Category: Mixed Media

Summer Art Journal 2016…Just for Fun!

I spent so much of today engaged in art of some sort…a wonderful day!

I am having fun working on an art journal for a class I am taking, Art Journal Summer 2016 thru Bloknote Academy online classes. For those who don’t know…Art Journaling is a fun way to create, practice, try out new techniques, mediums, & styles…just for fun, not for perfection.


I have been wanting to start an Art Journal, but wasn’t sure where to start…I figured this short, fun, summer long workshop would be just the ticket!

I was right! So much fun and so helpful to have talented guides as a beginner.

Happy Dance!

Take care,

Kathy Ann

Mysterious in Turquoise & Gold

Whew, this was some sort of challenge from beginning to end.

She was inspired by this sketch from late the other night…the one I told you about that seemed to take on a life of her own(nothing new about that!), going thru many different phases and ending up here.

She seemed to have a story to tell, and I hope this is where she ultimately wanted me to go…
Mixed Media, pastel, acrylic, paint pen, stencils, and ribbon on canvas.

I am glad she is finished. I think I will be creating more like her.

Thank you for joining me on her journey.

Take care, 

Kathy Ann

Ahhhh, Summer…How I’ve Missed You!

Ahhhh…Summer! How I’ve missed you!

So good to have warmer weather and flowers blooming!

Back on my porch swing, listening to bluegrass music, the honeysuckle is coming back, the birds have returned to their houses & nests…..life is good!

Went into Flag for the new Urban Flea & Artisan Market this morning. Talked with some lovely, friendly vendors…weather was impeccable…Love this town!

The roses are going bonkers !   Love it!🌺💗🌺

Spent these last weekdays weeding, planting and tending to the front flower garden…ah yes, this makes me happy…The front is basically a shade garden… which is such a beautiful wonder when you step under the canopy of  aspen leaves…damp, wet, smelling of fertile soil…it’s like a different world from the hot, dry weather of June! It’s heaven!

Here is my latest( and current favorite) inspired by the springtime winds…acrylic, watercolor and Stabilo.

I joined a relatively new local art cooperative a while back…Art35N…as a supporting member, hopefully one day to become an exhibiting member…and also started volunteering with the Flagstaff Arts Council.

These two entities converged this past Thursday at Coconono Center for the Arts for the first ever Art35N Gallery opening titled The New Latitude(referencing  Flagstaff’s location on the map).

I found myself manning (or as someone pointed out to me…”womaning” the bar with another volunteer. Great fun!

It seemed to me the event was a great success and enjoyable for all who attended. We have some phenomenol artists in the group and I am honored to be a part of it.


So, here I am enjoying the promise of summer…sitting on my swing, burgers on the grill, and these two…

…playing in the sunshine by the vegetable garden.

Life really  is a Wonderous Adventure❤️

Take care, 

Kathy

Update to”Glitter, Sparkle,Twinkle, Shine…”Bluebird of Happiness”

It turned out I was not a fan of the feather inserted into the roses by the Eifel Tower…So I replaced it with the “Bluebird of Happiness”. MUCH better! And we could all certainly use a little more happiness!

Take care,

Kathy

She wore ‘Flowers in her Hair’

There have been many, many discussions in the workshop I am currently taking, about copyrights as they apply to collage artists, and I must admit, it made me so very nervous about using collage as a background. Legal stuff…

My latest on a collage has gone through many revisions. Not my flower girl herself, but the collage background.

There have been many, many discussions in the workshop I am currently taking, about copyrights as they apply to collage artists, and I must admit, it made me so very nervous about using collage as a background. Legal stuff…

So, although I absolutely loved my original…I was not comfortable about some of the collage elements and the whole copyright thing…there was even mention of not being able to use scrap booking papers, ephemera, stamps, etc. if you are planning to sell your work…aargh!

I was really bummed, cause I really thought collage might be my “niche”…ah well…Apparently it’s ok to use items like ephemera, letters, music, etc., from before 1922. Will have to research further…

At any rate…here she is for now!

Take care,

Kathy Ann

 

Crazy, Wonderful!

…You know that feeling when you look at something grand (at least to you) that you have achieved and all you can do is stare in wonder and amazement?

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My first ever watercolor face…definitely a complicated medium. Seems less forgiving than acrylics…I would think the shading was looking good and then I would add to it and BAM!  I would totally ruin it! Wet paper + inexperience with a new medium= scary! So glad to have tackled this. Didn’t have all the suggested supplies, but didn’t want to wait for my Amazon order…learned a lot, with a whole lot more learning to go.

I stood in my studio(that I used to call my craft room)after finishing the above piece…looking at my drawings & paintings from the last six weeks…this is CRAZY! Crazy & Wonderful & Exciting to realize that my forever dream is actually coming true…You know that feeling when you look at something grand (at least to you) that you have achieved and all you can do is stare in surprise, wonder and amazement? Yeah, that’s where I’m at…Happy & Enjoying the Journey!

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Retirement – and Art! (or…Art & Retirement!)

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Yes! I did it! I finally got to that golden utopia of retirement…and I am loving it!

I spent the first six months adjusting to the new non-schedule. I have to say, I never found this to be difficult nor boring. I have been looking forward to this for so long, with so many endeavors planned, that it has been pretty easy and definitely painless.

Since I retired in July, I spent the summer and fall enjoying the great outdoors, grandkids, friends, and holidays. Trips to Lake Powell, kayaking adventures, helping with grandkids occasionally, hiking and porch sitting took up the summer. Next came all the holidays and family fun!

Now it is February and I have embarked on my most anticipated and treasured journey. I have re-ignited my creative dreams of being an artist…not a florist or a crafter, not an amateur photographer…but an honest to goodness artist. The journey has begun…

I am taking an online Mixed Media workshop titled, Let’s Face it, which is a fabulous year long workshop with an emphasis on portraits/faces. The workshop includes lessons by a total of 17 Artists, so we get to see, experience, and learn lots of different styles and techniques. A new lesson with video instructions arrives in my inbox each week. There is also a private Facebook group that we all (520+ artists strong from all over the world) share our work and receive support and kudos from. It is AMAZING and I am so impressed by the wonderful artists I get to be a part of.

Drawing faces is my long time passion…I have been drawing faces since I was a young girl. I would go to BINGO with my mom…she would doodle all these women profiles and I was enthralled! So I copied her style, learned by watching her, and would spend the hours at BINGO happily drawing away!

I believe this will be one of my greatest adventures. I am already learning SO much and we are only 5 weeks in!

Below is my first ever painted face – titled her “Imagine!”

In Process #1
#2
#3
#4
#5
Finished – Imagine!

Till next time!

Take care,

Kathy Ann

 

 

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