blocks. I've done 10 impressions so far and have 7 more, I think. Loving and hating it.

BACK TO THE WOODCUTS

Yesterday, I got back to the struggle with the woodcut exchange print. As I said before, coming up with a good image is a challenge. I spent much of yesterday going through old photographs, looking for something I could use on the specified 13 x 6 inch paper. I finally went back to some sketches I had done before Christmas of pears and whipped out this watercolor.



It is 12 x 5 inches, which will leave a half inch border. The scanner left an inch off the bottom which was dark brown.... I may leave it off the print too and I'm not sure about the background color behind the pear. There is also some of the image missing on the right; why, I don't know. There will be more shadow in the pear. The paint ran together because I was in a hurry and couldn't find my hair dryer.

I really wanted to do a landscape, but everything I came up with was really complicated. I'm feeling relief that I've finally got a design.