Sophie! a new dog painting in progress ...

Here’s the work-in-progress photo of a painting I started today ... Sophie was having a little lie-down this morning after a barking-at-squirrels session in the back yard went a little long. The color combinations of Redbone Coonhound against powder blue garden-y rug and red-and-greenish quilt hanging off the edge of the sofa were irresistible; I just had to take a few reference photos, then I put aside what I had planned to paint today and did this instead.

The last time I painted Sophie by herself she was just on the verge of emerging from puppyhood:

I can’t wait to see what happens with this new one!

Neither can I!

Silly Cats (a redundant phrase?)

My aunt recently did some spring cleaning and asked me if I would like to have this antique coal bucket, complete with a big chunk of actual coal. Right after I set it out on the front porch, I saw that Ray, after his daily roll in red dirt beside the driveway, did some nosing around inside my new acquisition and then settled for a nap.

Why do I suddenly have the tune to “Chim-chimeny, chim-chimeny, chim chim-cheree” running through my head?

P.S. In the middle of uploading these photos I ran downstairs to freshen my coffee, and when I came back, here was Bailey, making like a bear-skin rug on my computer desk. She really cracks me up ... I never knew she could get so flat.

Almost nothing goes better with fresh coffee than a good laugh.

Unless it’s a chocolate croissant.

Awakening

SOLD

Awakening © 2011 by Karen Mathison Schmidt

18 x 24 inches • acrylic on cradled Gessobord

private collection • Puyallup, Washington

I actually finished this one a couple of days ago and published to my Just the Paintings blog, but Ive been battling a cold and haven’t gotten around to posting it here until today. So ... here it is, finished! I know I said I planned to finish this one in oils, but as I got further into it, I was achieving the effect I wanted with the acrylics, so it ended up an acrylic painting. Sometimes (quite often) plans of all kinds get changed in the middle of a painting (or any project, really!) and the best thing to do is just go with the flow. Here are some close-up details:

Painter’s Progress

I had a great painting day working on this one today.

Here are the progress photos:

I started today by adding some definition in the bottom part of the painting, before diving into painting the sky.

This close-up shows how I’m defining the branches and leafy sections of the trees by painting in the negative sky space around them. I love this part!

Painting in the negative space around the branches this way lets me make some of the them really really skinny and delicate looking, adding more texture and variety. Just the way trees are in real life.

Now I’ve started adding in the sunrise colors in the bottom section of the sky.

And here I’ve added a yellow glaze to the sunrise parts of the sky, giving them that morning glow.

And here’s where I stopped today ... 

... to be continued!

Back to work! Again!

Well, after a few weeks of spring cleaning, a mission trip, a porch & patio party, and garden projects, I’m back at the easel with this new one in the works. It’s 18x24, I’ve started the underpainting in acrylic, and I plan to finish it in oils. That’s allowed, you know. You can paint with oil over acrylic, but not the other way around, unless you want the painting to crackle on purpose. Hmmm ... I may try that sometime, just out of curiosity, just to see what happens.

I mean, the universe wouldn’t implode or anything if one painted with acrylics over oils.

Would it?

California fun

Almost Spring © 2011 by Karen Mathison Schmidt
8 x 10 • acrylic on cradled Gessobord

SOLD • private collection, Murfreesboro, Tennessee

Last month my husband, Paul, and I flew to northern California for a visit with Paul’s parents, and so Paul could take part in the reunion of a Bay Area band he used to play with. It was Paul’s friend Joe’s 40th birthday, and for the celebration, Joe got everyone he’s been in a band with back together for a reunion concert. At their first rehearsal Paul caught up on what everyone’s been up to for the last ten years or so since they’ve been together, and it turns out their drummer now plays drums for L-Rey, a popular San Francisco area Christian band.
Pretty cool.

Anyhoo, this painting is from the view from the back balcony of Paul’s parents’ place in Fairfield, California. It rained almost every day while we were there, but the view was still so beautiful. Here’s the actual photo I took:


As you can see, I put my own colorful spin on the scene!

Full-On Springtime

Even though spring doesn’t officially begin for three more weeks, we are experiencing some gorgeous springtime weather at present. These post-frost, pre-mosquito days are my absolute favorite time of year. I went out gathering some of our hundreds of daffodils that are in bloom, some for us, some to share.

I’ve put daffodils on the coffee table in the parlor ...

... where Blue happens to be napping at the moment ...

... daffodils on the dining table ...

... daffodils right inside the front door ...

... even some beside the TV, to remind us of the ACTUAL world while we’re wandering around in TV land.