Further on up the road.....

Yes.....it's beginning to look like an actual bike!
Due to our relentlessly soggy weather, I've been able to spend more time in the studio than I usually do this time of year. The gardens need to dry out, and I get to work on my bike.
No big major changes so far....just adding more details to the motorcycle and all the reflections.
The end is in sight!

Motorcycles and artistic license....

When I began this painting, snow was everywhere. Now, there are daffodils blooming outside my door! I haven't been able to get much studio time in lately...life events and such. Hopefully I'll be able to finish this bike soon.

One big decision I had to make...and I suppose time will tell if I made the right one, was to change the color of the bike itself. As artists we all have artistic license...we can move things around, we can alter the reality we see to suit our vision. In this case....the tank of the bike was not a deep blue, but a bright orange! I've had this photo for a few years now....I had wanted to paint it for a long time, but the orange color did throw me. The way I had framed the photo, the orange of the tank only really appeared, for the most part, in the upper right. There weren't really any reflections of the orange tank to speak of in what would be the rest of the painting. Practically all the other reflections were of other bikes. So what to do? I decided to do what would make the better painting, and change the color. The subtle coloring of the rest of the piece would not be compromised by the garish orange that would only have appeared in one corner. And as the painting is going along...I am SO happy I made that decision- watercolor does NOT lend itself to quick and easy color alterations!!

Funny...one of the things that helped me make the decision was listing to film commentaries on DVD's. Listening to a director say..."We moved the tree here"..."We added rain and made it a cloudy day"...all to make the story, and the artist's vision, a better one.

Reflections on a Honda....

I laugh as I look at the photo here. It really doesn't reflect (pun intended) all the hours I've put in working on it! But it has been fun.....working on a painting with so many reflections in the chrome....the bike within a bike within a bike!!

The pavement wash I laid down, on the lower left, was a wash of Daniel Smith's Hematite. I ordered a set of 3 of the Hematite colors a while back....and while I don't use them often, there are times when they are perfect. The Hematites are a natural compound, and the paints themselves are sedimentary, meaning they give a granular look when dry. Nothing better for pavement. They also never get really dark, so they can't be used for truly rich deep color, but they do have their place. I also have the Hematite Burnt Scarlet and Hematite Violet.

My next step will be to paint the leather seat, and I will use a different black mixture for it...not the same black as I use on the painted areas of the bike or the tires. And then it's just necessary to keep refining.....just getting the details of the bike down...adjusting the values as I go along.

There is snow outside right now......I sincerely hope I can complete this painting before it's shorts and t-shirt weather!!

The beginning of a new motorcycle....

A cold and snowy winter is the perfect time to begin a motorcycle painting! The paintings themselves take months to do....no better time to begin than when the temperatures are in the single digits...with bitter cold wind chills!

I took this photo a couple of summers ago. I LOVE all the reflections that appear in the chrome on this bike! I began by doing a detailed drawing....and that took a while!! I wanted to make sure I got every detail correct...a necessity when painting a piece of machinery. After I felt the drawing was accurate, I began by laying down light washes of Cobalt Blue for the sky reflections, and also washes of Sepia for the reflections of the pavement in the chrome. I also like to put in some darks, using Payne's Grey in various places throughout the painting.

It sure doesn't look like much now. I remember a teacher told me that ALL paintings go through an "ugly stage" and to not give up! I think of those words often! With the weather forecast of many cold and snowy days ahead....I think I'll be able to get past the "ugly stage" soon!!

Scenes from the Toronto Motorcycle Show....

A few weeks ago I was thrilled to attend the Toronto Motorcycle Show. I doubt there is a better place to see and photograph some of the most incredible custom cycles around. We arrived right as the door opened....so I was able to get in nice and close to the bikes before the crowds made it challenging. Many of the bike owners were still polishing their bikes and getting everything set up. It was fun to get to talk to them.....so proud they were of their bikes!


I was also happy to get to talk to some of the airbrush artists....the work on the bikes was incredible. The bike on the top had hundreds of skulls painted in a swirling pattern.....differing layers of red and yellow overlapping to create a 3-D effect. The photo barely does it justice.

The bike on the left was inspired by the "Underworld" movies. Scenes and characters from the movie were all over every available surface.....the amount of detail work was amazing.

The bike on the right offered quite a surprise to me. I recently completed a painting of this bike....it's easy to see it on my website. However, I noticed that some changes had been made since I had seen it the previous year. Blood drips, for one!! I had spent SO many hours staring at my photos of the bike while painting it, that I spotted the additional "blood work" immediately! A real work of art.

These photos are only a few of the over 300 I took at the show.
I wish I was able to do a painting of each and every one.

Christmas bass......

Now that the holidays are over, I can update my blog with this painting. The painting was a gift for my father-in-law....fisherman extrordinaire! On our last visit to central Florida , we went fishing in one of the beautiful fresh water lakes there. We had all caught fish that day, but this fish was "the big one!" He caught it on one of his last casts of the day, and it was a beauty. We saved it, and released it into the lake at their apartment complex.

To begin the painting, I taped a piece of Winsor Newton 140lb cold press paper onto plexiglass. Next I began the drawing. I had the photo enlarged, so I could more easily see every detail. After the drawing was completed, I laid down a light yellow wash over the center of the fish....making sure to leave the lightest areas of the fish white. Next I laid a down a very pale wash of sap green....very delicate, just enough to give a hint of sea color to the body of the fish. After that dried, I worked on the fins...using some Payne's Grey, Cobalt and Turquoise Blue, and some Rose Madder Genuine for the bottom fins. Next,it was time to lay the blues down for the body of the fish. When looking at the fish close-up, the scales show quite a rainbow of color. No fish is monochromatic, so I used various blues, greens and greys all over the body. For the gills, I used Alizarin Crimson, Rose Madder Genuine, and some Windsor Blue. The eye of the fish is layers of grey, with the white reserved with frisket.

This painting was soooooo much fun to do! After doing a motorcycle painting for months, it was fun to kind of cut loose, and work on a fish! And for a fisherman, it makes a perfect gift.

Pink tulips.....

With all the floral paintings I have done over the years, it's funny that this is my first tulip painting! This was done as a gift for a friend, and I was happy to paint these
beauties! The only reason these grow for me is because they are planted underneath a weeping cherry tree, surrounded by a ground cover that provides a great barrier for the rabbits that would want to have these for a snack!
To begin with, I took many photos of them, from as many angles as I could.
The painting is a composite from several photos. This is one huge benefit of
digital cameras. You can take a ton of photos of your subject and not have to worry about film costs!
After the drawing was completed, I first put down a glaze of Windsor Lemon on each tulip. I also used Windsor Lemon as the main yellow on the leaves and stems. Once dry, I then used Rose Madder Genuine, Dragon's Blood, Alizarin Crimson, and some Vermillion (discontinued....arg!) for the blooms. I always like to add some of the flower color to the leaves and stems, for whatever flower I'm painting. It helps to make the stems and leaves look more realistic.....rarely are leaves and stems just a solid color. Because I wanted the tulips to really stand out with full saturated color, I kept the background cool and simple. The actual background was brick with blue forget-me-nots surrounding the leaves. I thought simple was better here. These tulips are beautiful and regal and deserved to stand alone.