Spooky Day

Last week I painted with another artist in my own studio.  I saw how she prepared her canvas with purples and I was immediately attracted to the color. I decided to use acrylic paint in analogous colors (colors next to each other on the color wheel) for my background. I prepared a 16" X 20" canvas (photo below) and looked at it for a while.

After I studied my background, I thought about the upcoming holiday of Halloween. The undercolors suggested a landscape to me. I made a little drawing on a piece of paper, trying to make some kind of composition.  The top photo is the result. This is the first time I have tried just pulling an image out of my head, not from something I had actually seen.  I am happy with the result.

At the same painting session, I also watched my friend paint with a palette knife. I had a small canvas prepared and decided to do a painting of Frankenstein Cliffs with a view looking up from below, at the parking lot.  I gave away my larger painting of the cliffs to my son for his new house.  He liked all the greens in it. You can still buy a print or card of that image on my website.

I found it difficult to get any sort of detail with a palette knife and had to use a brush in a couple of places. This is a fun technique, but uses a great deal of pigment.  I used acrylic paints for this experiment. We hiked this trail last year, at the beginning of the fall. It's not a hike I would recommend as the trail was very poorly marked.

I am not taking any art classes now, but I am enjoying painting with other artists.  This is something new for me and gives me inspiration as I watch what they are doing.  It is a good learning experience.

I will be exhibiting my cards, prints and some originals this fall at several craft fairs. The events and dates are listed on my website calendar.