painting flowers in watercolor Archives - Page 2 of 2

Two More Sunflowers

Two Sunflowers (c)2011 Dora Sislian Themelis
14×20 Watercolor on Lanaquarelle paperr

Motivation comes in strange ways. I need to have my painting implements staring me in the face to be able to feel like working on the art. After reading everything I have, and taken the great workshop last weekend, what is it with the resistance?

I must admit making painting a daily habit is working more than not working. At least I know in the back of my mind I have painting to do. At some point in my day it will happen. There is no such thing as painting all day long. No such thing. You just have to try to go to the studio, or the dining room table, and get to work.

There are a few more sunflower photographs I have at the ready. This is another that I started painting. Here is the progression from sketch to dropping in color. I allowed myself those precious twenty minutes of time and stopped.

Twenty minutes of painting time is the best thing I ever started doing. I get to paint every day, sort of, and stop myself before I make a mess of things. Rather than get bogged down in detail, which was my hallmark, I know I don’t have too much time so I am use brush strokes and color to say what I need to say.

I could have stopped at this session, but I felt that the work needed just one more go to make me feel as if the painting was finished. Each time after the paint dried I felt different about my work. Something about how the paper flattened back down, how the colors looked, gave me confidence I was on the right track.

If I had kept on going past the twenty minutes I might have had to throw it out, as I have done before. I am master of my domain! Yeah, right.

Photos for Friday

New work in progress

Men’s knotted bracelet with Mykonos beads

Women’s knotted bracelet with Mykonos beads

Photos for Friday – an Artist’s Creation is Loved

Design by Dora Sislian Themelis

I was lucky enough to find and purchase these wonderful hand made lampwork beads from a fellow Etsy shop owner. Carol over at Fire in Ice Lampwork Beads makes these beads that say something to me. When I saw them I had to have them. Her work is amazing, you should visit her shop.

Not knowing what I was going to do with them, I just bought them and crossed my fingers I would think of something interesting to make. Since I’ve been playing with knotted cotton cord and bead bracelets, I thought the large holes would make threading them easier. Ideas were coming to me when I mixed them together with beads I already had.

I am so happy with the outcome I just might keep this piece for myself. Mixed together with iridescent ceramic Mykonos beads, they give the piece just the right glow. After I took photos of the finished piece I sent them to Carol with a message showing her how the beads look and I think she was pleased.

A while ago I sold a watercolor painting to a friend. That was exciting enough, but when she later took a photo of the painting framed and hung in it’s place of honor, I was thrilled. It’s a special feeling when the creator of an object can see that their piece is loved.

So, I went over to Carol’s Etsy shop and bought another set of great beads. I can’t wait to get them!

Oh, and by the way…

Sunflowers and More

Six Sunflowers (c) 2011 Dora Sislian Themelis
12×16 Watercolor on Lanaquarelle

I decided to paint these sunflowers one more time and from life, before I had to throw them out. They were getting really dry and ugly. I think I’m finally done with sunflowers. I sketched out the composition and tried my best to keep the colors light before adding darks. They don’t excite me anymore. Not like when I first painted them. I guess it’s expected.

On the distraction front, I am doing well! Isn’t that how it is?

I’ve become obsessed by the colors of beads and this knotting business. It’s become addictive. These red beads look striking against the black of the waxed cotton cord and make me want to play with them again. I’ll be putting these in my Etsy shop soon, along with the blues bracelet from last week. Yum.

The thing with this is that some beads have too small a hole to thread the cotton cord through and it becomes frustrating. I managed.

Now I’m on a mission to use leather instead of the cotton cord. I made myself dizzy searching the online shops for both leather cord and more beads. Yeah, more beads. Beads with some sparkle. Beads with a larger hole so I can play some more. Like I said, addictive.

Sunflowers from Underneath

Under the Sunflowers (c)2011Dora Sislian Themelis
12×16 Watercolor Lanaquarelle paper

Here’s a different view of the sunflowers, from the underside. I thought this was a different angle with different color scheme. Not the typical full face of flowers. I like to shake things up with composition once in a while. Not really into the ordinary or the typical.

Whether this works or not doesn’t really matter. Remembering it’s the process that counts, I painted this with those words in mind.

Process, baby.

Yes, in between I had my distractions. Who doesn’t need a distraction now and then? I most certainly do. Otherwise I could head for the lounge chair in the garden and just gaze at the world. That would be nice, if I didn’t feel guilty to do that.

Painting is work. Lounging is not, unless I call that thinking. So I paint.

Cut Finger, or Not I’m Painting Today

Like I said, I have to paint whether this bandaged finger is in my way or not. Maybe it’s the summer time, but I just don’t feel like doing anything important around here. Who wants to do inside things when the weather is so nice outside?

I do have some things I need to get done, but painting has to come first. Too many days without painting, even the distraction of other creative pursuits, and I get itchy.

This is the last of the sunflower photos and I took my paints out in the garden to paint them. I decided to take a different look with this piece and try to be a little looser with it. I did draw in the composition, but tried using more brush strokes and color changes.

Maybe it works. Maybe it doesn’t. I had to stop before I made mud out of it. I thought I used a little too much water than color. Some how taking the photo of the painting is helping me to see it better. I’m pleased with what I see here rather than the actual work. Maybe it’s just me.

It’s not finished. Another session and it may be done. Now that I’ve painted I think I can go do the things I’ve been putting off. My artist brain hates to do accounting stuff.

It’s Play Time

I’m so happy I had my little tantrum yesterday. I told myself I was just going to do the things that needed doing and get over it! Whatever time it took to clear the table, so to speak, I was going to set aside one hour to play. One hour to just fool around at my desk.

The other day I had taken a few more photographs in my garden. I decided to just upload them from the camera and see what I had. Some photos looked good enough to paint from. I prefer painting from life, but it was okay for now.

I chose a photo and took it to my drawing table, squeezed out the colors I was going to use and just got to it. Without any rhyme or reason I sketched with color on the paper. No objective other than playing with the brush and the paint.

Can you guess that I ended up spending two and a half hours painting? By the time I looked up from the watercolor paper, it was already dark outside and I had no idea what time it was. I was amazed. Yesterday I was having a hissy fit about not painting and today I was painting! Talk about a creative u-turn!

Fall Marigold 14×20″ Watercolor on 140lb coldpress paper

The Energy of Art

After working at straightening up my desk and studio area last week I had that idea for a painting, remember? The painting tools were available and so was I. A good block of time with nothing else to do was before me. At least I had planned from the day before with the sketch, the technique, and the tools. Somehow the synchronicity was there and I took advantage of it.

The instruction in watercolor I had was a disaster, but I’ve been playing with the medium for a while now and whatever I’m doing seems to please me. It may not be how it’s supposed to be used, but hey, I’m allowed to change it up! The technique of just applying the paint to the paper without thinning sounded interesting enough to try. Oil painting is what I’m used to and this seemed close to how I worked in the past. I mixed color on the palette, but then I would mix again on the canvas. It worked for me.

I used a limited palette of basic colors from two different paint companies, Holbein and Maimieri Blu, in tubes. I think I liked the Holbein better, but I’ll have to experiment again in other techniques.

Without wetting the paper first, I dipped into the paint with a large brush. I began to shape the petals of the flower adding color where I felt like it belonged. The photo I used was just a guide for where the light and shadows fell, and for the basic colors. After that I was on my own.

The act of painting was energizing. I could feel the electricity of the connection with the painting surface through the brush, to my fingers holding it, up my arm with my body and mind totally engaged. There was no talking in my head which usually has a hundred conversations going on at once. Delicious silence and all the attention was on the painting process!

The end product was not the agenda. I wasn’t sure what art my painting time would produce and I really didn’t care. To be able to move into that realm of daydream/energy/action was the focus. The means was the medium and the technique, which would justify the end, so to speak.

And the result wasn’t bad either.